cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Improving the efficiency of power distribution systems through technical and non-technical losses reduction

This paper presents a review of technologies, methodologies and operational approaches aimed at improving the efficiency of power distribution systems, with emphasis in the accurate estimation and reduction of technical and non-technical power and energy losses. From a losses evaluation viewpoint this includes efficiently using data supplied by utility information systems, and utilizing computational feeder models and advanced modeling and simulation software for accurately calculating technical and non-technical losses. From a technical losses reduction perspective this includes the implementation of smart grid approaches such as Volt-VAr Optimization (VVO), distribution state estimation, automatic feeder reconfiguration, meshed distribution feeder operation, and Distributed Energy Resources (DER) among others. From a non-technical losses reduction standpoint this includes the utilization of Advanced Metering Infrastructures (AMI) and metering and fraud deterrence and detection technologies such as prepaid and tamper-proof electricity meters, macro-meters (communal metering), remote connection and disconnection systems, inspection and monitoring programs, data collection and calculation improvement, etc. A summary of international experiences, as well as conclusions and recommendations regarding the effectiveness, advantages and disadvantages of these approaches is presented and discussed.
The chemical composition of the interior shells of the Earth

The suggestion is made that the core and lower mantle of the Earth are chemically analogous to the two principal components of highly reduced enstatite chondrite meteorites. This suggestion is supported by mass ratio comparisons.
Early detection of mixed mutations selected by antiretroviral agents in HIV-infected primary human lymphocytes.

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) and herpes simplex virus (HSV) can cause a wide variety of clinical manifestations in man. Ganciclovir (GCV) is effective against HCMV infection when administered by the intravenous route and may be used orally in large doses for prophylaxis of HCMV infections in organ transplantation patients and in AIDS patients. In previous studies with acyclovir (ACV), we found that covalent attachment of an alkyl glycerol phosphate moiety greatly increased oral bioavailability and increased antiviral activity against hepatitis B virus. Adducts of ACV with alkyl propanediol phosphate were more active than the alkyl glycerol phosphate analogue in vitro in 2.2.15 cells, which constitutively produce hepatitis B virus. To see if this strategy would work for two other poorly absorbed nucleoside analogues, we synthesized 1-O-hexadecylpropanediol-3-phospho-GCV (HDP-P-GCV) and 1-O-hexadecyl-propanediol-3-phospho-penciclovir (HDP-P-PCV), and evaluated the in vitro antiviral activity, selectivity and oral antiviral activity of both compounds versus GCV or PCV in mice infected with HSV-1 or HDP-P-GCV versus murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV). HDP-P-GCV is orally active in both MCMV and HSV-1 infection in mice with antiviral activity equivalent to (HSV-1) or greater than oral GCV (MCMV). Oral HDP-P-PCV was more active than PCV orally versus intranasal HSV-1 infection in mice.
Autochthony and the Athenians

Athenians of the fifth and fourth centuries claimed with pride that their ancestors had always lived in Attica, a claim which they expressed by describing themselves as Related to this Athenian belief that they had always lived in Attica was a second, that, as a people, they were literally ‘sprung from the earth’. It is generally assumed that both beliefs developed at a very early date, but this is merely an assumption, and in the course of this paper we will see evidence suggesting, to the contrary, that both ideas were relatively late developments. This paper focuses on the development of the concept of autochthony, as far as our sources allow, in an effort to understand better what autochthony meant to the Athenians. In particular it considers how the Athenians came to think of themselves as ‘born from the earth’. It then suggests how, through the medium of the word the idea of being ‘born from the earth’ came to symbolize ‘living in a place from time immemorial’. Finally it examines how the concept of autochthony was used in contexts which relate it to the ideology of Athenian democracy.
Inverted file partitioning schemes in multiple disk systems

Multiple-disk I/O systems (disk arrays) have been an attractive approach to meet high performance I/O demands in data intensive applications such as information retrieval systems. When we partition and distribute files across multiple disks to exploit the potential for I/O parallelism, a balanced I/O workload distribution becomes important for good performance. Naturally, the performance of a parallel information retrieval system using an inverted file structure is affected by the partitioning scheme of the inverted file. In this paper, we propose two different partitioning schemes for an inverted file system for a shared-everything multiprocessor machine with multiple disks. We study the performance of these schemes by simulation under a number of workloads where the term frequencies in the documents are varied, the term frequencies in the queries are varied, the number of disks are varied and the multiprogramming level is varied. >
Regeneration and experimental orthotopic transplantation of a bioengineered kidney

Approximately 100,000 individuals in the United States currently await kidney transplantation, and 400,000 individuals live with end-stage kidney disease requiring hemodialysis. The creation of a transplantable graft to permanently replace kidney function would address donor organ shortage and the morbidity associated with immunosuppression. Such a bioengineered graft must have the kidney's architecture and function and permit perfusion, filtration, secretion, absorption and drainage of urine. We decellularized rat, porcine and human kidneys by detergent perfusion, yielding acellular scaffolds with vascular, cortical and medullary architecture, a collecting system and ureters. To regenerate functional tissue, we seeded rat kidney scaffolds with epithelial and endothelial cells and perfused these cell-seeded constructs in a whole-organ bioreactor. The resulting grafts produced rudimentary urine in vitro when perfused through their intrinsic vascular bed. When transplanted in an orthotopic position in rat, the grafts were perfused by the recipient's circulation and produced urine through the ureteral conduit in vivo.
The anodic surface film and hydrogen evolution on Mg

Abstract This study clarifies that the inner and outer layers of the anodic film consist of a nano/micro-porous MgO + Mg(OH)2 mixture. The film becomes thicker and more porous with increasing potential. It can rupture when potential is too positive in a non-corrosive Mg(OH)2 solution. Hydrogen evolution becomes more intensive as polarization potential increases, particularly when the potential at the film-covered Mg surface is close to or more positive than the hydrogen equilibrium potential, suggesting that an “anodic hydrogen evolution” (AHE) reaction occurs on the substrate Mg in film pores, and the significantly intensified AHE causes film rupture at high potential.
Complete Avulsion of the Axillary Artery as a Complication of Shoulder Dislocation

Two new total hip replacement (THR) procedures have been termed minimally invasive. It is claimed that these smaller incision techniques reduce soft-tissue trauma, decrease postoperative pain and blood loss, speed recovery, and reduce the length of the hospital stay compared with hip replacement using the standard incision technique. These new procedures use either one small 6- to 10-cm incision through a posterior, lateral, or anterior approach or two very small (a 2.5 cm posterior incision for placement of the femoral component and a 5-cm anterior incision for placement of the acetabular component) incisions to accomplish the same THR procedure that requires a standard length incision of 15 to 20 cm. Controversy exists on whether these small incision THRs are actually minimally invasive. It is debated whether a small skin incision that requires the application of high forces on the soft tissues for exposure of the joint but less muscle dissection will produce less overall trauma to the patient than a larger incision with wider muscle dissection but with lower retraction forces. If small incision THR techniques are less traumatic overall, then they should produce less pain, lower transfusion requirements, a shorter hospital stay, and a faster recovery for patients. The other important issues regarding small incision procedures are whether the decreased visualization provided by these techniques is adequate to prevent a higher complication rate from damage to the surrounding neurovascular structures and outcomes that are equivalent to those found for THR using the standard technique. A review of the literature to date provides no convincing evidence of any significant advantages of small incision THR compared with standard incision THR other than a shorter surgical scar. Comparison studies that prove both significant advantages and low complication rates for small incision THR are needed before these procedures can be recommended for general use.
Evolvable Hardware in Silicon

Evolvable systems in silicon are third generation hardware in terms of flexibility and fault-tolerance. The first generation was fixed silicon: once a device was fabricated its structure was forever fixed. Reconfigurable hardware came as a second generation: new configurations could be downloaded changing the function of the device and also bypassing faulty areas, if any. The third generation is that of self-configurable, evolvable hardware (EHW), and adds the automatic reconfiguration feature, enabling truly adaptive hardware. This chapter addresses current efforts in building and using evolvable chips. The first section refers to evolutionary algorithms for evolvable hardware. The second section describes the JPL evolvable hardware testbed and the JPL Field Programmable Transistor Array (FPTA) chip designed and used for circuit evolution in silicon. The third section addresses the application of evolvable hardware for adaptive filtering and noise cancellation. The fourth section discusses the importance of fault-tolerant hardware in space and describes the evolvable hardware approach for faulttolerant design of a 4-bit data converter. The final section concludes the work.
In Vitro Effect of Mycothricin on Plant Pathogenic Bacteria and Fungi

The isolation and characterization of mycothricin, a new basic anti? biotic belonging to the streptothricin group, was recently reported from this laboratory (8). The antibiotic is characterized by its activity against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, as well as against yeasts and filamentous fungi. In view of the recent interest in anti? biotics possessing antibacterial and antifungal properties for the treat? ment of plant diseases, the activity of mycothricin against plant patho? gens was investigated. Streptomycin has so far been found most promising for controlling bacterial diseases (3, 7, 12, 13). A number of other antibiotics, notably actidione, antimycin, helixin B, antibiotic XG, and candicidin, have been found effective in checking fungal infections in small scale experiments (1,4,5,6,11).
Temperature-Induced Topological Phase Transitions: Promoted versus Suppressed Nontrivial Topology

Contrary to previous two-band model studies which find increasing temperature would induce a topological phase transition, we show here through first-principles calculations that the opposite is also realizable, depending on the material's full band structure and symmetry of the electron-phonon coupling potential. This finding explains recent experimental results by Wojek et al. [Nat. Commun. 6, 8463 (2015)NCAOBW2041-172310.1038/ncomms9463]. We show that the topological phase diagram of BiTl(S_{1-δ}Se_{δ})_{2} as a function of doping and temperature contains two distinct regions with nontrivial topology. In BiTlS_{2}, the phonons promote the topological phase at high temperature, while in BiTlSe_{2}, the system is driven back into the trivial phase.
An overview of driver feedback systems for efficiency and safety

Driver feedback systems have the potential to improve driving safety and efficiency by providing instructions to drivers aimed at improving their driving style. There is already a rich body of available literature devoted to the derivation of energy efficient speed profiles to develop driver feedback or eco-driving systems. While most of them can be applied to any type of vehicle, their effectiveness will be maximized if their formulation involves the dynamics of the particular vehicle powertrain configuration. This paper summarizes the research trends in the development of these systems that have been reported in the literature to date classifying them according to the powertrain structure and the nature of the control strategy. The study concludes with a discussion on the remaining challenges and potential future research directions.
A stochastic optimization framework for source seeking with infotaxis-like algorithms

We propose a framework of algorithms for source seeking using stochastic optimization. We show that the infotaxis algorithm which uses information theory for source seeking can be realized using this framework. Using the framework, we developed a novel algorithm called the expected rate algorithm which has lower computational requirement. We prove that both infotaxis and expected rate algorithms generate identical optimization steps in most cases. Using simulation we show that under certain conditions the proposed algorithm generates more effective optimization steps than infotaxis and verify the computational performance of the proposed algorithm. We also demonstrate the practical applicability of the algorithm in source seeking through experiments.
Pioneer Rocketry - 2016 WSGC Collegiate Rocket Competition

The objective of the 2016 Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium Collegiate Rocket Launch Competition was to design and build a “true scale model” of any real world rocket or missile. We selected to bring a scale model of the Orbital ATK Pegasus XL to this year's competition. We had three flights during the competition, all of which were successful, and close to our expected values. This, as well as our documentation, earned us first place in this year's competition. The following report details the design and construction of Pioneer Rocketry’s 2016 competition rocket, along with information regarding Pioneer Rocketry’s growth as both an educational and professional organization.
CHAPTER 5 – Analysis, Presentation, and Interpretation of Dietary Data

Nutritional epidemiological studies, while not an exact science, play a critical role in relating dietary intake to risk of disease. These investigations often require the gathering of dietary intake data from various samples, which must then be translated into a usable form. This chapter discusses what is done with the dietary data once they are collected. This includes analysis , the examination of the dietary data to determine the nutritional composition of the subjects' diet;presentation, presenting the data from the research in a logical form, often done by comparing the analyzed data to a standard; and interpretation , the translation of the data. The methods most often used to obtain dietary intake information for research investigations include dietary recalls, food records or diaries, and food frequency questionnaires. Dietary recalls and food records provide detailed descriptions of the types and amounts of food and beverages consumed throughout a specified period of time, normally 1 to 7 days. Although dietary assessment methods do not provide true nutritional intake values, it is not feasible to eliminate them from nutritional research studies. Nutritional health cannot be evaluated without also examining the total diet composition. Improving dietary intake methodology is critical to the credibility of nutrition research. Identifying under reporters and improving dietary database validity through analytical approaches should remain in the forefront of nutritional epidemiological studies until methodology improvements can be found. Researchers as well as practitioners need to keep in mind that bias does exist and should interpret dietary intake data with skepticism to prevent any misleading diet and health associations.
Abstract 318: Modulation of Neointimal Hyperplasia Severity in Rats by Commensal Microbial Transfer

Neointimal hyperplasia is a major contributor to restenosis after arterial interventions. The genetic and environmental mechanisms underlying the variable propensity for neointimal hyperplasia between individuals are not well understood. One possible modulator could be commensal gut microbes. To address whether microbes mediate neointimal hyperplasia, we cohoused genetically different rats (Lewis [LE] and Sprague-Dawley [SD]) which harbor different commensal microbes and compared neointimal hyperplasia 2 weeks after carotid angioplasty in the cohoused and non-cohoused cohorts. Cohousing is a means of microbial transfer between cage inhabitants. We observed that differences in neointimal hyperplasia between non-cohoused LE and SD rats (median intima+media [I+M] area 0.12 mm 2 LE vs. 0.26 mm 2 SD, P
From Retina to Stem Cell and Back Again: Memories of a Chromatin Journey.

The use of retinal organoids requires efficient differentiation from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). In this issue of Cell Reports, Wang et al. (2018) examine how the chromatin landscape after iPSC programming predicts their ability to differentiate into retinal tissue.
The striatal cholinergic system in l-dopa-induced dyskinesias

Cholinergic signaling plays a key role in regulating striatal function. The principal source of acetylcholine in the striatum is the cholinergic interneurons which, although low in number, densely arborize to modulate striatal neurotransmission. This modulation occurs via strategically positioned nicotinic and muscarinic acetylcholine receptors that influence striatal dopamine, GABA and other neurotransmitter release. Cholinergic interneurons integrate multiple striatal synaptic inputs and outputs to regulate motor activity under normal physiological conditions. Consequently, an imbalance between these systems is associated with basal ganglia disorders. Here, we provide an overview of how striatal cholinergic interneurons modulate striatal activity under normal and pathological conditions. Numerous studies show that nigrostriatal damage such as that occurs with Parkinson's disease affects cholinergic receptor-mediated striatal activity. This altered cholinergic signaling is an important contributor to Parkinson's disease as well as to the dyskinesias that develop with L-dopa therapy, the gold standard for treatment. Indeed, multiple preclinical studies show that cholinergic receptor drugs may be beneficial for the treatment of L-dopa-induced dyskinesias. In this review, we discuss the evidence indicating that therapeutic modulation of the cholinergic system, particularly targeting of nicotinic cholinergic receptors, may offer a novel approach to manage this debilitating side effect of dopamine replacement therapy for Parkinson's disease.
Club Root of Cabbage

Club root of cabbage is caused by Plasmodiophora brassicae. Only members of the Cruciferae, the mustard family, such as cabbage, turnip, and rutabaga are susceptible. Infected roots enlarge into club-shaped structures of irregular dimensions. Above-ground parts may be stunted, yellow, and wilted, reflecting the unhealthy structures below. Examine Table 9-1 for a comparison of the characteristics of various kinds of overgrowths caused by different pathogenic agents.
Sociocultural Theory and Therapy

This and the remainder of the book deal with therapy. This chapter begins with a discussion of principles of social learning theory and a critique of the concepts of personality, society, and culture. It goes on to expand the scope of social learning theory to include elements from anthropology, sociology, and the other social sciences so that it can account for social and cultural patterns of behavior in addition to unique individual patterns. Therapeutic applications of this broader conceptualization are discussed.
Guerrillera Editorship enacts the decolonial imaginary of Chicana editors

This project examines the editorial practices of former Chicana editors of a bilingual, alternative, activist Chicana/Chicano college student newspaper, mapping out the ways Chicana feminist episte...
Omnidirectional video

Omnidirectional video enables direct surround immersive viewing of a scene by warping the original image into the correct perspective given a viewing direction. However, novel views from viewpoints off the camera path can only be obtained if we solve the three-dimensional motion and calibration problem. In this paper we address the case of a parabolic catadioptric camera --- a paraboloidal mirror in front of an orthographic lens --- and we introduce a new representation, called the circle space, for points and lines in such images. In this circle space, we formulate an epipolar constraint involving a 4×4 fundamental matrix. We prove that the intrinsic parameters can be inferred in closed form from the two-dimensional subspace of the new fundamental matrix from two views if they are constant or from three views if they vary. Three-dimensional motion and structure can then be estimated from the decomposition of the fundamental matrix.
Real Interest Rates, Expected Inflation, and Real Estate Returns: A Comparison of the U.S. and Canada

In the United States, but not in Canada, nominal interest on residential housing mortgages is a deductible expense for the personal income tax. This suggests that changes in nominal interest rates could conceivably have differing impacts on real estate values in the two countries. The inflation component of nominal interest should have a negative impact on Canadian real estate, but its effect should be strictly less negative in the US and could even be positive. Using real estate investment trusts along with expected inflation imputed from inflation-indexed bonds in both countries, we find empirical support for a material and significant difference. In Canada, increases in nominal interest rates driven by inflation have a negative impact. The US impact is minimal and ambiguous in sign.
Hospital-based maternity care practitioners' perceptions of doulas.

Introduction A birth doula provides continuous informational, physical, and emotional support during pregnancy, labor, and immediately postpartum. Existing data on the benefits of doulas, especially for low-resource, high-need patients, do not address how and why individual practitioners decide to recommend this model of care. This project aims to describe best practices of integrating doulas into hospital-based maternity care teams to facilitate access to this evidence-based service for improving maternal health outcomes. Methods Semi-structured interviews using open-ended questions were conducted in person with 47 maternity care practitioners-OB/GYNs, family medicine physicians, RNs, and nurse-midwives-across three hospitals. Interview analysis was conducted using the Template Organizing Style qualitative analysis approach. Results Results demonstrated varied support for doula care given practitioners' experiences. Positive experiences centered on doulas' supportive role and strong relationships with patients. Some conflicts between practitioners and doulas may stem from a cross-cultural divide between mainstream obstetric/physician culture and a natural birth "counter culture." Suggestions to facilitate good working relationships centered on three overlapping themes: mutual respect between doulas and hospital staff, education about doulas' training, and clarification of roles on maternity care teams especially among staff with overlapping roles. Conclusions Among maternity care practitioners, some frustration, anger, and resentment persist with respect to work with doulas. Adequate staff training in the doula model of care, explicit role definition, and increasing practitioner exposure to doulas may promote effective integration of doulas into hospital maternity care teams.
Measurement and Observation of Cross-Provider Cross-Region Latency for Cloud-Based IoT Systems

To build a high-resilient and low-latency IoT system, it is a must to utilize various cloud computing resources available in different service regions owned by different providers, and obtaining latency information is the key for the success. In this paper, we present the design and implementation of a lightweight latency measurement service that can collect latency data across cloud service regions and providers. Preliminary data has been collected from six U.S. regions owned by AWS and Azure, and useful insights from the data are also reported in this paper.
Influence of magnetic ordering on the spectral properties of binary transition metal oxides

Using the ab initio embedded dynamical mean-field theory (eDMFT) approach, we study the effect of long-range magnetic ordering on the spectral properties in the binary transition metal oxides, and find that the most significant changes appear in the momentum resolved spectral functions, which sharpen into quite well-defined bands in the antiferromagnetic (AFM) phase. The strongest change across the transition is found at the topmost valence-band edge (VBE), which is commonly associated with the Zhang-Rice bound state. This VBE state strengthens in the AFM phase, but only for the minority spin component, which is subject to stronger fluctuations. A similar hybridized VBE state also appears in the DFT single-particle description of the AFM phase, but gets much stronger and acquires a well-defined energy in the eDMFT description.
Linking Decision Theory and Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment: Tradeoffs Between Compliance and Efficacy for Waterborne Disease Interventions

Achieving health gains from the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals of universal coverage for water and sanitation will require interventions that can be widely adopted and maintained. Effectiveness-how an intervention performs based on actual use-as opposed to efficacy will therefore be central to evaluations of new and existing interventions. Incomplete compliance-when people do not always use the intervention and are therefore exposed to contamination-is thought to be responsible for the lower-than-expected risk reductions observed from water, sanitation, and hygiene interventions based on their efficacy at removing pathogens. We explicitly incorporated decision theory into a quantitative microbial risk assessment model. Specifically, we assume that the usability of household water treatment (HWT) devices (filters and chlorine) decreases as they become more efficacious due to issues such as taste or flow rates. Simulations were run to examine the tradeoff between device efficacy and usability. For most situations, HWT interventions that trade lower efficacy (i.e., remove less pathogens) for higher compliance (i.e., better usability) contribute substantial reductions in diarrheal disease risk compared to devices meeting current World Health Organization efficacy guidelines. Recommendations that take into account both the behavioral and microbiological properties of treatment devices are likely to be more effective at reducing the burden of diarrheal disease than current standards that only consider efficacy.
Floral abundance and richness drive beneficial arthropod conservation and biological control on golf courses

Golf courses are among the largest, most ubiquitous highly maintained urban green spaces in the U.S. Although their primary function is recreation, a large portion of golf course land is not actively in use, which presents opportunities to create more ecologically functional areas. Golf courses around the world are converting these out-of-play areas to alternative habitats, but few do so using evidence that maximizes their benefit. Previous studies have investigated effects of conservation plantings on golf courses, but none have isolated the biological control services of flying natural enemies and few investigated effects on native bees. In this study, we ask if converting out-of-play maintained turfgrass areas into wildflower habitats increases bee and insect natural enemy abundance and diversity and their associated ecosystem services. We created wildflower habitats at two levels of species richness and compared their effects on insects within and around them to turfgrass plots. To quantify effects on biological control, we deployed sentinel prey Spodoptera frugiperda larvae, excluding ground-dwelling predators. As predicted, we found that converting turfgrasses to flowering habitats increased bees and natural enemies on golf courses. However, high wildflower species richness was an important factor in promoting native bees and natural enemies. We found that wildflower habitats, particularly those with highest floral richness, increased biological control rates in adjacent turfgrass areas by up to 50% compared to turfgrass controls. Our results indicate that purposefully designed conservation plantings on golf courses can help support insect pollinators while also augmenting biological control of turfgrass pests.
Charge transfer in collisions of the effectively-one-electron isocharged ions Si 3 + , C 3 + , and O 3 + with atomic hydrogen

In a recent paper [Phys. Rev. A 77, 064702 (2008)], Bruhns et al. reported on an experimental investigation of charge transfer in collisions of ${\text{Si}}^{3+}$ ions with atomic hydrogen and compared the energy dependence of the transfer cross sections with published theoretical results and with earlier experimental results for other effectively-one-electron isocharged ions, including ${\text{C}}^{3+}$ and ${\text{O}}^{3+}$. These authors observe that these three ions all have the structure of a single electron outside a closed subshell and thus might be expected to behave similarly. However, their results show quite different behavior, and they conclude that the influence of quantum-mechanical effects from the ionic core is clearly seen. We have investigated theoretically three collision systems, ${\text{Si}}^{3+}$, ${\text{C}}^{3+}$, and ${\text{O}}^{3+}$ with atomic hydrogen, at projectile energies up to 10 keV/amu using the method of electron nuclear dynamics (END). In this paper we want to clarify and describe in some detail these quantum-mechanical effects by showing the time-dependent dynamics of the electrons during the collision of these three ions with atomic hydrogen. Total charge transfer cross sections were calculated for all three ions and compared with other theoretical and experimental results, showing good overall agreement. With this validation of the END description of the processes, we analyze the details of the computed dynamics of the electrons in each of the processes and illustrate the different mechanisms underlying observed differences in reaction outcomes.
Platelet-Rich Plasma

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is a versatile autologous blood product with regenerative, anti-inflammatory, and anti-microbial properties, derived from the growth factors and cytokines contained and released from platelets concentrated at supraphysiological levels. The basic science of PRP has demonstrated its regenerative and immunomodulatory properties via cell, tissue, and preclinical animal model studies, and clinical interest in translation of these properties has extended rapidly to regenerative medicine applications for musculoskeletal and spine disorders. However, randomized clinical trials of PRP therapy for osteoarthritis and chronic tendinopathy thus far have yielded often contradictory results. Therefore, efforts are underway to define both PRP composition and the underlying pathophysiology of specific disease processes, in order to elucidate the biological targets of PRP therapy and ultimately to improve clinical outcomes.
(Black)Rock the Vote: Index Funds and Opposition to Management

I propose a novel identification strategy to examine whether “passive” index funds participate in monitoring. Specifically, I examine how index funds vote their proxies on firms in its index that their family does not hold in its actively managed funds. For a given proxy proposal at a given point in time, I find that an index fund is more likely to oppose management on shares its family does not hold in its active funds than on shares its family does hold in its active funds. I further demonstrate that index fund governance has positive effects on the probability a proposal passes and on shareholder value.
Novel microRNA multivariate biomarkers of response to immunotherapy against HPV E6 oncogene

Cervical cancer is caused by the persistent infection high-risk types of human papillomavirus (HPV) in over 99.9% of cases. To favor malignant transformation, HPV E6 and E7 oncogenes disrupt both p53 and retinoblastoma (Rb) respectively and control microRNA (miR) networks. We have previously demonstrated the therapeutic potential of anti-HPV E6 monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) in experimental models of human cervical cancer; yet the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Here, we sought to determine if anti-HPV E6 mAbs modulate the miR signatures of HPV E6 oncogenes. To this end, we performed qRT-PCR to measure the expression of thirty-four miRs and found that univariate analysis is not able to identify novel interactions characteristic of complex biological systems. Thus, we utilized partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLSDA) to identify signatures of co-varying miRs specific to mAb treatment. These miR signatures predictively discriminate between anti-HPV E6 mAb response and control mAb treatment, which may provide mechanistic insight into the action of anti-HPV E6 mAbs.
Racist Encounters: A Pragmatist Semiotic Analysis of Interaction:

Complementing discourse-analytic approaches, we develop C. S. Peirce’s semiotic theory to analyze how racism is enacted and countered in everyday interactions. We examine how the semiotic structure...
Point source identification in nonlinear advection–diffusion–reaction systems

We consider a problem of identification of point sources in time-dependent advection–diffusion systems with a nonlinear reaction term. The linear counterpart of the problem in question can be reduced to solving a system of nonlinear algebraic equations via the use of adjoint equations. We extend this approach by constructing an algorithm that solves the problem iteratively to account for the nonlinearity of the reaction term. We study the question of improving the quality of source identification by adding more measurements adaptively using the solution obtained previously with a smaller number of measurements.
Identifying and Making Recommendations for Pediatric Anxiety Disorders in Primary Care Settings: A Video-Based Training.

Introduction Pediatric anxiety disorders have high rates of prevalence and confer risk for later disorders if they go undetected. In primary care, they are underdiagnosed, partly because pediatrici...
Self Restraint and National Security

Why does the government sometimes tie its own hands in national security operations? This article identifies four instances in which officials believed that the applicable laws allowed them to conduct a particular military or intelligence operation but nevertheless declined to do so. For example, policymakers have barred counter-terrorism interrogators from using any technique other than the fairly innocuous methods listed in the Army Field Manual. Before 9/11, officials rejected the CIA’s plans to use targeted killings against Osama bin Laden and other terrorist leaders. Judge advocates sometimes use policy considerations to restrict military strikes that would be lawful. And in the 1990s, lawyers erected a “wall” that kept intelligence officers from sharing information with criminal investigators. The article then draws from rational choice theory to suggest two possible explanations for why the government imposes these restraints. First, self restraint might be the result of systematic risk aversion within military and intelligence agencies. Second, self restraint may be the result of empire building, as officials seek to magnify their clout by vetoing the plans of bureaucratic rivals.
Identification of Megaselia (Diptera: Phoridae) species using wing vein landmarking

A semi-automated identification system using wing venation is described for the large, taxonomically challenging genus Megaselia Rondani (Diptera: Phoridae). Wing photographs make two-dimensional i...
A critical analysis of laparoscopic and open approaches to sporadic pancreatic insulinoma resection in the modern era.

Abstract Background A single center experience with sporadic pancreatic insulinoma was analyzed to develop an algorithm for modern surgical management. Methods Thirty-four patients undergoing surgery from 2001 to 2019 were reviewed. Results The majority underwent enucleation (10 laparoscopic, 15 open). Laparoscopy was performed in 22 patients with conversion to open in 11, mostly related to the proximity of the tumor to the pancreatic duct (n = 4). Tumors on the anterior and posterior surface of the pancreas in all anatomic locations were completed with laparoscopic enucleation. Overall, the clinically-relevant postoperative pancreatic fistula (CR-POPF) rate was 21%, with no difference between laparoscopic versus open enucleation (10% vs 20%, p = 0.50) or enucleation versus resection (16% vs 33%, p = 0.27). Laparoscopic enucleation had shorter median hospital length of stay (LOS) compared with open (4 vs 7 days, p = 0.02). Conclusions Laparoscopic enucleation does not increase the CR-POPF risk and provides an advantage with a shorter hospital LOS in select patients. Tumor location and relationship to the pancreatic duct guide surgical decision-making. These findings highlight tumor-specific criteria that would benefit from a minimally invasive approach.
An enhanced deep learning based framework for web attacks detection, mitigation and attacker profiling

Abstract Protecting web applications is becoming challenging every passing day, primarily because of attack sophistication, omnipresence of web applications and over-reliance on traditional Web Application Firewalls (WAFs). Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs) make overwhelming use of web attacks during infiltration and expansion phase. Noteworthy research has been carried out to detect web attacks using deep learning because traditional approaches fail against complicated attacks having crafted payloads, scripts and cookie manipulations. This paper proposes a framework based on an enhanced hybrid approach where Deep Learning model is nested with a Cookie Analysis Engine for web attacks detection, mitigation and attacker profiling in real time. We first generated a huge dataset over a period of time and trained our Convolution Neural Network (CNN) based deep learning model using HTTP request parameters like Type, Content length, Data and Requested URL etc. We also developed a Cookie Analysis Engine that checks all incoming cookie(s) for integrity, mutations and failed sanitization checks and informs the user about probable privacy infringement by third party cookies. The framework analyzes the cascading output from the classifier and cookie analysis engine and takes the final decision. We performed rigorous testing of the proposed framework wherein it was first validated on our own custom dataset giving an accuracy of 99.94%. It was also validated on a publicly available benchmark dataset and gave an accuracy of 98.74%. When deployed in a controlled real time environment, the attacker profiling feature enabled the framework to save useful processing time as the deep learning classifier does not triggered for every incoming request. This makes it easy to deploy in any environment to protect web applications in real time.
Las peregrinaciones del reino de Dinamarca a Santiago de Compostela

The author tries of demonstrating that the jacobeo pilgrimage of Denmark was so important and active as in the others Scandinavian countries, above all taking account the density of population that it is considerably more reduced. Analyzes the jacobeo pilgrimage in his historical, artistic, cultural and literary aspects.
Dominant lethal mutations near the 5' substrate binding site affect RNA polymerase propagation.

Abstract The segment Asp1064-Lys1073 in the beta subunit of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase is evolutionarily conserved and is located near the "5' face" of the nucleotide binding pocket as was shown by affinity labeling with priming substrates (Grachev, M. A., Lukhtamov, E. A., Mustaev, A. A., Zaychikov, E. F., Abdukayumov, M. N., Rabinov, I. V., Richter, V. I., Skoblov, Y. S., and Chistyakov, P. G. (1989) Eur. J. Biochem. 180, 577-585). We engineered single Xaa-->Ala or Ala-->Ser substitutions of eight evolutionarily conserved amino acids in this segment as well as a multiple alanine (KRNK) substitution of four of these residues. The KRNK mutation as well as four of the single substitutions were dominant lethal, two of the single mutations were recessive lethal, and two were viable. RNA polymerase bearing the dominant mutations was prepared for biochemical study by in vitro reconstitution from subunits. All of the mutant enzymes formed stable, specific promoter complexes, capable of initiating RNA synthesis. However, the KRNK polymerase was totally blocked in initiation-to-elongation transition, whereas the four point mutants displayed allele-specific changes in promoter clearance rate. Each of the four mutations changed, in a specific way, both the pattern of short oligomers generated in abortive initiation and the pattern of RNA polymerase pausing during elongation. Thus, the mutations appear to distort but not destroy the active center and to alter, in allele-specific manner, the coupling between the catalytic reaction and RNA polymerase propagation along the template.
Single-Cell Protein Production in Alkaline Mesquite Wood Extracts

A nine-member, mixed, cellulolytic, bacterial culture was used to evaluate the effects of sodium hydroxide normality, length and temperature of treatment, and the ratio of volume of alkali to mesquite wood on the suitability of alkali mesquite wood extractives as nutrients for bacterial growth. The presence or absence of air during the extraction process did not significantly affect results. The amount of lignin extracted and the total loss in weight of the wood during extraction were correlated to both alkali concentration and temperature. Neutralized extracts supported bacterial growth; growth was inversely related to the final salt concentration of the neutralized extract. Deionized extracts were superior to acid-neutralized extracts for the support of bacterial growth. The optimum conditions for extraction were 2.5 N NaOH at 30°C for 12 h. The study demonstrated that nutrients as well as growth inhibitory compounds are released from wood by alkali treatment. This study of alkali wood extracts and the previous study of washed alkali treated wood residues provide a data base for the optimization of alkali treatments of hard woods that are to be used as nutrients for the growth of cellulolytic cultures.
Observational Constraints on Models for the Cluster Soft Excess Emission

Although the cluster soft excess phenomenon is confirmed by XMM-Newton observations of many clusters, the cause of this new component of radiation remains an enigma. The two mechanisms proposed in the late 90’s, viz. thermal emission from a massive warm baryonic gas and inverse-Compton scattering between cosmic rays and the microwave background, are still to date the only viable interpretations of the soft excess. In as much as cosmic rays cannot exist at the vast void of a cluster’s outskirts, warm gas also cannot be present with any significant degree of abundance at the center of a cluster. In this sense, one could say that both models have their merits, and account for the soft excess in different spatial regions. There is however no clincher evidence that points definitively to the correctness of either explanation. Thus the door remains open for more exotic scenarios that could even consider the detected emission as signature of some dark matter process. In fact, the absence of absorption lines in the spectrum of background quasars along sightlines going through the outer radii of clusters argues against the thermal model within the domain where it most suitably applies. On the other hand, if the central excesses are due to cosmic rays, the pressure of the proton component will be large enough to choke a cooling flow, and missions like GLAST may have the sensitivity to detect the gamma rays that ensue from proton-gas interactions. However the diagnosis may turn out to be, it is likely that the new radiation represents something of cosmological importance.
Compliance Control With Embedded Neural Elements

Many robotic systems would, in the future, be required to operate in environments that are highly uncertain and possessing means of self-actuation. In this paper, the problem of identifying uncertain environments for stable contact control is considered. In particular, system parameters are identified under the assumption that environment dynamics have a fixed nonlinear structure. A robotics research arm, placed in contact with a single dof electromechanical environment dynamics emulator, is commanded to move through a desired trajectory. The command is implemented using a compliant control strategy.
History of Teacher Pay and Incentive Reforms

Teacher compensation is one aspect of school organization often overlooked in reform efforts aimed at improving student achievement. This paper describes how teacher compensation systems have been ...
On the passage from the Schwarzschild metric to the Kerr metric by analytic continuation

We present a method for obtaining the Kerr metric from the Schwarzschild metric. Our approach involves the use of a contour integral representation for certain wave functions due to Conway.
Sustainability Attributes and Their Implementation in Energy Resources Utilization

Energy generation with fossil fuels produces emissions of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and releases toxic chemicals into the environment. Greenhouse gases produce global warming which can cause climate change and costly human displacements. Toxic chemicals released into the environment produce health problems and damage the ecosystems. With fossil fuels providing today over 85% of energy needs and the Earth’s population projected to increase by several billion people and energy needs projected to double by the middle of this century, considerable pressure exists to develop sustainable energy supply services. This poses an enormous challenge to engineers, economists, and policy makers. The energy mix required to produce energy for humanity depends on the availability of energy resources, security of energy supply, climate change requirements, technological breakthroughs, financial conditions, and public acceptance. Population, standard of living, toxic and greenhouse gas emissions, thermodynamic limits imposed on biophysical processes, and economics and ethics of resource utilization produce some key sustainability indicators or attributes that need to be employed for guiding our path toward a sustainable energy future. Following a general discussion of indicators and frameworks of indicators, a small number of energy supply values or objectives are presented for the purpose of developing attributes that can measure the degree of accomplishment of these objectives. A systems approach is then employed to define indicators for generic energy supply services and a risk-based multi-criteria decision making procedure is presented for deciding which energy supply service option is most sustainable. The methodology can be applied locally, regionally, and globally, by both the energy services providers and energy policy makers.© 2011 ASME