cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
“Women Make That World Go ‘Round”: the Role of Women’s Sexual Capital in the Gendered Scaffolding of Street Life

While all girls and women experience sexualization, these experiences differ based on a range of individual-level factors to structural contexts. For marginalized populations of women, such as those on the streets, sexualization can take on a particularly pivotal role. Using in-depth interviews with formerly street-involved women, the study explores the processes through which the street context reified the participants’ dependence on their “sexual capital” in order to survive. While they did exercise some agency over their bodies, the ability to make decisions in this regard dissipated as they became more tethered to street life. Dependence on sexual capital preserved street dynamics that disempowered and damaged them vis-a-vis men, a vulnerable status which effectively sustained the arrangement that harmed them. Control over participants’ sexual capital was usurped by others on the streets as they were traded, sold, and victimized by violence. Ultimately, participants’ experiences suggest that sexual capital is central to the gendered scaffolding upon which the street context is constructed.
Implementation and clinical use of portal imaging.

Although introduced recently, on-line electronic portal imaging devices (EPIDs) are beginning to have an impact on radiation therapy, primarily in geometric verification of treatment fields. Using an EPID, a digital electronic portal image (EPI) can be obtained within a few seconds and be available for immediate review prior to completion of treatment. With the advent of more sophisticated techniques, such as conformal therapy and three-dimensional (3D) localization and treatment planning using computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), patient setup verification is perhaps the weak link in the planning and treatment process. Accuracy and precision of patient positioning is crucial to ensure delivery of the maximum dose to the target volume while avoiding normal and critical structures. Electronic portal imaging (EPIG) has the potential to strengthen that link at a lower cost than could be achieved with film. While it may not be possible to totally eliminate setup errors, effective use of an EPID will minimize both random and systematic errors, which may result in the reduction of the dose to the target volume and/or an overdose to normal critical structures.
Spin-1 microcondensate in a magnetic field

We study a spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensate small enough to be treated as a single magnetic domain: a system that we term a microcondensate. Because all particles occupy a single spatial mode, this quantum many-body system has a well-defined classical limit consisting of three degrees of freedom, corresponding to the three macroscopically occupied spin states. We study both the classical limit and its quantization, finding an integrable system in both cases. Depending on the sign of the ratio of the spin interaction energy and the quadratic Zeeman energy, the classical limit displays either a separatrix in phase space or Hamiltonian monodromy corresponding to nontrivial phase space topology. We discuss the quantum signatures of these classical phenomena using semiclassical quantization as well as an exact solution using the Bethe ansatz.
7.05 – Metabolic Balance between Ecosystem Production and Consumption

This chapter reviews research on ecosystem metabolism in coastal environments, focusing on the history of methods development, spatial/temporal variations in rates, controlling factors, and application of these methods to address diverse scientific questions. Essential concepts and widely used terms are defined and explained. The wide range of ecosystem metabolism methods are organized conceptually, and each approach is described with the discussion of important strengths and limitations. Published scientific literature and public-access data are used to review the collective knowledge regarding physical (light, temperature, depth, and flushing) and chemical (inputs of nutrients and organic matter) factors that regulate the ecosystem rates of apparent daytime production ( P a ), nighttime (or dark) respiration ( R n ), gross production ( P g ), and net ecosystem production ( P n ). Given these controlling factors, we describe spatial and temporal patterns and gradients in ecosystem metabolism that have been reported for different estuaries and coastal systems, including seasonal, daily, and annual scale cycles as well as metabolic trends across the land–sea gradient. We discuss a range of representative examples of how ecosystem metabolism measurements have been applied to address important research questions. These applications include comparative analysis of trophic status in terms of magnitude and balance of metabolic rates and studies of relationships between metabolic balance (e.g., P n or P a / R n ) and physical transport of organic carbon and inorganic nutrients. Also included are studies that quantify the relative contributions of specific biomes, habitats, or regions to large-scale integrated rates of ecosystem metabolism. Further review illustrates how these rates have been used to understand controls and relative contributions of physical and biological processes to O 2 depletion and coastal hypoxia. This chapter also focuses on the inherent linkage between ecosystem metabolism and quantitative analysis of coastal food webs, where P a , R n , and P n measurements provide robust constraints on trophic flux network models and facilitate a deeper understanding of the relationships between trophic structure and integrated metabolic rates. This chapter also illustrates how ecosystem metabolism responds to a spectrum of anthropogenic perturbations, including inputs of nutrients, labile organics, and toxic contaminants, as well as field observations relating P n to climate-linked watershed runoff and shifts in coastal circulation. The final synthesis describes broad patterns of metabolic balance in coastal ecosystems as well as how these change in response to external perturbations including climate change. Priority topics for future research directions are identified, including new methods to quantify measurement errors and computation errors that would facilitate rigorous extrapolation from individual observations to larger scales as well as the partitioning of large-scale calculations into contributions from biotic subsystem components.
Imbalanced Collusive Security Games

Colluding adversaries is a crucial challenge for defenders in many real-world applications. Previous literature has provided Collusive Security Games (COSG) to model colluding adversaries, and provided models and algorithms to generate defender strategies to counter colluding adversaries, often by devising strategies that inhibit collusion [6]. Unfortunately, this previous work focused exclusively on situations with perfectly matched adversaries, i.e., where their rewards were symmetrically distributed. In the real world, however, defenders often face adversaries where their rewards are asymmetrically distributed. Such inherent asymmetry raises a question as to whether human adversaries would attempt to collude in such situations, and whether defender strategies to counter such collusion should focus on inhibiting collusion. To address these open questions, this paper: (i) explores and theoretically analyzes Imbalanced Collusive Security Games (ICOSG) where defenders face adversaries with asymmetrically distributed rewards; (ii) conducts extensive experiments of three different adversary models involving 1800 real human subjects and (iii) derives novel analysis of the reason behind why bounded rational attackers models outperform perfectly rational attackers models. The key principle discovered as the result of our experiments is that: careful modeling of human bounded rationality reveals a key difference (when compared to a model using perfect rationality) in defender strategies for handling colluding adversaries which face symmetric vs asymmetric rewards. Whereas a model based on perfect rationality always attempts to break collusion among adversaries, a bounded rationality model acknowledges the inherent difficulty of breaking such collusion in symmetric situations and focuses only on breaking collusion in asymmetric situation, and only on damage control from collusion in the symmetric situation.
MopA, the Mn Oxidizing Protein From Erythrobacter sp. SD-21, Requires Heme and NAD+ for Mn(II) Oxidation.

Bacterial manganese (Mn) oxidation is catalyzed by a diverse group of microbes and can affect the fate of other elements in the environment. Yet, we understand little about the enzymes that catalyze this reaction. The Mn oxidizing protein MopA, from Erythrobacter sp. strain SD-21, is a heme peroxidase capable of Mn(II) oxidation. Unlike Mn oxidizing multicopper oxidase enzymes, an understanding of MopA is very limited. Sequence analysis indicates that MopA contains an N-terminal heme peroxidase domain and a C- terminal calcium binding domain. Heterologous expression and nickel affinity chromatography (NAC) purification of the N-terminal peroxidase domain (MopA-hp) from Erythrobacter sp. strain SD-21 led to partial purification. MopA-hp is a heme binding protein that requires heme, NAD+, and calcium (Ca2+) for activity. Mn oxidation is also stimulated by the presence of pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ). MopA-hp has a KM for Mn(II) of 154 ± 46 μM and kcat= 1.6 min-1. Although oxygen requiring MopA-hp is homologous to peroxidases based on sequence, addition of hydrogen peroxide and hydrogen peroxide scavengers had little effect on Mn oxidation, suggesting this is not the oxidizing agent. These studies provide insight into the mechanism by which MopA oxidizes Mn.
Temporal and thermal evolutions of surface Sr-segregation in pristine and atomic layer deposition modified La0.6Sr0.4CoO3−δ epitaxial films

The bulk-to-surface Sr segregation can seriously compromise the stability of oxygen electrocatalysis in La1−xSrxCoO3−δ and limit its practical applications such as in solid oxide fuel cells. Here we show via in situ ambient pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (APXPS) that the surface Sr-segregation is a kinetically fast process and the equilibrium surface Sr-concentration follows Arrhenius law from 250 to 520 °C at a fixed pO2 = 1 × 10−3 atm. We also show that application of a nanoscaled, atomic layer deposition (ALD) derived ZrO2 overcoat can effectively suppress the Sr-segregation by reducing the surface concentration of oxygen vacancies. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) study further confirms that the ALD-ZrO2-coated LSCo epitaxial film exhibits a much lower and more stable polarization resistance than the uncoated one at 550 °C for >300 hours, suggesting that Sr-segregation is the source of the higher resistance.
Cochlear Synaptopathy Changes Sound-Evoked Activity Without Changing Spontaneous Discharge in the Mouse Inferior Colliculus

Tinnitus and hyperacusis are life-disrupting perceptual abnormalities that are often preceded by acoustic overexposure. Animal models of overexposure have suggested a link between these phenomena and neural hyperactivity, i.e., elevated spontaneous rates (SRs) and sound-evoked responses. Prior work has focused on changes in central auditory responses, with less attention paid to the exact nature of the associated cochlear damage. The demonstration that acoustic overexposure can cause cochlear neuropathy without permanent threshold elevation suggests cochlear neuropathy per se may be a key elicitor of neural hyperactivity. We addressed this hypothesis by recording responses in the mouse inferior colliculus (IC) following a bilateral, neuropathic noise exposure. One to three weeks post-exposure, mean SRs were unchanged in mice recorded while awake, or under anesthesia. SRs were also unaffected by more intense, or unilateral exposures. These results suggest that neither neuropathy nor hair cell loss are sufficient to raise SRs in the IC, at least in 7-week-old mice, 1-3 weeks post exposure. However, it is not clear whether our mice had tinnitus. Tone-evoked rate-level functions at the CF were steeper following exposure, specifically in the region of maximal neuropathy. Furthermore, suppression driven by off-CF tones and by ipsilateral noise were reduced. Both changes were especially pronounced in neurons of awake mice. This neural hypersensitivity may manifest as behavioral hypersensitivity to sound - prior work reports that this same exposure causes elevated acoustic startle. Together, these results indicate that neuropathy may initiate a compensatory response in the central auditory system leading to the genesis of hyperacusis.
Magnetic Field Dependence of Non-Reciprocal Propagation of Millimeter-Waves Through Arrays of Ferromagnetic Nanowires

Experimental investigations of Faraday rotation in nickel nanowires embedded in track etched polycarbonate membranes have been performed at 61.25 GHz. The nanowires were grown in nanoporous polymer templates using a three electrode electrodeposition technique. Static magnetic field dependence on the Faraday rotation was studied in these experiments. A differential Verdet constant of $\pmb{26.3}\times \pmb{10}^{3}\mathbf{rad} \ \mathbf{T}^{-1}\mathbf{m}^{-1}$ was extracted from these measurements. Magnetic hysteresis experiments were also performed.
Papillary thyroid carcinoma with bilateral axillary lymph node involvement: a case report outlining hypothesis for locoregional spread and therapeutic implications

Axillary lymph node involvement (ALNI) in well differentiated papillary thyroid carcinoma (WDPTC) is a rare sequela of disease presentation. We report a case of PTC with extensive cervical lymph node involvement, local extension to the skin of the neck and bilateral ALNI without evidence of distant disease. We posit that ALNI represents local extension of disease rather than distant metastasis. Therefore, in the absence of distant spread, ALNI should result in surgical intervention. This optimizes removal of all bulky disease and increases effectiveness of radioactive iodine (RAI) therapy. Future research centered on genomics should focus on ascertaining the behavior and prognosis of such cases, especially when anatomic spread is discordant with biologic behavior.
‘Do they really do that in Korea?’: multicultural learning through Hallyu media

As new media spaces expand opportunities for engagement with geographically distant people and places, this article examines how communication practices within such spaces may construct cultural di...
Outcomes and patterns of failures after hypofractionated radiation therapy for intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma.

e15609Background: Locally advanced unresectable intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (IHCC) remains incurable. Prior data has shown the effectiveness of hypofractionated radiation therapy (HRT) with bio...
Distributed Resources Shift Paradigms on Power System Design, Planning, and Operation: An Application of the GAP Model

Power systems have evolved following a century-old paradigm of planning and operating a grid based on large central generation plants connected to load centers through a transmission grid and distribution lines with radial flows. This paradigm is being challenged by the development and diffusion of modular generation and storage technologies. We use a novel approach to assess the sequencing and pacing of centralized, distributed, and off-grid electrification strategies by developing and employing the grid and access planning (GAP) model. GAP is a capacity expansion model to jointly assess operation and investment in utility-scale generation, transmission, distribution, and demand-side resources. This paper conceptually studies the investment and operation decisions for a power system with and without distributed resources. Contrary to the current practice, we find hybrid systems that pair grid connections with distributed energy resources (DERs) are the preferred mode of electricity supply for greenfield expansion under conservative reductions in photovoltaic panel (PV) and energy storage prices. We also find that when distributed PV and storage are employed in power system expansion, there are savings of 15%–20% mostly in capital deferment and reduced diesel use. Results show that enhanced financing mechanisms for DER PV and storage could enable 50%–60% of additional deployment and save 15 $/MWh in system costs. These results have important implications to reform current utility business models in developed power systems and to guide the development of electrification strategies in underdeveloped grids.
AMB2018-04: Benchmark Physical Property Measurements for Powder Bed Fusion Additive Manufacturing of Polyamide 12

Laser sintering (LS) of polyamide 12 (PA12) is increasingly being adopted for industrial production of end-use parts, yet the complexity of this process coupled with the lack of organized, rigorous, publicly available process-structure-physical property datasets exposes manufacturers and customers to risks of unacceptably poor part quality and high costs. Although an extensive scientific literature has been developed to address some of these concerns, results are distributed among numerous reports based on different machines, materials, process parameters, and users. In this study, a single commercially important LS PA12 feedstock has been processed along four build dimensions of a modern production LS machine, characterized by a wide range of physical techniques, and compared to the same material formed by conventional melt processing. Results are discussed in the context of the literature, offering novel insights including distributions of particle size and shape, localization of semicrystalline phase changes due to LS processing, effect of chemical aging on melt viscosity, porosity orientation relative to LS build axes, and microstructural effects on tensile properties and failure mechanisms. The resulting datasets will be made publicly available to modelers and practitioners for the purpose of improving certifiability and repeatability of end-use parts manufactured by LS.
Leveraging Change Intents for Characterizing and Identifying Large-Review-Effort Changes

Code changes to software occur due to various reasons such as bug fixing, new feature addition, and code refactoring. In most existing studies, the intent of the change is rarely leveraged to provide more specific, context aware analysis. In this paper, we present the first study to leverage change intent to characterize and identify Large-Review-Effort (LRE) changes regarding review effort---changes with large review effort. Specifically, we first propose a feedback-driven and heuristics-based approach to obtain change intents. We then characterize the changes regarding review effort by using various features extracted from change metadata and the change intents. We further explore the feasibility of automatically classifying LRE changes. We conduct our study on a large-scale project from Microsoft and three large-scale open source projects, i.e., Qt, Android, and OpenStack. Our results show that, (i) code changes with some intents are more likely to be LRE changes, (ii) machine learning based prediction models can efficiently help identify LRE changes, and (iii) prediction models built for code changes with some intents achieve better performance than prediction models without considering the change intent, the improvement in AUC can be up to 19 percentage points and is 7.4 percentage points on average. The tool developed in this study has already been used in Microsoft to provide the review effort and intent information of changes for reviewers to accelerate the review process.
Life as Reading: Razumov’s Interpretative Situation in Under Western Eyes

This essay analyzes the interpretative situation of Razumov, the main hero of Conrad’s novel Under Western Eyes (1910). Challenged by a fellow student named Victor Haldin, Razumov must navigate through his internal experiences (past, present, and those anticipated by him in the future), as well as through external stimuli—which he has little experience to understand fully—in order to arrive at morally meaningful decisions. Communicative aspects of Razumov’s encounters, first with Haldin, then with his sister Natalie, are discussed in greater detail; particularly Razumov’s use of speech and silence, first to conceal but ultimately to reveal the truth.
Given to the Goddess: South Indian Devadasis and the Sexuality of Religion

When parents dedicate a child to the goddess Yellamma, they give the child (usually a girl, but sometimes a boy) in marriage to the goddess; the child becomes a devadasi, a jogati, a jogamma. Devad...
A Redesigned Undergraduate Biochemistry Lab

The need for a significant improvement in undergraduate STEM education has been broadly recognized. The primary purposes of this project are to (1) improve understanding of the process of training ...
On double-exponential stress dependence of strain rates in dislocation-mediated plasticity

Stress and temperature dependence of strain rates in dislocation-mediated plasticity is usually associated with the depinning process. This is an escape-from-the-well process, thus such dependence ...
Microchemical engineering : the physics and chemistry of the microparticle

Publisher Summary There are numerous applications to chemical engineering research currently under study in several laboratories in the United States and Europe. This chapter identifies areas for further research in the field of microchemical engineering. The chapter reviews the chemistry and physics of microparticles and their characterization that is less comprehensive, for the very large range of masses that can be studied with the electrodynamic balance makes it possible to explore the spectroscopy of atomic ions. There are several applications on the physics and chemistry of the micro particle. One application the generation of fine particles and their controlled transport to a surface via thermophoresis. Another application of microparticle technology is the production of polymeric microspheres, which are usually produced by emulsion polymerization techniques. A major advantage in the study of microspherical systems is the power of light-scattering measurements together with theoretical interpretation of such data to yield highly precise determination of size, refractive index, molecular bond information, and composition. Using electrodynamic trapping and laser light scattering, evaporation and condensation rates for microdroplets are readily measured. There has been much less work done in the area of microparticle chemistry compared with studies of the physics of small particles, but this is an area of considerable interest to chemical engineers. This chapter focuses on physical and chemical reactions to explain microchemical phenomena.
Effect of Cannabinoids on Electroencephalography of a Child with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome.

Cannabinoids have been found to be effective in controlling seizures and the highly purified form of cannabinoid derived for Cannabis sativa. Cannabidiol (CBD) is now approved for Lennox–Gastaut syndrome (LGS) and Dravet syndrome. CBD was used in a 9-year-old boy with LGS (unknown etiology) with very good results. The electroencephalography (EEG) response was very dramatic with near normalization of EEG background and complete control of seizures. The effect of CBD on EEG with such an improvement has not been described previously. Also, this adds to evidence that early intervention in LGS with CBD might be more helpful and improve outcomes.
Multifragmentation and the phase transition: A systematic study of the multifragmentation of 1A GeV Au, La and Kr

A systematic analysis of the multifragmentation (MF) in fully reconstructed events from 1A GeV Au, La and Kr collisions with C has been performed. Detailed comparisons of the various fragment properties are presented as a function of excitation energy, E*th. The charged particle multiplicity from MF stage shows a saturation beyond E*th ∼ 8 MeV/nucleon for Kr. The universal behavior of intermediate mass fragment yields and of the size of the largest fragment is observed only for Au and La when scaled with size of the system. The Kr data are found to lack this property. Moments of the fragment size distribution show that the Kr MF is different than the MF of Au and La. A power law behavior is observed for Au and La with exponent τ>2, while for Kr τ<2. The results are compared with the statistical multifragmentation model (SMM). A single value of all the parameters of the model fits the data for all the three systems. The breakup of Au and La is consistent with a continuous phase transition. The data indicate that both E*th and the isotope ratio temperature THc-DT decrease with increase in system size at the critical point. The breakup temperature obtained from SMM also shows the same trend as seen in data. This trend is attributed primarily to the increasing Coulomb energy with finite size effects playing a smaller role. The percolation and Ising model studies for finite size neutral matter show behavior which is opposite to the one seen in the present work.
Spatial Clustering of Suicides and Neighborhood Determinants in North Carolina, 2000 to 2017

Few studies in the Southeastern U.S. have examined county-level spatial patterning in suicide clusters, and no studies have examined clustering at the census block group. The objective of this retrospective ecological study is to identify high-risk suicide clusters and characterize the community-level factors associated with suicides inside and outside spatial clusters. We used the discrete Poisson SatScan statistic to identify spatial clusters in suicide for North Carolina, 2000–2017. A suicide cluster was defined as a statistically significant cluster of suicide events. Community-level determinants were obtained from the American Community Survey, and logistic regression models were used to examine the association between community-level determinants and suicide clusters. A total of 12 statistically significant high-risk spatial clusters were identified. Clusters were also identified for specific age-demographics, including adolescents ( ). The risk ratios of suicide varied from 1.27 to 2.05 in high-risk clusters, and spatial clustering was positively associated with being male or residence in a rural area. Multivariable logistic regression found strong associations with income, population change, and educational attainment. Our results highlight the significant geographic heterogeneity in suicide across North Carolina and the need for more research that identifies localized suicide clusters for targeted public health interventions.
Effect of Exoskeletal-Assisted Walking on Soft Tissue Body Composition in Persons With Spinal Cord Injury.

Abstract Objective To determine the effect of overground walking using a powered exoskeleton on soft tissue body composition in persons with spinal cord injury (SCI). Design A prospective, single group observational pilot study. Setting Medical center. Participants Persons (N=8) with chronic (>6mo) SCI between 18 and 65 years old who weighed less than 100 kg. Interventions Overground ambulation training using a powered exoskeleton (ReWalk) for 40 sessions, with each session lasting up to 2 hours, with participants training 3 times per week. Main Outcome Measure(s) Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) was used to measure lean mass (LM) and fat mass (FM) from the whole body, arms, legs and trunk. DXA was also used to assess visceral adipose tissue (VAT). Walking performance was measured by 6-minute walk test. Results Participants significantly lost total body FM (−1.8±1.2kg, P=.004) with the loss of adiposity distributed over several regional sites. Six of the 8 participants lost VAT, with the average loss in VAT trending toward significance (−0.141kg, P=.06). LM for the group was not significantly changed. Conclusions Sustained and weekly use of powered exoskeletons in persons with SCI has the potential to reduce FM with inferred improvements in health.
Convertible bond arbitrage, liquidity externalities, and stock prices☆

Abstract In the context of convertible bond issuance, we examine the impact of arbitrage activity on underlying equity markets. In particular, we use changes in equity short interest following convertible bond issuance to identify convertible bond arbitrage activity and analyze its impact on stock market liquidity and prices for the period 1993 to 2006. There is considerable evidence of arbitrage-induced short selling resulting from issuance. Moreover, we find strong evidence that this activity is systematically related to liquidity improvements in the stock. These results are robust to controlling for the potential endogeneity of arbitrage activity.
Readability of Participant Informed Consent Forms and Informational Documents: From Phase 3 COVID-19 Vaccine Clinical Trials in the United States.

Abstract Objective To assess the readability of the informed consent forms from the phase 3 COVID-19 vaccine trials conducted in the United States. Patients and Methods English consent forms were used for patients in phase 3 COVID-19 vaccine clinical trials. Consent forms were obtained in October 2020. Using Microsoft Word tools, we analyzed the readability (ie, the ease of reading) of written consent forms and informational documents from phase 3 COVID-19 vaccine clinical trials in the United States from the following manufacturers: AstraZeneca, Moderna, Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, and Novavax. Results Owing to low readability and several format factors, this study determined that none of the consent forms or informational documents from the recent phase 3 COVID-19 vaccine clinical trials conducted in the United States met readability standards at the recommended 7th grade readability level for the average vaccine research volunteer in any readability category. The average English-speaking vaccine trial volunteer would have great difficulty comprehending the information provided in the consent forms and informational documents. To ensure that study subjects receive and fully comprehend information regarding a clinical study and can provide reliable consent, greater attention should be given to the development and use of simplified consent forms, multimedia formatting, personal discussion, and comprehension assessments.
CODEC enables 'single duplex' sequencing

Detecting mutations as rare as a single molecule is crucial in many fields such as cancer diagnostics and aging research but remains challenging. Third generation sequencers can read a double-stranded DNA molecule (a 9single duplex9) in whole to identify true mutations on both strands apart from false mutations on either strand but with limited accuracy and throughput. Although next generation sequencing (NGS) can track dissociated strands with Duplex Sequencing, the need to sequence each strand independently severely diminishes its throughput. Here, we developed a hybrid method called Concatenating Original Duplex for Error Correction (CODEC) that combines the massively parallel nature of NGS with the single-molecule capability of third generation sequencing. CODEC physically links both strands to enable NGS to sequence a single duplex with a single read pair. By comparing CODEC and Duplex Sequencing, we showed that CODEC achieved a similar error rate (10-6) with 100 times fewer reads and conferred 9single duplex9 resolution to most major NGS workflows.
PD-1 checkpoint blockade activates germinal center follicular T cell programs that disrupt type 2 isotype-specific antibody homeostasis

ABSTRACT Multiple CD4 T cell dependent tolerance mechanisms control adaptive B cell immunity to environmental antigens. We recently demonstrated a PD-1 checkpoint within steady-state splenic germinal centers (GC) that constrains the maturation of type 2 IgG1 isotype-specific antibody homeostasis. Here, we utilized single cell-indexed custom RNA-sequencing to probe the follicular T cell mechanisms directly targeted by acute PD-1 blockade. We find a pre-existing subset of follicular helper T (TFH) cells that express type 2 immune response properties (TFH2) with exaggerated pathways of TCR activation, cytokine signaling, and enhanced cell-cell contact upon acute PD-1 blockade. This selective amplification of the TFH2 program significantly increases predicted molecular connections to type 2 IgG1 GC B cells that dominate limited changes in GC localized follicular regulatory T (GC TFR) cell programs. These studies demonstrate how type 2 isotype-specific adaptive B cell tolerance is selectively disrupted by acute PD-1 blockade to reveal the modular regulatory mechanisms that control splenic GC dynamics at homeostasis. One Sentence Summary Acute PD-1 blockade alters the regulatory dynamic of the steady state germinal center to drive the maturation of IgG1 GC B cells towards PC differentiation in a process mediated by type 2 like TFH effector molecules. HIGHLIGHTS -Acute PD-1 blockade enhances the steady state splenic TFH program -PD-1 blockade selectively exaggerates a Type 2 like TFH module -GC TFR cells are minimally impacted by blockade -PD-1 restrains predicted TFH2 functional contacts with IgG1 GC B Cells
Stable analogs of 13‑hydroxy-9,10-trans-epoxy-(11E)-octadecenoate (13,9-HEL), an oxidized derivative of linoleic acid implicated in the epidermal skin barrier

Hydroxy-epoxy- and trihydroxy derivatives of linoleic acid are proposed to play an essential function in formation of the mammalian skin permeability barrier, which could account for the essential nature of its precursor, linoleic acid. Recent literature suggests that a specific oxidized enone derivative of LA esterified in ceramides facilitates binding to proteins, potentially serving a structural role in formation of the epidermal skin barrier. However, it is still to be established if other linoleic acid derivatives are also required for skin barrier formation, and whether the essential role is performed exclusively by an esterified, structural lipid or as an unesterified, labile signaling lipid, or by some combination of these derivatives. Progress in this domain is limited by lack of availability of hydroxy‑epoxy-and trihydroxy- and octadecenoate derivatives of linoleic acid and related compounds, and challenges in maintaining them in the unesterified lipid pool. Here we describe methods for the total synthesis of hydroxy‑epoxy-octadecenoate derivatives of linoleic acid (HEL1), and stable analogs that are designed to be resistant to inactivation by: (a) acylation/esterification (thus trapping these lipids in the free acid pool), (b) dehydrogenation, and (c) analogs combining both modifications. We further provide a total synthesis of corresponding hydroxy‑epoxy- derivatives of sebaleic acid (a regioisomer of linoleic acid present in skin), and of small molecule scaffolds containing the allylic and non-allylic epoxide 7-carbon substructures shared by both families of hydroxy‑epoxy-and trihydroxy- octadecenoates. Finally, we demonstrate that 2,2-dimethyl analogs of hydroxy‑epoxy-and trihydroxy- octadecenoates are resistant to esterification with an in vitro assay and thus provide a novel template for stabilizing labile, bioactive lipids as free acids by preventing acylation/esterification.
Defining a Country's 'Fair Share' of Taxes

The international tax regime is facing a defining moment. As stories of multinational companies expatriating and shifting income around the world with seeming impunity continue to emerge, the question of how to divide the international tax base among the countries of the world increasingly draws attention from policy-makers and academics. To date, however, the debate has tended to devolve into one over the two traditional tools used to divide worldwide tax base — transfer pricing and formulary apportionment. This Article demonstrates that such focus is misplaced on the instruments of dividing the worldwide tax base rather than on first principles. Instead, this Article will adopt the first principle of maximizing the efficiency of the worldwide tax regime under two key, but realistic, assumptions: first, that the presence of multiple states in the world is efficient and, second, that there is a declining marginal utility to public goods. Under these assumptions, dividing worldwide tax base efficiently requires balancing the goals of maximizing the neutrality of tax laws and the provision of public goods across all countries.Based on this result, this Article explains how the modern debate has inappropriately focused on how to capture tax base or prevent corporations from shifting income across jurisdictions rather than how to build a new international tax regime for the modern international order. The Article then demonstrates that the traditional approaches to international tax will be inefficient under the stated assumptions. Instead, this Article will propose a hybrid regime in which each country is entitled to tax a portion of worldwide tax base based on that country’s amenities and then the relevant countries will divide the remaining common tax base among themselves so as to maximize the return to worldwide public goods. By taking into account both capital flows and public goods provisions in this manner, the efficiency of the international tax regime can truly be maximized.
Predictors of 30-day readmission in patients hospitalized with decompensated heart failure.

Background Heart failure (HF) is the leading cause of hospitalizations and readmissions in the United States. Approximately one-third of patients admitted for HF are readmitted within 3 months; however, there are few markers that can identify those at highest risk for readmission. The purpose of this study was to identify clinical and laboratory markers associated with hospital readmission in decompensated HF. Hypothesis Clinical and laboratory markers are associated with readmission rates in decompensated HF. Methods Clinical and laboratory data from 412 patients admitted with HF were analyzed using a multivariable logistic regression analysis to find predictors of HF readmission by 30 days. Results HF readmission rates at 30 days were lowest in those with at least 2 of the following discharge criteria: net fluid reduction >1.3 L (odds ratio [OR]: 0.27, P = 0.019), serum sodium level >135 (OR: 0.46, P = 0.034), and N-terminal brain natriuretic peptide level reduction >23% (OR: 0.11, P = 0.048). In multivariate analysis, those patients meeting ≥2 criteria had a very low risk of 30-day readmission (OR: 0.10, 95% confidence interval: 0.01-0.68, P = 0.019) compared to patients who failed to meet 2 criteria. Conclusions A negative fluid balance, normal serum sodium, and net reduction in N-terminal brain natriuretic peptide level during hospitalization may be important indices to target to help reduce the likelihood of HF readmission within 30 days.
Nanoengineered Materials for Thermoelectric Energy Conversion

In this chapter we review recent advances in nanoengineered materials for thermoelectric energy conversion. We start by a brief overview of the fundamental interactions between heat and electricity, i.e., thermoelectric effects. A key requirement to improve the energy conversion efficiency is to increase the Seebeck coefficient (S) and the electrical conductivity (σ ), while reducing the thermal conductivity (κ). Nanostructures make it possible to modify the fundamental trade-offs between the bulk material properties through the changes in the density of states and interface effects on the electron and phonon transport. We will review recent experimental and theoretical results on superlattice and quantum dot thermoelectrics, nanowires, thin-film microrefrigerators, and solid-state thermionic power generation devices. In the latter case, the latest experimental results for semimetal rare-earth nanoparticles in a III–V semiconductor matrix as well as nitride metal/semiconductor multilayers will be discussed. We will briefly describe recent developments in nonlinear thermoelectrics, as well as electrically pumped optical refrigeration and graded thermoelectric materials. It is important to note that, while the material thermoelectric figure of merit (Z = S2σ /κ ) is a key parameter to optimize, one has to consider the whole system in an energy conversion application, and system optimization sometimes places other constraints on the materials.We will also review challenges in the experimental characterization of thin film thermoelectric materials. Finally, we will assess the potential of some of the more exotic techniques such as thermotunneling and bipolar thermoelectric effects.
Expression of nerve growth factor receptors on the ocular surface in healthy subjects and during manifestation of inflammatory diseases.

Purpose Recent studies have suggested the involvement of nerve growth factor (NGF) in the conjunctival inflammatory process and in corneal epithelium proliferation and differentiation. To verify the hypothesis that NGF could locally modulate the inflammatory and reparative processes, the authors evaluated the expression of NGF high-affinity receptor on the ocular surface in normal and pathologic conditions. Methods Ten conjunctival biopsies (obtained from three healthy subjects, five patients affected by vernal keratoconjunctivitis [VKC], and two patients with cicatricial pemphigoid [CP]) and five corneal specimens obtained from the Eye Bank of Veneto (Italy) were evaluated. All specimens were histologically stained, and immunohistochemistry was performed to identify the NGF high-affinity receptor (TrkA). Results All tissues expressed immunoreactivity for NGF receptors. In conjunctival specimens of healthy subjects, basal epithelial cells strongly expressed immunoreactivity and, in the stroma, rare cells were immunopositive for TrkA. No significant difference in immunoreactivity was observed in the conjunctival epithelium between healthy subjects and patients with inflammatory conjunctival diseases, whereas there were more immunopositive cells observed in the conjunctival stroma of VKC and CP patients than in the controls. The immunoreactivity in the cornea was confined to basal epithelial cells and endothelium. Conclusions The NGF receptor is present on the human ocular surface. The authors' data support the possibility that NGF modulates ocular inflammation and corneal epithelial proliferation and differentiation through its receptors.
CPAM, A Protocol for Software Composition

Software composition is critical for building large-scale applications. In this paper, we consider the composition of components that are methods offered by heterogeneous, autonomous and distributed computational software modules made available by external sources. The objective is to compose these methods and build new applications while preserving the autonomy of the software modules. This would decrease the time and cost needed for producing and maintaining the added functionality. In the following, we describe a high-level protocol that enables software composition. CPAM, CHAIMS Protocol for Autonomous Megamodules, may be used on top of various distribution systems. It offers additional features for supporting module heterogeneity and preserving module autonomy, and also implements several optimization concepts such as cost estimation of methods and partial extraction of results.
Impact of race on oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma presentation and outcomes among veterans.

Background Racial disparities in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) have been demonstrated and attributed to differences in human papillomavirus (HPV) status. The purpose of this study was to examine racial disparities in oropharyngeal SCC among veterans. Methods Retrospective review of patients with oropharyngeal SCC at a tertiary-care Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital. Adjusted Cox proportional hazards models were conducted to examine the effect of race on oropharyngeal SCC outcomes. Results Of 158 patients, 126 (79.7%) were white and 32 (20.3%) were African American. No difference in p16 tumor expression was noted between the groups. Five-year disease-free survival (DFS) was 42.6% and 55.1% for African Americans and whites, respectively (p = .372). Five-year overall survival (OS) for African Americans and whites was 54.6% and 51.8%, respectively (p = .768). On multivariate analysis, there was no significant difference in risk of recurrence or death by race. Conclusion Racial disparities are largely ameliorated in patients with oropharyngeal SCC treated within the VA, there were no racial differences in p16 tumor expression, and outcomes remain poor. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck, 2015
Effect of potential range on electrochemical performance of polyaniline as a component of lithium battery electrodes

Abstract This work studies the dependence of the electrical conductivity of HClO4 doped polyaniline (PAni) on the potential in an aprotic electrolyte (1 M LiClO4 in EC/DMC) and establishes that it possesses a sufficiently high conductivity within a narrow potential range 3.3–3.5 V vs. Li/Li+, beyond which its resistance increases sharply. It is shown that PAni, as a component of lithium battery electrodes, could be subjected to stable charge-discharge cycling in the 1.0–4.2 V vs. Li/Li+ potential range and that decrease of the lower limit of the potential range below 1.0 V could lead to the formation of an SEI layer, which causes the irreversible reduction of PAni electrochemical performance.
Assessment of Durability of Online and Multisensory Learning Using an Ophthalmology Model.

Purpose To explore the impact of online learning and multisensory small-group teaching on acquisition and retention of specialty knowledge and diagnostic skills during a third-year family medicine rotation. Design Exploratory, observational, longitudinal, and multiple-skill measures. Participants Two medical school classes (n = 199) at a public medical school in California. Methods Students engaged in online self-study, small-group interactive diagnostic sessions, picture identification of critical pathologic features, and funduscopic simulator examinations. The authors compared performance on testing immediately after online learning with testing at end-rotation, as well as picture identification versus simulator diagnostic ability in students with (n = 94) and without (n = 105) practice tracing contours on whiteboard projections of those same slides depicting fundus pathologic features of common systemic diseases. Main Outcomes Measures Picture identification, accuracy of funduscopic descriptions, online module post-tests, and end-rotation tests. Results Proprioceptive reinforcement of fundus pattern recognition significantly reduced the need for remediation for misdiagnosing optic disc edema during end-rotation funduscopic simulator testing, but it had no effect on fundus pattern recognition or diagnostic ability overall. Near-perfect immediate online post-test scores contrasted sharply with poor end-rotation scores on an in-house test (average, 59.4%). Rotation timing was not a factor because the patterns remained consistent throughout the academic school year. Conclusions Neither multisensory teaching nor online self-study significantly improved retention of ophthalmic knowledge and diagnostic skills by the end of a month-long third-year rotation. Timing such training closer to internship when application is imminent may enhance students' appreciation for its value and perhaps may improve retention. Pulsed quizzes over time also may be necessary to motivate students to retain the knowledge gained.