cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
tRNA Is the Source of Low-Level trans-Zeatin Production in Methylobacterium spp.

Pink-pigmented facultatively methylotrophic bacteria (PPFMs), classified as Methylobacterium spp., are persistent colonizers of plant leaf surfaces. Reports of PPFM-plant dialogue led us to examine cytokinin production by PPFMs. Using immunoaffinity and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) purification, we obtained 22 to 111 ng of trans-zeatin per liter from culture filtrates of four PPFM leaf isolates (from Arabidopsis, barley, maize, and soybean) and of a Methylobacterium extorquens type culture originally recovered as a soil isolate. We identified the zeatin isolated as the trans isomer by HPLC and by a radioimmunoassay in which monoclonal antibodies specific for trans-hydroxylated cytokinins were used. Smaller and variable amounts of trans-zeatin riboside were also recovered. trans-Zeatin was recovered from tRNA hydrolysates in addition to the culture filtrates, suggesting that secreted trans-zeatin resulted from tRNA turnover rather than from de novo synthesis. The product of the miaA gene is responsible for isopentenylation of a specific adenine in some tRNAs. To confirm that the secreted zeatin originated from tRNA, we mutated the miaA gene of M. extorquens by single exchange of an internal miaA fragment into the chromosomal gene. Mutant exconjugants, confirmed by PCR, did not contain zeatin in their tRNAs and did not secrete zeatin into the medium, findings which are consistent with the hypothesis that all zeatin is tRNA derived rather than synthesized de novo. In germination studies performed with heat-treated soybean seeds, cytokinin-null (miaA) mutants stimulated germination as well as wild-type bacteria. While cytokinin production may play a role in the plant-PPFM interaction, it is not responsible for stimulation of germination by PPFMs.
Design and evaluation of a hierarchical on-chip interconnect for next-generation CMPs

Performance and power consumption of an on-chip interconnect that forms the backbone of Chip Multiprocessors (CMPs), are directly influenced by the underlying network topology. Both these parameters can also be optimized by application induced communication locality since applications mapped on a large CMP system will benefit from clustered communication, where data is placed in cache banks closer to the cores accessing it. Thus, in this paper, we design a hierarchical network topology that takes advantage of such communication locality. The two-tier hierarchical topology consists of local networks that are connected via a global network. The local network is a simple, high-bandwidth, low-power shared bus fabric, and the global network is a low-radix mesh. The key insight that enables the hybrid topology is that most communication in CMP applications can be limited to the local network, and thus, using a fast, low-power bus to handle local communication will improve both packet latency and power-efficiency. The proposed hierarchical topology provides up to 63% reduction in energy-delay-product over mesh, 47% over flattened butterfly, and 33% with respect to concentrated mesh across network sizes with uniform and non-uniform synthetic traffic. For real parallel workloads, the hybrid topology provides up to 14% improvement in system performance (IPC) and in terms of energy-delay-product, improvements of 70%, 22%, 30% over the mesh, flattened butterfly, and concentrated mesh, respectively, for a 32-way CMP. Although the hybrid topology scales in a power- and bandwidth-efficient manner with network size, while keeping the average packet latency low in comparison to high radix topologies, it has lower throughput due to high concentration. To improve the throughput of the hybrid topology, we propose a novel router micro-architecture, called XShare, which exploits data value locality and bimodal traffic characteristics of CMP applications to transfer multiple small flits over a single channel. This helps in enhancing the network throughput by 35%, providing a latency reduction of 14% with synthetic traffic, and improving IPC on an average 4% with application workloads.
The role of proto-oncogenes in coronary restenosis

Arterial injury results in exposure of medial smooth muscle cells and adventitial fibroblasts to multiple growth factors that bind to specific cell surface receptors. These in turn activate second messengers and induce expression of immediate-early genes within minutes to hours after ligand binding to the receptor. Activation of the immediate-early genes results in passage of the stimulated cell from its nonproliferating, quiescent G 0 state to the first phase of the cell cycle (G 1 ). Coordination of the events that occur during the cell cycle is effected by a series of cyclin-dependent kinases and requires inactivation of several "tumor suppressor genes," including p53, p21, p16, p15, p27, and the retinoblastoma gene Rb, that inhibit the kinase activity of the cyclin/Cdk complexes. An understanding of the factors that regulate signal transduction, cell cycle progression, and programmed cell death has suggested several novel therapeutic strategies including (1) antisense oligonucleotide inhibition of proto-oncogene expression, (2) the use of molecular decoys or pharmacological therapies to block specific steps required for cell cycle progression, and (3) gene transfer of tumor suppressor genes. The apparent success of several of these strategies in animal models of restenosis suggests that these molecular therapies may play a valuable role in preventing intimal hyperplasia and restenosis after balloon angioplasty and vascular stenting.
Characteristics of Spark Discharges from Vehicles Energized by AC Electric Fields

This study examined certain characteristics of spark discharges from vehicles energized by an electric field. Vehicles were placed in an electric field produced by a 500 kV transmission line. Spark discharges were delivered through a resistor to a driven ground rod. Discharge current and voltage were monitored. These data are analyzed to determine capacitance measured under transient spark conditions and are compared with capacitance determined from 60 Hz measurements. The importance of the vehicle tires is examined. Spark discharge waveforms were also studied using standard high-voltage capacitors for comparison with those discharge waveforms obtained from measurements on the vehicles. The influence of the impedance of the earth return is discussed with reference to differences between the waveforms from the vehicles and the laboratory capacitors.
Active objects: actions for entity-centric search

We introduce an entity-centric search experience, called Active Objects, in which entity-bearing queries are paired with actions that can be performed on the entities. For example, given a query for a specific flashlight, we aim to present actions such as reading reviews, watching demo videos, and finding the best price online. In an annotation study conducted over a random sample of user query sessions, we found that a large proportion of queries in query logs involve actions on entities, calling for an automatic approach to identifying relevant actions for entity-bearing queries. In this paper, we pose the problem of finding actions that can be performed on entities as the problem of probabilistic inference in a graphical model that captures how an entity bearing query is generated. We design models of increasing complexity that capture latent factors such as entity type and intended actions that determine how a user writes a query in a search box, and the URL that they click on. Given a large collection of real-world queries and clicks from a commercial search engine, the models are learned efficiently through maximum likelihood estimation using an EM algorithm. Given a new query, probabilistic inference enables recommendation of a set of pertinent actions and hosts. We propose an evaluation methodology for measuring the relevance of our recommended actions, and show empirical evidence of the quality and the diversity of the discovered actions.
Very high performance 0.15 mu m gate-length InAlAs/InGaAs/InP lattice-matched HEMTs

State-of-the-art high-electron-mobility-transistor (HEMT) devices have been fabricated on InAlAs/InGaAs/InP. Devices with 30- mu m and 50- mu m gate widths and 0.15- mu m gate length were fabricated using an all-electron-beam lithography process. After mesa formation, ohmic contacts were formed using a standard NiAuGe metallization. The contacts were annealed using a rapid thermal annealer. Typical ohmic contact resistance was approximately 0.13 Omega -mm. This is the same as the typical contact for the GaAs-based pseudomorphic HEMT result. Gates were defined using a trilayer resist scheme and recessed using a wet chemical etch to reach the desired channel current. A TiPtAu metallization forms the gate. The devices exhibited performance superior to most other low noise HEMT devices. It is found that the gate leakage current increases as recess depth increases. This current increase seems to degrade noise performance. >
An Analysis of Two Discrepancy-based Models and a Processing-Deficit Approach in Identifying Learning Disabilities

The incidence of learning disabilities (LD) in a research center sample of 107 boys and 103 girls between 6 and 12 years of age was calculated using Wechsler IQ and Woodcock-Johnson cluster scores in a regression model (REG) and a reliability model (REL). The REL method identified LD three times more often than the REG method, and all those identified by REG were also identified by REL. When stratified by IQ, REG and REL identified similar percentages in the lowest IQ group; however, REG identified at a lower rate as IQ increased. All 87 children identified with reading disabilities (both REL-RD and REG-RD) were weak to a similar extent on phonemic awareness. Comorbid elevated attention ratings were found in 62% of children with RD; 26% had elevated attention ratings but no linguistic processing deficits, and 21% had at least one linguistic processing deficit but no attentionally suspect rating.
Magnetic resonance cisternogram with intrathecal gadolinium with delayed imaging for difficult to diagnose cerebrospinal fluid leaks of anterior skull base.

Background Workup of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leaks can be challenging. Patients with intermittent or infrequent clear rhinorrhea that cannot be collected, those with questionable or multiple skull-base (SB) defects on imaging, and those with previous SB surgery can present diagnostic dilemmas. In this patient population, radiologic studies that allow repeat imaging over hours to days can increase the diagnostic yield. We report our experience with magnetic resonance cisternogram with intrathecal gadolinium (MRCgGd) in this patient population. Methods This study was a retrospective review of patients who underwent MRCgGd for workup of suspected CSF leaks at a tertiary care academic center. Results Over the past 3 years, 11 patients (10 females; mean age 50 years) underwent MRCgGd. Seven patients had suspected spontaneous CSF leaks from idiopathic intracranial hypertension and 2 had postsurgical defects. All patients had previous imaging that was indeterminate in localizing the site of the leak. Only 3 patients had positive beta-2 transferrin studies, all with multiple potential leak sites. MRCgGd confirmed the absence of leaks at 4 previously repaired SB defects, identified spinal canal leaks but no SB leaks in 2 patients (1 of whom had a nonleaking SB defect), and identified 5 patients with one or more SB leaks. Repeat imaging, from 30 minutes to 20 hours, was beneficial in identifying 4 leaks not confirmed in the immediate imaging, and ruling out leaks in 5 cases, therefore guiding further treatment. No complications occurred. Conclusion MRCgGd is a useful diagnostic test in the workup of patients with difficult CSF leaks, with delayed imaging providing valuable diagnostic information.
Evidence report: The medical treatment of ocular myasthenia (an evidence-based review) - Report of the Quality Standards Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology

Objective: To perform a systematic review of the relevant literature and to provide evidence-based guidelines for the medical treatment of ocular myasthenia. Methods: Medline, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Neuromuscular Disease Group Register were searched for articles of possible relevance to the medical treatment of ocular myasthenia. The titles and abstracts of all arti- cles, as well as the full texts of all potentially relevant manuscripts, were read by both reviewers. Experts in the field were also contacted to identify other published or unpublished literature. All arti- cles were evaluated using predefined criteria to evaluate their methodologic quality. Data from these articles were extracted to address two questions: 1) Are there any effective treatments for symptoms of ocular myasthenia? 2) Are there any treatments that reduce the risk of progression from ocular to generalized myasthenia gravis (MG)? Results: A single randomized controlled trial compared the effi- cacy of intranasal neostigmine to placebo for the treatment of ocular symptoms. Methodologic limita- tions of this study preclude any firm conclusions. A second randomized controlled trial compared the efficacy of corticotropin with placebo, but outcome was reported in terms of a quantification of the range of eye movements. For this reason, the results of the second study could not be used to address the issues of improvement in ocular symptoms or the risk of progression to generalized MG. This review did not identify any randomized controlled trials addressing the risk of progression to general- ized MG but did identify five observational studies reporting the effects of corticosteroids on progres- sion to generalized MG, two of which also reported the effects of azathioprine. Recommendations: The absence of high-quality evidence means that it is not possible to make any evidence-based recommen- dations regarding the effects of cholinesterase inhibitors, corticosteroids, or other immunosuppres- sive agents with respect to improvement of ocular symptoms. There is similarly an absence of evidence regarding the effects of cholinesterase inhibitors on the risk of progression to generalized myasthenia gravis (MG). Based on data from several observational studies, corticosteroids and aza- thioprine are of uncertain benefit in terms of their effect on the risk of progression to generalized MG.
Coupling Efficiencies for General Target Illumination Ladar Systems Incorporating Single Mode Optical Fiber Receivers

A rigorous method for modeling received power coupling efficiency (ηF/R) and transmitted power coupling efficiency (ηF/T) in a general-target-illumination ladar system is presented. For our analysis we concentrate on incorporating a single-mode optical fiber into the ladar return signal path. By developing expressions for both ηF/R and ηF/T for a simple, diffuse target, our model allows for varying range, beam size on target, target diameter, and coupling optics. Through numerical analysis ηF/R is shown to increase as the range to target increases and decrease as target diameter increases, and ηF/T is shown to decrease with target range. A baseline signal-to-noise ratio analysis of the system is also provided for varying illumination schemes.
Diethyl tert‐Butylmalonate

Diethyl tert-butylmalonate reactant: 400 g. (2.50 moles) of diethyl malonate intermediate: diethyl isopropylidenemalonate product: diethyl tert-butylmalonate Keywords: addition, to CC; condensation, ester-active methylene condensation; esterification, of dicarboxylic acids; Grignard and related reactions; lithium dimethylcuprate (solution); lithium dimethylcuprate (solution), preparation of; methyl iodide
Puzzles versus Problems: The Alleged Disconnect between Academics and Military Practitioners

In the halls of both academic and government buildings, the stories of the gap between theory and praxis are legion. Practitioners speak of misguided academics and armchair generals criticizing the creation of strategy and the conduct of operations from the safety of their universities. Moreover, and at a more fundamental level, practitioners are frustrated that academics just don't seem to “get” the policy world. Conversely, academics bemoan the fact that practitioners often fail to fully think through the problems they claim need to be solved. If they had, many scholars argue, they would understand that the “solution” to a “problem” either becomes a part of the problem itself, or creates a whole new set of problems. Whether one calls the gap between theory and praxis in international relations a difference, a disconnect, or a divide hardly matters. What matters is discovering whether or not it actually exists, and if so, what is being done to rectify it. I first describe and then challenge the conventional wisdom that irreconcilable differences separate the academy and military practitioners.
Microfluidic Continuous Seeded Crystallization: Extraction of Growth Kinetics and Impact of Impurity on Morphology

We describe a continuous microfluidic system for seeded crystallization of small organic molecules, such as active pharmaceuticals, and demonstrate integration with in situ detection tools for determining the size and polymorphic form of the crystals. This integrated device is used to extract growth kinetics, as a screening platform for process parameter effects and optimization, and to gain insight into the fundamentals of the crystallization process. In addition, the microfluidic system also allows studies of additive effects on the crystal habit. The method is demonstrated with growth kinetics for α-, β-, and γ-forms of glycine along with the effects upon the morphology of adding glutamic acid and methionine.
Impact of a Videoconference Educational Intervention on Physical Restraint and Antipsychotic Use in Nursing Homes: Results From the ECHO-AGE Pilot Study

Abstract Objectives US nursing homes care for increasing numbers of residents with dementia and associated behavioral problems. They often lack access to specialized clinical expertise relevant to managing these problems. Project ECHO-AGE provides this expertise through videoconference sessions between frontline nursing home staff and clinical experts at an academic medical center. We hypothesized that ECHO-AGE would result in less use of physical and chemical restraints and other quality improvements in participating facilities. Design A 2:1 matched-cohort study comparing quality of care outcomes between ECHO-AGE facilities and matched controls for the period July 2012 to December 2013. Setting Eleven nursing homes in Massachusetts and Maine. Participants Nursing home staff and a hospital-based team of geriatrician, geropsychiatrist, and neurologist discussed anonymized residents with dementia. Intervention Biweekly online video case discussions and brief didactic sessions focused on the management of dementia and behavior disorders. Measurements The primary outcome variables were percentage of residents receiving antipsychotic medications and the percentage of residents who were physically restrained. Secondary outcomes included 9 other quality of care metrics from MDS 3.0. Results Residents in ECHO-AGE facilities were 75% less likely to be physically restrained compared with residents in control facilities over the 18-month intervention period (OR = 0.25, P = .05). Residents in ECHO-AGE facilities were 17% less likely to be prescribed antipsychotic medication compared with residents in control facilities (OR = 0.83, P = .07). Other outcomes were not significantly different. Conclusion Preliminary evidence suggests that participation in Project ECHO-AGE reduces rates of physical restraint use and may reduce rates of antipsychotic use among long-term nursing home residents.
Characteristics of Geological Structure of Katanga Copper-cobalt Metallogenic Belt in Congo(DRC)

Katanga copper-cobalt metallogenic belt inCongo(DRC) is western extension part of the world's famous Congo(DRC)-Zambia's copper-cobalt metallogenic belt.Roan Group of Katanga rocks is the main ore-bearing strata.Due to folds and nappe tectonics,so deeply buried ore-bearing strata were pushed to the surface cover,thus forming rich-shallow copper-cobalt metallogenic belt along fold distribution in Lufilian arch.
Associative learning changes cross-modal representations in the gustatory cortex

A growing body of literature has demonstrated that primary sensory cortices are not exclusively unimodal, but can respond to stimuli of different sensory modalities. However, several questions concerning the neural representation of cross-modal stimuli remain open. Indeed, it is poorly understood if cross-modal stimuli evoke unique or overlapping representations in a primary sensory cortex and whether learning can modulate these representations. Here we recorded single unit responses to auditory, visual, somatosensory, and olfactory stimuli in the gustatory cortex (GC) of alert rats before and after associative learning. We found that, in untrained rats, the majority of GC neurons were modulated by a single modality. Upon learning, both prevalence of cross-modal responsive neurons and their breadth of tuning increased, leading to a greater overlap of representations. Altogether, our results show that the gustatory cortex represents cross-modal stimuli according to their sensory identity, and that learning changes the overlap of cross-modal representations.
Antiferromagnetic structures and electronic energy levels at reconstructed NiO(111) surfaces: A DFT + U study

We studied how the surface reconstruction and passivation influence the antiferromagnetic and electronic structures of NiO(111) surface using first-principles electronic structure calculations. These features lead to a surprisingly wide variety of different surface electronic structures, and some surfaces are even metallic. Different reconstructions and surface passivation were also found to qualitatively alter the charge-transfer band gap type of bulk NiO. At the same time, the antiferromagnetic character of bulk NiO in the ⟨111⟩ direction is retained even near the surface, and the magnetic moment quickly converges to the bulk value within a few surface layers.
Manufacturing carbon nanofiber electrodes with embedded metallic nanoparticles using block copolymers templates

Owing to its superb thermal and electrical attributes, as well as electrochemical stability, carbon is emerging as an attractive material for fabrication of many bioelectrochemical devices such as biosensors and biofuel cells. However, carbon’s inert nature makes it difficult to functionalize with biocatalysts; often requiring harsh chemical treatment, such as nitric acid oxidation, to attach reactive amines and carboxylic acids to its surface. Recent studies, however, points toward a self-assembly approach for fabricating well organized layers of carbon loaded with arrays of metallic nanoparticles patterned by block-copolymers (BCP) templates. Herein, we demonstrate an effective method for developing carbon nanofibers meshes embedded with metal nanoparticles, by incorporating a BCP self-assembly approach into our C-MEMS fabrication technique. The main phase of this hybrid method includes electrospinning metal salt-loaded BCP into nanofiber meshes, and subsequently reducing the metal salts into metal nanoparticles prior to pyrolysis. This cost-effective process will pave the way for fabricating scalable advanced 3-D carbon electrodes that can be applied to biosensors and biofuel cells devices.
Total Ionizing Dose Effects on HfO 2 -Passivated Black Phosphorus Transistors

Electrical stress and 10-keV x-ray irradiation and annealing responses are evaluated for HfO2-passivated black phosphorous (BP) MOSFETs with HfO2 gate dielectrics. Device characteristics are stable during constant gate-voltage stress up to at least ±1 V. Significant negative threshold shifts, mobility degradation, and increases in subthreshold swing occur during both positive and negative bias irradiation. Hole trapping in the HfO2 gate dielectric dominates the TID response in these passivated BP MOSFETs. Reversibility of electrical parameters and magnitude of low frequency noise is observed during switched-bias annealing after irradiation. The voltage dependence of the low-frequency noise suggests that the trap distribution of the defects contributing to the noise becomes more uniform in energy after the devices are irradiated and annealed.
The International Journal of Production Research at 55: a content-driven review and analysis

The articles published in the International Journal of Production Research (IJPR) since inception have made a significant contribution to operations management (OM) research, firmly establishing IJPR as one of the most important outlets for OM research. This paper uses a text mining technique called Latent Semantic Analysis to identify the core areas of research published in IJPR since inception, and reveals how the focus on topics has evolved over time. The data consist of the abstracts of all articles published in IJPR from the inception of the journal through December 2015. The study identifies 16 core areas of research and provides a detailed analysis of how these core areas have evolved over time. The results from this data-driven analysis of 55 years of research in IJPR not only provide a comprehensive examination of past research in the journal but also important insights into the evolution of key areas of research in operations management.
Legal Issues: USA Patriot Act Still Raising Questions

In the nearly 14 years since the USA PATRIOT Act was enacted, it has not become any less controversial. Enacted just a few short weeks after the 9/11 attacks, the Act was intended to address perceived shortcomings in U.S. intelligence gathering, and give the nation new tools to fight in a “new war” against terrorism. Even at that early date, there was a belief that more effective intelligence gathering would have given the authorities additional information about the planners and the plan. Whether it would have been enough to prevent the attacks is a question that will likely never be answered. The PATRIOT Act was a series of amendments to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which regulated the gathering of intelligence information. FISA was enacted in the wake of allegations of abuse in the wake of the Vietnam War, anti-communism investigations and the Watergate scandal and created a series of policies and procedures to manage intelligence gathering activities. It also created the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) to approve requests to conduct investigations.
Incidence and Characterization of Major Upper-Extremity Amputations in the National Trauma Data Bank

Author(s): Inkellis, Elizabeth; Low, Eric Edison; Langhammer, Christopher; Morshed, Saam | Abstract: BackgroundThere are few recent data examining the epidemiology of severe upper-extremity trauma in non-military patients. We used the National Trauma Data Bank (NTDB) to investigate the epidemiology and descriptive characteristics of upper-extremity amputations in U.S. trauma centers.MethodsWe queried the 2009 to 2012 NTDB research datasets for patients undergoing major upper-extremity amputation and extracted characteristics of the patient population, injury distribution, and treating facilities. In addition, multivariable regression models were fit to identify correlates of reoperation, major in-hospital complications, duration of hospitalization, and in-hospital mortality.ResultsA total of 1,386 patients underwent a major upper-extremity amputation secondary to a trauma-related upper-extremity injury, representing 46 per 100,000 NTDB trauma admissions from 2009 to 2012. The most frequent definitive procedures performed were amputations through the humerus (35%), forearm (30%), and hand (14%). The average duration of hospitalization for all amputees was 17 days. Thirty-one percent of patients underwent at least 1 reoperation. The rate of reoperation was significantly higher at university-associated hospitals compared with nonteaching or community hospitals (p l 0.0001). Patients who had at least 1 reoperation stayed in the hospital approximately 7 days longer than patients who did not undergo reoperation. The Injury Severity Score, hospital teaching status, concomitant neurovascular injury, and occurrence of a complication were significantly associated with reoperation.ConclusionsThe present study provides an updated report on the epidemiology and characteristics of trauma-related major upper-extremity amputation in the U.S. civilian population. Additional work is necessary to assess the long-term outcomes following attempted upper-extremity salvage. The population-level data provided by the present study may help to inform the design and implementation of future studies on the optimum treatment for this survivable but life-altering injury.
The Fortunate Gardener: Cultivating a Writing Center

I’ve lived in Manhattan’s East Village for 20 years. Sometimes I call it Little Utopia because every category of person seems to have a place there. Hippies, junkies, babies, punks, bankers, beggars, supermodels, rock stars, aging immigrants, brand new refugees. Change is tradition in the East Village, a tradition that keeps its institutions impervious to deterministic, top–down urban planning. Take for example the community garden next to my building. When I first moved in, it was an overgrown tangle of plants, trees, flowers, and weeds on top of an abandoned lot. Honeysuckle and ivy crept up my window, and the gentle, waving fronds of the weeping willow cast hypnotic shadows on my living room wall. The iron gate door was locked and chained, and the most foul-mouthed woman I’ve ever heard possessed the only key. From time to time, she would unlock the gate and curse nonstop, pulling weeds and hacking branches. There were occasional birthday parties for her grandkids, I guessed. The trees and bushes were littered with balloons and paper; music blasted from tinny speakers. As the flower beds were trampled, Penny, the ogress, cursed harder than ever. Whatever garbage they missed picking up would remain. The garden grew up over it.
Higher Order Quantum Serre Relations

7.1.1. In this chapter we assume that we are given i ≠ j in I and e = ±1. Given n, m ∈ Z, we set $${f_{i,j;n,m;e}} = \sum\limits_{r + s = m} {{{( - 1)}^r}{v_i}^{er( - \left\langle {i,j\prime} \right\rangle n - m + 1)}{\theta _i}^{(r)}{\theta _j}^{(n)}{\theta _i}^{(s)} \in {\rm{f}}} .$$
Response Rates of Medical Providers to Internet Surveys Regarding Their Adoption of Preexposure Prophylaxis for HIV: Methodological Implications.

In 2016 to 2017, we surveyed primary care providers (PCPs) in upper Manhattan and the South Bronx, New York, on their knowledge, attitudes, and practices surrounding preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) ...
Rethinking Education: Montessori’s Approach:

More than 100 years ago, an Italian physician began designing an education system with the expressed purpose of helping children thrive to their full potential, rather than pass tests. Psychology r...
Identifying best practices in interstage care: using a positive deviance approach within the National Pediatric Cardiology Quality Improvement Collaborative.

IntroductionTo identify interstage best practices associated with lower mortality, we studied National Pediatric Cardiology Quality Improvement Collaborative centres registry using a positive deviance approach. Methods Positive deviant and control centre team members were interviewed to identify potential interstage best practices. Subsequently, all collaborative centres were surveyed on the use of these practices to test their associations with centre mortality. Questionnaires were scored using Likert scales; the overall score was linearly transformed to a 0-100-point scale with higher scores indicating increased use of practices. Mortality was based on patients enrolled after a centre's first year in the collaborative. Centre mortality rates were divided into tertiles. Survey scores for the low mortality tertile were compared with the other tertiles. Results For this study, seven positive deviant and four control teams were interviewed. A total of 20 potential best practices were identified, including team composition, improvement practices, and parent involvement. Questionnaires were completed by 36/43 eligible centres, providing 1504 patients for analysis. Average survey score was 50.2 (SD 13.4). Average mortality was 6.1% (SD 4.1). There was no correlation between survey scores and mortality (r=0.14, p=0.41). The one practice associated with the low mortality tertile was frequency of discussion of interstage results: 58.3% of low mortality teams discussed results at least monthly versus 8.4% of the middle and high tertile centres (p=0.02). Conclusions Low-mortality centres more frequently discuss interstage results than high-mortality centres. Heightened awareness of outcomes may influence practice; however, further study is needed to understand the variation in outcomes across centres.
Beyond Tutoring: Opportunities for Intergenerational Mentorship at a Community Level

Community intergenerational mentorship offers an opportunity to address older adults' social isolation while providing valuable one-on-one or small group learning experiences for elementary school students. Current organizations that support this kind of engagement focus on in-person visits that place the burden of logistics and transportation on the older adult. However, as older adults become less independent while aging, coming to schools in person becomes more challenging. We present a qualitative analysis of current intergenerational mentorship practices to understand opportunities for technology to expand access to this experience. We highlight elements critical for building successful mentorship: the importance of relationship building between older adults and children during mentoring activities, the skills mentors acquired to carry out mentoring activities, and support needed from teachers and schools. We contribute a rich description of current intergenerational mentorship practices and provide insights for opportunities for novel HCI technologies in this context.
Epinephrine Auto-Injectors for Anaphylaxis Treatment in the School Setting: A Discussion Paper:

Introduction:Anaphylaxis is a serious, life-threatening systemic allergic reaction that may occur in individuals not previously diagnosed with an allergy. Emergency first-line treatment of choice f...
Reduced sucrose nonfermenting AMPK-related kinase (SNARK) activity aggravates cancer-induced skeletal muscle wasting.

Abstract Sucrose nonfermenting AMPK-related kinase (SNARK) is a member of the AMPK family of kinases and has been implicated in the regulation of critical metabolic processes. Recent findings demonstrate that SNARK has an important role in the maintenance of muscle mass with age. Loss of skeletal muscle mass (cachexia) is a key problem for cancer patients. Thus, based on our previous findings with aging, we hypothesized that SNARK would play a role in regulating muscle mass under conditions of cancer cachexia. To test this hypothesis, Lewis Lung Carcinoma tumor cells or vehicle were injected subcutaneously in the right flank of wild type mice, muscle-specific transgenic mice expressing inactive SNARK mutant (SDN) or muscle-specific transgenic mice overexpressing wild-type SNARK (SWT). All tumor-bearing mice presented muscle wasting compared to vehicle-injected mice. However, SDN tumor-bearing mice had more pronounced atrophy compared to wild-type and SWT tumor-bearing mice. Histological analysis confirmed muscle atrophy in tumor-bearing mice, and SDN tumor-bearing mice exhibited a significantly smaller skeletal muscle cross-sectional area than wild-type and SWT tumor-bearing mice. Moreover, SDN tumor-bearing mice had increased skeletal muscle BAX protein expression, a marker of apoptosis, compared to other groups.Thus, lack of SNARK in skeletal muscle aggravates cancer-induced skeletal muscle wasting. These findings uncover a role for SNARK in the maintenance of skeletal muscle mass under cachexia conditions.
Data-Driven Spatial Branch-And-Bound Algorithms For Black-Box Optimization

Abstract The use of high fidelity simulations is becoming more common in computer-aided design and optimization. Due to the complexity of the simulation models and the lack of closed-form mathematical formulations, the direct use of traditional deterministic optimization tools is prohibitive for such problems. Therefore, data-driven decision-making has become increasingly important, with surrogate-based optimization being one of the most popular approaches. Two of the most important challenges in surrogate-based optimization are the lack of consistent convergence metrics, and the variability in the quality of the incumbent solution when a different sampling set or a different surrogate model is used to guide the search. In this work, we propose a strategy to mitigate this uncertainty in the performance of such algorithms. A novel data-driven spatial branch-and-bound framework is proposed that uses stochastic bounds on different surrogate models and partitioning of the search space. The convergence properties of this algorithm are studied through a large set of benchmark problems.
But Can She Make America Great Again? Threat, Stability, and Support for Female Candidates in the United States

Drawing on the literature on system justification, I argue that the fate of female candidates in the U.S. is tied to whether the election is occurring in relatively good or bad times. Using an original experiment embedded in the 2016 Cooperative Congressional Election Study, I show that exposure to low vs. high threat messages led to higher evaluations of Hillary Clinton. These findings are complimented by a vote choice model that shows that the likelihood of supporting Clinton over Trump was significantly higher when perceived threat (as captured by economic assessments) was lower. A second original experiment better isolates the effects of candidate sex and generalizes these findings beyond the 2016 case. These results highlight the importance of including campaign context in studies of candidate evaluation and suggest that overt sexism is not the only hurdle facing women running for office in the U.S.
Interpretation of 2016 American Thyroid Association guidelines for diagnosis and management of hyperthyroidism and other causes of thyrotoxicosis: nuclear medicine part

The new American Thyroid Association (ATA) guidelines for diagnosis and management of hyperthyroidism and other causes of thyrotoxicosis was published in 2016. Compared to the 100 pieces of evidence-based recommendations in 2011 edition guidelines, the 2016 edition guidelines included 124 pieces of evidence-based recommendations, which made the diagnosis and therapy of thyroid diseases more detailed. As one of the most important treatment for Graves disease (GD), 131I therapy was explained more completely in the 2016 edition guidelines, including the indication, the determination of dose, the radiation protection, the reasonable application in children and so on. The purpose of this paper is to interpret the 2016 edition guidelines about the diagnosis and therapy of thyroid diseases in the view of nuclear medicine, focusing on the updated contents. Key words: Thyrotoxicosis; Hyperthyroidism; Practice guidelines; Nuclear medicine; United States
Investigating Student Sustained Attention in a Guided Inquiry Lecture Course Using an Eye Tracker

This study investigated the belief that student attention declines after the first 10 to 15 min of class by analyzing vigilance decrement in a guided inquiry physical science course. We used Tobii Glasses, a portable eye tracker, to record student gaze during class sessions. Undergraduate students (n = 17) representative of course demographics (14 female, 3 male) wore the eye tracker during 70-min classes (n = 84) or 50-min classes (n = 26). From the gaze point and fixation data, we coded participant attention as either on-task or off-task for every second of data. This analysis resulted in a percentage of vigilance time on task for each minute as well as the amount of time that participants spent looking in various locations during the class sessions. Participants exhibited on-task vigilance percentages starting with 67% at the start of class and rising to an average of above 90% on-task vigilance at the 7 to 9-min mark with minor fluctuation. Contrary to the belief that attention declines rapidly during a class, the participants on-task spans were larger and more numerous than their off-task spans. These results seem to support the conclusion that well-structured classes punctuated by student-student and instructor-student interactions can be an effective method of maintaining student attention vigilance for entire class sessions, not just the first 10 min.
A genotype:phenotype approach to testing taxonomic hypotheses in hominids

Paleontology has long relied on assumptions about the genetic and developmental influences on skeletal variation. The last few decades of developmental genetics have elucidated the genetic pathways involved in making teeth and patterning the dentition. Quantitative genetic analyses have refined this genotype:phenotype map even more, especially for primates. We now have the ability to define dental traits with a fair degree of fidelity to the underlying genetic architecture; for example, the molar module component (MMC) and the premolar-molar module (PMM) that have been defined through quantitative genetic analyses. We leverage an extensive dataset of extant and extinct hominoid dental variation to explore how these two genetically patterned phenotypes have evolved through time. We assess MMC and PMM to test the hypothesis that these two traits reveal a more biologically informed taxonomy at the genus and species levels than do more traditional measurements. Our results indicate that MMC values for hominids fall into two categories and that Homo is derived compared with earlier taxa. We find a more variable, species-level pattern for PMM. These results, in combination with previous research, demonstrate that MMC reflects the phenotypic output of a more evolutionarily stable, or phylogenetically congruent, genetic mechanism, and PMM is a reflection of a more evolutionarily labile mechanism. These results suggest that the human lineage since the split with chimpanzees may not represent as much genus-level variation as has been inferred from traits whose etiologies are not understood.
Economic Integration Among Taiwan, Hong Kong and China: A Computable General Equilibrium Analysis

This paper investigates the effects of economic integration among Taiwan, Hong Kong and China (CEA). A seven-region, seven-sector computable general equilibrium model for world production and trade is developed for this purpose. The simulation results demonstrate that the three Chinese economies would benefit greatly from further integration by means of liberalizing trade policies. The opportunity cost of isolating the United States from East Asia is high for both the US and the three Chinese economies, suggesting that an economically integrated CEA is in the long-term strategic interest of the United States.
Ti3C2Tx MXene Flakes for Optical Control of Neuronal Electrical Activity.

Understanding cellular electrical communications in both health and disease necessitates precise subcellular electrophysiological modulation. Nanomaterial-assisted photothermal stimulation was demonstrated to modulate cellular activity with high spatiotemporal resolution. Ideal candidates for such an application are expected to have high absorbance at the near-infrared window, high photothermal conversion efficiency, and straightforward scale-up of production to allow future translation. Here, we demonstrate two-dimensional Ti3C2Tx (MXene) as an outstanding candidate for remote, nongenetic, optical modulation of neuronal electrical activity with high spatiotemporal resolution. Ti3C2Tx's photothermal response measured at the single-flake level resulted in local temperature rises of 2.31 ± 0.03 and 3.30 ± 0.02 K for 635 and 808 nm laser pulses (1 ms, 10 mW), respectively. Dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons incubated with Ti3C2Tx film (25 μg/cm2) or Ti3C2Tx flake dispersion (100 μg/mL) for 6 days did not show a detectable influence on cellular viability, indicating that Ti3C2Tx is noncytotoxic. DRG neurons were photothermally stimulated using Ti3C2Tx films and flakes with as low as tens of microjoules per pulse incident energy (635 nm, 2 μJ for film, 18 μJ for flake) with subcellular targeting resolution. Ti3C2Tx's straightforward and large-scale synthesis allows translation of the reported photothermal stimulation approach in multiple scales, thus presenting a powerful tool for modulating electrophysiology from single-cell to additive manufacturing of engineered tissues.
A soil bioassay using the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans

Caenorhabditis elegans is a free-livings soil nematode that is commonly used as a biological model. Recently, much work has been done using the nematode as a toxicological model as well. Much of the work involving C. elegans has been performed in aquatic media, since it lives in the interstitial water of soil. However, testing in soil would be expected to more accurately reproduce the organism's normal environment and may take into consideration other factors not available in an aquatic test, i.e., toxicant availability effects due to sorption, various chemical interactions, etc. This study used a modification of a previous experimental protocol to determine 24h LC{sub 50} values for Cu in a Cecil series soil mixture, and examined the use of CuCl{sub 2} as a reference toxicant for soil toxicity testing with C. elegans. Three different methods of determining percent lethality were used, each dependent on how the number of worms missing after the recovery process was used in the lethality calculations. Only tests having {ge}80% worm recovery and {ge}90% control survival were used in determining the LC{sub 50}s, by Probit analysis. The replicate LC{sub 50} values generated a control chart for each method of calculating percent lethality. The coefficient ofmore » variation (CV) for each of the three methods was {le}14%. The control charts and the protocol outlined in this study are intended to be used to assess test organism health and monitor precision of future soil toxicity tests with C. elegans.« less
Policing firearm violence: Examining space-time associations between shootings and firearm arrests to gauge police responsiveness

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to generate information about the contours of police responsiveness, focussing on how quickly and precisely police make firearm arrests after a shooting incident. Design/methodology/approach – Using a modified version of the Knox close pair method, a spatio-temporal clustering technique, over 11,000 shooting incidents and firearm arrests between 2004 and 2007 in Philadelphia, PA were analyzed. Findings – Police are responding quickly and in a geographically targeted fashion to shootings. Across Philadelphia elevated patterns of firearm arrests were approximately two and a half times greater than would be expected if shootings and firearm arrests lacked a spatio-temporal association. Greater than expected patterns of firearm arrests persisted for roughly one-fourth of a mile and for about one week from the shooting incident but the strength of these associations waned over space and time. The pattern of police response varied slightly across different police divisions...