cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Influence of Hearing Loss on Child Behavioral and Home Experiences

Objectives. To assess the influence of hearing loss on child behavioral diagnoses, and socioemotional and behavior status.Methods. We analyzed US National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) child data,...
Motion thresholds in retinitis pigmentosa

Minimum displacement thresholds, or dmin, were measured in 29 subjects with retinitis pigmentosa (RP) and 10 subjects with normal vision. The results showed that RP can affect an observer's ability to judge the correct direction of motion in a random-dot pattern. The majority of RP subjects had elevated dmin. They required a larger displacement to perceive the correct direction of motion. Only 5 of the 29 RP subjects had thresholds within two standard deviations of the mean of the normal-observer distribution. Moreover, three RP subjects were unable to detect the correct direction of motion regardless of the displacement magnitude, and four RP subjects consistently reported motion in the opposite direction at small displacements. The results cannot be explained by abnormal temporal processing or a reduction in the effective luminance. There was a statistically significant correlation (r = 0.72, P less than 0.001) between log threshold and log MAR, consistent with the hypothesis that a reduction in the spatial density of the photoreceptors contributes to the motion-threshold elevation. Motion thresholds also were measured in subjects with normal vision under conditions of simulated "photoreceptor" dropout. The results showed that a random elimination of information from over 25% of the image positions significantly elevates motion thresholds. These results also support the spatial-density reduction hypothesis.
COGNITIVE DYSFUNCTION AND OTHER COMORBIDITIES | Cognitive Effects of Seizures in Animal Models

Cognitive disorders are a common co-morbidity in persons with epilepsy. In many individuals, the cognitive deficits are more disturbing than the seizures themselves. Animal models have provided considerable insight into the pathophysiological mechanisms of seizure-related cognitive impairment. The majority of animal studies have demonstrated that either prolonged or frequent seizures result in a variety of cognitive deficits. Animal studies allow the investigator to control many variables, including age, seizure duration, number and frequency of seizures, and therapy. In addition, animal models allow investigators to do detailed electrophysiological, genetic, and morphological studies. While there are clear limitations to how these results from animal studies can be extrapolated to humans, biological changes responsible for these deficits are likely to play a role in the co-morbidities seen in individuals with epilepsy.
Multiple-Criteria Financial Planning Model of Public Utility Firms

The purposes of this study are to examine the determinants of the dividend, investment, liquidity, and financing decisions of public utility firms during the 1974–1979 period and develop a multiple-criteria financial planning model of a public utility firm as if these decisions were made in the imperfect markets environment in which the dividend and investment decisions are not independent. A multiple-criteria financial planning model can be developed and estimated for a public utility firm because utility firms seek to pay very high dividends and engage in large capital expenditures. The three stage least squares coefficients are inputs to the planning model and insights are gained by investigating the relative importance of minimizing the under-achievement of dividends, investment, and liquidity in the planning process.
Diffusion coefficient measurement in a microfluidic analyzer using dual-beam microscale-refractive index gradient detection: Application to on-chip molecular size determination

Abstract We report a microchip-based detection scheme to determine the diffusion coefficient and molecular mass (to the extent correlated to molecular size) of analytes of interest. The device works by simultaneously measuring the refractive index gradient (RIG) between adjacent laminar flows at two different positions along a microchannel. The device, referred to as a microscale molecular mass sensor (μ-MMS), takes advantage of laminar flow conditions where the mixing of two streams occurs essentially by diffusion across the boundary between the two streams. Two flows merge on the microchip, one containing solvent only, referred to as the mobile phase stream and one which contains the analyte(s) of interest in the solvent, i.e. the sample stream. As these two streams merge and flow parallel to each other down the microchannel a RIG is created by the concentration gradient. The RIG is further influenced by analyte diffusion from the sample stream into the mobile phase stream. Measuring the RIG at a position close to the merging point (upstream signal) and simultaneously a selected distance further down the microchannel (downstream signal) provides real-time data related to the extent a given analyte has diffused, which can be readily correlated to analyte molecular mass by taking the ratio of the downstream-to-upstream signals. For the dual-beam RIG measurements, a diode laser output is coupled to a single mode fiber optic splitter with two output fibers. Light from each fiber passes through a graded refractive index (GRIN) lens forming a collimated beam that then passes through the microchannel and then on to a position sensitive detector (PSD). The RIG at both detection positions deflects the two collimated probe beams. The deflection angle of each beam is then measured on two separate PSDs. The μ-MMS was evaluated using polyethylene glycols (PEGs), sugars, and as a detector for size-exclusion chromatography (SEC). Peak purity can be readily identified using the μ-MMS with SEC. The limit of detection was 0.9 ppm (PEG at 11 840 g/mol) at the upstream detection position corresponding to a RI limit of detection (LOD) (3 σ ) of 7·10 −8 RI. The pathlength for the RIG measurement was 200 μm and the angular LOD was 0.23 μrad with a detection volume of 8 nl at both positions. The average molecular mass resolution was 9% (relative standard deviation) for a series of PEGs ranging in molecular mass from 106 to 22 800 g/mol. With this excellent mass resolution, small molecules such as monosaccharides, disaccharides, and so on, are readily distinguished. The sensor is demonstrated to readily determine unknown diffusion coefficients.
Status of Cys residues in the covalent structure of botulinum neurotoxin types A, B, and E.

Clostridium botulinum neurotoxin (NT) serotypes A, B, and E have 9, 10, and 8 Cys residues, respectively, as deduced from nucleotide sequences [Whelan et al. (1992), Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 48, 2345–2354]. Each of the 150-kDa NTs has at least one disulfide; but type B, like types A and E, may have two disulfides. Using two different chemical reagents, we studied the status of the Cys residues in these three proteins after (i) the final anion exchange chromatographic step in their purification (fresh NT), (ii) 24 hr storage at 8°C, (iii) precipitation with ammonium sulfate (precipitated NT), and (iv) dissolving the precipitated NT in 6 M guanidine·HCl. In all three NT serotypes the number of Cys residues titrated with 5,5′-dithiobis-2-nitrobenzoic acid (DTNB) as free -SH groups varied, depending upon the absence or presence of EDTA added to the chromatography buffer, storage condition, age, and presence of the denaturant. Titration of 9.5–10 and 5.4–6.0 -SH groups in fresh NTs type B and E, respectively, indicated total and partial absence of disulfide bonds. Fewer titratable -SH groups in the precipitated NT than in the fresh NT suggested formation of disulfide and/or inaccessibility of the -SH groups due to protein's conformational change(s). When the precipitated NTs were dissolved in 6 M guanidine·HCl, in the absence of any added reducing agent, all Cys residues of types B and E, and 6.4–8.3 Cys in type A NT were titratable with DTNB. Iodoacetamide modification of precipitated NT types A, B, and E carboxymethylated 4, 2, and 2 Cys residues, respectively; these numbers rose to 6, 9.4, and 8 when these proteins were carboxymethylated after dissolving in 6 M guanidine·HCl in the absence of any added reducing agent. We propose that -S-S- cleavage mediated by the -SH/-S-S- exchange observed in vitro after unfolding the NTs (also unfolded by 2 M guanidine·HCl or urea) possibly mimicks a similar exchange process inside the endosomes, where the NTs are thought to undergo conformational changes, resulting in the reductive cleavage of the interchain disulfide between the 50-kDa light and 100-kDa heavy chain, which in turn releases the light chain and allows its egress out of the endosomes into the cytosol.
Adjudicating the Right to Participate in the Law-Making Process: A Tribute to Retired Chief Justice Ngcobo

This is a personal tribute to the retired Chief Justice Ngcobo with a focus on two of his judgments dealing with the right to participate in the lawmaking process. It is written from a perspective of a former clerk reflecting on the deliberations Justice Ngcobo held with his clerks.
Performance of a Spiral Antenna System for Wideband Sensing and Direction Finding

A design of a wideband two-arm spiral antenna system is presented. By squinting the elements off boresight, spectrum sensing and direction finding over a wide range of angles and frequencies can be achieved. With a 10 turn spiral element fed by stripline balun and squint angle of 30°, a minimum gain of −6 dBic, maximum axial ratio of 5 dB and minimum DFF slope of 0.1 dB/o is seen over the field of view of ± 60°.
Comparing the Incomparable: Analytical Tool or Moral Stimulus?

This important edited volume functions on several levels. First, although it acknowledges vast differences between the Holocaust and the Nakba as historical events, it explores commonalities betwee...
Measuring the perception of aggression in driving behavior.

Abstract The study of aggressive driving is an important step in the reduction of (often fatal) crashes due to this behavior. However, even though various measures of aggressive driver behavior have been proposed, a more thorough examination of what the driving public perceives as aggressive driving behavior can be performed. A nationally representative sample of 198 American adults saw and rated the aggressiveness of various driving behaviors in videos. The videos were shown from a first-, second-, or third-person perspective. Some videos depicted close following, varying in speed and distance from the car ahead. Participants also saw illegal passing videos and collision or near collision videos. A number of variables that might influence judgments of aggressive driving were included as controls (i.e., trait anger, aggressive and prosocial driving attitudes, driving experience). Following other drivers closely was rated as aggressive, especially when viewed from a third-person perspective. Illegal passes were viewed as more aggressive than speeding. Faster speeds didn’t increase aggressive ratings much, regardless of perspective. Aggressiveness ratings were especially high for acts that could be considered “road rage” (i.e., hitting or nearly hitting vehicles, cyclists, and pedestrians). People high in trait anger have a bias to view many driving behaviors as intentionally aggressive.
Functional and taxonomic diversity of grasshoppers differentially shape above- and below-ground communities and their function

Herbivores are important drivers in both above‐ and below‐ground ecosystems. Despite their importance, studies of herbivores often focus on the effects of individual species, potentially missing the effects of herbivore diversity. Here we examine how orthopteran herbivore species and functional (i.e. diet) diversity interact with nutrient availability to shape above‐ and below‐ground ecosystems. We stocked six species of grasshoppers (Orthoptera) with two different feeding modes (i.e. grass‐only or grass‐ and forb‐feeders) at varying taxonomic compositions (0, 1 or 6 species) in field enclosures and measured their effects on above‐ground plant biomass, chemistry and richness, as well as below‐ground microbial community composition and function. We treated half the cages with nitrogen fertilizer to examine how herbivore effects may be mitigated by soil nutrient availability. Above‐ground, we predicted that grasshoppers would decrease plant biomass and richness, and increase the %N of the plant community. We also predicted that high diversity cages would have the largest decreases in plant biomass and richness, but these effects would be offset by fertilizer additions. Below‐ground, we predicted that herbivore taxonomic composition and diet would differentially shift soil microbial community composition and function. We also predicted that fertilization would decrease the soil pH and increase nutrient availability creating an interaction with herbivores that leads to shifts below‐ground community composition. We found that grasshoppers decreased plant biomass and richness, and this effect was not dependent on nutrient additions. Contrary to our predictions, we did not see the largest above‐ground changes in high diversity cages. Below‐ground, herbivore diet and fertilization, but not their interaction, shifted bacterial communities. Grasshopper taxonomic composition did not influence bacterial communities. Grasshopper taxonomic composition and diet interacted with fertilizer to increase below‐ground levels of bioavailable C and microbial biomass. Fungal communities did not respond to any treatments. The differing effects of herbivore diet versus taxonomic composition highlight the need for studies that examine multiple diversity metrics when exploring herbivore‐meditated effects on above‐ and below‐ground ecosystems. Combined, our results suggest that bottom‐up and top‐down controls are important factors to consider when studying the composition and function of grassland ecosystems. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.
Physician choices in pulmonary embolism testing.

BACKGROUND: Evidence-based guidelines advise excluding pulmonary embolism (PE) diagnosis using d-dimer in patients with a lower probability of PE. Emergency physicians frequently order computed tomography (CT) pulmonary angiography without d-dimer testing or when d-dimer is negative, which exposes patients to more risk than benefit. Our objective was to develop a conceptual framework explaining emergency physicians’ test choices for PE. METHODS: We conducted a qualitative study using in-depth interviews of emergency physicians in Canada. A nonmedical researcher conducted in-person interviews. Participants described how they would test simulated patients with symptoms of possible PE, answered a knowledge test and were interviewed on barriers to using evidence-based PE tests. RESULTS: We interviewed 63 emergency physicians from 9 hospitals in 5 cities, across 3 provinces. We identified 8 domains: anxiety with PE, barriers to using the evidence (time, knowledge and patient), divergent views on evidence-based PE testing, inherent Wells score problems, the drive to obtain CT rather than to diagnose PE, gestalt estimation artificially inflating PE probability, subjective reasoning and cognitive biases supporting deviation from evidence-based tests and use of evidence-based testing to rule out PE in patients who are very unlikely to have PE. Choices for PE testing were influenced by the disease, environment, test qualities, physician and probability of PE. INTERPRETATION: Analysis of structured interviews with emergency physicians provided a conceptual framework to explain how these physicians use tests for suspected PE. The data suggest 8 domains to address when implementing an evidence-based protocol to investigate PE.
How expectations of pain elicited by consciously and unconsciously perceived cues unfold over time.

Abstract Expectation can shape the perception of pain within a fraction of time, but little is known about how perceived expectation unfolds over time and modulates pain perception. Here, we combine magnetoencephalography (MEG) and machine learning approaches to track the neural dynamics of expectations of pain in healthy participants with both sexes. We found that the expectation of pain, as conditioned by facial cues, can be decoded from MEG as early as 150 ms and up to 1100 ms after cue onset, but decoding expectation elicited by unconsciously perceived cues requires more time and decays faster compared to consciously perceived ones. Also, results from temporal generalization suggest that neural dynamics of decoding cue-based expectation were predominately sustained during cue presentation but transient after cue presentation. Finally, although decoding expectation elicited by consciously perceived cues were based on a series of time-restricted brain regions during cue presentation, decoding relied on the medial prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex after cue presentation for both consciously and unconsciously perceived cues. These findings reveal the conscious and unconscious processing of expectation during pain anticipation and may shed light on enhancing clinical care by demonstrating the impact of expectation cues.
Eustathios of Thessaloniki

Eustathios, bishop of Thessaloniki, wrote a vivid, firsthand account of the sack of Thessaloniki by the Normans of Sicily shortly after the city was captured in 1185. The work opens with a discussion of how the writing of one who experienced a disaster will necessarily differ from that of a dispassionate historian. Eustatios claims that he writes from the honest perspective of a participant and sufferer rather than a rhetorically artful historian. Eustathios's account combines complex sentences and allusions to classical Greek authors with more everyday expressions and scriptural quotations. After an opening lamentation for the sack of the city and invective against its incompetent commander, David Komnenos, Eustathios goes back to take up the narrative of the accession of Andronikos II (1183– 1185) and the early years of his reign. Eustathios's portrait of Andronikos is deeply negative, highlighting in particular Andronikos's brutal treatment of the Byzantine nobility. Eustathios then turns his attention to the campaign launched by William II of Sicily (1155– 1189), whose army entered Thessaloniki after a brief siege, in large part the result, Eustathios argues, of the incompetent defense mounted by David Komnenos. The narrative then describes the sufferings of Thessaloniki's population at the hands of the conquerors and Eustathios's own experiences, including his efforts to mitigate the conquerors’ treatment of his fellow citizens. Although Eustathios is a well- known figure of the twelfth century, many of whose letters and rhetorical works survive, scholars have found it difficult to reconstruct a precise biography. His year and place of birth are not known. Typical estimates have ranged between 1110 and 1115. His letters indicate that he was educated in Constantinople and embarked on an ecclesiastical career, beginning as a minister in the Church of St. Euphemia and later – around the 1160s – serving as a deacon for the patriarch. During this time he was active as a teacher and mostly likely wrote his famous commentaries on the Iliad and the Odyssey, along with other commentaries on ancient authors. Around 1168, he attained the high rank of maistōr tōn rhētor ōn , which also included duties in the imperial court.
Salt Karst and Collapse Structures in the Anadarko Basin of Oklahoma and Texas

Introduction The current study summarizes years of investigations of salt karst and resultant collapse features in and around the Anadarko Basin of western Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle. These investigations have involved integrated studies of: 1) the subsurface distribution and thickness of Permian salt beds; and 2) field studies to identify areas where outcropping strata are disrupted and disturbed.
Animal Models of Genetic Disorders of Myelin

Improved understanding of the assembly and maintenance of myelin is afforded by the study of animals in which interference with these processes occurs as a result of genetic variation, toxic exposure, immunological attack, viral infection, nutritional or endocrine deficiency, and physical or circulatory insult. Mutant animals are particularly suitable for the biochemical approach, since they make it possible to obtain genetic homogeneity, sufficient quantities for experimental use, and strict control of their nutrition and environment. During the past decade, considerable work has been carried out on several mouse mutants with genetic defects in and limited to the formation of myelin. The first recognized were the jiutpy, quaking, and myelin synthesis deficiency mutants, and study of them contributed importantly to the identification of myelin constituents and clarification of major features of myelin metabolism and myelinogenesis. In recent years, several additional mouse mutants have been described and shown to have myelin disorders with special characteristics that further reveal the biology of myelin. The most notable of these are shiverer, which has an almost complete lack of myelin basic protein; twitcher, which resembles human globoid cell leukodystm ophy in having a severe deficiency of galactosylceramide s-galactosidase; trembler, which has a primary disorder of peripheral nerve and Schwann cell; and muscular dystrophy, which has amyelinated segments of nerve roots. All these mutants share advantages for experimental study in that the pathology is limited to the myelin, their genetic nature presages likely abnormality of protein structure, serial developmental analysis is possible, and dilfereuees in both phenotype and genotype of myelin disorders have been shown.
Competition in Networks: An Analysis of Hospital Pricing Behavior

In this paper we develop a framework for analyzing the behavior of hospitals under selective contracting. We use a unique data set on hospitals in the Southern California region from 1990?1993 to estimate the factors affecting the actual negotiated prices paid to hospitals by two major HMOs. We find that a hospital?s bargaining power, and hence its price, decreases in the ability of the HMO to construct alternative networks that exclude the hospital. Our findings also indicate that hospitals should not be given free reign to merge as some hospital mergers, even in urban areas, can lead to anti-competitive price increases for inpatient services. Beyond hospitals, our methodology can also be applied to other industries where firms contract with multiple suppliers.
Toward case-based preference elicitation: similarity measures on preference structures

While decision theory provides an appealing normative framework for representing rich preference structures, eliciting utility or value functions typically incurs a large cost. For many applications involving interactive systems this overhead precludes the use of formal decision-theoretic models of preference. Instead of performing elicitation in a vacuum, it would be useful if we could augment directly elicited preferences with some appropriate default information. In this paper we propose a case-based approach to alleviating the preference elicitation bottleneck. Assuming the existence of a population of users from whom we have elicited complete or incomplete preference structures, we propose eliciting the preferences of a new user interactively and incrementally, using the closest existing preference structures as potential defaults. Since a notion of closeness demands a measure of distance among preference structures, this paper takes the first step of studying various distance measures over fully and partially specified preference structures. We explore the use of Euclidean distance, Spearman's footrule, and define a new measure, the probabilistic distance. We provide computational techniques for all three measures.
A human inspired local ratio-based algorithm for edge detection in fluorescent cell images

We have developed a new semi-automated method for segmenting images of biological cells seeded at low density on tissue culture substrates, which we use to improve the generation of reference data for the evaluation of automated segmentation algorithms. The method was designed to mimic manual cell segmentation and is based on a model of human visual perception. We demonstrate a need for automated methods to assist with the generation of reference data by comparing several sets of masks from manually segmented cell images created by multiple independent hand-selections of pixels that belong to cell edges. We quantify the differences in these manually segmented masks and then compare them with masks generated from our new segmentation method which we use on cell images acquired to ensure very sharp, clear edges. The resulting masks from 16 images contain 71 cells and show that our semi-automated method for reference data generation locates cell edges more consistently than manual segmentation alone and produces better edge detection than other techniques like 5-means clustering and active contour segmentation for our images.
Causes and cures III: The psychology of violence

Abstract The past 2 years have been a landmark moment for violence prevention, with the publication of The Global Status Report on Violence Prevention 2014 , a historic resolution on violence by the 67th World Health Assembly, and the release of multiple documents on violence by international and United Nations entities, with a corresponding building of momentum in scholarship. Most notably, in September 2015, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development , addressing the need for violence prevention at an unprecedented scale. In this context, more than ever, violence studies have become a field of its own right. Still, a systematic approach to the topic is lacking, and no textbook yet synthesizes the knowledge of multiple disciplines toward a cogent understanding. This article is the third of a series that will cover an outline for summarizing the major bio-psycho-social and structural–environmental perspectives on violence. It discusses the complexity of the mind that can give rise to paradoxes and hidden perceptions and how psychology can elucidate them, especially with respect to human violence. It criticizes psychology's reductionism into neuroscience or behaviorism, or the useful but surface interpretations of cognitivism, while highlighting the strengths of psychodynamic theory in dealing with the depths of emotional life. While limiting the scope to intrapsychic events can be a drawback, these dynamics can help explain clinical features of trauma and resilience and how these can predispose or protect from violence.
(R,R)‐1‐(2′‐Benzyloxymethylphenyl)‐2,5‐dimethylphospholane

[252554-72-6] C20H25OP (MW 312.39) InChI = 1S/C20H25OP/c1-16-12-13-17(2)22(16)20-11-7-6-10-19(20)15-21-14-18-8-4-3-5-9-18/h3-11,16-17H,12-15H2,1-2H3/t16-,17-/m1/s1 InChIKey = AYFCPCPUCFNQDN-IAGOWNOFSA-N (monophosphine ligand for asymmetric catalysis;1 nickel(II) complexes are effective catalyst precursors for enantioselective hydrovinylation with non-coordinating counterions) Solubility: soluble in THF, diethyl ether, hydrocarbons, and chlorinated solvents. Analysis of Reagent Purity: 1H NMR, 13C NMR, 31P NMR, and GLC analysis. Preparative Methods: prepared by the reaction of potassium dianion of 2′-(benzyloxymethyl)phenylphosphane1 and (2S,5S)-hexane-2,5-diol cyclic sulfate. The preparation of the latter reagent is described in the literature.2 (1) Purification: by column chromatography under an inert atmosphere. Handling, Storage, and Precautions: readily oxidizes to the phospholane oxide upon exposure to atmospheric oxygen. The corresponding (allyl)Ni(BARF) complex is stable upon storage at room temperature for several days under a nitrogen atmosphere.
Comparison of Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse Imaging Derived Carotid Plaque Stiffness With Spatially Registered MRI Determined Composition

Measurements of plaque stiffness may provide important prognostic and diagnostic information to help clinicians distinguish vulnerable plaques containing soft lipid pools from more stable, stiffer plaques. In this preliminary study, we compare in vivo ultrasonic Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse (ARFI) imaging derived measures of carotid plaque stiffness with composition determined by spatially registered Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) in five human subjects with stenosis $>$ 50%. Ultrasound imaging was implemented on a commercial diagnostic scanner with custom pulse sequences to collect spatially registered 2D longitudinal B-mode and ARFI images. A standardized, multi-contrast weighted MRI sequence was used to obtain 3D Time of Flight (TOF), T1 weighted (T1W), T2 weighted (T2W), and Proton Density Weighted (PDW) transverse image stacks of volumetric data. The MRI data was segmented to identify lipid, calcium, and normal loose matrix components using commercially available software. 3D MRI segmented plaque models were rendered and spatially registered with 2D B-mode images to create fused ultrasound and MRI volumetric images for each subject. ARFI imaging displacements in regions of interest (ROIs) derived from MRI segmented contours of varying composition were compared. Regions of calcium and normal loose matrix components identified by MRI presented as homogeneously stiff regions of similarly low (typically $\approx 1\ \mu{\rm m}$ ) displacement in ARFI imaging. MRI identified lipid pools $>2\ {\rm mm}^{2}$ , found in three out of five subjects, presented as softer regions of increased displacement that were on average 1.8 times greater than the displacements in adjacent regions of loose matrix components in spatially registered ARFI images. This work provides early evidence supporting the use of ARFI imaging to noninvasively identify lipid regions in carotid artery plaques in vivo that are believed to increase the propensity of a plaque to rupture. Additionally, the results provide early training data for future studies and aid in the interpretation and possible clinical utility of ARFI imaging for identifying the elusive vulnerable plaque.
Principles and practice of real-time visual tracking for navigation and mapping

We present examples of real-time mobile navigation systems and approaches to vision-based Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) based on the second generation of our image processing library, XVision. Although the application-field of XVision is not limited to mobile navigation, the real-time requirements and limited computational resources on mobile systems provide a good testbed for it. We discuss the general architecture of the library and its modular processing pipeline, and we show how multiple tracking and low-level image processing primitives for color, texture and disparity can be combined to produce vision-guided navigation systems. The applications we discuss make use of XVision capabilities to solve the temporal correspondence problem by tracking an image feature in a given image domain.
Exercise pre-conditioning ameliorates blood-brain barrier dysfunction in stroke by enhancing basal lamina.

Abstract Objective: We investigated whether exercise pre-conditioning ameliorates stroke-induced blood–brain barrier (BBB) dysfunction by strengthening basal lamina. Methods: Adult male Sprague–Dawley rats were subjected to a 30 minute exercise program on a treadmill each day for 3 weeks. Stroke was induced by a 2 hour middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion using an intraluminal filament in the exercised and non-exercised groups. BBB dysfunction was then determined by brain edema. Expression of collagen IV, the major component of basal lamina essential for maintenance of the endothelial permeability barrier, was quantitatively detected by Western blot and immunocytochemistry. Ex vivo techniques were used to compare collagen IV-labeled vessels in response to ischemic insult. Results: Brain edema was significantly (p<0.05) reduced after stroke in the exercised group. Western blot analysis indicated that exercise pre-conditioning enhanced collagen IV expression and reduced the loss after stroke. Immunocytoch...
A comparison of mental health center operated detoxification programs in North Carolina.

Abstract The mental health center program in North Carolina provides detoxification services for substance abusers in community-based detoxification programs. Some of these programs are licensed as “social setting” and other as “medical nonhospital.” Evaluation of one medical program and comparison with social setting programs revealed that the cost per bed in the social setting is 58% less, and that the cost for physicians and drugs constitute 17% of the medical detoxification program. However, because of the efficiency of the medical program, the costs per patient treated are comparable. Sixty-nine percent of the patients receive librium in the first 24 h after admission and 26% in the second 24 h in doses of 109 mg and 59 mg, respectively, and 62% required medication other than librium. As judged by the staff, 68% of the patients treated successfully completed the program. Follow-up of patients 30 days after discharge revealed that approximately 50% were in recovery.
Observation of a K X-Ray Band Emitted by the Transient C-C System Formed at keV Energies

The yield and high-energy limit (from 1.1 to 1.5 keV) of a $K$ x-ray band emitted by the transient C-C collision system are reported for 19- to 240-keV carbon ions incident on graphite. This $K$ x-ray band is interpreted as characteristic of the C-C system when the nuclear separation approaches the united-atom limit. A small yield of a similar band produced by other light ions in graphite has been observed; this can be accounted for in part by integrating the C-C yield over the appropriate energy distribution of recoil carbon atoms.
Gender, Bilingualism, and the Early Occupational Careers of Second-Generation Mexicans in the South

Author(s): Hernandez-Leon, Ruben; Morando, Sarah J | Abstract: Following two decades of Mexican migration to the southern United States, the second generation is entering the labor market.n We analyze the early occupational careers of fifty-eight second-generation young adults in Dalton, Georgia, a global carpet manufacturing center.n We find intergenerational occupational mobility, with children of Mexican immigrants deploying human capital skills to access better jobs than their parents.n However, the Mexican second generation faces opportunity ladders structured along gender lines, with women working in services and men laboring as bilingual supervisors and crew leaders in the carpet industry.n While bilingual skills play a critical role in the employment paths members of the second generation have started to chart, their use of bilingualism is also shaped by gender dynamics in the workplace.
The effect of particle settling velocity on computed suspended sediment concentration profiles

Abstract A field study was performed at a site in San Pablo Bay, California, to evaluate how well suspended sediment distribution equations reproduce observed concentrations. Near-bed measurements of current velocity, suspended sediment concentrations, and fluid and particle characteristics were made. An in-situ settling cylinder was used to determine settling velocity values of aggregated suspended sediments and photographs from a plankton camera provided size estimates. In-situ weighted average settling velocities were generally an order of magnitude greater than a weighted average for Stokes calculations of settling velocity for the grain-size distribution of the reference suspended sediment sample and two orders of magnitude greater than a Stokes settling velocity for the median grain size of suspended sediment. Flocs were commonly ∼ 100 μm in diameter, and as large as 450 μm, with settling velocities as high as 0.2 cm s−1. Calculated suspended sediment concentration profiles using in-situ estimates of settling velocity yielded closer agreement with observed concentration profiles (within 25%) than using settling velocities calculated from the grain-size distribution of suspended sediment samples (within 40–50%).
Effects of country of origin and country brand attitude on nonprescription drugs

Using Korean college students as a sample, this study explores the role of country of origin and country brand attitude on purchase intention of nonprescription drugs. The results showed that country of design and country of assembly have significant effects on quality perception and purchase intention of nonprescription drugs between the United States and China, and country brand attitude has significant effects on the purchase intention of nonprescription drugs between United States and Germany, and between China and Malaysia, according to the degree to which consumers have a favourable attitude toward the specific country brand.
Scavenger Receptors Class A-I/II and CD36 Are the Principal Receptors Responsible for the Uptake of Modified Low Density Lipoprotein Leading to Lipid Loading in Macrophages

Modification of low density lipoprotein (LDL) can result in the avid uptake of these lipoproteins via a family of macrophage transmembrane proteins referred to as scavenger receptors (SRs). The genetic inactivation of either of two SR family members, SR-A or CD36, has been shown previously to reduce oxidized LDL uptake in vitro and atherosclerotic lesions in mice. Several other SRs are reported to bind modified LDL, but their contribution to macrophage lipid accumulation is uncertain. We generated mice lacking both SR-A and CD36 to determine their combined impact on macrophage lipid uptake and to assess the contribution of other SRs to this process. We show that SR-A and CD36 account for 75-90% of degradation of LDL modified by acetylation or oxidation. Cholesteryl ester derived from modified lipoproteins fails to accumulate in macrophages taken from the double null mice, as assessed by histochemistry and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. These results demonstrate that SR-A and CD36 are responsible for the preponderance of modified LDL uptake in macrophages and that other scavenger receptors do not compensate for their absence.
Particle balance in diverted plasmas in TEXT-U

Abstract Tokamak plasmas in an open divertor configuration with the X-point at the inner equator were compared with plasmas limited by an inner toroidal belt. This paper describes and compares the particle balance in these two types of discharge. The plasma parameters n e (r), Φ(r), T e (r), n e , and Φ ≈ were measured in the scrape-off layer and in the plasma periphery at one poloidal location and mapped onto the rest of the plasma by assuming constancy on flux surfaces. Emission from neutral hydrogen was measured throughout the plasma. The particle source and then the global particle confinement were inferred from these measurements using a 3-D neutral transport simulation. The SOL profiles are significantly steeper in the diverted discharge. Both the source measurements and estimates from the SOL profiles indicate significantly better confinement in the diverted discharge.
Evidence of a nonendothelial source of nitric oxide in the isolated perfused hindlimb vasculature of the pregnant rat.

Objective: This study was undertaken to further elucidate the roles of the vascular endothelium and nitric oxide (NO) in the regulation of vascular tone and constrictor responsiveness in pregnancy.Methods: The perfusion pressure-flow relationship was measured in isolated, perfused, norepinephrine-constricted (1) endothelium-intact, (2) endothelium-denuded, and (3) A-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME)-treated hindlimbs from nonpregnant and term-pregnant rates.Results: Baseline perfusion pressure at a flow rate of 2 mL/min was similar (-20 min Hg) in all hindlimbs. Norepinephrine (0.5 μM) increased perfusion pressure in both nonpregnant (+21.6 ± 2.4 mm Hg) and pregnant (+13.6 ± 0.9 mm Hg) endothelium-intact rat hindlimbs. In nonpregnant rat hindlimbs, endothelium removal and L-NAME increased norepinephrine vasoconstriction similarly (+44.3 ± 4.0 mm Hg and +46.4 ± 8.6 mm Hg, respectively). In pregnant-rat hindlimbs, L-NAME increased norepinephrine vasoconstriction by 43.5 ± 10.8 mm Hg, similar to that in...
Science Signaling Podcast: 29 October 2013

This Podcast features an interview with Walter Koch, senior author of a Research Article that appears in the 29 October 2013 issue of Science Signaling , about a posttranslational modification that can help prevent the death of cardiac myocytes in the context of heart failure following cardiac ischemia. Cardiac ischemia, the reduction of blood flow to the heart muscle, deprives heart cells of oxygen and nutrients and can cause the cells to die, leading to heart failure. Treatments for ischemia-induced heart failure focus on nitric oxide (NO) and G protein–coupled receptor (GPCR) signaling pathways. These two pathways are generally considered to be molecularly distinct, but a new study by Huang et al . reports that the NO and GPCR pathways converge on GPCR kinase 2 (GRK2), which acts downstream of GPCRs to mediate the death of cardiac myocytes in response to ischemia. S -nitrosothiols promoted S-nitrosylation of GRK2, thus inhibiting its activity and reducing cardiac myocyte death following ischemia.
Effects of partial sleep restriction and subsequent daytime napping on prolonged exertional heat strain

Objectives It is considered that sleep restriction is one of the risk factors for the development of exertional heat stroke and illness. However, how sleep restriction affects exertional heat strain and the nature of the coping strategy involved in this phenomenon remain unclear. Methods Fourteen healthy subjects were studied on four occasions: after a night of normal sleep (NS, 7–8 h) and after a night of partial sleep restriction (PSR, 4 h), each with or without taking a daytime nap during the subsequent experimental day. The laboratory test consisted of two 40 min periods of moderate walking in a hot room in the morning and the afternoon. Results The increase in rectal temperature during walking was significantly greater in PSR than in NS in the afternoon. The rating scores for physical and psychological fatigue and sleepiness were significantly greater in PSR than in NS, both in the morning and in the afternoon. The reaction times and lapses in the psychomotor vigilance task (PVT) after walking were significantly worse in PSR than in NS in the morning and after lunch. The nap intervention attenuated significantly the scores for fatigue and sleepiness in PSR. Furthermore, the decreased PVT response in PSR was significantly reversed by the nap. Conclusions These results suggest that PSR augments physiological and psychological strain and reduces vigilance in the heat. Taking a nap seemed to be effective in reducing psychological strain and inhibiting the decrease in vigilance.
Atomic Fluorescence Flame Spectrometry: Potential Tool for Trace Analysis

The technique of atomic fluorescence flame spectrometry as a potential tool for the trace analysis of inorganic ions has received increasing attention in the last few years. The method is based upon the absorption of radiation by an atomic vapor and the measurement of the radiation emitted when a fraction of the excited atoms lose their energy by fluorescence.
In situ structural investigation of iron-containing silicate liquids and glasses

In situ high-temperature Raman spectra are presented below and above the glass transition temperature (Tg) of the 0.5Na2O·0.5Fe2O3·3SiO2 (Fe-albite, NFSO), 1.5Na20·0.5Fe2O3·3SiO2 (NFS2), K2O·0.5Fe2O3·3SiO2 (KFS), and reduced K2O·FeO·3SiO2 (KFS-R) compositions. For the oxidized sample, there is a close structural relationship between the glass and the super-cooled melt above Tg. With increasing temperature, no coordination changes of Fe3+ and no new anionic species are observed in the oxidized melts. In the spectrum of fully polymerized Fe-albite (FeAb) glass, the increase in linewidth of the low frequency Raman band at 452 cm−1 and shift in the position of the band to higher frequency at high temperature indicate an increase in the extent of disorder and decrease of average T-O-T angle, where T = Si, Fe3+ in tetrahedral coordination. In the depolymerized glasses, (NFSI ) and KFS, the increase in intensities of the Raman bands associated with Q3 species, containing three bridging oxygen atoms per T cation, result from either a change in relative cross sections of Raman modes or from a net increase in Q3 species with increasing temperature. On the basis of observed changes in the Raman spectra of the reduced sample (KFS-R), it is proposed that most of the Fe2+ ions act as network modifier. This suggestion is justified by the observation of the polarization character of the spectra and the appearance of new Raman bands.
Calibration of a water content reflectometer and soil water dynamics for an agroforestry practice

Water content reflectometers allow temporal and continuous assessment of spatial differences in soil water dynamics. We hypothesized that volumetric soil water content estimated by the water content reflectometers (CS616 Campbell Sci. Inc., Logan, UT) is influenced by clay content and temperature and therefore site- and or soil-specific equations are required for accurate estimations of soil water. Objectives of the study were to develop calibration equations and to evaluate soil water dynamics for an agroforestry system using the improved calibration equation. Putnam silt loam (fine, smectitic, mesic Vertic Albaqualfs) and Menfro silt loam (fine-silty, mixed, superactive, mesic Typic Hapludalfs) soils were selected with 23–54% clay. Soils were packed in cylinders and sensors were monitored at 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, and 40°C. Calibration equations for volumetric water content (θv) as a function of sensor measured period, temperature, and clay content were developed. Coefficient of determination (r2) and root mean square error (RMSE) were used to compare goodness of fit. RMSE varied between 0.028 and 0.040 m3 m−3 for soil specific and soil-combined linear and quadratic equations with period. Coefficients of determination ranged between 0.89 and 0.96 for these calibrations. RMSE decreased and r2 increased as temperature was included. The effect of temperature varied with water content, with the strongest effect at high water contents. Clay content did not contribute significantly to improve predictability. Water content estimated by the linear calibration equation with period and temperature showed differences in θv influenced by vegetation and soil depth, and closely followed precipitation events and water use by vegetation. The field study showed significant differences between the two treatments. Also the importance of temperature correction is emphasized during periods with large diurnal fluctuations and site specific calibration equations. Results of the study showed that water content reflectometers can be used to estimate θv with less than ±4% error and may need site specific calibration and a temperature correction to research more precise estimates.