cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Motivational Subtypes of Nonmedical Use of Prescription Medications: Results From a National Study

Abstract Purpose Very little research has examined the heterogeneity associated with the nonmedical use of prescription medications (NUPM) in nationally representative samples of adolescents. The main objectives of this study were to (1) identify motivational subtypes of past-year NUPM among high school seniors in the United States using a person-centered approach, and (2) examine the associations among motivational subtypes and characteristics of substance abuse (i.e., route of administration, co-ingestion, and subjective high). Methods Self-administered questionnaires as part of the Monitoring the Future study were completed by nationally representative samples of high school seniors (modal age, 18 years). The sample consisted of five cohorts (senior years of 2002–2006) made up of 12,431 high school seniors in total, of which 53% were women. Results Approximately 75% of past-year nonmedical users of prescription opioids, stimulants, and tranquilizers endorsed more than one motive. Latent class analysis indicated five motivational subtypes associated with nonmedical use of prescription opioids (experiment, relax, get high, pain relief, and affect regulation), four subtypes of prescription stimulants (weight loss/enhance energy, enhance energy/awake/high, experiment, and affect regulation), and five subtypes of prescription tranquilizers (experiment, get high, relax/sleep, relax, affect regulation). Recreational subtypes were positively associated with characteristics of substance abuse, whereas self-treatment subtypes were associated with medical use before nonmedical use. Conclusions Because multiple motives underlie NUPM, identifying subgroups of individuals who endorse combinations of motives, versus a single motive, will better inform intervention efforts to reduce nonmedical prescription medication use.
The use of digital filter initialization to diagnose the mesoscale circulation and vertical motion in the California coastal transition zone

A dynamical method of initializing the primitive equations is tested and used to diagnose the three-dimensional circulation associated with jets and eddies as found in the California coastal transition zone (CTZ). The initialization method, referred to as digital filter initialization (DFI), was recently developed by [Monthly Weather Review 120 (1992) 1019] for use in an intermittent data assimilation system in the atmosphere. The ability of DFI to recover the mesoscale ageostrophic circulation associated with finite amplitude jets and eddies in the ocean is first demonstrated using control data produced by simulations with a primitive equation model. The DFI method is then applied to synoptic hydrographic data collected during several California CTZ surveys in the summer of 1988. The diagnostic results indicate the existence of jets, eddies, and filaments in the CTZ domain with maximum horizontal currents of the order of 0.6 m/s at the surface. Currents associated with such jets and filaments are coherent to a depth of over 500 m. The surface currents associated with a prominent cool filament are generally confluent, and weakly convergent on average, along the 270 km offshore extent of the filament. Meanders in the jet display convergence and downwelling upstream of pressure troughs and divergence and upwelling downstream of the troughs. Maximum vertical velocities at 100 m are of the order of 10 m/day. This result is consistent with independent estimates of subduction rates made from biological studies in this and similar coastal filaments in the CTZ program.
Enzymatic hydrolysis of inulin to fructose by glutaraldehyde fixed yeast cells

Inulin, a polyfruction, is found as the reserve carbohydrate in the roots and tubers of various plants (i.e. Jerusalem artichoke, chicory, and dahlia tubers). The beta-fructofuranosidase (inulase) from the yeast Kluyveromyces fragilis is of interest because of its industrial potential in fructose syrup and alcohol production from inulin containing plants. We have found that the inulase of K. fragilis can be immobilized in the yeast cells by glutaraldehyde treatment. These cells are resistant to physical and enzymatic destruction. Although the exact nature of the immobilization is not fully understood, the kinetic parameters of the immobilized enzyme are similar to those of the soluble enzyme. No reduction of enzyme activity was observed after glutaraldehyde treatment and glutaraldehyde concentration did not affect enzyme activity. A 96% hydrolysis of dahlia inulin was achieved in 10.5 h with a 9.5% (w/v) fixed enzyme suspension. A Jerusalem artichoke extract containing 16.8%polyfructan was completely hydrolyzed in 3.5 h with a 0.24% (w/v)fixed enzyme suspension. This is a time frame feasible for industrial consideration.
Alcohol Use and Heavy Episodic Drinking Prevalence and Predictors Among National Samples of American Eighth-and Tenth-Grade Students

Objective:Given the public health impact of adolescent alcohol use and heavy episodic drinking, we sought to identify the prevalence of types of alcohol use among national samples of 8th- and 10th-grade American students. In addition, a range of known risk factors was used to predict the most problematic type: heavy episodic use. Method:Monitoring the Future data on lifetime, past-year, and past-30-day alcohol use and on past-2-week heavy episodic drinking were available for 505,668 students from 1991 to 2007 (weightedN= 505,853; 51.5% girls; 65.3% White, 12.3% Black, 11.1% Hispanic). Logistic regression was then used in a representative subsample of 110,130 students to predict heavy episodic drinking in the previous 2 weeks. Results:In the most recent cohorts, about 1 in 10 8th graders and 1 in 5 10th graders had engaged in heavy episodic drinking in the past 2 weeks. Explanatory variables in logistic regression were largely invariant across cohort, grade level, gender, and race/ethnicity, accounting for...
Continuous combination oral contraceptive pills to eliminate withdrawal bleeding: a randomized trial.

Abstract Objective To compare bleeding profiles of a traditional 28-day oral contraceptive pill cycle with continuous administration. Methods After a 28-day run-in cycle, women were randomized to either 28-day cycles (21 active pills and a pill-free week) or continuous use of the same 20-μg ethinyl estradiol/100-μg levonorgestrel formulation for 12 study cycles (336 days). The number of bleeding and spotting days were measured by daily diary. A subset underwent cycle 1 (n = 16), and nine (n = 14) pelvic ultrasound and endometrial histology sampling. Blood pressure, weight, hemoglobin, and adverse events were measured at revisit. The sample size with 80% power to detect a 67% reduction in bleeding days required 27 subjects in each arm. Results Of the 79 subjects randomized, 28 (70%) of the 28-day cycle and 32 (82%) of the continuous-use subjects completed the entire study (P = .6). With continuous use, 49%, 68%, and 88% of women reported no bleeding during cycles 2, 6, and 12, respectively. Amenorrhea or infrequent bleeding was present in 68% of continuous users during cycles 1–3 and increased to 88% during cycles 10–12. Spotting during cycle days 1–21 increased initially with continuous use but reduced over time, and by 9 months was less than the spotting reported by cyclic users. Adverse events, blood pressure, weight, and hemoglobin findings were similar between groups. Conclusion Extension of the 28-day oral contraceptive cycle to continuous use with a low-estrogen dose combination oral birth control pill resulted in significantly fewer bleeding days.
Progress of magnet wire technology in Japan

Trends in magnet wire demand in Japan are examined, focusing on the characteristics of the enamels discussed. Applications of enamels experiencing growing demand are described. These are the fine polyester, polyesterimide, and polyamideimide enamels. Applications of bondable, ceramic-insulated, and other wires are also considered. Current Japanese industrials are tabulated. >
A framework for measurement anomaly detection in sensor networks

The paper discusses sensor signal processing and measurement related applications of a generic framework comprising of methods, modules and interfaces distributed over wireless sensor network (WSN) platforms. This original framework was developed based on the Squawk Java Virtual Machine to run on the Sun SPOT WSN platform sensor kits available on the market. The performance of the implemented system is evaluated using simulated and real-world tests. Testing included anomaly detection in measurements and sensor signals acquired by the sensor nodes. Testing results are analysed and provided in the paper.
Activation of Hindbrain Neurons Is Mediated by Portal-Mesenteric Vein Glucosensors During Slow-Onset Hypoglycemia

Hypoglycemic detection at the portal-mesenteric vein (PMV) appears mediated by spinal afferents and is critical for the counter-regulatory response (CRR) to slow-onset, but not rapid-onset, hypoglycemia. Since rapid-onset hypoglycemia induces Fos protein expression in discrete brain regions, we hypothesized that denervation of the PMV or lesioning spinal afferents would suppress Fos expression in the dorsal medulla during slow-onset hypoglycemia, revealing a central nervous system reliance on PMV glucosensors. Rats undergoing PMV deafferentation via capsaicin, celiac-superior mesenteric ganglionectomy (CSMG), or total subdiaphragmatic vagotomy (TSV) were exposed to hyperinsulinemic–hypoglycemic clamps where glycemia was lowered slowly over 60–75 min. In response to hypoglycemia, control animals demonstrated a robust CRR along with marked Fos expression in the area postrema, nucleus of the solitary tract, and dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus. Fos expression was suppressed by 65–92% in capsaicin-treated animals, as was epinephrine (74%), norepinephrine (33%), and glucagon (47%). CSMG also suppressed Fos expression and CRR during slow-onset hypoglycemia, whereas TSV failed to impact either. In contrast, CSMG failed to impact upon Fos expression or the CRR during rapid-onset hypoglycemia. Peripheral glucosensory input from the PMV is therefore required for activation of hindbrain neurons and the full CRR during slow-onset hypoglycemia.
Role of alphabeta and gammadelta T cells in the host response to Salmonella infection as demonstrated in T-cell-receptor-deficient mice of defined Ity genotypes

Salmonella spp. are facultative intracellular bacteria which enter the body through the intestinal tract. We studied the roles of T cells expressing either the alpha and beta chains or the gamma and delta chains of the T-cell receptor (alphabeta T cells or gammadelta T cells, respectively) in the host defense against Salmonella using mice genetically deficient in either alphabeta T cells, gammadelta T cells, or both T-cell subsets. These mutant strains of mice were infected orally or intraperitoneally with Salmonella dublin, and the progression of the disease was monitored by determining bacterial numbers in the feces, gut wall, Peyer's patches, mesenteric lymph nodes, spleen, and liver. Since susceptibility to Salmonella infection in mice is strongly affected by the alleles at the Ity locus, T-cell-mutant mice with either the Ity-sensitive or Ity-resistant phenotype were tested for resistance to S. dublin infection. We found that even though large numbers of intraepithelial and mucosal alphabeta and gammadelta T cells populate the normal intestine, they have no role in controlling the invasion of S. dublin into the intestine or the subsequent bacterial replication in the Peyer's patches or gut wall. Furthermore, systemic infections were equally severe for the first 6 days in normal, alphabeta T-cell-deficient, and gammadelta T-cell-deficient mice, and alphabeta but not gammadelta T cells were required for clearance of S. dublin, regardless of the Ity phenotype. However, mice that lacked both T-cell subsets had higher bacterial counts in their livers 15 to 18 days after infection than did alphabeta T-cell-deficient mice, suggesting that gammadelta T cells can contribute to acquired immunity to S. dublin.
El fallido ritual sacrificial en La Numancia de Cervantes

En La Numancia de Cervantes encontramos, en un primer analisis, un pueblo acosado por el ejercito romano que, ante la impotencia de salir victorioso de la batalla y condenado a morir de hambre por ...
Placebo effects in developmental disabilities: Implications for research and practice

Recent clinical trials of secretin in children with autism showed robust placebo effects and no benefit of secretin over placebo. This article explores the reasons for the observed placebo effects, focusing on the heightening of positive expectancy by media attention and by the sensory experiences associated with intravenous injections. Comparisons are drawn with research involving other novel treatments and other clinical populations of children with developmental disabilities and neurobehavioral disorders. Research regarding mechanisms of placebo effects is reviewed, including patient and clinician attributes, expectancy effects, participation effects, changes in caregiver behavior, and conditioning. New evidence regarding the biological basis of placebo effects is briefly presented. Since placebo effects are ubiquitous and may operate by a variety of mechanisms, research design is critical in designing clinical trials and in evaluating other outcomes research. Measurement issues important for research in developmental disabilities are emphasized. Ethical concerns have been raised regarding the use of placebo in clinical research, but current analysis suggests that placebo controls are necessary and defensible on ethical grounds, if certain conditions are met. The study of placebo effects ("placebology") holds great promise as a new area of research in therapeutics. The author's research in the potential augmentation of stimulant effects in children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) by adding placebo in open label is briefly presented. The placebo has always been integral to the practice of medicine, but advances in scientific medicine and medical ethics have diminished the role and use of placebo in practice. An innovative approach to the ethical use of placebo is proposed.
Towards the Robustness of Dynamic Loop Scheduling on Large-Scale Heterogeneous Distributed Systems

Dynamic loop scheduling (DLS) algorithms provide application-level load balancing of loop iterates, with the goal of maximizing application performance on the underlying system. These methods use run-time information regarding the performance of the application's execution (for which irregularities change over time). Many DLS methods are based on probabilistic analyses, and therefore account for unpredictable variations of application and system related parameters. Scheduling scientific and engineering applications in large-scale distributed systems (possibly shared with other users) makes the problem of DLS even more challenging. Moreover, the chances of failure, such as processor or link failure, are high in such large-scale systems. In this paper, we employ the hierarchical approach for three DLS methods, and propose metrics for quantifying their robustness with respect to variations of two parameters (load and processor failures), for scheduling irregular applications in large-scale heterogeneous distributed systems.
An efficient Montgomery exponentiation algorithm for public-key cryptosystems

The well-know binary method is a generally acceptable method for modular exponentiation in public-key cryptosystems. In this paper, we propose a new binary exponentiation algorithm, which is based on common-multiplicand method, Montgomery modular reduction algorithm, signed-digit recoding technique, and binary exponentiation algorithm. The common-multiplicand technique is developed to solve the problem common-multiplicand multiplications, i.e., the same common part in two modular multiplications can be computed once rather twice. The ldquosigned-digit recodingrdquo has less occurrence probability of the nonzero digit than binary representation. Due to this advantage, we can efficiently lower down the amount of modular multiplications and we can therefore decrease the computational complexity of modular exponentiation. By using the proposed algorithm, the total number of multiplications can be reduced by about 66.7% as compared with the original Montgomery modular reduction algorithm.
An Ultra High-Density, Transcript-Based, Genetic Map of Lettuce

We have generated an ultra-high-density genetic map for lettuce, an economically important member of the Compositae, consisting of 12,842 unigenes (13,943 markers) mapped in 3696 genetic bins distributed over nine chromosomal linkage groups. Genomic DNA was hybridized to a custom Affymetrix oligonucleotide array containing 6.4 million features representing 35,628 unigenes of Lactuca spp. Segregation of single-position polymorphisms was analyzed using 213 F7:8 recombinant inbred lines that had been generated by crossing cultivated Lactuca sativa cv. Salinas and L. serriola acc. US96UC23, the wild progenitor species of L. sativa. The high level of replication of each allele in the recombinant inbred lines was exploited to identify single-position polymorphisms that were assigned to parental haplotypes. Marker information has been made available using GBrowse to facilitate access to the map. This map has been anchored to the previously published integrated map of lettuce providing candidate genes for multiple phenotypes. The high density of markers achieved in this ultradense map allowed syntenic studies between lettuce and Vitis vinifera as well as other plant species.
Downscaling 1-km Topographic Index Distributions to a Finer Resolution for the TOPMODEL-Based GCM Hydrological Modeling

TOPMODEL predictions of surface runoff and subsurface flow are fundamentally developed on the basis of the topographic index distribution (TID). The scale dependency of the TID (i.e., dependency on the resolution of the digital elevation model (DEM) data used to compute the topographic indexes) determines that downscaling of the TID computed from a coarser resolution DEM to a finer resolution is needed before the TOPMODEL concepts can be applied to simulate hydrological processes at some larger scales than the scale of hillslopes. It was found that adjusting only the meanvalues cannot achieve an accurate downscaling of the TID because the difference between 2-m TIDs and the downscaled TIDs from a coarser resolution to 2 m through adjusting only mean values resulted in overestimation of the fraction of the saturation area and surface runoff under wet conditions and underestimation under dry conditions. It was found that downscaling by correcting for scale-dependencies in the first three moments of TIDs produced better predictions. A series of empirical relationships among mean, standard deviation, and coefficient of skewness of TIDs of nine catchments in eastern Tennessee at resolutions of 2, 10, and 100 m and 205 watersheds across the contiguous United States at resolutions of 10 m and 1 km were developed for downscaling TIDs from 1 km to 2 m through approximating TIDs by a 3-parameter gamma distribution function. The errors in the downscaled TIDs from 1 km to 10 m over 205 watersheds across the contiguous United States decreased with increasing watershed size and approached a minimum (approximately 6%) as the watershed drainage area was larger than approximately 500 km 2 . With the constructed empirical relationships, topographic indexes computed from 1-km DEM can be scaled down to 2 m for reducing errors and uncertainties in the TOPMODEL-based general circulation model (GCM) hydrological simulations. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)HE.1943-5584.0000438. © 2012 American Society of Civil Engineers. CE Database subject headings: Hydrologic models; Base flow; Runoff; Water table. Author keywords: TOPMODEL; Topographic index distribution (TID); Digital elevation model (DEM); 3-parameter gamma distribution; Saturation area; Base flow; Surface runoff; Depth to water table.
Students’ understanding of proofs: a historical analysis and implications for the teaching of geometry and linear algebra☆

The process of observing and analyzing studentsO behaviors is interesting and complex but also unstable. It is unstable because it involves countless variables, many of which are uncontrollable. Despite this, what we learn from this process is useful, even essential, in designing and implementing mathematics curricula for both students and teachers. This presentation is about studentsO behaviors in relation to justi®cation and proof. Some of these behaviors are assumed to be due to faulty instruction in school; others seem to be unavoidable, in the sense that they are of human developmental nature. Analyzed from a historical perspective of mathematical development, these studentsO understandings of proof can be classi®ed into three categories: · Category 1: In this category, studentsO understandings of proof (viewed in relation to those of their instructors) seem to parallel the Greek conception of mathematics (viewed in relation to that of modern days). · Category 2: In this category, studentsO understandings of proof are reminiscent of the 16±17th century conception of mathematics. · Category 3: In this category, studentsO understandings of proof seem, to a large extent, to be a result of faulty instruction in the elementary and secondary schools. www.elsevier.com/locate/laa
Benthic boundary layer communities and carbon cycling at abyssal depths in the central North Pacific

Cycling of carbon through the benthic boundary layer (BBL) community in the deep sea is poorly understood. Until now, attempts to summarize the flow of organic C in these communities have relied primarily on data collected from various deep-sea areas. The one BBL community where the organic C pools and fluxes are best defined is in the central North Pacific, north of the Hawaiian Islands. This data base was combined with new estimates of standing stocks and organic C fluxes to construct an organic C budget for the bottom 600 m of the water column and the sediments, using net input from sinking particulate organic C (POC) and exchanges between 12 compartments. The largest standing stocks of C (dissolved organic C, suspended POC, and POC) were in the water and surface sediments (9.1 x lo8 g C km-2), exceeding that in the 10 consumer groups by almost four orders of magnitude. Of the consumer groups, the sediment nanobiota, meiofauna, and epibenthic megafauna had the most organic C and the macrofauna had the least. Fluxes into the consumer groups, as estimated from respiration rates, were highest in the sediment community, bacterioplankton, and epibenthic megafauna. The net flux of POC into the BBL (supply) ranged from -74 to + 1,268 g C km 2 d-l, which was generally insufficient to match the combined fluxes into the BBL consumer groups (demand) of 998-3,3 15 g C krnm2 d I. Other sources of organic C to fuel the demand of the BBL community are analyzed, including active transport by migrating abyssopelagic animals which might significantly augment the POC flux into the BBL at this oligotrophic midgyre station.
Phase III Study Comparing Three Cycles of Infusional Carmustine and Cisplatin Followed by Radiation Therapy With Radiation Therapy and Concurrent Carmustine in Patients With Newly Diagnosed Supratentorial Glioblastoma Multiforme: Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Trial 2394

Purpose: This phase III Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group-Southwest Oncology Group intergroup study was conducted to determine whether three 72-hour infusions of carmustine (BiCNU) and cisplatin administered monthly before external-beam radiotherapy would improve the survival of patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma multiforme. The control arm consisted of radiation with standard adjuvant BiCNU. Patients and Methods: A total of 223 patients were accrued from 1996 to 1999. Of these, 219 patients were eligible; 109 were randomly assigned to the experimental arm, and 110 were randomly assigned to the control arm. Randomization was stratified by age, performance status, and extent of resection. Results: The median age of the patients was 55 years; 55% were male, 93% were white, 26% had a biopsy only, and 84% were ambulatory. Treatment arms were well balanced with respect to baseline characteristics. Median follow-up time of the 15 patients still alive at the time of analysis was 3.3 years (range, 2 to 5...
Investigations of age and growth for three deep-sea corals from the Davidson Seamount off central California

A recent biological characterization of the Davidson Seamount off central California using a remotely operated vehicle revealed communities rich with deep-sea corals. During this characterization several corals were collected and three colonies were made available for an age and growth study. The colonies examined were identified as bubblegum coral (Paragorgia sp.), bamboo coral (Keratoisis sp.), and precious coral (Corallium sp.). Age was estimated from growth zone counts made in skeletal cross sections. These age estimates were used to estimate growth rates and colony age. Estimated growth rates determined for each species were quite different. The bubblegum coral had a relatively high estimated growth rate, with the precious and bamboo coral estimated as slow growing. These age and growth observations were evaluated relative to published studies on related species and an attempt was made to validate the age and growth estimates with an independent radiometric ageing technique (i.e., lead-210 dating). This approach was not successful for the bubblegum coral, and was successful for the bamboo and precious corals to differing degrees. For the bamboo coral, a minimum colony age of over 200 years was determined. For the precious coral, a linear growth rate of approximately 0.25 cm/yr led to a colony age of about 115 years; however, based on the radial growth rate, an age of up to 200 year is possible.
Non-native Speakers’ Perception

Native speakers of Chinese have clear perceptual categories for tones. Both acoustic cues and contextual cues influence NS’ perception . The question is how non-native speakers (NNS) perceive Chinese tones.
Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry and Clinical Ethics: Representative Cases

The skills of the consultation-liaison psychiatrist are enormously valuable in the emerging field of clinical ethics consultation. Expertise in evaluating decision-making capacity is crucial, as is the larger issue of addressing the role that emotional factors play in making life or death decisions. Three cases are reviewed that illustrate the way in which the psychiatric perspective enhances the process of clinical ethics consultation.
High-Pressure Infrared and Raman Spectroscopy

The experimental techniques of high-pressure infrared and Raman spectroscopy, and selected applications to the study of the physical-chemical behavior of matter under pressure are reviewed.
Unchain the Courts – An Essay on the Role of the Federal Courts in the Vindication of Social Rights

The Supreme Court under Chief Justice Burger has restricted the anticipated growth of constitutional doctrines developed in the 1960's during the Warren Court era. In this essay, Professor Berch traces these restrictions in the context of the poor seeking access to the lower federal courts for the vindication of their constitutional rights. While the Court has shut off or severely curtailed access in many cases, chiefly by the strained application of the standing rubric, the opinions do indicate faith in the political process for eventual solutions. The essay envisages the failure of the political process to solve many of the problems confronting the poor and disadvantaged and an eventual return of these grievances to the federal courts.
A rapid screening test for detection of alpha-1 fetoprotein as an indicator of fetal distress

Abstract A rapid latex slide test for the detection of α 1 -fetoprotein is described. Application of this procedure as an aid in the detection of fetal distress is discussed and data indicating its utility are presented.
Mining educational data: A focus on learning analytics

Data mining is a process of finding anomalies, implicit patterns, and correlations within large data sets to predict outcomes, or in other words, the search for relationships and global patterns that exist, but are ‘hidden’ among the vast amounts of data. When applied to the educational domain, data mining is a powerful tool that enables better understanding of relationships, structure, patterns, and causal pathways which provide students the cognitive strategies to think critically, make decisions, and solve problems. The talk will discuss the methodology and results of this research, present the extracted knowledge, and describe its importance in the teaching-learning space. Recent developments engineered to capture and store non-cognitive affective-domain features, such as interest and persistence will be addressed. The objective is evidence-centered design and the data mining framework acknowledges that assessments entail different levels of confidence and risk.
Sequences of Mass Distributions on the Unit Circle Which Tend to a Uniform Distribution

(1964). Sequences of Mass Distributions on the Unit Circle Which Tend to a Uniform Distribution. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 71, No. 2, pp. 165-172.
Modeling Parallel Molecular Simulations on Amazon EC2

Cloud computing has been widely used by computational scientists and engineers as a means to run large-scale simulations while circumventing capital investment of hardware. However, a challenging problem is to accurately estimate how much cloud resources that a specific computation requires, in order to execute computations in a cost-effective way. In this paper, we use a real-world molecular dynamics (MD) simulation as a motivating scenario and present our work in modeling parallel execution of such a computation on the cloud. Our model estimates the workload of an MD simulation at fine-grained detail, and based on that estimate, calculates the time required to run the simulation. The accuracy of the model has been evaluated using various types of MD simulations on different scales.
Ups and Downs of Poised RNA Polymerase II in B-Cells.

Recent genome-wide analyses have uncovered a high accumulation of RNA polymerase II (Pol II) at the 5′ end of genes. This elevated Pol II presence at promoters, referred to here as Poll II poising, is mainly (but not exclusively) attributed to temporal pausing of transcription during early elongation which, in turn, has been proposed to be a regulatory step for processes that need to be activated “on demand”. Yet, the full genome-wide regulatory role of Pol II poising is yet to be delineated. To elucidate the role of Pol II poising in B cell activation, we compared Pol II profiles in resting and activated B cells. We found that while Pol II poised genes generally overlap functionally among different B cell states and correspond to the functional groups previously identified for other cell types, non-poised genes are B cell state specific. Focusing on the changes in transcription activity upon B cell activation, we found that the majority of such changes were from poised to non-poised state. The genes showing this type of transition were functionally enriched in translation, RNA processing and mRNA metabolic process. Interestingly, we also observed a transition from non-poised to poised state. Within this set of genes we identified several Immediate Early Genes (IEG), which were highly expressed in resting B cell and shifted from non-poised to poised state after B cell activation. Thus Pol II poising does not only mark genes for rapid expression in the future, but it is also associated with genes that are silenced after a burst of their expression. Finally, we performed comparative analysis of the presence of G4 motifs in the context of poised versus non-poised but active genes. Interestingly we observed a differential enrichment of these motifs upstream versus downstream of TSS depending on poising status. The enrichment of G4 sequence motifs upstream of TSS of non-poised active genes suggests a potential role of quadruplexes in expression regulation.
Straining soft colloids in aqueous nematic liquid crystals

Abstract Liquid crystals (LCs), because of their long-range molecular ordering, are anisotropic, elastic fluids. Herein, we report that elastic stresses imparted by nematic LCs can dynamically shape soft colloids and tune their physical properties. Specifically, we use giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs) as soft colloids and explore the interplay of mechanical strain when the GUVs are confined within aqueous chromonic LC phases. Accompanying thermal quenching from isotropic to LC phases, we observe the elasticity of the LC phases to transform initially spherical GUVs (diameters of 2–50 µm) into two distinct populations of GUVs with spindle-like shapes and aspect ratios as large as 10. Large GUVs are strained to a small extent (R/r < 1.54, where R and r are the major and minor radii, respectively), consistent with an LC elasticity-induced expansion of lipid membrane surface area of up to 3% and conservation of the internal GUV volume. Small GUVs, in contrast, form highly elongated spindles (1.54 < R/r < 10) that arise from an efflux of LCs from the GUVs during the shape transformation, consistent with LC-induced straining of the membrane leading to transient membrane pore formation. A thermodynamic analysis of both populations of GUVs reveals that the final shapes adopted by these soft colloids are dominated by a competition between the LC elasticity and an energy (∼0.01 mN/m) associated with the GUV–LC interface. Overall, these results provide insight into the coupling of strain in soft materials and suggest previously unidentified designs of LC-based responsive and reconfigurable materials.
Study of squeezing deformation problems during tunneling

The squeezing problem is one of the most tuff problems that appear during the construction of highway and railway tunnels.In the engineering practice,the squeezing problem is mainly caused by the creep of rock mass due to the shearing failure.Some squeezing problem is created by the swelling due to the reaction between the clay minerals of rock and the water present in the rock mass.Therefore,the squeezing problem can be classified into three categories: stress induced,swelling induced and structure induced.According to the research findings made by others,the tunnel strain of 3% can be adopted as a qualitative classification criterion to judge whether there is a severe squeezing problem.For the stress induced squeezing problem,the deformation prediction equation put forward by Hoek can estimate the deformation magnitude of a tunnel fairly well;so these equations are of practical significance.However,for different engineering conditions,the estimate method for in-situ stresses or the secondary stresses has to be adjusted for special purpose.The deformation prediction of swelling and structure induced squeezing problem,there still are lots of work to do in the future.
Multi-objective optimization of greenhouse gas emissions in highway construction projects

Abstract With the increasing interest in relationships between built environments and ecosystems, the environmental impacts of the construction industry have been a subject of many studies. Based on the results of previous studies using construction systems modeling and life cycle assessment, the authors treated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as an additional project objective to time and cost, and applied multi-objective optimization to derive optimal solutions for transportation projects. Two highway construction case studies were analyzed for relationships between time, cost and environmental impacts. The results showed strong positive correlation between time and cost, moderate positive correlation between cost and GHG emissions, and weak positive correlation between time and GHG emissions. The results suggest that it is less likely that time and GHG emissions may affect each other. It is more so to time and GHG emissions. In addition, it is unlikely that there are common factors that can simultaneously affect cost and GHG emissions, or time and GHG emissions. Future studies are needed to include other types of environmental impacts and further understand the advantages and disadvantages of the lack of dependency between time and GHG emissions, as well as cost and GHG emissions in order to enhance sustainable construction.
Psychometric Evaluation of the Saving Inventory-Revised in Older Adults.

ABSTRACTObjectives: Hoarding disorder (HD) is a chronic condition characterized by severe impairment in health and functioning for older adults. Researchers and clinicians commonly use the Saving Inventory-Revised (SI-R), a self-report measure validated for the assessment of HD, to establish symptom severity. This study represents the first evaluation of the psychometric properties of the SI-R in a sample of older adults with HD.Methods: Participants were 156 older adults with HD and 23 older adults with no psychiatric diagnoses. Demographic and HD symptom severity measures were compared between the two samples. Convergent and discriminant validity was examined in the HD sample. A confirmatory factor analysis was used to test the replicability of the three-factor structure observed in the original sample.Results: Participants in the HD sample scored significantly higher on the SI-R than did the non-psychiatric sample. The SI-R was significantly correlated with clutter level and symptoms of anxiety and dep...
Improved survival after induction of sepsis by cecal slurry in PD-1 knockout murine neonates.

Background Sepsis and the ensuing immune dysfunction continue to be major contributors to neonatal morbidity and mortality. Neonatal sepsis also is associated with profound immune dysfunction. We have recently identified a role for a family of coinhibitory molecules that are altered in murine sepsis and in critically ill adult patients, which may be a target for development of novel therapies. There is, however, a paucity of data pertaining to the role of coinhibitory checkpoint proteins in the control and modulation of neonatal sepsis. Methods The cecal slurry model consists of harvesting the cecal content of an adult, wild-type, male mouse and combining it with 5% dextrose to create a cecal slurry with a concentration of 80 mg/mL (LD70 at 7 days). Neonatal mice (5–7 days of age) underwent intraperitoneal injection of the cecal slurry or 0.9% saline for the sham procedure. Wild-type (C57BL/6) or PD-1-/- mice were used; a 7-day survival study was undertaken. Cytometric bead array was used for cytokine expression. Blood and peritoneal fluid was cultured for bacterial burden. Flow cytometry was used to assess the peritoneal cavity cell populations. Results There was no mortality after the sham procedure in either wild-type or PD-1-/- pups. PD-1 markedly affected sepsis survival with significantly improved survival in the PD-1-/- pups (40% vs 80%; P Conclusion Our data suggest that the checkpoint protein, PD-1, plays an important role in controlling the immune response to sepsis in the neonate, ultimately affecting sepsis-related mortality in this neonatal murine model of sepsis. Akin to adult studies, these data further emphasize the potential therapeutic target for PD-1 across a spectrum of septic patients.
Factors supporting cardiomyopathy screening among at-risk adult survivors of pediatric malignancies.

Anthracyclines and chest irradiation place adult survivors of childhood cancer at risk of cardiomyopathy; many survivors do not obtain the recommended screening. Based on our recent clinical trial, the addition of telephone counseling to a printed survivorship care plan more than doubled survivors’ risk-based screening. Here, we sought to measure the impact of specific factors targeted in the intervention for their impact on survivors’ screening participation. Study population—survivors participating in a randomized longitudinal intervention trial. Survivor questionnaires and medical records at baseline and 1-year follow-up provided the data. Within- and between-group differences in factors were assessed at baseline and follow-up; structural equation modeling (SEM) identified direct and indirect effects on screening participation. Of the 411 survivors, 55.3% were female, 89.3% white, 38.9% college graduates, and age 26–59 years (mean = 41 years, SD = 7.68 years). At follow-up, the counseling group demonstrated higher scores for intent to undergo screening (p < 0.001), adherence determination (p < 0.001), autonomous regulation (p < 0.001), competency (p = 0.03), perceived effort warranted for screening (p < 0.001), and perceived value of screening (p = 0.02). SEM identified four factors that directly influenced screening participation (n = 411, RMSEA = 0.02 [90% CI = 0.000–0.05]; CFI = 0.99; TLI = 0.99; WRMR = 0.63): the counseling intervention (p < 0.0001), intrinsic motivation (p < 0.0001), competency (p < 0.0001), and decisional control (p = 0.001); intrinsic motivation was also a mediator (p = 0.002) of screening participation. Direct interpersonal interaction that focused on multiple modifiable, autonomy-supportive factors powerfully enhances the efficacy of a print survivorship care plan in increasing survivors’ screening participation. This finding challenges providers to reach beyond the disease treatment focus and embrace these strategies in their behavior change efforts.
General versus disease-specific measures

Three modifications devised to make the Sickness Impact Profile more sensitive to head injury are evaluated in 202 head-injured and 132 general trauma patients 1 month and 12 months after injury. The modifications consist of adding items, deleting nonapplicable items, and reweighting areas of functi
Fourier transform emission spectroscopy of the F4Δ–X4Φ system of TiF

Abstract The emission spectra of TiF have been reinvestigated in the 4200–15 000 cm −1 region using the Fourier transform spectrometer associated with the National Solar Observatory at Kitt Peak. TiF was formed in a microwave discharge lamp operated with 2.5 Torr of He and a trace of TiF 4 vapor, and the spectra were recorded at a resolution of 0.02 cm −1 . The TiF bands observed in the 12 000–14 000 cm −1 region have been assigned to a new transition, F 4 Δ– X 4 Φ. Each band consists of four sub-bands assigned as, 4 Δ 1/2 – 4 Φ 3/2 , 4 Δ 3/2 – 4 Φ 5/2 , 4 Δ 5/2 – 4 Φ 7/2 , and 4 Δ 7/2 – 4 Φ 9/2 . A rotational analysis of the 0–1, 0–0, and 1–0 bands has been obtained and spectroscopic constants have been extracted.
Salvage re-irradiation for recurrent high-grade glioma and comparison to bevacizumab alone

While salvage re-irradiation is often used for recurrent high-grade glioma (HGG), there have been few comparisons between various re-radiation dose/fractionation schedules or with bevacizumab alone. We analyzed patients with recurrent HGG who received re-irradiation at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women's Hospital from 2010 to 2014 (n = 67), as well as those who received bevacizumab alone (n = 177). Cox proportional hazards modeling was used to examine factors associated with overall survival (OS). Propensity score modeling was used to compare survival after re-irradiation vs. bevacizumab alone. Median time from initial diagnosis to re-irradiation was 31.4 months. The most common re-irradiation dose/fractionations used were 6 Gy × 5 (36%), 3.5 Gy × 10 (21%), 2.67 Gy × 15 (15%), and 18-20 Gy × 1 (15%). No early or late toxicities >grade 2 were observed. Median PFS and OS after re-irradiation were 4.8 and 10.7 months, respectively. Number of progressions prior to re-irradiation (adjusted hazard ratio [AHR] 1.6; 95% CI, 1.1-2.3; p = .007), and recurrence in a new brain location (vs. local-only; AHR 7.4; 95% CI, 2.4-23.1; p < .001) were associated with OS; dose/fractionation was not. Compared with bevacizumab alone, re-irradiated patients had a non-significant increase in OS (HR 0.80; 95% CI, 0.53-1.23; P = .31). Among patients with a local-only recurrence, there was a trend towards longer median OS after re-irradiation compared to bevacizumab alone (12.4 vs. 8.0 months; p = .12). Survival after re-irradiation for recurrent HGG appears independent of dose/fractionation and compares favorably with bevacizumab alone.
Synthetic Studies of 2,6‐Diamino‐3,5‐Dinitropyrazine‐ 1‐Oxide (LLM‐105) from Discovery to Multi‐Kilogram Scale

A description of the various approaches to the synthesis of the insensitive energetic compound, 2,6-diamino-3,5-dinitropyrazine-1-oxide (LLM-105), developed at LLNL over the past 20 years will be described.
Enhancing Relative Positioning Accuracy in Vehicle-to-Vehicle Safety: Multivehicle Kinematics and Nonlinear Particle Filtering Approach

Unsatisfactory relative positioning accuracy is a bottleneck in collision avoidance applications of vehicle-to-vehicle communication. Previous efforts focused mainly on either enhancing absolute GPS data precision or experimenting with positioning techniques alternative to GPS, such as real-time kinematics, Doppler measurements, or integration of GPS with ultrawideband ranging radios. This paper proposes a new approach that is independent from the sources and precisions of raw data. Based on a multivehicle kinematics model adapted from a multirobot domain, the method can predict vehicles’ distances and bearings by fully utilizing the shared real-time motion data from dedicated short-range communications’ basic safety message packets. Three types of nonlinear filters were proposed and compared to minimize the errors caused by raw data noise and system timing inaccuracies. Experiments indicated that the extended Kalman filter failed to estimate a highly nonlinear process, unscented Kalman filter dysfunction...
Lack of TNFR2 expression by CD4+ T cells limits IL-2 production and promotes Th17 differentiation (BA11P.138)

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) plays dualistic pro-inflammatory and immune suppressive roles that lead to unpredictable outcomes of TNF blockade in autoimmune disease. Recent evidence has identified contrasting co-stimulatory effects of TNF on effector T cells and regulatory T cells in controlling autoimmunity. The objective of this study was to determine whether CD4 + T cell autonomous TNFR1 and TNFR2 differentially regulate IL-2 production. We utilize B10.A 5C.C7 TCR Tg Rag2 -/- IL-2-GFP reporter mice that are deficient for TNFR1 and/or TNFR2 and memTNF Δ1-12 FoxP3-GFP reporter mice that encode an uncleavable tmTNF to demonstrate that TNFR2, but not TNFR1, and membrane, but not soluble, TNF promote Il2 promoter activity and decrease Il2 mRNA decay to increase IL-2 production in response to CD4 + T cell stimulation. We further demonstrate differential DNA binding of NF-κB in TNFR1- and TNFR2-deficient CD4 + T cells following activation. Adoptive transfer of naive CD4 + T cells from TNFR2-deficient IL-2-GFP heterozygous (IL-2 +/- ), but not IL-2-GFP homozygous (IL-2 -/- ), 5C.C7 Rag2 -/- TCR Tg mice into B10.A Rag2 -/- hosts and subsequent immunization with MCC 88-103 + LPS yielded greater IL-17 production upon CD4 + T cell re-challenge in comparison to transfer of TNFR2-sufficient 5C.C7 TCR CD4 + T cells. Taken together, these results suggest that selective blockade of TNFR2 on CD4 + T cells is sufficient to inhibit IL-2 production and promote T H 17 differentiation.