cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
TV, voice and broadband IP over cable TV networks

In this chapter we describe the key components of a cable TV system that enable these homes to receive voice. TV and broadband (and thus more voice and more and more video applications) over this single media. This integration is the attraction for the end users. The cable industry, as opposed to the DSL industry for example, has a much more standard-based approach that is closely driven by service providers and vendors alike. The notorious DOCSIS protocol, for example, revolutionised the cable industry by providing interoperability between vendors and delivering high speed data services over the cable TV infrastructure. In this chapter, we describe the various components of a broadband and voice-enabled cable infrastructure and discuss the key standards in use and forthcoming in this market place.
Predicting Pre-planting Risk of Stagonospora nodorum blotch in Winter Wheat Using Machine Learning Models

Pre-planting factors have been associated with the late-season severity of Stagonospora nodorum blotch (SNB), caused by the fungal pathogen Parastagonospora nodorum, in winter wheat (Triticum aestivum). The relative importance of these factors in the risk of SNB has not been determined and this knowledge can facilitate disease management decisions prior to planting of the wheat crop. In this study, we examined the performance of multiple regression (MR) and three machine learning algorithms namely artificial neural networks, categorical and regression trees, and random forests (RF), in predicting the pre-planting risk of SNB in wheat. Pre-planting factors tested as potential predictor variables were cultivar resistance, latitude, longitude, previous crop, seeding rate, seed treatment, tillage type, and wheat residue. Disease severity assessed at the end of the growing season was used as the response variable. The models were developed using 431 disease cases (unique combinations of predictors) collected from 2012 to 2014 and these cases were randomly divided into training, validation, and test datasets. Models were evaluated based on the regression of observed against predicted severity values of SNB, sensitivity-specificity ROC analysis, and the Kappa statistic. A strong relationship was observed between late-season severity of SNB and specific pre-planting factors in which latitude, longitude, wheat residue, and cultivar resistance were the most important predictors. The MR model explained 33% of variability in the data, while machine learning models explained 47 to 79% of the total variability. Similarly, the MR model correctly classified 74% of the disease cases, while machine learning models correctly classified 81 to 83% of these cases. Results show that the RF algorithm, which explained 79% of the variability within the data, was the most accurate in predicting the risk of SNB, with an accuracy rate of 93%. The RF algorithm could allow early assessment of the risk of SNB, facilitating sound disease management decisions prior to planting of wheat.
Extended piperidine-piperidinone protein interface mimics.

Minimalist structures, H and I, were designed as protein interface mimics. Attributes of these chemotypes are (i) greater rigidity than conventional peptides, (ii) chiral and nonplanar heterocyclic backbones that are less prone to the hydrophobic aggregation effects, and (iii) potential to be prepared with a variety of side chains corresponding to natural amino acids. Intermediates, however, in the oligo(pyrrolidinone-piperidine)s H syntheses were vulnerable to epimerization. The origins of this epimerization were determined, then the study was focused on oligo(piperidinone–piperidine) compounds I. Mimics I were prepared via iterative couplings; a penta(piperidinone–piperidine) was prepared in this way. A series of lower homologues of this pentamer were crystallized and studied (single crystal X-ray), and four of them were used in a circular dichroism (CD) study. Thus, an estimate of 36 A for the N-to-C distance of a typical conformation of the penta(piperidinone–piperidine) was made. CD spectra of four p...
Handling the Neutral Vote in Paired Comparison Product Testing

The number of “no preference” responses in a paired comparison test can definitely be influenced by the wording of the question. More important, allocation of such responses among the total test sc...
Risk of type 2 diabetes: health care provider perceptions of prevention adherence.

Abstract The aim of the current study was to describe health care providers' perceptions as to why individuals may or may not follow recommendations for reducing risk of developing type 2 diabetes. A grounded theory research design guided data collection and analysis. Data were collected from 16 health care providers through semi-structured interviews. Results demonstrated that health care providers perceived prevention adherence as related to individual characteristics of the patient and activities of the provider. Specifically, providers described assessment of patient-based characteristics associated with behavior, context, and traits. In addition, providers discussed giving attention to the patient–provider relationship and helping the patient incorporate small lifestyle changes. Providers might utilize social cognitive theory to understand personal and socio-structural aspects of adherence. In addition, providers should focus assessment and relationship building efforts on factors that support self-efficacy.
Ab Initio Reaction Kinetics of CH3OĊ(═O) and ĊH2OC(═O)H Radicals.

The dissociation and isomerization kinetics of the methyl ester combustion intermediates methoxycarbonyl radical (CH3OĊ(═O)) and (formyloxy)methyl radical (ĊH2OC(═O)H) are investigated theoretically using high-level ab initio methods and Rice–Ramsperger–Kassel–Marcus (RRKM)/master equation (ME) theory. Geometries obtained at the hybrid density functional theory (DFT) and coupled cluster singles and doubles with perturbative triples correction (CCSD(T)) levels of theory are found to be similar. We employ high-level ab initio wave function methods to refine the potential energy surface: CCSD(T), multireference singles and doubles configuration interaction (MRSDCI) with the Davidson–Silver (DS) correction, and multireference averaged coupled-pair functional (MRACPF2) theory. MRSDCI+DS and MRACPF2 capture the multiconfigurational character of transition states (TSs) and predict lower barrier heights than CCSD(T). The temperature- and pressure-dependent rate coefficients are computed using RRKM/ME theory in th...
Exploring strategies for closed-loop cavity flow control

One of the current three main thrust areas of the Collaborative Center of Control Science (CCCS) at The Ohio State University is feedback control of aerodynamic flows. Synergistic capabilities of the flow control team include all of the required multidisciplinary areas of flow simulations, low-dimensional and reduced-order modeling, controller design, and experimental integration and implementation of the components along with actuators and sensors. The initial application chosen for study is closed-loop control of shallow subsonic cavity flows. We have made significant progress in the development of various components necessary for reduced-order model based control strategy, which will be presented and discussed in this paper. Stochastic estimation was used to show that surface pressure measurements along with the reduced-order model based on flow-field variables can be used for closed-loop control. Linear controllers such as H ∞ , Smith predictor, and PID were implemented experimentally with various degrees of success. The results showed limitations of linear controllers for cavity flow with inherent nonlinear dynamics. Detailed experimental work further explored the physics and showed the highly non-linear nature of the cavity flow and the effects of forcing on the flow structure.
An integrated classification scheme for mapping estimates and errors of estimation from the American Community Survey

Abstract Demographic and socio-economic information provided by the American Community Survey (ACS) have been increasingly relied upon in many planning and decision making contexts due to its timely and current estimates. However, ACS estimates are well known to be subject to larger sampling errors with a much smaller sample size compared with the decennial census data. To support the assessment of the reliability of ACS estimates, the US Census Bureau publishes a margin of error at the 90% confidence level alongside each estimate. While data error or uncertainty in ACS estimates has been widely acknowledged, little has been done to devise methods accounting for such error or uncertainty. This article focuses on addressing ACS data uncertainty issues in choropleth mapping, one of the most widely used methods to visually explore spatial distributions of demographic and socio-economic data. A new classification method is developed to explicitly integrate errors of estimation in the assessment of within-class variation and the associated groupings. The proposed method is applied to mapping the 2009–2013 ACS estimates of median household income at various scales. Results are compared with those generated using existing classification methods to demonstrate the effectiveness of the new classification scheme.
The Hideous Noise of Prayer: The Cloud of Unknowing on the Syllable-Word

This essay is an account of the “litil worde of o silable” mentioned several times in The Cloud of Unknowing. Despite the fact that its utterance makes up a prayer whose practice is the work of unknowing itself, the “litil worde” has been given surprisingly little attention. My aim here is first of all to describe as accurately as possible the procedure of prayer taught in the Cloud, and secondly to suggest that this procedure can best be understood in the terms provided by the medieval linguistic sciences, and notably grammar. As I reconstruct it here, the prayer consists in the production of an utterance that is both a syllable and a word, and thus neither. It occurs in the repetition of this utterance, and the “unknowing” that it brings about is nothing else than the experience of confusion that momentarily afflicts the mind of someone repeating a word to the point of nonsense.
Pacing-induced congenital heart defects assessed by OCT(Conference Presentation)

The role of hemodynamics in early heart development is poorly understood. In order to successfully assess the impact of hemodynamics on development, we need to monitor and perturb blood flow, and quantify the resultant effects on morphology. Here, we have utilized cardiac optical pacing to create regurgitant flow in embryonic hearts and OCT to quantify regurgitation percentage and resultant morphology. Embryonic quail in a shell-less culture were optically paced at 3 Hz (well above the intrinsic rate or 1.33-1.67 Hz) on day 2 of development (3-4 weeks human) for 5 minutes. The pacing fatigued the heart and led to a prolonged period (> 1 hour) of increased regurgitant flow. Embryos were kept alive until day 3 (cardiac looping - 4-5 weeks human) or day 8 (4 chambered heart - 8 weeks human) to quantify resultant morphologic changes with OCT. All paced embryos imaged at day 3 displayed cardiac defects. The extent of regurgitant flow immediately after pacing was correlated with cardiac cushion size 24-hours post pacing (p-value < 0.01) with higher regurgitation leading to smaller cushions. Almost all embryos (16/18) surviving to day 8 exhibited congenital heart defects (CHDs) including 11/18 with valve defects, 5/18 with ventricular septal defects and 5/18 with hypoplastic right ventricles. Our data suggests that regurgitant flow leads to smaller cushions, which develop into abnormal valves and septa. Our model produces similar phenotypes as found in our fetal alcohol syndrome and velo-cardio-facial/DiGeorge syndrome models suggesting that hemodynamics plays a role in these syndromes as well. Utilizing OCT and optical pacing to understand hemodynamics in development is an important step towards determining CHD mechanisms and ultimately developing earlier treatments.
STUDY ON WASTEWATER TREATMENT OF WATER GEL EXPLOSIVE

This paper deals with the water gel explosive containing high level of ammonia nitrogen.The coagulation,chemical treatment,microorganical treatment have been made in laboratory,and the process of pre-settling–chemical–biochemical treatment is selected.By the selected process,the treated water can meet the national discharge standard.
Mechanical stresses at the cathode–electrolyte interface in lithium-ion batteries

Experimental studies have shown capacity loss and impedance rise on the surfaces of cathode particles during (dis)charging in lithium-ion batteries. However, there are surprisingly few studies focusing on the cathode–electrolyte interface. The current study uses multiphysics finite element models to understand fluid–structure interactions in a half-cell battery system. Effects of C-rate, particle sizes, lithiation, and phase transformation of the cathode at the interface are investigated. Results demonstrate that doubling the particle size results in larger available lithium intercalation areas, giving rise to increased tension 1.40 times and compression 1.82 times at the interface. Moreover, higher C-rate with high lithium-ion concentration gradient results in higher mechanical stresses at the interface. These coupling factors are strongly related to the experimentally observed battery degradation. Our simulations demonstrate that both electrode and electrolyte have pronounced effects when investigating mechanical stresses at the electrode–electrolyte interface.
Resistance to Non-glycopeptide Agents in Serious Staphylococcus aureus Infections

The role of vancomycin in the treatment of serious Staphylococcus aureus infections, both methicillin-susceptible and methicillin-resistant, is becoming increasingly ineffective due to increasing MIC and failure. The development of reduced vancomycin susceptibility by S. aureus to glycopeptides highlights the need for clinicians to reexamine the roles of non-glycopeptide therapy. As the use of these alternative non-glycopeptides antimicrobials increases, it will become pertinent to monitor the rates of resistance. Large surveillance programs have provided data for resistance against S. aureus for the non-glycopeptides (daptomycin, ceftaroline, tigecycline, linezolid, and tedizolid). The current published literatures suggest that worldwide resistance rates to these non-glycopeptides for serious MRSA infections are still low. Implementation of antimicrobial stewardship programs will be crucial in prevention of resistance of these antimicrobials against S. aureus.
Privacy Protection Scheme for eHealth Systems: A Stochastic Geometry Approach

The technological advancements in the health care system have made possible the massive integration of biomedical sensors for monitoring patients' health and disease progression. In this paper, we consider a three tier medical body area network (MBAN): intra-MBAN, inter-MBAN, and beyond-MBAN. The intra-MBAN transmits sensors' data to a controller, which in turn transmits them in the inter-MBAN tier to an access device like a PDA or a tablet device, usually connected to a patient's medical database. The access device then serves as a mean of communication between intra-MBAN and beyond-MBAN to access the hospital information systems. This widely deployed design in hospitals places security and privacy violation threats on the spotlight of attention, especially in the inter-MBAN tier. This has motivated us to optimize the average MBAN controller transmit power that minimizes the probability of eavesdroppers overhearing the communication, using tools from stochastic geometry. We analyze this privacy protection scheme for eHealth systems through simulations. Results show that the proposed scheme achieves higher privacy protection, but at the expense of reduced coverage.
Notes on the Fauna of the Chipola Formation- XIII the Family Limidae (Mollusca: Bivalvia)

In 1898 Dall described Lima (Lima) tampaensis from the "Chipolan Oligocene, near Bartow, and on the shores of Hillsborough Bay, near Tampa, Florida" (1898. p. 766, pl. 35, fig. 18). Subsequently in the same work he failed to include the species in his faunal lists from the Tampa region but did, apparently inadvertently, list it (1 903, p. 1578) as an element in the fauna of "The Chipola Beds" with the prefix "C," which was said to include species from the "Chipola River at Ten-Mile Creek, and upper bed at McClellan's farm." Schuchert and Dall (1905, p. 354) give the type locality for the species as being "Hillsborough Bay, near Tampa, Florida." This erroneous record is the only prior indication of the occurrence of any limid species in the Chipola fauna. In fact, Gardner's report of "imperfect and ... immature" individuals from the Oak Grove Sand, which she somewhat uncertainly identified (1926, p. 53) as Lima (Mantellum) carolinensis Dall, constitutes the only prior record of any species of the family Limidae within the fauna of the entire Alum Bluff Group.
Big Government Against Social Responsibility: A Vulnerability Critique of Privatization's Public Priorities

Privatization includes not just outsourcing government functions but also policies that do the inverse by embedding private firms in public institutions and processes. Rather than simply shrinking government, these privatization policies re-orient government toward a neoliberal ideal of disembodied business organization as the most deserving political subject. The corporate citizen both upgrades and undercuts the more traditional liberal theory centering government on an ideal of an autonomous human individual free from bodily or social dependency. In contrast, Martha Fineman’s theory of the Vulnerable Subject centers law on the embodied human condition, illuminating human needs for support and protection as the inevitable and universal ground of meaningful power and prosperity. Using the lens of vulnerability, this chapter first examines how the prevailing neoliberal law and economic thinking promotes shifting public power and protection to make unequal and disembodied private financial gains the foundational measure of the public interest. For example, in their book Solomon’s Knot, law and economics scholars Robert Cooter & __ advocate solving global poverty by prioritizing government protection for private financial investors and private “innovators” over protection and spending for direct human needs (though they do acknowledge the value of some basic floor). Second, the chapter analyzes an example of recent “inverse” privatization policy: New York State’s higher education initiatives shifting public resources and authority away from support of students, education, and research, to enhance direct support for private businesses. Through one policy, public university campuses have become tax-free economic development zones aimed at attracting and promoting private sector businesses. This policy reinforces the assumption that developing private capital should take priority over developing human capital – or human wisdom and well-being. Further, it reinforces the idea that the increased vulnerability of students, faculty, and academic values from recent austerity and privatization measures results from the failure or incapacity of public power, rather than from the re-direction of public power. By recognizing human needs for collective support as universal and productive, vulnerability theory affirms an embodied human public as the primary measure and means of legitimate government authority.
‘Boundless informant’: Insecurity in the age of ubiquitous surveillance:

This article considers how technological revolution in digital technologies is effecting scholarship, activism, and privacy in the United States. Examining the revelations of Edward Snowden about N...
Generalized pustular psoriasis treated with apremilast in a patient with multiple medical comorbidities

Author(s): Jeon, Caleb; Nakamura, Mio; Sekhon, Sahil; Yan, Di; Wu, Jashin J; Liao, Wilson; Bhutani, Tina
Shaping Conditions and the Stability of Systems with Parameter Uncertainty

Let ϕ (s, a) = ϕ0 (s) + a1ϕ1 (s) + a2ϕ2 (s) +...+ ϕk (s) = ϕ0 (s) + q (s, a) be a family of real polynomials in s, with coefficients that depend linearly on a. which are confined in a k dimensional hypercube Ωa. Let ϕ0 (s) be stable of degree n and the ϕ1 (s) polynomials (i ≥ 1) of degree less than n. It follows from the Nyquist Theorem that the family ϕ (s, a) is stable if and only if the complex number ϕ0 (jω) lies outside the set of complex numbers -q(jω, Ωa) for every real ω. In this paper we show that -q(jω, Ωa), the so called “-q locus”, is in general a 2k convex parpolygon — a convex polygon with an even number of sides (2k) in which opposite sides are equal and parallel. We then exploit this special structure and show that to test for stability only a finite number of frequency checks need to be done. The number of critical frequencies is shown to be polynomial in k, 0(k3), and these frequencies correspond to the real nonnegative roots of some polynomials.
Palynomorph evidence for tropical climate stability in the Gulf of Papua, Papua New Guinea, over the latest marine transgression and highstand (14,500 years BP to today)

Abstract Three sediment cores (MV-41, MV-46, and MD-50) from the Gulf of Papua (GoP), Papua New Guinea, were analyzed to assess changes in climatic, oceanographic, and sedimentological conditions over the last 14.5 kyr. Palynomorphs, which were isolated from sediment core samples, were collected at approximately 0.5-m intervals using a strong acid and oxidant (MD-50)/non-oxidant (MV-41, MV-46) procedure. Radiocarbon (14C) stable isotope geochronology, magnetic susceptibility, stable isotope analysis (MD-50 only; Oxygen-18 [18O] and Carbon-13 [13C]), and clay mineral maturity analysis were also completed for each core. Palynological data indicate that climatic conditions at sea level have remained warm, wet, and stable for the past 14.5 kyr with sea surface temperatures in the GoP above 14 °C. Potential decreases in vegetative cover marked the Younger Dryas interval (12.5–11.5 kyr BP), as indicated by reduced pollen and spore recovery. The end of the latest marine transgression (and the subsequent return to eustatic sea level highstand) is clearly delineated by increases in marine palynomorph recovery and decreases in mangrove pollen at approximately 5 kyr BP. An increase in seasonality and potential El Nino Southern Oscillation variability is observed in MD-50's oxygen isotope results at ∼5 kyr BP. This is not supported by the palynomorph record, likely because of the sampling interval and dilution by tropical pollen flora, which indicates stable climatic conditions throughout the last 14.5 kyr. Sediment transport pathways in the GoP remained fairly constant throughout the time interval, which is supported by the lack of major changes in palynomorph assemblage composition.
Using structural topic modeling to identify latent topics and trends in aviation incident reports

Abstract The Aviation Safety Reporting System includes over a million confidential reports describing aviation safety incidents. Natural language processing techniques allow for relatively rapid and largely automated analysis of large collections of text data. Interpretation of the results and further investigations by subject matter experts can produce meaningful results. This explains the many commercial and academic applications of natural language processing to aviation safety reports. Relatively few published articles have, however, employed topic modeling, an approach that can identify latent structure within a corpus of documents. Topic modeling is more flexible and relies less on subject matter experts than alternative document categorization and clustering methods. It can, for example, uncover any number of topics hidden in a set of incident reports that have been, or would be, assigned to the same category when using labels and methods applied in earlier research. This article describes the application of structural topic modeling to Aviation Safety Reporting System data. The application identifies known issues. The method also reveals previously unreported connections. Sample results reported here highlight fuel pump, tank, and landing gear issues and the relative insignificance of smoke and fire issues for private aircraft. The results also reveal the prominence of the Quiet Bridge Visual and Tip Toe Visual approach paths at San Francisco International Airport in safety incident reports. These results would, ideally, be verified by subject matter experts before being used to set priorities when planning future safety studies.
Gemini: Guest-transparent honey files via hypervisor-level access redirection

Abstract Data safety has become a critical problem in the face of various cyber-attacks aiming at stealing or divulging sensitive information. In the event that adversaries have gained access to a system storing classified data, such crucial systems should actively protect the integrity of this data. To purposely deceive an attacker, we propose that accesses to sensitive data can be dynamically partitioned to prevent malicious tampering. In this paper, we present G emini , a virtualization-based system to transparently redirect accesses to classified files based on the context of the access (e.g., process, user, time-of-day, etc.). If an access violates preconfigured data-use policies then it will be rerouted to a honey version of the file, specifically crafted to be manipulated by the adversary. Thus, G emini transforms static, sensitive files into moving targets and provides strong transparency and tamper-resistance as it is located at the hypervisor level. Our evaluation shows that G emini effectively neutralizes several real-world attacks on various sensitive files and can be integrated seamlessly into current cloud environments.
¿Para bien de… quién? La mentira, la manipulación psicológica y las relaciones afectivas en dos obras del teatro costarricense contemporáneo

Este estudio examina el uso de la mentira y de la omision entre relaciones afectivas. Supuestamente se miente para bien del ser querido, pero en todos los casos, resulta que la persona que miente oculta cosas del otro que pueden causarle dano a ambas la persona y la relacion. El engano al nivel personal puede extrapolarse al nivel nacional y para servir como critica social de la corrupcion evidente en la sociedad costarricense actual.
Energy-Efficient Classification for Resource-Constrained Biomedical Applications

Biomedical applications often require classifiers that are both accurate and cheap to implement. Today, deep neural networks achieve the state-of-the-art accuracy in most learning tasks that involve large data sets of unstructured data. However, the application of deep learning techniques may not be beneficial in problems with limited training sets and computational resources, or under domain-specific test time constraints. Among other algorithms, ensembles of decision trees, particularly the gradient boosted models have recently been very successful in machine learning competitions. Here, we propose an efficient hardware architecture to implement gradient boosted trees in applications under stringent power, area, and delay constraints, such as medical devices. Specifically, we introduce the concepts of asynchronous tree operation and sequential feature extraction to achieve an unprecedented energy and area efficiency. The proposed architecture is evaluated in automated seizure detection for epilepsy, using 3074 h of intracranial EEG data from 26 patients with 393 seizures. Average F1 scores of 99.23% and 87.86% are achieved for random and block-wise splitting of data into train/test sets, respectively, with an average detection latency of 1.1 s. The proposed classifier is fabricated in a 65-nm TSMC process, consuming 41.2 nJ/class in a total area of $540\times 1850\,\,\mathrm {\mu m}^{2}$ . This design improves the state-of-the-art by $27\times $ reduction in energy-area-latency product. Moreover, the proposed gradient-boosting architecture offers the flexibility to accommodate variable tree counts specific to each patient, to trade the predictive accuracy with energy. This patient-specific and energy-quality scalable classifier holds great promise for low-power sensor data classification in biomedical applications.
NEW WORLD, PEOPLING OF

The archaeological, palaeo-climatic, bio-anthropological, and other evidence for the first Americans is discussed in terms of the date of entry into the New World, the different types of subsistence practices employed by people to disperse across the varying environments of the New World. Also presented are the different possible migration routes throughout the Americas as well as the extinction of megafauna and the lasting cultural contributions of the first Americans.
Nanomaterial-Based Piezoelectric Actuators and Sensors

Due to the unique structure of nanomaterials, improved material properties can be achieved in addition to the added multifunctionality of these materials. Such unique feature is a key factor in the design and development of sensors and actuators comprised of functional nanomaterials. Along this line of reasoning, this chapter presents an overview of advances in nanomaterial-based actuators and sensors utilizing either piezoelectric materials or possessing piezoelectric properties. More specifically, piezoelectric properties of nanotubes are disclosed and detailed, with a natural extension to nanotube-based piezoelectric sensors and actuators. As a byproduct of this arrangement, structural damping becomes possible using nanotube-based composites. As a future pathway toward the development of next-generation sensors and actuators comprised of nanomaterials, piezoelectric nanocomposites with tunable properties, as well as electronic textiles consisting of functional nanomaterials, are also briefly introduced and discussed.
Headache in Palliative Care

Headaches comprise a relatively common pain condition, with etiologies ranging from benign to life-threatening. The International Headache Society categorizes headaches into primary, such as migraine, cluster or tension, and secondary, such as due to underlying infection, neoplasm or other disease process. It is crucial to recognize life-threatening causes, as well as to identify benign but incapacitating etiologies. This chapter focuses on the differential diagnosis for refractory headache patients, with particular emphasis on two of the most common and disabling headache disorders, migraine and cluster headache.
An Investigation Into How Motivational Factors Differed Among Individuals Engaging in CrossFit Training

With few adults completing recommended levels of aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities, it is important to examine the motives of those who do, as well as how those motives might differ by pa...
Amination of 1-hexanol on bimetallic AuPd/TiO2 catalysts

AuPd/TiO2 catalysts, synthesized using controlled surface reactions, are active for the gas-phase amination of 1-hexanol using ammonia. The bimetallic active sites for these catalysts have been characterized using CO chemisorption and XAS techniques, and the absence of monometallic Pd species in the AuPd catalysts was confirmed using UV-vis and STEM-EDS analysis. The bimetallic catalysts exhibit synergy between Au and Pd, as the rate of hexanol conversion increases from 8.7 μmol ks−1 (μmol total Pd)−1 over Pd/TiO2 to up to 42 μmol ks−1 (μmol total Pd)−1 over AuPd/TiO2 with a Pd/Au atomic ratio of 0.06. The rate of hexanol conversion is also enhanced with respect to Au content, with a 5-fold increase in the total Au-normalized rate from Au/TiO2 to AuPd0.67/TiO2. As Pd is added to Au/TiO2 in increasing quantities, the production rate of primary species (i.e., hexylamine and hexanenitrile) is preferentially increased. The rate of dihexylamine production increases to a lesser extent, while trihexylamine formation remains relatively constant across Pd loadings. Moreover, trihexylamine, which cannot be formed via the condensation of dihexylamine and hexanol, is shown to be produced via the secondary aldimine, N-hexylidene hexylamine. The AuPd bimetallic catalysts also exhibit reduced hydrogenolysis activity compared to monometallic Pd/TiO2.
Validity and Reliability of an Expanded Vegetable Questionnaire Among Elementary School Children

Background The purpose of this study was to expand the School Physical Activity and Nutrition questionnaire to include a greater variety of vegetables and to evaluate the relative validity and reliability of these revised items. Objectives This study utilized 2 convenience samples of third to fifth graders for an analysis: validity (n = 70) and reliability (n = 76). Validity was assessed by comparing questionnaire items with vegetable intake reported from a 24-hour dietary recall covering the same reference period. Reliability estimates were assessed via same-day test-retest. Results Agreement correlations ranged from 0.35 to 0.71. Kappa statistics varied from 0.16 to 0.66. Percentage agreements ranged from 57% to 87%. Test-retest Spearman coefficients were greater than 0.50 for 6 items, weighted Kappa values were greater than 0.40 for all 7 items, and percentage agreement exceeded 75% for 5 items. Conclusions Results suggest that the questionnaire is a valid and reliable measure of the previous day's vegetable intake in third- to fifth-grade students. This trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov as NCT02668744.
Hotspot coevolution at protein-protein interfaces is a key identifier of native protein complexes

Abstract Protein-protein interactions play a key role in mediating numerous biological functions, with more than half the proteins in living organisms existing as either homo- or hetero-oligomeric assemblies. Protein subunits that form oligomers minimize the free energy of the complex, but exhaustive computational search-based docking methods have not comprehensively addressed the protein docking challenge of distinguishing a natively bound complex from non-native forms. In this study, we propose a scoring function, KFC-E, that accounts for both conservation and coevolution of putative binding hotspot residues at protein-protein interfaces. For a benchmark set of 53 bound complexes, KFC-E identifies a near-native binding mode as the top-scoring pose in 38% and in the top 5 in 55% of the complexes. For a set of 17 unbound complexes, KFC-E identifies a near-native pose in the top 10 ranked poses in more than 50% of the cases. By contrast, a scoring function that incorporates information on coevolution at predicted non-hotspots performs poorly by comparison. Our study highlights the importance of coevolution at hotspot residues in forming natively bound complexes and suggests a novel approach for coevolutionary scoring in protein docking. Author Summary A fundamental problem in biology is to distinguish between the native and non-native bound forms of protein-protein complexes. Experimental methods are often used to detect the native bound forms of proteins but, are demanding in terms of time and resources. Computational approaches have proven to be a useful alternative; they sample the different binding configurations for a pair of interacting proteins and then use an heuristic or physical model to score them. In this study we propose a new scoring approach, KFC-E, which focuses on the evolutionary contributions from a subset of key interface residues (hotspots) to identify native bound complexes. KFC-E capitalizes on the wealth of information in protein sequence databases by incorporating residue-level conservation and coevolution of putative binding hotspots. As hotspot residues mediate the binding energetics of protein-protein interactions, we hypothesize that the knowledge of putative hotspots coupled with their evolutionary information should be helpful in the identification of native bound protein-protein complexes.
Acculturating the Traditional Chinese Medicine: A Culture-Centered Study of Chinese International Students’ Idealization of Medical Integration during Sojourns

ABSTRACTTo better understand the Chinese international students’ barrier to the U.S. health and medical system, this study investigates the students’ understandings of Traditional Chinese medicines...
Synthesis and structure of push–pull merocyanines based on barbituric and thio­barbituric acid

Two compounds, 1,3-diethyl-5-{(2E,4E)-6-[(E)-1,3,3-tri­methyl­indolin-2-yl­idene]hexa-2,4-dien-1-yl­idene}pyrimidine-2,4,6(1H,3H,5H)-trione or TMI, C25H29N3O3, and 1,3-diethyl-2-sulfanyl­idene-5-[2-(1,3,3-tri­methyl­indolin-2-yl­idene)ethyl­idene]di­hydro­pyrimidine-4,6(1H,5H)-dione or DTB, C21H25N3O2S, have been crystallized and studied. These compounds contain the same indole derivative donor group and differ in their acceptor groups (in TMI it contains oxygen in the para position, and in DTB sulfur) and the length of the π-bridge. In both materials, mol­ecules are packed in a herringbone manner with differences in the twist and fold angles. In both structures, the mol­ecules are connected by weak C—H⋯O and/or C—H⋯S bonds.
Caring and Uncaring Teacher Practices: Examples From Past Offer Guidance for Present and Hope for Future:

This article employs narrative inquiry to illuminate how teachers’ embodied culture of care, or lack thereof, effects African American students. The majority teacher (young, White, female) often st...
The acute muscular response to passive movement and blood flow restriction.

Purpose To compare the acute effects of passive movement combined with blood flow restriction (PM + BFR) to passive movement (PM) or blood flow restriction alone (BFR). Methods A total of 20 healthy participants completed: time control (TC), PM, BFR and PM + BFR (one per leg, over 2 days; randomized). For PM, a dynamometer moved the leg through 3 sets of 15 knee extensions/flexions (90° at 45°/second). For BFR, a cuff was inflated to 80% arterial occlusion pressure on the upper leg. Measurements consisted of anterior muscle thickness at 60% and 70% of the upper leg before and after (-0, -5 and -10 min) conditions, ratings of perceived effort and discomfort before conditions and after each set, and of the vastus lateralis during conditions. Data, presented as mean (SD), were compared using Bayesian RMANOVA, except for perceived effort and discomfort, which were compared using a Friedman's test (non-parametric). Results 60% (Δcm before-after-0: TC = 0.04 [0.09], PM = -0.01 [0.15], BFR = 0.00 [0.11], PM + BFR = 0.01 [0.22]) and 70% (Δcm before-after-0: TC = 0.01 [0.09], PM = -0.01 [0.15], BFR = 0.02 [0.11], PM + BFR = -0.03 [0.22]) muscle thickness did not change. Perceived effort was greater than TC following PM (p = .05) and PM + BFR (p = .001). Perceived discomfort was greater following BFR and PM + BFR compared to TC (all p ≤ .002) and PM (all p ≤ .010). Changes in deoxygenation (e.g. channel 1; ΔμM start set 1-end set 3: TC = 0.9 [1.2], PM = -1.2 [1.9], BFR = 10.3 [2.7], PM + BFR = 10.3 [3.0]) were generally greater with BFR and PM + BFR (BFinclusion = 1.210e + 13). Conclusion Acute muscular responses to PM + BFR are not augmented over the effect of BFR alone.
Consumers’ acceptability and perceptions toward the consumption of hydroponically and soil grown broccoli microgreens

Abstract Microgreens are young and immature plants that are harvested after the development of the cotyledon leaves, or seed leaves. Because of their potent flavors and appealing sensory qualities, microgreens have gained popularity. This study aimed to investigate the differences in sensory attributes and consumers' perception between microgreens from commercial and local farms. Three samples of broccoli microgreens, including commercial hydroponically grown, local hydroponically grown, and local soil grown, respectively, were evaluated in this study. A total of 150 participants completed an acceptability study of broccoli microgreens and answered questions regarding perceived pricing, perceived benefits, and their willingness-to-buy. Overall, the participants rated the microgreens from the local farm as more favorable, regardless of growing method. The commercial microgreen sample from the local grocery had the lowest scores on all sensory attributes. The results also indicated that both sensory evaluation and consumers' perceived benefits present important roles in consumers' reference and consumption of microgreens. Pricing, however, did not show significant and direct effect on consumers' purchase intention. Consumers’ purchase intention was more affected by the sensory quality and perceived benefits than the pricing, in the case of broccoli microgreens. This study contributes to the literature of microgreens consumption and provides practical implications to help farmers and food retailers in the microgreens market.
Teaching and Learning amid Demographic Change: A Thematic Review of School Responses to Newcomer Students in the New Latinx Diaspora

Immigration from Mexico and Central America to the United States has resulted in dramatic demographic changes in communities across the country since the early 1990s. Newcomers and longstanding res...
Malunions: Introduction and Brief Overview

Although the diagnosis of a malunion is fairly straightforward, the evaluation and management can be somewhat challenging. In both the upper and lower extremities, a malunion can result in severe functional problems. Due to the weight-bearing requirements of the lower extremity, malunions can lead to gait disturbances, low back pain, and even the development of post-traumatic arthritis which can be debilitating. In managing these malunions, a thorough understanding of the factors that can lead to a malunion is required, both in general principle and in particular as related to the specific area involved. Although many malunions can occur due to neglect (lesser developed countries) or nonoperative management, patient factors as well as surgical factors can come into play. It is important to understand how malunions can be classified which can guide treatment principles. The evaluation requires a history of the original injury including the treatment rendered, medical history of the patient to include a social history with regard to habits, and a careful physical exam. A critical analysis of the original treatment is required. If operative intervention was performed, the implants used should be critically evaluated as to the technique and appropriateness of the fixation construct. Appropriate radiographs, laboratory studies, and advanced imaging may be warranted. Infection must always be suspected and ruled out. The corrective osteotomy must be carefully planned out by type and location as well as method of stabilization for a successful outcome.
Single-Cell RNA Sequencing of Developing Ears Facilitates Functional Analysis and Trait Candidate Gene Discovery in Maize

Crop productivity depends on activity of meristems that produce optimized plant architectures, including that of the maize ear. A comprehensive understanding of development requires insight into the full diversity of cell types and developmental domains, and the gene networks required to specify them. Until now, these were identified primarily by morphology and insights from classical genetics, and insights are limited by genetic redundancy and pleiotropy. Here, we investigated the transcriptional profiles of 12,525 single cells from developing maize ear inflorescence primordia. The resulting developmental atlas provides the first comprehensive single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) map of an inflorescence. We validated our results by mRNA in situ hybridization and by Fluorescence-Activated Cell Sorting (FACS) RNA-seq, and show how these data may facilitate genetic studies by predicting genetic redundancy, integrating transcriptional networks, and identifying candidate genes associated with crop yield traits.
Simple Parabiotic Chamber for the Study of Microorganisms in Organ Culture

A simple parabiotic chamber which is easy to manipulate, does not leak, allows microscopic examination of organ cultures, and is easy to sterilize is described.
Erythroblastosis fetalis due to blood type incompatibility.

Abstract 1. 1. A case of erythroblastosis fetalis due to blood type A and O incompatibility, with favorable results, is presented. 2. 2. After receiving two transfusions totalling 150 c.c. of Rh-negative, type A blood, the injection of a third transfusion caused a severe reaction. This occurred on two occasions and at two different institutions.
Off-price versus price-off: Use of discriminant analysis to identify competitive differences across retail formats

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to better understand the unique competitive positioning characteristics of off-price retailers and how they compare to other types of retailers. The authors compare off-price and upscale off-price retailers with four major formats of retailers: first, discount department store/warehouse club retailers; second, moderate department store retailers; third, department store retailers; and finally, specialty department store retailers. Design/methodology/approach – The paper employs a representative sample that was randomly drawn from four primary metropolitan cities in the USA. The data were collected using telephone interviews by a prominent, marketing research firm. A series of discriminant analyses were conducted to examine the data. Findings – The findings of the paper indicate that the off-price formats were consistently positioned at extreme points along the price/value continuum, signifying the strongest value-orientation among the other retail formats. The author...
How Global Can Global Public Reason Be? Thinking Through the Secular Problematics of Global Human Rights Discourse

Joshua Cohen has recently re-modelled Rawls account of public reason into an explicitly global enterprise designed to both engage and regulate human rights discourses. Global public reason is a workhorse of a concept. It not only comes from all peoples and applies to all their varied polities, it also accomplishes a number of tasks including serving as a basis for global justice in an ethically pluralist world by, among other things, providing a framework for legitimating conduct within and between different polities and serving as a common form of practical reason whose content –which conceptions of human rights are an indispensible element of - is potentially common to all. However it is unclear just how global or compelling, global public reason can be and hence how many possible rights discourses it can effectively and/or critically engage. This paper asks a related question of Cohen: Does Cohen’s account of global public reason implicitly invoke a larger secular sensibility despite his wishes not to do so? I will argue that it does but that this is not necessarily a fatal flaw. Turning to the recent works of Charles Taylor, Wendy Brown Seyla Benhabib and Pheng Cheah I will sketch out a secular sensibility that can advance a justificatory minimalist account of human rights in more robust manner than what Cohen offers.
Physical processes for the onset of magnetospheric substorms

There are at least three important advances in observational as well as theoretical understanding of substorm processes during the last several years; they are: (i) the ‘V-shaped’ potential structure for auroral acceleration, (ii) deflation as the cause of thinning of the distant plasma sheet, and (iii) interruption and subsequent diversion of the cross-tail current during the expansive phase of magnetospheric substorms. We suggest a possible chain of processes, including (i), (ii) and (iii) as vital parts, which leads to substorm onset.