Using the dual-pathway framework (Beach et al., 2022a), we tested a Neuro-immune Network (NIN) hypothesis: i.e., that chronically elevated inflammatory processes may have delayed (i.e., incubation) effects on young adult substance use, leading to negative health outcomes. In a sample of 449 participants in the Family and Community Health Study who were followed from age 10 to age 29, we examined a non-self-report index of young adult elevated alcohol consumption (EAC). By controlling self-reported substance use at the transition to adulthood, we were able to isolate a significant delayed (incubation) effect from childhood exposure to danger to EAC (β = −.157, p = .006), which contributed to significantly worse aging outomes. Indirect effects from danger to aging outcomes via EAC were: GrimAge (IE = .010, [.002, .024]), Cardiac Risk (IE = −.004, [−.011, −.001]), DunedinPACE (IE = .002, [.000, .008]). In exploratory analyses we examined potential sex differences in effects, showing slightly stronger incubation effects for men and slightly stronger effects of EAC on aging outcomes for women. Results support the NIN hypothesis that incubation of immune pathway effects contributes to elevated alcohol consumption in young adulthood, resulting in accelerated aging and elevated cardiac risk outcomes via health behavior.

Objectives/Goals: Depression is common among people living with HIV (PLWH). This study explored the link between reduced metacognitive awareness and depression in PLWH. It utilized a positive emotion regulation task to compare brain activation during viewing versus upregulating positive emotions. Methods/Study Population: Depressed PLWH (N = 24; mean age  =  53; HAM-D mean  =  19) participated in an emotion regulation task while blood oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) responses were recorded. In the emotional regulation task, participants were shown the International Affective Picture System (IAPS) a series of positive, negative, and neutral images. Participants were asked to view these images and given instructions to either negatively reappraise (RN) or positively reappraise (RP). In the RP condition, participants were no longer shown the image and asked to upregulate their positive emotional responses associated with it. Ten onset times were included for each trial. Results/Anticipated Results: A one-sample t-test was conducted to analyze contrasts between reappraisal of positive images and viewing positive images (RP > VP). Results showed significantly greater activation in the posterior cingulate and angular gyrus during the RP condition (peak MNI: 18, -52, 34; p < 0.001, uncorrected, k > 10 voxels). In comparing the reappraisal of negative images to viewing negative images (RN > VN), there was increased activation in the right supramarginal gyrus (peak MNI: 50, -28, 22; p < 0.001, uncorrected, k > 10 voxels). When contrasting the reappraisal of positive to negative images (RP > RN), BOLD signals were higher in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (peak MNI: 40, -38, 32; p < 0.001, uncorrected, k > 10 voxels). Discussion/Significance of Impact: Findings underscore that depressed PLWH demonstrates BOLD responses in brain regions linked to appetitive motivation and meta-cognitive awareness during the RP condition which demands more executive resources among those with depression, highlighting the complexity of emotional regulation in this population.

People with serious mental illness (SMI) are over-represented throughout the US criminal justice system. To address this issue, forensic assertive community treatment has recently emerged as a best-practice intervention. Also known as forensic ACT, ForACT, or most commonly as “FACT,” forensic assertive community treatment is an adaptation of the assertive community treatment (ACT) model. Unlike ACT, however, FACT is purposefully designed to prevent arrest and incarceration among people with SMI who have histories of involvement with the criminal justice system (i.e., “justice-involved” individuals). Although FACT was recognized as a best practice by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) in 2019, FACT teams vary widely in their structure and daily operations. This lack of a standard FACT model continues to impede FACT program implementation and outcomes research. This article begins with a review of FACT origins, followed by a discussion of what we know (and do not know) about FACT operation and effectiveness. Based on the authors’ experience, the article then discusses key components of FACT and concludes with a discussion of current challenges and research recommendations for FACT model development.

The new software package OpenMx 2.0 for structural equation and other statistical modeling is introduced and its features are described. OpenMx is evolving in a modular direction and now allows a mix-and-match computational approach that separates model expectations from fit functions and optimizers. Major backend architectural improvements include a move to swappable open-source optimizers such as the newly written CSOLNP. Entire new methodologies such as item factor analysis and state space modeling have been implemented. New model expectation functions including support for the expression of models in LISREL syntax and a simplified multigroup expectation function are available. Ease-of-use improvements include helper functions to standardize model parameters and compute their Jacobian-based standard errors, access to model components through standard R $ mechanisms, and improved tab completion from within the R Graphical User Interface.

The connection between populism and democracy is widely researched. Most of the literature focuses on populist actors (e.g., parties, leaders, and governments) as it examines the intricacies of this relationship. Some of the resulting takeaways have become embedded firmly in scholarship and are currently considered accepted knowledge across the discipline. Scholars have only recently started focusing on the individual-level relationship between populism and democracy. As a result, our knowledge remains limited and is often based on the assumption that what holds for populist actors also will hold for populist citizens. The first part of this article briefly reviews the state of the art on the individual-level relationship between populism and democracy. Drawing from this review, we identify several theoretical and empirical gaps and limitations in the literature that future research should address. We conclude that contemporary scholarship has made important contributions, but more nuanced and targeted research is necessary to comprehensively understand the intricacies between populism and democracy on the individual level.

The past few years were marked by increased online offensive strategies perpetrated by state and non-state actors to promote their political agenda, sow discord, and question the legitimacy of democratic institutions in the US and Western Europe. In 2016, the US congress identified a list of Russian state-sponsored Twitter accounts that were used to try to divide voters on a wide range of issues. Previous research used latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) to estimate latent topics in data extracted from these accounts. However, LDA has characteristics that may limit the effectiveness of its use on data from social media: The number of latent topics must be specified by the user, interpretability of the topics can be difficult to achieve, and it does not model short-term temporal dynamics. In the current paper, we propose a new method to estimate latent topics in texts from social media termed Dynamic Exploratory Graph Analysis (DynEGA). In a Monte Carlo simulation, we compared the ability of DynEGA and LDA to estimate the number of simulated latent topics. The results show that DynEGA is substantially more accurate than several different LDA algorithms when estimating the number of simulated topics. In an applied example, we performed DynEGA on a large dataset with Twitter posts from state-sponsored right- and left-wing trolls during the 2016 US presidential election. DynEGA revealed topics that were pertinent to several consequential events in the election cycle, demonstrating the coordinated effort of trolls capitalizing on current events in the USA. This example demonstrates the potential power of our approach for revealing temporally relevant information from qualitative text data.

Latent trait models for binary responses to a set of test items are considered from the point of view of estimating latent trait parameters θ= (θ1, …, θn) and item parameters β=(β1, …, βk), where βj may be vector valued. With θ considered a random sample from a prior distribution with parameter ϕ, the estimation of (θ, β) is studied under the theory of the EM algorithm. An example and computational details are presented for the Rasch model.

We employ direct numerical simulations to investigate the heat transfer and flow structures in turbulent Rayleigh–Bénard convection in both cylindrical cells and laterally periodic domains, spanning an unprecedentedly wide range of aspect ratios $0.075 \leqslant \varGamma \leqslant 32$. We focus on Prandtl number ${Pr}=1$ and Rayleigh numbers ${{Ra}}=2\times 10^7$ and ${{Ra}}=10^8$. In both cases, with increasing aspect ratio, the heat transfer first increases, then reaches a maximum (which is more pronounced for the cylindrical case due to confinement effects), and then slightly goes down again before it finally saturates at the large aspect ratio limit, which is achieved already at $\varGamma \approx 4$. Already for $\varGamma \gtrsim 0.75$, the heat transfers in both cylindrical and laterally periodic domains become identical. The large-$\varGamma$ limit for the volume-integrated Reynolds number and the boundary layer thicknesses are also reached at $\varGamma \approx 4$. However, while the integral flow properties converge at $\varGamma \approx 4$, the confinement of a cylindrical domain impacts the temperature and velocity variance distributions up to $\varGamma \approx 16$, as thermal superstructures cannot form close to the sidewall.

Between 1903 and 1952, there was a Jesuit and French university in Shanghai called l’Aurore. This article focuses on its medical faculty, which operated from 1912 to 1952. It shows that, in a precarious political and military context, l’Aurore simultaneously benefited from Jesuit missionary activity and the French quest for imperial influence, without fully identifying with either. The faculty was not an official missionary institution, and most of its hundreds of students were not Christians. However, the Jesuit administration kept a record of baptisms among the students and, based on Catholic principles, encouraged opposition to birth control through courses on ‘medical ethics’ and a special oath that medical graduates had to take. Nor was the medical faculty an overtly imperial institution. It was part of a concession and the result of an alliance between Jesuit missionaries and anti-clerical diplomats of the French Third Republic. Yet, the faculty was key to a French policy of imperial influence designed to compete with other imperial, religious, and private foreign powers active in medical education in China. During the years of war between China and Japan (1937–1945), the faculty consolidated its influence by increasing student numbers and building new infrastructure, whereas its Chinese staff assumed a more prominent role, reinforcing the importance of Chinese medicine in teaching and research. Doctors trained at l’Aurore who stayed in China remained active in public health until well into the second half of the twentieth century, even after the medical faculty was abolished by the Communist regime.

Invasive plants can gain a foothold in new environments by manipulating soil conditions through allelopathy or through the disruption of associations between native plants and their mycorrhizal associates. The resulting changes in soil conditions can affect the recovery of habitats long after the invasive plant has been removed. We conducted a series of greenhouse experiments to examine the effects of soil conditioned by pale swallow-wort [Vincetoxicum rossicum (Kleopow) Barbarich; Apocynaceae], on the growth of native plants. Additionally, we tested the effects of aqueous extracts of common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca L.; Apocynaceae), a related plant with known allelopathic effects, on the regrowth of V. rossicum from transplanted root crowns. Soil from a 15-yr-old V. rossicum infestation reduced seedling emergence in A. syriaca as well as in V. rossicum itself. Conversely, the same soil had no effect on the growth of mature A. syriaca plants. Soil conditioned by V. rossicum growth in the greenhouse had no effect on the biomass and percentage cover generated by two restoration seed mixes. Soil conditioned by A. syriaca, however, yielded lower biomass and percentage cover from both seed mixes. In contrast to the allelopathic effects of A. syriaca on seedlings, aqueous extracts of A. syriaca increased aboveground plant growth in V. rossicum. Our results suggest that the effects of V. rossicum–conditioned soil on native plants are concentrated at the seedling establishment phase. Additionally, the use of diverse native seed mixes shows great potential for restoring productivity to ecosystems affected by V. rossicum.

NASA’s all-sky survey mission, the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), is specifically engineered to detect exoplanets that transit bright stars. Thus far, TESS has successfully identified approximately 400 transiting exoplanets, in addition to roughly 6 000 candidate exoplanets pending confirmation. In this study, we present the results of our ongoing project, the Validation of Transiting Exoplanets using Statistical Tools (VaTEST). Our dedicated effort is focused on the confirmation and characterisation of new exoplanets through the application of statistical validation tools. Through a combination of ground-based telescope data, high-resolution imaging, and the utilisation of the statistical validation tool known as TRICERATOPS, we have successfully discovered eight potential super-Earths. These planets bear the designations: TOI-238b (1.61$^{+0.09} _{-0.10}$ R$_\oplus$), TOI-771b (1.42$^{+0.11} _{-0.09}$ R$_\oplus$), TOI-871b (1.66$^{+0.11} _{-0.11}$ R$_\oplus$), TOI-1467b (1.83$^{+0.16} _{-0.15}$ R$_\oplus$), TOI-1739b (1.69$^{+0.10} _{-0.08}$ R$_\oplus$), TOI-2068b (1.82$^{+0.16} _{-0.15}$ R$_\oplus$), TOI-4559b (1.42$^{+0.13} _{-0.11}$ R$_\oplus$), and TOI-5799b (1.62$^{+0.19} _{-0.13}$ R$_\oplus$). Among all these planets, six of them fall within the region known as ‘keystone planets’, which makes them particularly interesting for study. Based on the location of TOI-771b and TOI-4559b below the radius valley we characterised them as likely super-Earths, though radial velocity mass measurements for these planets will provide more details about their characterisation. It is noteworthy that planets within the size range investigated herein are absent from our own solar system, making their study crucial for gaining insights into the evolutionary stages between Earth and Neptune.

Sorption and fixation of Cs by the upland soils of the US Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site (SRS) have been attributed to micaceous grains consisting mostly of hydroxy-interlayered vermiculite (HIV). Results of experiments to characterize SRS soil samples, to examine aspects of their radiocesium sorption, and to determine how much of their natural Cs is accessible for chemical extraction and isotope dilution are presented in support of mechanistic hypotheses to explain Cs sorption and fixation in HIV grains. The HIV is responsible for most of the soil cation exchange capacity, and concentrations of naturally occurring Cs, Rb, and K in soil samples are closely related to the concentration of HIV. Experiments with 137Cs to examine (1) sorption kinetics, (2) blocking of exchange sites with silver thiourea, and (3) susceptibility of sorbed 137Cs to chemical extraction, support the idea that added Cs is sorbed at different kinds of cation exchange sites in HIV grains. Sites highly selective for Cs but relatively few in number are inferred to exist in interlayer wedge zones within such grains. Little of the naturally occurring Cs in the soil samples was extractable by chemical agents that would remove Cs from ordinary cation-exchange sites and from within non-silicate soil components. Furthermore, most of the natural Cs was inaccessible for isotope dilution under slightly acidic conditions approximating the natural soil environment. These observations support the idea that most of the Cs in these soils has become effectively fixed in the narrower parts of interlayer wedge zones. Control of Cs uptake and fixation by highly Csselective interlayer wedge sites would account for the large distribution coefficients found for 137Cs at the low aqueous Cs concentrations typical of environmental systems and also for the relatively large concentrations of stable Cs in the SRS soils.

The ACT Network was funded by NIH to provide investigators from across the Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) Consortium the ability to directly query national federated electronic health record (EHR) data for cohort discovery and feasibility assessment of multi-site studies. NIH refunded the program for expanded research application to become “Evolve to Next-Gen ACT” (ENACT). In parallel, the US Food and Drug Administration has been evaluating the use of real-world data (RWD), including EHR data, as sources of real-world evidence (RWE) for its regulatory decisions involving drug and biological products. Using insights from implementation science, six lessons learned from ACT for developing and sustaining RWD/RWE infrastructures and networks across the CTSA Consortium are presented in order to inform ENACT’s development from the outset. Lessons include intentional institutional relationship management, end-user engagement, beta-testing, and customer-driven adaptation. The ENACT team is also conducting customer discovery interviews with CTSA hub and investigators using Innovation-Corps@NCATS (I-Corps™) methodology for biomedical entrepreneurs to uncover unmet RWD needs. Possible ENACT value proposition hypotheses are presented by stage of research. Developing evidence about methods for sustaining academically derived data infrastructures and support can advance the science of translation and support our nation’s RWD/RWE research capacity.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture–Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) has been a leader in weed science research covering topics ranging from the development and use of integrated weed management (IWM) tactics to basic mechanistic studies, including biotic resistance of desirable plant communities and herbicide resistance. ARS weed scientists have worked in agricultural and natural ecosystems, including agronomic and horticultural crops, pastures, forests, wild lands, aquatic habitats, wetlands, and riparian areas. Through strong partnerships with academia, state agencies, private industry, and numerous federal programs, ARS weed scientists have made contributions to discoveries in the newest fields of robotics and genetics, as well as the traditional and fundamental subjects of weed–crop competition and physiology and integration of weed control tactics and practices. Weed science at ARS is often overshadowed by other research topics; thus, few are aware of the long history of ARS weed science and its important contributions. This review is the result of a symposium held at the Weed Science Society of America’s 62nd Annual Meeting in 2022 that included 10 separate presentations in a virtual Weed Science Webinar Series. The overarching themes of management tactics (IWM, biological control, and automation), basic mechanisms (competition, invasive plant genetics, and herbicide resistance), and ecosystem impacts (invasive plant spread, climate change, conservation, and restoration) represent core ARS weed science research that is dynamic and efficacious and has been a significant component of the agency’s national and international efforts. This review highlights current studies and future directions that exemplify the science and collaborative relationships both within and outside ARS. Given the constraints of weeds and invasive plants on all aspects of food, feed, and fiber systems, there is an acknowledged need to face new challenges, including agriculture and natural resources sustainability, economic resilience and reliability, and societal health and well-being.