Predictive Framework for Flow Reversals and Excursions in Turbulence.

We present a dynamical framework for intermittent reversals and excursions (R&Es) of large-scale circulations in turbulence. We show that R&Es can occur when turbulent trajectories in phase space shadow invariant manifolds of certain unstable periodic orbits (UPOs). Consequently, substantial flow reorganization and extreme fluctuations in flow metrics observed during R&Es can be reconstructed by splicing the unstable manifolds of such dynamically relevant UPOs.

Influences of role models and other factors on physical activity amongst 6 to 16 years overweight and obese students.

Background: Physical activity is an essential aspect of living a healthy lifestyle, which offers a myriad of benefits for both the body and the mind. Nonetheless, a family history of obesity can pose significant challenges to achieving and maintaining a healthy weight, which is further exacerbated by the academic stress. Individuals who have a role model that prioritizes physical activity are more likely to develop positive and healthy habits in their lives.

Code smells analysis for android applications and a solution for less battery consumption.

In the digitization era, the battery consumption factor plays a vital role for the devices that operate Android software, expecting them to deliver high performance and good maintainability.The study aims to analyze the Android-specific code smells, their impact on battery consumption, and the formulation of a mathematical model concerning static code metrics hampered by the code smells. We studied the impact on battery consumption by three Android-specific code smells, namely: No Low Memory Resolver (NLMR), Slow Loop (SL) and Unclosed Closable, considering 4,165 classes of 16 Android applications.

An Optimized Search Prognosis Tool to Predict 8/8 HLA Allele-Matched Unrelated Donor Procurement.

For patients in need of allogeneic transplantation who lack an HLA-identical sibling, an 8/8 HLA allele-matched unrelated donor (URD) is a standard alternative. However, delays in URD procurement can adversely impact patient care. Recipient genotype and search assessment (MSKv1.

Crises and chaotic scattering in hydrodynamic pilot-wave experiments.

Theoretical foundations of chaos have been predominantly laid out for finite-dimensional dynamical systems, such as the three-body problem in classical mechanics and the Lorenz model in dissipative systems. In contrast, many real-world chaotic phenomena, e.g.

Prospective KIR genotype evaluation of hematopoietic cell donors is feasible with potential to benefit patients with AML.

Donor KIR and recipient HLA combinations that minimize inhibition and favor activation of the NK repertoire are associated with improved outcomes after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) in patients with myeloid neoplasia. We prospectively evaluated a weighted donor ranking algorithm designed to prioritize HLA-compatible unrelated donors (URDs) with weak inhibitory KIR3DL1/HLA-Bw4 interaction, followed by donors with nontolerized activating KIR2DS1, and finally those with KIR centromeric B haplotype. During donor evaluation, we performed KIR genotyping and ranked 2079 URDs for 527 subjects with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) or acute myelogenous leukemia (AML).

Capturing Turbulent Dynamics and Statistics in Experiments with Unstable Periodic Orbits.

In laboratory studies and numerical simulations, we observe clear signatures of unstable time-periodic solutions in a moderately turbulent quasi-two-dimensional flow. We validate the dynamical relevance of such solutions by demonstrating that turbulent flows in both experiment and numerics transiently display time-periodic dynamics when they shadow unstable periodic orbits (UPOs). We show that UPOs we computed are also statistically significant, with turbulent flows spending a sizable fraction of the total time near these solutions.

Large Collective Lamb Shift of Two Distant Superconducting Artificial Atoms.

Virtual photons can mediate interaction between atoms, resulting in an energy shift known as a collective Lamb shift. Observing the collective Lamb shift is challenging, since it can be obscured by radiative decay and direct atom-atom interactions. Here, we place two superconducting qubits in a transmission line terminated by a mirror, which suppresses decay.

Carbonic anhydrases in human keratinocytes and their regulation by all-trans retinoic acid and 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D.

Carbonic anhydrases (CAs) are ubiquitously expressed enzymes and catalyse an important physiological reaction of interconverting the hydration of carbon dioxide to bicarbonates, which is crucial for maintaining acid/base equilibrium in certain tissues. While 15 different isoforms of CAs are present in various cell types in human tissues, their expression pattern in the epidermis remains to be investigated. Here, we report the expression of 5 CA isoforms (CAII, CAIX, CAXI, CAXII and CAXIII) in human primary keratinocytes.

Different phenotypes and factors associated with atopic dermatitis in the young adult Singaporean Chinese population: A cross-sectional study.

Background: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic allergic disease typically accompanied by atopy and thus, a tendency to develop allergic diseases such as allergic rhinitis, asthma or food allergies. Currently, individuals with AD are classified into those presenting with AD alone and those presenting with AD along with other allergic diseases (AD+). It is important to identify the various endophenotypes of AD using anthropometric, environmental, socio-economic, and disease history data in order to improve disease management.

Unstable equilibria and invariant manifolds in quasi-two-dimensional Kolmogorov-like flow.

Recent studies suggest that unstable, nonchaotic solutions of the Navier-Stokes equation may provide deep insights into fluid turbulence. In this article, we present a combined experimental and numerical study exploring the dynamical role of unstable equilibrium solutions and their invariant manifolds in a weakly turbulent, electromagnetically driven, shallow fluid layer. Identifying instants when turbulent evolution slows down, we compute 31 unstable equilibria of a realistic two-dimensional model of the flow.

Software Code Smell Prediction Model Using Shannon, Rényi and Tsallis Entropies.

The current era demands high quality software in a limited time period to achieve new goals and heights. To meet user requirements, the source codes undergo frequent modifications which can generate the bad smells in software that deteriorate the quality and reliability of software. Source code of the open source software is easily accessible by any developer, thus frequently modifiable.

Toll-like Receptor 3 Agonist, Polyinosinic-polycytidylic Acid, Upregulates Carbonic Anhydrase II in Human Keratinocytes.

Carbonic anhydrases are ubiquitously expressed enzymes that reversibly hydrate carbon dioxide to bicarbonate and protons. While the main function of carbonic anhydrases is to regulate pH and osmotic balance, their involvement in other physiological processes remains to be explored. This study analysed changes in mRNA and protein levels of carbonic anhydrase II in human primary keratinocytes treated with various toll-like receptor agonists and cytokines.

Forecasting Fluid Flows Using the Geometry of Turbulence.

The existence and dynamical role of particular unstable solutions (exact coherent structures) of the Navier-Stokes equation is revealed in laboratory studies of weak turbulence in a thin, electromagnetically driven fluid layer. We find that the dynamics exhibit clear signatures of numerous unstable equilibrium solutions, which are computed using a combination of flow measurements from the experiment and fully resolved numerical simulations. We demonstrate the dynamical importance of these solutions by showing that turbulent flows visit their state space neighborhoods repeatedly.

Whole metagenome profiling reveals skin microbiome-dependent susceptibility to atopic dermatitis flare.

Whole metagenome analysis has the potential to reveal functional triggers of skin diseases, but issues of cost, robustness and sampling efficacy have limited its application. Here, we have established an alternative, clinically practical and robust metagenomic analysis protocol and applied it to 80 skin microbiome samples epidemiologically stratified for atopic dermatitis (AD). We have identified distinct non-flare, baseline skin microbiome signatures enriched for Streptococcus and Gemella but depleted for Dermacoccus in AD-prone versus normal healthy skin.

Functional variants of 17q12-21 are associated with allergic asthma but not allergic rhinitis.

Background: Allergic rhinitis (AR) and asthma are common allergic conditions with a shared genetic component to their cause. The 17q12-21 locus includes several genes that have been linked to asthma susceptibility, but the role of this locus in AR is unclear. Asthma and AR in adults of Chinese ethnicity in Singapore are predominately caused by sensitization against house dust mites with a nearly complete penetrance of the allergen, which presents a unique opportunity for accurately identifying genetic associations with allergic diseases.

A functional brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene variant increases the risk of moderate-to-severe allergic rhinitis.

Background: Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a secretory protein that has been implicated in the pathogenesis of allergic rhinitis (AR), atopic asthma, and eczema, but it is currently unknown whether BDNF polymorphisms influence susceptibility to moderate-to-severe AR.

Objective: We sought to identify disease associations and the functional effect of BDNF genetic variants in patients with moderate-to-severe AR.

Methods: Tagging single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) spanning the BDNF gene were selected from the human HapMap Han Chinese from Beijing (CHB) data set, and associations with moderate-to-severe AR were assessed in 2 independent cohorts of Chinese patients (2216 from Shandong province and 1239 living in Singapore).

Quantitative elemental analysis of steel using calibration-free laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy.

We report the quantitative elemental analysis of a steel sample using calibration-free laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (CF-LIBS). A Q-switched Nd:YAG laser (532 nm wavelength) is used to produce a plasma by focusing it onto a steel sample in air at atmospheric pressure. The time-resolved spectra from atomic and ionic emission lines of the steel elements are recorded by an echelle grating spectrograph coupled with a gated intensified CCD camera and are used for the plasma characterization and quantitative analysis of the sample.

Usefulness of cardiac computed tomographic delayed contrast enhancement of the left atrial appendage before pulmonary vein ablation.

Left atrial appendage (LAA) contrast filling defects are commonly found in patients undergoing multidetector cardiac computed tomography (CCT) before catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation. Delayed CCT allows quantification of the LAA delayed/initial attenuation ratio and improves accuracy for LAA thrombus detection, which may obviate routine transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) before ablation. CCT with contrast-enhanced scans (initial CCT) and with noncontrast-enhanced scans (delayed CCT) was performed in 176 patients.

Genome-wide association study identifies PERLD1 as asthma candidate gene.

Background: Recent genome-wide association studies (GWAS) for asthma have been successful in identifying novel associations which have been well replicated. The aim of this study is to identify the genetic variants that influence predisposition towards asthma in an ethnic Chinese population in Singapore using a GWAS approach.

Methods: A two-stage GWAS was performed in case samples with allergic asthma, and in control samples without asthma and atopy.

Genetic variation in BDNF is associated with allergic asthma and allergic rhinitis in an ethnic Chinese population in Singapore.

Allergic diseases affect more than 25% of the world population and result from a complex interplay between genetic and environmental factors. Recent evidence has shown that BDNF (Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor) could serve as an important marker of allergic disease. Increased levels of BDNF in blood, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and nasal lavage fluid positively correlate with disease activity and severity in patients with allergic rhinitis (AR), asthma and atopic eczema.

Genome-wide association study for atopy and allergic rhinitis in a Singapore Chinese population.

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is an atopic disease which affects about 600 million people worldwide and results from a complex interplay between genetic and environmental factors. However genetic association studies on known candidate genes yielded variable results. The aim of this study is to identify the genetic variants that influence predisposition towards allergic rhinitis in an ethnic Chinese population in Singapore using a genome-wide association study (GWAS) approach.