The high-Eddington NLS1 Ark 564 has the coolest corona

Ark 564 is an archetypal narrow-line Seyfert 1 that has been well observed in soft X-rays from 0.3–10 keV, revealing a steep spectrum, strong soft excess, iron K emission line and dramatic variability on the order of hours. Because of its very steep spectrum, observations of the source above 10 keV have been sparse. We report here on the first NuSTAR observation of Ark 564. The source was observed for 200 ks with NuSTAR, 50 ks of which were concurrent with Suzaku observations. NuSTAR and Suzaku observed a dramatic flare, in which the hard emission is clearly delayed with respect to the soft emission, consistent with previous detections of a low-frequency hard lag found in XMM–Newton data. The NuSTAR spectrum is well described by a low-temperature Comptonization continuum (with an electron temperature of 15 ± 2 keV), which irradiates a highly ionized disc. No further relativistic broadening or ionized absorption is required. These spectral results show that Ark 564 has one of the lowest temperature coronae observed by NuSTAR to date. We discuss possible reasons for low-temperature coronae in high-Eddington sources.European Research Council (340442

Apolipoprotein E associated with reconstituted high-density lipoprotein-like particles is protected from aggregation.

Apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotype determines Alzheimer\u27s disease (AD) susceptibility, with the APOE ε4 allele being an established risk factor for late-onset AD. The ApoE lipidation status has been reported to impact amyloid-beta (Aβ) peptide metabolism. The details of how lipidation affects ApoE behavior remain to be elucidated. In this study, we prepared lipid-free and lipid-bound ApoE particles, mimicking the high-density lipoprotein particles found in vivo, for all three isoforms (ApoE2, ApoE3, and ApoE4) and biophysically characterized them. We find that lipid-free ApoE in solution has the tendency to aggregate in vitro in an isoform-dependent manner under near-physiological conditions and that aggregation is impeded by lipidation of ApoE

The gut microbiome variability of a butterflyfish increases on severely degraded Caribbean reefs.

Environmental degradation has the potential to alter key mutualisms that underlie the structure and function of ecological communities. How microbial communities associated with fishes vary across populations and in relation to habitat characteristics remains largely unknown despite their fundamental roles in host nutrition and immunity. We find significant differences in the gut microbiome composition of a facultative coral-feeding butterflyfish (Chaetodon capistratus) across Caribbean reefs that differ markedly in live coral cover (∼0-30%). Fish gut microbiomes were significantly more variable at degraded reefs, a pattern driven by changes in the relative abundance of the most common taxa potentially associated with stress. We also demonstrate that fish gut microbiomes on severely degraded reefs have a lower abundance of Endozoicomonas and a higher diversity of anaerobic fermentative bacteria, which may suggest a less coral dominated diet. The observed shifts in fish gut bacterial communities across the habitat gradient extend to a small set of potentially beneficial host associated bacteria (i.e., the core microbiome) suggesting essential fish-microbiome interactions may be vulnerable to severe coral degradation

Sea level: measuring the bounding surfaces of the ocean

The practical need to understand sea level along the coasts, such as for safe navigation given the spatially variable tides, has resulted in tide gauge observations having the distinction of being some of the longest instrumental ocean records. Archives of these records, along with geological constraints, have allowed us to identify the century-scale rise in global sea level. Additional data sources, particularly satellite altimetry missions, have helped us to better identify the rates and causes of sea level rise and the mechanisms leading to spatial variability in the observed rates. Analysis of all of the data reveals the need for long-term and stable observation systems to assess accurately the regional changes as well as to improve our ability to estimate future changes in sea level. While information from many scientific disciplines is needed to understand sea level change, this paper focuses on contributions from geodesy and the role of the ocean’s bounding surfaces: the sea surface and the Earth’s crust

A Cross-Sectional Study of People with Epilepsy and Neurocysticercosis in Tanzania: Clinical Characteristics and Diagnostic Approaches.

Neurocysticercosis (NCC) is a major cause of epilepsy in regions where pigs are free-ranging and hygiene is poor. Pork production is expected to increase in the next decade in sub-Saharan Africa, hence NCC will likely become more prevalent. In this study, people with epilepsy (PWE, n=212) were followed up 28.6 months after diagnosis of epilepsy. CT scans were performed, and serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of selected PWE were analysed. We compared the demographic data, clinical characteristics, and associated risk factors of PWE with and without NCC. PWE with NCC (n=35) were more likely to be older at first seizure (24.3 vs. 16.3 years, p=0.097), consumed more pork (97.1% vs. 73.6%, p=0.001), and were more often a member of the Iraqw tribe (94.3% vs. 67.8%, p=0.005) than PWE without NCC (n=177). PWE and NCC who were compliant with anti-epileptic medications had a significantly higher reduction of seizures (98.6% vs. 89.2%, p=0.046). Other characteristics such as gender, seizure frequency, compliance, past medical history, close contact with pigs, use of latrines and family history of seizures did not differ significantly between the two groups. The number of NCC lesions and active NCC lesions were significantly associated with a positive antibody result. The electroimmunotransfer blot, developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was more sensitive than a commercial western blot, especially in PWE and cerebral calcifications. This is the first study to systematically compare the clinical characteristics of PWE due to NCC or other causes and to explore the utility of two different antibody tests for diagnosis of NCC in sub-Saharan Africa

From Acting What’s next to Speeding Trap: Co-Evolutionary Dynamics of an Emerging Technology-Leader

JEL Classifications: O33, O53, L63[[abstract]]How does technological innovation emerge and evolve? We approach such an inquiry by synthesizing the perspectives of dynamic capabilities and co-evolutionary dynamics to portray organizational routines and multi-phase strategic renewals of an emerging technology-leader. To untangle the emergence of technological innovation, we conducted a longitudinal case study on the first and the largest dedicated semiconductor foundry, TSMC, located in the emerging economy of Taiwan. The firm-case of TSMC illustrates two unique co-evolutionary paths, that is, transforming from industry-latecomer to technology-leader and from process innovation to product innovation. We found multi-motor co-evolutionary dynamics between TSMC and the semiconductor industry, where its co-evolutionary mechanism of managed selection in its creating phase of mature process-innovation (1987-1998) has migrated to hierarchical renewal in its extending phase of advanced process-innovation (1999-2001), and then to holistic renewal in its modifying phase of product-innovation (2002-2007). During such paths, our research discovered a unique type of organizational routines, acting what’s next because TSMC has proactively searched for potential problems sooner than its competitors. However, such routines, although driving technological innovation, also lead to a unique type of success-trap, that is, speeding trap. When an emerging technology-leader fundamentally changes the industrial structures to over-specs, the growth driven by technology speeding may trap such a leader in a loop of over-exploration.[[sponsorship]]The authors are grateful to the research grant from the National Science Council (NSC) in Taiwan. The earlier manuscript of this paper was presented at the 2009 Annual Meeting of Academy of International Business (AIB) in San Diego, USA.[[notice]]補正完畢[[journaltype]]國外[[ispeerreviewed]]Y[[booktype]]紙本[[booktype]]電子版[[countrycodes]]CA

Complex Pediatric Elbow Injury: An Uncommon Case

BACKGROUND: There is paucity of literature describing complex elbow trauma in the pediatric population. We described a case of an uncommon pediatric elbow injury comprised of lateral condyle fracture associated with posterolateral dislocation of elbow. CASE PRESENTATION: A 12-year-old boy sustained a direct elbow trauma and presented with Milch type II lateral condyle fracture associated with posterolateral dislocation of elbow. Elbow dislocation was managed by closed reduction. The elbow stability was assessed under general anaesthesia, followed by open K-wiring for the lateral condylar fracture fixation. The patient had an uneventful recovery with an excellent outcome at 39 months follow-up. CONCLUSION: Complex pediatric elbow injuries are quite unusual to encounter, the management of such fractures can be technically demanding. Concomitant elbow dislocation should be managed by closed reduction followed by open reduction and internal fixation (K-wires or cannulated screws) of the lateral condyle fracture

Machine-learning of atomic-scale properties based on physical principles

We briefly summarize the kernel regression approach, as used recently in materials modelling, to fitting functions, particularly potential energy surfaces, and highlight how the linear algebra framework can be used to both predict and train from linear functionals of the potential energy, such as the total energy and atomic forces. We then give a detailed account of the Smooth Overlap of Atomic Positions (SOAP) representation and kernel, showing how it arises from an abstract representation of smooth atomic densities, and how it is related to several popular density-based representations of atomic structure. We also discuss recent generalisations that allow fine control of correlations between different atomic species, prediction and fitting of tensorial properties, and also how to construct structural kernels---applicable to comparing entire molecules or periodic systems---that go beyond an additive combination of local environments

Cirrhosis and liver transplantation in patients co-infected with HIV and hepatitis B or C:an observational cohort study

This study assessed the likelihood of referral for liver transplantation assessment in a prospective cohort of patients co-infected with HIV and hepatitis B or C with complications of cirrhosis. There were 141 co-infected patients from 11 UK centres with at least one complication of cirrhosis recorded (either decompensation or hepatocellular carcinoma) out of 772 identified with cirrhosis and/or HCC. Only 23 of these 141 (16.3%) were referred for liver transplantation assessment, even though referral is recommended for co-infected patients after the first decompensation episode