cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effect of surfactant shape on solvophobicity and surface activity in alcohol-water systems

Here we study the relationship between a surfactant’s molecular shape and its tendency to partition to the interface in ethanol-water mixtures. In general, finding surfactants that are effective in alcohol-water mixtures is more challenging than finding ones that are effective in pure water. This is because the solvophobic effect that partitions surfactants from bulk solution to the interface becomes weaker as ethanol concentration increases. We use experiments and molecular dynamics to observe the effects of increasing surfactant tail length or width. The results show that increasing surfactant tail length causes the surfactant to partition to the surface better in low ethanol concentrations, but not at high ethanol concentrations. In comparison, increasing surfactant tail width causes the surfactant to partition to the surface better at higher concentrations of ethanol. We examine the liquid structure to elucidate the mechanisms that weaken the partitioning effect as ethanol concentration increases. Ethanol-water mixtures are nanoscopically heterogeneous with protic and aprotic regions in the bulk solution. We see that the surfactant tail is most likely to be solvated in the aprotic regions where it perturbs fewer hydrogen bonds.
Vertebrate Axial Patterning: From Egg to Asymmetry.

The emergence of the bilateral embryonic body axis from a symmetrical egg has been a long-standing question in developmental biology. Historical and modern experiments point to an initial symmetry-breaking event leading to localized Wnt and Nodal growth factor signaling and subsequent induction and formation of a self-regulating dorsal “organizer.” This organizer forms at the site of notochord cell internalization and expresses primarily Bone Morphogenetic Protein (BMP) growth factor antagonists that establish a spatiotemporal gradient of BMP signaling across the embryo, directing initial cell differentiation and morphogenesis. Although the basics of this model have been known for some time, many of the molecular and cellular details have only recently been elucidated and the extent that these events remain conserved throughout vertebrate evolution remains unclear. This chapter summarizes historical perspectives as well as recent molecular and genetic advances regarding: (1) the mechanisms that regulate symmetry-breaking in the vertebrate egg and early embryo, (2) the pathways that are activated by these events, in particular the Wnt pathway, and the role of these pathways in the formation and function of the organizer, and (3) how these pathways also mediate anteroposterior patterning and axial morphogenesis. Emphasis is placed on comparative aspects of the egg-to-embryo transition across vertebrates and their evolution. The future prospects for work regarding self-organization and gene regulatory networks in the context of early axis formation are also discussed.
Soil and Belowground Processes

Soil characteristics and functions are critical determinants of rangeland systems and the ecosystem services that they provide. Rangeland soils are extremely diverse, but an emerging understanding is that paradigms developed in more mesic forest ecosystems may not be applicable. Vascular plants, biological soil crusts, and the soil microbial community are the three major functional groups of organisms that influence rangeland soils through their control over soil structure and soil carbon, water, and nutrient availability. Rangelands occur across a broad range of precipitation regimes, but local water status can be modified by management and land use. Important processes in carbon and nutrient cycling can be unique to arid rangelands. Physical drivers such as UV radiation and soil–litter mixing can be important factors for decomposition. Precipitation, vascular species composition and spatial pattern, presence of biological soil crusts, and surface disturbance interact to determine rates of carbon and nutrient cycling. The low resource availability in rangeland soils makes them very vulnerable to drivers of global change, and also excellent indicators of small changes in resource availability. Recent large-scale experiments demonstrate that rangelands are very susceptible to changes in precipitation regimes, warming, and atmospheric carbon dioxide. Growth of molecular tools in combination with other techniques has allowed scientists to increasingly link microbial community composition and function, thereby shedding light on what was formerly viewed as the black box of microbial dynamics in soils. Concurrent technological advances in environmental sensors and sensor arrays allow more mechanistic understanding of soil processes while also offering new opportunities to develop questions at the landscape scale.
Diversity, abundance, and host relationships of avian malaria and related haemosporidians in New Mexico pine forests.

Avian malaria and related haemosporidian parasites (genera Haemoproteus, Plasmodium, and Leucocytozoon) affect bird demography, species range limits, and community structure, yet they remain unsurveyed in most bird communities and populations. We conducted a community-level survey of these vector-transmitted parasites in New Mexico, USA, to describe their diversity, abundance, and host associations. We focused on the breeding-bird community in the transition zone between pinon-juniper woodland and ponderosa pine forests (elevational range: 2,150-2,460 m). We screened 186 birds representing 49 species using both standard PCR and microscopy techniques to detect infections of all three avian haemosporidian genera. We detected infections in 68 out of 186 birds (36.6%), the highest proportion of which were infected with Haemoproteus (20.9%), followed by Leucocytozoon (13.4%), then Plasmodium (8.0%). We sequenced mtDNA for 77 infections representing 43 haplotypes (25 Haemoproteus, 12 Leucocytozoon, 6 Plasmodium). When compared to all previously known haplotypes in the MalAvi and GenBank databases, 63% (27) of the haplotypes we recovered were novel. We found evidence for host specificity at the avian clade and species level, but this specificity was variable among parasite genera, in that Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon were each restricted to three avian groups (out of six), while Plasmodium occurred in all groups except non-passerines. We found striking variation in infection rate among host species, with nearly universal infection among vireos and no infection among nuthatches. Using rarefaction and extrapolation, we estimated the total avian haemosporidian diversity to be 70 haplotypes (95% CI [43-98]); thus, we may have already sampled ∼60% of the diversity of avian haemosporidians in New Mexico pine forests. It is possible that future studies will find higher diversity in microhabitats or host species that are under-sampled or unsampled in the present study. Fortunately, this study is fully extendable via voucher specimens, frozen tissues, blood smears, parasite images, and documentation provided in open-access databases (MalAvi, GenBank, and ARCTOS).
Building and Maintaining Organizational Infrastructure to Attain Clinical Excellence

Active maintenance of highly functional teams is critical to ensuring safe, efficient patient care in the non-operating room anesthesia (NORA) suite. In addition to developing collaborative relationships and patient care protocols, individual and team training is needed. For anesthesiologists, this training must begin during residency. The training should be supplemented with continuing education in this field for providers who find themselves working in the NORA space. As NORA continues to grow, robust NORA-specific quality assurance and improvement programs will empower anesthesiologists with the tools they need to best care for these patients.
Wave-front shaping for nonlinear dynamics control (Conference Presentation)

Recent progress in controlling light propagation in multimode fibers in the linear regime, opened new opportunities for multimode fiber endoscopy. However, nonlinear light propagation in multimode fibers comprises complex intermodal interactions and rich spatiotemporal dynamics. In this work, we demonstrate a wave-front shaping approach for controlling nonlinear phenomena in multimode fibers. Using a spatial light modulator at the fiber’s input and a genetic algorithm optimization, we control a highly nonlinear stimulated Raman scattering cascade and its interplay with four wave mixing via a flexible implicit control on the superposition of modes that are coupled into the fiber. We demonstrate versatile spectrum manipulations that could be used to generate a multi-wavelength, tunable source. The wavefront shaping control allows spectral shifting and modal tuning. A theoretical analysis of modal phase matching in graded index multi-mode fibers is presented and we suggest potential bio-imaging applications.
Academic opportunity structures and the creation of campus activism

Past research points to elite, liberal and/or wealthy universities and colleges as the most likely sites of campus activism. In addition, periods of high social movement mobilization in society in ...
Viruses as Probes for Development and Differentiation

Publisher Summary This chapter presents study of viruses that has contributed in two important ways to a better understanding of gene regulation and developmental biology. First, an analysis of the processes of viral replication itself has provided new principles of gene organization, DNA, RNA, and protein synthesis, modification, and processing. Second, the use of viruses and the regulation of their gene expression to probe the biochemical and genetic alterations of a developmentally interesting host cell has begun to provide useful insights into gene regulation of differentiated cells. Information from both of these approaches has come together to provide a more complete picture of developmental processes. A good example of this can be illustrated with recent studies of RNA processing. The capping of the 5´ ends of eukaryotic RNAs and its utility in protein synthesis observed with reoviruse. Viruses have also been useful in defining and recognizing cellular genes and even their gene products. Just as viruses have been useful in identifying cellular genes and their products, the differentiated host cell has been essential in the identification of viral genes, their products, and their phenotypes.
Ethical Challenges in the Two Main Segments of the Insurance Industry: Key Considerations in the Evolving Financial Services Marketplace

Based on the findings of several research studies of professionals in both the property-liability insurance industry and the life insurance industry, the paper makes and supports several important points. First, ethical challenges in the insurance industry involve not only a series of ethical dilemmas frequently faced by those working in the business, but also a variety of factors that hinder those working in the industry as they seek to resolve the ethical dilemmas encountered in the course of their work. Both of these two components of ethical challenges must be understood by those in the financial services industry who will deal with insurance operations in the future. Second, whereas the life insurance business and the property-liability insurance business have traditionally been viewed as being quite different from one another and still are in terms of operations and regulation, the research findings show that they are no longer very different in terms of the key ethical challenges faced by those working in the two segments of the industry. The paper shows how during the past decade the ethical challenges in the property-liability insurance industry have become quite similar to those in the more troubled life insurance industry.
Incorporating Interoperability Functionality for Increasing Patient Safety with PCA-Included Multiple Infusion Therapy

Implementation of interoperability in an infusion therapy system intends to enhance safety, by allowing intercommunication among medical devices connected to a patient. Some postoperative specific cases entail the patient with multiple drug delivery devices. As adverse drug events (ADEs) can occur with the use of infusion pumps, the multiplication of those devices at the patient’s bedside establishes the need of multi-modalities safety feature. The designed system propose to integrate an interoperability feature in a multiple drug delivery modules infusion therapy, including a PCA treatment, creating pertinent interactions allowing the system to respond promptly to medication errors alerts, by suspending one or more drug deliveries thanks to standby orders. An Intelligent Interoperability Manager (IIM) is linked to a group of infusion devices, a patient monitoring device, and to a hospital information system (HIS), accessible anytime for treatment information consultation. If the situation is considered to be critical, the IIM sends proper alert signals. Diverse critical situations are simulated, in a conventional multi-infusions therapy system, and in interoperability implemented system. In the first case, the time between alarm event and clinician intervention presents a significant delay, potentially leading to deterioration of patient condition. In the second case, abnormal values are detected and the system’s decision-making unit reacts according to the situation. Thus, the proposed design emphasizes that interoperability functionality can enhance both safety and treatment management in the delicate system of multiple modules infusion therapy.
From HMMS to Segment Models: Stochastic Modeling for CSR

In recent years, several alternative models have been proposed to address some of the shortcomings of the hidden Markov model (HMM), currently the most popular approach to speech recognition. Many of these models, which attempt to represent trends or correlation of observations over time, can broadly be classified as segment models. This chapter describes a general probabilistic framework for segment models, including HMMs as a special case, giving options for modeling assumptions in terms of correlation structure and parameter tying and outlining the extensions to HMM recognition and training algorithms needed to handle segment models.
General Constraints on Process Models of Language Comprehension

It is suggested that psychological research on language has adopted peculiar priorities by extrapolating from structural linguistics, rather than specifying general theories of cognition and communication to fit the issues of language processing. A framework is presented that situates text processing in such general human constraints as resources, memory, and linear capacities. A set of questions for future research is drawn from this foundation.
Elastic Wave Scattering by Macro-Micro Crack Configurations

Elastic wave scattering by several cracks in an infinite isotropic elastic solid has been studied by several investigators[1]–[6]. In general, a system of singular integral equations for the crack opening displacements or the dislocation densities has to be solved. From the crack-damage interaction point of view, a special case of some practical importance is the macro-micro crack configuration, especially when the microcracks are in the vicinity of the macrocrack tips. For example, a macrocrack tip in ceramics usually is accompanied by a cloud of microcracks. In this paper, an iteration method is developed for this special configuration. Instead of solving a system of singular integral equations simultaneously, we need to solve only one equation, for each crack, at each iterative step. This iteration approach is based on the elastodynamic integral representation theorem, and can be applied to both 2-D and 3-D cracks. Furthermore, it can also be extended to cracks in anisotropic solids, since the constitutive equation used in the derivation is the general Hooke’s law.
On Viscoplasticity and Continuum Dislocation Theory

Concepts of dislocation force and flux or velocity tensors introduced by Mura are related to external and self-equilibrating eigenstress fields and to lattice and dislocation-related deformations. Constitutive assumptions for a dislocation-based viscoplasticity theory are introduced and the results compared with macroscopic continuum formulations. Kinematic and kinetic decompositions of the deformation gradients are carefully discussed in the context of thermodynamical restrictions on the constitutive theory. The insights gained from the dislocation-theoretic approach are used to provide both a physical interpretation and means to evaluate properties derivable from the macroscopic theory but not easily understood without recourse to dislocation concepts.
Disturbance history, species diversity, and structural complexity of a temperate deciduous forest

Stand structural complexity enhancement is an increasingly popular management objective, especially on public lands. Complex stand structures are hypothesized to support a relatively high degree of native forest diversity and be more resistant and resilient to disturbances. Complex structures are characterized by the presence of deadwood and heterogeneity of tree-size classes and tree architecture. Relatively little is known about how discrete disturbance events affect structural complexity and compositional diversity in Quercus-dominated stands at fine spatial scales (i.e. neighborhoods). We established 20 0.05 ha fixed-radius plots on the Sipsey Wilderness of William B. Bankhead National Forest in northern Alabama to quantify woody plant species composition and structure. Trees were mapped on each plot to quantify overstory structural complexity and compositional diversity. We extracted two cores from all canopy Quercus spp. ≥ 5 cm diameter at breast height to quantify age, recruitment pulses, and reconstruct canopy disturbance history. Shannon species diversity in the sampled area was 1.75 for trees, 2.08 for saplings, and 1.69 for seedlings. Quercus alba had the greatest basal area, and Ostrya virginiana had the highest density. The stand exhibited a reverse J-shaped distribution with a q-factor of 1.72. The oldest Quercus dated to 1795, and the largest recruitment pulse occurred in the 1870s. The mean return interval for intermediate-severity disturbance was 38 years. Although we documented no relationships between disturbance frequency and compositional diversity at the neighborhood scale (0.05 ha), less frequent disturbance was associated with higher structural complexity (r2 = 0.258, p = 0.026) at the neighborhood scale. We suggest that localized disturbance increases species diversity and structural complexity, but these processes are manifest at the stand level and not at the neighborhood scale. We conclude that the spatial variability (i.e. size, shape, orientation, microsite conditions) is likely more influential on diversity and complexity than the temporal variation (frequency) of these processes at the neighborhood scale.
In vivo imaging of nitric oxide and hydrogen peroxide in cardiac myocytes.

Nitric oxide (NO) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) are synthesized within cardiac myocytes, and both molecules play key roles in modulating cardiovascular responses. However, the interconnections between NO and H2O2 in cardiac myocyte signaling have not been properly understood. Adult mouse cardiac myocytes represent an informative model for the study of receptor-modulated signaling pathways involving reactive oxygen species and reactive nitrogen species. However, these cells typically survive for only 1–2 days in culture, and the limited abundance of cellular protein undermines many biochemical analyses. We have exploited chemical sensors and biosensors for use in in vivo imaging studies of H2O2 and NO in adult cardiac myocytes. Here we describe detailed methods for the isolation of cardiac myocytes suitable for imaging studies. We also present our methods for the generation of recombinant lentiviral preparations encoding the H2O2 biosensor HyPer2 that permit analysis of intracellular H2O2 levels using fluorescence microscopy in living cardiac myocytes following tail vein injection and in cultured endothelial cells following infection. We also describe our protocols for using the NO chemical sensor Cu2(FL2E) in living adult mouse cardiac myocytes to study the effects of agonist-modulated H2O2 production on NO synthesis. Using these techniques, we have demonstrated that receptor-stimulated increases in intracellular H2O2 modulate NO levels in living cardiac myocytes. These and similar approaches may facilitate a broad range of studies in other terminally differentiated cells that involve the interaction of NO- and H2O2-regulated signaling responses.
3D convolutional neural networks for detection and severity staging of meniscus and PFJ cartilage morphological degenerative changes in osteoarthritis and anterior cruciate ligament subjects.

BACKGROUND Semiquantitative assessment of MRI plays a central role in musculoskeletal research; however, in the clinical setting MRI reports often tend to be subjective and qualitative. Grading schemes utilized in research are not used because they are extraordinarily time-consuming and unfeasible in clinical practice. PURPOSE To evaluate the ability of deep-learning models to detect and stage severity of meniscus and patellofemoral cartilage lesions in osteoarthritis and anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) subjects. STUDY TYPE Retrospective study aimed to evaluate a technical development. POPULATION In all, 1478 MRI studies, including subjects at various stages of osteoarthritis and after ACL injury and reconstruction. FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE 3T MRI, 3D FSE CUBE. ASSESSMENT Automatic segmentation of cartilage and meniscus using 2D U-Net, automatic detection, and severity staging of meniscus and cartilage lesion with a 3D convolutional neural network (3D-CNN). STATISTICAL TESTS Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, specificity and sensitivity, and class accuracy. RESULTS Sensitivity of 89.81% and specificity of 81.98% for meniscus lesion detection and sensitivity of 80.0% and specificity of 80.27% for cartilage were achieved. The best performances for staging lesion severity were obtained by including demographics factors, achieving accuracies of 80.74%, 78.02%, and 75.00% for normal, small, and complex large lesions, respectively. DATA CONCLUSION In this study we provide a proof of concept of a fully automated deep-learning pipeline that can identify the presence of meniscal and patellar cartilage lesions. This pipeline has also shown potential in making more in-depth examinations of lesion subjects for multiclass prediction and severity staging. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE 2 Technical Efficacy: Stage 2 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2019;49:400-410.
Current-matching in two-terminal perovskite/silicon tandems employing wide-bandgap perovskites and varying light-management schemes

Perovskite/silicon tandems have the potential to surpass the efficiencies possible with single-junction silicon solar cells. Recently, perovskites with wide bandgaps have been demonstrated that can reduce the thermalization losses and make it feasible to boost the efficiency. However, perovskite/silicon tandems on planar silicon cells are multi-layered devices that exhibit strong interference which makes current matching difficult to achieve in two-terminal devices. We perform comprehensive optical modeling of perovskite/silicon tandems with a range of different bandgap perovskites and textures to determine the top-cell thicknesses necessary to achieve current matching for varying top-cell bandgap. Our results show it is possible to achieve 27% efficiency with 1.67 eV bandgap perovskite, and even higher efficiency is possible by minimizing parasitic losses.
Analysis of Wind Turbine’s Velocity Deficit, Recovery and Output Power Losses using a Hybrid CFD-Jensen’s Wake Model Scheme

Owing to the depletion of the fossil fuels and their ill-effects posed on the environment, the alternative renewable energy resources are receiving ever increasing focus of the modern world. Amid these resources, prospects of harvesting energy form the wind stand out because of its inexhaustible availability and cost-effectiveness. In spite of all the pros associated with the wind power, a con exists in the shape of low power density. Hence, to generate an amount of energy comparable with the other sources, numerous wind turbines are arrayed in a single wind farm. With this, arises the problem of wake interaction amongst the turbine arrays, owing to which, the downstream wind turbines exhibit a reduced output yield. This instigates a significant diminution in the efficiency of the succeeding wind turbines and, hence, their service life gets adversely affected as well. Much work has been inspired to attain a proper understanding of the wake interactions by developing wake interaction models. Notable amongst these models are the infinite wind farm boundary layer model, the Jensen model and its variant Jensen Park model, the Larsen model, FUGA and Ellipsys 3D model with RANS and LES variants. There exists enough data in the literature to prove that the Jensen’s wake model has long maintained its dominance over other models. This owes to its less computational cost yet with adequate accuracy in its predictions. In this work, an analysis of the velocity deficit aft of the wind turbine and its recovery along the downstream distance as calculated by the Jensen’s model has been compared with a case when a hybrid CFD-Jensen model technique is employed. As wind farm layout optimization is concerned with the optimal energy harvest through placement of maximum wind turbines within a limited area of the wind farm, the magnitude of output power losses along the downstream distance, becomes quite a significant concern. Hence, this analysis has been further extended to the estimation of output power losses as manifested by the succeeding wind turbines operating in the wakes, at different downstream distances. Furthermore, a comparative analysis of the angular spread of the wakes, as they travel downstream, is also presented. This study will be particularly useful for the cases when very little or no experimental data is available at hand, as it provides initial estimates for the wind farm layout optimization for optimal energy harvest.
Association of ulcerative colitis and red blood cells coated with autoimmune antibody. Report of a case.

A young woman with chronic ulcerative colitis, rheumatic heart disease, and mild diabetes mellitus, and who had not had any blood transfusions, developed an autoimmune antibody directed against her own erythrocytes with positive-direct and negative-indirect Coombs' tests. The antibodies disappeared after total colectomy, but were not affected by partial removal of the colon. No circulating anticolon antibodies could be demonstrated in the patient's serum, nor were antinuclear antibodies detected by L.E. cell preparations, nucleoprotein-coated latex particles, or by fluorescent antibody technics. Since the antibodies coating the red cells were specific for the molecular structure of the antigens e and f, it is suggested that they developed following absorption of damaged red cells through the ulcerated colonic mucosa and that antibody production stopped when this process was abolished by total colectomy.
Residential loads flexibility potential for demand response using energy consumption patterns and user segments

Abstract Demand response (DR) is considered an effective approach in mitigating the ever-growing concerns for supplying the electricity peak demand. Recent attempts have shown that the contribution from the aggregate impact of flexible individual residential loads can add flexibility to the power grid as ancillary services. However, current DR schemes do not systematically distinguish the varying potential of user contribution due to the highly-varied usage behaviors. Thus, this paper proposes a data-driven approach for quantifying the potential of individual flexible load users for participation in DR. We introduced a metric to capture the predictability of usage in a future DR event using the historical consumption data for different load types. The metric helps to sort the users with flexible loads in a community according to their potential for load shifting scenarios. We then evaluated the applicability of the metric in the DR context to assess the extent of energy reduction for different segments of users. In our analysis, we included electric vehicle, wet appliances (dryer, washing machine, dishwasher), and air conditioning. The analysis of real-world data shows that the approach is effective in identifying suitable user segments with higher predictive potential for demand reduction. We also presented a cross-appliance comparison for assessing the flexibility potential of different user segments. As a case study based on Pecan Street Project, the findings suggest that potentially ~160 MWh reduction might be achieved in Austin, TX through only 20% participation of the selected flexible loads for the residential sector during a 2-h event.
Effects of Early Exposure of Isoflurane on Chronic Pain via the Mammalian Target of Rapamycin Signal Pathway

Persistent post-surgical pain (PPSP) is a chronic pain condition, often with neuropathic features, that occurs in approximately 20% of children who undergo surgery. The biological basis of PPSP has not been elucidated. Anesthetic drugs can have lasting effects on the developing nervous system, although the clinical impact of this phenomenon is unknown. Here, we used a mouse model to test the hypothesis that early developmental exposure to isoflurane causes cellular and molecular alteration in the pain perception circuitry that causes a predisposition to chronic, neuropathic pain via a pathologic upregulation of the mammalian target of the rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway. Mice were exposed to isoflurane at postnatal day 7 and select cohorts were treated with rapamycin, an mTOR pathway inhibitor. Behavioral tests conducted 2 months later showed increased evidence of neuropathic pain, which did not occur in rapamycin-treated animals. Immunohistochemistry showed neuronal activity was chronically increased in the insular cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, and spinal dorsal horn, and activity was attenuated by rapamycin. Immunohistochemistry and western blotting (WB) showed a co-incident chronic, abnormal upregulation in mTOR activity. We conclude that early isoflurane exposure alters the development of pain circuits and has the potential to contribute to PPSP and/or other pain syndromes.
Chapter 256 – Tracheal System

Publisher Summary This chapter describes tracheal system of insects. Insects have a tracheal respiratory system in which oxygen and carbon dioxide travel primarily through air-filled tubes called tracheae. Usually the tracheal system penetrates the cuticle via closeable valves called spiracles and ends near or within the tissues in tiny tubes called tracheoles. The tracheae primarily serve as pipes that transport gases between the spiracles and the tracheoles, whereas the thin-walled tracheoles are thought to be the main sites of gas exchange with the tissues. However, in many insects, the tracheae are compressible, and dilations of the tracheae form thin walled air sacs that together serve as bellows for enhancing the flow of gases through the tracheal system. In general, the size of the tracheal system increases with age in order to support the increased gas exchange needs of the larger insect. Major changes in tracheal structure, including changes in spiracle number and tracheal system organization, can occur at each molt and during the pupal period for endopterygote insects. The organization of the tracheal system varies dramatically among insects, with spiracle number ranging from 0 to 20 and with tracheal branching patterns varying widely across species, between body regions, and during the developmental stages of holometabolous insects.
BRAF-Mutant Metastatic Melanoma Presenting as a Fungating Soft Tissue Mass Suspicious for Sarcoma

Abstract While evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of soft tissue masses are a daily part of the orthopaedic oncologist's practice, it is rare for a patient to present initially to the orthopaedic clinic with melanoma. More commonly, the patient presents as a referral from the medical oncologist for 1) evaluation of a long bone metastasis concerning for [impending] pathologic fracture or 2) amputation of a digit or limb to achieve wide resection for cure. We present here a rare case of metastatic melanoma presenting initially to the orthopaedic oncologist as a fungating soft tissue mass concerning for a sarcoma. Through effective collaboration with a melanoma specialist at our cancer center, an impressive local response was observed within weeks of initiating targeted therapy with encorafenib and binimetinib. The patient was thus spared a palliative amputation.
Loss of Meaning at Work Associated with Burnout Risk in Academic Medicine.

OBJECTIVES Meaning at work has been proposed as one of the key drivers of professional burnout in healthcare, but few studies have simultaneously measured this relation. METHODS In this cross-sectional analysis of 1637 individuals at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, burnout was measured using the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory work-related subscale. RESULTS Meaningful work was measured using items adapted from the Work as Meaning Inventory. The prevalence of work-related burnout increased with each level of diminished meaning at work. From the highest ("always") to the lowest ("never") level of meaning at work, the prevalence of burnout was: 13, 26, 57, 84, and 94%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Work-related burnout was inversely proportional to reported meaning at work in an academic medical center.
The Effects of a Selective Tax on Contract Design and Tax Timing

Taxation affects income via both a compensation contract response and a worker response. I show that executive contracts adjust to a tax on severances, and executives shift their taxable income timing in response to the interaction of tax and contract. In particular, “golden parachute” severances tend to bunch at a threshold (tied to taxable income) where the tax rate discontinuously increases, and CEOs exercise stock options in bulk to raise their taxable income and boost their threshold. Identification comes from a bunching analysis exploiting a discontinuous change in exercise incentives over time and variation across CEOs in contract incentives and deal timing. The paper demonstrates the role of contract structure in tax avoidance and additionally shows how contract structure affects worker behavior.
Mitochondrial DNA Analysis of Forensic Evidence: Jack the Ripper or Ripoff?

A widely publicized study claimed to finally identify the infamous serial killer Jack the Ripper based on a forensic analysis using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) extracted from a possession of a victim. However, only control regions of mtDNA were sequenced which greatly raises the odds of a match to a purported relative from chance alone. In addition, rather than simply stating the locations of the DNA polymorphisms or even the number of variants found as would be expected, they show only confusing crude graphical blocks that are further misleading about the odds of a chance match and do not allow independent verification of calculations. The haplogroup (for example, outlaw Jesse James is Haplogroup T2) is also withheld despite its usefulness towards evaluating a claim that the identified murderer was of Russian Jewish descent, as well as of public interest that they claim was a purpose of their report. They attribute all the secrecy to the Data Protection Act of 2018 but our search of the 354 page document does not preclude (or even mention) prohibition of publishing at the nucleotide level as claimed and if it did, hundreds of thousands of mtDNA sequences in publications would be in violation. Overall, no evidence is presented from mtDNA to implicate the identity of Jack the Ripper. Even mitochondrial DNA is innocent until proven guilty.
Refeeding and weight restoration outcomes in anorexia nervosa: Challenging current guidelines

Objective Cohort study from February 2003 through May 2011 to determine weight restoration and refeeding complication outcomes for patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) treated in an integrated inpatient-partial hospital eating disorder program designed to produce rapid weight gain and weight restoration in the majority. Method Consecutive admissions (females and males, adolescents and adults; N = 361 patients, 461 admissions) at least 1.8 kg below target weight with AN or subthreshold variants were included. Main outcome measures were rates of hypophosphatemia, transfer to medicine, or death; rates of weight gain and percent achieving weight restoration. Results Hypophosphatemia was present in 7.9% of cases at admission and in 18.5% at some point during treatment. Hypophosphatemia was mild to moderate. Lower admission body mass index (BMI), but not rate of weight gain, predicted hypophosphatemia [OR = 0.65; p < .00001 (95% CI 0.57–0.76)]. Five patients (1.1%) were transferred to medicine or surgery, none because of refeeding. There were no deaths. Mean inpatient weight gain was 1.98 kg/week; mean partial hospital weight gain was 1.36 kg/week. By program discharge, 71.8% of adults reached a BMI of 19, 58.5% a BMI of 20. For adolescents, 80.4% came within 2 kg of their target weight; 76.1% came within 1 kg. Discussion Refeeding patients with AN using a hospital-based, behavioral protocol may be accomplished safely and more rapidly than generally recognized, weight restoring most patients by discharge. Helpful elements may include the program's integrated, step-down structure; multidisciplinary team approach emphasizing group therapy to effect behavior change; and close medical monitoring for those with BMI < 15. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (Int J Eat Disord 2015; 48:866–873)
Eukaryotic Gene Prediction Using GeneMark.hmm-E and GeneMark-ES

This unit describes how to use the gene-finding programs GeneMark.hmm-E and GeneMark-ES for finding protein-coding genes in the genomic DNA of eukaryotic organisms. These bioinformatics tools have been demonstrated to have state-of-the-art accuracy for many fungal, plant, and animal genomes, and have frequently been used for gene annotation in novel genomic sequences. An additional advantage of GeneMark-ES is that the problem of algorithm parameterization is solved automatically, with parameters estimated by iterative self-training (unsupervised training).
Activation and oxidative dimerization of methane over lithium-promoted zinc oxide

Abstract Lithium-doped ZnO has been found to be a relatively good catalyst for the oxidative dimerization of methane to ethane and ethylene. Maximum C2 yields of approximately 15% have been attained and are comparable with those previously observed over Li-doped MgO catalysts. Initial methane activation is believed to be via hydrogen atom abstraction by [Li+O−]centers on the catalyst surface, and this results in the formation of surface-generated gas-phase methyl radicals. Gas-phase radical reactions provide the primary pathway for the formation of selective C2 products. Nonselective C1 product formation is most likely promoted on the pure ZnO surface. Zinc oxide is a nonbasic semiconductor, whereas MgO is a basic insulator. However, these differences in electronic and basic properties tend to disappear when the oxides are doped with lithium, and the similarities are reflected in the catalytic properties.
A Red Pine Bark Factor Equation for Michigan

A multiple linear regression equation was de1·eloped to predict bark factor for jack pine in Michigan as a function of tree height. The equation was l'{llidated on independent data sets. The prediction equation yielded average relatire errors from -2.9 to 0.-1% for all tree heights above stump height. At stllmp hetght the arerage relatil·e errors l'{lriedfrom -5.3 to -2.3o/C. The jack pine equacion was compared with red pine and aspen barkj£1ctor equmions. The ne11· equation can be used to more accurately estimate tree and log wood mlumes than when using a constant bark factor determined at breast heigh c. which. in general. leads to underescimates of wood I'Oiwne. Norch. J. Appl. For. 1012):86~9. Bark factor (FJ at a given tree height is the ratio of diameter inside bark (dibl to diameter outside bark (dobl. Bark factors ,.ary with species. age. site. and tree height. Bark factors at stump or breast height usually vary from 0.87 to 0.93. Even though much of the variation in bark factor is related to species. bark factor does increase with tree height for many species. In spite of this relationship. a constant bark factor has been assumed for many tree species for all tree heights. The use ofa constant bark factor. determined at breast height. for all tree heights. will. in general. lead to underestimates ofmosttree and log volumes and overestimates of bark volume. Multiple linear regression equations have been developed to predict bark factor as a function ofvarious independent variables such as tree height and associated diameter outside bark. Such equations have not been developed for many species because data have been lacking for the independent variables. or the use ofa constant bark factor has been considered adequate. As forest management becomes more intensive. the use of such equations should be considered so that more accurate estimates of wood volume can be obtained. Wood values should be estimated as accurately as possible in order to more accurately assess timber values in multiple-use forest management. See Husch et al. ( 1982) for a detailed discussion on bark factors. and specitically refer to Fowler and Damschroder ( 1988), who developed a red pine bark factor equation for Michigan and discussed the various
Relaxation in complex systems

The phenomenon of slow relaxation is discussed with emphasis on finding a general explanation of its ubiquity. After a review of the phenomenon, possible causes are considered both at the microscopic level and from a configuration space viewpoint. Quenched randomness and strongly constrained dynamics appear most important microscopically. In configuration space the central requirement seems to be the existence of many valleys connected sparsely in a hierarchical way. Recent toy models are shown to fit into this overall picture.
Changes in alveolar oxygen and carbon dioxide concentration and oxygen consumption during lung preservation : the maintenance of aerobic metabolism during lung preservation

The lung is the only organ to which oxygen may be supplied after its blood supply is stopped. Before this study, we were not certain whether lung cells were able to maintain aerobic metabolism with the oxygen in the alveoli during preservation. Excised rabbit lungs were used to measure changes in the concentration of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the airway and changes in glucose, glucose-6-phosphate, lactate, adenosine triphosphate, and phosphocreatine levels in the lung tissue during preservation under different conditions. Twenty-seven lungs were flushed with low-potassium dextran electrolyte solution, inflated with room air, and preserved at 1° C (n = 8), 10° C (n = 8), or 22° C (n = 11) for 4, 12, or 24 hours. Eight additional lungs were inflated with 100 % nitrogen and preserved at 10° C for 4 (n = 4) or 24 (n = 4) hours. Oxygen levels decreased and carbon dioxide levels increased in the airway of the lungs that were inflated with room air at rates dependent on the preservation temperature. The increase of carbon dioxide in the lungs that were inflated with 100% nitrogen was very small. When the oxygen was not available in the alveoli, lactate accumulated, and adenosine triphosphate and phosphocreatine decreased in the lung tissue. We concluded that lung cells are able to maintain aerobic metabolism with the oxygen in the alveoli during preservation and that the maintenance of aerobic metabolism may be essential to maintain the optimum viability of preserved lung tissue.
Effects of plume-scale versus grid-scale treatment of aircraft exhaust photochemistry

[1] This is a study to examine the impact of modeling photochemistry from aircraft emissions in an expanding plume versus at the grid scale in an atmospheric model. Differences in model treatments for a single flight occurred at all altitudes during takeoff, cruise, and landing. After 10 h, the plume treatment decreased grid-scale ozone production by 33%, methane destruction by 30%, and carbon monoxide destruction by 32% at cruise altitude compared with the grid-scale treatment. The plume treatment changed the odd nitrogen partitioning by ~10%. For multiple overlapping flights at cruise altitude, final ozone, methane, and carbon monoxide perturbations decreased by 77, 68, and 74%, respectively, compared with the grid-scale treatment. Enhanced mixing with ambient air reduced the plume-scale and grid-scale differences. The persistent differences in photochemical activity indicate that individual plume treatment should be incorporated into 3-D modeling studies.
Innovative Dependence? Revisiting the Effects of Firm Size on Innovation

After several decades of critical debate, management scholarship has generally come to accept that large firms depend on smaller firms for innovative development. It is generally supposed that dise...
Critical signaling pathways in bone sarcoma: candidates for therapeutic interventions.

Bone sarcomas cause disproportionate morbidity and mortality and desperately need new therapies as there has been little improvement in outcomes in 20 years. Identification of critical signaling pathways, including type 1 insulin-like growth factor receptor (IGF-1R) for Ewing sarcoma and possibly osteosarcoma, and the ERBB and the Wnt signaling pathways for osteosarcoma, have emerged as receptors mediating vital signals for bone sarcoma. Akt, mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), phosphoinositide 3-kinases, mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase, extracellular signal-regulated kinases, and Ras pathway play key roles in at least some tumors, and inhibition of mTOR in particular will likely lead to improved survival, although clinical trials are still underway. The Notch pathway and ezrin are essential for osteosarcoma metastasis, and Fas down-regulation is necessary for survival of metastases in lungs. As little is known about chondrosarcoma signaling, more preclinical work is needed. By defining vital signaling pathways in bone sarcomas, small molecule inhibitors can be applied rationally, leading to longer survival and reducing morbidity and late effects from intensive chemotherapy.
Theory of the time and frequency dependence of near-resonant raman scattering and quantum beats

Abstract A calculation of the time dependence of light scattering from an atom or molecules yields a continuous transition from fast Raman scattering to resonance fluorescence in agreement with recent experiments. If the resonant excited state has two or more nearby levels, “quantum beats” may be observed. These quantum beats are present even if the incident light is tuned off resonance.