University of Wisconsin–Green Bay

The serotonin 2C receptor (5-HT 2C ) has been investigated as a potential therapeutic target for a variety of psychiatric disorders, as well as the treatment of obesity. A stumbling block in the development of these medications is identifying agonists with selectivity for 5-HT 2C over 5-HT 2A and 5-HT 2B . Lorcaserin (Belviq) is a serotonin 5-HT 2C agonist that was previously marketed as a weight-loss medication but was voluntarily withdrawn from the market because of a small, but an increased risk of serious side effects. The present study examined the discriminative stimulus properties of 2.0 mg/kg lorcaserin in a two-lever drug discrimination assay in male C57BL/6 mice using a fixed ratio 12 reinforcement schedule. A generalization curve with lorcaserin yielded an effective dose 50 (ED 50 ) = 0.56 mg/kg for substitution for the training dose. Lorcaserin produced a rapid onset, but short-acting (~60 min), discriminative stimulus, as full generalization was found as early as 15 min after drug administration. The 5-HT 2C agonist meta-chlorophenylpiperazine fully substituted for lorcaserin with an ED 50 = 0.31 mg/kg, and the 5-HT 2C antagonist SB 242084 significantly blocked lorcaserin-lever responding (maximal effect at 0.25 mg/kg dose). Conversely, the 5-HT 1A agonist 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino) tetralin did not substitute for lorcaserin. Thus, lorcaserin’s discriminative stimulus appears to be mediated by agonist activity at 5HT 2C receptors in C57BL/6 mice. These results demonstrated that lorcaserin drug discrimination can be trained in C57BL/6 mice and that it is a useful in-vivo assay for the future development of psychotherapeutic drugs for psychiatric disorders with selective 5-HT 2C agonist activity.

Recent research has acknowledged that a large and growing number of consumers worldwide have adopted a minimalistic philosophy and engaged in minimalistic consumption. However, extant research has generally grouped all minimalists together, thus limiting the theoretical and practical relevance of minimalism to the field of marketing. In delving deeper into prior work, it can be posited that minimalism, despite its overall focus on simplification, takes various forms driven by different motivations. We critically analyze prior conceptualizations of minimalism using a multi‐method approach to develop and validate a scale that captures different types of motivations driving minimalistic consumption. The scale enables researchers and practitioners to better understand minimalism, measure minimalistic consumption for each unique minimalistic consumption motivation, and tailor their approaches to appeal to different types of minimalistic consumers.

Green Bay, the largest freshwater embayment in Lake Michigan, is a unique environment consisting of a trophic gradient along its north‐to‐south axis that shapes the heterogeneous and dynamic habitat, driving diverse fish behavior among the remnant coastal wetlands of Green Bay. Although previous studies of aquatic food webs in Green Bay have focused on lower trophic levels to estimate trophic shift responses, we examined trophic relationships among fish communities in five coastal wetland areas of Green Bay, emphasizing top predator species of recreational and commercial importance in Lake Michigan. We used stable isotope‐based community metrics and Bayesian mixing models to describe food web structure and patterns in trophic position, isotopic niche, and diet contributions of top predators, including bowfin Amia calva, largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides, northern pike Esox lucius, smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieu, walleye Sander vitreus, and yellow perch Perca flavescens. We found high probability (> 70%) of overlap among the isotopic niches of piscivorous, invertivorous, and benthivorous fish, reflecting the capacity of different feeding guilds to exploit isotopically similar sources. In addition, we found that invertivorous fish represented a critical trophic link between the top‐level fish populations and lower levels, such as aquatic invertebrates. Lastly, we found that top predators diversified their diet in lacustrine wetlands but had a distinct foraging habitat preference in riverine wetlands, emphasizing the importance of habitat type and structure in feeding diversity. Top predators in Green Bay displayed a high degree of isotopic niche plasticity, as evidenced by differences in trophic positions and foraging strategies at each site. Flexibility in fish feeding ecology, such as variations in dietary overlap and niche space, along with the hydrogeomorphic setting, underpins the ability of fish communities of Green Bay to thrive under different stressors.

Importance Use of modern neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) regimens has markedly increased rates of pathologic complete response (pCR) in breast cancer, raising the question of whether surgical removal of the primary tumor is required for patients with pCR. For surgery to be omitted, one must be able to accurately predict pCR before surgery. Objective To investigate if adding post-NAC core needle biopsy of the tumor bed to trimodality imaging in patients who have clinical complete response (cCR) will predict pCR (resolution of both invasive disease and ductal carcinoma in situ) in 90% or more cases. Design, Setting, and Participants This was a phase 2, prospective, nonrandomized clinical trial. Patients were enrolled from August 2017 to June 2019. This is the final analysis, which was completed in December 2023. The setting included academic and community hospital center members of NRG (ie, the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project, the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group, and the Gynecologic Oncology Group) in the US and Canada. Patients with operable (T1-T3, stage I-III) invasive ductal carcinoma who completed NAC and achieved cCR and radiological complete response (rCR) or near rCR by mammography (mass ≤1 cm and no malignant microcalcifications), ultrasound (mass ≤2 cm), and magnetic resonance imaging (no mass with rapid rise or washout kinetics). Interventions Patients underwent marker-directed stereotactic multiple-core needle biopsy of the tumor bed with marker placement before breast-conservation surgery. Main Outcomes and Measures End points were negative predictive value (NPV) and sensitivity of the biopsy. Results A total of 105 patients were enrolled with 101 evaluable (mean [SD] age, 52.8 [10.5] years); 77 patients (76.2%) were younger than 60 years, and all breast cancer subtypes were represented with 32 (31.7%) triple-negative breast cancer, 21 (20.8%) hormone receptor–positive/epidermal growth factor receptor 2 ( ERBB2 ; formerly HER2 )–negative ( ERBB2 −) breast cancer, and 46 (45.5%) ERBB2 -positive ( ERBB2 +) breast cancer. In 101 evaluable patients, 36 had residual disease at surgery (pCR = 64%). With imaging criteria, NPV of the biopsy was 78.3% (95% CI, 67.9%-86.6%), and the sensitivity of the biopsy was 50% (95% CI, 32.9%-67.1%). In an exploratory subset analysis, the NPV in patients with ERBB2 + breast cancer was 90% (95% CI, 76.3%-97.2%). On retrospective central review, 62 of 101 enrolled patients met imaging eligibility criteria. In this exploratory post hoc analysis, NPV in these patients was 86.8% (95% CI, 74.7%-94.5%). Conclusions and Relevance These findings do not support breast conservation treatment without surgery based on the study criteria for cCR and rCR/near rCR by trimodality imaging and negative tumor-bed biopsy. Strict adherence to imaging criteria may be required to achieve acceptable predictive values. TRIAL Registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03188393

While multivariate circular data are emerging from various disciplines in recent studies, only a few outlier detection methods are found in the literature. In this paper, we provide two non-parametric outlier detection methods, where we employ a data depth technique and a Pearson product-moment type of closeness measure. In addition, we present a non-parametric goodness of fit test based on the Rosenblatt transformation for a copula-based multivariate circular distribution (Kim et al., 2016). Our proposed methods were illustrated using a real data set arising from the problem of protein structure prediction.

Competing on Jeopardy! reshaped my understanding of knowledge, memory, and the role of contingency in both. As a nine-game champion and finalist in the 2024 Tournament of Champions, I came to see the game not just as a test of recall but as a reflection of the unpredictable, deeply personal ways we acquire and retrieve information. Drawing on Ted Chiang’s “Understand,” I explore how knowledge is shaped by experience and circumstance. Jeopardy! is more than a quiz show—it is a cultural crossroads where curiosity, memory, and biography intersect, revealing the intricate connections between what we know and how we come to know it.

Hummingbirds use their extreme maneuverability to defend territories and win competitions. In theory, a bird can tap into its muscular power reserves to perform complex maneuvers, with the size of the power reserves dictating the maximum maneuvering performance. To test the link between power reserves and maximum maneuvering performance, we used load‐lifting trials to measure the power reserves of Anna's hummingbirds (Calypte anna). Based on these estimates, we calculated the theoretical maximum arcing turn performance. Finally, we used thousands of arcing turns measured with an automated tracking system to evaluate whether maximum turning ability aligned with the theoretical predictions. The maximum turning performance of the hummingbirds closely matched the maximum predicted by their power reserves, even though individual performance maximums were not correlated with individual power reserves. Therefore, our evidence that power reserves underlie maximum performance is mixed: it is in the aggregated turns across all individuals that the large‐scale patterns of maximal performance begin to emerge. Because they limited turning performance, power reserves also created a trade‐off between radius and velocity. As large free‐flight datasets continue to be explored, it is likely that we will continue to find associations between burst power and maximal maneuvering performance.

Countless wetlands have been lost and degraded globally, making amphibians the most threatened vertebrate class. However, despite facing extensive threats and stressors, coastal wetlands of the Laurentian Great Lakes of North America (lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario) still support sizable populations of frogs (order Anura, including toads). We used data from the Great Lakes Coastal Wetland Monitoring Program to quantify the first‐ever annual occurrence probabilities and trends (2011–2023) of eight marsh‐breeding frog species, or groups of species, at 1550 point count locations in 747 coastal wetlands throughout the Great Lakes, and to assess 11 potential drivers of occurrence. Sampled wetlands were marshes greater than 4 ha in area with a permanent or periodic surface‐water connection to an adjacent Great Lake or their connecting river systems. Across our study area, green frog (Lithobates clamitans) occurrence increased by 8% per year, whereas chorus frog (Pseudacris maculata, Pseudacris triseriata) occurrence decreased by 14% per year. We found more positive or stable trends in occurrence among lakes and species (85%) than negative trends (15%). Occurrence of all species was negatively associated with one or two indicators of poor water quality: specific conductance, ammonium nitrogen, nitrate nitrogen, and urban and agricultural land cover in the surrounding watershed (median area: 12 km²). Occurrence of multiple species was positively associated with high lake levels and surrounding wetland (<250 m) and forest (<2.5 km) land cover and negatively associated with surrounding road density (<2.5 km). Even though occurrence of most species was increasing or stable and was relatively high (>50%), all will likely benefit from conservation actions because 50%–90% of Great Lakes coastal wetlands have been lost and converted to anthropogenic land uses, leaving frog populations at a fraction of their former, original sizes. Therefore, extra precaution is critical to help ensure their growth and persistence. Improving water quality, increasing natural forest and wetland land cover within 2.5 km, and reducing roads within 2.5 km of Great Lakes coastal wetlands will help conserve these important indicator species in this globally recognized but imperiled ecosystem.

Following the experimental medicine approach, Diehl et al. (2023) demonstrated the malleability of negative views of aging (NVOA), self-efficacy beliefs, and exercise intention in middle-aged and older adults who participated in the AgingPLUS intervention program. The present study built on those findings and addressed (a) whether the intervention resulted in significant improvements in physical activity (PA) and (b) whether the purported mechanistic variables were significant mediators of the intervention’s effects on PA outcomes. AgingPLUS used a randomized, single-blind control group design to implement the intervention in a sample of 335 adults aged 45–75 years. This study reports findings from 278 participants (Mage = 60.1 years; SD = 8.3 years) for whom PA measures were available at baseline and the delayed posttest at Week 8. Compared to participants in the Health Education control group and compared to baseline, participants in the AgingPLUS program showed significant improvements in accelerometer-assessed PA (e.g., total daily steps walked; total daily minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA [MVPA]) and self-reported PA (e.g., weekly kcals burned in MVPA; increase in weekly total minutes of MVPA). Findings from bias-corrected bootstrap mediation analyses yielded partial support for the purported mechanisms of the intervention. Specifically, improvements in NVOA mediated the effects of the intervention on several accelerometer-assessed PA outcomes. Furthermore, improvements in NVOA, general, motivational, and volitional self-efficacy beliefs were significant mediators on several self-reported PA outcomes. Overall, findings provided support for small but significant effects of AgingPLUS on PA outcomes and supportive evidence for several of the theoretical mechanisms tested.

Background Ankle sprains in American football resulting from external rotation and eversion (EE) mechanisms remain a persistent injury that often involves player-to-player contact. Currently, there is little research that describes the frequency or source of this contact in American football and what scenarios are responsible for these injuries across different player positions. Purpose To identify injury scenarios of ankle sprains that result from EE mechanisms in the National Football League (NFL). Study Design Descriptive epidemiology study. Methods Ankle sprains reported during NFL games over 4 consecutive seasons (2017-2020) were identified through a query of the NFL Electronic Medical Record by an independent epidemiological company based on a set of clinical impression codes. Injuries with available video to view the injury enabled the identification of ankle sprains that resulted from EE mechanisms. Standardized terminology was developed to systematically describe and categorize each injury. Results A total of 257 ankle sprains resulting from EE mechanisms were identified from a review of 670 ankle sprains and grouped into 8 standardized injury scenarios. Direct contact to the injured player’s foot, ankle, or leg from a large external mass, such as an opponent’s pelvis, accounted for 79% of reviewed injuries. Direct contact from a large external mass was the most common scenario for all positions except safeties, and 83% of running back injuries were the result of a tackle. Only 15% of injuries reviewed resulted from injury scenarios in which injurious loading was transmitted solely through the cleat-surface interaction. Safeties and cornerbacks were more commonly involved in these nondirect injury scenarios, such as change of direction, where current interventions may prove more effective. Conclusion EE ankle sprains were observed to occur from 8 different injury scenarios that varied by player position. Interventions through training, bracing, or changing cleat-surface interaction may not be effective for all injury scenarios. Tackling technique may be a unique intervention for running backs.

Soil phosphorus (P) losses through agricultural runoff and tile drainage can lead to eutrophication of water resources. Drinking water treatment residual (DWTR) and acid mine drainage residual (AMD) have the ability to remove P but lack mechanical strength and a uniform particle size. Previous studies of DWTR and AMD consisted primarily of batch trials and measurement of P removal using flow-through columns, utilizing real agricultural runoff, would be beneficial to scalability. We modified DWTR and AMD through pelletization and pyrolysis and evaluated P removal using flow-through columns under different conditions (i.e. retention time, pH, and agricultural runoff). Pyrolysis increased P removal of the media pellets 2 to 17-fold. Filter media performance benefited from longer retention times and P removal efficiency increased 8-134% when retention time was increased from 1- to 5- min. Cost estimate and practicality for field deployment in a constructed pond wetland system were evaluated for each media. Cement binder + pyrolysis (CEM-P), cement binder (CEM), cement binder + DWTR + pyrolysis (RCB-P), and cement binder + AMD (ACB) were the most practical media for field deployment. The top 3 least costly media were CEM-P ($1,936), cement binder + AMD + pyrolysis (ACB-P;$2,159), and CEM ($2,809).

This study presents the development and experimental validation of a wind turbine emulator based on a Doubly-Fed Induction Generator (DFIG). The emulator employs an induction motor driven by a commercial frequency inverter and is controlled using the Tip Speed Ratio (TSR) MPPT based algorithm combined with flux-oriented control techniques. The system replicates real wind turbine behavior under various operating conditions, including unbalanced wind speeds, providing a reliable and flexible platform for testing wind energy conversion systems. The TSR-based Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) algorithm ensures optimal energy extraction, while flux-oriented control enables precise regulation of rotor currents for efficient and stable operation. Experimental results confirm the emulator's effectiveness in validating control strategies for wind energy systems

Functionalized magnetic nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized by using different surfactants and cyclodextrins (CDs) for the extraction of toxic dyes from the aqueous bulk at room temperature to exploit the surfactant/CD–dye interactions operating at the solid–liquid interface. The extraction of dyes was monitored by UV–visible studies and quantitatively estimated. Both hexamethylene bis(hexadecyl dimethylammonium bromide) (16–6–16) and tris(2-(N-dodecyl N,N-dimethylammonio)ethylamine) tribromide (TriCAT) functionalized magnetic NPs proved to be excellent extractors, whereas extraction was highly facilitated at high or low pH when CD-functionalized magnetic NPs were used. Self-association among the dye molecules impeded the extraction. A combination of both polar as well as nonpolar along with dye–dye interactions participated in the extraction. Quantification was carried out by performing surface analysis of dye-loaded magnetic NPs. FTIR and XPS identified the functionalities participating in the extraction, whereas TEM, FESEM, and their EDS analyses determined the elemental composition. The amounts of N and S acted as fingerprinting elements for the adsorption of dyes at the solid–liquid interface, whereas overall amounts of C and O qualitatively differentiated among the relative amounts of dyes extracted. All results concluded that the extraction was much facilitated for those dyes which demonstrated a low degree of self-association in aqueous bulk and a high degree of solid–liquid interfacial adsorption.

Triassic strata of the Yangtze Platform at Guanling contain a dolomitized interior, undolomitized margin, and partially dolomitized slope to basin margin. Dolomitized microbial laminate caps of peritidal cycles and massive dolomite with associated evaporite nodules and solution collapse breccias are consistent with penecontemporaneous tidal flat and evaporative dolomitization in the platform interior. The preferential dolomitization of the slope and basin margin (up to 7 km basinward of the margin), dolomitization along fractures, and selective dolomitization of the matrix in slope breccia that diminishes toward the margin are interpreted to have resulted from the incursion of basin-derived fluids during burial. Integrated analysis of fluid-inclusion microthermometry, oxygen, carbon, and strontium isotopes, trace element geochemistry, U-Pb age dates of carbonate phases, and burial history support the recrystallization of interior dolomite and slope to basin-margin dolomitization by brines at high temperatures during burial. The Yangtze Platform at Guanling provides an excellent example of widespread stratiform dolomitization resulting from the superposition of multiple mechanisms, including penecontemporaneous dolomitization by evaporative seawater brines, high-temperature dolomitization of the slope and basin margin by basinal brines, and high-temperature recrystallization of dolomite by brines during burial. This study provides an example that suggests that widespread stratiform dolomite may result from superposed Earth surface and high-temperature burial dolomitization processes and provides a valuable analog for other carbonate platforms in which the margin remains undolomitized while the interior and basin margin are dolomitized. Similar mechanisms likely contributed to the widespread dolomitization of platforms across the Nanpanjiang and Sichuan basins.

Previous research has found that political traits have some degree of genetic basis, but researchers have had less success unpacking the relationship between genes and political behavior. We propose an approach for examining this relationship that can overcome many of the limitations of previous research: polygenic indices (PGIs). PGIs are DNA-based individual-level variables that capture the genetic propensity to exhibit a given trait. We begin by outlining how PGIs are derived, how they can be utilized in conventional regression-based research, and how results should be interpreted. We then provide proof of concept, using data on over 50,000 individuals in four samples from the U.S. and Sweden to show that PGIs for health and psychological traits significantly predict measures of political participation, even within families. We conclude by outlining several ideas and providing empirical examples for researchers who may be interested in building on the PGI approach.

Selective attention typically becomes more refined with age, improving significantly from early to middle childhood. However, under certain conditions, such as the Ebbinghaus illusion task, younger children may display more focused selective attention than older children and adults. Cross-cultural differences have also been documented, with North American participants tending to focus selectively on central targets, while East Asian participants attending holistically and showing greater susceptibility to the illusion. Despite these findings, the physiological mechanisms underlying these age-related and cultural differences remain unclear. Specifically, does susceptibility to the illusion align with what we attend to? The present study investigated age-related and culture-related changes in susceptibility to the Ebbinghaus illusion among 3- to 8-year-old children in Japan and the U.S. using eye-tracking methods. The results revealed that older children and Japanese children were more susceptible to the Ebbinghaus illusion than younger children. Importantly, behavioral susceptibility was linked to gaze fixation patterns. In both cultures, the proportion of total fixation time on the correct target area, including target and distractor circles, rather than selective attention to targets alone, predicted susceptibility to the Ebbinghaus illusion. These findings highlight the role of gaze fixation in shaping perceptual experiences across developmental and cultural contexts.