cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Sparsity-aware joint narrowband interference and impulse noise mitigation for hybrid powerline-wireless transmission

Exploiting multiple physical layers for communications has gained increasing interest recently to improve reliability and/or coverage range. Powerline and unlicensed wireless communication networks are attractive candidates to realize this objective because of their ubiquity. However, their performance can be severely degraded by impulsive noise (IN) and narrowband interference (NBI), respectively. In this paper, we exploit the inherent sparse structures of NBI and IN in the frequency and time domains, respectively, to propose an efficient joint estimation and mitigation scheme based on compressive sensing (CS) principles. Moreover, we investigate the metric of maximum expected coherence of our scheme for realistic powerline communication (PLC) and wireless channels, which provides some insight into its performance. Finally, our numerical experiments demonstrate the superiority of jointly processing the wireless and PLC channel outputs for CS-based NBI and IN mitigation over separate processing of individual channel outputs.
Inorganic Carbon Concentrating Systems from an Environmental Perspective

Submersed aquatic organisms exist in an environment where light may be selectively attenuated, and diel temperature fluctuations are buffered; where they are continuously bathed in an exogenous H+ ion concentration, that may show substantial diel variations [up to pH 11]; where, in addition to free CO2, they are exposed to HCO3 - and CO3 2- as potential dissolved inorganic carbon [DIC] sources; and where the diffusion of O2 and CO2 is greatly retarded in comparison with movement in air. This diffusion resistance can result in large deviations from air-equilibrium values for dissolved O2 and CO2, especially in freshwater. The dissolved O2 can range from near zero to over 200% air-saturation [0.48 mol m-3], and DIC from zero to 100 mol m-3, though in freshwater the DIC is usually closer to 1 mol m-3. In marine waters these deviations are less pronounced, with O2 being 0.24 and DIC about 2 mol m-3, and the pH 8.2; though in lagoons or rock pools, due to rain, evaporation, and dense vegetation, considerable variation can occur. Furthermore, in terrestrial plants, plastid placement within micrometers of an air-water interface [i.e., the leaf mesophyll cell walls] that is many-fold greater than the ground area subtended by the leaf, facilitates the O2 and CO2 exchange process (1). By comparison, the air-water interface may be meters away from the plastids of submersed plants, and only mechanical factors, such as wind and wave action, facilitate exchange across the interface.
Simplified automated solubility test for the detection of hemoglobin S applicable to mass screening.

An automated system for detecting the presence of hemoglobin S in both heterozygotes and homozygotes was developed to meet the need for a simple, inexpensive, and reliable method suitable for mass screening. Based on Itano’s solubility test, the system is capable of performing 60 or 120 tests per hour on capillary blood samples obtained by finger puncture. The required equipment includes a sampler, mixing coils, a proportioning pump, a colorimeter, and a recorder. The addition of an optional step of microhematocrit centrifugation permits differentiation between sickle trait and the more severe sickling disorders.
The Construction of Second Order Differential Equations with Solutions Having Given Properties

(1970). The Construction of Second Order Differential Equations with Solutions Having Given Properties. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 77, No. 3, pp. 290-292.
Family health history reporting is sensitive to small changes in wording.

Family health history is often collected through single-item queries that ask patients whether their family members are affected by certain conditions. The specific wording of these queries may influence what individuals report. Parents of Boston Children’s Hospital patients were invited to participate in a Web-based survey about the return of individual genomic research results regarding their children. Participants reported whether 11 types of medical conditions affected them or their family. Randomization determined whether participants were specifically instructed to consider their extended family. Family health history was reported by 2,901 participants. Those asked to consider their extended family were more likely to report a positive family history for 8 of 11 medical conditions. The largest differences were observed for cancer (65.1 vs. 45.7%; P < 0.001), cardiovascular conditions (72.5 vs. 56.0%; P < 0.001), and endocrine/hormonal conditions (50.9 vs. 36.7%; P < 0.001). Small alterations to the way family health history queries are worded can substantially change patient responses. Clinicians and researchers need to be sensitive about patients’ tendencies to omit extended family from health history reporting unless specifically asked to consider them. Genet Med 18 12, 1308–1311.
Validation of Shear Wave Elastography Cutoff Values on the Supersonic Aixplorer for Practical Clinical Use in Liver Fibrosis Staging

Abstract The purpose of this study was to determine the validity of previously established ultrasound shear wave elastography (SWE) cut-off values (≥F2 fibrosis) on an independent cohort of patients with chronic liver disease. In this cross-sectional study, approved by the institutional review board and compliant with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, 338 patients undergoing liver biopsy underwent SWE using an Aixplorer ultrasound machine (SuperSonic Imagine, Aix-en-Provence, France). Median SWE values were calculated from sets of 10 elastograms. A single blinded pathologist evaluated METAVIR fibrosis staging as the gold standard. The study analyzed 277 patients with a mean age of 48 y. On pathologic examination, 212 patients (76.5%) had F0–F1 fibrosis, whereas 65 (23.5%) had ≥F2 fibrosis. Spearman's correlation of fibrosis with SWE was 0.456 ( p
A national evaluation of homeless and nonhomeless veterans’ experiences with primary care.

Persons who are homeless, particularly those with mental health and/or substance use disorders (MHSUDs), often do not access or receive continuous primary care services. In addition, negative experiences with primary care might contribute to homeless persons' avoidance and early termination of MHSUD treatment. The patient-centered medical home (PCMH) model aims to address care fragmentation and improve patient experiences. How homeless persons with MHSUDs experience care within PCMHs is unknown. This study compared the primary care experiences of homeless and nonhomeless veterans with MHSUDs receiving care in the Veterans Health Administration's medical home environment, called Patient Aligned Care Teams. The sample included VHA outpatients who responded to the national 2013 PCMH-Survey of Health Care Experiences of Patients (PCMH-SHEP) and had a past-year MSHUD diagnosis. Veterans with evidence of homelessness (henceforth "homeless") were identified through VHA administrative records. PCMH-SHEP survey respondents included 67,666 veterans with MHSUDs (9.2% homeless). Compared with their nonhomeless counterparts, homeless veterans were younger, more likely to be non-Hispanic Black and nonmarried, had less education, and were more likely to live in urban areas. Homeless veterans had elevated rates of most MHSUDs assessed, indicating significant co-occurrence. After controlling for these differences, homeless veterans reported more negative and fewer positive experiences with communication; more negative provider ratings; and more negative experiences with comprehensiveness, care coordination, medication decision-making, and self-management support than nonhomeless veterans. Homeless persons with MHSUDs may need specific services that mitigate negative care experiences and encourage their continuation in longitudinal primary care services. (PsycINFO Database Record
Computational study of microparticle effect on self-propelled jumping of droplets from superhydrophobic substrates

Abstract We present three-dimensional numerical simulations, employing a lattice Boltzmann method for three-phase system of liquid, gas, and solid, and investigate the influence of a solid particle on the dynamic and departure of a droplet after coalescence on superhydrophobic substrates. A particle can be removed autonomously by the jumping motion of the droplet, which partially or fully covers the particle. This spontaneous removal from superhydrophobic substrates is achieved by converting surface energy to kinetic energy, independent of gravity. We discussed the effect of size, wettability and initial placement of particle on the evolution of lateral and vertical motion of the droplet. The results indicate that the droplet with a fully immersed particle, as in the floating mechanism, reaches to the same equilibrium height as a particle-free droplet. However, the droplet with a partially immersed particle, as in the lifting mechanism, can have a substantial jumping velocity compared to a particle-free droplet. As the size of the partially immersed particle approaches its critical limit, which is equal to the size of the droplet, the droplet jumping and transport from the substrate is enhanced. Besides the particle size, the particle wettability can result in a considerable droplet jumping velocity. A particle with a neutrally wetting contact angle (i.e. 90°) is found to elevate the transport of the droplet to a higher distance from the substrate relative to a partially wetting case (i.e. 60°). In the lifting removal mechanism, unlike the floating removal mechanism, the particle initial placement is highly critical for the detachment of the merged droplet from the substrate, as well as the elevation of the detached droplet to a longer distance from the substrate. For a partially immersed particle, the critical particle initial position from the substrate above which the droplet-particle system does not jump away from the substrate is independent of particle size and wettability and is about 1.5rd where rd is the initial size of the droplet.
Enceladus Plume Structure and Time Variability: Comparison of Cassini Observations.

Abstract During three low-altitude (99, 66, 66 km) flybys through the Enceladus plume in 2010 and 2011, Cassini's ion neutral mass spectrometer (INMS) made its first high spatial resolution measurements of the plume's gas density and distribution, detecting in situ the individual gas jets within the broad plume. Since those flybys, more detailed Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS) imaging observations of the plume's icy component have been reported, which constrain the locations and orientations of the numerous gas/grain jets. In the present study, we used these ISS imaging results, together with ultraviolet imaging spectrograph stellar and solar occultation measurements and modeling of the three-dimensional structure of the vapor cloud, to constrain the magnitudes, velocities, and time variability of the plume gas sources from the INMS data. Our results confirm a mixture of both low and high Mach gas emission from Enceladus' surface tiger stripes, with gas accelerated as fast as Mach 10 before escaping the s...
An R package for simulation education

R is free software for statistical computing, providing a variety of statistical and graphical functionality. For use in simulation education, R's capabilities help to develop student intuition. In this paper, we introduce the simEd package for R, written with a pedagogical focus. The package includes functions for generating discrete and continuous variates via inversion, with capabilities for independent streams and antithetic variates; for visualizing inversion in variate generation and the relationship to the pdf/pmf, cdf, and ecdf; for computing time-persistent statistics; for extensible single- and multiple-server queueing simulation; and includes data sets for input modeling and analysis. As we demonstrate using several illustrations, this package, along with native R functionality, provides a compelling case for using R in an introductory simulation course.
US Immigration: A Shrinking Vision of Belonging and Deserving

The author reflects on the relationship between U.S. immigration policies and public health since 1924. Particular attention is given to the Immigration Acts of 1924, 1965, and 1996 as the author looks at discourse on the prevalence of disease in the U.S. allegedly originating from immigrants and population shifts. She goes on to criticize right wing populism and anti-immigration rhetoric as detrimental to all Americans.
Exploring heterogeneity and disorder In tunable elastic metamaterials

The dominant paradigm in the design of elastic metamaterials revolves around periodic arrays of identical resonating elements, which are known to allow subwavelength locally-resonant bandgaps. In this work, we deliberately explore the wave manipulation capabilities of metamaterial configurations that are characterized by significant heterogeneity and disorder. Heterogeneity is here intended as the coexistence of multiple types of resonators tuned to resonate at distinct frequencies. Disorder refers to the arrangement of the resonators, which is randomized in space. The metamaterials of choice are thin elastic sheets endowed with heterogeneous populations of tunable telescopic pillars whose resonant characteristics can be agilely tuned through simple manual operations. The configurability of our experimental platform allows to seamlessly fabricate and compare a multitude of specimens, thus allowing to extract some empirical yet general rules. We first document how heterogeneity can lead to broadband mechanical filtering. More specifically, we illustrate how randomized spatial arrangements consistently outperform their functionally graded counterparts in terms of maximum achievable bandgap width. Our investigation shows that the design space of mechanical metamaterials can be stretched beyond the limits imposed by order and homogeneity, thus highlighting the engineering significance of the emerging concepts of organized disorder and design modularity.
Lactation | Galactopoiesis, Seasonal Effects

Three management tools consistently increase milk yield in lactating dairy cows during established lactation: administrating exogenous bovine somatotropin, increased milking frequency, and increased photoperiod. Short day length during the dry period also increases milk yield postpartum. Season of year affects both yield and composition of milk. Seasonal variables known to impact milk and composition yield are photoperiod and thermal environmental variables such as temperature, wind speed, solar infrared load, and humidity. Milk composition can also be markedly altered by nutritional management. This permits the opportunity to improve the nutritional value of milk by altering milk composition through dietary management.
Prognostic Factors for Elderly Patients Treated With Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy for Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma.

Introduction Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) commonly presents later in life with a median age at diagnosis of 70 years. Unfortunately, elderly patients are significantly underrepresented in clinical trials. Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) is a promising treatment modality in this population as it has demonstrated excellent local control with minimal toxicity. We aimed to determine prognostic factors associated with outcomes in elderly patients treated with SBRT. Materials and Methods Elderly patients older than 70 treated with SBRT for PDAC at our institution, from 2004-2014 were included. Our primary endpoints included overall survival (OS) and local-progression-free survival (LPFS). Secondary endpoints included regional-progression-free survival (RPFS), distant-progression-free-survival (DPFS) and radiation toxicity. Endpoints were analyzed with the Kaplan-Meier method. The association of these survival endpoints with risk factors was studied with Cox proportional hazards models. Results We identified 145 patients with 146 lesions of pancreatic adenocarcinoma with a median age at diagnosis of 79 (range, 70.1-90.3). SBRT was delivered to a median dose of 36 Gy (IQR 24-36). Surgical resection was performed on 33.8% of the total patients. Median follow-up was 12.3 months (IQR 6.0-23.3 months) and the median survival for the entire cohort 14.0 months with a 2-year OS of 27%. Multivariate analysis (MVA) demonstrated surgery [p=<0.0001, HR 0.29 (95% CI, 0.16-0.51)] and post-SBRT CA19-9 [p=0.009, HR 1.0004 (95% CI, 1.0002-1.0005)] significantly associated with overall survival. Recurrent lesions [p=0.0069, HR 5.1 (95% CI, 1.56-16.64)] and post-SBRT CA19-9 levels [p=0.0107, HR 1.0005 (95% CI, 1.0001-1.0008)] were significantly associated with local control on MVA. For the entire cohort, 4.1% experienced acute grade 2+ toxicity and 2% experienced late grade 2+ toxicity at 2 years. Conclusion This review demonstrates prognostic factors in elderly patients with PDAC treated with SBRT. We identified surgical resection and post-SBRT CA 19-9 as predictive of overall survival in this population. Additionally, we show low acute and late toxicity following SBRT in elderly patients.
The use of reconstructed prairies in Iowa's agricultural landscape to increase ecosystem services and move towards multifunctionality

Reconstruction of prairie around annual crop production may contribute to several ecosystem services, including the biological control of insect pests. An ongoing study at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge in Iowa has investigated the contribution of varying amounts and configurations of prairie reconstructions to ecosystem services in small watersheds in a cornsoybean rotation. The treatments include watersheds without prairie, 10% of the land in prairie located at the base of the watershed, and 10 or 20% of the land in prairie buffer strips. During 2009 and 2011 growing seasons, we studied aphidophagous predator abundance and communities in response to treatment and habitat differences using sweep net and yellow sticky card sampling. Predators responded to prairie and soybean habitats differently, whereas they did not respond to treatments with different quantities of prairie. In 2011, we studied predation rates of Aphis glycines (Hemiptera: Aphididae), the soybean aphid, in response to prairie treatments using an exclusion cage study and found that different prairie
Mean Length of Utterance in Morphemes

This chapter is concerned with the children’s means length of utterance in morphemes (MLU) for each of the speech samples. MLU is a gross indicator of syntactic complexity, and as such is also a gross indicator of syntactic development. In the present study, MLU will be used to make gross comparisons of the developmental differences between social-context speech and crib speech, as well as to provide a rough idea of each child’s stage of grammatical development (see Brown, 1973, for relevant comparison data and a discussion of the use of MLU as an indicator of grammatical development).
Are walkable places tech incubators? Evidence from Nebraska’s ‘Silicon Prairie’

This study examines the spatial association between science- and technology-related entrepreneurship and neighbourhood walkability in eastern Nebraska, often referred to as the northern ‘Silicon Pr...
Elevated maternal and child mortality among women with multiple DUI convictions compared with socio-demographically matched controls.

Aims To assess whether having multiple convictions for driving while under the influence of alcohol (MDUI) in women is a risk factor for maternal, infant and child mortality. Design Retrospective cohort design using record linkage, comparing women with MDUI convictions with propensity-matched women without alcohol-related driving offences ascertained through state records, on rates of maternal, infant and child mortality. Setting Missouri, United States. Participants MDUI women (n = 1658) and women with no alcohol-related driving convictions (control, n = 184 252) who gave birth from 2000 to 2004. Measurements Data were obtained from state administrative records and US Census data. The outcomes were maternal, infant and child mortality. The input variable was presence or absence of MDUI convictions. Propensity-matching variables were maternal (smoking during pregnancy, delayed prenatal care, previous child deaths, age at birth, mother Missouri-born, education, pre-pregnancy obesity, marital status), reproductive partner (un-named partner, race/ethnicity, education, DUI status) and census tract (socio-economic advantage, urbanicity) characteristics. Findings Women with MDUI convictions had higher odds of maternal, infant and child mortality than propensity-matched controls [odds ratio (OR) = 2.65, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.07-3.40 and OR = 1.75, 95% CI = 1.17-2.61, respectively]. Conclusions Having multiple convictions for driving under the influence of alcohol in women appears to be a risk factor for increased maternal, infant and child mortality.
MRI based radiomic signature to predict treatment response to intraventricular natural killer (NK) cell infusion therapy for recurrent/refractory pediatric brain tumors.

e21511Background: NK cell therapy is a novel immunotherapeutic strategy used in cancer therapy. We conducted first-in-human, loco-regional infusion of autologous ex-vivo expanded NK cell directly i...
Retrieved-context theory of memory in emotional disorders

Learning and memory play a central role in psychopathology, particularly in depression and posttraumatic stress disorder. We present a new, transdiagnostic theory of how memory and mood interact in emotional disorders. Drawing upon retrieved-context models of episodic memory, we propose that memories form associations with the contexts in which they are encoded, including emotional valence and arousal. Later, encountering contextual cues retrieves their associated memories, which in turn reactivate the context that was present during encoding. We first show how our retrieved-context model accounts for findings regarding the organization of emotional memories in list-learning experiments. We then show how this model predicts clinical phenomena, including persistent negative mood after chronic stressors, intrusive memories of painful events, and the efficacy of cognitive-behavioral therapies.
Postnatal trajectories of maternal depressive symptoms: Postpartum antecedents and differences in toddler adjustment

Infants are uniquely vulnerable to maternal depression's noxious effects, but few longitudinal studies have tried to identify discrete postnatal trajectories of maternal depressive symptoms (MDS) beginning in infancy. This study extends evidence of heterogeneous change in postnatal MDS by examining their cross-contextual antecedents in infancy and their consequences for children's early behavior problems and language skills in late toddlerhood. A community sample of mother-child dyads (N = 235, 72% Caucasian) was assessed when children were 7, 15, and 33 months old. Mothers reported their socioeconomic status (SES), social support, marital relationship quality, family dysfunction, parenting stress, and infants' functional regulatory problems at 7 months postpartum, and children's internalizing and externalizing symptoms at 33 months. Children completed a receptive vocabulary assessment at 33 months in the lab. Latent class growth analysis identified three postnatal MDS trajectory classes that fit the data best: low-decreasing, moderate, and increasing. Psychosocial measures at seven months postpartum primarily predicted membership to these postnatal trajectory classes, which subsequently differed in children's internalizing, externalizing, and receptive vocabulary in late toddlerhood, controlling for family SES and functional regulatory problems in infancy. We discuss salient antecedents and consequences of postnatal depression for mothers and their offspring.
Perceptions of ICU Care Following Do-Not-Resuscitate Orders: A Military Perspective.

Although do-not-resuscitate orders only prohibit cardiopulmonary resuscitation in the case of cardiac arrest, the common initiation of this code status in the context of end-of-life care may lead providers to draw premature conclusions about other goals of care. The aim of this study is to identify concerns regarding care quality in the setting of do-not-resuscitate orders within the Department of Defense and compare differences in perceptions between members of the critical care team. Design A cross sectional observational study was conducted. Setting This study took place in the setting of critical care within the Department of Defense. Subjects All members of the Uniformed Services Section of the Society of Critical Care Medicine were invited to participate. Interventions A validated 31-question survey exploring the perceptions of care quality in the setting of do-not-resuscitate status was distributed. Measurements and main results Exploratory factor analysis was used to categorically group survey questions, and average factor scores were compared between respondent groups using t tests. Responses to individual questions were also analyzed between comparison groups using Fisher exact tests. Factor analysis revealed no significant differences between respondents of different training backgrounds; however, those with do-not-resuscitate training were more likely to agree that active treatment would be pursued (p = 0.024) and that trust and communication would be maintained (p = 0.005). Although 38% of all respondents worry that quality of care will decrease, 93% agree that life-prolonging treatments should be offered. About a third of providers wrongly believed that a do-not-resuscitate order must be reversed prior to an operation. Conclusions Although providers across training backgrounds held similar concerns about decreased care quality in the ICU, there is wide belief that the routine and noninvasive interventions are offered as indicated. Those with do-not-resuscitate training were more likely to believe that standards of care continued to be met after code status change.
Capturing Laughter and Smiles under Genuine Amusement vs. Negative Emotion

Smiling and laughter are typically associated with amusement. If they occur under negative emotions, systems responding naively may confuse an uncomfortable smile or laugh with an amused state. We present a passive text and video elicitation task and collect spontaneous laughter and smiles in reaction to amusing and negative experiences, using standard, ubiquitous sensors (webcam and microphone), along with participant self-ratings. While we rely on a state-of-the-art smile recognizer, for laughter recognition our transfer learning architecture enhanced on modest data outperforms other models with up to 85% accuracy (F1 = 0.86), suggesting this technique as promising for improving affect models. Subsequently, we analyze and automatically predict laughter as amused vs. negative. However, contrasting with prior findings for acted data, for this spontaneously elicited dataset classifying laughter by emotional valence is not satisfactory.
PEGylation of Polyethylenimine Lowers Acute Toxicity while Retaining Anti-Biofilm and β-Lactam Potentiation Properties against Antibiotic-Resistant Pathogens.

Bacterial biofilms, often impenetrable to antibiotic medications, are a leading cause of poor wound healing. The prognosis is worse for wounds with biofilms of antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) bacteri...
Volitional Contractility Assessment of Plantar Flexors by Using Non-invasive Neuromuscular Measurements

This paper investigates an ultrasound (US) imaging-based methodology to assess the contraction levels of plantar flexors quantitatively. Echogenicity derived from US imaging at different anatomical depths, including both lateral gastrocnemius (LGS) and soleus (SOL) muscles, is used for the prediction of the volitional isometric plantar flexion moment. Synchronous measurements, including a plantar flexion torque signal, a surface electromyography (sEMG) signal, and US imaging of both LGS and SOL muscles, are collected. Four feature sets, including sole sEMG, sole LGS echogenicity, sole SOL echogenicity, and their fusion, are used to train a Gaussian process regression (GPR) model and predict plantar flexion torque. The experimental results on four non-disabled participants show that the torque prediction accuracy is improved significantly by using the LGS or SOL echogenicity signal than using the sEMG signal. However, there is no significant improvement by using the fused feature compared to sole LGS or SOL echogenicity. The findings imply that using US imagingderived signals improves the accuracy of predicting volitional effort on human plantar flexors. Potentially, US imaging can be used as a new sensing modality to measure or predict human lower limb motion intent in clinical rehabilitation devices.
Snapshots and ensembles of BTK and cIAP1 protein degrader ternary complexes

Heterobifunctional chimeric degraders are a class of ligands that recruit target proteins to E3 ubiquitin ligases to drive compound-dependent protein degradation. Advancing from initial chemical tools, protein degraders represent a mechanism of growing interest in drug discovery. Critical to the mechanism of action is the formation of a ternary complex between the target, degrader and E3 ligase to promote ubiquitination and subsequent degradation. However, limited insights into ternary complex structures exist, including a near absence of studies on one of the most widely co-opted E3s, cellular inhibitor of apoptosis 1 (cIAP1). In this work, we use a combination of biochemical, biophysical and structural studies to characterize degrader-mediated ternary complexes of Bruton's tyrosine kinase and cIAP1. Our results reveal new insights from unique ternary complex structures and show that increased ternary complex stability or rigidity need not always correlate with increased degradation efficiency.
Undermining the Elect Nation: King Lear and the Hebrew Patriarchs at the Court of James I

This article examines King Lear’s creative redeployment of the Old Testament stories of the patriarchs, especially the narrative of Jacob and Esau in the book of Genesis. After contextualizing the reliance of the “Gloucester subplot” on this narrative within a broader predestinarian tradition of representing the English monarchy as the fulfillment of Hebrew typology, the article asks how a courtly audience, amid the political upheavals of 1606, might have reacted to the play’s apparent subversion of Calvinist theopolitical certainties.
Microstructural and crystallographic effects of sol-gel synthesized Ti-doped UO2 sintered under reducing conditions

Abstract Titanium (Ti)-doped UO2 microspheres of three different Ti concentrations (1000, 2000, and 4000 wppm) were synthesized using an internal gelation process. The microspheres were pressed into pellets, and a two-step heat treatment was applied to form monolithic cylindrical pellets with high densities (≥95%TD). Microstructure of these samples consisted of equiaxed grains with >300% increase in average grain size compared to the undoped UO2 pellets. Secondary Ti-rich chemical phases corresponding to a liquid eutectic formed during sintering were observed at grain boundaries of UO2 for samples doped with 4000 wppm Ti. These Ti-rich chemical phases were not observed in 1000 or 2000 wppm Ti samples at microscale using electron microscopy investigations. The 0.02–0.04% lower lattice parameter values for the Ti-doped UO2 samples compared to the undoped UO2 confirms the incorporation of Ti into the UO2 lattice.
Notes on RF Link Metrics

SFDR is a common parameter used to characterize the fidelity of an analog (microwave) device or link. It is expressed in the rather strange looking unit of dB Hz\({}^{-2/3}\). It has been encountered before in Fig. P.4; a more detailed explanation is given here.
Surpluses and Deficits: How University Partners Perceive University-Community Partnerships at One Ivy League Institution

University-community partnerships are a critical method for how universities can serve the public interest. Yet key questions remain: how do these partnerships work in practice, and how can university and fill reciprocal and mutual needs effectively? A participatory evaluation of university-community partnerships in education at an Ivy League university found that university partners had a surplus perspective of the university and a deficit perspective of community partners; practitioners must shift our paradigm towards mutually beneficial, asset-driven university-community partnerships to ensure success.
Deep Learning: How the Mind Overrides Experience

Part I. Introduction: 1. The need to override experience 2. The nature of the enterprise Part II. Creativity: 3. The production of novelty 4. Creative insight: the redistribution theory 5. Creative insight writ large Part III. Adaptation: 6. The growth of competence 7. Error correction: the specialization theory 8. Error correction in context Part IV. Conversion: 9. The formation of belief 10. Belief revision: the resubsumption theory Part V. Conclusion: 11. Elements of a unified theory 12. The recursion curse.
Using fault injection and modeling to evaluate the performability of cluster-based services

We propose a two-phase methodology for quantifying the performability (performance and availability) of cluster-based Internet services. In the first phase, evaluators use a fault-injection infrastructure to measure the impact of faults on the server's performance. In the second phase, evaluators use an analytical model to combine an expected fault load with measurements from the first phase to assess the server's performability. Using this model, evaluators can study the server's sensitivity to different design decisions, fault rates, and environmental factors. To demonstrate our methodology, we study the performability of 4 versions of the PRESS Web server against 5 classes of faults, quantifying the effects of different design decisions on performance and availability. Finally, to further show the utility of our model, we also quantify the impact of two hypothetical changes, reduced human operator response time and the use of RAIDs.
Contention and Democracy in Europe, 1650-2000

Preface 1. Contention and democracy 2. Regimes and their contention 3. Undemocratic contention 4. France 5. The British Isles 6. Switzerland as a special case 7. Democracy and other regimes in Europe 8. Europe and elsewhere.
A Review of “Taking Back Eden: Eight Environmental Cases That Changed the World”

In the world of legal literature, this book stands out as a very personal statement, unusual in its tone and style and in the directness of its writing. 1 Let us begin, then, with a personal note. ...
Right ventricular lymphatic insufficiency is associated with increased edema in pulmonary hypertension

Rationale: Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is associated with right ventricular hypertrophy, decreased cardiac output, and failure. There are no data available on cardiac lymphatic vascularity in PH. We hypothesized that experimental PH with right ventricular failure would be associated with decreased cardiac lymphatic vessel density. Methods: We evaluated expression of podoplanin, prox-1, aquaporin-1 (AQP-1), LYVE-1, lectins, CD31, and von Willebrand Factor- (vWF) to distinguish lymphatic and blood vessels in the right ventricles (RV) and left ventricles (LV) of rats with PH induced by hypoxia or monocrotaline (MCT). Heart performance was measured using catheterization and echocardiography. Results: We found decreased AQP-1+/vWF- vessels in RVs of rats with PH compared to controls. These vessels were negative for CD31 expression and alpha-actinin. Lymphatic vessel density appeared unchanged in the LV of PH rats compared to controls. Flow cytometry confirmed the decreased lymphatics in RVs of PH rats. PCR and immunoblot studies confirmed decreased lymphatics in RVs of PH rats vs. controls and LVs of all rats. We performed wet weight (-) dry weight : dry weight ratios on RVs and LVs and found significant increases in edema in RVs and LVs of MCT PH rats vs. hypoxic rats and controls. Conclusion: These data suggest that experimental PH is associated with RV lymphatic insufficiency and cardiac edema. This may be insufficient to drain the edematous RV, leading to reduced cardiac output and failure. Given the importance of RV failure in PH, our data regarding cardiac lymphatics in PH may have profound therapeutic significance.
Integrin‐driven monocyte to dendritic cell conversion in modified extracorporeal photochemotherapy

Summary Due to clinical efficacy and safety profile, extracorporeal photochemotherapy (ECP) is a commonly used cell treatment for patients with cutaneous T cell lymphoma (CTCL) and graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). The capacity of ECP to induce dendritic antigen-presenting cell (DC)-mediated selective immunization or immunosuppression suggests a novel mechanism involving pivotal cell signalling processes that have yet to be clearly identified as related to this procedure. In this study we employ two model systems of ECP to dissect the role of integrin signalling and adsorbed plasma proteins in monocyte-to-DC differentiation. We demonstrate that monocytes that were passed through protein-modified ECP plates adhered transiently to plasma proteins, including fibronectin, adsorbed to the plastic ECP plate and activated signalling pathways that initiate monocyte-to-DC conversion. Plasma protein adsorption facilitated 54·2 ± 4·7% differentiation, while fibronectin supported 29·8 ± 7·2% differentiation, as detected by DC phenotypic expression of membrane CD80 and CD86, as well as CD36, human leucocyte antigen D-related (HLA-DR) and cytoplasmic CD83. Further, we demonstrate the ability of fibronectin and other plasma proteins to act through cell adhesion via the ubiquitous arginine–glycine–aspartic (RGD) motif to drive monocyte-to-DC differentiation, with high-density RGD substrates supporting 54·1 ± 5·8% differentiation via αVβ3 and α5β1integrin signalling. Our results demonstrate that plasma protein binding integrins and plasma proteins operate through specific binding domains to induce monocyte-to-DC differentiation in ECP, providing a mechanism that can be harnessed to enhance ECP efficacy.
Gibberellin-associated cisgenes modify growth, stature and wood properties in Populus

Summary We studied the effects on plant growth and from insertion of five cisgenes that encode proteins involved in gibberellin metabolism or signalling. Intact genomic cop- ies of PtGA20ox7, PtGA2ox2,Pt RGL1_1, PtRGL1_2 and PtGAI1 genes from the gen- ome-sequenced Populus trichocarpa clone Nisqually-1 were transformed into Populus tremula · alba (clone INRA 717-1B4), and growth, morphology and xylem cell size characterized in the greenhouse. Each cisgene encompassed 1-2 kb of 5¢ and 1 kb of 3¢ flanking DNA, as well as all native exons and introns. Large numbers of inde- pendent insertion events per cisgene (19-38), including empty vector controls, were studied. Three of the cisgenic modifications had significant effects on plant growth rate, morphology or wood properties. The PtGA20ox7 cisgene increased rate of shoot regeneration in vitro, accelerated early growth, and variation in growth rate was correlated with PtGA20ox7 gene expression. PtRGL1_1 and PtGA2ox2 caused reduced growth, while PtRGL1_2 gave rise to plants that grew normally but had sig- nificantly longer xylem fibres. RT-PCR studies suggested that the lack of growth inhi- bition observed in PtRGL1_2 cisgenic plants was a result of co-suppression. PtGAI1 slowed regeneration rate and both PtGAI1 and PtGA20ox7 gave rise to increased variance among events for early diameter and volume index, respectively. Our work suggests that cisgenic insertion of additional copies of native genes involved in growth regulation may provide tools to help modify plant architecture, expand the genetic variance in plant architecture available to breeders and accelerate transfer of alleles between difficult-to-cross species.
Elastic wave mode separation for tilted transverse isotropy media

ABSTRACT Seismic waves propagate through the earth as a superposition of different wave modes. Seismic imaging in areas characterized by complex geology requires techniques based on accurate reconstruction of the seismic wavefields. A crucial component of the methods in this category, collectively known as wave‐equation migration, is the imaging condition that extracts information about the discontinuities of physical properties from the reconstructed wavefields at every location in space. Conventional acoustic migration techniques image a scalar wavefield representing the P‐wave mode, in contrast to elastic migration techniques, which image a vector wavefield representing both the P‐ and S‐waves. For elastic imaging, it is desirable that the reconstructed vector fields are decomposed into pure wave modes, such that the imaging condition produces interpretable images, characterizing, for example, PP or PS reflectivity. In anisotropic media, wave mode separation can be achieved by projection of the reconstructed vector fields on the polarization vectors characterizing various wave modes. For heterogeneous media, because polarization directions change with position, wave mode separation needs to be implemented using space‐domain filters. For transversely isotropic media with a tilted symmetry axis, the polarization vectors depend on the elastic material parameters, including the tilt angles. Using these parameters, we separate the wave modes by constructing nine filters corresponding to the nine Cartesian components of the three polarization directions at every grid point. Since the S polarization vectors in transverse isotropic media are not defined in the singular directions, e.g., along the symmetry axes, we construct these vectors by exploiting the orthogonality between the SV and SH polarization vectors, as well as their orthogonality with the P polarization vector. This procedure allows one to separate all three modes, with better preserved P‐wave amplitudes than S‐wave amplitudes. Realistic synthetic examples show that this wave mode separation is effective for both 2D and 3D models with strong heterogeneity and anisotropy.
Disruption of the Olfactoretinal Centrifugal Pathway May Relate to the Visual System Defect in night blindness bMutant Zebrafish

We describe here a dominant mutation, night blindness b (nbb), which causes an age-related visual system defect in zebrafish. At 4–5 months of age, dark-adaptednbb+/−mutants show abnormal visual threshold fluctuations when measured behaviorally. Light sensitizes the animals; thus early dark adaptation ofnbb+/−fish is normal. After 2 hr of dark adaptation, however, visual thresholds ofnbb+/−mutants are raised on average 2–3 log units, and rod system function is not detectable. Electroretinograms recorded fromnbb+/−mutants are normal, but ganglion cell thresholds are raised in prolonged darkness, suggesting an inner retinal defect. The visual defect ofnbb+/−mutants may be likely caused by an abnormal olfactoretinal centrifugal innervation; innbb+/−mutants, the olfactoretinal centrifugal projection to the retina is disrupted, and the number of retinal dopaminergic interplexiform cells is reduced. A similar visual defect as shown bynbb+/−mutants is observed in zebrafish in which the olfactory epithelium and olfactory bulb have been excised. Homozygous nbb fish display an early onset neural degeneration throughout the CNS and die by 7–8 d of age.
Use of a Laser-equipped Centrifugal Analyzer for Kinetic Measurement of Serum IgG

Use of a visible laser in an Aminco "Rotochem" centrifugal analyzer enables light-scattering measurements to be made with this instrument. The modification is technically simple, inexpensive, and requires no fundamental changes in basic instrument design. The laser-modified analyzer has been applied to the measurement of IgG in serum. A two-point kinetic analysis is used to quantitate IgG from a standard curve: protein concentration vs. change in intensity of the scattered light during a fixed time interval. Fourteen 20-µl samples can be simultaneously determined in 1.9 min. No sample blank corrections are required. Within-run precision studies, based in each case on 56 replicate measurements, yielded coefficients of variation of 3.8% and 4.8% for normal and abnormal pools, respectively.
Allelic loss of the gene for the GPX1 selenium-containing protein is a common event in cancer

Selenium has been shown to reduce cancer incidence in animal models and more recent data indicate that it may be protective in humans as well. However, little is known about the mechanism by which selenium prevents cancer. Cytosolic glutathione peroxidase (GPX1), a selenium-containing antioxidant enzyme, has been implicated in the development of cancer of the head and neck, lung, and breast, in part because of allelic loss at the GPX1 locus. The study of allelic loss at the GPX1 locus in colon cancer was investigated by examining loss of heterozygosity (LOH) in DNA extracted from both tumor and adjacent histopathologically normal tissue obtained by laser capture microdissection. Tissue samples were obtained from 53 colon cancer patients. Two highly polymorphic markers, alanine codon repeats and a proline-leucine polymorphism (198P/L) present in the GPX1 gene, were used to examine LOH at this locus. Analysis of both polymorphisms identified LOH at GPX1 in a significant percentage of colorectal cancer (42%). These results indicated that LOH at the GPX1 locus is a common event in cancer development and that GPX1 or other tightly linked genes may be involved in the etiology of this disease.
A Model Curriculum for a Capstone Course in Multidisciplinary Engineering Design

This paper describes our efforts to develop a curricular and pedagogical model for teaching multidisciplinary design to sen ior-level undergraduate engineering students. In our model, we address concerns of industry and engineering educators about the often narrow technical confines within which engineering design is currently taught. Our two-semester design sequence employs multidisciplinary teams of students working with faculty managers for industrial clients to solve complex, open-ended problems possessing numerous technical and non-technical constraints. After a two year pilot phase, the multidisciplinary senior design (MSD) course sequence is now offered to qualified Colorado School of Mines seniors each academic year and fully meets the senior capstone design requirement in each of the participating academic departments. An on-going formative and summative evaluation process allows us to monitor the perceptions and knowledge levels of our students compared with students completing traditional discipline-specific design courses. Our students, faculty, and clients overwhelmingly agree that multidisciplinary design teams tend to produce better engineering designs because of the broader range of expertise available to the team. MSD students strongly agree that higher order thinking skills such as open-ended problem-solving abilities, engineering analysis, and engineering synthesis are important aspects of the design process. Students also rate the course highly and indicate satisfaction with the course structure and curriculum. In addition, project clients are pleased with the quality of the final designs they receive from our students. Our experience has led us to conclude that undergraduate engineering students can thrive in a carefully designed multidisciplinary environment.