scispace - formally typeset
Search or ask a question

Showing papers by "University of Massachusetts Amherst published in 2021"


Journal ArticleDOI
Arang Rhie1, Shane A. McCarthy2, Shane A. McCarthy3, Olivier Fedrigo4, Joana Damas5, Giulio Formenti4, Sergey Koren1, Marcela Uliano-Silva6, William Chow3, Arkarachai Fungtammasan, J. H. Kim7, Chul Hee Lee7, Byung June Ko7, Mark Chaisson8, Gregory Gedman4, Lindsey J. Cantin4, Françoise Thibaud-Nissen1, Leanne Haggerty9, Iliana Bista3, Iliana Bista2, Michelle Smith3, Bettina Haase4, Jacquelyn Mountcastle4, Sylke Winkler10, Sylke Winkler11, Sadye Paez4, Jason T. Howard, Sonja C. Vernes12, Sonja C. Vernes13, Sonja C. Vernes10, Tanya M. Lama14, Frank Grützner15, Wesley C. Warren16, Christopher N. Balakrishnan17, Dave W Burt18, Jimin George19, Matthew T. Biegler4, David Iorns, Andrew Digby, Daryl Eason, Bruce C. Robertson20, Taylor Edwards21, Mark Wilkinson22, George F. Turner23, Axel Meyer24, Andreas F. Kautt24, Andreas F. Kautt25, Paolo Franchini24, H. William Detrich26, Hannes Svardal27, Hannes Svardal28, Maximilian Wagner29, Gavin J. P. Naylor30, Martin Pippel10, Milan Malinsky3, Milan Malinsky31, Mark Mooney, Maria Simbirsky, Brett T. Hannigan, Trevor Pesout32, Marlys L. Houck33, Ann C Misuraca33, Sarah B. Kingan34, Richard Hall34, Zev N. Kronenberg34, Ivan Sović34, Christopher Dunn34, Zemin Ning3, Alex Hastie, Joyce V. Lee, Siddarth Selvaraj, Richard E. Green32, Nicholas H. Putnam, Ivo Gut35, Jay Ghurye36, Erik Garrison32, Ying Sims3, Joanna Collins3, Sarah Pelan3, James Torrance3, Alan Tracey3, Jonathan Wood3, Robel E. Dagnew8, Dengfeng Guan2, Dengfeng Guan37, Sarah E. London38, David F. Clayton19, Claudio V. Mello39, Samantha R. Friedrich39, Peter V. Lovell39, Ekaterina Osipova10, Farooq O. Al-Ajli40, Farooq O. Al-Ajli41, Simona Secomandi42, Heebal Kim7, Constantina Theofanopoulou4, Michael Hiller43, Yang Zhou, Robert S. Harris44, Kateryna D. Makova44, Paul Medvedev44, Jinna Hoffman1, Patrick Masterson1, Karen Clark1, Fergal J. Martin9, Kevin L. Howe9, Paul Flicek9, Brian P. Walenz1, Woori Kwak, Hiram Clawson32, Mark Diekhans32, Luis R Nassar32, Benedict Paten32, Robert H. S. Kraus24, Robert H. S. Kraus10, Andrew J. Crawford45, M. Thomas P. Gilbert46, M. Thomas P. Gilbert47, Guojie Zhang, Byrappa Venkatesh48, Robert W. Murphy49, Klaus-Peter Koepfli50, Beth Shapiro32, Beth Shapiro51, Warren E. Johnson52, Warren E. Johnson50, Federica Di Palma53, Tomas Marques-Bonet, Emma C. Teeling54, Tandy Warnow55, Jennifer A. Marshall Graves56, Oliver A. Ryder33, Oliver A. Ryder57, David Haussler32, Stephen J. O'Brien58, Jonas Korlach34, Harris A. Lewin5, Kerstin Howe3, Eugene W. Myers11, Eugene W. Myers10, Richard Durbin2, Richard Durbin3, Adam M. Phillippy1, Erich D. Jarvis4, Erich D. Jarvis51 
National Institutes of Health1, University of Cambridge2, Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute3, Rockefeller University4, University of California, Davis5, Leibniz Association6, Seoul National University7, University of Southern California8, European Bioinformatics Institute9, Max Planck Society10, Dresden University of Technology11, University of St Andrews12, Radboud University Nijmegen13, University of Massachusetts Amherst14, University of Adelaide15, University of Missouri16, East Carolina University17, University of Queensland18, Clemson University19, University of Otago20, University of Arizona21, Natural History Museum22, Bangor University23, University of Konstanz24, Harvard University25, Northeastern University26, University of Antwerp27, National Museum of Natural History28, University of Graz29, University of Florida30, University of Basel31, University of California, Santa Cruz32, Zoological Society of San Diego33, Pacific Biosciences34, Pompeu Fabra University35, University of Maryland, College Park36, Harbin Institute of Technology37, University of Chicago38, Oregon Health & Science University39, Qatar Airways40, Monash University Malaysia Campus41, University of Milan42, Goethe University Frankfurt43, Pennsylvania State University44, University of Los Andes45, Norwegian University of Science and Technology46, University of Copenhagen47, Agency for Science, Technology and Research48, Royal Ontario Museum49, Smithsonian Institution50, Howard Hughes Medical Institute51, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research52, University of East Anglia53, University College Dublin54, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign55, La Trobe University56, University of California, San Diego57, Nova Southeastern University58
28 Apr 2021-Nature
TL;DR: The Vertebrate Genomes Project (VGP) as mentioned in this paper is an international effort to generate high quality, complete reference genomes for all of the roughly 70,000 extant vertebrate species and to help to enable a new era of discovery across the life sciences.
Abstract: High-quality and complete reference genome assemblies are fundamental for the application of genomics to biology, disease, and biodiversity conservation. However, such assemblies are available for only a few non-microbial species1-4. To address this issue, the international Genome 10K (G10K) consortium5,6 has worked over a five-year period to evaluate and develop cost-effective methods for assembling highly accurate and nearly complete reference genomes. Here we present lessons learned from generating assemblies for 16 species that represent six major vertebrate lineages. We confirm that long-read sequencing technologies are essential for maximizing genome quality, and that unresolved complex repeats and haplotype heterozygosity are major sources of assembly error when not handled correctly. Our assemblies correct substantial errors, add missing sequence in some of the best historical reference genomes, and reveal biological discoveries. These include the identification of many false gene duplications, increases in gene sizes, chromosome rearrangements that are specific to lineages, a repeated independent chromosome breakpoint in bat genomes, and a canonical GC-rich pattern in protein-coding genes and their regulatory regions. Adopting these lessons, we have embarked on the Vertebrate Genomes Project (VGP), an international effort to generate high-quality, complete reference genomes for all of the roughly 70,000 extant vertebrate species and to help to enable a new era of discovery across the life sciences.

647 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, double cascading energy level alignment in bulk heterojunction organic photovoltaic active layers is realized, enabling efficient carrier splitting and transport, and a record-breaking PCE of 18.07% is achieved where, by electronic structure and morphology optimization, simultaneous improvements of the opencircuit voltage, short-circuit current and fill factor occur.
Abstract: The chemical structure of donors and acceptors limit the power conversion efficiencies achievable with active layers of binary donor-acceptor mixtures. Here, using quaternary blends, double cascading energy level alignment in bulk heterojunction organic photovoltaic active layers are realized, enabling efficient carrier splitting and transport. Numerous avenues to optimize light absorption, carrier transport, and charge-transfer state energy levels are opened by the chemical constitution of the components. Record-breaking PCEs of 18.07% are achieved where, by electronic structure and morphology optimization, simultaneous improvements of the open-circuit voltage, short-circuit current and fill factor occur. The donor and acceptor chemical structures afford control over electronic structure and charge-transfer state energy levels, enabling manipulation of hole-transfer rates, carrier transport, and non-radiative recombination losses.

443 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The mechanisms by which nanomaterials can be used to target antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections are discussed, design elements and properties of nanomMaterials that can be engineered to enhance potency are highlighted, and recent progress and remaining challenges for clinical implementation are explored.
Abstract: Antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections arising from acquired resistance and/or through biofilm formation necessitate the development of innovative 'outside of the box' therapeutics Nanomaterial-based therapies are promising tools to combat bacterial infections that are difficult to treat, featuring the capacity to evade existing mechanisms associated with acquired drug resistance In addition, the unique size and physical properties of nanomaterials give them the capability to target biofilms, overcoming recalcitrant infections In this Review, we highlight the general mechanisms by which nanomaterials can be used to target bacterial infections associated with acquired antibiotic resistance and biofilms We emphasize design elements and properties of nanomaterials that can be engineered to enhance potency Lastly, we present recent progress and remaining challenges for widespread clinical implementation of nanomaterials as antimicrobial therapeutics

418 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
Matthew P. Harrigan1, Kevin J. Sung1, Kevin J. Sung2, Matthew Neeley1, Kevin J. Satzinger1, Frank Arute1, Kunal Arya1, Juan Atalaya1, Joseph C. Bardin3, Joseph C. Bardin1, Rami Barends1, Sergio Boixo1, Michael Broughton1, Bob B. Buckley1, David A. Buell1, B. Burkett1, Nicholas Bushnell1, Yu Chen1, Zijun Chen1, Ben Chiaro4, Ben Chiaro1, Roberto Collins1, William Courtney1, Sean Demura1, Andrew Dunsworth1, Daniel Eppens1, Austin G. Fowler1, Brooks Foxen1, Craig Gidney1, Marissa Giustina1, R. Graff1, Steve Habegger1, Alan Ho1, Sabrina Hong1, Trent Huang1, Lev Ioffe1, Sergei V. Isakov1, Evan Jeffrey1, Zhang Jiang1, Cody Jones1, Dvir Kafri1, Kostyantyn Kechedzhi1, Julian Kelly1, Seon Kim1, Paul V. Klimov1, Alexander N. Korotkov5, Alexander N. Korotkov1, Fedor Kostritsa1, David Landhuis1, Pavel Laptev1, Mike Lindmark1, Martin Leib6, Orion Martin1, John M. Martinis4, John M. Martinis1, Jarrod R. McClean1, Matt McEwen1, Matt McEwen4, Anthony Megrant1, Xiao Mi1, Masoud Mohseni1, Wojciech Mruczkiewicz1, Josh Mutus1, Ofer Naaman1, Charles Neill1, Florian Neukart6, Murphy Yuezhen Niu1, Thomas E. O'Brien1, Bryan O'Gorman7, Bryan O'Gorman8, Eric Ostby1, Andre Petukhov1, Harald Putterman1, Chris Quintana1, Pedram Roushan1, Nicholas C. Rubin1, Daniel Sank1, Andrea Skolik6, Andrea Skolik9, Vadim Smelyanskiy1, Doug Strain1, Michael Streif10, Michael Streif6, Marco Szalay1, Amit Vainsencher1, Theodore White1, Z. Jamie Yao1, Ping Yeh1, Adam Zalcman1, Leo Zhou11, Leo Zhou1, Hartmut Neven1, Dave Bacon1, E. Lucero1, Edward Farhi1, Ryan Babbush1 
TL;DR: The application of the Google Sycamore superconducting qubit quantum processor to combinatorial optimization problems with the quantum approximate optimization algorithm (QAOA) is demonstrated and an approximation ratio is obtained that is independent of problem size and for the first time, that performance increases with circuit depth.
Abstract: Faster algorithms for combinatorial optimization could prove transformative for diverse areas such as logistics, finance and machine learning. Accordingly, the possibility of quantum enhanced optimization has driven much interest in quantum technologies. Here we demonstrate the application of the Google Sycamore superconducting qubit quantum processor to combinatorial optimization problems with the quantum approximate optimization algorithm (QAOA). Like past QAOA experiments, we study performance for problems defined on the planar connectivity graph native to our hardware; however, we also apply the QAOA to the Sherrington–Kirkpatrick model and MaxCut, non-native problems that require extensive compilation to implement. For hardware-native problems, which are classically efficient to solve on average, we obtain an approximation ratio that is independent of problem size and observe that performance increases with circuit depth. For problems requiring compilation, performance decreases with problem size. Circuits involving several thousand gates still present an advantage over random guessing but not over some efficient classical algorithms. Our results suggest that it will be challenging to scale near-term implementations of the QAOA for problems on non-native graphs. As these graphs are closer to real-world instances, we suggest more emphasis should be placed on such problems when using the QAOA to benchmark quantum processors. It is hoped that quantum computers may be faster than classical ones at solving optimization problems. Here the authors implement a quantum optimization algorithm over 23 qubits but find more limited performance when an optimization problem structure does not match the underlying hardware.

411 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This review comprehensively reviewed the available literature on the source, occurrence, and fate of microplastics in different environments, including air, freshwater, soil, and ocean, across the world and found that large research gaps exist in the quantitative analysis of different exposure routes ofmicroplastics, and microplastic toxicity to organisms.

321 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a list of authors who have contributed to the work of the authors of this paper: Akiyama, Kazunori; Algaba, Juan Carlos; Alberdi, Antxon; Alef, Walter; Anantua, Richard; Asada, Keiichi; Azulay, Rebecca; Baczko, Anne-Kathrin; Ball, David; Balokovic, Mislav; Barrett, John; Benson, Bradford A.; Bintley, Dan; Blackburn, Lindy; Blundell
Abstract: Full list of authors: Akiyama, Kazunori; Algaba, Juan Carlos; Alberdi, Antxon; Alef, Walter; Anantua, Richard; Asada, Keiichi; Azulay, Rebecca; Baczko, Anne-Kathrin; Ball, David; Balokovic, Mislav; Barrett, John; Benson, Bradford A.; Bintley, Dan; Blackburn, Lindy; Blundell, Raymond; Boland, Wilfred; Bouman, Katherine L.; Bower, Geoffrey C.; Boyce, Hope Bremer, Michael; Brinkerink, Christiaan D.; Brissenden, Roger; Britzen, Silke; Broderick, Avery E.; Broguiere, Dominique; Bronzwaer, Thomas; Byun, Do-Young; Carlstrom, John E.; Chael, Andrew; Chan, Chi-kwan; Chatterjee, Shami; Chatterjee, Koushik; Chen, Ming-Tang; Chen, Yongjun; Chesler, Paul M.; Cho, Ilje; Christian, Pierre; Conway, John E.; Cordes, James M.; Crawford, Thomas M.; Crew, Geoffrey B.; Cruz-Osorio, Alejandro; Cui, Yuzhu; Davelaar, Jordy; De Laurentis, Mariafelicia; Deane, Roger; Dempsey, Jessica; Desvignes, Gregory; Dexter, Jason; Doeleman, Sheperd S.; Eatough, Ralph P.; Falcke, Heino; Farah, Joseph; Fish, Vincent L.; Fomalont, Ed; Ford, H. Alyson; Fraga-Encinas, Raquel; Friberg, Per; Fromm, Christian M.; Fuentes, Antonio; Galison, Peter; Gammie, Charles F.; Garcia, Roberto; Gelles, Zachary; Gentaz, Olivier; Georgiev, Boris; Goddi, Ciriaco; Gold, Roman; Gomez, Jose L.; Gomez-Ruiz, Arturo I.; Gu, Minfeng; Gurwell, Mark; Hada, Kazuhiro; Haggard, Daryl; Hecht, Michael H.; Hesper, Ronald; Himwich, Elizabeth; Ho, Luis C.; Ho, Paul; Honma, Mareki; Huang, Chih-Wei L.; Huang, Lei; Hughes, David H.; Ikeda, Shiro; Inoue, Makoto; Issaoun, Sara; James, David J.; Jannuzi, Buell T.; Janssen, Michael; Jeter, Britton; Jiang, Wu; Jimenez-Rosales, Alejandra; Johnson, Michael D.; Jorstad, Svetlana; Jung, Taehyun; Karami, Mansour; Karuppusamy, Ramesh; Kawashima, Tomohisa; Keating, Garrett K.; Kettenis, Mark; Kim, Dong-Jin; Kim, Jae-Young; Kim, Jongsoo; Kim, Junhan; Kino, Motoki; Koay, Jun Yi; Kofuji, Yutaro; Koch, Patrick M.; Koyama, Shoko; Kramer, Michael; Kramer, Carsten; Krichbaum, Thomas P.; Kuo, Cheng-Yu; Lauer, Tod R.; Lee, Sang-Sung; Levis, Aviad; Li, Yan-Rong; Li, Zhiyuan; Lindqvist, Michael; Lico, Rocco; Lindahl, Greg; Liu, Jun; Liu, Kuo; Liuzzo, Elisabetta; Lo, Wen-Ping; Lobanov, Andrei P.; Loinard, Laurent; Lonsdale, Colin; Lu, Ru-Sen; MacDonald, Nicholas R.; Mao, Jirong; Marchili, Nicola; Markoff, Sera; Marrone, Daniel P.; Marscher, Alan P.; Marti-Vidal, Ivan; Matsushita, Satoki; Matthews, Lynn D.; Medeiros, Lia; Menten, Karl M.; Mizuno, Izumi; Mizuno, Yosuke; Moran, James M.; Moriyama, Kotaro; Moscibrodzka, Monika; Muller, Cornelia; Musoke, Gibwa; Mus Mejias, Alejandro; Michalik, Daniel; Nadolski, Andrew; Nagai, Hiroshi; Nagar, Neil M.; Nakamura, Masanori; Narayan, Ramesh; Narayanan, Gopal; Natarajan, Iniyan; Nathanail, Antonios; Neilsen, Joey; Neri, Roberto; Ni, Chunchong; Noutsos, Aristeidis; Nowak, Michael A.; Okino, Hiroki; Olivares, Hector; Ortiz-Leon, Gisela N.; Oyama, Tomoaki; Ozel, Feryal; Palumbo, Daniel C. M.; Park, Jongho; Patel, Nimesh; Pen, Ue-Li; Pesce, Dominic W.; Pietu, Vincent; Plambeck, Richard; PopStefanija, Aleksandar; Porth, Oliver; Potzl, Felix M.; Prather, Ben; Preciado-Lopez, Jorge A.; Psaltis, Dimitrios; Pu, Hung-Yi; Ramakrishnan, Venkatessh; Rao, Ramprasad; Rawlings, Mark G.; Raymond, Alexander W.; Rezzolla, Luciano; Ricarte, Angelo; Ripperda, Bart; Roelofs, Freek; Rogers, Alan; Ros, Eduardo; Rose, Mel; Roshanineshat, Arash; Rottmann, Helge; Roy, Alan L.; Ruszczyk, Chet; Rygl, Kazi L. J.; Sanchez, Salvador; Sanchez-Arguelles, David; Sasada, Mahito; Savolainen, Tuomas; Schloerb, F. Peter; Schuster, Karl-Friedrich; Shao, Lijing; Shen, Zhiqiang; Small, Des; Sohn, Bong Won; SooHoo, Jason; Sun, He; Tazaki, Fumie; Tetarenko, Alexandra J.; Tiede, Paul; Tilanus, Remo P. J.; Titus, Michael; Toma, Kenji; Torne, Pablo; Trent, Tyler; Traianou, Efthalia; Trippe, Sascha; van Bemmel, Ilse; van Langevelde, Huib Jan; van Rossum, Daniel R.; Wagner, Jan; Ward-Thompson, Derek; Wardle, John; Weintroub, Jonathan; Wex, Norbert; Wharton, Robert; Wielgus, Maciek; Wong, George N.; Wu, Qingwen; Yoon, Doosoo; Young, Andre; Young, Ken; Younsi, Ziri; Yuan, Feng; Yuan, Ye-Fei; Zensus, J. Anton; Zhao, Guang-Yao; Zhao, Shan-Shan; Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration.-- This is an open access article, original content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.

294 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Ammonia has been considered as a candidate to power transport, produce energy, and support heating applications for decades, however, the particular characteristics of the molecule always made it a chemical with low, if any, benefit once compared to conventional fossil fuels as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Ammonia, a molecule that is gaining more interest as a fueling vector, has been considered as a candidate to power transport, produce energy, and support heating applications for decades. However, the particular characteristics of the molecule always made it a chemical with low, if any, benefit once compared to conventional fossil fuels. Still, the current need to decarbonize our economy makes the search of new methods crucial to use chemicals, such as ammonia, that can be produced and employed without incurring in the emission of carbon oxides. Therefore, current efforts in this field are leading scientists, industries, and governments to seriously invest efforts in the development of holistic solutions capable of making ammonia a viable fuel for the transition toward a clean future. On that basis, this review has approached the subject gathering inputs from scientists actively working on the topic. The review starts from the importance of ammonia as an energy vector, moving through all of the steps in the production, distribution, utilization, safety, legal considerations, and economic aspects of the use of such a molecule to support the future energy mix. Fundamentals of combustion and practical cases for the recovery of energy of ammonia are also addressed, thus providing a complete view of what potentially could become a vector of crucial importance to the mitigation of carbon emissions. Different from other works, this review seeks to provide a holistic perspective of ammonia as a chemical that presents benefits and constraints for storing energy from sustainable sources. State-of-the-art knowledge provided by academics actively engaged with the topic at various fronts also enables a clear vision of the progress in each of the branches of ammonia as an energy carrier. Further, the fundamental boundaries of the use of the molecule are expanded to real technical issues for all potential technologies capable of using it for energy purposes, legal barriers that will be faced to achieve its deployment, safety and environmental considerations that impose a critical aspect for acceptance and wellbeing, and economic implications for the use of ammonia across all aspects approached for the production and implementation of this chemical as a fueling source. Herein, this work sets the principles, research, practicalities, and future views of a transition toward a future where ammonia will be a major energy player.

286 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The presented conceptual framework suggests that facing COVID-19-related external stress is likely to increase harmful dyadic processes (e.g., hostility, withdrawal, less responsive support), which will undermine couples' relationship quality.
Abstract: The coronavirus-19 (COVID-19) pandemic has profoundly altered people's daily lives and created multiple societal challenges. One important challenge of this unique stressor is maintaining well-functioning intimate relationships, which are inextricably tied to emotional and physical health. Yet research on romantic relationships shows that external stressors such as economic hardship, demanding jobs, and disasters can threaten the quality and stability of couples' relationships. Research within relationship science investigating how external stressors and existing vulnerabilities shape couple functioning can inform predictions about how the current pandemic will impact couples' relationships and which couples in which contexts may be most at risk for adverse relationship consequences. Drawing on theory and research from relationship science, the presented conceptual framework, adapted from the vulnerability-stress-adaptation model (Karney & Bradbury, 1995), suggests that facing COVID-19-related external stress is likely to increase harmful dyadic processes (e.g., hostility, withdrawal, less responsive support), which will undermine couples' relationship quality. These harmful effects are likely to be exacerbated by the broader preexisting context in which couples' relationships are situated (e.g., social class, minority status, age), and their individual vulnerabilities (e.g., attachment insecurity, depression). The framework presented identifies the essential factors that need to be addressed in order to mitigate the potential adverse effects of the current crisis on relationships, and offers key directions for future research. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

279 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
D. Adhikari1, H. Albataineh2, Darko Androić3, K. A. Aniol4, D. S. Armstrong5, T. Averett5, C. Ayerbe Gayoso5, S. Barcus6, V. Bellini7, R. S. Beminiwattha8, Jay Benesch6, H. Bhatt9, D. Bhatta Pathak8, D. Bhetuwal9, B. Blaikie10, Q. Campagna5, A. Camsonne6, G. D. Cates11, Y. Chen8, C. Clarke12, J. C. Cornejo13, S. Covrig Dusa6, P. Datta14, A. Deshpande12, Dipangkar Dutta9, C. Feldman12, E. Fuchey14, C. Gal11, C. Gal12, D. Gaskell6, T. Gautam15, Michael Gericke10, C. Ghosh12, C. Ghosh16, I. Halilovic10, J. O. Hansen6, F. Hauenstein17, W. Henry18, Charles Horowitz19, C. Jantzi11, Siyu Jian11, S. Johnston16, D. C. Jones18, B. Karki20, S. Katugampola11, Cynthia Keppel6, P. M. King20, D. King21, M. Knauss22, K. S. Kumar16, T. Kutz12, N. Lashley-Colthirst15, G. Leverick10, H. Liu16, N. Liyange11, S. Malace6, R. Mammei23, Juliette Mammei10, M. McCaughan6, D. McNulty1, D. G. Meekins6, C. Metts5, R. Michaels6, M. M. Mondal12, Jim Napolitano18, A. Narayan24, D. Nikolaev18, M. N. H. Rashad17, V. Owen5, C. Palatchi11, J. Pan10, B. Pandey15, S. Park12, Kent Paschke11, M. Petrusky12, Michael Pitt25, S. Premathilake11, Andrew Puckett14, B. P. Quinn13, R. W. Radloff20, S. Rahman10, A. Rathnayake11, Brendan Reed19, P. E. Reimer26, R. Richards12, S. Riordan26, Y. Roblin6, S. Seeds14, A. Shahinyan27, Paul Souder21, L. G. Tang6, L. G. Tang15, Michaela Thiel28, Y. Tian21, G. M. Urciuoli, E. W. Wertz5, Bogdan Wojtsekhowski6, B. Yale5, T. Ye12, A. Yoon29, A. Zec11, W. Zhang12, Jiawen Zhang30, Jiawen Zhang12, X. Zheng11 
TL;DR: In this paper, the parity-violating asymmetry in the elastic scattering of longitudinally polarized electrons from 208 Pb was measured, leading to an extraction of the neutral weak form factor F = 0.0036(exp)±0.0013(theo)
Abstract: We report a precision measurement of the parity-violating asymmetry A_{PV} in the elastic scattering of longitudinally polarized electrons from ^{208}Pb. We measure A_{PV}=550±16(stat)±8(syst) parts per billion, leading to an extraction of the neutral weak form factor F_{W}(Q^{2}=0.00616 GeV^{2})=0.368±0.013. Combined with our previous measurement, the extracted neutron skin thickness is R_{n}-R_{p}=0.283±0.071 fm. The result also yields the first significant direct measurement of the interior weak density of ^{208}Pb: ρ_{W}^{0}=-0.0796±0.0036(exp)±0.0013(theo) fm^{-3} leading to the interior baryon density ρ_{b}^{0}=0.1480±0.0036(exp)±0.0013(theo) fm^{-3}. The measurement accurately constrains the density dependence of the symmetry energy of nuclear matter near saturation density, with implications for the size and composition of neutron stars.

239 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a list of the authors who contributed to the development of this work, including: Akiyama, Kazunori; Algaba, Juan Carlos; Alberdi, Antxon; Anantua, Richard; Asada, Keiichi; Azulay, Rebecca; Baczko, Anne-Kathrin; Ball, David; Balokovic, Mislav; Barrett, John; Benson, Bradford A; Bintley, Dan; Bunderwood, Nissim; Bower, Geoffrey C;
Abstract: Full list of authors: Akiyama, Kazunori; Algaba, Juan Carlos; Alberdi, Antxon; Alef, Walter; Anantua, Richard; Asada, Keiichi; Azulay, Rebecca; Baczko, Anne-Kathrin; Ball, David; Balokovic, Mislav; Barrett, John; Benson, Bradford A.; Bintley, Dan; Blackburn, Lindy; Blundell, Raymond; Boland, Wilfred; Bouman, Katherine L.; Bower, Geoffrey C.; Boyce, Hope Bremer, Michael; Brinkerink, Christiaan D.; Brissenden, Roger; Britzen, Silke; Broderick, Avery E.; Broguiere, Dominique; Bronzwaer, Thomas; Byun, Do-Young; Carlstrom, John E.; Chael, Andrew; Chan, Chi-kwan; Chatterjee, Shami; Chatterjee, Koushik; Chen, Ming-Tang; Chen, Yongjun; Chesler, Paul M.; Cho, Ilje; Christian, Pierre; Conway, John E.; Cordes, James M.; Crawford, Thomas M.; Crew, Geoffrey B.; Cruz-Osorio, Alejandro; Cui, Yuzhu; Davelaar, Jordy; De Laurentis, Mariafelicia; Deane, Roger; Dempsey, Jessica; Desvignes, Gregory; Dexter, Jason; Doeleman, Sheperd S.; Eatough, Ralph P.; Falcke, Heino; Farah, Joseph; Fish, Vincent L.; Fomalont, Ed; Ford, H. Alyson; Fraga-Encinas, Raquel; Freeman, William T.; Friberg, Per; Fromm, Christian M.; Fuentes, Antonio; Galison, Peter; Gammie, Charles F.; Garcia, Roberto; Gentaz, Olivier; Georgiev, Boris; Goddi, Ciriaco; Gold, Roman; Gomez, Jose L.; Gomez-Ruiz, Arturo I.; Gu, Minfeng; Gurwell, Mark; Hada, Kazuhiro; Haggard, Daryl; Hecht, Michael H.; Hesper, Ronald; Ho, Luis C.; Ho, Paul; Honma, Mareki; Huang, Chih-Wei L.; Huang, Lei; Hughes, David H.; Ikeda, Shiro; Inoue, Makoto; Issaoun, Sara; James, David J.; Jannuzi, Buell T.; Janssen, Michael; Jeter, Britton; Jiang, Wu; Jimenez-Rosales, Alejandra; Johnson, Michael D.; Jorstad, Svetlana; Jung, Taehyun; Karami, Mansour; Karuppusamy, Ramesh; Kawashima, Tomohisa; Keating, Garrett K.; Kettenis, Mark; Kim, Dong-Jin; Kim, Jae-Young; Kim, Jongsoo; Kim, Junhan; Kino, Motoki; Koay, Jun Yi; Kofuji, Yutaro; Koch, Patrick M.; Koyama, Shoko; Kramer, Michael; Kramer, Carsten; Krichbaum, Thomas P.; Kuo, Cheng-Yu; Lauer, Tod R.; Lee, Sang-Sung; Levis, Aviad; Li, Yan-Rong; Li, Zhiyuan; Lindqvist, Michael; Lico, Rocco; Lindahl, Greg; Liu, Jun; Liu, Kuo; Liuzzo, Elisabetta; Lo, Wen-Ping; Lobanov, Andrei P.; Loinard, Laurent; Lonsdale, Colin; Lu, Ru-Sen; MacDonald, Nicholas R.; Mao, Jirong; Marchili, Nicola; Markoff, Sera; Marrone, Daniel P.; Marscher, Alan P.; Marti-Vidal, Ivan; Matsushita, Satoki; Matthews, Lynn D.; Medeiros, Lia; Menten, Karl M.; Mizuno, Izumi; Mizuno, Yosuke; Moran, James M.; Moriyama, Kotaro; Moscibrodzka, Monika; Muller, Cornelia; Musoke, Gibwa; Mejias, Alejandro Mus; Michalik, Daniel; Nadolski, Andrew; Nagai, Hiroshi; Nagar, Neil M.; Nakamura, Masanori; Narayan, Ramesh; Narayanan, Gopal; Natarajan, Iniyan; Nathanail, Antonios; Neilsen, Joey; Neri, Roberto; Ni, Chunchong; Noutsos, Aristeidis; Nowak, Michael A.; Okino, Hiroki; Olivares, Hector; Ortiz-Leon, Gisela N.; Oyama, Tomoaki; Ozel, Feryal; Palumbo, Daniel C. M.; Park, Jongho; Patel, Nimesh; Pen, Ue-Li; Pesce, Dominic W.; Pietu, Vincent; Plambeck, Richard; PopStefanija, Aleksandar; Porth, Oliver; Potzl, Felix M.; Prather, Ben; Preciado-Lopez, Jorge A.; Psaltis, Dimitrios; Pu, Hung-Yi; Ramakrishnan, Venkatessh; Rao, Ramprasad; Rawlings, Mark G.; Raymond, Alexander W.; Rezzolla, Luciano; Ricarte, Angelo; Ripperda, Bart; Roelofs, Freek; Rogers, Alan; Ros, Eduardo; Rose, Mel; Roshanineshat, Arash; Rottmann, Helge; Roy, Alan L.; Ruszczyk, Chet; Rygl, Kazi L. J.; Sanchez, Salvador; Sanchez-Arguelles, David; Sasada, Mahito; Savolainen, Tuomas; Schloerb, F. Peter; Schuster, Karl-Friedrich; Shao, Lijing; Shen, Zhiqiang; Small, Des; Sohn, Bong Won; SooHoo, Jason; Sun, He; Tazaki, Fumie; Tetarenko, Alexandra J.; Tiede, Paul; Tilanus, Remo P. J.; Titus, Michael; Toma, Kenji; Torne, Pablo; Trent, Tyler; Traianou, Efthalia; Trippe, Sascha; van Bemmel, Ilse; van Langevelde, Huib Jan; van Rossum, Daniel R.; Wagner, Jan; Ward-Thompson, Derek; Wardle, John; Weintroub, Jonathan; Wex, Norbert; Wharton, Robert; Wielgus, Maciek; Wong, George N.; Wu, Qingwen; Yoon, Doosoo; Young, Andre; Young, Ken; Younsi, Ziri; Yuan, Feng; Yuan, Ye-Fei; Zensus, J. Anton; Zhao, Guang-Yao; Zhao, Shan-Shan; Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration.-- This is an open access article, original content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.

210 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors provide a comprehensive discussion of sources of common method bias, as well as methods to identify and control for it, and develop a decision tree that features recommendations for choosing appropriate procedural and statistical controls.


Journal ArticleDOI
Ji Chen1, Ji Chen2, Cassandra N. Spracklen3, Cassandra N. Spracklen4  +475 moreInstitutions (146)
TL;DR: This paper aggregated genome-wide association studies comprising up to 281,416 individuals without diabetes (30% non-European ancestry) for whom fasting glucose, 2-h glucose after an oral glucose challenge, glycated hemoglobin and fasting insulin data were available.
Abstract: Glycemic traits are used to diagnose and monitor type 2 diabetes and cardiometabolic health. To date, most genetic studies of glycemic traits have focused on individuals of European ancestry. Here we aggregated genome-wide association studies comprising up to 281,416 individuals without diabetes (30% non-European ancestry) for whom fasting glucose, 2-h glucose after an oral glucose challenge, glycated hemoglobin and fasting insulin data were available. Trans-ancestry and single-ancestry meta-analyses identified 242 loci (99 novel; P < 5 × 10-8), 80% of which had no significant evidence of between-ancestry heterogeneity. Analyses restricted to individuals of European ancestry with equivalent sample size would have led to 24 fewer new loci. Compared with single-ancestry analyses, equivalent-sized trans-ancestry fine-mapping reduced the number of estimated variants in 99% credible sets by a median of 37.5%. Genomic-feature, gene-expression and gene-set analyses revealed distinct biological signatures for each trait, highlighting different underlying biological pathways. Our results increase our understanding of diabetes pathophysiology by using trans-ancestry studies for improved power and resolution.

Journal ArticleDOI
05 May 2021-Nature
TL;DR: This article used an observationally calibrated ice sheet-shelf model to show that with global warming limited to 2 degrees Celsius or less, Antarctic ice loss will continue at a pace similar to today's throughout the twenty-first century.
Abstract: The Paris Agreement aims to limit global mean warming in the twenty-first century to less than 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels, and to promote further efforts to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius1. The amount of greenhouse gas emissions in coming decades will be consequential for global mean sea level (GMSL) on century and longer timescales through a combination of ocean thermal expansion and loss of land ice2. The Antarctic Ice Sheet (AIS) is Earth's largest land ice reservoir (equivalent to 57.9 metres of GMSL)3, and its ice loss is accelerating4. Extensive regions of the AIS are grounded below sea level and susceptible to dynamical instabilities5-8 that are capable of producing very rapid retreat8. Yet the potential for the implementation of the Paris Agreement temperature targets to slow or stop the onset of these instabilities has not been directly tested with physics-based models. Here we use an observationally calibrated ice sheet-shelf model to show that with global warming limited to 2 degrees Celsius or less, Antarctic ice loss will continue at a pace similar to today's throughout the twenty-first century. However, scenarios more consistent with current policies (allowing 3 degrees Celsius of warming) give an abrupt jump in the pace of Antarctic ice loss after around 2060, contributing about 0.5 centimetres GMSL rise per year by 2100-an order of magnitude faster than today4. More fossil-fuel-intensive scenarios9 result in even greater acceleration. Ice-sheet retreat initiated by the thinning and loss of buttressing ice shelves continues for centuries, regardless of bedrock and sea-level feedback mechanisms10-12 or geoengineered carbon dioxide reduction. These results demonstrate the possibility that rapid and unstoppable sea-level rise from Antarctica will be triggered if Paris Agreement targets are exceeded.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors make use of the COVID-19 global health disaster to address the associated mental illness public crisis, and seek to broaden these calls to include mental health issues.
Abstract: As the COVID-19 global health disaster continues to unfold across the world, calls have been made to address the associated mental illness public crisis. The current paper seeks to broaden these ca...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The results indicated that the MAC material was a potential material to remove heavy metal ions from the aqueous solution and could be improved by properly increasing the pH of the original solution.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the fundamental properties of buried interfaces in perovskite photovoltaics are investigated by combining advanced in situ spectroscopy techniques with a facile lift-off strategy.
Abstract: Understanding the fundamental properties of buried interfaces in perovskite photovoltaics is of paramount importance to the enhancement of device efficiency and stability. Nevertheless, accessing buried interfaces poses a sizeable challenge because of their non-exposed feature. Herein, the mystery of the buried interface in full device stacks is deciphered by combining advanced in situ spectroscopy techniques with a facile lift-off strategy. By establishing the microstructure-property relations, the basic losses at the contact interfaces are systematically presented, and it is found that the buried interface losses induced by both the sub-microscale extended imperfections and lead-halide inhomogeneities are major roadblocks toward improvement of device performance. The losses can be considerably mitigated by the use of a passivation-molecule-assisted microstructural reconstruction, which unlocks the full potential for improving device performance. The findings open a new avenue to understanding performance losses and thus the design of new passivation strategies to remove imperfections at the top surfaces and buried interfaces of perovskite photovoltaics, resulting in substantial enhancement in device performance.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors report results from a new survey on wind costs, compare those with previous results and discuss the accuracy of the earlier predictions and conclude that there is considerable uncertainty about future costs.
Abstract: Wind energy has experienced accelerated cost reduction over the past five years—far greater than predicted in a 2015 expert elicitation. Here we report results from a new survey on wind costs, compare those with previous results and discuss the accuracy of the earlier predictions. We show that experts in 2020 expect future onshore and offshore wind costs to decline 37–49% by 2050, resulting in costs 50% lower than predicted in 2015. This is due to cost reductions witnessed over the past five years and expected continued advancements. If realized, these costs might allow wind to play a larger role in energy supply than previously anticipated. Considering both surveys, we also conclude that there is considerable uncertainty about future costs. Our results illustrate the importance of considering cost uncertainty, highlight the value and limits of using experts to reveal those uncertainties, and yield possible lessons for energy modellers and expert elicitation. Costs of renewable energy generation have fallen rapidly in recent years, often faster than predicted. Wiser et al. undertake an expert elicitation survey to project wind power costs to 2050, finding substantial continued cost reductions, and compare back to a previous survey to understand what has changed.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A review article as discussed by the authors provides an overview of the current status of the scientific understanding of plant-based foods and highlights areas where further research is required, focusing on the chemical, physical, and functional properties of plant derived ingredients; the processing operations that can be used to convert these ingredients into food products; and, the science behind the formulation of vegan meat, fish, eggs, and milk alternatives.
Abstract: Consumers are increasingly demanding foods that are more ethical, sustainable and nutritious to improve the health of themselves and the planet. The food industry is currently undergoing a revolution, as both small and large companies pivot toward the creation of a new generation of plant-based products to meet this consumer demand. In particular, there is an emphasis on the production of plant-based foods that mimic those that omnivores are familiar with, such as meat, fish, egg, milk, and their products. The main challenge in this area is to simulate the desirable appearance, texture, flavor, mouthfeel, and functionality of these products using ingredients that are isolated entirely from botanical sources, such as proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids. The molecular, chemical, and physical properties of plant-derived ingredients are usually very different from those of animal-derived ones. It is therefore critical to understand the fundamental properties of plant-derived ingredients and how they can be assembled into structures resembling those found in animal products. This review article provides an overview of the current status of the scientific understanding of plant-based foods and highlights areas where further research is required. In particular, it focuses on the chemical, physical, and functional properties of plant-derived ingredients; the processing operations that can be used to convert these ingredients into food products; and, the science behind the formulation of vegan meat, fish, eggs, and milk alternatives.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A growing body of research emphasizes their broad phylogenetic diversity and shows that these microorganisms have key roles in multiple biogeochemical cycles, as well as the microbiome of the gut, anaerobic waste digesters and metal corrosion as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Electroactive microorganisms markedly affect many environments in which they establish outer-surface electrical contacts with other cells and minerals or reduce soluble extracellular redox-active molecules such as flavins and humic substances. A growing body of research emphasizes their broad phylogenetic diversity and shows that these microorganisms have key roles in multiple biogeochemical cycles, as well as the microbiome of the gut, anaerobic waste digesters and metal corrosion. Diverse bacteria and archaea have independently evolved cytochrome-based strategies for electron exchange between the outer cell surface and the cell interior, but cytochrome-free mechanisms are also prevalent. Electrically conductive protein filaments, soluble electron shuttles and non-biological conductive materials can substantially extend the electronic reach of microorganisms beyond the surface of the cell. The growing appreciation of the diversity of electroactive microorganisms and their unique electronic capabilities is leading to a broad range of applications.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The 2017-2027 National Academies' Decadal Survey, Thriving on Our Changing Planet, recommended Surface Biology and Geology (SBG) as a "designated targeted observable" (DO) as discussed by the authors.

Proceedings ArticleDOI
01 Jan 2021
TL;DR: This work designs a defense against poisoning of FL, called divide-and-conquer (DnC), and demonstrates that DnC outperforms all existing Byzantine-robust FL algorithms in defeating model poisoning attacks, specifically, it is 2.5× to 12× more resilient in the authors' experiments with different datasets and models.
Abstract: Federated learning (FL) enables many data owners (e.g., mobile devices) to train a joint ML model (e.g., a next-word prediction classifier) without the need of sharing their private training data. However, FL is known to be susceptible to model poisoning attacks by malicious participants (e.g., adversaryowned mobile devices), who aim at hampering the accuracy of the jointly trained model through sending malicious inputs during the federated training process. In this paper, we present a general framework for model poisoning attacks on FL. We show that our framework leads to poisoning attacks that substantially outperform the state-of-the-art model poisoning attacks by large margins. For instance, our attacks result in 1.5× to 60× more reductions in the accuracy of FL compared to the strongest of existing poisoning attacks. Our work demonstrates that existing Byzantine-robust FL algorithms are significantly more susceptible to model poisoning than previously thought. Motivated by this, we design a defense against poisoning of FL, called divide-and-conquer (DnC). We demonstrate that DnC outperforms all existing Byzantine-robust FL algorithms in defeating model poisoning attacks, specifically, it is 2.5× to 12× more resilient in our experiments with different datasets and models.

Journal ArticleDOI
Georges Aad1, Brad Abbott2, Dale Charles Abbott3, A. Abed Abud4  +3008 moreInstitutions (221)
TL;DR: In this article, the ATLAS particle-flow reconstruction method is used to reconstruct the topo-clusters of the proton-proton collision data with a center-of-mass energy of 13$ TeV collected by the LHC.
Abstract: Jet energy scale and resolution measurements with their associated uncertainties are reported for jets using 36-81 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collision data with a centre-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV collected by the ATLAS detector at the LHC. Jets are reconstructed using two different input types: topo-clusters formed from energy deposits in calorimeter cells, as well as an algorithmic combination of charged-particle tracks with those topo-clusters, referred to as the ATLAS particle-flow reconstruction method. The anti-$k_t$ jet algorithm with radius parameter $R=0.4$ is the primary jet definition used for both jet types. Jets are initially calibrated using a sequence of simulation-based corrections. Next, several $\textit{in situ}$ techniques are employed to correct for differences between data and simulation and to measure the resolution of jets. The systematic uncertainties in the jet energy scale for central jets ($|\eta| 2.5$ TeV). The relative jet energy resolution is measured and ranges from ($24 \pm 1.5$)% at 20 GeV to ($6 \pm 0.5$)% at 300 GeV.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors used CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing to increase maize grain-yield-related traits, such as increase in meristem size and increase in the peptide signal in the CLAVATA-WUSCHEL pathway.
Abstract: Several yield-related traits selected during crop domestication and improvement1,2 are associated with increases in meristem size3, which is controlled by CLE peptide signals in the CLAVATA-WUSCHEL pathway4-13. Here, we engineered quantitative variation for yield-related traits in maize by making weak promoter alleles of CLE genes, and a null allele of a newly identified partially redundant compensating CLE gene, using CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing. These strategies increased multiple maize grain-yield-related traits, supporting the enormous potential for genomic editing in crop enhancement.

Journal ArticleDOI
T. Albahri1, A. Anastasi, Alexey Anisenkov2, Alexey Anisenkov3  +195 moreInstitutions (40)
TL;DR: The Muon g-2 Experiment at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (FNAL) has measured the muon anomalous precession frequency to an uncertainty of 434 parts per billion (ppb), statistical, and 56 ppb, systematic, with data collected in four storage ring configurations during its first physics run in 2018.
Abstract: The Muon g-2 Experiment at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (FNAL) has measured the muon anomalous precession frequency $\omega_a$ to an uncertainty of 434 parts per billion (ppb), statistical, and 56 ppb, systematic, with data collected in four storage ring configurations during its first physics run in 2018. When combined with a precision measurement of the magnetic field of the experiment's muon storage ring, the precession frequency measurement determines a muon magnetic anomaly of $a_{\mu}({\rm FNAL}) = 116\,592\,040(54) \times 10^{-11}$ (0.46 ppm). This article describes the multiple techniques employed in the reconstruction, analysis and fitting of the data to measure the precession frequency. It also presents the averaging of the results from the eleven separate determinations of \omega_a, and the systematic uncertainties on the result.


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors evaluated the Abbott BinaxNOW COVID-19 Ag card in a high-throughput, drive-through, free community testing site in Massachusetts using anterior nasal (AN) swab reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) for clinical testing.
Abstract: Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for SARS-CoV-2 antigens (Ag) that can be performed at point of care (POC) can supplement molecular testing and help mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic. Deployment of an Ag RDT requires an understanding of its operational and performance characteristics under real-world conditions and in relevant subpopulations. We evaluated the Abbott BinaxNOW COVID-19 Ag card in a high-throughput, drive-through, free community testing site in Massachusetts using anterior nasal (AN) swab reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) for clinical testing. Individuals presenting for molecular testing in two of seven lanes were offered the opportunity to also receive BinaxNOW testing. Dual AN swabs were collected from symptomatic and asymptomatic children (≤18 years of age) and adults. BinaxNOW testing was performed in a testing pod with temperature/humidity monitoring. One individual performed testing and official result reporting for each test, but most tests had a second independent reading to assess interoperator agreement. Positive BinaxNOW results were scored as faint, medium, or strong. Positive BinaxNOW results were reported to patients by phone, and they were instructed to isolate pending RT-PCR results. The paired RT-PCR result was the reference for sensitivity and specificity calculations. Of 2,482 participants, 1,380 adults and 928 children had paired RT-PCR/BinaxNOW results and complete symptom data. In this study, 974/1,380 (71%) adults and 829/928 (89%) children were asymptomatic. BinaxNOW had 96.5% (95% confidence interval [CI], 90.0 to 99.3) sensitivity and 100% (95% CI, 98.6 to 100.0) specificity in adults within 7 days of symptoms and 84.6% (95% CI, 65.1 to 95.6) sensitivity and 100% (95% CI, 94.5 to 100.0) specificity in children within 7 days of symptoms. Sensitivity and specificity in asymptomatic adults were 70.2% (95% CI, 56.6 to 81.6) and 99.6% (95% CI, 98.9 to 99.9), respectively, and in asymptomatic children, they were 65.4% (95% CI, 55.6 to 74.4) and 99.0% (95% CI, 98.0 to 99.6), respectively. By cycle threshold (CT ) value cutoff, sensitivity in all subgroups combined (n = 292 RT-PCR-positive individuals) was 99.3% with CT values of ≤25, 95.8% with CT values of ≤30, and 81.2% with CT values of ≤35. Twelve false-positive BinaxNOW results (out of 2,308 tests) were observed; in all 12, the test bands were faint but otherwise normal and were noted by both readers. One invalid BinaxNOW result was identified. Interoperator agreement (positive versus negative BinaxNOW result) was 100% (n = 2,230/2,230 double reads). Each operator was able to process 20 RDTs per hour. In a separate set of 30 specimens (from individuals with symptoms ≤7 days) run at temperatures below the manufacturer's recommended range (46 to 58.5°F), sensitivity was 66.7% and specificity 95.2%. BinaxNOW had very high specificity in both adults and children and very high sensitivity in newly symptomatic adults. Overall, 95.8% sensitivity was observed with CT values of ≤30. These data support public health recommendations for use of the BinaxNOW test in adults with symptoms for ≤7 days without RT-PCR confirmation. Excellent interoperator agreement indicates that an individual can perform and read the BinaxNOW test alone. A skilled laboratorian can perform and read 20 tests per hour. Careful attention to temperature is critical.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This article discusses the computation and interpretation of the weighted interval score, which can be interpreted as a generalization of the absolute error to probabilistic forecasts and allows for a decomposition into a measure of sharpness and penalties for over- and underprediction.
Abstract: For practical reasons, many forecasts of case, hospitalization, and death counts in the context of the current Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic are issued in the form of central predictive intervals at various levels. This is also the case for the forecasts collected in the COVID-19 Forecast Hub (https://covid19forecasthub.org/). Forecast evaluation metrics like the logarithmic score, which has been applied in several infectious disease forecasting challenges, are then not available as they require full predictive distributions. This article provides an overview of how established methods for the evaluation of quantile and interval forecasts can be applied to epidemic forecasts in this format. Specifically, we discuss the computation and interpretation of the weighted interval score, which is a proper score that approximates the continuous ranked probability score. It can be interpreted as a generalization of the absolute error to probabilistic forecasts and allows for a decomposition into a measure of sharpness and penalties for over- and underprediction.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: An overview of current understanding of the functions of Notch in cancer is provided, highlighting key implications for the development of notch-targeting therapeutics and agents in clinical development and emerging therapeutic strategies are highlighted.
Abstract: Notch signalling is involved in many aspects of cancer biology, including angiogenesis, tumour immunity and the maintenance of cancer stem-like cells. In addition, Notch can function as an oncogene and a tumour suppressor in different cancers and in different cell populations within the same tumour. Despite promising preclinical results and early-phase clinical trials, the goal of developing safe, effective, tumour-selective Notch-targeting agents for clinical use remains elusive. However, our continually improving understanding of Notch signalling in specific cancers, individual cancer cases and different cell populations, as well as crosstalk between pathways, is aiding the discovery and development of novel investigational Notch-targeted therapeutics.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, an up-to-date review of starch-based biodegradable materials is given, with emphasis on methods to improve their properties and widen their application in food packaging.
Abstract: Background Synthetic plastics are extremely versatile and convenient materials that can be used to create a diversity of useful products, but their widespread use is causing increasing damage to the planet. As a result, there has been considerable efforts towards the development of more biodegradable and environmentally-friendly materials. Among various alternatives, starch is considered as a good substitute for synthetic polymers due to its abundant supply, low cost, complete biodegradation, high biocompatibility, and good film-forming properties. However, a number of technical challenges need to be overcome to increase the practical of starch-based materials for manner applications. Scope and approach An up-to-date review of starch-based materials is given, with emphasis on methods to improve their properties and widen their application in food packaging. The preparation methods, common additives, characterization techniques, and applications of starch-based biodegradable materials are summarized. Additionally, advanced technological approaches to prepare innovative starch-based biodegradable materials are also introduced to stimulate new areas for future research. Key findings and conclusions Starch-based materials have great potential as biodegradable food packaging materials that will reduce environmental pollution. The functional performance of starch-based biodegradable materials can be extended or improved by adding other biopolymers or additives, as well as by using novel preparation techniques. Nevertheless, the large-scale economic production of high-performance starch-based biodegradable materials is still a challenge and more research is still required in this area.