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Luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) are a promising technology to help integrate solar cells into the built environment, as they are colorful, semi-transparent, and can collect diffuse light. While LSCs have traditionally been cuboidal, in recent years a variety of unconventional geometries have arisen, for example circular, curved, polygonal, wedged, and leaf-shaped designs. These new designs can help reduce optical losses, facilitate incorporation into the built environment or unlock new applications. However, as fabrication of complex geometries can be time- and resource-intensive, the ability to simulate the expected LSC performance prior to production would be highly advantageous. While a variety of softwares exist to model LSCs, they either cannot be applied to unconventional geometries, are not open-source, or are not tractable for most users. Therefore, here we introduce a significant upgrade of the widely-used Monte Carlo ray-trace software pvTrace to include: (i) capability to characterize unconventional geometries and improved relevance to standard measurement configurations; (ii) increased computational efficiency; and (iii) a graphical user interface (GUI) for ease-of-use. We first test these upgrades using devices from the literature, as well as experimental results from in-house fabricated LSCs, with agreement within 1% obtained for the simulated versus measured external photon efficiency. We then demonstrate the broad applicability of pvTrace by simulating 20 different unconventional geometries, including a variety of different shapes and manufacturing techniques. We show that pvTrace can be used to predict meaningful physical phenomena, including enhanced optical efficiency using 3D printed devices. The more versatile and accessible computational workflow afforded by the upgraded pvTrace, coupled with 3D printed prototypes, will enable rapid screening of more intricate LSC architectures, while reducing experimental waste. Our goal is that this accelerates sustainability-driven design in the LSC field, leading to higher optical efficiency or increased utility.

Building accurate protein models into moderate resolution (3-5Å) cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) maps is challenging and error-prone. While the majority of solved cryo-EM structures are at these resolutions, there are few model validation metrics that can precisely evaluate the local quality of atomic models built into these maps. We have developed MEDIC (Model Error Detection in Cryo-EM), a robust statistical model to identify residue-level errors in protein structures built into cryo-EM maps. Trained on a set of errors from obsoleted protein structures, our model draws off two major sources of information to predict errors: the local agreement of model and map compared to expected, and how “native-like” the neighborhood around a residue looks, as predicted by a deep learning model. MEDIC is validated on a set of 28 structures that were subsequently solved to higher-resolutions, where our model identifies the differences between low- and high-resolution structures with 68% precision and 60% recall. We additionally use this model to rebuild 12 deposited structures, fixing 2 sequence registration errors, 51 areas with improper secondary structure, 51 incorrect loops, and 16 incorrect carbonyls, showing the value of this approach to guide model building.

There is a clear need for a robust process analytical technology tool that can be used for on-line/in-line prediction of dissolution and disintegration characteristics of pharmaceutical tablets during manufacture. Tablet porosity is a reliable and fundamental critical quality attribute which controls key mass transport mechanisms that govern disintegration and dissolution behavior. A measurement protocol was developed to measure the total porosity of a large number of tablets in transmission without the need for any sample preparation. By using this fast and non-destructive terahertz spectroscopy method it is possible to predict the disintegration and dissolution of drug from a tablet in less than a second per sample without the need of a chemometric model. The validity of the terahertz porosity method was established across a range of immediate release (IR) formulations of ibuprofen and indomethacin tablets of varying geometries as well as with and without debossing. Excellent correlation was observed between the measured terahertz porosity, dissolution characteristics (time to release 50% drug content) and disintegration time for all samples. These promising results and considering the robustness of the terahertz method pave the way for a fully automated at-line/on-line porosity sensor for real time release testing of IR tablets dissolution.

Porosity, one of the important quality attributes of pharmaceutical tablets, directly affects the mechanical properties, the mass transport and hence tablet disintegration, dissolution and ultimately the bioavailability of an orally administered drug. The ability to accurately and quickly monitor the porosity of tablets during manufacture or during the manufacturing process will enable a greater assurance of product quality. This tutorial systematically outlines the steps involved in the terahertz-based measurement method that can be used to quantify the porosity of a tablet within seconds in a non-destructive and non-invasive manner. The terahertz-based porosity measurement can be performed using one of the three main methods, which are (i) the zero-porosity approximation (ZPA); (ii) the traditional Bruggeman effective medium approximation (TB-EMA); and (iii) the anisotropic Bruggeman effective medium approximation (AB-EMA). By using a set of batches of flat-faced and biconvex tablets as a case study, the three main methods are compared and contrasted. Overall, frequency-domain signal processing coupled with the AB-EMA method was found to be most suitable approach in terms of accuracy and robustness when predicting the porosity of tablets over a range of complexities and geometries. This tutorial aims to concisely outline all the necessary steps, precautions and unique advantages associated with the terahertz-based porosity measurement method.

This study aimed to help determine the effect of dietary supplements on symptom course and quality of life in patients with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 infection.We modified the Wisconsin Upper Respiratory Symptom Survey (WURSS) to conduct a 3 arm, parallel, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, enrolling patients with mild-to-moderate symptoms of COVID-19 infection. Patients took placebo (Ninety Eight (98 out of 104 recruited; mean age = 52 years) patients completed the study. Outcomes were calculated as differences from baseline scores on each of 2 WURSS-derived surveys and analyzed using a spline regression analysis. Regarding symptom progression, those patients taking placebo and vitamin C progressed at the same rate. When compared with those taking placebo (coefficient = -1.09 (95% confidence interval [CI] = -1.39 to -0.8) the group taking melatonin had a faster resolution of symptoms (coefficient = -0.63 [95% CI -1.02 to -0.21]Vitamin C 1000 mg once daily has no effect on disease progression. Melatonin 10 mg daily may have a statistically significant effect but it is unclear if this represents a clinically significant benefit to those with mild-to-moderate symptoms of COVID-19 infection. Further study is warranted.

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is associated with many neoplastic hematologic conditions, but scattered EBV-positive cells can be detected in lymph nodes of healthy individuals and they usually represent latently infected lymphocytes. The incidence of EBV detection in normal bone marrow samples has not been studied and is largely unknown. The lack of knowledge regarding the true incidence of encountering bystander latent EBV-positive cells in the bone marrow may potentially lead to a diagnostic dilemma when assessing a staging bone marrow for a patient with an EBV-positive B or T/NK-cell lymphoma. The aim of our study was to investigate the rate of detection of EBV expression in bone marrow samples and correlate any positive findings with various clinical parameters including patient's age, sex, clinical history, immune status, and any neoplastic transformation if follow-up data are available. We retrospectively studied 230 consecutive bone marrow biopsies performed in 2013 and found 5 cases (2.17%) with scattered EBV-positive cells by in situ hybridization. The observed scattered EBV-positive cells are largely small in size and likely represent bystander, latently infected cells. The rate of detection of EBV-positive cells in the bone marrow appears to be slightly higher in immunodeficient individuals (3%) than in immunocompetent patients (1%).

Key Clinical Message Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a life‐threatening hyper activation of the immune system. Rare cases associated with HELLP syndrome and other similar conditions in pregnancy have been reported. Despite the improved survival rates with etoposide and dexamethasone‐based regimens, HLH remains a challenging disease. Experience in pregnant patients is exceedingly rare.

The plays of Eugene O'Neill dramatize acts of loyalty and honesty among members of Irish American families, from the early works (The Straw and Beyond the Horizon) to the last plays (Long Day's Journey Into Night, A Touch of the Poet, and A Moon for the Misbegotten). These virtues were not only featured in O'Neill's canon but also lived in his personal relations with kith and kin. O'Neill's embrace of his Irish heritage developed and matured over the course of several decades, from his teen years until his mid-fifties. He befriended fellow Irish writers O'Casey and Yeats and became a staunch supporter of the Irish Free State and eventually the Republic of Ireland. Over this long life's journey, O'Neill came to understand and believe that those key character traits were passed on to him via his Irish heritage, thus, encouraging him to embrace his “Irishness” with a certain “clannish pride.”

Although rare cases of prolymphocytic transformation from splenic B-cell lymphomas and follicular lymphoma have been reported, prolymphocytic transformation from lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma has not been previously reported. We report a case of 76-year-old-male patient with a history of Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia diagnosed in 2010 and treated with infusion chemotherapy. He was in clinical remission for 5 years. In 2016, he presented with diffuse lymphadenopathy, and a head and neck lymph node biopsy showed lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma. MYD88 mutation was detected by polymerase chain reaction. A subsequent bone marrow biopsy showed B-cell lymphoma with increased prolymphocytes. Peripheral blood showed numerous circulating prolymphocytes. MYD88 was detected by polymerase chain reaction in the bone marrow. Cerebrospinal fluid was positive for lymphoma cells with prolymphocytic morphology. An IgM κ paraprotein was noted by immunofixation performed on the patient's serum, urine, and cerebrospinal fluid. The patient was resistant to chemotherapy, developed multiorgan failure, and died shortly thereafter.

The American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) recently published a rigorous framework to guide integration of economic data into clinical guidelines. We assessed the quality of economic evaluations in a major ACC/AHA clinical guidance report.We systematically identified cost-effectiveness analyses (CEAs) of RCTs cited in the ACC/AHA 2012 Guideline for the Diagnosis and Management of Patients with Stable Ischemic Heart Disease. We extracted: (1) study identifiers; (2) parent RCT information; (3) economic analysis characteristics; and (4) study quality using the Quality of Health Economic Studies instrument (QHES).Quality scores were categorized as high (≥75 points) or low (75 points). Of 1,266 citations in the guideline, 219 were RCTs associated with 77 CEAs. Mean quality score was 81 (out of 100) and improved over time, though 29.9% of studies were low-quality. Cost-per-QALY was the most commonly reported primary outcome (39.0%). Low-quality studies were less likely to report study perspective, use appropriate time horizons, or address statistical and clinical uncertainty. Funding was overwhelmingly private (83%). A detailed methodological assessment of high-quality studies revealed domains of additional methodological issues not identified by the QHES.Economic evaluations of RCTs in the 2012 ACC/AHA ischemic heart disease guideline largely had high QHES scores but methodological issues existed among "high-quality" studies. Because the ACC/AHA has generally been more systematic in its integration of scientific evidence compared to other professional societies, it is likely that most societies will need to proceed more cautiously in their integration of economic evidence.

This paper concerns the effects on biodiversity of depletion of the South African abalone Haliotis midae, which is a long-lived species with a large corrugated shell that provides a habitat for diverse benthic organisms. We compared community structure on H. midae shells with that on adjacent rock at three sites (Cape Point and Danger Point sites A and B) and at two different times of the year at one of these sites. Shells of H. midae consistently supported communities that were distinctly different from those on rock. In particular, three species of non-geniculate (encrusting) corallines, Titanoderma polycephalum, Mesophyllum engelhartii and Spongites discoideus, were all found either exclusively or predominantly on shells, whereas another non-geniculate coralline, Heydrichia woelkerlingii, occurred almost exclusively on adjacent rock. The primary rocky substratum, however, supported a higher number of species than abalone shells. Possible reasons for the differences between the two substrata include the relative age, microtopography and hardness of the substrata; the abundance of grazers on them; and the relative age of different zones of the abalone shell, which support communities at different stages of succession. Diversity on shells was lowest in zones that were either very young or very old, in keeping with the intermediate disturbance hypothesis. The distinctiveness of shell epibiota will increase β diversity despite having a lower α diversity than that of adjacent rock. Decimation of H. midae by overfishing therefore has implications for biodiversity conservation.

Background: Emerging research implicates ethanol (EtOH)-induced epigenetic modifications in regulating gene expression and EtOH consumption. However, consensus on specific epigenetic modifications induced by EtOH has not yet emerged, making it challenging to identify mechanisms and develop targeted treatments. We hypothesized that chronic intermittent EtOH (CIE) induces persistent changes in histone modifications across the cerebral cortex (CCx), nucleus accumbens (NAc), and prefrontal cortex (PFC), and that these histone modifications are altered in a knock-in mouse strain with altered sensitivity to EtOH. Methods: C57BL/6J (B6) mice and α1SHLA knockin mice on a B6 background were exposed to 16 h of vapor EtOH or room air followed by 8 h of room air for 4 consecutive days and sacrificed at multiple time points up to 72 h following exposure. Histone modifications were assessed using Western blot and dot blot. RT-qPCR was used to study expression of chromatin modifying enzymes in NAc and PFC. Results: In NAc, CIE significantly increased acetylation of histone subunit H3 at lysine 9 (H3K9ac) but not lysine 14 (H3K14ac) or lysine 27 (H3K27ac). In PFC, CIE significantly increased H3K9ac but not H3K14 or H3K27ac. There were no significant changes at 8 or 72 h after EtOH exposure in either NAc or PFC. CIE was also associated with increased expression of Kat2b, Kat5, and Tet1 in NAc but not PFC. In CCx, CIE had a significant effect on levels of H3K18ac; there was also a significant effect of the α1SHLA mutation on levels of H3K27me3, H3K14ac, and H3K18ac as well as a trend for H3S10pK14ac. Conclusions: The EtOH-induced histone modifications observed were transient and varied significantly between brain regions. A genetic mutation that altered sensitivity to EtOH was associated with altered induction of histone modifications during CIE. These results have implications for studying EtOH-induced histone modifications and EtOH sensitivity.

MK-852, a cyclic heptapeptide, is a potent platelet fibrinogen receptor antagonist. When administered to normal healthy male subjects by 1- and 4-hour constant rate intravenous infusions, it provides a generally well-tolerated and reversible means of inhibition of platelet function. At infusion rates of 1 microgram/kg/min for 1 hour and 0.44 microgram/kg/min for 4 hours, respectively, MK-852 extended baseline bleeding time by greater than 2.2-fold and 2.6-fold, inhibited ADP-induced platelet aggregation by 76% and 69%, and inhibited collagen-induced platelet aggregation by 65% and 67%, respectively. The pharmacokinetics of MK-852 include an elimination half-life of approximately 2 hours, total clearance of about 150 ml/min, and volume of distribution of about 18 liters. Examination of the relationship between MK-852 whole-blood concentration in vitro and inhibition of platelet aggregation showed an EC50 of about 55 ng/ml and a Hill coefficient of 1.55. The infusions were generally well tolerated, with no study drug-related changes in blood counts or biochemical profiles.

Acoustics Today has recently launched our twitter feed, @acousticsorg. Come learn how we plan to spread the mission of Acoustics Today, promote the science of acoustics, and connect with acousticians worldwide! We will also discuss proposed upcoming social media initiatives and how you, an ASA member, can help contribute. This presentation will include an extended question period in order to gather feedback on how Acoustics Today can become more involved with social media.

An axisymmetric vertical take-off / horizontal landing (VTHL) vehicle powered by Aerojet Strutjet rocket based combined. cycle (RBCC) engines has been cooperatively designed and assessed by Boeing and Aerojet for a single stage to orbit (SSTO) space station resupply mission as part of NASA’s Airbreathing Launch Vehicle (ABLV) study. Sensitivity of vehicle size to forebody/inlet design, engine thrust-to-weight ratio, flowpath bleed extraction for inlet operability, e and slush vs. liquid hydrogen fuel are also documented. Vehicle takeoff gross weight (TOGW), dry weight, and length are shown for each closed trade study variant.

Two studies were designed to explore the ability of the investment model to predict job satisfaction, job commitment, and job turnover. The first study was a controlled laboratory analog of a work setting, and the second study was a cross-sectional survey of industrial workers. The results of the two studies were consistent. Job satisfaction was best predicted by the reward and cost values of the job, and job commitment was best predicted by a combination of reward and cost values, alternative value, and investment size. Both satisfaction and commitment were correlated with job turnover, but job commitment was more strongly related to turnover than was satisfaction. These results are in complete agreement with the investment model.