cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Tidally induced cross-frontal mean circulation: analytical study

An analytical model is developed to study the tidally induced mean circulation in the frontal zone. Four distinct forcing mechanisms are identified, which result in the generation of the counterclockwise Bernoulli cell, the clockwise Ekman cell, the clockwise frontal cell, and the Stokes drift (facing in the direction with the shallow water to the left). The decomposition of the cross-frontal circulation provides a dynamical framework for interpreting and understanding its complex structure. To illustrate the underlying physics, three model configurations are considered pertaining to a homogenous ocean and winter and summer fronts. For a homogeneous ocean, the circulation is dominated by three cells; for the winter front, the offshore Bernoulli cell is strengthened; and for the summer front, two counterrotating cells are found in the vertical direction, associated with the two branches of the front. The dependence of the cell structure on the Ekman, Burger, and other dimensionless numbers is examined.
Applications of Engineered Synthetic Ecosystems

Microbial communities that exhibit programmable and modular architecture enable an array of applications in biotechnology and medicine. These engineered synthetic communities can be tuned to sense, degrade, and produce various compounds in both natural and artificial environments. The next phase of synthetic biology will entail engineering of microbes at the level of communities and ecosystems. Here we discuss recent developments in engineering synthetic ecology and future prospects in this emerging area of synthetic biology.
IMU Sensor Fault Diagnosis and Estimation for Quadrotor UAVs

Abstract This paper presents a fault detection, isolation and estimation scheme for sensor bias fault in inertial measurement units (IMUs) of quadrotor unmanned air vehicles (UAVs). By using estimated roll and pitch angles obtained using a sliding-mode observer method, a diagnostic algorithm is developed for detecting, isolating and estimating sensor bias fault in the gyroscope and accelerometer measurements. The stability and estimation performance properties of the fault estimation algorithm are rigorously established. Flight data collected from a real-time quadrotor test environment is used to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.
Effects of dietary flaxseed on intestinal tumorigenesis in ApcMin mouse

AACR Annual Meeting-- Apr 12-16, 2008; San Diego, CA 3052 Dietary flaxseed containing alpha-linolenic acid and lignans has been shown to reduce azoxymethane-induced colorectal cancer in male Fisher rats. The present study was designed to investigate the chemopreventive effects of dietary flaxseed on the development of intestinal polyps in ApcMin mice. ApcMin mice, 6 weeks old were divided into five different groups (8 mice per group), fed with control (AIN 93M alone), Corn oil (15% in AIN 93M), Corn meal (15% in AIN 93M), Flaxseed oil (15% in AIN 93M) and Flaxseed meal (15% in AIN 93M) respectively. All experimental groups were continued on their respective dietary regimen until the termination of experiment at 12 weeks of dietary treatment. Mice were sacrificed under ether anesthesia, small intestine, colon were isolated and washed with cold normal saline. Number, site and size of tumors were recorded. A 100% tumor incidence was observed in all the groups. However, tumor multiplicity and size were significantly (p<0.05) lower in dietary flaxseed oil and flaxseed meal groups compared to and corn oil and corn meal groups in both small intestine and colon of mice. Intestine, colon and serum samples of the corn oil and corn meal group showed higher levels of ω-6 fatty acids levels whereas the flaxseed oil and flaxseed meal group exhibited higher levels of ω-3 fatty acid levels. COX-1 and COX-2 expression as measured by Western blotting using specific antibodies, was significantly lower in flaxseed group (p<0.05) as compared to corn group. Dietary flaxseed meal containing ω-3 fatty acids and lignans, and dietary flaxseed oil containing ω-3 fatty acid are effective in preventing intestinal tumor development possibly by increasing ω-3 fatty acid levels, lignans, and decreasing COX-1 and COX-2 expressions. (Supported by North Dakota Oilseed Council)
Why FDI Transaction Prices Vary

Adapting the logic of transaction cost economics (TCE), we argue that the source of transaction safeguards (i.e., foreign investor or host government) interacts with country-level uncertainty to determine the price investors pay for foreign direct investments (FDI) in strategic sectors. We find that the marginal effect of protective transaction safeguards on FDI price varies in surprising ways across the level of uncertainty. When the government installs beneficial safeguards, the marginal effect on FDI price is positive, and this positive effect decreases as country-level uncertainty increases. When investors install their own safeguards and thus bear the costs of protection, the marginal effect on the acquisition price of the FDI transaction is negative, and this negative effect decreases with increases in country-level uncertainty. Using novel data on 332 FDI transactions in the telecommunications services sector of 77 emerging markets, we employ multilevel analysis to manage the clustered and interactive nature of the data.
Logical Physical Clocks

There is a gap between the theory and practice of distributed systems in terms of the use of time. The theory of distributed systems shunned the notion of time, and introduced “causality tracking” as a clean abstraction to reason about concurrency. The practical systems employed physical time (NTP) information but in a best effort manner due to the difficulty of achieving tight clock synchronization. In an effort to bridge this gap and reconcile the theory and practice of distributed systems on the topic of time, we propose a hybrid logical clock, HLC, that combines the best of logical clocks and physical clocks. HLC captures the causality relationship like logical clocks, and enables easy identification of consistent snapshots in distributed systems. Dually, HLC can be used in lieu of physical/NTP clocks since it maintains its logical clock to be always close to the NTP clock. Moreover HLC fits in to 64 bits NTP timestamp format, and is masking tolerant to NTP kinks and uncertainties.We show that HLC has many benefits for wait-free transaction ordering and performing snapshot reads in multiversion globally distributed databases.
Real-Time Observation of Interlayer Vibrations in Bilayer and Few-Layer Graphene

We report real-time observation of the interlayer shearing mode, corresponding; to the lateral oscillation of graphene planes, for bi- and few-layer graphene. Using a femtosecond pump-probe technique, we have followed coherent oscillations of this vibrational mode directly in the time domain. The shearing-mode frequency, as expected for an interlayer mode, exhibits a strong and systematic dependence on the number of layers, varying from 1.32 THz for the bulk limit to 0.85 THz for bilayer graphene. We explored the role of interactions with the external environment on this vibrational mode by comparing the response observed for graphene layers supported by different substrates and suspended in free space. No significant frequency shifts were observed.
Why not choledochal cyst

With excision as a standard procedure for treating choledochal cyst, early diagnosis becomes a central issue in reducing morbidity and mortality from that disorder. In a retrospective analysis of 35 patients treated over a 10-year period, we found the diagnosis was delayed for an average of 11.9 months from the beginning of presenting symptoms. Three factors were responsible: (1) a random combination of non specific presenting symptoms such as pain and vomiting or jaundice and hepatomegaly frequently led to a diagnosis such as acute pancreatitis or hepatitis, in which conservative treatment was considered most appropriate; (2) the three parameters commonly used to diagnose acute pancreatitis (serum amylase, lipase, and Cam/Ccr) may all be elevated in patients with a choledochal cyst; and (3) a combination of several noninvasive examinations such as radionuclide cholescintigraphy, ultrasonography, and upper gastrointestinal X-rays may fail to diagnose some difficult cases of choledochal cyst. To obviate such problems, we recommend a routine ultrasound examination of biliary tract in children with recurrent or progressive obstructive jaundice or unexplained acute pancreatitis. When these noninvasive examinations fail to solve the problem, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography should be considered.
A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE CONCEPT OF POWER: AN INTERACTIONIST REVELATION OF ITS MORAL NATURE*

*Originally printed in Free Inquiry in Creative Sociology 1990 18(2). It is argued that power is best understood as a moral category rather than as a causal category for purposes of social analysis. Since the exercise of power implies the violation of preferences, it is a moral problem which requires the identification of a responsible party for remedy. If a social analysis does not make responsible actors and relevant moralities manifest, the analysis emasculates the fundamental moral resources available to the party over whom power is exercised. Concepts of power involving closed, substituted, simultaneous, and negotiated moral universes are examined from this perspective.
Plural voting and political equality: A thought experiment in democratic theory

I demonstrate that a set of well-known objections defeat John Stuart Mill’s plural voting proposal, but do not defeat plural voting as such. I adopt the following as a working definition of politic...
Contrast preservation in Polish Palatalization

There is a great deal of work on the role of contrast preservation in phonology and morphology (Flemming 1996; Padgett 2009; Hall 2011; Mackenzie 2013, among others). This article illustrates contrast preservation with the example of Coronal Palatalization in Polish (Rubach 1984; Gussmann 2007). The basic idea is that contrast is preserved between lexical items despite palatalization due to the choice of different allomorphs as suffixes for original and derived pre-palatals. If the same suffixes were selected for original and pre-palatal consonants, contrast would be neutralized between them in output forms. The analysis will be couched in the framework of PC (‘preserve contrast’) Theory (Łubowicz 2012). Cross-linguistic evidence and implications of the proposal will be examined. This article is part of the special collection: Palatalization
USNC/TAM Chairs

Twenty-eight individuals served as the Chair of USNC/TAM between 1948 and 2012. All served one 2-year term except for the first two Chairs of the Committee, Hugh Dryden served 8 years, 1948–1956, and Nick Hoff served 4 years, 1956–1960. Following are brief highlights of the committee chairs. It is evident that the Chairs of USNC/TAM have outstanding records of accomplishment and are well known to the mechanics community. Major references from which this material was gleaned follow each write-up. Major accomplishments, awards, and positions of the Chairs are presented. However, for detailed lists of publications and society fellow memberships, the reader is referred to the references provided as the length of such list would be exhaustive. There can be no question that in future years, many of these chairs will be considered giants of mechanics. I have had the good fortune of personally knowing all but a small handful of the committee chairs.
Inhibition of Sodium Ion Channel Function with Truncated Forms of Batrachotoxin

A novel family of small molecule inhibitors of voltage-gated sodium channels (NaVs) based on the structure of batrachotoxin (BTX), a well-known channel agonist, is described. Protein mutagenesis and electrophysiology experiments reveal the binding site as the inner pore region of the channel, analogous to BTX, alkaloid toxins, and local anesthetics. Homology modeling of the eukaryotic channel based on recent crystallographic analyses of bacterial NaVs suggests a mechanism of action for ion conduction block.
Diagnostic status of hypertension on the adherence to the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet

The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet is a widely recommended diet for individuals with hypertension. Adherence to the DASH diet has been shown to be effective for controlling hypertension, but it is unclear whether a hypertension diagnosis has an impact on adherence to the diet and nutrient intake. This study examined the association between hypertension diagnosis and the DASH nutrient intake using the multivariate linear regression method. The sample was composed of individuals with hypertension in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2007 to 2012. The outcome was the DASH accordance score (0 to 9 points), which measures the intake of nine nutrients compared to target amounts. Study findings indicate that a diagnostic status of hypertension was associated with increased consumption of sodium, saturated fat, total fat, and protein. Adherence to the DASH diet was more likely to be associated with health conditions such as obesity and heart diseases and lifestyle behaviors such as current smoking status and physical activity. Individuals diagnosed with hypertension showed less adherence to the DASH diet than those not diagnosed with hypertension, so a diagnosis of hypertension did not seem to provide an incentive to engage in healthy dietary behavior. Overall, regardless of diagnostic status, individuals with hypertension did not seem to follow the DASH guidelines.
Shape Completion Using 3D-Encoder-Predictor CNNs and Shape Synthesis

We introduce a data-driven approach to complete partial 3D shapes through a combination of volumetric deep neural networks and 3D shape synthesis. From a partially-scanned input shape, our method first infers a low-resolution &#x2013; but complete &#x2013; output. To this end, we introduce a 3D-Encoder-Predictor Network (3D-EPN) which is composed of 3D convolutional layers. The network is trained to predict and fill in missing data, and operates on an implicit surface representation that encodes both known and unknown space. This allows us to predict global structure in unknown areas at high accuracy. We then correlate these intermediary results with 3D geometry from a shape database at test time. In a final pass, we propose a patch-based 3D shape synthesis method that imposes the 3D geometry from these retrieved shapes as constraints on the coarsely-completed mesh. This synthesis process enables us to reconstruct fine-scale detail and generate high-resolution output while respecting the global mesh structure obtained by the 3D-EPN. Although our 3D-EPN outperforms state-of-the-art completion method, the main contribution in our work lies in the combination of a data-driven shape predictor and analytic 3D shape synthesis. In our results, we show extensive evaluations on a newly-introduced shape completion benchmark for both real-world and synthetic data.
Catalysis of the Diels–Alder Reaction of Furan and Methyl Acrylate in Lewis Acidic Zeolites

Diels–Alder (DA) reactions of furans yield oxanorbornene derivatives which can be converted to a variety of molecules, ranging from molecules of biological interest to naturally occurring organic compounds, and to aromatics via dehydration, a promising alternative for the synthesis of aromatics from renewables. With furan being one of the less reactive dienes, the development of Lewis acidic heterogeneous catalysts, without the shortcomings of the traditional homogeneous catalysts, is critically important. Herein, we use computational chemistry to study the DA reaction of furan and methyl acrylate in three zeotypic Lewis acids, Sn-, Zr-, and Hf-BEA. We find that all three exhibit the same ability to enhance the electrophilic character of the dienophile and promote modest charge transfer from the diene. Despite being moderately Lewis acidic, they still achieve a reduction of about 12.5 kcal/mol in the activation energy relative to the reaction in the absence of catalyst.
Autoantibodies & Herpes Viruses Detected in Encephalitic CSF (P6.125)

Objective: To characterize in our Mayo Clinic service laboratories (Neuroimmunology and Virology): 1) neural autoantibody profiles in cerebrospinal fluid specimens (CSFs) of patients with herpes viruses detected, and 2) herpes virus profiles in CSFs of patients with autoimmune encephalitis attributable to well-characterized synaptic antibodies targeting neural plasma membrane proteins. Background: Recurrent neurologic symptoms after remission from HSV or VZV encephalitis have in recent years been attributable in some patients to parainfectious NMDA receptor-(R) autoimmunity. Methods: One-hundred CSFs from patients positive by PCR for HSV1/2, VZV, EBV, CMV, or HHV-6 (January-June 2015) were tested for neural autoantibodies by indirect immunofluorescence assays (tissue and cell-based). Six follow-up CSFs were also evaluated. Seventy-seven CSFs from autoimmune encephalitis patients with ≥1 synaptic antibodies targeting NMDA-R, AMPA-R, GABAB-R, LGI1, CASPR2, or DPPX were tested for herpes viruses by PCR (2011-2015). Nine pertinent clinical service patients encountered (2014-2015) are also described. Results: Antibodies (≥1) were detected in 27/100 initially-submitted herpes virus-positive CSFs (unclassified neural antibodies [UNAs], 15; antinuclear antibody, 12; smooth muscle antibody [SMA], 10; NMDA-R antibody, 1; and gastric parietal cell antibody, 1) and in 2/6 follow-up CSFs (AMPA-R antibody, 1; UNA and SMA, 1). Herpes viruses were detected in 4/77 CSFs harboring synaptic antibodies (EBV, 2; HHV-6, 2); affected patients had NMDA-R antibody (3, 1 had bilateral ovarian teratomas) or GABAB-R antibody (1, had small cell lung carcinoma). Among 9 clinical service patients, 6 had HSV-1 and NMDA-R antibody detected consecutively (biphasic illnesses, 4; monophasic [severe], 2), 2 with cancer had HSV-1 and other CSF-neural antibodies detected (simultaneously, 1; consecutively, 1), and 1 (with classic NMDA-R encephalitis) had EBV and NMDA-R antibody detected simultaneously. Conclusions: Herpes viruses and autoantibodies frequently coexist in CSF. Parainfectious autoimmunity is plausible in some patients. The significance of herpes virus PCR findings in others, particularly paraneoplastic cases, is uncertain. Disclosure: Dr. Linnoila has nothing to disclose. Dr. Binnicker has nothing to disclose. Dr. Klein has nothing to disclose. Dr. McKeon has received research support from Medimmune.
Does hepatectomy approach influence transfusion? An analysis of the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database.

447Background: Transfusion is one of the causes of morbidity in hepatectomy, and is a predictor of mortality and cancer recurrence. This study sought to analyze the role of surgical approach in the incidence of transfusion in a large national dataset. Methods: The National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database identified patients undergoing hepatectomy between January 1, 2014 and December 31, 2014. Demographic information, surgical approach, perioperative characteristics, and short-term postoperative outcomes were compared for patients with and without perioperative red blood cell transfusion. Transfusions occurring from surgical start time to 72 hours postoperatively were included in the dataset. Results: A total of 3,064 patients were included in this study. Patients with right lobectomy and trisegmentectomy were more likely to receive transfusion compared to left and partial lobectomies (p < 0.001). Rate of transfusion was highest in unplanned minimally invasive conversion to open hepatectomy c...
Inorganic Nanowire Light-Emitting Diodes in Organic Films

We report room-temperature, white-color electroluminescence in ZnO nanowires embedded solidly in organic thin films. Excitonic luminescence around 380 nm is observed as a shoulder on a broader, defect-related band covering all of the visible range and centered at 620 nm. The ZnO nanowires are grown in a low-temperature process employing a technique that is suitable for large-area applications. The nanowires are robustly encapsulated in organic films deposited from high-molecular-weight solutions. Electron injection occurs through a transparent SnO 2 layer, while hole injection is mediated by a p-doped polymer and an evaporated Au-contact.
Medieval Monsters, in Theory and Practice

The past two decades have witnessed a plethora of studies on the medieval monster. These studies have contributed significantly to our understanding of religion, art, literature, and science in the Middle Ages. However, a tendency to treat the medieval monster in purely symbolic and psychological terms ignores the lived experiences of impaired medieval people and their culture’s attitudes toward them. With the aid of recent insights provided by disability studies, this article aims to confront “real” medieval monsters – e.g., physically impaired human beings – in both their human and monstrous aspects. Key words : Middle Ages – Teratology – Disability Studies
Biophysics of Microtubule End Coupling at the Kinetochore

The main physiological function of mitotic kinetochores is to provide durable attachment to spindle microtubules, which segregate chromosomes in order to partition them equally between the two daughter cells. Numerous kinetochore components that can bind directly to microtubules have been identified, including ATP-dependent motors and various microtubule-associated proteins with no motor activity. A major challenge facing the field is to explain chromosome motions based on the biochemical and structural properties of these individual kinetochore components and their assemblies. This chapter reviews the molecular mechanisms responsible for the motions associated with dynamic microtubule tips at the single-molecule level, as well as the activities of multimolecular ensembles called couplers. These couplers enable persistent kinetochore motion even under load, but their exact composition and structure remain unknown. Because no natural or artificial macro-machines function in an analogous manner to these molecular nano-devices, understanding their underlying biophysical mechanisms will require conceptual advances.
Mouse model of CCl4-induced HCC: histopathological changes and expression of EGF and CD133

2954 Background: Repeated exposure to carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) has historically been used as a model of chronic liver injury leading to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in rodents. Chronic liver injury leads to hepatic stellate cell (HSC) proliferation and differentiation and consequent deposition of extracellular matrix proteins like collagen resulting in fibrosis and cirrhosis. A novel subpopulation of HSCs, which express CD133 and exhibit properties of progenitor cells, has recently been described in rats. In the setting of chronic human liver injury, epidermal growth factor (EGF) and EGF receptor (EGFR) have been proposed to have vital roles in liver regeneration and tumor progression. Methods: Strain A/J male mice were treated 3X a week for 17 weeks by oral gavage with either 0.04 cc of a 40% solution of CCl4 in olive oil or vehicle. Pathological examination of the livers was performed with Masson9s trichrome and HE however, no evidence of cirrhosis was present. Consistent with this, increased expression of desmin and GFAP, known to be representative markers of HSCs, was observed. Interestingly, CD133 was dramatically up-regulated after treatment with CCl4 and was attributed to HSCs as the expression of VEGFR2, a marker for endothelial progenitor cells, was not altered. Further, upon withdrawal of CCl4, the expression of CD133 returned to control levels in the surrounding normal tissue but remained elevated in the tumor. Finally, EGF and EGFR expression significantly decreased during chronic liver injury, but returned to nearly control levels during liver repair after withdrawal of CCl4. Conclusions: The use of CCl4-induced chronic liver injury in mice may not be an adequate model of human cirrhosis. In this study, no evidence of cirrhosis was seen and HCCs developed within a setting of fibrosis and not cirrhosis as typically observed in humans. Further, EGF and EGFR expression decreased during chronic liver injury. These results suggest that species-specific differences exist with respect to the histopathological and molecular pathogenesis of chronic liver disease. The dramatic up-regulation of CD133 is a notable finding and the contribution of CD133+ HSC to liver regeneration and tumor progression await further studies in rodents and humans.
Peace Education: College and Universities

Peace education on college campuses has somewhat paralleled the growth of peace studies programs. Peace education in this article refers to the training of teachers to teach their students about peace. Whereas originally peace education concerned itself with wars within an interstate system, more recently professors in colleges of education have been teaching teachers about conflict resolution, for giveness, violence prevention, and ecological sustainability. The focus of peace education at the beginning of the twenty-first century is more upon keeping peace in schools and teaching skills to students so they can thrive in violent neighborhoods.
Non-parametric learning to infer wireless relays, routes and traffic patterns from time series of spectrum activity

Non-parametric inference techniques are proposed to understand latent structure behind sequences of spectral activity indicators, i.e. packet start and stop times, of networked wireless transmitters. We aim to infer the latent network structure and characterize information flow between spectrally monitored nodes. The practical aspect of learning is to aid the reasoning of a cognitive network about its unknown and dynamic spectrum environment. We first segment the observed on-off time series into temporal segments of statistically discernible behavioral states. Each state segment has distinct emission statistics and a specific duration, learned by using a Bayesian non-parametric method, referred to as HDP-HSMM [1] in our prior work [2]. The end result is that new times series of state segments are derived from the observations of each nodes activity. We propose test statistics, loosely related to Granger-causality between per-node sequences of state segments, to trace the impact of one nodes traffic to another. We define extendable statistical models of causality in which not only state changes are considered as events, but also the nature of those changes, i.e. whether the new state has similar observation statistics in both nodes. Our approach is non-parametric as it does not require knowledge about underlying network protocols.
Highly Multiplexed Single-Cell RNA-seq for Defining Cell Population and Transcriptional Spaces

We describe a universal sample multiplexing method for single-cell RNA-seq in which cells are chemically labeled with identifying DNA oligonucleotides. Analysis of a 96-plex perturbation experiment revealed changes in cell population structure and transcriptional states that cannot be discerned from bulk measurements, establishing a cost effective means to survey cell populations from large experiments and clinical samples with the depth and resolution of single-cell RNA-seq.
Substrate Binding Site and the Role of the FLAP Loop in Candida rugosa Lipase, A Close Relative of Acetylcholinesterase

Candida rugosa lipase belongs to a large lipase/esterase family of evolutionarily related hydrolytic enzymes identified on the basis of their amino acid homology (Krejci et al., 1991; Gentry et al., 1991; Cygler et al., 1993). Other members of this family include acetyl- and butyrylcholinesterases, carboxylesterases, cholesterol esterases, etc. The catalytic apparatus of these enzymes is composed of a Ser-His-Glu/Asp triad. Apart from the hydrolytic enzymes there are also other proteins with domains that clearly belong to this family but are devoid of the hydrolytic activity, eg. neurotactin, thyroglobulin, etc. The amino acid identity within this family varies from ∼16%, for distantly related proteins, to 97% and a number of subfamilies are clearly distinguishable (Cygler et al., 1993). To date, the crystal structures of three of these proteins have been determined: Torpedo californica acetylcholinesterase (AChE, Sussman et al., 1991), Geotrichum candidum lipase (GCL, Schrag et al., 1991) and Candida rugosa lipase (CRL, Grochulski et al., 1993). These three enzymes display great similarities in their three-dimensional structures and provide prototypic models for other members of this large family. They belong to the α/β hydrolase fold superfamily (Ollis et al., 1992). The two lipases, which share ∼40% sequence identity, have also more similar structures. Approximately 90% of their Ca atoms superimpose with a root-mean-square (rms) deviation of 1.4A. Comparison of GCL and TcAChE (∼25% identity) shows that ∼75% of their Ca atoms can be superimposed with a 1.9A rms, including the catalytic apparatus composed of a Ser-His-Glu triad. Yet despite their significant structural similarity TcAChE and GCL/CRL hydrolyze very different substrates. While the lipases break down water insoluble triglycerides, the acetylcholinesterase hydrolyzes the water soluble neurotransmitter, acetylcholine.
Physiology of Testicular Function

The two principal functions of the testes are androgen production and spermatogenesis. The secretion, regulatory control, and action of testosterone are discussed first, followed by the control of spermatogenesis.
LabVIEW visualization for inductive sensors used in shaping control of a segmented reflector test bed

A large, segmented space telescope requires high precision and accuracy in its mirror shape to obtain clear images. In order for control of such complex structures to be achieved to high precision and accuracy, it is important for sensing equipment involved in shape control to be constantly checked for deviations from their required calibration. The Segmented Space Telescope Testbed at the Structures, Propulsion, and Control Engineering (SPACE) Laboratory at California State University, Los Angeles, utilizes segmented mirror panels and a network of 42 sensors to mimic a monolithic paraboloid mirror shape to high accuracy and precision. For such a high precision system, regular checking of sensor calibration is crucial to performance. This paper describes a LabVIEW based visualization subsystem that has been implemented and used for sensor calibration of the SPACE Testbed. The subsystem allows for linearity check for each sensor. In addition, the visualization subsystem provides a real-time means of system monitoring. The visualization also reduces the time to check all 42 sensors while at the same time improve the precision and accuracy of the measurements. By reducing the time required, it is easier to verify sensor linearity at regular interval.
A Wearable Magnet-Based System to Assess Activity and Joint Flexion in Humans and Large Animals

Functional outcomes, such as joint flexion and gait, are important indicators of efficacy in musculoskeletal research. Current technologies that objectively assess these parameters, including visual tracking systems and force plates, are challenging to deploy in long-term translational and clinical studies. To that end, we developed a wearable device that measures both physical activity and joint flexion using a single integrated sensor and magnet system, and hypothesized that it could evaluate post-operative functional recovery in an unsupervised setting. To demonstrate the feasibility of measuring joint flexion, we first compared knee motion from the wearable device to that acquired from a motion capture system to confirm that knee flexion measurements during normal human gait, predicted via changes in magnetic field strength, closely correlated with data acquired by motion capture. Using this system, we then monitored a porcine cohort after bilateral stifle arthrotomy to investigate longitudinal changes in physical activity and joint flexion. We found that unsupervised activity declined immediately after surgery, with a return to pre-operative activity occurring over a period of 2 weeks. By providing objective, individualized data on locomotion and joint function, this magnet-based system will facilitate the in vivo assessment of novel therapeutics in translational orthopaedic research.
MFCNET: End-to-End Approach for Change Detection in Images

Change detection is an important task in computer vision and video processing. Due to unimportant or nuisance forms of change, traditional methods require sophisticated image preprocessing and possibly manual interaction. In this work, we propose an end-to-end approach for change detection to identify temporal changes in multiple images. Our approach feeds a pair of images into a deep convolutional neural network combining the model of MatchNet [1] and the Fully Convolutional Network [2] modified to reduce the number of parameters. We train and evaluate the proposed approach using a subset of frames from the Change Detection challenge 2014 dataset (CDnet 2014). Experimental evaluation comparing the performance of the proposed approach with several known approaches shows that the proposed approach outperforms existing methods.
Optical Coherence Tomographic Imaging Using a Mode Locked Cr4+:Forsterite Laser Source

A fiber coupled KLM Cr4+:Forsterite laser spectrally broadened in a dispersion shifted fiber providing broad bandwidth light is used to enable high resolution biomedical imaging.
Hormones and sarcopenia

Abstract Sarcopenia is defined as the combination of low muscle mass and poor muscle function in the elderly. Validated screening tests such as the SARC-F questionnaire have been developed to easily screen for the disorder. The pathogenesis is multifactorial and includes both nonendocrine factors such as genetic predispositions, inflammatory cytokines, and mitochondrial defects and various endocrine causes of sarcopenia. Understanding the molecular biology of the muscle along with the endocrine causes of sarcopenia has led in part to our current treatment of sarcopenia (vitamin D supplementation) and is furthering research into future targets including selective androgen receptor modulators and others.
Molecular and cellular phenotypic differences distinguish murine syngeneic models from human tumors

Abstract The clinical success of immune checkpoint inhibitors that target cytotoxic T-lymphocyte associated protein 4 (CTLA4) and programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) or programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1) demonstrates that reactivation of the human immune system delivers durable responses for some patients and represents an exciting approach for cancer treatment. The combination of multiple immunotherapies as well as the combination of immunotherapy with targeted therapy is being pursued vigorously to increase the rate and extend the duration of response. Preclinical in vivo models for immuno-oncology (IO) typically require immunocompetent mice bearing murine syngeneic tumors. To facilitate translation of preclinical studies into human, we characterized the genomic, transcriptomic, and protein expression of a panel of mouse tumor cell lines grown in vitro culture as well as in vivo tumor samples. Our studies identified many genetic and cellular phenotypic differences that distinguish murine syngeneic models from human cancers. For example, only a small fraction of the somatic single nucleotide variants (SNVs) in mouse cell lines directly match SNVs from human actionable cancer genes. At the cellular level, some epithelial tumor models have a more mesenchymal phenotype with relatively low T-lymphocyte infiltration compared to the corresponding human cancers. Furthermore, in contrast to what has been reported for human tumors, we did not observe a correlation between neoantigen load and cytolytic activity in syngeneic models. Finally, the relative immunogenicity of syngeneic tumors does not typically resemble that of human tumors of the same tissue origin. CT26, a colon tumor model, had the highest immunogenicity and was the most responsive model to CTLA4 inhibitor treatment, by contrast to the relatively low immunogenicity and response rate to checkpoint inhibitor therapies in human colon cancers. These differences highlight limitations of syngeneic models for evaluating novel immune therapies and rationalize some of the challenges associated with translating preclinical findings to clinical studies.
Use of indocyanine green (ICG) augmented near-infrared fluorescence imaging in robotic radical resection of gallbladder adenocarcinomas

Gallbladder cancer remains a rare cancer with a poor prognosis. National guidelines recommend radical resection in the absence of metastatic disease. This often requires extensive dissection around the extrahepatic bile ducts. We report our experience of real-time near-infrared fluorescence imaging using indocyanine green during robotic radical resection of gallbladder adenocarcinomas. Ten patients with gallbladder adenocarcinoma underwent robotic radical resection entailing central hepatectomy (segments IV-B and V) with regional lymphadenectomy. Real-time NIRF imaging was performed using the da Vinci® Firefly system after intravenous administration of ICG 30 to 60 min preoperatively. Primary objective was to determine safety of this technique. Procedure was successfully completed in all patients. Seven patients (70%) had incidentally discovered gallbladder cancer after laparoscopic cholecystectomy and five patients had preoperatively known positive margins. Mean operative time was 173 min. Mean intraoperative blood loss was 88 mL (30–200 mL). Median number of lymph nodes retrieved was 5 (2–8). High ligation of cystic duct was performed close to the common bile duct (CBD) junction with the assist of NIRF and negative margins were achieved in all patients. No major complications (Grade III–IV) or mortality was seen at 30 days post-op. Results from our limited experience demonstrate procedural safety and beneficial use of NIRF using ICG during robotic radical resection of gallbladder adenocarcinomas. It may assist in attainment of negative cystic duct margin and lymphatic clearance around the biliary tree especially in complex re-explorative biliary surgery.
β-(Al,Ga)2O3 for High Power Applications — A Review on Material Growth and Device Fabrication

Gallium Oxide has attracted a great deal of attention for power electronics due to its large bandgap (∼4.8 eV) as well as availability of cost effective, large area, high quality substrates. In thi...
Biodistribution Studies of Chelated Ce-134/La-134 as Positron-Emitting Analogues of Alpha-Emitting Therapy Radionuclides

130 Objectives: Actinium-225 (t1/2 = 9.92 d, 5.7 MeV α) and thorium-227 (t1/2 = 18.72 d, 5.8 MeV α) are both candidates for Targeted Alpha Therapy (TAT) where these alpha-emitters are chemically coupled to targeting vectors in order to deliver high linear energy transfer (LET) radiation to diseased tissue, while sparing nearby healthy tissue [1]. In the past few decades, the imaging modality of Positron Emission Tomography (PET) has emerged which allows for the quantitative imaging of a biological model to assay the biodistribution of the candidate molecules in vivo. However, these alpha-emitters do not emit positrons, and thus, they do not produce a signal that can be detected by PET. Therefore, positron-emitting, surrogate radionuclides will have to be developed. These surrogate radionuclides will ideally have chemical properties that are like the alpha-emitters in question. The Ce-134/La-134 system (t1/2 = 75.9 h / 6.67 m, 2.7 MeV β+) was chosen as a candidate since its oxidization state can be stabilized to match the oxidation states of Ac and Th in physiological environments [2, 3, 4, 5]. Methods: In this study, a MicroPET scanner was used to assay the biodistribution of 134Ce(III) and 134Ce(IV) chelated to diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA) and hydroxypyridinone ligand 3,4,3-LI(1,2-HOPO) (HOPO), respectively [5, 6, 7, 8, 9]. These complexes are injected intravenously in female Swiss Webster Mice. For each complex, three groups of three mice each were injected, were euthanized at three different timepoints (10 minutes, 4 hours, 24 hours), and were subsequently imaged. An ex-vivo biodistribution study of these same mice was also performed for verification purposes. In addition, another ex-vivo biodistribution study was performed in which 225Ac(III)-DTPA and 227Th(IV)-HOPO were injected intravenously in female Swiss Webster Mice in order to demonstrate that both 134Ce(III)-DTPA and 134Ce(IV)-HOPO act as analogues to the before mention alpha-emitting molecules. Results: 134Ce(III)-DTPA was shown to be primarily concentrated in both the kidneys and liver while 134Ce(IV)-HOPO was shown to be primarily concentrated in the liver for the in-vivo biodistribution study. 134Ce(III)-DTPA was shown to be excreted primarily through the urine while 134Ce(IV)-HOPO was shown to be excreted primarily through the feces. These results are consistent with both ex-vivo biodistribution studies. In addition, both the in-vivo and the ex-vivo studies display the short biological lifetime of both 134Ce(III)-DTPA and 134Ce(IV)-HOPO. Conclusions: This data displays the utility of using the 134Ce/134La for in vivo surrogate PET imaging of 225Ac and 227Th complexes. These findings also display the short biological lifetime of both 134Ce(III)-DTPA and 134Ce(IV)-HOPO. This is ideal for imaging purposes to minimize the dose due to particulates.
Manuel Zapata Olivella, le muntu africain et la décolonisation des imaginaires et des épistémologies en Amérique Latine

This work has two objectives: the first one is to show the full relevance of the postcolonial/ (Afro) decolonized turn into the construction of a counter-epistemology of the colonized African cultural subject. In other words, for the colonized subject, such a counter-epistemology performs the function of decolonizing the imageries by a questioning of the coloniality of the Western epistemology and knowledge turned to a universal perspective. The second objective is that as it remains a few months to commemorate the birthday of the prolific and polygraph African- Colombian author Manuel Zapata Olivella (1920-2004) this article enables to put the writer in the place he deserves to be: the place of an African subject in the Americas, whose abundant cultural and thought production was influenced by the concept of African Muntu. By employing this African framework in his cultural production, Olivella unleashes the decolonization of the imageries and epistemologies. --- Original in French.
Comparison of Various Optical Sectioning Methods

The term confocal microscopy has been applied primarily to instruments using circular field stops (e.g., single pinholes or arrays of pinholes in the illumination and imaging systems). Other aperture shapes can of course be utilized, and the slit is an attractive alternative. In a number of circumstances, the slit aperture confocal system can have advantages over circular aperture systems.
A common human variant of GIPR improves systemic glucose homeostasis in a sexual dimorphic manner

Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP), an incretin hormone, has a role in controlling postprandial metabolic tone. A GIP receptor (GIPR) variant (Q354, rs1800437) is associated with enhanced glucose tolerance and a lower BMI. To isolate the contribution of GIPR in metabolic control, we generated a mouse model of the GIPR-Q354 variant. Islets isolated from both male and female GIPR-Q variant mice have an enhanced glucose sensitivity and enhanced GIP response. In whole animal studies only female GIPR-Q variant mice are more glucose tolerant, whereas males have normal glucose tolerance but an enhanced sensitivity to GIP. In both sexes postprandial GIP levels are reduced, revealing feedback between the sensitivity of GIP target tissues and the secretion of GIP from intestinal endocrine cells. In line with the association of the variant with reduced BMI, GIPR-Q350 mice are resistant to diet-induced obesity. GIPR, a GPCR, is coupled to elevated cAMP. Prior studies have established altered post-activation traffic of the GIPR-Q variant without a change in affinity for GIP or in cAMP production. Consequently, our data link altered intracellular traffic of the GIPR-Q variant with GIP metabolic control of metabolism. Incretin hormone action is targeted in treatment of insulin-resistance, and our findings support pharmacologic targeting the GIPR to mimic the altered trafficking of the GIPR-Q variant as a potential strategy to enhance GIP metabolic effects in treatment of insulin resistance.
Constraining oxygen consumption by nitrite oxidation in oceanic oxygen minimum zones

Abstract Oceanic oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) occur where microorganisms deplete dissolved oxygen (DO) to exceptionally low levels, and are globally significant sites of biogeochemical cycling. Amid the intense competition for DO and other substrates occurring in these metabolically challenging environments, aerobic nitrite oxidation may consume significant amounts of DO, but this has not been examined comprehensively. Using parallel measurements of oxygen consumption rates and 15N-nitrite oxidation rates applied to water column profiles and to oxygen manipulation experiments, we show that nitrite oxidation is a substantial sink for DO in the ocean’s largest OMZ. The contribution of nitrite oxidation to overall DO consumption increased at low DO concentrations, tracking gradients and variations within and across multiple stations in the eastern tropical North Pacific Ocean. Oxygen manipulation experiments produced highly consistent effects, with nitrite oxidation responsible for progressively more DO consumption (up to 97%) as DO was experimentally decreased. Natural abundance stable isotope data indicated coupling of nitrite oxidation and nitrate reduction, while 16S rRNA and metagenome sequencing revealed that Nitrospina ecotypes possessing high-affinity cytochrome oxidase genes were prevalent and active within the OMZ. Collectively, our results demonstrate that nitrite oxidation consumes significant amounts of DO, and that this proportion increases as DO declines—indicating that nitrite oxidation is critically important to the formation and maintenance of OMZs. Significance Oceanic oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) are naturally-occuring regions of low oxygen found in select areas of the ocean. Lack of dissolved oxygen has important implications for both the distribution of marine organisms and global biogeochemical cycles, yet we have a limited understanding of how oxygen is depleted to such low levels. Here we comprehensively quantify the contribution of nitrite oxidation to oxygen depletion in the ocean’s largest OMZ. We observed highly consistent patterns across depth profiles, and in multiple experiments where we manipulated oxygen concentrations, finding that nitrite oxidation consumes progressively more oxygen at lower oxygen concentrations. Our findings demonstrate that nitrite oxidation plays a pivotal role in exhausting oxygen to the low levels found in OMZs.
The Law School Library Director of the Twenty-First Century: What Deans Think

At the 2003 Annual Meeting of the Association of American Law Schools, the Section on Law Libraries sponsored a program in which several law school deans discussed the future role of the academic law library director. Ms. Roehrenbeck�s introduction to the issues confronted during the program is followed by edited remarks from the program�s speakers.
Freaks and Magic: The Freakification of Magical Creatures in Harry Potter

By comparing the magical creatures within Harry Potter to the nineteenth-century freak show, the mistreatment and lack of concern for the basic rights of centaurs, giants, and house-elves are put into perspective due to the now-uneasy feeling many acquire when thinking of the exhibition of people as “freaks.”