cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Structural Abnormalities/Heterotopias

This chapter deals with a handful of structural or congenital abnormalities that are important to recognize so that they are not confused with true diseases. Especially when sampled with biopsy forceps, these entities can provide an unexpected—and potentially confusing—admixture of tissue types that could raise the possibility of a neoplasm. Once recognized, they provide a convenient (and clinically reassuring) explanation for the endoscopic finding of a “submucosal mass.”
Examination of factors that influence use of extended adjuvant endocrine therapy (ET).

e21618Background: Extending adjuvant ET from 5 to 10 years has been shown to improve outcomes; however, limited data are known about if and why women pursue extended ET. The primary objective was t...
Using ASCO QOPI and the QTP as an improvement model in a small safety net cancer center.

78Background: Organizational change is challenging in a well-resourced large academic cancer center. Such challenges are greater in a resource-constrained safety net cancer center. This project sought to learn how the combination of ASCO QOPI data submission and the Quality Training Program (QTP) could assist JPS with implementing a quality improvement project. Methods: The results from QOPI data submissions for Fall 2016 and Spring 2017 indicated opportunity in the area of oral chemotherapy education. This was prioritized due to increasing use of oral chemotherapy and relatively poor adherence data nationally 1,2. The team recognized the relatively low sample size in the QOPI results and supplemented the data with additional abstraction to validate the original hypothesis. Following the structure provided by the QTP enabled JPS to focus its limited resources on understanding the existing process and formally interrogating it to determine the key causes of the problem. Additional information was obtained ...
Synthesizing voluntary lane-change policy using control improvisation

Abstract In this work, we propose control improvisation to synthesize voluntary lane-change policy that meets human preferences under given traffic environments. We first train Markov models to describe the lane-change environment for an automated vehicle under assumed traffic patterns. Parameters in the environment model are trained using traffic data and calibrated using control improvisation. Then, based on human lane-change behavior, we train a voluntary lane-change policy using explicit-duration Markov decision process. Parameters in the lane-change policy are calibrated through control improvisation to allow an automated car to voluntarily change lanes while avoiding overly frequent lane-change maneuvers under various traffic environments.
Protein-Energy Wasting

Among individuals with CKD stage 5D, who undergo maintenance dialysis treatment to survive, currently one out of every five people dies each year in the USA. This unacceptably high mortality rate has not changed substantially in recent years despite many advances in dialysis techniques and patient care [1]. Maintenance dialysis patients also have a high hospitalization rate and a low health-related quality of life. Cardiovascular diseases comprise the bulk of morbidity and mortality in dialysis patients. The dialysis-dependent CKD-5D population grows constantly and fast, almost surpassing over half a million in the USA, and continues to consume a disproportionately large component of the Medicare budget; hence, identifying factors that lead to poor dialysis outcome and their successful management is of outmost importance [1]. It was once believed that the traditional cardiovascular risk factors and/or conditions related to dialysis treatment and technique are the main causes of poor clinical outcome; however, randomized controlled trials have failed to show an improvement of mortality by lowering serum cholesterol [2] or increasing dialysis dose [3, 4]. Whereas frequent (such as daily in-center or nocturnal) hemodialysis may have better outcome, it is highly unlikely that this modality ever be offered to more than a small fraction of patients, whereas infrequent (e.g., twice weekly) hemodialysis is practiced more frequently in developing countries [5]. Evidence suggests that conditions other than the traditional cardiovascular risk factors be related to the enormous cardiovascular epidemic and high death rates in this population. Among the potential candidates for the poor clinical outcomes in maintenance dialysis patients, the protein-energy wasting (PEW) continues to be at the top of the list [6]. Observational studies have repeatedly and consistently shown a strong association between measures of nutritional status and survival in maintenance dialysis patients [7–9].
Management of localized extremity and retroperitoneal soft tissue sarcoma

The optimal management of localized soft tissue sarcomas of the extremities and retroperitoneum involves a high volume multidisciplinary team with expertise in sarcoma. In this review, we will highlight the importance of the sarcoma pathologist and imaging techniques prior to surgery and radiation. In addition, the data on neoadjuvant and adjuvant chemotherapy will be discussed. Finally, consideration is given to the importance of identifying genetic cancer predispositions, multidisciplinary management, long-term survivorship, and the current clinical trials for patients undergoing curative intent management.
Monitoring outcomes from intake to termination: A suggested new symptom and progress monitoring program for Bridgehaven Mental Health Services.

In a doctoral clinical psychology program, students are frequently challenged to learn and implement new skills to improve the lives of their clients. Conducting a program evaluation, from beginnin...
Fine-scale to flora-wide phylogenetic perspectives on Californian plant diversity, endemism, and conservation.

The California Floristic Province (CA-FP) encompasses North America's Mediterranean-type climatic region and is a global biodiversity hotspot in temperate North America. Fine-scale phylogenetic studies and increasing scrutiny of morphological, ecological, and geographic variation in the CA-FP vascular flora continue to reveal novel, often cryptic diversity warranting taxonomic attention. The prevalence of such discoveries warrants caution about potential for loss of undescribed or unrecognized biodiversity from human-related impacts, including insufficiently informed conservation-related actions (e.g., genetic augmentation or assisted migration). Broader-scale molecular phylogenetic studies have yielded other examples of more extensive CA-FP diversification than previously resolved. For example, clades uniting CA-FP taxa not earlier thought to be such close relatives have been discovered in a wide diversity of tribes of composites and legumes. This understanding adds additional weight to the conclusions of Raven and Axelrod (1978) that in situ evolution, especially since the pronounced mid-Miocene transition toward summer-drying, has been a major factor in the origins of Californian vascular plant diversity. The importance of paleo-endemism in gymnosperms and (especially woody) angiosperms of the CA-FP flora also has been corroborated and refined by molecular phylogenetic studies, with improved understanding of the timing of divergence and relationships of isolated lineages, such as the extinct island-endemic Hesperelaea A. Gray (Oleaceae). On a regional scale, studies of spatial patterns of Californian species richness, phylogenetic diversity, and phylogenetic endemism by the California Plant Phylodiversity Project (CPPP) have reinforced the floristic importance of areas of high topographic complexity, or environmental heterogeneity more generally, where relatively high levels of habitat diversity, speciation, and lineage persistence may be expected. The CPPP's finding that particularly young plant lineages and significantly high phylogenetic endemism are concentrated in drier regions of the CA-FP and in the adjacent Californian deserts has corroborated earlier preliminary findings and aligns with Stebbins's (1952) hypothesis of aridity as an evolutionary stimulus. A recent conservation gap analysis by the CPPP incorporating flora-wide phylogenetic and geographic occurrence data plus land-protection status and habitat-integrity information for California has demonstrated the potential of an integrative, evolutionary approach for identifying high-priority land conservation targets.
Chinampas: An Urban Farming Model of the Aztecs and a Potential Solution for Modern Megalopolis

Urban horticulture is not as new as many people think. Throughout history, different techniques have been used to ensure sustainable urban agricultural production. A good example of this is the chinampa system, which was developed during the time of the Aztecs in the region of Lake Xochimilco, south of Mexico City. A chinampa is a raised field on a small artificial island on a freshwater lake surrounded by canals and ditches. Farmers use local vegetation and mud to construct chinampas. Fences made of a native willow [bonpland willow (Salix bonplandiana)] protect the chinampa from wind, pests, and erosion. The dominating crops are vegetables and ornamentals. The canal water that rises through capillarity to the crops reduces the need for additional irrigation. A considerable portion of the fertility in the soils is system-immanent and generated in the aquatic components of the chinampa. Complex rotations and associations allow up to seven harvests per year. Chinampas also provide ecosystem services, particularly greenhouse gas sequestration and biodiversity diversification, and they offer high recreational potential. Recently, research and community initiatives have been performed to try to recover the productive potential of chinampas and align this sustainable system with the needs of the 21st century. In other parts of the world, some with a history of raised field agriculture, similar efforts are being made. The chinampa model could help supply food and ecosystem services in large cities on or near swamplands, large rivers, or lakes.
The Human Neuronal Nicotinic α4β2 Receptor has a High Maximal Probability of Being Open

Studies of the functional properties of the nicotinic α4β2 receptor have been hampered by the facts that the receptors desensitize rapidly and extensively even to low concentrations of agonist, and the receptors “run down” rapidly upon patch excision. We have analyzed macroscopic (whole cell) responses of HEK cells stably transfected with human α4 and β2 subunits using nonstationary noise analysis. The variance does not increase linearly with the mean current, and even decreases for large responses evoked by acetylcholine or nicotine. The maximal response to ACh or nicotine has an estimated open probability of about 0.7. The estimated average single channel chord conductances (−60 mV) are: ACh 18 ± 6 pS (mean ± SD) and nicotine 17 ± 5 pS. The selective agonist 5-Iodo A85380 has a similar single channel conductance (17 ± 2 pS), whereas the agonist cytisine has a larger average estimated conductance (24 ± 4 pS). The estimated numbers of channels activated by ACh or nicotine are about 1000 - 2000 per cell, which is lower than the estimated numbers of surface receptors per cell (about 15,000; Zhang and Steinbach, Brain Res. 959:98 2003). These results demonstrate that the full agonists ACh and nicotine are efficacious agonists at this receptor. Supported by NIH NS 22356.
The cellular effect of 5-bromodeoxyuridine on the mammalian embryo

SUMMARY It is well known that 5-bromodeoxyuridine (BUdR) when injected into pregnant animals may cause exencephaly, cleft palate, and limb abnormalities. Similarly, it is well established that the drug when added to a culture medium may prevent differentiation of embryonic cell systems without affecting cell division or cell viability. The goal of our experiments was to examine whether the congenital malformations resulting from BUdR treatment were due to lack of differentiation of certain cell lines or were due to other mechanisms. The effects of BUdR on proliferating and differentiating cells in the 12-day mouse embryo were therefore examined and special attention was given to the proliferating cells of the rhombic lip which give rise to the Purkinje cells. When the embryos were treated with BUdR the mitotic index of the neuroepithelium of the rhombic lip doubled in value 3 h after treatment and remained high until 24 h later. By using the colchicine index it was calculated that the mitotic duration in the BUdR-treated embryos lasted at least 2 h and that in the control embryos less than 1 h. When the cell generation time in the BUdR treated animals was calculated the length of the S-phase was increased by about 50 %. It was thus concluded that BUdR caused an increase in the duration of the S-phase and mitosis, together making the cell cycle 5 h longer than normal. Eighteen hours after treatment many neuroepithelial cells became degenerative. By radioautography it was demonstrated that the degenerating cells were in their second DNAsynthetic phase following BUdR injection and that cells which incorporated BUdR and were differentiating into neurons were not affected. By injecting [ 3 H]BUdR it was found that many cells which incorporated the analogue were able to leave the proliferative population after their first cell division. They migrated to the periphery where they developed into apparently normal Purkinje cells. The additive effects of cell death and retardation of the cell cycle caused a 15% deficit of Purkinje cells in the postnatal cerebellum but the BUdR did not interfere with their differentiation. Thus, contrary to the BUdR effect on cultures of embryonic cells, in vivo the drug causes cell death and a delay in the cell cycle time. Our experiments therefore seem to indicate that the congenital malformations caused by BUdR in the mammalian embryo are caused by cell death and growth retardation rather than by interference with the process of differentiation.
The Exon Junction Complex and intron removal prevents resplicing of mRNA

Abstract Accurate splice site selection is critical for fruitful gene expression. Here, we demonstrate the Drosophila EJC suppresses hundreds of functional cryptic splice sites (SS), even though majority of these bear weak splicing motifs and appear incompetent. Mechanistically, the EJC directly conceals splicing elements through position-specific recruitment, preventing SS definition. We note that intron removal using strong, canonical SS yields AG|GU signatures at exon-exon junctions. Unexpectedly, we discover that scores of these minimal exon junction sequences are in fact EJC-suppressed 5’ and 3’ recursive SS, and that loss of EJC regulation from such transcripts triggers faulty mRNA resplicing. An important corollary is that intronless cDNA expression constructs from aforementioned targets yield high levels of unanticipated, truncated transcripts generated by resplicing. Consequently, we conclude the EJC has ancestral roles to defend transcriptome fidelity by (1) repressing illegitimate splice sites on pre-mRNAs, and (2) preventing inadvertent activation of such sites on spliced segments.
Moving to Greater Exchange Rate Flexibility; Operational Aspects Based on Lessons from Detailed Country Experiences

Many countries have moved towards more flexible exchange rate regimes over the last decade to take advantage of greater monetary policy autonomy and flexibility in responding to external shocks. Some reluctance to let go of pegged exchange rates persists, however, despite the benefits of flexibility. The institutional and operational requirements needed to support a floating exchange rate, as well as difficulties in assessing the right time and manner to exit, tend to be additional factors in this reluctance. This volume presents the concrete steps taken by a number of countries in transition to greater exchange rate flexibility and elaborates on the operational ingredients that proved helpful in promoting successful and durable transitions. It attempts to provide a better understanding (and hence a "road map") of how these various operational ingredients were established and coordinated, how their implementation interacted with macro and other conditions, and how they contributed to the smoothness of each transition.
Analysis of Esophagectomy Margin Practice and Survival Implications.

Background The objective of this study was to determine how thoracic surgeons manage intraoperative esophagectomy positive margins and how these decisions may relate to overall survival and progression-free survival in esophageal cancer. Methods A survey was sent to thoracic surgeons to understand the management of intraoperative positive esophagectomy margins. Primary data at two high-volume esophageal cancer institutions from 1994 to 2017 were retrospectively reviewed to identify patients who had intraoperative positive frozen section margins during esophagectomy. Patient characteristics and survival data were collected and analyzed. Overall survival and progression-free survival were assessed using a Cox model. Results Eighty-five percent of thoracic surgeons responding to a survey reported the utilization of frozen pathologic evaluation during esophagectomy with attempts at re-resection to achieve negative margin. Our esophagectomy database identified 94 patients with intraoperative positive margins. Of those re-resected (n = 67, 63%), 44 patients (46.8%) were converted to R0 resections. overall survival was improved for patients in the R0 group (13 months) vs R+ group (3.4 months, P = .04). Progression-free survival was also improved between the R0 group (8.6 months) and the R+ group (2.2 months, P = .03). In a multivariable analysis for progression-free survival, margin status was an independent predictor of survival (hazard ratio 3.13, P = .03). Conclusions From a thoracic surgery survey, 85% of surgeons use intraoperative frozen section margin analysis to guide surgical decision making during an esophagectomy. Analyzing patients with a positive margin discovered during esophagectomy suggests that esophageal cancer patients who can undergo re-resection to a negative margin have increased progression-free survival. The final margin appears to be related to progression-free survival.
A Theory of Media Multitasking Intensity

Abstract. This article first situates media multitasking in the changing media ecology. Then, grounded in concepts of stress and flow, limited capacity, and threaded cognition, it develops a four-d...
LONG-TERM DEPENDENCE OF SURFACE FALLOUT FLUCTUATIONS UPON TROPOPAUSE-LEVEL CYCLOGENESIS.

The downward transport of radioactive debris from the stratosphere in association with tropopause-level cyclogenesis offers a possible physical explanation for seasonal and shorter-period surface fallout increases. To examine these possibilities, a simple circulation index which is related to the degree of cyclonic activity in the upper troposphere is compared to a time series of area-averaged fallout intensity. The comparison reveals that the spring fallout peak cannot be explained adequately by an increase in cyclonic activity at this time of year. Shorter period increases, however, are strongly related to occurrences of intense cyclogenesis in the upper troposphere.
TFIIIA: A Sophisticated Zinc Finger Protein

Transcription factor IIIA (TFIIIA) is widely regarded as the archetypal zinc finger protein. It is a member of a very large multigene family of eukaryotic DNA-binding proteins. More than two decades of research have been dedicated to understanding its interaction with the 5S ribosomal RNA gene (5S DNA). TFIIIA has nine tandem C2H2 zinc fingers along the peptide sequence. The three-dimensional structure of the N-terminal 6 zinc fingers bound to 31 base pairs of DNA shows that not all fingers are equal. Four of them make contacts located on both DNA strands while two fingers act as spacers. Individual fingers can recognize overlapping and interlocking base pair quartets. Side chains in the short alpha helices of fingers contact bases in the major groove. It is likely that the linker sequences connecting adjacent zinc fingers evolved to dictate which fingers bind to DNA. Signals essential for transcription initiation of 5S DNA, nuclear localization, and nucleocytoplasmic transport of 5S ribosomal RNA (5S rRNA) are located in the C-terminal part of TFIIIA.
Damage Prediction in Cross-Plied Curved Composite Laminates

Analytical and experimental work is detailed which is required to predict delamination onset and growth in a curved cross plied composite laminate subjected to static and fatigue loads. The composite used was AS4/3501/6, graphite/epoxy. Analytically, a closed form stress analysis and 2-D and 3-D finite element analyses were conducted to determine the stress distribution in an undamaged curved laminate. The finite element analysis was also used to determine values of strain energy release rate at a delamination emanating from a matrix crack in a 90 deg ply. Experimentally, transverse tensile strength and fatigue life were determined from flat 90 deg coupons. The interlaminar tensile strength and fatigue life were determined from double cantilevered beam specimens. Cross plied curved laminates were tested statically and in fatigue to give a comparison to the analytical predictions. A comparison of the fracture mechanics life prediction technique and the strength based prediction technique is given.
Recurrent selection for increased seed germination in sand bluestem (Andropogon hallii)

With 1 table Abstract Under field conditions, water is often inadequate for satisfactory seedling establishment (germination and emergence). This research was designed to improve the germination of sand bluestem (Andropogon hallii Hack.) populations ‘AB-medium Syn-0’ and ‘CD-tall Syn-0’ at low water potentials. Two cycles of recurrent selection were used to develop populations ‘AB-medium Syn-1’, ‘AB-medium Syn-2’, ‘CD-tall Syn-1’ and ‘CD-tall Syn-2’. Cycle 1 consisted of germinating 3500 open-pollinated seeds of each Syn-0 population in a −0.8 MPa D-mannitol solution for seven days. All germinated seeds (approximately 250 of each population) were selected to create the Syn-1 populations. Cycle 2 selection was similar to Cycle 1, except that Syn-1 populations were used to create Syn-2 populations. To test the effects of selection, four 50-spikelet samples of the six populations were germinated at −0.8 MPa for seven days. Germination of Syn-1 seeds was 6.7% higher than that of Syn-0 seeds, and Syn-2 seeds were 10.2% higher than that of Syn-1 seeds. Thus, it was possible to select for increased seed germination of sand bluestem Syn-0 populations at the water potential used herein.
Planetesimal Formation without Thresholds. II: Gravitational Instability of Solids in Turbulent Protoplanetary Disks

We show that small solids in low mass, turbulent protoplanetary disks collect into self-gravitating rings. Growth is faster than disk lifetimes and radial drift times for moderately strong turbulence, characterized by dimensionless diffusivities, $\alpha_g < 10^{-6} -- 10^{-3}$ when particles are mm-sized. This range reflects a strong dependance on disk models. Growth is faster for higher particle surface densities. Lower gas densities and larger solids also give faster growth, as long as aerodynamic coupling is tight. In simple power law models, growth is slowest around ~0.3 AU, where drag coupling is strongest for mm-sized solids. Growth is much faster close to the star where orbital times are short, with implications for in situ formation of short period extrasolar planets. Growth times also decrease toward the outer disk where lower gas densities allow greater particle settling. Beyond roughly Kuiper Belt distances however, solids are sufficiently decoupled from gas that dissipative gravitational instabilities are less effective. Turbulence not only slows growth, but also increases radial wavelengths. The initial solid mass in an unstable ring can be ~0.01 M_Earth or greater, huge compared to km-sized planetesimals. Nonlinear fragmentation, which has not been studied in detail, will lower the final planetesimal mass. We consider applications to the asteroid belt and discuss the alternate hypothesis of collisional agglomeration.
Preparation and De-excitation Measurements of 177mLu Using Fast Neutrons

The t1/2=160.4 d isomer 177mLu has many attractive features related to inducing gamma-ray decay to the ground state of the t1/2=6.4 d 177Lu. Also, as opposed to other isomers it maybe possible to produce it in quantities without the need for extravagant or costly methods. An experimental approach is outlined for both studies using fast neutron inelastic scattering and short-pulse bremsstrahlung radiation to produce the rapid release of gamma rays from this isomer. Furthermore, cross sections for production of the isomer using fast neutrons with energies between 10–500 keV will also be studied.
Minimizing the time to search visual displays: the role of highlighting

Office computer users frequently need to search long lists of options for a particular target. Highlighting a subset of the options can shorten the average display search time. The goal of the current research was to identify the subset of options to highlight that minimizes users' average search time for any given display. To begin, a mathematical model of the visual search process was constructed which could be used to predict the average search time for a target in a display with or without highlighted options. The predictions of this model were then compared with the results of a visual search experiment that varied the type of highlighting (blocked, random, or no highlighting), the number of highlighted options, and the probability that a target was highlighted. Overall the predictions of the model were consistent with the results from the experiment. Finally, procedures based on the model were developed which could be used to find the optimal subset of options to highlight for a given display--that is, the subset of highlighted options that minimizes users' search times.
Eggs and Egg Products

The eggs of various birds are consumed throughout the world; however, the discussion that follows in this chapter is regarding hen eggs. Eggs are a natural biological structure with shells offering protection for developing chick embryos. They have numerous functions in food systems and must be protected against becoming or offering contamination. Eggs provide nutritive value and culinary variety to the diet, while being an economical source of food. Today, we see a reversal of dietary limitations, and healthy persons can enjoy eggs as long as they form part of a healthy, balanced diet.
Isolation and characterization of multiple forms of hydroxyindole-O-methyltransferase.

Abstract Hydroxyindole-O-methyltransferase has been isolated in pure form from bovine pineal glands. The enzyme has a molecular weight of about 76,000 to 78,000 but also occurs as higher molecular weight aggregates. The enzyme also exists as two differently charged molecular species which can be separated on DEAE-Sephadex. These two forms are identical in all other chemical and physical properties. Amino acid analysis reveals a relatively high leucine content (15% of the residues). Gel electrophoresis of the reduced enzyme in sodium dodecyl sulfate and dithiothreitol indicates the enzyme has two subunits with a monomer molecular weight of 39,000 which appear to be identical by fingerprint analysis.
beta-lapachone induces cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in human colon cancer cells.

Human colon cancers have a high frequency of p53 mutations, and cancer cells expressing mutant p53 tend to be resistant to current chemo- and radiation therapy. It is thus important to find therapeutic agents that can inhibit colon cancer cells with altered p53 status. β-Lapachone, a novel topoisomerase inhibitor, has been shown to induce cell death in human promyelocytic leukemia and prostate cancer cells through a p53-independent pathway. Here we examined the effects of β-lapachone on human colon cancer cells. Several human colon cancer cell lines, SW480, SW620, and DLD1, with mutant or defective p53, were used. The antiproliferative effects of β-lapachone were assessed by colony formation assays, cell cycle analysis, and apoptosis analysis, including annexin V staining and DNA laddering analysis. The effects on cell cycle and apoptosis regulatory proteins were examined by immunoblotting. All three cell lines, SW480, SW620, and DLD1, were sensitive to β-lapachone, with an IC50 of 2 to 3 µM in colony formation assays, a finding similar to that previously reported for prostate cancer cells. However, these cells were arrested in different stages of S phase. At 24 hr post-treatment, β-lapachone induced S-, late S/G2-, and early S-phase arrest in SW480, SW620, and DLD1 cells, respectively. The cell cycle alterations induced by β-lapachone were congruous with changes in cell cycle regulatory proteins such as cyclin A, cyclin B1, cdc2, and cyclin D1. Moreover, β-lapachone induced apoptosis, as demonstrated by annexin V staining, flow cytometric analysis of DNA content, and DNA laddering analysis. Furthermore, down-regulation of mutant p53 and induction of p27 in SW480 cells, and induction of proapoptotic protein Bax in DLD1 cells may be pertinent to the anti-proliferative and apoptotic effects of β-lapachone on these cells. β-Lapachone induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in human colon cancer cells through a p53-independent pathway. For human colon cancers, which often contain p53 mutations, β-lapachone may prove to be a promising anticancer agent that can target cancer cells, especially those with mutant p53.
A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF ACCOUNTING EDUCATION IN UKRAINE AND THE USA

This study compares and contrasts the accounting education provided by Ukrainian universities with that given at American universities. Two typical universities were chosen for comparison purposes, one Ukrainian and one American. Their curricula were compared and evaluated. Ukrainian accounting educators were also interviewed. The information gathered during the course of those interviews is also discussed. It was found that Ukrainian accounting students spend a significantly longer amount of time studying both accounting and other subjects during the course of their university attendance.
Elevated serum IgA globulin in anaphylactoid purpura.

Serial determinations of serum levels of IgA, IgD, IgG, and IgM globulin were performed on 27 children with anaphylactoid purpura and two children with acute poststreptococcal glomerulonephritis. Ten of 20 children with anaphylactoid purpura seen within 3 months of the onset of the skin rash had significant elevations of their serum IgA globulin. The other immunoglobulin levels were normal in the remaining children and those with acute poststreptococcal glomerulonephritis. The selective elevation of serum IgA globulin may be related to the pathogenesis of anaphylactoid purpura.
Spatially varying rules of landscape change: lessons from a case study

Abstract Land-cover and land-use change modeling have become increasingly common, and myriad different modeling techniques are now available. Many techniques assume that the rules of landscape change are the same everywhere within the study area, an assumption that contrasts with reality in many municipal regions, which have spatially varying development restrictions. In this paper, we provide a case study from the Raleigh–Durham area of North Carolina (USA) showing the consequences of using a model with a spatially homogeneous form when the rules of landscape change are spatially heterogeneous. Using classified Thematic Mapper images of 1990 and 2000, we fit two models relating probability of deforestation to a large set of potentially explanatory variables. Potential autocorrelation in the error term of our models was avoided by sampling outside the zone of spatial autocorrelation. The first model, a logistic regression (GLM), was used as an example of a simple, spatially homogeneous model, where the probability of deforestation is a function of a set of explanatory variables. The second model was a classification and regression tree analysis (CART), a spatially heterogeneous model in which the data were recursively partitioned on the same explanatory variables plus spatially explicit indicator variables, to create a binary decision tree that adequately captured the pattern in deforestation. Overall, the CART model (15.2% misclassification rate) performed significantly better than the GLM model (33.1% misclassification rate). When the residuals of both models were examined spatially, the CART model appears to perform better, more accurately predicting hotspots of development and predicting the baseline proportion of deforested pixels more accurately. Our results lend support to the importance of spatial heterogeneity in the rules of landscape change, and suggest that models that attend local variability in the forces driving landscape change can provide more useful predictions than models that assume these forces operate similarly throughout the landscape.
Clinical issues in child and adolescent psychopharmacology.

During the past two decades psychopharmacologists have made considerable strides in establishing the safety and efficacy of psychotropic drug therapy for childhood behavior disorders. Most of the research has focused on children with disruptive behavior disorders, autism, or mental retardation, but more recently other disorders such as depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, separation anxiety (school refusal), and Tourette syndrome are also receiving attention. Psychopharmacotherapy has often been a matter of controversy, with most issues pertaining to either the appropriateness of medication (e.g., rationales for treatment, alternative interventions, toxicity, iatrogenic effects) or inadequacies of clinical management (e.g., availability of services, drug assessment procedures, limitations of research). This article presents a brief overview of the safety and efficacy of psychotropic drugs and the issues associated with their use in clinical settings.
Legal control and alcohol in the United States and India.

Arrest data provide an index of public concern regarding alcohol-related activities of certain groups within a society. Any differences in these data may reflect the differences in the extent to which their conduct is viewed and reacted to as problematic behavior requiring legal control. In this paper we compare the official statistics regarding alcohol arrest data of adults and juveniles in the United States, India in general, and a “dry” Indian state, Tamil Nadu. The United States, India, and Tamil Nadu are similar in that the proportion of juveniles arrested for alcohol-related convictions compared to juveniles arrested for all offenses is about the same (i.e., 8%). But proportionately more of the young people, compared with adults, in the United States are subjected to arrest for liquor law violations, although a greater proportion of adults, compared to juveniles, are arrested for public drunkenness. In India generally, and Tamil Nadu in particular, juvenile vis-a-vis adult arrests for liquor law off...
A Japanese and Ainu linguistic feast

It is a shame that English does not have a dual number: if it did, the pressure on Masayoshi Shibatani to make this volume have a title that shared the plural rather than dual number of the titles of the other Cambridge Language Surveys might have been enough to cause him to include in it not just Japanese and the nearly extinct Ainu language, but also Ryiikyfian.' He excludes Ryukyuian on the grounds that 'the genetic relationship between Japanese and Ryuikyuian has been proven and the transparency of the relationship is such that the latter is now considered as a dialect (group) of Japanese by most scholars', a rationale that I find unconvincing, since the differences between Ryiikyuian and mainland Japanese are greater than those between Spanish and Portuguese, and a sketch of Ryuikyuian more substantial than the six pages devoted to it in the chapter on dialects would fill a major gap in the western-language literature on Japan, particularly if it were done by a scholar as perceptive and accomplished as Shibatani. However, I will not press this complaint, since I realize that a decision to include Ryuikyulan would have substantially delayed the completion of this most welcome volume and might have forced the author to shorten the parts on Ainu and Japanese, both of which contain little material that I regard as expendable. The chapters on Ainu (I-86) give a lucid portrait of a language whose syntax and morphology are in many respects quite exotic. Ainu has incorporation of the sort found in Eskimo languages (except that not only nouns but also adverbs can be incorporated into the verb) and also an 'applicative' construction reminiscent of the Bantu languages, and the interactions between the two are the subject of one of the more fascinating sections of the Ainu part of this volume. It is possible both to incorporate an underlying oblique noun that has been made into a direct object by the applicative construction, and to form an applicative of a verb with incorporated object, turning an oblique NP into a new direct object:
Comment on the interpretation of the -3.3- and -2.8-eV features observed by Eberhardt and Plummer in Ni(001) photoemission

We point out that Eberhardt and Plummer made a group-theoretical error in their interpretation of the feature they observed at -3.3 eV in their angle-resolved photoemission data from Ni(001). It cannot be due to a transition from an ${X}_{1}$ initial state into an ${X}_{5}^{\ensuremath{'}}$ final state as they have claimed. We also point out that the -2.8-eV feature they ascribe to an ${X}_{3}$ to ${X}_{5}^{\ensuremath{'}}$ transition can just as easily be interpreted to occur at $W$. These questions are important because of the controversy over the $d$-band width in nickel.
Normal stress relaxation in reversing double-step strain flows

Double‐step strain flows with strain reversal provide critical tests of proposed constitutive equations for nonlinear viscoelasticity. In the present study, two rheological consistency relations that involve the relaxation of the first normal stress difference in reversing double‐step strain flows are evaluated using a new experimental data set on a concentrated polystyrene solution. One consistency relation can be thought of as the double‐step strain flow analog of the Lodge–Meissner relation for single‐step strain flow. Osaki’s assertion on the validity of this consistency relation for a rather general class of fluids is verified by a formal proof given in the Appendix to this paper. The second consistency relation is valid for several well‐known constitutive equations (i.e., K‐BKZ and Doi–Edwards) falling within this general class of fluid behavior that give significantly different predictions for the shear stress in the same flow. The first consistency relation was satisfied by the system considered as was the Lodge–Meissner relation. The second consistency relation was not satisfied by the K‐BKZ, Doi–Edwards, or strain coupling theories but was in qualitative agreement with Wagner’s irreversible network rupture theory.
MEASUREMENT OF SPATIAL VARIATIONS IN ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES OF MODEL ICE

Abstract An innovative sensor to measure the spatial variation of ice-electrical properties has been designed and a prototype constructed. The sensor is an intimate sensor; it must be close or preferably in contact with the ice. The device is able to distinguish the electrical properties of the ice sheet as a function of depth into the ice. The resulting profile of properties can be used for many purposes ranging from simple thickness estimates to a prediction of the volume fraction of water as a function of depth. This paper presents a brief description of the instrument and the immediate application of the device, non-destructive characterization of ethylene glycol/aliphatic detergent/sugar (EGADS) model ice, as well as future research directions. The dependence of the material properties of ice on the water-volume fraction has previously been demonstrated for sea ice. The depth variation of the electrical properties provides a characteristic signature related to water-volume fraction that may be used to identify full-thickness ice properties. The profile can also supply information on the ice at local contact points in ice-structure interactions. Opportunities for extending the use of the device to other applications for ice or other insulating materials are outlined. The possibilities of real-time ice-accretion monitoring and quality control in the manufacturing of polymer materials are of great interest.
An Interview with Denise Basow and Fritz Hofheinz of UpToDate

This interview provides insights into the products and services offered by UpToDate, a leading source of clinical information. Topics discussed include UpToDate's topic reviews, consumer health information, peer-reviewed content, handheld devices, pricing models, future trends, and predictions.
Implementation intention encoding does not automatize prospective memory responding.

An implementation intention encoding, one that specifies the concrete situation that is appropriate for initiating an intended action and links that situational cue to the intended action, has been shown to improve prospective memory. One proposed mechanism is that implementation intentions create automatized prospective remembering. This view anticipates that implementation intentions should prevent prospective memory decline in highly cognitively demanding situations. Contrary to this expectation, although implementation intention encoding enhanced prospective memory (Experiments 1 and 2), implementation-intention encoding did not buffer against significant prospective memory decline in high-cognitive-demand conditions (Experiments 1–3), and in Experiment 3, implementation intention encoding produced lower levels of prospective memory performance than did behavioral practice in the high-cognitive-demand situation. We suggest that although implementation intentions may stimulate a strong associative encoding (between an anticipated environmental cue and an intended action), that encoding does not support a completely automatized prospective memory response.
Thiabendazole (TBZ), an immunohemomodulator. II. Effects on thymocytes and prothymocytes.

Abstract The purpose of this study was to document the effects of TBZ on the early stages of T cell maturation. The method utilized to quantify presumptive thymocyte progenitors in the bone marrow used the enzyme terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT) as a marker. Shifts in thymocyte populations were determined by quantitative planimetry, immunofluorescence for TdT and triatiated thymidine incorporation. When given alone, TBZ produced a marked increase in the number of large, mitotically active lymphoblasts in the thymus cortex. When given with DNFB, a thymus-dependent neoantigen, TBZ produced a significant increase in TdT-positive bone marrow cells. In a companion study, TBZ + DNFB were found to stimulate T cells in lymph node and spleen. Hence, the results indicate that under appropriate conditions, TBZ can stimulate all stages of T cell differentiation in mice.
The relationship between infection and inflammation in the early stages of lung disease from cystic fibrosis.

We examined the relationship of pulmonary infection and inflammation in cystic fibrosis (CF) by performing 31 bronchoalveolar lavages (BAL) in 14 young children with minimal lung disease from CF. While 10 of the 14 patients had elevated polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMN) counts initially, only 4 had bacteria generally regarded as pathogenic in the recovered BAL fluid. Three of these 4 and 6 of the others had follow-up bronchoscopies at 6 months intervals. PMN counts remained normal for only one patient. However, pathogenic bacteria were recovered during the repeat BALs only in those patients who were colonized initially. Proinflammatory cytokines and proteinases were generally elevated, and interleukin-8 (IL–8) concentration correlated inversely with oxygen saturation (SaO2). No complications of the procedure occurred. We conclude that BAL identifies inflammation and the presence of bacteria in the lower airway at an early stage of the disease. This information may be used to guide therapy in patients too young or otherwise unable to produce sputum. These data also suggest that inflammation is present early in the course of CF lung disease before colonization and infection of the lungs with potentially pathogenic bacteria occurs. Since inflammation appears to be the earliest detectable evidence of lung disease in CF, monitoring of inflammation with BAL may serve as a useful marker of clinical benefits from new treatments in patients with minimal lung disease. Pediatr Pulmonol. 1995; 20:63–70. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Optimal intervention strategies for an epidemic: A household view

In this research, we identify optimal intervention strategies at the household level in case of an epidemic. We consider an affected household (a household with one initial infective member) and model the effect of different intervention policies, which involve vaccination, antiviral prophylaxis, isolation, and treatment, on disease spread using a variation of Kermack-McKendrick (KM) models. Both full and partial adherence to interventions are considered. An implementation cost is assumed for each intervention policy. We refer to a collection of intervention policies as an intervention strategy. A reward is associated with susceptible members who remain uninfected. We define the effect of the implemented intervention strategy as the total reward earned by all members over the time horizon. We then identify the most cost-effective intervention strategies. In addition, we incorporate a budgetary constraint for the household and find the efficient frontier for the total reward over different upper bounds on the household budget.
Requirements discovery during the testing of safety-critical software

This paper describes the role of requirements discovery during the testing of a safety-critical software system. Analysis of problem reports generated by the integration and system testing of an embedded, safety-critical software system identified four common mechanisms for requirements discovery and resolution during testing: (1) Incomplete requirements, resolved by changes to the software, (2) Unexpected requirements interactions, resolved by changes to the operational procedures, (3) Requirements confusion by the testers, resolved by changes to the documentation, and (4) Requirements confusion by the testers, resolved by a determination that no change was needed. The experience reported here confirms that requirements discovery during testing is frequently due to communication difficulties and subtle interface issues. The results also suggest that "false positive" problem reports from testing (in which the software behaves correctly but unexpectedly) provide a rich source of requirements information that can be used to reduce operational anomalies in critical systems.
Fast ion transport in silver halide solid solutions and multiphase systems

The incorporation of homovalent ions, e.g., I− in AgBr, leads to a substantial increase in ionic conductivity σ. The charge compensation concept does not explain the enhancement. AgBr+30 mol. % AgI exhibits σ∼7 Ω−1 cm−1 at 380 °C, which is ∼170% larger than that of α‐AgI, the best known supersonic conductor, at its melting point. The purely elastic displacement caused by the foreign ion is suggested to be the origin of such a unique behavior. Furthermore, AgI‐AgBr two‐phase systems display σ∼103 times higher than predicted by the classical theories.