cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Diurnal thermal cycling effects on microwave signatures of thin sea ice

To investigate effects of diurnal thermal cycles on C-band polarimetric backscatter and millimeter-wave emission from sea ice, the authors carried out a winter experiment at the outdoor geophysical research facility (GRF) in the cold regions research and engineering laboratory (CRREL), the ice sheet grew from open sea water to a thickness of 10 cm in 2.5 days, during which they took polarimetric backscatter data with a C-band scatterometer, interlaced with brightness temperature measurements at 90 GHz in conjunction with meteorological and sea ice characterizations. The initial ice growth in the late morning was slow due to high insolation. As the air temperature dropped during the night, the growth rate increased significantly. Air temperature changed drastically from about -12 to -36/spl deg/C between day and night, the diurnal thermal cycle repeated itself the next day and the growth rate varied in the same manner. Ice temperature profiles clearly show the diurnal response in the ice sheet with a lag of 2.5 h behind the time of the maximum short-wave incident solar radiation. The diurnal cycles are also evident in the millimeter-wave brightness temperature data, measured sea ice backscatter revealed substantial diurnal variations up to 6 dB with repeatable cycles in synchronization with the temperature cycles and the brightness temperature modulations, the diurnal cycles in backscatter indicate that the dominant scattering mechanism related to thermodynamic processes in sea ice is reversible, a diurnal backscatter model based on sea ice electrodynamics and thermodynamics explains the observed diurnal signature. This work shows that diurnal effects are important for inversion algorithms to retrieve sea ice geophysical parameters from remote sensing data acquired with a satellite synthetic aperture radar (SAR) or scatterometer on Sun-synchronous orbits.
The stability of comparative referent choice and feelings of inequity: A longitudinal field study.

This study examined the stability of comparative referent choice and feelings of inequity, and the effects of changes in feelings of inequity on employee reactions. At two points in time, 24 months apart, employees' choices of comparative referents and feelings of inequity with regard to four job facets (compensation, security, job complexity, and supervisory behavior) were assessed. Results indicated that many employees used the same comparative referents at both times, especially for the compensation facet. For three of the facets (security, job complexity, and supervisory behavior), employees tended to either change from a disadvantaged status at T1 to an advantaged or equitable status at T2 or to maintain at T2 the advantaged/equitable status they experienced at T1. However, for the compensation facet a different picture emerged: employees who felt disadvantaged at T1 also felt disadvantaged at T2. Finally, employees who changed to or maintained an equitable or an advantaged status with regard to the job complexity and supervisory behavior facets generally reacted more positively (i.e. were more satisfied and productive and attended more frequently) than employees who changed to or maintained a disadvantaged status. Implications of these results for future research on equity theory were discussed.
Neuromast morphology and lateral line trunk canal ontogeny in two species of cichlids: an SEM study

A study of neuromast ontogeny and lateral line canal formation in Oreochromis aureus and Cichlasoma nigrofasciatum reveals the existence of two classes of neuromasts: those that arise just before hatching (presumptive canal neuromasts, dorsal superficial neuromasts, gap neuromasts, and caudal fin neuromasts) and pairs of neuromasts that arise on each lateral line scale lateral to each canal segment at the same time as canal formation. In the anterior trunk canal segment, each presumptive canal neuromast is accompanied by a dorsoventrally oriented superficial neuromast forming an orthogonal neuromast pair. It is suggested that each of these dorsoventrally oriented superficial neuromasts is homologous to the transverse superficial neuromast row described by Munz (Zoomorphology 93:73-86, '79) in other cichlids. It is further suggested that the longitudinal lines described by Munz (Zoomorphology 93:73-86, '79) are derived from the pair of superficial neuromasts that arise during canal formation. Distinct changes in neuromast topography are documented. Neuromast formation, scale formation, and lateral line canal formation are three distinct and sequential processes. The distribution of neuromasts is correlated with myomere configuration; there is always one presumptive canal neuromast on each myomere. A single scale forms beneath each presumptive canal neuromast. Canal segment formation is initiated with the enclosure of each presumptive canal neuromast by an epithelial bridge which later ossifies. The distinction of these three processes raises questions as to the causal relationships among them.
Decomposition for scheduling flexible manufacturing systems

In some flexible manufacturing systems, tool magazine capacity naturally divides parts into families so that substantial setups occur only when switching production between families. For this situation (positive setup times and costs only between families), we show that the production planning problem decomposes into two simpler problems: an aggregate scheduling problem, and a disaggregation. First, we derive a disaggregation that determines the optimal intrafamily product schedules corresponding to a given family schedule in polynomial time. Second, we show how to aggregate so that the decomposition maintains optimality for family schedules satisfying the property that production does not begin until inventory is zero (the Zero-Switch rule).
Formation and pore structure of boron nitride aerogels

This paper reports gels containing a poly(borazinyl amine) and tetrahydrofuran processed by CO{sub 2} supercritical drying techniques followed by pyrolysis. The resulting BN ceramic aerogels are highly porous, and the microstructure, porosity, and surface area characteristics have been examined. The aerogels show excellent thermal stability exhibiting surface areas in excess of 350 m{sup 2}/g and porosities greater than 0.8 even when heated in argon at 1500{degrees}C for 8 h. By removing solvent via evaporation before supercritical drying, the mean pore radius can be varied between 3.6 and 10 nm.
Controlling Self-Force for Unstructured Particle-in-Cell (PIC) Codes

A new algorithm was developed, which reduces the self-force in particle-in-cell codes on unstructured meshes in a predictable and controllable way. This is accomplished by computing a charge density weighting function for a particle, which reproduces the Green's function solution to Poisson's equation at nodes when using a standard finite element method methodology. This provides a superior local potential and allows for particle–particle particle-mesh techniques to be used to subtract off local force contributions, including fictitious self-forces resulting in accurate long-range forces on a particle and improved local Coulomb collisions. Local physical forces are then computed using the Green's function on local particle pairs and added to the long-range forces. Results were shown with up to five orders reduction in self-force and superior intraparticle forces for two test cases.
Propagating updates in real-time search: HLRTA ( k )

We enhance real-time search algorithms with bounded propagation of heuristic changes. When the heuristic of the current state is updated, this change is propagated consistently up to k states. Applying this idea to HLRTA*, we have developed the new HLRTA*(k) algorithm, which shows a clear performance improvement over HLRTA*. Experimentally, HLRTA*(k) converges in less trials than LRTA*(k), while the contrary was true for these algorithms without propagation. We provide empirical results showing the benefits of our approach.
Application of a fuzzy inference system to the quantification of 3D magnetic resonance imaging of breast tissue

The objective of this study was to develop a segmentation technique to quantify breast tissue and total breast volume from MRI data. The goal of our research is to quantify breast density using MRI to help better assess breast cancer risk for certain high-risk populations for whom mammography is of limited usefulness due to their high breast density. A semi-automatic segmentation technique was implemented based on a fuzzy inference system to segment 3D breast tissue from fat, and quantify the total volume of the breast in order to obtain an index of MR breast density on 10 healthy volunteers. The algorithm was based on two non-contrast 3D MR sequences. A fuzzy c-means algorithm was used to provide a first estimate of the segmentation of breast tissue from fat on specific slices. Based on the means and standard deviations of the segmented groups (breast tissue and fat) Sugeno-type fuzzy inference systems were built and then used as the main segmentation tools to segment surrounding slices. Results of volumetric measurements and breast density index obtained with the semi-automated method were compared with quantitative results obtained using classical global thresholding segmentation technique.
“The library catalog is definitely the best place to find articles!” Overconfidence among Undergraduate Library Users

Beginning in the 1980s, researchers in a wide array of academic disciplines surveyed undergraduate students to learn if they were overconfident with regard to their knowledge of disciplinary subject matter. The majority of researchers have found that students tend to overestimate their abilities within a certain body of knowledge. Up until recently, most of these projects were conducted in the fields of education, psychology, and economics. In the past few years, several academic librarians have applied these methodologies to their undergraduate patrons, curious as to whether this population demonstrates similar overconfidence in their grasp of academic research. The present study surveyed 34 undergraduates enrolled in psychology classes at a large urban university in the United States to determine if these students were overconfident about their knowledge in key library research areas. These questions included citing and referencing, identifying components of scholarly and popular sources, and developing and applying searches in electronic resources. A general knowledge survey was created for comparison purposes. Statistical analysis showed that students displayed marked overconfidence on both tools, signifying a need for increased library and metacognitive skill instruction. Depuis les annees 80, les chercheurs d’un vaste eventail des domaines academiques sondaient des etudiants universitaires afin d’apprendre s’ils etaient trop confiants au sujet de leurs connaissances de la discipline. La plupart des chercheurs ont trouve que les etudiants ont une tendance a surestimer leurs competences dans un certain corps de connaissance. Jusqu’a recemment, la majorite de ces projets etaient menes dans les domaines de l’education, de la psychologie et de l’economie. Au cours de ces dernieres annees, plusieurs bibliothecaires academiques ont applique ces methodologies sur leurs etudiants “clients”, curieux de savoir si cette population demontre un tel exces de confiance dans leur comprehension de la recherche academique. Cette etude a sonde 34 etudiants universitaires inscrits aux cours de psychologie d’une grande universite urbaine aux Etats-Unis afin de determiner si les etudiants avaient un exces de confiance a propos de leurs connaissances sur les domaines de recherche essentiels dans la bibliotheque. Dans le questionnaire, il s’agissait de citations et de references, d’identification des composants des sources erudites et populaires, et du developpement et d’application des recherches dans les sources numeriques. Un sondage de connaissances generales etait cree a des fins de comparaison. L’analyse statistique a montre que les etudiants faisaient preuve d’un exces de confiance marque sur les deux domaines, signifiant un besoin pour l’augmentation d’instruction des competences metacognitives et d’usage de la bibliotheque.
High Pressure Burning Rates and Model Comparisons for High-Hydrogen CO, CH 4 , C 2 H 4 , and C 2 H 6 Mixtures

Experimental measurements of burning rates and analyses of key reaction pathways and sensitive rate constants were performed for lean hydrogen flames with the addition of small concentrations of C1-C2 hydrocarbons. Pressures from 1-25 atm and (diluted) low flame temperatures were studied. The species added individually to hydrogen were CO, CH4, C2H4, and C2H6, each at a molar ratio of H2 to additive of nine to one. Flame speeds were measured using outwardly propagating flames. While results show good agreement of all model predictions with experimental data at 1 atm, large discrepancies among model predictions and with experimental data are observed at higher pressures. Kinetic analyses were performed to identify controlling kinetic pathways and major sources of disagreement. Differences in the H2 submodel were demonstrated to be largely responsible for differences among various model predictions, though predictions of the various models using a common H2 submodel still yield burning rate predictions that vary substantially. Sensitivity analysis indicates that reactions of CH3 with major radical species, CH3+H(+M)=CH4(+M) and CH3+HO2=CH3O+OH, and HCO consumption pathways, HCO+M=H+CO+M and HCO+O2=CO+HO2, become increasingly important with hydrocarbon addition to H2/additive mixtures in flames at high pressure and low flame temperature.
The Role of Bovine Veterinarians in the Future

Studies have been conducted, organizations formed, and recommendations made to assist in keeping bovine veterinarians on the farm. These efforts have provided some positive outcomes; however, current legislative action supported by some agriculture organizations could redefine bovine practice.
Does resuscitation produce a reperfusion injury

Conceptually, shock with resuscitation should produce cellular changes that parallel those observed in a single organ exposed to ischemia with reperfusion, i.e., a transient worsening of the injury pattern after reperfusion with the degree of recovery reflecting the magnitude of the ischemic injury. To test this hypothesis, 74 male Sprague Dawley rats (300-400 g) were randomized into two groups with controls and exposed to 1) hemorrhagic shock (mean arterial pressure <50 mm Hg) for 2 hours before sacrifice, or 2) shock (2 hours) with reinfusion of shed blood over hour before sacrifice. Mean arterial pressure, blood loss, serum lactate, base excess, and bicarbonate were serially measured to determine the degree of tissue ischemia. At sacrifice, hepatic mitochondrial function was determined by the respiratory control ratio. Our findings were as follows: 1) Hemorrhagic shock produced significant (P < 0.001) tissue ischemia and impairment of mitochondrial function (P < 0.001), 2) resuscitation rapidly corrects the metabolic sequelae of tissue ischemia, and 3) mitochondrial function was unaffected by resuscitation. We conclude that resuscitation rapidly corrects the tissue ischemia associated with hemorrhagic shock, without producing any measurable reperfusion injury at the mitochondrial level.
The Engelhardt Experience

There is no way to understand H. Tristram Engelhardt, Jr. and all he has done without an appreciation of his tremendous wife, Susan. Susan is extremely bright; works virtually non-stop in multiple capacities; knows the rules of grammar inside and out (and is not afraid to correct others); she is kind, loving, insightful, and knows how to say what people need to hear even when they don’t want to hear it; she is a shining example of what it means to be a Christian; and, as anyone who knows Tris can imagine, Susan is unbelievably patient. Susan has made it possible for Tris to do so much of what he has done, not only in terms of teaching, publishing, and speaking, but of being a true mentor and friend. Of his many, many accomplishments, I want to share a bit about his great love for others as evidenced through his work as a teacher and mentor. Tris has taught and mentored many students and countless others who have found themselves under his tutelage, often by first finding themselves in the line of fire at a conference where Tris responded to their papers or asked a question that sounded like it was meant to disembowel them. I suspect that everyone who has been fortunate enough to experience Tris’ love for and dedication to students and scholars would agree that we truly would not be the same, as people, as teachers, and as scholars, without the benefit of “The Engelhardt Experience.”
Generation-recombination-type 1ƒ noise in nip diodes

Abstract It is shown for pin diodes, in which the current flow is by hole-electron pair generation and (or) recombination, that the 1 ƒ γ noise is due to generation-recombination processes involving traps and (or) recombination centers and that the spectrum may be written as S I (ƒ) = α H e|I|/[ƒ γ τ] , where αH is the Hooge parameter, ϱ the electron charge, |I| the absolute current, τ the time constant associated with the pair generation and pair recombination process, ƒ the frequency and γ is the exponent of the spectrum. This is studied experimentally and the Hooge parameters of various devices are determined.
Effect of Diffuse Subendocardial Hypoperfusion on Left Ventricular Cavity Size by 13N-Ammonia Perfusion PET in Patients With Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.

Vasodilator-induced transient left ventricular (LV) cavity dilation by positron emission tomography (PET) is common in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HC). Because most patients with PET-LV cavity dilation lack obstructive epicardial coronary artery disease, we hypothesized that vasodilator-induced subendocardial hypoperfusion resulting from microvascular dysfunction underlies this result. To test this hypothesis, we quantified myocardial blood flow (MBF) (subepicardial, subendocardial, and global MBF) and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) in 104 patients with HC without significant coronary artery disease, using 13 NH 3 -PET. Patients with HC were divided into 2 groups, based on the presence/absence of LV cavity dilation (LVvolume stress /LVvolume rest >1.13). Transient PET-LV cavity dilation was evident in 52% of patients with HC. LV mass, stress left ventricular outflow tract gradient, mitral E/E′, late gadolinium enhancement, and prevalence of ischemic ST-T changes after vasodilator were significantly higher in patients with HC with LV cavity dilation. Baseline LVEF was similar in the 2 groups, but LV cavity dilation + patients had lower stress-LVEF (43 ± 11 vs 53 ± 10; p + patients had lower stress-transmural perfusion gradients (0.85 ± 0.22, LV cavity dilation + vs 1.09 ± 0.39, LV cavity dilation − ; p
Beneficial arthropod behavior mediated by airborne semiochemicals. IV: Influence of host diet on host-oriented flight chamber responses of Microplitis demolitor Wilkinson

Microplitis demolitor Wilkinson were reared fromHeliothis zea larvae fed either an artificial diet or a diet of cowpea seedlings. Responses of females from these two sources to semiochemicals from the insect hostcowpea complex were compared in a flight tunnel. Very limited responses were obtained from females reared from hosts fed artificial diet unless they first had preflight contact with frass from plant-fed hosts. Female parasite is reared from plant-fed hosts were generally responsive without preflight contact. Contact with cocoons containing frass of the plant fed host at the time of emergence was an important source of stimulation. It increased their subsequent responsiveness to the volatile semiochemicals of the insect host-plant complex. The cocoons of females reared from artificial diet-fed hosts were apparently lacking plant chemicals that are vital to their subsequent responsiveness. Imprinting of the adults at time of emergence from the cocoon is strongly indicated.
Artificial Antigen Presenting Cells Expand NY-ESO-1 Antigen-Specific CD8+ T Cells From Patients with Melanoma

Abstract Abstract 4309 The NY-ESO-1 antigen is an attractive prototype cancer-testis (CT) antigen because it is expressed in a wide variety of tumors, including myeloma, melanoma, and synovial cell sarcoma, among others, but has restricted expression in normal tissues (testis and placenta). Based on our previous experience with 3T3-based artificial antigen presenting cells (AAPCs) in expanding influenza and CMV-specific T cells, we hypothesized that AAPCs expressing the NY-ESO-1 antigen and optimal costimulatory molecules would efficiently expand NY-ESO-1 specific T cells for potential use as adoptive immunotherapy. Accordingly, AAPCs were transduced to express the common MHC allele HLA-A*0201, beta2-microglobulin, and the full-length NY-ESO-1 protein, together with the T cell costimulatory ligands CD58, CD54, and CD80. These A2/NY-ESO-1 AAPCs expanded NY-ESO-1 specific T cells from normal donors after prolonged culture (4 weeks). In patients with melanoma who had detectable NY-ESO-1 antibodies, AAPC stimulation of PBMC expanded NY-ESO-1 antigen-specific CD8+ T cells approximately 3–4 logs in 3 weeks. These expanded T cells were functional in that they lysed peptide-pulsed targets (T2 cells) and native melanoma tumor targets (SK Mel 37). Expanded CD8+ T cells also produced interferon-gamma, MIP-1 beta, TNF-alpha and CD107a (but not IL-2) in response to antigen, indicating a polyfunctional response. We are currently performing scale-up experiments and pre-clinical validations of these AAPCs to embark on a clinical trial of adoptive cell therapy of NY-ESO1-specific T cells in patients with NY-ESO1-expressing tumors. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
BiRRTOpt: A combined sampling and optimizing motion planner for humanoid robots

Currently, the optimization-based methods are widely adopted on humanoid robots and other bipedal robots. However, using these methods to plan robot motions suffers from getting stuck in infeasible solution given bad initial guesses. Conversely, sampling-based methods which are probabilistically complete perform well in practice. But trajectories generated by these methods require smoothing techniques, normally in low-quality in terms of a given cost function. This paper proposes a software framework called BiRRTOpt which combines the advantages of both approaches, aiming to compute a feasible, collision-free and optimized trajectory for humanoid robots. This work is mainly divided into 2 phases: Initial Guess and Optimization. Two experiments in the simulator and on an actual Atlas robot demonstrate the success of our approach. The idea described in this paper can easily be extended to other humanoid robots or bipedal robots to plan motions.
Automation of pesticide residue analysis

The routine analysis of pesticide residue levels in biological tissue by gas-liquid chromatography is greatly facilitated by the use of computers to reduce computation time. Modern systems can be readily adapted to small computers. The nature of gas chromatographic signals permits the insertion of digitizers between the gas chromatograph and the computer. The resulting system permits completely automatic retrieval of data; thus time is saved and operating efficiency of the analytical laboratory is increased.
Is EPO Receptor Expressed in Human Tumor Cells

EPO stimulates formation of red blood cells by binding to and activating the EPO receptor (EPOR) expressed on the surface of erythroid progenitor cells. Recently EPOR was reportedly expressed in other, non-hematopoietic tissues including brain, kidney, heart and endothelium. EPOR expression has also been reported in tumor tissues and tumor cell lines and many investigators have suggested that EPO may promote tumor growth. This has raised concerns about the use of rHuEPO to treat anemia associated with chemotherapy in cancer patients. To evaluate this, we have examined EPOR expression and binding in tissues and cell lines by quantitative PCR, Western blot analysis and EPO binding assays. Quantitative RT-PCR analysis revealed that the EPOR gene is transcribed in most tissues and cell lines. However non-hematopoietic EPOR transcript levels were lower than that found in hematopoietic cells. No evidence of elevated EPOR gene transcription in tumor vs. non-tumor tissues or in tumor cell lines analyzed was observed. Using Western analysis, we found that commercial anti-EPOR antibodies commonly used to examine EPOR protein expression in published tumor studies, cross-reacted with multiple proteins and/or reacted with proteins of sizes different from that predicted for EPOR. This suggests that in many publications where these antibodies were used, claims of expression of EPOR protein in tumors are of questionable significance. A rabbit polyclonal antibody was developed that specifically reacted with a protein band on Western blots of the size predicted for EPOR. The antibody reacted specifically with a band in COS cells transfected with a human EPOR expressing construct but not in transfection controls. This antibody also reacted with the same sized protein in non-hematopoietic cells. We concluded that EPOR mRNA and EPOR protein were present in most normal cell types examined. Thus the detection of EPOR in tumors and tumor cell lines likely represents the continued expression reflecting the tissue of tumor origin. Since expression does not equate to the presence of surface receptor, binding assays with 125I EPO to non-hematopoietic tumor cell lines were performed. Tumor cell lines showed weak to no detectable EPO binding. These results suggest that although EPOR protein is synthesized in these cells, little or no receptor is expressed on their cell surface. Furthermore, if limited amounts of EPO bound EPOR in tumor lines any biological effect may be different or muted compared to classical responses in hematopoietic cells.
Assessing Cognitive Representations of Antidepressants: Development and Validation of the Attitudes Toward Medication-Depression Inventory.

Antidepressant drugs represent the mainstay of treatment for depression; however, nonadherence is a major problem. Attitudes are predictors of long-term adherence and drive medication use. The Atti...
Ultrafast carrier thermalization and trapping in silicon-germanium alloy probed by extreme ultraviolet transient absorption spectroscopy

Semiconductor alloys containing silicon and germanium are of growing importance for compact and highly efficient photonic devices due to their favorable properties for direct integration into silicon platforms and wide tunability of optical parameters. Here, we report the simultaneous direct and energy-resolved probing of ultrafast electron and hole dynamics in a silicon-germanium alloy with the stoichiometry Si0.25Ge0.75 by extreme ultraviolet transient absorption spectroscopy. Probing the photoinduced dynamics of charge carriers at the germanium M4,5-edge (∼30 eV) allows the germanium atoms to be used as reporter atoms for carrier dynamics in the alloy. The photoexcitation of electrons across the direct and indirect band gap into conduction band (CB) valleys and their subsequent hot carrier relaxation are observed and compared to pure germanium, where the Ge direct [Formula: see text] and Si0.25Ge0.75 indirect gaps ([Formula: see text]) are comparable in energy. In the alloy, comparable carrier lifetimes are observed for the X, L, and Γ valleys in the conduction band. A midgap feature associated with electrons accumulating in trap states near the CB edge following intraband thermalization is observed in the Si0.25Ge0.75 alloy. The successful implementation of the reporter atom concept for capturing the dynamics of the electronic bands by site-specific probing in solids opens a route to study carrier dynamics in more complex materials with femtosecond and sub-femtosecond temporal resolution.
Novel Drugs in Kidney Transplantation

Abstract Despite significant advances in the field of kidney transplantation resulting in decreased rates of acute rejection, there remain several areas in which the development of new drugs and therapies could potentially change the landscape and have a major impact on long-term graft survival. These include the optimization of organ quality prior to and at the time of transplantation, the control of inflammation in the allograft, and the avoidance or minimization of adverse effects associated with conventional immunosuppression. This chapter focuses on emerging strategies for the prevention and treatment of delayed graft function, new agents that carry the promise of safer and more effective costimulation blockade, and finally, innovative therapies to control the humoral arm of the immune system. The current status of development of these drugs and the challenges facing their utilization are discussed.
Joint analysis of left ventricular expression and circulating plasma levels of Omentin after myocardial ischemia

Omentin-1, also known as Intelectin-1 (ITLN1), is an adipokine with plasma levels associated with diabetes, obesity, and coronary artery disease. Recent studies suggest that ITLN1 can mitigate myocardial ischemic injury but the expression of ITLN1 in the heart itself has not been well characterized. The purpose of this study is to discern the relationship between the expression pattern of ITLN1 RNA in the human heart and the level of circulating ITLN1 protein in plasma from the same patients following myocardial ischemia. A large cohort of patients (n = 140) undergoing elective cardiac surgery for aortic valve replacement were enrolled in this study. Plasma and left ventricular biopsy samples were taken at the beginning of cardiopulmonary bypass and after an average of 82 min of ischemic cross clamp time. The localization of ITLN1 in epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) was also further characterized with immunoassays and cell fate transition studies. mRNA expression of ITLN1 decreases in left ventricular tissue after acute ischemia in human patients (mean difference 280.48, p = 0.001) whereas plasma protein levels of ITLN1 increase (mean difference 5.24, p < 0.001). Immunohistochemistry localized ITLN1 to the mesothelium or visceral pericardium of EAT. Epithelial to mesenchymal transition in mesothelial cells leads to a downregulation of ITLN1 expression. Myocardial injury leads to a decrease in ITLN1 expression in the heart and a corresponding increase in plasma levels. These changes may in part be due to an epithelial to mesenchymal transition of the cells that express ITLN1 following ischemia. Trial Registration Clinicaltrials.gov ID: NCT00985049
Encryption System based on a Structured Matrix: Vandermonde Matrix

The development of communications and digital transmissions have pushed data encryption to grow quicklyto protect the information against any hacking or digital plagiarisms. Also, the matrix computation algorithmsdeveloped since the fifties exploit different types of structures more algebraically. In this work, we willpropose an encryption system based on the Vandermonde matrix, to secure the data in the form of images.Some orders will be advanced MatLab programming.
Prevalence of Macrothrombocytopenia in Healthy College Students in Western India.

Macrothrombocytopenia is being increasingly described across the globe. There is paucity of data on the prevalence of this condition from different parts of India. 10,047 healthy college students from the city of Surat in western India were investigated for macrothrombocytopenia i.e. those with Mean platelet Volume of > 11 fL and platelet count of less than 150 × 109/L. ABO blood groups, complete blood counts, peripheral smear examination and haemoglobinopathy work up was also done. Siblings and parents of the macrothrombocytopenic individuals were also studied when available. Bleeding assessment tool of International society of thrombosis and haemostasis were applied to see if there were excessive bleeding in macrothrombocytropenia patients. One hundred and ninety-six students (1.95%) had asymptomatic macrothrombocytopenia. More female students (P < 0.0001) had this condition and blood group A was under represented (P = 0.019) with this condition. Prevalence of macrothrombocytopenia was not related to ethnic subgroups to which the students belonged to, nor was it linked to presence of any haemoglobinopathy gene. In 38 of the 52, 1st degree relatives studied macrothrombocytopenia was confirmed at least in one of them. Excessive bleeding in none of the individuals with macrothrombocytopenia was noted. Asymptomatic macrothrombocytopenia is rare in western parts of India and affects 1.95% of the healthy population. Females were over represented with this condition raising a suspicion of X linked dominant inheritance. Underrepresentation of blood group A in this condition requires further study.
Abstract 3984: Combination S6K and TAM tyrosine kinase targeting in PTEN-deficient glioma

Loss of PTEN is one of the most frequent driver events in primary glioblastoma, conferring the ability to reconfigure metabolism and enhance apoptosis resistance to transformed glial cells. The ribosomal S6 protein kinases (S6Ks) are hyperactivated in PTEN-deficient settings, and genetic inactivation studies have shown that S6K1 deficiency can reduce the oncogenic growth of PTEN-deficient neoplasia. Investigating pharmacologic agents, we found that the S6K inhibitor LY-2584702 selectively elicits cytotoxic responses in PTEN-deficient cells when combined with the TAM kinase inactivating agent BMS-777607. Combined knockdown of TAM kinases sensitized cells to single agent treatment with LY-2584702. Conversely, expression of activated S6K1 or elevated AXL protected from combination treatment. These results indicate that both the TAMS and S6K1 are key regulators of survival in PTEN deficient cells. Citation Format: Kelli N. Ennis, Pranjal Sarma, Catherine A. Behrmann, Jie Wang, David R. Plas. Combination S6K and TAM tyrosine kinase targeting in PTEN-deficient glioma [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2018; 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 3984.
Individual variation in brain network topology is linked to emotional intelligence.

Abstract Background Social cognitive ability is a significant determinant of functional outcome, and deficits in social cognition are a disabling symptom of psychotic disorders. The neurobiological underpinnings of social cognition are not well understood, hampering our ability to ameliorate these deficits. Objective Using ‘resting state’ functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI) and a trans-diagnostic, data-driven analytic strategy, we sought to identify the brain network basis of emotional intelligence, a key domain of social cognition. Methods The study included 60 participants with a diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder and 45 healthy controls. All participants underwent a rsfMRI scan. Emotional Intelligence was measured using the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT). A connectome-wide analysis examined how each individual brain voxel's connectivity correlated with emotional intelligence using multivariate distance matrix regression (MDMR). Results We identified a region in the left superior parietal lobule (SPL) where individual network topology is linked to emotional intelligence. Specifically, in high scoring individuals, this region is a node of the Default Mode Network and in low scoring individuals, it is a node of the Dorsal Attention Network. This relationship was observed in both schizophrenia and healthy comparison participants. Conclusion Prior studies have demonstrated individual variance in the topology of canonical resting state networks but the cognitive or behavioral relevance of these differences has largely been undetermined. We observe that the left SPL, a region of high individual variance at the cytoarchitectonic level, also demonstrates individual variance in its association with large scale resting-state networks and that network topology is linked to emotional intelligence.
Predictive Statistical Representations of Observed and Simulated Rainfall Using Generalized Linear Models.

AbstractThis study explores the feasibility of predicting subdaily variations and the climatological spatial patterns of rain in the tropical Pacific from atmospheric profiles using a set of genera...
Focus Group Techniques to Facilitate Group Interaction: Finding a Core Curriculum for Indoor Air Science

Indoor air quality (IAQ) is of paramount concern to all human beings because we spend a large proportion of our lives indoors. Unfortunately, there is no unified indoor air science that addresses the problems associated with the IAQ of buildings from their conception through their lifecycle. In order to produce and keep healthy buildings, a number of different functional areas are involved, each with their own specialized knowledge base. Individuals involved in the production and maintenance of buildings do not necessarily have the tools to consider how their decisions may impact the environmental health and well being of the occupants. Likewise, the health professionals and exposure experts do not necessarily have the background to address building systems. An interdisciplinary approach to education and training is needed so that, at the very least, the different players are able to communicate effectively and together seek solutions for improving indoor environments. This paper outlines the use of focus group techniques in a workshop setting to facilitate the production of essential topics for a core curriculum for anyone involved in IAQ.
Acoustic-to-Phrase Models for Speech Recognition.

Directly emitting words and sub-words from speech spectrogram has been shown to produce good results using end-to-end (E2E) trained models. Connectionist Temporal Classification (CTC) and Sequence-to-Sequence attention (Seq2Seq) models have both shown better success when directly targeting words or sub-words. In this work, we ask the question: Can an E2E model go beyond words and transcribe directly to phrases (i.e., a group of words)? Directly modeling frequent phrases might be better than modeling its constituent words. Also, emitting multiple words together might speed up inference in models like Seq2Seq where decoding is inherently sequential. To answer this, we undertake a study on a 3400-hour Microsoft Cortana voice assistant task. We present a side-by-side comparison for CTC and Seq2Seq models that have been trained to target a variety of tokens including letters, sub-words, words and phrases. We show that an E2E model can indeed transcribe directly to phrases. We see that while CTC has difficulty in accurately modeling phrases, a more powerful model like Seq2Seq can effortlessly target phrases that are up to 4 words long, with only a reasonable degradation in the final word error rate.
Surface modification induced cuprous oxide nanoparticle toxicity to duckweed at sub-toxic metal concentrations

Nanoparticle capping agents are critical for controlling the growth, oxidation state, and final particle size during aqueous synthesis. However, despite the known phytotoxicity of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) to plants, it is used to synthesize metal oxide nanoparticles of uniform size and with mesoporous structure. Among the few studies that have investigated how CTAB influences nanoparticle toxicity, CTAB has never been identified as the primary cause of nanoparticle toxicity in environmental systems; rather nanoparticle surface charge or morphology was identified as the driver of toxicity in environmentally relevant systems. In the current study, CTAB release from CTAB surface modified Cu2O nanoparticles (SM-Cu2O NPs) inhibited duckweed (Landoltia punctata) growth, even when administered at subtoxic Cu concentrations. Organic ligands, such as humic acid (HA) and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), lessened growth inhibition associated with exposure to SM-Cu2O NPs, likely through electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions with CTAB. Such results highlight the need for a more holistic approach to nanoparticle surface modification and improved communication between toxicologists and synthetic chemists to develop green alternatives for nanoparticle synthesis.
Analyzing filtration flow rate change of woven geotextiles for fine grained slurries

Many studies have been performed in recent years to investigate the dewatering phenomena of slurry using geotextile tubes. The laboratory test methods primarily used the pressure filtration test (P...
Study of Indicators for Early and Rapid Diagnosis of Radiation Injury Is the Most Important in Patients With Cancer During Radiotherapy.

Objective:To establish a complete technical solution for the radiation biological dose estimation, to enable prediction of individuals’ response to radiotherapy (RT), and to control treatment dose ...
Tuberculosis in 2020 — New Approaches to a Continuing Global Health Crisis

Tuberculosis in 2020 This interactive graphic provides a guide to the history, epidemiology, and clinical characteristics of tuberculosis and highlights the obstacles to and strategies for containi...
Transition radiation by charged bunches in topological metamaterials

We demonstrate, theoretically and experimentally, that a traveling electric charge passing from one photonic crystal into another generates edge waves—electromagnetic modes with frequencies inside the common photonic band gap localized at the interface—via a process of transition edge-wave radiation (TER). A simple and intuitive expression for the TER spectral density is derived and then applied to a specific structure: two interfacing photonic topological insulators with opposite spin-Chern indices. We show that TER breaks the time-reversal symmetry and enables valley- and spin-polarized generation of topologically protected edge waves propagating in one or both directions along the interface. Experimental measurements at the Argonne Wakefield Accelerator Facility are consistent with the excitation and localization of the edge waves. The concept of TER paves the way [1] for novel particle accelerators and detectors.
Ending the Silence: Shareholder Derivative Suits and Amending the Dodd-Frank Act so 'Say on Pay' Votes May Be Heard in the Boardroom

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank Act”) has broad and deep implications that will touch every corner of the financial services industry, as well as multiple other industries. This article is the first to fully examine shareholder derivative lawsuits filed after a negative “say on pay” vote on executive compensation under the Dodd-Frank Act. The article begins by providing a history of “say on pay” votes and examining the “say on pay” provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act. The article transitions into a discussion of how the Dodd-Frank “say on pay” provisions are currently being utilized by shareholders in derivative lawsuits. Specifically, the article will analyze in detail the legal theories raised and remedies sought by the litigants in the only two post-Dodd-Frank decisions that have been handed down by courts to date. Based on this analysis, the article provides recommendations for companies on how to re-write their “pay for performance” executive compensation policies and how to respond positively and actively to a negative “say on pay” vote on executive compensation. The article concludes by proposing an amendment to the Dodd-Frank Act which, if promulgated, would provide that a second successive negative “say on pay” vote (50% or more of shareholder votes cast against the proposed executive compensation package) on executive compensation would prompt a vote on a “spill” resolution and, if that resolution passes, all directors, except for the managing director, must stand for re-election at a special “spill” meeting within 90 days of the annual shareholder meeting where the “spill” resolution passed.
Mitochondrial mRNA Processing in the Chlorophyte Alga Pediastrum duplex and Streptophyte Alga Chara vulgaris Reveals an Evolutionary Branch in Mitochondrial mRNA Processing

Mitochondria carry the remnant of an ancestral bacterial chromosome and express those genes with a system separate and distinct from the nucleus. Mitochondrial genes are transcribed as poly-cistronic primary transcripts which are post-transcriptionally processed to create individual translationally competent mRNAs. Algae post-transcriptional processing has only been explored in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii (Class: Chlorophyceae) and the mature mRNAs are different than higher plants, having no 5' UnTranslated Regions (UTRs), much shorter and more variable 3' UTRs and polycytidylated mature mRNAs. In this study, we analyzed transcript termini using circular RT-PCR and PacBio Iso-Seq to survey the 3' and 5' UTRs and termini for two green algae, Pediastrum duplex (Class: Chlorophyceae) and Chara vulgaris (Class: Charophyceae). This enabled the comparison of processing in the chlorophyte and charophyte clades of green algae to determine if the differences in mitochondrial mRNA processing pre-date the invasion of land by embryophytes. We report that the 5' mRNA termini and non-template 3' termini additions in P. duplex resemble those of C. reinhardtii, suggesting a conservation of mRNA processing among the chlorophyceae. We also report that C. vulgaris mRNA UTRs are much longer than chlorophytic examples, lack polycytidylation, and are polyadenylated similar to embryophytes. This demonstrates that some mitochondrial mRNA processing events diverged with the split between chlorophytic and streptophytic algae.
Wheel running improves fasting-induced AMPK signaling in skeletal muscle from tumor-bearing mice.

Disruptions to muscle protein turnover and metabolic regulation contribute to muscle wasting during the progression of cancer cachexia. The initiation of cachexia is also associated with decreased physical activity. While chronic muscle AMPK activation occurs during cachexia progression in ApcMin/+ (MIN) mice, a preclinical cachexia model, the understanding of muscle AMPK's role during cachexia initiation is incomplete. Therefore, we examined if voluntary wheel exercise could improve skeletal muscle AMPK signaling in pre-cachectic MIN mice. Next, we examined muscle AMPK's role in aberrant catabolic signaling in response to a 12-h fast in mice initiating cachexia. Male C57BL/6 (B6: N = 26) and MIN (N = 29) mice were subjected to ad libitum feeding, 12-h fast, or 4 wks. of wheel access and then a 12-h fast during the initiation of cachexia. Male tamoxifen-inducible skeletal muscle AMPKα1 α2 (KO) knockout mice crossed with ApcMin/+ and floxed controls were examined (WT: N = 8, KO: N = 8, MIN: N = 10, MIN KO: N = 6). Male mice underwent a 12-h fast and the gastrocnemius muscle was analyzed. MIN gastrocnemius mass was reduced compared to B6 mice. A 12-h fast induced MIN muscle AMPKT172 , FOXOS413 , and ULK-1S555 phosphorylation compared to B6. Wheel running attenuated these inductions. A 12-h fast induced MIN muscle MuRF-1 protein expression compared to B6 and was suppressed by wheel running. Additionally, fasting induced muscle autophagy signaling and disrupted mitochondrial quality protein expression in the MIN, which was prevented in the MIN KO. We provide evidence that increased skeletal muscle AMPK sensitivity to a 12-h fast is an adverse event in pre-cachectic MIN mice, and exercise can improve this regulation.
Communicating Reform: Testing an Apology for Police History as a Supplement to a Policy Communication:

Policing in the United States has a racist history, with negative implications for its legitimacy among African Americans today. Legitimacy is important for policing's effective operations. Communi...