cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effect of flax supplementation and growth promotants on lipoprotein lipase and glycogenin messenger RNA concentrations in finishing cattle

Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) hydrolyzes triacylglycerols into monoacylglycerol and fatty acids, which are taken up by tissues and used for energy. Glycogenin is the core protein on which glycogen molecules are synthesized. There is one molecule of glycogenin per molecule of glycogen in skeletal muscle; therefore, glycogen storage is limited by the amount of glycogenin present in muscle. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of feeding flaxseed, a source of PUFA, and administering a growth promoter on steady-state LPL and glycogenin mRNA content of muscle in finishing cattle. Sixteen crossbred steers (initial BW = 397 kg), given ad libitum access to a 92% concentrate diet for 28 d, were used in a four-treatment, 2 x 2 factorial experiment, with flaxseed supplementation (0 or 5% of dietary DM) and implanting (not implanted or implanted with Revalor-S) as the main effects. Muscle biopsies were obtained from the LM at 0, 14, and 28 d, and used to quantify LPL and glycogenin mRNA concentrations using real-time quantitative PCR. Implanting with Revalor-S did not affect LPL (P = 0.13) or glycogenin (P = 0.98) mRNA concentrations. A day x flaxseed interaction (P 0.10) were observed between 0 and 5% flaxseed supplemented steers; however, at 28 d, nonflaxseed-fed steers had 4.1- and 5.7-fold increases (P < 0.001) over flaxseed steers for LPL and glycogenin mRNA concentrations, respectively. To further evaluate the effects of alpha-linolenic acid (alpha-LA) on LPL and glycogenin mRNA concentrations, muscle satellite cells were isolated from five finishing steers, and different alpha-LA concentrations were applied in culture. The RNA was isolated from the bovine satellite cells. Addition of alpha-LA numerically increased (P = 0.16) the LPL mRNA concentration 48% at 1 microM alpha-LA compared with the control. The expression of glycogenin was increased (P < 0.05) 50% at 1 microM alpha-LA compared with the control. These results suggest that flaxseed supplementation to finishing steers for 28 d decreased gene expression of both LPL and glycogenin compared with not feeding flaxseed. Alterations in local concentrations of these two proteins could affect the ability of muscle to use fatty acids and glucose for energy, and, ultimately, affect carcass quality.
Strengthen the Bond: Relationships Between Academic Advising Quality and Undergraduate Student Loyalty

Extant research suggests that student loyalty, a strong bond between the student and university, positively affects important student outcomes, most notably retention. In this article, we advance the notion that academic advisors should become managers of the student–university relationship. We examine the correlation between respondents' perceived quality of academic advising and their loyalty to the university as measured by our recently developed Student University Loyalty Instrument, administered to 1,207 undergraduates at three comprehensive midwestern institutions. Results suggest that a positive relationship exists between the perceived quality of academic advising and student loyalty, other meaningful indicators of the student–university relationship, and specific student demographic characteristics. Recommendations for academic advising practice are shared.
Ising Model of the Chronification of Acute Pain.

In this month's issue of Pain Medicine , Lars-Petter Granan offers a novel perspective on the transition from acute to chronic pain by drawing parallels to the Ising model. (There is no shame in pausing your perusal of this Editorial to look up the Ising model on your favorite search engine). It is certainly understandable to wonder how one can draw parallels between the chronification of acute pain and the statistical mechanics of ferromagnetism. Granan makes a strong case for such parallels, and along the way reinforces the importance of cross-disciplinary scientific collaborations to enable novel perspectives on one of humanity's oldest maladies. In short, the Ising model of ferromagnetism explains how the alignment of the electromagnetic spins of each atom in a given object can lead to the appreciation of that object as magnetic at the macro scale, and how at sufficiently low temperatures, this will even occur spontaneously [1]. However, above a critical temperature threshold, this intrinsic magnetism will be …
Density Functional Theory Study of the d10 Series (H3P)3M(η1-SO2) and (MenPh3-nP)3M(η1-SO2) (M = Ni, Pd, Pt; n = 0−3): SO2 Pyramidality and M−S Bond Dissociation Energies

Quantum mechanical density functional theory (DFT) and coupled DFT/molecular mechanics (QMMM) studies of the compounds (H3P)3M(η1-SO2) and (MenPh3-nP)3M(η1-SO2) (M = Ni, Pd, Pt; n = 0−3) model the experimental data well, particularly the planar/pyramidal geometries at sulfur. Bond dissociation energy (BDE) calculations confirm that Pd/Pt systems with pyramidal SO2 ligands exhibit M−S BDEs smaller by 30−50% than Ni systems with planar SO2. However, scans of the potential energy surfaces show that flexing the planar/pyramidal torsion angle within ranges of 20−30° requires little energy. Bond energy decomposition calculations indicate that the electrostatic ΔEelstat term determines the BDE for Pd/Pt molecules where the sulfur is pyramidal, whereas all three terms matter when the sulfur is planar, as for Ni compounds. However, this accounts only for a fraction of the BDE differences; orbital energy matching accounts for the balance.
Terahertz spectroscopy of water clusters

Author(s): Saykally, RJ | Abstract: We seek to develop a 'universal predictive model' for water in all its forms, such that any question about water could be answered by a suitable computer calculation. We this by combining highly detailed measurements of water clusters made by terahertz laser spectroscopy(a technology that our group pioneered two decades ago) with the best available computer calculations. We have published many papers on this subject, addressing clusters ranging from water dimer to hexamer[1].
Establishment and Evaluation of an Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury Prevention Program.

Background In female high school athletes, soccer continues to be a high-risk sport for sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament injury. Literature reviews indicate the best injury prevention programs (IPPs) focus on increasing core strength and proprioception in this age group. Purpose An IPP was created for a small Midwestern high school girls' soccer team. The goal of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the IPP on core strength and proprioception. Methods The IPP incorporated functional movement applied science and exercises. Students were tested pre- and postseason. Results were analyzed using paired-samples t tests. Results Statistically significant results in improved core measures were noted. Conclusion This IPP, which utilized functional movement and training, could be utilized by other teams for increasing core strength and proprioception of players, as well as adding to the body of literature utilizing functional movement.
Current therapies for HNC: why is immunotherapy not yet in the forefront?

Theresa L Whiteside is Professor of Pathology, Immunology and Otolaryngology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine (PA, USA) and is a member of the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (PA, USA). She has a PhD degree from Columbia University in New York (NY, USA), is a Diplomate of the American Board of Medical Laboratory Immunology and is an expert in immunologic monitoring. She has authored over 500 peer-reviewed scientific papers and 120 chapters/reviews. In recognition of research achievements in the biology of head and neck cancer, she received an Honoris Causa degree in medicine from the Poznan Medical University in Poland in 2011. About the Editor
Time domain analysis of the single layer potential

In this chapter we develop a systematic approach to a pure time domain analysis of the single layer potential and operator, the Galerkin semidiscrete error operator and the Galerkin solver. Namely, we want to obtain estimates of $$ \displaystyle{\mathcal{S}{\ast}\lambda,\qquad \mathcal{V}{\ast}\lambda,\qquad \mathcal{K}^{t}{\ast}\lambda,} $$ of its semidiscrete inverses $$ \displaystyle{\mathcal{G}_{\lambda }^{h}{\ast}\beta,\qquad \mathcal{G}_{ u}^{h}{\ast}\beta = \mathcal{S}{\ast}\mathcal{G}_{\lambda }^{h}{\ast}\beta } $$ and of the error operators $$ \displaystyle{\mathcal{E}_{\lambda }^{h}{\ast}\lambda = \mathcal{G}_{\lambda }^{h} {\ast}\mathcal{V}{\ast}\lambda -\lambda,\qquad \mathcal{E}_{ u}^{h}{\ast}\lambda = \mathcal{S}{\ast}\mathcal{E}_{\lambda }^{h} {\ast}\lambda.} $$
The Modifier of Transcription 1 (Mot1) ATPase and Spt16 Histone Chaperone Co-regulate Transcription through Preinitiation Complex Assembly and Nucleosome Organization

Modifier of transcription 1 (Mot1) is a conserved and essential Swi2/Snf2 ATPase that can remove TATA-binding protein (TBP) from DNA using ATP hydrolysis and in so doing exerts global effects on transcription. Spt16 is also essential and functions globally in transcriptional regulation as a component of the facilitates chromatin transcription (FACT) histone chaperone complex. Here we demonstrate that Mot1 and Spt16 regulate a largely overlapping set of genes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. As expected, Mot1 was found to control TBP levels at co-regulated promoters. In contrast, Spt16 did not affect TBP recruitment. On a global scale, Spt16 was required for Mot1 promoter localization, and Mot1 also affected Spt16 localization to genes. Interestingly, we found that Mot1 has an unanticipated role in establishing or maintaining the occupancy and positioning of nucleosomes at the 5' ends of genes. Spt16 has a broad role in regulating chromatin organization in gene bodies, including those nucleosomes affected by Mot1. These results suggest that the large scale overlap in Mot1 and Spt16 function arises from a combination of both their unique and shared functions in transcription complex assembly and chromatin structure regulation.
Language Recognition via Sparse Coding

Abstract : Spoken language recognition requires a series of signal processing steps and learning algorithms to model distinguishing characteristics of different languages. In this paper, we present a sparse discriminative feature learning framework for language recognition. We use sparse coding, an unsupervised method, to compute efficient representations for spectral features from a speech utterance while learning basis vectors for language models. Differentiated from existing approaches, we introduce a maximum a posteriori (MAP) adaptation scheme that further optimizes the discriminative quality of sparse-coded speech features. We empirically validate the effectiveness of our approach using the NIST LRE 2015 dataset.
Navigating conflicting phonotactic constraints in bilingual speech perception

Word-initial /s/-consonant clusters do not occur in Spanish. Confronted with such sequences (e.g., in loanwords), Spanish speakers tend to perceive an illusory initial /e/, ‘repairing’ the illicit sequence. In two experiments, both conducted in Spanish with Spanish-sounding nonwords, we ask whether knowledge of English, which has no restriction against this sound sequence, weakens this pattern of perceptual repair in fluent Spanish–English bilinguals, and whether the effects of English depend on language dominance. In both identification and discrimination tasks, bilinguals exhibited weaker perceptual repair effects relative to Spanish monolinguals. This was true even for bilinguals dominant in Spanish, though the weakening was more pronounced for English-dominant bilinguals. These results show that conflicting phonotactic systems can jointly influence bilinguals’ perceptual repair of the acoustic signal in the more restrictive language, even when it is the bilingual's dominant language, suggesting a degree of integration and mutual influence of knowledge between both their languages.
Digital vs. conventional full-arch implant impressions: a comparative study.

Purpose To test whether or not digital full-arch implant impressions with two different intra-oral scanners (CEREC Omnicam and True Definition) have the same accuracy as conventional ones. The hypothesis was that the splinted open-tray impressions would be more accurate than digital full-arch impressions. Material and methods A stone master cast representing an edentulous mandible using five internal connection implant analogs (Straumann Bone Level RC, Basel, Switzerland) was fabricated. The three median implants were parallel to each other, the far left implant had 10°, and the far right had 15° distal angulation. A splinted open-tray technique was used for the conventional polyether impressions (n = 10) for Group 1. Digital impressions (n = 10) were taken with two intra-oral optical scanners (CEREC Omnicam and 3M True Definition) after connecting polymer scan bodies to the master cast for groups 2 and 3. Master cast and conventional impression test casts were digitized with a high-resolution reference scanner (Activity 880 scanner; Smart Optics, Bochum, Germany) to obtain digital files. Standard tessellation language (STL) datasets from the three test groups of digital and conventional impressions were superimposed with the STL dataset from the master cast to assess the 3D deviations. Deviations were recorded as root-mean-square error. To compare the master cast with conventional and digital impressions at the implant level, Welch's F-test was used together with Games–Howell post hoc test. Results Group I had a mean value of 167.93 μm (SD 50.37); Group II (Omnicam) had a mean value of 46.41 μm (SD 7.34); Group III (True Definition) had a mean value of 19.32 μm (SD 2.77). Welch's F-test was used together with the Games–Howell test for post hoc comparisons. Welch's F-test showed a significant difference between the groups (P < 0.001). The Games–Howell test showed statistically significant 3D deviations for all three groups (P < 0.001). Conclusion Full-arch digital implant impressions using True Definition scanner and Omnicam were significantly more accurate than the conventional impressions with the splinted open-tray technique. Additionally, the digital impressions with the True Definition scanner had significantly less 3D deviations when compared with the Omnicam.
Personal Experience and Public Opinion: A Theory and Test of Conditional Policy Feedback

Using a regression discontinuity design, we show that personal experience with public health insurance programs exerts a causal influence on attitudes toward both Medicare and the Affordable Care Act. However, we argue that the conditional dynamics of these policy feedback effects differ from standard models of opinion formation and change. Specifically, we find that personal experience can shape preferences among those whose partisanship might otherwise make them resistant to elite messaging; in the case of support for health policy, we find effects of public programs are most pronounced among Republicans. In addition, we find that the effects of personal experience, unlike attempts to shape attitudes through elite political messaging, are concentrated among low-information voters who might otherwise not be attuned to the political environment.
A facile route to prepare reflective counter electrode for enhanced dye-sensitised solar cell efficiency

Dye sensitised solar cells (DSSCs) represent a promising technology for the development of next-generation photovoltaics. The counter electrode in a DSSC typically consists of a tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) substrate covered by Pt as the catalyst. To increase DSSC efficiency and reduce fabrication cost, most existing methods involve multiple steps and are time consuming. In this work, we present a facile and low-cost alternative to prepare reflective counter electrodes for DSSCs with high efficiency. By simply sputtering a 30-nm-thick Pt film on ITO without further treatment, cell efficiency reached 7.08%, corresponding to an 11% increase from the control. Similar efficiency was achieved when a Pt film was sputtered on regular glass, which is a low-cost alternative to ITO. UV-vis spectroscopy showed that the reflectance for the control was below 30%, while the reflectance for the Pt-sputtered counter electrodes was above 70%, which is higher than the counter electrodes prepared by other methods.
Some Applications of the Sheffer A-Type 0 Orthogonal Polynomial Sequences

In this chapter, we address several of the many applications of the classical orthogonal polynomial sequences. These applications include first-order differential equations that characterize linear generating functions, additional first-order differential equations, second-order differential equations (with applications to quantum mechanics), difference equations and numerical integration (Gaussian Quadrature). We first develop each of these applications in a general context and then cover examples using specific Sheffer Sequences, i.e. the Laguerre, Hermite, Charlier, Meixner, Meixner–Pollaczek, and Krawtchouk polynomials.
The prevention of alcohol use by rural youth.

Little is known about preventing alcohol use by youth in rural America. Because most studies of teenage drinking and related prevention programs have been conducted in metropolitan areas, the word "rural" is relatively rare in the extensive alcohol prevention literature. Although descriptions of rural programs can be found, like the rural population itself, these are sparse, scattered, and heterogeneous. Almost no rural alcohol use prevention programs have been evaluated (Wargo et al. 1990).
Predictors of heterogeneity in the first-line treatment of patients with advanced/metastatic gastric cancer in the U.S.

Patients with metastatic gastric cancer have a poor prognosis (5-year survival of less than 10%). This study was designed to describe the treatment patterns of patients with gastric cancer and to understand the factors associated with treatment choices to inform evidence-based care. A retrospective observational study was conducted using two real-world databases to describe treatment trends and to quantify variability in treatment patterns of patients diagnosed with advanced/metastatic gastric cancer between 1/1/2007 and 9/30/2014 in the U.S. Heterogeneity was measured by the Herfindahl–Hirschman Index (HHI). Predictors (baseline clinical, treatment, and demographic variables) of treatment regimen choice were evaluated using logistic regression. A total of 5772 patients with advanced/metastatic gastric cancer were included in this study [5044 from claims data and 728 from electronic medical records (EMR)]. Of the 5044 from claims data, 2457 had evidence of metastatic disease at diagnosis. Only the fluorouracil + oxaliplatin regimen exceeded 10% utilization in the first-line setting [claims metastatic (12.1%), claims advanced (8.2%), and EMR metastatic (16.6%) cohorts]. The HHI demonstrated extreme heterogeneity (0.14 for first-line therapy and 0.13 for second-line therapy). Patient age and geographic region of residence were significantly associated with treatment choice across all three cohorts in the first-line setting (p < 0.05). Treatment of patients with gastric cancer was highly variable. Despite the availability of treatment guidelines, there is a lack of consistent treatment patterns. There is a need to improve evidence-based care for patients with gastric cancer.
Abstract 20780: Diet and Nutrition Smartphone Apps Demonstrate Poor Adherence to the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans

Introduction: A key component of cardiovascular disease prevention is dietary modification. Many smartphone apps claim to help their users achieve healthy eating patterns. Although these apps have ...
NEIGHBORHOOD COMPLEXITIES AND SYMMETRY OF CHEMICAL GRAPHS AND THEIR BIOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS

Abstract Quantitative measures of molecular complexity are calculated through the application of information-theoretic formalism on chemical graphs. The vertex set of a chemical graph is partitioned into disjoint subsets on the basis of the equivalence of various orders of closed neighborhoods and the information indices (ICν, SICν, CIν, and Rν) are calculated. The applications of these indices in structure-activity correlations are discussed.
What's the secret?: an encrypted treasure hunt

We developed a unique course with a focus on the math-based sciences of cryptanalysis and steganography. Created specifically for high school sophomores and juniors as a summer activity, we engaged students in a fun, hands-on manner while encouraging them to explore math and science as part of a career path.
Properties and genesis of Argialbolls in the USA

Abstract The presence of an albic horizon below a mollic epipedon has long puzzled pedologists. The purpose of this study was to utilize data from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) databases and the published literature to develop a weight-of-evidence assessment of how Albolls form in the USA. There are 69 Albolls soil series in the NRCS database, all of which are Argialbolls. These soils contain horizons with the following mean thickness and standard deviation: mollic epipedon (29 ± 11 cm), albic (18 ± 9 cm), and argillic (75 ± 37 cm). Argialbolls comprise 18,078 km2 in the USA (0.02% of total land area), 70% of which occur in North Dakota, South Dakota, Missouri, and Iowa. Argialbolls are somewhat poorly drained, poorly drained, or very poorly drained (78%); and 81% of the Argialbolls are very deep (> 1.5 m). Silty alluvium and loess comprise 86% of the parent materials. The dominant vegetation is grassland (64%), sedges (16%), or savanna (16%). Ninety percent of the Argialboll soil series are in the fine or fine-silty particle-size classes; 62% have a mesic soil-temperature regime; 36% have an aquic soil-moisture regime, and 64% have a smectitic soil-mineral class. The Argialbolls have formed under modern conditions where development of a smectitic-rich argillic horizon has led to reducing conditions during which Fe and Mn concentrate as concretions in the albic horizon that underlies the mollic epipedon.
Blocking PD1/PDL1 Interactions Together with MLN4924 Therapy is a Potential Strategy for Glioma Treatment.

Objective MLN4924, a pharmacological inhibitor of cullin neddylation, resulted in glioma cell apoptosis, deregulation of the S-phase of DNA synthesis and thus, offers great potential for the treatment of brain tumours. However, targeting the neddylation pathway with an MLN4924 treatment stabilized the hypoxia-inducible factor 1A (HIF1A), which is one of the main transcriptional enhancers of the immune checkpoint molecule PDL1 (programmid death ligand-1) in cancer cells. The influence of immune checkpoint molecules on glioma progression has recently been discovered; PDL1 overexpression in gliomas corresponds to a significant shortening of patient survival and a decrease of the anti-tumour immune response. We hypothesize that i) PDL1 is up-regulated in gliomas after treatment with MLN4924 and induces T-cell energy; ii) co-utilization of the PD1/PDL1 blockage with MLN4924 therapy may reduce T-cell energy and may engage MLN4924-induced tumour disruption with the immune response. Methods PDL1 expression and its immunosuppressive role in gliomas, glioma microenvironments, and after treatments with MLN4924 were assessed by utilizing methods of immunohistochemistry, molecular biology, and biochemistry. Results We confirmed PDL1 overexpression in clinical brain tumour samples, PDGx and established glioma cell lines, extracellular media from glioma cells, and CSF (cerebrospinal fluid) samples from tumour-bearing mice. Our primary T-cell based assays verified that the up-regulation of PDL1 in tumour cells protects gliomas from T-cell treatment and reduces T-cell activation. We found that a pharmacological inhibitor of cullin neddylation, MLN4924, exhibited strong cytotoxicity towards PDGx and established glioma cell lines, in vitro, with an IC50's range from 0.2 to 3 uM. However, we observed a significant increase of HIF1A and PDL1 in mRNA and protein levels in all glioma cell lines after treatment with MLN4924. The MLN4924-dependent induction of PDL1 in gliomas resulted in T-cell energy, which was blocked by a blockage of the PD1/PDL1 interaction. Conclusion We conclude that i) PDL1 up-regulation in gliomas and the glioma microenvironment is an important chemotherapeutic target; ii) MLN4924 therapy, combined with a blockage of the PD1/PDL1 pathway, should be considered as a potential strategy for glioma treatment.
Input Selection for Performance, Stabilizability, and Controllability of Structured Linear Descriptor Systems

Networked systems are often controlled by selecting a subset of nodes to act as inputs, which then control the remaining network nodes via local interactions. In this paper, we investigate the problem of selecting input nodes in order to control structured linear descriptor systems, which contain free parameters that can take any value as well as fixed parameters that take a known, fixed value. This class of system generalizes standard models of networked systems, which typically assume that all parameters are either fixed or free. We develop a framework for joint selection to ensure controllability, stabilizability via output feedback, and performance, by mapping conditions for controllability and stabilizability to matroid constraints on the set of input nodes. We propose polynomial-time algorithms with provable optimality bounds when the performance metrics under consideration are submodular. Our results are illustrated through a numerical study.
"How come you ain't got it?": Dislocation as Historical Act in Hurston's Documentary Texts

The essay considers Toni Cade Bambara’s little-studied novel, Those Bones Are Not My Child (1999), in terms of its representation of testimony as a response to racial violence in the United States. I argue that Bambara’s account of the historical Atlanta Missing and Murdered Children’s Case recommends an expansion of current theories about testimony, in particular, with respect to the entwined historical and political positions of those who “speak out” against traumatic experiences in the context of racial injury. By dramatizing the clash and coherence of various forms of testimony—a mother finds her voice; a son suffers and exercises the power of his silence; and writer and reader conspire to witness without hope of conclusion—Bambara’s book points the way toward a more complex notion of agency and a reformulated theory of testimony that are calibrated to the particular challenges of responding to historical and immediate violence against black Americans. To activate the testimonial practice that Bambara calls for in this epic final work, I argue, one must demand answers without foreclosing questions, speak into history without confirming its frames of reference, and lodge a grievance knowing its insufficiency to ease unending grief.
Micro-electro-mechanical system multi-resonant accelerometer for auditory prosthetics

Low usage of auditory prosthetics such as hearing aids can be attributed to several factors including appearance, stigma, acoustic feedback, and poor performance in noisy environments. Cochlear implants suffer from similar stigma; furthermore, external components of the system must be removed for sleeping, bathing, and physical exercise. Designing a completely implantable system that includes a sensor placed in the middle ear can mitigate these issues. Our approach is to use a miniature piezoelectric accelerometer to sense the vibration of the middle ear ossicles rather than employing an external or subcutaneous microphone to sense incoming sound. Results of our previous work showed the potential of this approach using a traditional single-resonance sensor. We seek to improve the low-frequency input referred noise (IRN) of the system by using a new architecture consisting of an array of piezoelectric MEMS beams with different resonant frequencies. The beams are connected electrically in a manner that increases the system sensitivity over the bandwidth of interest, thereby decreasing the IRN. Preliminary analytic studies have illustrated that 10 parallel-connected beams can improve the IRN by approximately 45 dB at 100 Hz. This method could further miniaturize sensors capable of detecting ossicular vibration from 100 Hz to 8 kHz.Low usage of auditory prosthetics such as hearing aids can be attributed to several factors including appearance, stigma, acoustic feedback, and poor performance in noisy environments. Cochlear implants suffer from similar stigma; furthermore, external components of the system must be removed for sleeping, bathing, and physical exercise. Designing a completely implantable system that includes a sensor placed in the middle ear can mitigate these issues. Our approach is to use a miniature piezoelectric accelerometer to sense the vibration of the middle ear ossicles rather than employing an external or subcutaneous microphone to sense incoming sound. Results of our previous work showed the potential of this approach using a traditional single-resonance sensor. We seek to improve the low-frequency input referred noise (IRN) of the system by using a new architecture consisting of an array of piezoelectric MEMS beams with different resonant frequencies. The beams are connected electrically in a manner that incr...
Crossing Categorical Boundaries: A Study of Diversification by Social Movement Organizations:

When do protest organizations borrow issues or claims that are outside their traditional domains? Sociologists have examined the consequences of borrowing claims across movement boundaries, but not...
What Is the Future of Clinical Microbiology

Clinical microbiology has advanced tremendously in the past 10 years. In this comic, the role of technology, the need for skilled microbiologists, and the meaning of progress in clinical microbiology are considered.
Developing a Health Equity and Criminal Justice Concentration for a Master of Public Health (MPH) Program: Results from a needs assessment among community partners and potential employers.

The United States has experienced a 4-fold increase in jail and prison populations over the last 40 years, disproportionately burdening African American and Hispanic/Latinx communities. Mass incarceration threatens the health of individuals, families, and communities, and requires a public health response. The Master of Public Health (MPH) Program at Touro University California (TUC) trains students to become skillful, socially-conscious public health professionals. We are developing a concentration focused on the public health impacts of incarceration. Along with the core public health curriculum, students of this new "Health Equity and Criminal Justice (HECJ)" concentration will receive training in criminal justice, reentry, reintegration, recidivism, restorative justice, structural racism, and social and community impacts of incarceration. Our study gauges interest in an HECJ concentration in our local community, including potential employers. We surveyed a cross-section of community partners including public health departments, other governmental agencies, California correctional facilities, county jails, community groups, health clinics, and hospitals. A majority (89%) of respondents consider mass incarceration a public health problem and 86% believe specialized training would make graduates employable by criminal justice related organizations. The HECJ track will fill a gap in the field and train a future generation of public health professionals to address the epidemic of mass incarceration.
Psychological Distress, Felt Stigma, and HIV Prevention in a National Probability Sample of Sexual Minority Men.

Purpose: We assessed how psychological distress and felt stigma (perceived sexual minority stigma in one's community) are associated with key HIV prevention outcomes in a U.S. national probability ...
Clinical characteristics of laparoscopic adhesiolysis for adhesive small bowel obstruction in children

Objective To evaluate the outcomes of the laparoscopic adhesiolysis to small bowel obstruction (SBO) in children.Methods Clinical data of 47 cases of laparoscopic adhesiolysis to adhesion SBO from January 2008 to January 2013 were retrospectively analyzed.All of them experienced only once surgery history.Results All laparoscopic surgery were successfully completed without laparotomic conversions,there were no incisional hernia,wound infection and pneumonia complications.Adhesions located in the right upper quadrant of 7 cases,the right lower quadrant of 31 cases,the left upper quadrant of 3 cases and the left lower quadrant of 6 cases.The cause of obstruction was a single band (n =5),more than 2 bands (n =22),anterior abdominal wall adhesions (n =8) and extensive dense adhesions(n =12).Two patients with intestinal extensive dense adhesions were appeared SBO again,they were cured by laparotomy of intestinal resection and anastomosis.Small intestine was ruptured in another 2 cases,they were cured by endoscopic suture.The operative time for the bands caused SBO groups was shorter than that for the anterior abdominal wall adhesions or extensive dense adhesions caused SBO groups(P＜0.05).All patients were cured after surgery,and no adhesion SBO,intractable recurrent abdominal pain or malnutrition was found during postoperative follow-up (3-60m).Conclusions Laparoscopic adhesiolysis is safe,feasible and effective to treat adhesion SBO in children.For children with extensive dense intestinal adhesions,the indication for laparoscopic adhesiolysis should be more strictly controlled. Key words: Laparoscopy; Intestinal obstruction; Reoperation
Is there an association between air pollution levels and lung cancer incidence

e13584Background: PM2.5 particles are an indicator of air pollution levels associated with various respiratory illnesses. We sought to determine the association between air pollution levels and lun...
Integration of neural networks with numerical solution of PDEs for closure models development

Abstract Modeling often requires closures to account for the multiscale/multiphysics nature of certain phenomena. Recently, there has been interest in the application of machine learning (ML) for their development. Most of the applications are purely data-driven; however, incorporation of the knowledgebase is an opportunity to enhance flexibility and predictive capability of ML models. This paper presents a PDE-integrated ML framework. PDEs are solved using convolutional operators and integrated with neural networks (NNs). Such integration allows one to train the NNs directly on observed field variables. To demonstrate the framework's viability, NNs are integrated with heat conduction, Navier-Stokes, and RANS equations.
Abstract 2518: Function of microRNA-10a in cholangiocarcinoma

Cholangiocarcinoma, a primary liver cancer of the bile ducts, effects 6,000 patients yearly and incidence has been growing consistently over the past 15 years. Current therapies for cholangiocarcinoma are not curative and patient survival is less than 1 year after diagnosis. Strides toward new treatment rest on better understanding tumor biology. The expression of microRNAs in cholangiocarcinoma cells was analyzed by RNAseq after knockdown of fibroblast growth factor receptor 4 (FGFR4) to identify potential microRNAs regulated by FGFR4. Caspase activity was used to evaluate miR-10a roles in anti-apoptotic signaling. Cell scratch assays were used to test cell migration and cell counting was used to determine proliferation. Quantitative real time PCR was used to measure miR-10a levels in cholangiocarcinoma cell lines Mz-ChA-1, HUCCT-1 and KMCH after FGFR4 knockdown with siRNA. Potential target proteins of miR-10a were evaluated by western blot. Preliminary data showed dozens of microRNAs (miRs) in cholangiocarcinoma cells were modulated by FGFR4 knockdown. Treatment with siRNA to FGFR4 caused increased sensitivity to TRAIL-induced apoptosis, and also reduced miR-10a expression in Mz-ChA-1, HuCCT-1, and KMCH cell lines. Importantly, apoptosis sensitization was reversed by restoring miR-10a expression in cells. miR-10a helped regulate both cell proliferation and cell migration in cholangiocarcinoma cells. When miR-10a was increased in cholangiocarcinoma cells, migration and proliferation increased. When miR-10a was decreased these effects also decreased. Protein targets of miR-10a included the MAP Kinase-related proteins MLK-1 & TAK-1. Other protein targets such as PHLDA1 & AKTIP were also identified. Notably, microRNA binding prediction programs did not include MLK-1 as a target, though our sequence analysis shows multiple stable binding sites. MLK-1 showed the most dramatic response to miR-10a. We investigated the role miR-10a plays for cholangiocarcinoma and the mechanism through which this pathway is regulated. Data supports miR-10a as a key player in cell survival, proliferation and migration. We have identified a set of proteins that are regulated by miR-10a in cholangiocarcinoma cells. Looking forward, identification of the function of these proteins will help elucidate how miR-10a functions in cholangiocarcinoma progression. Citation Format: Matthieu Spriet, Cody Wehrkamp, Brandon Henslee, Ashley Mohr, Steve Kachman, Justin Mott. Function of microRNA-10a in cholangiocarcinoma [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research 2020; 2020 Apr 27-28 and Jun 22-24. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(16 Suppl):Abstract nr 2518.
An Intellectual Property Structural Engineer Extraordinaire and Her Lifelong Quest for Coherence

Commissioned for the festschrift in honor of Professor Annette Kur of Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition, this book chapter recognizes her important contributions to the intellectual property field. Specifically, it explores her role as an intellectual property structural engineer extraordinaire and her lifelong quest for a coherent intellectual property system. This chapter draws illustrations from two of her edited books, Intellectual Property Rights in a Fair World Trade System and The Structure of Intellectual Property Law. It also touches on structural concepts that are essential to the development of intellectual property law, such as foundation, floor, ceiling, frame, space, architecture and construction plan. The chapter concludes by noting Professor Kur’s confidence and positive attitude towards reforming the existing intellectual property system from the inside.
On the Spatial Design of Co-Fed Amines for Selective Dehydration of Methyl Lactate to Acrylates

Co-feeding an inert and site-selective chemical titrant provides desirable selectivity tuning when titrant adsorption is favored over side reaction pathways on a solid acid catalyst. Here, a select...
Predictors of Violence Reported by Female and Male Inmates in Wisconsin State Prisons

The present study compared predictors of violence as suggested by the importation and deprivation models and the newly utilized threat appraisal and coping models. Participants included 290 female ...
A dynamic behavioral model of Korean saving, work, and benefit claiming decisions

Abstract The Republic of Korea faces a rapidly aging population that is more reliant on public pension support but pension contributions are insufficient to support its long-term obligations. As a result, there is a growing debate on what type of reforms to the current defined-pension system could balance the long-term funding of the system with insuring benefit levels for old and new beneficiaries. In this paper, we develop and estimate a dynamic behavioral model that captures essential elements of the National Pension Scheme (NPS) and behavioral responses in labor supply, savings and benefit claiming to changes in the public pension system using a nationally-representative sample of married couples nearing retirement from the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging (KLoSA). We use the model estimates to evaluate the effect of counterfactual policy experiments such as increases in the contribution rate and the extension of normal retirement age on the decision to work or not work, savings and benefit claiming among individuals near retirement. While these policies are aimed at shoring up the NPS, our model demonstrates that changes to the contribution rate could discourage work and savings in married households near retirement. In particular, a 2 percentage point immediate increase in the contribution rate would reduce household savings by 2 percent among poor households, as well as reduce labor participation among wives by 3 percent and among husbands by less than a percent. When we simulate the same increase in the contribution rate in even increments over five years, households anticipate the policy change and increase their savings to compensate for the future fall in income, dissipating undesirable behavioral responses such as decreased work and savings. In contrast, an increase of 2 years in the normal retirement age leads to a 3 percent increase in household savings, and to an increase in both husband and wife labor force participation (less than 1 percent and 3 percent respectively). These finding suggest policy design, such as phase-in periods, can be leveraged to minimize undesirable behavioral responses of households near retirement. Despite their potential detrimental effects in labor supply and savings, findings from a benefit-cost analysis suggest that the costs of undesired behavioral responses to an increase in contribution rates are orders of magnitude smaller than the revenue benefits to the NPS's finances.
Co-option of the Limb Patterning Program in Cephalopod Lens Development

Across the Metazoa, similar genetic programs are found in the development of analogous, independently evolved, morphological features. The functional significance of this reuse and the underlying mechanisms of co-option remain unclear. Here we identify the co-option of the canonical bilaterian limb pattering program redeployed during cephalopod lens development, a functionally unrelated structure. We show radial expression of transcription factors SP6-9/sp1, Dlx/dll, Pbx/exd, Meis/hth, and a Prdl homolog in the squid Doryteuthis pealeii, similar to expression required in Drosophila limb development. We assess the role of Wnt signaling in the cephalopod lens, a positive regulator in the developing limb, and find the regulatory relationship reversed, with ectopic Wnt signaling leading to lens loss. This regulatory divergence suggests that duplication of SP6-9 in cephalopods may mediate this co-option. These results suggest that the limb network does not exclusively pattern appendage outgrowth but is performing a more universal developmental function: radial patterning.
Memory-Efficient Adaptive Test Pattern Reordering for Accurate Diagnosis

Logic diagnosis is a software-based methodology to identify the behavior and location of defects in failing integrated circuits, which is an essential step in yield learning. Conventionally, accurate diagnosis requires a sufficient amount of failing data, indicating a high test cost. Prior work that attempt to solve this problem either use a fixed pattern order, ignoring the characteristics of each chip, or require significant memory which leads to unacceptable increases in test cost. In this work, a new algorithm is described for dynamically selecting the test pattern order that leads to significant reduction in memory cost. Experiments using two industrial chips demonstrate the efficacy of the approach. Compared to prior work, the algorithm described in this work uses as little as 1/500 of tester space to store failing data.
Case law as raw material for teaching ethics in public administration

This article argues that law cases are rich raw material for analytical ethics education in public administration. While scholars acknowledge that law can play some role in teaching ethics, they ha...
The Molecular Effects of a PARP-1/-2 Inhibitor on Proton and Photon Radiotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer Cells.

Purpose/Objective(s) The responses of human head and neck cancer (HNSCC) cells to photon (XRT) and proton (PRT) radiotherapy can be enhanced by a poly-(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP)-1 and PARP-2 inhibitor (PARPi) with undefined underlying mechanisms. We hypothesize that elucidating these mechanisms will facilitate a personalized selection of PARPi in combination with XRT or PRT. Herein, the effects of PARPi on XRT and PRT induced cell death, cell cycle distribution, and related protein expression in HNSCC cells were defined. Materials/Methods Human papillomavirus (HPV)-negative HN5, SqCC/Y1, and HPV-positive UPCI-SCC-154, UM-SCC-47 cell lines were tested. Cells were exposed to a 4 Gy PRT or XRT with or without PARPi (1 µM, 1 hour [h] before radiation). Cell cycle distribution, cell necrosis and apoptosis (staining with Annexin-VFITC) were determined using terminal deoxy-nucleotidyltransferase dUTP nickend labeling assay and were analyzed by flow cytometry. Cell mitotic catastrophe (co-staining for cytoplasm with γ- tubulin for nucleus with Dapi), and senescence (assessed using SA-β-gal) were examined. Protein expressions were determined by western blot or by flow cytometry. Results PARPi significantly increased XRT and PRT induced cellular senescence at 6 days in the two HPV+ cell lines, with higher percentages of senescence in PRT than XRT cells (P all Conclusion In conclusion, PARPi induced higher levels of mitotic catastrophe in combination with PRT versus XRT, promoted XRT and PRT induced senescence, while it led to a trend of increased cell necrosis after PRT and XRT. These upregulating effects of PARPi were cell line dependent. Cell line based delayed DNA damage repair and increase in radiation-induced cell cycle arrest at G2/M phase may have served as parts of the underlying mechanisms. Further studies on personalized therapy of XRT or PRT in combination with PARPi to improve the efficacy of radiotherapy are warranted.
Union Agendas and the Disintegration of Job Stability—an Institutional Perspective

Job quality in the US has traditionally been formulated as a synthetic concept where empirical â€˜goodâ€™ jobs net a whole array of quality dimensions. â€˜Goodâ€™ jobs, it was assumed, simultaneously provided high wage levels, a high propensity for wage growth, and good job security. The demise of the postwar collective bargaining system and the process of industrial restructuring, with the accompanying decline in manufacturing employment, have created a situation where this view is no longer warranted. Todayâ€™s jobs are unlikely to optimise on all dimensions of job quality, and individual employment is likely to be characterised by tradeoffs between different quality dimensions. These tradeoffs are manifested in the institutional structure of empirical labor market in three ways: a) in the public sector, jobs are highly secure but employees have traditionally experienced lower than average wage increases, b) in the strongly unionised manufacturing sector, wage levels tend to be above average but jobs appear to be less secure than elsewhere in the economy, c) in the dynamic tertiary sector, the possibility of wage mobility tends to be substantial while starting-out wages tend to lie below average. This essay argues that contrary to research which has described the efforts of US unions in the past decade as essentially ineffective, unions have met the challenges of disintegrated job quality and contributed to the alleviation of job quality deficits in each of the three sectors outlined above.