cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Ethnographic analysis: a study of classroom environments

Objeerives. Occupational therapists assess and adapt an environment to enhance clients' abilities to .Iimc­ tion Therapists working in schools may assess several classroom enllironments in a week. identifYing rel­ ellant information in an e.lficient manner is essential yet presents a challenge for school therapists. Method. in this study, ethnographic research methodology was used to analyze the plethora of data gainedfrom obseroations in eight classrooms. Results. Three major categories were identified to structure obseroations: actillities, people, and commu­ nication These categories were used to compile a Cla:,:<;room Obseroation Guide that gives therapists rel­ ellant questions to ask in each category. Conclusion. Using the Classroom Obserllation Guide, occupational therapists can recommend class­ room actillities that suit a particular teacher's stvle. For example, working with a teacher who prefers structured actillities with clear time and space bound­ aries for one specific purpose, a therapist nu;qht sug­ gest organized sensorimotor games with a distinct purpose to be carried out for a given time period.
Exploiting peer-to-peer state exchange for distributed medium access control

Distributed medium access control (MAC) protocols are proposed for wireless networks assuming that one-hop peers can exchange a small amount of state information periodically. Each station maintains a state and makes state transitions and transmission decisions based on its state and recent state information collected from its one-hop peers. A station can adapt its packet length and the size of its state space to the amount of traffic in its neighborhood. It is shown that these protocols converge to a steady state, where stations take turns to transmit in each neighborhood without collision. An important consequence of this work is that using such protocols, an efficient time-division multiple access (TDMA) like schedule can be formed in a distributed manner, as long as the topology of the network remains static or changes slowly with respect to the execution of the protocol.
In Vitro Antianaerobic Activity of Ertapenem (MK-0826) Compared to Seven Other Compounds

Ertapenem, imipenem, meropenem, ceftriaxone, piperacillin, piperacillin-tazobactam, clindamycin, and metronidazole were agar dilution MIC tested against 431 anaerobes. Imipenem, meropenem, and ertapenem were the most active β-lactams (MICs at which 50% of the strains are inhibited [MIC 50 s], 0.125 to 0.25 μg/ml; MIC 90 s, 1.0 to 2.0 μg/ml). Time-kill studies revealed that ertapenem at two times the MIC was bactericidal for 9 of 10 strains after 48 h. The kinetics for other β-lactams were similar to those of ertapenem.
Feeding damage of Japanese beetle (Col.: Scarabaeidae) on 16 field-grown birch (Betula L.) genotypes

Feeding damage by Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica Newman) was evaluated on 16 field-grown birch genotypes (Betula L.) under two irrigation regimes at Fayetteville, AR in 2003, 2004 and 2005. Percentage of total leaf area skeletonized by Japanese beetle was visually estimated, and leaf damage was rated as no damage, low damage, moderate or severe damage based on the percentage of leaf skeletonization. The average percentage of leaf skeletonization on all birch trees by Japanese beetles was 32% in 2003, 27% in 2004 and 25% in 2005. In 2005, well-watered trees had a higher percentage of leaf skeletonization than water-stressed trees. Betula utilis var. jacquemontii and Betula papyrifera 'Uenci', rated as severe damage in all 3 years, were estimated to have the highest percentage of leaf skeletonization followed by B. papyrifera, which was rated as moderate-to-severe damage. Betula maximowicziana, Betula nigra 'Cully', B. papyrifera 'Renci', and Betula platyphylla 'Fargo' were rated as low-to-moderate damage. Betula pendula 'Laciniata' had nearly no damage from Japanese beetle in all 3 years. The other birch genotypes were rated as low damage during the 3-year period.
Automatic Dual-View Mass Detection in Full-Field Digital Mammograms

Mammography is the first-line modality for screening and diagnosis of breast cancer. Following the common practice of radiologists to examine two mammography views, we propose a fully automated dual-view analysis framework for breast mass detection in mammograms. The framework combines unsupervised segmentation and random-forest classification to detect and rank candidate masses in cranial-caudal (CC) and mediolateral-oblique (MLO) views. Subsequently, it estimates correspondences between pairs of candidates in the two views. The performance of the method was evaluated using a publicly available full-field digital mammography database (INbreast). Dual-view analysis provided area under the ROC curve of 0.94, with detection sensitivity of 87% at specificity of 90%, which significantly improved single-view performance (72% sensitivity at 90% specificity, 78% specificity at 87% sensitivity, P<0.05). One-to-one mapping of candidate masses from two views facilitated correct estimation of the breast quadrant in 77% of the cases. The proposed method may assist radiologists to efficiently identify and classify breast masses.
Evidence for Functionally Relevant Encounter Complexes in Nitrogenase Catalysis.

Nitrogenase is the only enzyme that can convert atmospheric dinitrogen (N2) into biologically usable ammonia (NH3). To achieve this multielectron redox process, the nitrogenase component proteins, MoFe-protein (MoFeP) and Fe-protein (FeP), repeatedly associate and dissociate in an ATP-dependent manner, where one electron is transferred from FeP to MoFeP per association. Here, we provide experimental evidence that encounter complexes between FeP and MoFeP play a functional role in nitrogenase catalysis. The encounter complexes are stabilized by electrostatic interactions involving a positively charged patch on the β-subunit of MoFeP. Three single mutations (βAsn399Glu, βLys400Glu, and βArg401Glu) in this patch were generated in Azotobacter vinelandii MoFeP. All of the resulting variants displayed decreases in specific catalytic activity, with the βK400E mutation showing the largest effect. As simulated by the Thorneley–Lowe kinetic scheme, this single mutation lowered the rate constant for FeP-MoFeP associ...
Viruses as Biological Weapons

Viruses as weapons of mass destruction have been in the forefront of the news following the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian conflict. Historically, smallpox may have been used in the past as a weapon, both by throwing corpses into the battlefield, or supplying American Indians with contaminated blankets. During World War II, the Japanese established a special unit, 731, to test bacterial agents as weapons in China, using humans as experimental animals. In 1972 and entered into force in 1975, 158 countries, including the U.S. and the Soviet Union, signed an agreement known as the “Biological and Toxins Weapons Convention,” in which countries agreed to stop the development of offensive biological and chemical weapons. Unfortunately, there was no clause in the treaty for verification. In 1998, Ken Alibek, a defector from the Soviet Union, published a book, Biohazard, that unmasked wide segments of the Soviet and then Russian biological war program [1], which included the growth of smallpox and other viruses as offensive agents. Although the U.S. had a biological warfare program, following the treaty, it shut down facilities for the production of such weapons. Today, despite the treaty, it is known that many countries are still working on and stockpiling biological weapons.
FLIGHT PHYSIOLOGY OF FLYING FOXES, PTEROPUS POLIOCEPHALUS

SUMMARY Oxygen consumption was measured during flight in two flying foxes (Pteropus poliocephalus) at airspeeds of 4-8-6ms" 1 . There was good agreement with the measured power input of the only previously measured large bat, and with an allometric equation predicting power input for flying vertebrates. Measurements of respiratory exchange ratios, pulmonary water loss, respiratory frequencies, heart rates and body temperatures of both bats flying at intermediate airspeeds were compared with equivalent measurements on other bats or birds in flight. Despite a high non-evaporative thermal conductance in flight, the P. poliocephalus became severely hyperthermic at ambient temperatures (Ta) above 25 °C. The failure to dissipate heat as successfully as flying birds at high Ta is apparently the result of an inability to increase pulmonary ventilation rates, and thus increase rates of evaporative heat loss. The effect of airspeed on endurance was measured systematically on one bat. Endurance was not limited by energy reserves at all airspeeds, and flight times were significantly greater at the airspeed of minimum power input (Vmp). The endurance of both bats was so reduced at the higher airspeeds that they would not achieve maximum flight range in still air at the velocity where cost of locomotion is lowest. Contrary to a common assumption, flight range would be maximized at the Vmp.
Southwestern Internal Medicine Conference: Hypersensitivity Pneumonitis

ABSTRACT The lung is constantly exposed to a wide variety of environmental insults. In its defense against these environmental challenges, however, the lung responds through a limited number of pathophysiologic mechanisms. This is well illustrated by a group of diseases which are collectively referred to as hypersensitivity pneumonitis. This syndrome includes a very large number of different diseases. However, in the United States, only farmer’s lung, bird-breeder’s lung, and ventilation hypersensitivity pneumonitis occur with any significant frequency. Each of these is characterized by flu-like symptoms, in conjunction with a pneumonitis consisting of lymphocytic granulomatous infiltration of the alveoli and terminal bronchioles. This disease is caused by the inhalation of antigenic material which usually originates from the dusts of organic material. A host of different dusts and antigens have been described in conjunction with hypersensitivity pneumonitis but each leads to the same characteristic clinical syndrome. Thus, each of the diseases shares similar clinical features but differs primarily with respect to the nature of the exposure and causative antigens. The clinical features, pathogenesis, course, prognosis, and treatment of these related diseases are reviewed.
Competition between tryptophan fluorescence and electron transfer during unfolding of the villin headpiece.

The 35-residue, C-terminal headpiece subdomain of the protein villin folds to a stable structure on a microsecond time scale and has served as a model system in numerous studies of protein folding. To obtain a convenient spectroscopic probe of the folding dynamics, Kubelka et al. introduced an ionized histidine residue at position 27, with the expectation that it would quench the fluorescence of tryptophan 23 in the folded protein by extracting an electron from the excited indole ring [Kubelka, J., et al. (2003) J. Mol. Biol. 329, 625–630]. Although the fluorescence yield decreased as anticipated when the protein folded, it was not clear that the side chains of the two residues were sufficiently close together for electron transfer to compete effectively with fluorescence. Here, hybrid classical–quantum mechanical molecular dynamics simulations are used to examine the rates of transfer of an electron from the excited tryptophan to various possible acceptors in the modified headpiece and a smaller fragment...
Longitudinal association between pain severity and subsequent opioid use in prescription opioid dependent patients with chronic pain

Abstract Background Patients with prescription opioid use disorder commonly report relief of chronic pain as the chief reason for first opioid use; indeed, the prevalence of chronic pain is high in this population. Understanding the association between pain severity and subsequent opioid use is crucial for understanding how to manage these conditions simultaneously and has not been examined in this population. The aim of this analysis was to examine the proximal effect of pain severity on opioid use during 12 weeks of buprenorphine-naloxone therapy for patients with chronic pain and prescription opioid use disorder. Methods This study is a secondary analysis of a national, randomized, controlled trial of buprenorphine-naloxone plus counseling for prescription opioid dependent patients. The association between past-week pain severity and opioid use in the subsequent week was examined in 148 patients presenting with chronic pain at baseline. Results Results from a multivariable logistic regression model showed that greater pain severity in a given week was significantly associated with increased odds of opioid use in the following week over the 12-week treatment, even after adjusting for covariates associated with opioid use (aOR = 1.15, p Conclusions Despite previous reports of no association between baseline pain and subsequent opioid use, our findings suggest that patients who experience flare-ups of pain during treatment are prone to relapse to opioid use. Future studies may identify those who are at risk to use opioids by carefully monitoring patterns of their pain intensity over time.
Structurally Diverse Poly(thienylene vinylene)s (PTVs) with Systematically Tunable Properties through Acyclic Diene Metathesis (ADMET) and Postpolymerization Modification

Poly(thienylene vinylene)s (PTVs) are a unique class of low bandgap conjugated polymers that have received relatively little attention in organic electronic applications due to the limitations in conventional synthetic methodologies that are not capable to produce PTV structures beyond the rudimentary forms. We report here facile synthetic methods, combining acyclic diene metathesis (ADMET) and postpolymerization modification reactions, toward a series of structurally diverse PTVs. Specifically, halogen substituents including F, Cl, Br, and I, and conjugated thienyl groups bearing different substituents, have been installed onto every thiophene unit along the PTV backbones. While halogen substitution lowers both the HOMO and LUMO energy levels of the polymers, the overall optical properties are similar to the conventional unsubstituted PTVs. On the other hand, with increasing sizes of halogen atoms, the polymer crystallinity decreases caused by steric hindrance induced main-chain nonplanarity as suggested...
Adenosine receptor-mediated inhibition of rat cerebral cortical adenylate cyclase by a GTP-dependent process.

Adenosine analogues inhibit rat cerebral cortical adenylate cyclase by a receptor-mediated GTP-dependent process. N6-Phenylisopropyladenosine and other analogues of adenosine are potent inhibitors (Ki values of 10-100 nM) of adenylate cyclase in a particulate preparation of rat cerebral cortex. The detection of such inhibitory effects is facilitated by the use of a deoxy ATP assay system. The inhibition is strictly dependent on GTP, is amplified by Na+ ions, and is antagonized by methylxanthines.
Perceptual and Conceptual Priming of Cue Encoding in Task Switching.

Transition effects in task-cuing experiments can be partitioned into task switching and cue repetition effects by using multiple cues per task. In the present study, the author shows that cue repetition effects can be partitioned into perceptual and conceptual priming effects. In 2 experiments, letters or numbers in their uppercase/lowercase or word/numeral forms, respectively, served as cues for perceptual categorization tasks (e.g., the letters B, b, E, and e were cues for a color judgment and the letters D, d, G, and g were cues for a shape judgment). Some cues represented the same concept but had different percepts, allowing nominal repetitions to occur across trials (e.g., d followed by D). Conceptual priming effects were measured by comparing relational repetitions (e.g., G followed by D) with nominal repetitions, whereas perceptual priming effects were measured by comparing nominal repetitions with physical repetitions (e.g., D followed by D). Large conceptual and perceptual priming effects on response time were observed. Implications of the results for understanding cue encoding in task switching situations are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record
Real-time marker tracking with Microsoft kinect

In this document, we discuss a work-in-progress which will implement real-time marker tracking with the Microsoft Kinect. The Kinect uses an infrared depth sensor to capture 3D video, and retroreflective surfaces are not visible to this sensor. Thus we can adhere anular markers made of retroreflective material to a surface and identify them in the depth sensor's output. By placing a non-reflective surface at the marker's center and identifying it in the depth image, we can track the marker a surface and map it to a point in a virtual space. We are able to identify potential markers using an optimized and modified version of the flood fill algorithm, and we will filter out noise by validating potential markers against the known topology and dimensions of the markers.Our goal is to demonstrate real-time tracking and virtual representation of the marker using the Unity Game Engine.
Retinol-Binding Protein 4 and Lipids Prospectively Measured During Early to Mid-Pregnancy in Relation to Preeclampsia and Preterm Birth Risk

BACKGROUND Maternal retinol-binding protein 4 (RBP4) and lipids may relate to preeclampsia and preterm birth risk but longitudinal data are lacking. This study examines these biomarkers longitudinally during pregnancy in relation to preeclampsia and preterm birth risk. METHODS Maternal serum samples from the Calcium for Preeclampsia Prevention (CPEP) trial were analyzed at baseline: average 15 gestational weeks; mid-pregnancy: average 27 weeks; and at >34 weeks. We measured RBP4, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, triglycerides and lipoprotein (a) (Lp(a)). Cross-sectional logistic regression analyses estimated the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for preterm preeclampsia (n = 63), term preeclampsia (n = 104), and preterm delivery (n = 160) associated with RBP4 and lipids at baseline and mid-pregnancy compared with controls (n = 136). Longitudinal trajectories across pregnancy were assessed using mixed linear models with fixed effects. Adjusted models included clinical and demographic factors. RESULTS RBP4 concentrations at baseline and mid-pregnancy were associated with a 4- to 8-fold increase in preterm preeclampsia risk but were not associated with term preeclampsia. RBP4 measured mid-pregnancy was also associated with preterm birth (OR = 6.67, 95% CI: 1.65, 26.84). Higher triglyceride concentrations in mid-pregnancy were associated with a 2- to 4-fold increased risk for both preeclampsia and preterm birth. Longitudinal models demonstrate that both preterm preeclampsia and preterm birth cases had elevated RBP4 throughout gestation. CONCLUSIONS Elevated RBP4 is detectable early in pregnancy and its strong relation with preterm preeclampsia merits further investigation and confirmation to evaluate its potential use as a predictor, particularly among high-risk women.
Biomimetic strategies to recapitulate organ specific microenvironments for studying breast cancer metastasis

The progression of breast cancer from the primary tumor setting to the metastatic setting is the critical event defining Stage IV disease, no longer considered curable. The microenvironment at specific organ sites is known to play a key role in influencing the ultimate fate of metastatic cells; yet microenvironmental mediated-molecular mechanisms underlying organ specific metastasis in breast cancer are not well understood. This review discusses biomimetic strategies employed to recapitulate metastatic organ microenvironments, particularly, bone, liver, lung and brain to elucidate the mechanisms dictating metastatic breast cancer cell homing and colonization. These biomimetic strategies include in vitro techniques such as biomaterial-based co-culturing techniques, microfluidics, organ-mimetic chips, bioreactor technologies, and decellularized matrices as well as cutting edge in vivo techniques to better understand the interactions between metastatic breast cancer cells and the stroma at the metastatic site. The advantages and disadvantages of these systems are discussed. In addition, how creation of biomimetic models will impact breast cancer metastasis research and their broad utility is explored.
Strain Effects on the Interaction Between NO2 and the Mo-Edge of the MoS2 Zigzag Nanoribbon

Density functional theory based theoretical studies on the interaction of NO2 molecule with the Mo-edge of MoS2 zigzag nanoribbon have been presented in this paper. Effects from uniaxial tensile strain on the structure and physical properties of the nanoribbon and the adsorption process are discussed in detail. Without strain, NO2 dissociates and adsorbs onto the Mo-edge, with an adsorption energy of –0.91 eV, and the nanoribbon is metallic. With strain and without the presence of NO2, the nanoribbon remains metallic. However, with the presence and interaction from NO2, the nanoribbon under strain shows a band gap opening. Meanwhile, there is an increase in the magnitude of the adsorption energy, indicating more stable adsorbed structures with strain.
A Robust Null Hypothesis for the Potential Causes of Megadrought in Western North America

AbstractThe western United States was affected by several megadroughts during the last 1200 years, most prominently during the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA; 800 to 1300 CE). A null hypothesis is developed to test the possibility that, given a sufficiently long period of time, these events are inevitable and occur purely as a consequence of internal climate variability. The null distribution of this hypothesis is populated by a linear inverse model (LIM) constructed from global sea surface temperature anomalies and self-calibrated Palmer drought severity index data for North America. Despite being trained only on seasonal data from the late twentieth century, the LIM produces megadroughts that are comparable in their duration, spatial scale, and magnitude to the most severe events of the last 12 centuries. The null hypothesis therefore cannot be rejected with much confidence when considering these features of megadrought, meaning that similar events are possible today, even without any changes to boundary...
Decomposition of Ionic Liquids at Lithium Interfaces. 2. Gas Phase Computations

This is Part 2 of a two part series of papers on decomposition of two ionic liquids at lithium metal interfaces. In Part 1 of this series, ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulations were used to examine the stability and decomposition of two ionic liquids (ILs), [pyr14][TFSI] and [EMIM][BF4], on Li metal anodes. Here in Part 2, density functional calculations of ions and ion pairs in the gas phase are coupled with model electrode surface effects to provide an in-depth analysis of the results obtained from more computationally expensive AIMD simulations of electrolytes on the Li surface in Part 1. The gas phase approach is used to examine the cathodic and anodic stability, the electrochemical decomposition thermodynamics, and the kinetic barriers to the electrochemical decomposition of the ions on a Li surface. The states of the ILs are shown to mix with those of the Li surface, which leads to the reduction of the cations by one electron and a partial reduction of the anions. Upon reduction, many ion ...
Parental Socialization of Emotion and Child Functioning Among Indian American Families: Consideration of Cultural Factors and Different Modes of Socialization

Indian Americans are among the fastest-growing ethnic groups in the United States, and yet, we know very little about parenting in these families. Focusing on a key domain of parenting, parental socialization of emotion, we examined how different methods of socialization relate with one another and how these methods may be related to parental acculturation and child functioning. Forty Indian American mothers and their children completed self-report measures. Indian American mothers endorsed relatively equal preference for Indian and American lifestyles. Maternal acculturation was positively related to their positive expressivity and negatively related to nonsupportive responses to their children’s emotions. Different methods of emotion socialization were interrelated in the expected direction: Mothers’ supportive responses to children’s emotions were positively correlated with their positive expressivity and negatively correlated with negative expressivity. Mothers’ acceptance of their emotions was positively correlated with their positive expressivity, and mothers’ regulation of their emotions was positively associated with their supportive responses to children’s emotions and negatively associated with their negative emotional expressivity. Finally, mothers’ regulation of their emotions was negatively correlated with child behavior problems, while mothers’ negative expressivity was positively associated with child behavior problems, highlighting the relevance of different methods of emotion socialization.
Themicrorna-146boverexpression Helps To Differentiate Benign Nodules FromPapillary Thyroid Carcinoma.

MicroRNA-146b is one of the widely studied microRNAs in thyroid cancers and has been shown to be frequently upregulated in papillary thyroid carcinoma and plays a crucial role in tumorigenesis, progression and may become a potential therapeutic target and biomarker of tumor diagnosis and prognosis. Estimation of microRNA-146b gene expression levels in fresh tissues of solitary thyroid nodulein comparison to normal adjacent tissue of same patients by using stem-loop follow by Taq-Man Real Time PCR (RT-PCR) technique to distinguish the benign nodule from papillary carcinoma and correlate with age, genderof patients,size of tumor,lymph node involvement and stage of tumors. Stem-loop Real time -PCR was performed to identify the level of microRNA-146b gene expression in fresh tissues of solitary thyroid nodule in comparison to normal adjacent tissues of same patients. The expression levels of microRNA-146b were normalized to housekeeping gene by using the livak method. The expression level of tissue microRNA-146b in papillary thyroid carcinoma cases was significantly higher than that benign cases and normal adjacent tissues. Receiver operating characteristic curve analyses indicated that use of tissue microRNA-146b have a high diagnostic sensitivity and specificity for papillary thyroid carcinomain correlated with nodal status and advance tumor- stage. The microRNA‑146b as a new novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarker forpapillary thyroid carcinoma.
The Detection of High Mass-to-Charge Biological Ions by Fourier Transform Mass Spectrometry: Issues and Routes for Instrument Improvement

Although Fourier transform mass spectrometry (FTMS) has demonstrated the ability to trap biomolecular ions that have mass-to-charge ratios on the order of 150000, FTMS is seldom employed as a tool for the characterization of biological molecules. This is because the superior detection performance that is associated with FTMS rapidly degrades for ions with mass-to-charge ratios greater than 5000. The purpose of this chapter is to introduce the reader to the issues that stand in the way of the development of routine high mass-to-charge FTMS and to the recent advances and strategies that are extending the impressive capabilities of FTMS to singly-charged, biological molecules.
Gamma-ray emission intensities of the232Th chain in secular equilibrium of235U and the progeny of238U

A232Th source of knowsn disintegration rate and in secular equilibrium was measured to determine the absolute γ-ray emission intensities of members of its decay chain. Similar measurements were made on sources of highly-enriched235U and of normal uranium metal. The results are compared with values from the literature.
A genetic counseling needs assessment of Mexico.

Background While genetic counseling has expanded globally, Mexico has not adopted it as a separate profession. Given the rapid expansion of genetic and genomic services, understanding the current genetic counseling landscape in Mexico is crucial to improving healthcare outcomes. Methods Our needs assessment strategy has two components. First, we gathered quantitative data about genetics education and medical geneticists' geographic distribution through an exhaustive compilation of available information across several medical schools and public databases. Second, we conducted semi-structured interviews of 19 key-informants from 10 Mexican states remotely with digital recording and transcription. Results Across 32 states, ~54% of enrolled medical students receive no medical genetics training, and only Mexico City averages at least one medical geneticist per 100,000 people. Barriers to genetic counseling services include: geographic distribution of medical geneticists, lack of access to diagnostic tools, patient health literacy and cultural beliefs, and education in medical genetics/genetic counseling. Participants reported generally positive attitudes towards a genetic counseling profession; concerns regarding a current shortage of available jobs for medical geneticists persisted. Conclusion To create a foundation that can support a genetic counseling profession in Mexico, the clinical significance of medical genetics must be promoted nationwide. Potential approaches include: requiring medical genetics coursework, developing community genetics services, and increasing jobs for medical geneticists.
Rejoinder to Commentaries on “Statistics at FDA: Reflections on the Past Six Years”

Many thanks to colleagues for their time spent reviewing and commenting on the Reflections article, and to the journal editors for its acceptance, allowing me to take stock of time spent at work an...
From Single to Serious: Relationships, Gender, and Sexuality on American Evangelical Campuses

In From Single to Serious: Relationships, Gender, and Sexuality on American Evangelical Campuses, Dana M. Malone explored evangelical college students’ considerations of social, spiritual, and cult...
Evaluation of Regional Climate Models Using Regionally Optimized GRACE Mascons in the Amery and Getz Ice Shelves Basins, Antarctica

Author(s): Mohajerani, Y; Velicogna, I; Rignot, E | Abstract: We develop regionally optimized Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) solutions to evaluate the mass balance of the drainage basins of Amery Ice Shelf, East Antarctica, and Getz Ice Shelf, West Antarctica. We find that the Amery region is near balance, while the Getz region is rapidly losing mass. We compare the results with the mass budget method (MBM) combining ice discharge along the periphery with surface mass balance derived from three regional climate models: (1) Regional Atmospheric Climate Model (RACMO) 2.3p1 and (2) 2.3p2, and (3) Modele Atmospherique Regional 3.6.41. For Amery, MBM/RACMO2.3p1 agrees with GRACE, while MBM/RACMO2.3p2 and MBM/MAR3.6.41 suggest a positive mass balance. For Getz, all estimates agree with a mass loss and the GRACE results are robust to uncertainties in glacial isostatic adjustment derived from an ensemble 128,000 forward models. Over the period April 2002 to November 2015, the mass loss of the Getz drainage basin is 22.9n±n10.9nGt/yr with an acceleration of 1.6n±n0.9nGt/yr2.
Favorable factors, challenges and measures for malaria elimination in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region

This paper mainly summarized the history of malaria prevalence, mosquito vectors, control strategies, achievement of malaria control, favorable factors and challenges for malaria elimination in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The remarkable success has been achieved in malaria control through integrated control measures taken in whole region in the past 50 years. Malaria incidence decreased from 296.7 per ten thousand in 1954 to 0. 01 per hundred thousand in 2009. The proportion of malaria in all infection diseases decreased from 70% in 1954 to 0. 1% in 2009. Only 2 indigenous malaria cases have been found in Guangxi Guangxi has entered the elimination stage according to WHO criteria of malaria elimination. Key words: Malaria control; Elimination; Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region
Alternate control methods for adsorption heat pumps

Abstract Adsorption heat pumps are often driven by heat sources with variable temperatures. They are typically optimized for operation at design conditions by suitably fixing the cycle time. Cycle time affects cooling duty, COP, and specific cooling capacity of an adsorption system. Although using fixed cycle time is the common approach, it can lead to poor system performance at off-design conditions. Two alternate control methods are investigated here. The first method, adsorbent control, uses the concentration of refrigerant within the bed as the control variable to determine switching from adsorption to desorption. The second method uses the temperature of the adsorbent bed as the control variable. These methods are compared with the fixed cycle time approach and it is found that alternate methods improve COP by 5-50% when the source temperature decreases from the design value. They are also better suited to maintain constant cooling power at higher source temperatures. A thermal switch concept that enables heat pump operation without using electricity is proposed, thus advancing the development of a fully autonomous, off-grid adsorption heat pump.
Chromosomal-Level Genome Assembly of the Painted Sea Urchin Lytechinus pictus: A Genetically Enabled Model System for Cell Biology and Embryonic Development.

The painted urchin Lytechinus pictus is a sea urchin in the family Toxopneustidae and one of several sea urchin species that are routinely used as an experimental research organism. Recently, L. pictus has emerged as a tractable model system for establishing transgenic sea urchin lines due to its amenability to long term laboratory culture. We present the first published genome of L. pictus. This chromosomal-level assembly was generated using Illumina sequencing in conjunction with Oxford Nanopore Technologies long read sequencing and HiC chromatin conformation capture sequencing. The 998.9-Mb assembly exhibits high contiguity and has a scaffold length N50 of 46.0 Mb with 97% of the sequence assembled into 19 chromosomal-length scaffolds. These 19 scaffolds exhibit a high degree of synteny compared with the 19 chromosomes of a related species Lytechinus variegatus. Ab initio and transcript evidence gene modeling, combined with sequence homology, identified 28,631 gene models that capture 92% of BUSCO orthologs. This annotation strategy was validated by manual curation of gene models for the ABC transporter superfamily, which confirmed the completeness and accuracy of the annotations. Thus, this genome assembly, in conjunction with recent high contiguity assemblies of related species, positions L. pictus as an exceptional model system for comparative functional genomics and it will be a key resource for the developmental, toxicological, and ecological biology scientific communities.
Design of a Compliance Index for Privacy Policies: A Study of Mobile Wallet and Remittance Services

Many nations have adopted comprehensive data privacy laws to protect customers’ data. However, privacy policies of mobile wallet digital payment systems (DPS), and particularly the mobile wallet and remittance services that are part of DPS, are often not compliant with privacy laws. There is a lack of measures to assess how adequate the policies are in addressing data privacy issues. To address this problem, this article develops a compliance index to help DPS organizations assess the compliance of their privacy policies with the general data protection regulation (GDPR). The compliance index is created through a natural language process that includes term frequency-inverse document frequency matrix and topic modeling using latent Dirichlet allocation, to compute 1) an emphasis density score that indicates the level of emphasis a privacy policy places on GDPR dimensions, and 2) a privacy score that identifies the level of compliance of a privacy policy with GDPR. The compliance index is validated by assessing its effectiveness at the country level in comparison with an international publicly available data privacy benchmark.
Use of Zip Code Based Aggregate Indicators to Assess Race Disparities in COVID-19.

Objective: In the first six months of the pandemic, information on race and ethnic­ity was missing for half of the US COVID-19 cases. Combining case ascertainment with census-based zip code indicators may iden­tify COVID-19 race-ethnicity disparities in the absence of individual-level data. Design: Ecological retrospective study for the period March-July 2020. Setting: Population-based investigation, Al­legheny County, Pennsylvania. Participants: All COVID-19 cases, adjusted for zip code area population, in the early period of the pandemic. Main Outcome Measures: Monthly COVID-19 incidence and requests for hu­man services by zip code level indicators of race-ethnicity and poverty. Results: In the early period of the pan­demic, COVID-19 incidence was higher in zip codes with a greater proportion of racial and ethnic minorities. Zip codes with the highest quartile of minority residents (>25.1% of population) had a COVID-19 incidence of 60.1 (95% CI: 51.7-68.5) per 10,000 in this period; zip codes with the lowest quartile of minority residents (<6.3%) had an incidence of 31.3 (95% CI: 14.4-48.2). Requests for human services during this period (volume of 211 calls and county services) confirm these disparities. Conclusion: Use of census-defined race-ethnicity proportions by zip code offers a way to identify disparities when individual race-ethnicity data are unavailable. Ethn Dis. 2021;31(3):399-406; doi:10.18865/ed.31.3.399
Use of probabilistic tractography to provide reliable distinction of the motor and sensory thalamus for prospective targeting during asleep deep brain stimulation.

OBJECTIVE Accurate electrode placement is key to effective deep brain stimulation (DBS). The ventral intermediate nucleus (VIM) of the thalamus is an established surgical target for the treatment of essential tremor (ET). Retrospective tractography-based analysis of electrode placement has associated successful outcomes with modulation of motor input to VIM, but no study has yet evaluated the feasibility and efficacy of prospective presurgical tractography-based targeting alone. Therefore, the authors sought to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of probabilistic tractography-based VIM targeting in ET patients and to perform a systematic comparison of probabilistic and deterministic tractography. METHODS Fourteen patients with ET underwent preoperative diffusion imaging. Probabilistic tractography was applied for preoperative targeting, and deterministic tractography was performed as a comparison between methods. Tractography was performed using the motor and sensory areas as initiation seeds, the ipsilateral thalamus as an inclusion mask, and the contralateral dentate nucleus as a termination mask. Tract-density maps consisted of voxels with 10% or less of the maximum intensity and were superimposed onto anatomical images for presurgical planning. Target planning was based on probabilistic tract-density images and indirect target coordinates. Patients underwent robotic image-guided, image-verified implantation of directional DBS systems. Postoperative tremor scores with and without DBS were recorded. The center of gravity and Dice similarity coefficients were calculated and compared between tracking methods. RESULTS Prospective probabilistic targeting of VIM was successful in all 14 patients. All patients experienced significant tremor reduction. Formal postoperative tremor scores were available for 9 patients, who demonstrated a mean 68.0% tremor reduction. Large differences between tracking methods were observed across patients. Probabilistic tractography-identified VIM fibers were more anterior, lateral, and superior than deterministic tractography-identified fibers, whereas probabilistic tractography-identified ventralis caudalis fibers were more posterior, lateral, and superior than deterministic tractography-identified fibers. Deterministic methods were unable to clearly distinguish between motor and sensory fibers in the majority of patients, but probabilistic methods produced distinct separation. CONCLUSIONS Probabilistic tractography-based VIM targeting is safe and effective for the treatment of ET. Probabilistic tractography is more precise than deterministic tractography for the delineation of VIM and the ventralis caudalis nucleus of the thalamus. Deterministic algorithms tended to underestimate separation between motor and sensory fibers, which may have been due to its limitations with crossing fibers. Larger studies across multiple centers are necessary to further validate this method.
Non-Governmental Emergency Food Services: A Descriptive Study of the Tertiary Welfare Sector

NON-GOVERNMENTAL EMERGENCY FOOD SERVICES: A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF THE TERTIARY WELFARE SECTOR This paper presents the findings of an exploratory study of voluntarily organized emergency food centers in Baltimore. These agencies comprise the heart of a tertiary welfare system that provides basic survival supplies without a means test to the needy who cannot obtain relief from traditional public or private sources. Forty-one emergency food services were identified in Baltimore and the heads of 37 of these agencies were interviewed in depth. The findings indicated that a large and heterogeneous population bad utilized emergency food agencies and that the agencies generally met the requisites for a true safety-net function i.e., accessibility, non-bureaucratic structure, and few eligibility rules. The data suggest strengthening the role of voluntary charitable agencies in welfare reforms directed at achieving universal safety-net coverage in the society. NON-GOVERNMENTAL EMERGENCY FOOD SERVICES: A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF THE TERITIARY WELFARE SECTOR Despite the provisions of public social agencies and social insurance programs, poverty is still a social reality of urban America. Many individuals and families lack basic life-supporting supplies and are unable, or unwilling in some cases, to obtain these from existing public and voluntary agencies. In order to survive the needy often turn to voluntarily organized emergency food centers. These agencies constitute the heart of what we
Compositional heterogeneity of central peaks within the South Pole‐Aitken Basin

[1] Using high-spectral and -spatial resolution Moon Mineralogy Mapper data, we investigate compositional variations across the central peak structures of four impact craters within the South Pole-Aitken Basin (SPA). Two distinct causes of spectral diversity are observed. Spectral variations across the central peaks of Bhabha, Finsen, and Lyman are dominated by soil development, including the effects of space weathering and mixing with local materials. For these craters, the central peak structure is homogeneous in composition, although small compositional differences between the craters are observed. This group of craters is located within the estimated transient cavity of SPA, and their central uplifts exhibit similar mafic abundances. Therefore, it is plausible that they have all uplifted material associated with melts of the lower crust or upper mantle produced during the SPA impact. Compositional differences observed between the peaks of these craters reflect heterogeneities in the SPA subsurface, although the origin of this heterogeneity is uncertain. In contrast to these craters, Leeuwenhoek exhibits compositional heterogeneity across its central peak structure. The peak is areally dominated by feldspathic materials, interspersed with several smaller exposures exhibiting a mafic spectral signature. Leeuwenhoek is the largest crater included in the study and is located in a region of complex stratigraphy involving both crustal (feldspathic) and SPA (mafic melt and ejecta) materials. The compositional diversity observed in Leeuwenhoek's central peak indicates that kilometer-scale heterogeneities persist to depths of more than 10 km in this region.
Elucidating biosynthesis of the outer membrane lipid phthiocerol dimycocerosate by Mycobacterium tuberculosis PapA5 (768.13)

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) has a complex, asymmetric outer membrane consisting of mycolic acids and other unique lipids. Phthiocerol dimycocerosate (PDIM) is a wax ester lipid found in the ou...
Modeling Emission from the Supermassive Black Hole in the Galactic Center with GRMHD Simulations

Sagittarius A* is a compact radio source at the Galactic center, powered by accretion of fully ionized plasmas into a supermassive black hole. However, the radio emission cannot be produced through the thermal synchrotron process by a gravitationally bounded flow. General relativistic magneto-hydrodynamical(GRMHD) simulations of black hole accretion show that there are strong unbounded outflows along the accretion. With the flow structure around the black hole given by GRMHD simulations, we investigate whether thermal synchrotron emission from these outflows may account for the observed radio emission. We find that simulations producing relatively high values of plasma beta cannot produce the radio flux level without exceeding the X-ray upper limit set by Chandra observations through the bremsstrahlung process. The predicted radio spectrum is also harder than the observed spectrum both for the one temperature thermal model and a simple nonthermal model with a single power-law electron distribution. The electron temperature needs to be lower than the gas temperature near the black hole to reproduce the observed radio spectrum. A more complete modeling of the radiation processes, including the general relativistic effects and transfer of polarized radiation, will give more quantitative constraints on physical processes in Sgr A* with the current multi-wavelength, multi-epoch, and polarimetric observations of this source.
Alveolar macrophages support interferon gamma-mediated viral clearance in RSV-infected neonatal mice.

Background Poor interferon gamma (IFNγ) production during respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is associated with prolonged viral clearance and increased disease severity in neonatal mice and humans. We previously showed that intra-nasal delivery of IFNγ significantly enhances RSV clearance from neonatal lungs prior to observed T-lymphocyte recruitment or activation, suggesting an innate immune mechanism of viral clearance. We further showed that alveolar macrophages dominate the RSV-infected neonatal airways relative to adults, consistent with human neonatal autopsy data. Therefore, the goal of this work was to determine the role of neonatal alveolar macrophages in IFNγ-mediated RSV clearance.
Intraoperative monitoring with free‐running EMG

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses that intraoperative monitoring techniques are utilized with the goal of preserving function and preventing injury to vital neural structures at the time clinical examination is not possible. It discusses that the integrity of these central and peripheral neural structures can be effectively monitored with multimodal techniques during a wide variety of surgeries. The chapter reviews that multimodal intraoperative neurophysiologic monitoring has become a critical component to assure good outcomes in a variety of surgeries. The use of freerunning EMG is a relatively simple monitoring technique that is very useful to identify and protect the peripheral nerve structures at risk. It discusses that any procedure that requires manipulation or dissection of a nerve can be performed more safely and effectively with intraoperative EMG monitoring. The chapter reviews that understanding the technique of needle placement, the variety of recording electrodes, the pitfalls, and the interpretation of the findings is critical to providing rapid and accurate feedback to the surgeon. As with other intraoperative techniques, gaining experience in this modality is paramount to mastering the field of intraoperative neurophysiologic monitoring.