cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
New concept in coronary angioplasty: dilatation with a helical balloon that allows simultaneous autoperfusion.

These preclinical studies investigate a new concept in coronary angioplasty and balloon catheter technology (the P100 catheter). The study sought to evaluate the morphology of experimental coronary arterial plaques dilated with the P100 in comparison to standard balloons, to determine the in vitro flow rates occurring during the inflation of the P100 in comparison to available perfusion catheters, and to assess the in vivo coronary flow velocity and the presence of ischemia during prolonged inflations with the P100. The development of myocardial ischemia is a major limitation of standard balloon angioplasty. To limit ischemia, autoperfusion catheters have been developed, in which blood flows through the balloon in the central catheter shaft. However, as the flow lumen profile is reduced to enhance the performance of these devices, so is the accompanying flow. An angioplasty catheter was designed to evaluate the feasibility of continuous autoperfusion around the dilatation balloon. The balloon surface was engineered to develop a helical trough for blood flow to occur during inflation. Arterial plaque morphology following angioplasty with the P100 (n = 8) and with standard balloons (n = 8) was evaluated in a swine model. In vitro flow rates during inflation of the P100 and available perfusion catheters were determined using 33% glycerol solution. In vivo coronary flow velocity was determined with a Doppler-tipped wire during 60-min continuous inflations with the P100, and 15-sec inflations with a standard balloon in 12 vessel segments in 7 dogs; using 3.0-3.5-mm-diameter balloons. All lesions were successfully dilated (< 50% luminal diameter stenosis) with the P100 and standard balloons. There were no morphologic differences in plaques dilated with P100 compared to standard balloons. In vitro flow rates with conventional 3.0-mm balloon perfusion catheters ranged from 27.1 +/- 2.1 ml/min (RX Flowtrack) to 38.7 +/- 0.9 ml/min (Stack Perfusion), P < .05. Flow with the P100 ranged from 54.8 +/- 4.3 ml/min (2.5-mm balloon) to 103.2 +/- 4.5 ml/min (3.5-mm balloon), P < .05. Distal average peak coronary flow velocity during prolonged P100 inflations varied from 69 +/- 7% of baseline at 5 min to 83 +/- 8% of baseline at 40 min, with an upward trend in velocity the longer the balloon was inflated. Hemodynamics remained stable. Experimental plaques are successfully dilated with a helical balloon by a mechanism that appears similar to the dilatation mechanism of standard balloons. These preclinical studies show that angioplasty and autoperfusion can be accomplished by a balloon that does not have complete surface area contact with the vessel wall. A gap created by the helix can thus provide a conduit for blood flow. Clinical studies will determine whether this innovation, which alters the tubular geometry of current angioplasty balloons, will provide autoperfusion and equivalent dilatation effects in human.
A training guideline of cultural competence for child and adolescent psychiatric residencies

The author proposes a curriculum guideline of cultural competence for child and adolescent psychiatric residencies, including specific educational objectives, didactic topics and suggested references. These guidelines can be easily incorporated into the existing training curriculum and stress ethnogeneric and developmental perspectives, which can be expanded further to include ethnospecific issues depending on the needs of each training program and trainee.
Child sexual abuse and adulthood-interpersonal outcomes: Examining pathways for intervention.

We examined a dual pathway, longitudinal mediational model in which child sexual abuse (CSA) influences adulthood interpersonal functioning and sexual risk through its impact on resiliency resources and psychological distress. Women were recruited from two obstetrics and gynecological clinics serving primarily low-income, inner-city women (N = 693) and interviewed at pretest (Time 1) and 6-month follow-up (Time 2). The proposed mediators were resiliency resources (i.e., self-esteem and self-efficacy) and psychological distress (i.e., depressive and posttraumatic stress symptoms). The interpersonal outcomes were general interpersonal problems (measured via recent loss of interpersonal resources, lack of perceived current social support, and recent social conflict) and HIV/sexual risk (measured via lack of confidence asserting safe sex practices, intimate partner risk, and perceived barriers to safe sex). A respecified partial structural equation model implying full mediation supported our hypotheses (CFI = .96, RMSEA = .05, SRMR = .04). The impact of CSA on interpersonal problems was mediated through its effect on psychological distress, whereas the impact of CSA on HIV/sexual risk was mediated through its effect on resiliency resources. Implications for intervention are discussed.
Towards predictable wireless cyber-physical applications

Making wireless cyber-physical applications a reality hinges upon understanding how to build applications with predictable performance. A key challange is to develop communication protocols that enable application components to communicate predictably. We plan on developing a framework that brides wireless communication and real-time schedulability theory under a realistic communication and inference model.
Experiments on steady buoyancy transfer through turbulent fluid layers separated by density interfaces

Abstract A laboratory experiment was performed to investigate mixing across a density interface which separates two turbulent fluid layers and coexists with a stabilizing buoyancy flux. It was found that the buoyancy flux ( q 0 ) across the interface and through the turbulent layers (of depth D ) becomes steady and constant in magnitude in the vertical direction, only when q 0 ≅ 1.5 u 3 D , where u is the horizontal r.m.s. velocity at the base of the mixed layers. The results suggest that mixing across the density interface is controlled by a dynamically important buoyancy gradient induced in the turbulent layers and that parameters such as the bulk Richardson number, Ri = ΔbD u 2 , where Δb is the interfacial buoyancy jump, are of secondary importance. Measurements are used to infer the mixing mechanism at the interface, the mixing efficiency of stratified fluids and the entrainment law. Some geophysical applications of the results are also discussed.
X-ray zone plates with 25 aspect ratio using a 2-μm-thick ultrananocrystalline diamond mold

Hard X-ray phase zone plates are focusing optics used for X-ray microscopes at synchrotron radiation facilities. The resolution is determined by the outer-most zone width (OZW) and modern lithographic techniques are capable of patterning OZW less than 100 nm. Efficiency of a phase zone plate will peak when the zones have a thickness that provides a ?-phase shift to the X-rays. Thus, a hard X-ray zone plate with ideal efficiency and sub-100-nm resolution requires fabricating high-aspect-ratio, dense-packed structures in materials suitable for exposure to synchrotron radiation. The fabrication method implemented involves an electroforming mold process where a top resist layer is lithographically patterned and used for pattern transfer into a bottom layer which acts as the electroform mold. The resulting mold is filled with Au by electroplating, and afterwards the mold is not removed but remains in place for mechanical support. Ultrananocrystalline diamond (UNCD) was used as the mold layer. UNCD is deposited by hot-filament chemical vapor deposition with well-controlled stress and thickness up to 2 μm. The top resist layer is hydrogen silsesquioxane, which is a high-contrast electron beam lithography resist and resistant to the oxygen reactive ion etching required for UNCD pattern transfer. Using this fabrication method, we successfully produced zone plates with OZW down to 80 nm and an aspect ratio up to 25 for a thickness of 2 μm. The efficiency of several fabricated zone plates were measured, demonstrating their functionality.
Temperature-Based Structural Identification of Long-Span Bridges

AbstractTemperature-based structural identification (TBSI) is a quantitative structural evaluation approach that relies on responses resulting from temperature fluctuations. Through this approach, ...
Pilot Study of an Educational Programme for Caregivers of People Ageing with Multiple Sclerosis

The purpose of this study was to examine the outcomes and participant-reported benefits of a multiple sclerosis (MS) caregiver education programme called ‘Meeting the Challenges of MS’. Nineteen caregivers were recruited to this community-based pilot study; 12 completed all sessions. Occupational therapists facilitated five 2-hour weekly sessions, addressing strategies to problem solve the physical and emotional challenges of caregiving. Questionnaires were administered before and after the programme to determine if changes were achieved in caregivers' self-efficacy, abilities to prepare for and manage caregiving challenges, and abilities to monitor and implement personal health-promoting strategies. Focus groups obtained participants' feedback on the programme. All study procedures were approved by the university ethics committee.The participants reported that they were more prepared for their caregiving role (p = 0.02), were able to reframe their experiences positively (p = 0.01) and sought more practic...
Biomaterials-based organic electronic devices

Organic electronic devices have demonstrated tremendous versatility in a wide range of applications including consumer electronics, photovoltaics, and biotechnology. The traditional interface of organic electronics with biology, biotechnology, and medicine occurs in the general field of sensing biological phenomena. For example, the fabrication of hybrid electronic structures using both organic semiconductors and bioactive molecules has led to enhancements in sensitivity and specificity within biosensing platforms, which in turn has a potentially wide range of clinical applications. However, the interface of biomolecules and organic semiconductors has also recently explored the potential use of natural and synthetic biomaterials as structural components of electronic devices. The fabrication of electronically active systems using biomaterials-based components has the potential to realize a large set of unique devices including environmentally biodegradable systems and bioresorbable temporary medical devices. This article reviews recent advances in the implementation of biomaterials as structural components in organic electronic devices with a focus on potential applications in biotechnology and medicine.
Quantum dynamics of adsorbed normal- and para- H 2 , HD, and D 2 in the microporous framework MOF-74 analyzed using infrared spectroscopy

Low-temperature diffuse reflectance infrared spectroscopy is used to measure the quantum dynamics of molecular hydrogen and its isotopologues adsorbed in the microporous material MOF-74. At least two distinct adsorption sites are revealed by increasing the concentration of ${\text{H}}_{2}$ within the material and monitoring the successive appearance of absorption bands with decreasing bathochromic shifts (or ``redshifts'') from the unperturbed (gas-phase) vibrational frequencies. Under conditions wherein both the primary and neighboring secondary sites are occupied, additional frequency shifts are observed that confirm the interactions among the adsorbed molecules are non-negligible. Ortho to para conversion of the adsorbed normal-${\text{H}}_{2}$ is observed to occur within minutes and this process is accelerated when both primary and secondary sites are occupied. Translational sidebands are also observed, providing an estimation of $124\text{ }{\text{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$ for the frequency of the center-of-mass motion of ${\text{H}}_{2}$ at the primary adsorption site. The frequency shifts of the absorption bands of HD and ${\text{D}}_{2}$ diverge from the predictions of a simple isotope effect, emphasizing the importance of the zero-point energy contribution.
Getting the Right Medical Students — Nature versus Nurture

With many patients complaining about doctors' poor interpersonal skills, changes are being made to the medical school admissions process. But the problem may lie less in the selection process than in how we educate students in medical school.
A Statistical Model to Predict Nonsurvival in Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia

OBJECTIVE: To develop a predictive model using echocardiographic indices to identify nonsurvivors from survivors in preoperative patients with congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH). STUDY DESIGN: Eight cases of CDH, with a mortality rate of 38%, underwent echocardiographic study before surgical repair. Left ventricular mass (LVMASS) using the area–length method of Wyatt et al. and fractional shortening (FS) by M-mode measurements were determined. RESULTS: We identified a nonlinear nonoverlapping distribution that predicted nonsurvivors from survivors, p=0.04. Multiple regression analysis demonstrated the quantity (LVMASS×FS)1/2 to be correlated with nonsurvival with a coefficient of determination r2=0.55. Comparison of the means of the quantity (LVMASS×FS)1/2 for the two groups suggested two distinct populations, p=0.04. CONCLUSION: The mathematical quantity (LVMASS×FS)1/2 calculated from echocardiographic measurements obtained preoperatively in babies with CDH may predict nonsurvival despite maximal intervention.
Analytical solutions to a class of nonlinear Schrödinger equations with {\cal PT} -like potentials

We present closed form solutions to a certain class of one- and two-dimensional nonlinear Schr¨ odinger equations involving potentials with broken and unbroken PT symmetry. In the one-dimensional case, these solutions are given in terms of Jacobi elliptic functions, hyperbolic and trigonometric functions. Some of these solutions are possible even when the corresponding PT -symmetric potentials have a zero threshold. In two-dimensions, hyperbolic secant type solutions are obtained for a nonlinear Schr¨ odinger equation with a nonseparable complex potential.
Electron dynamics in the bremsstrahlung reflex triode

Summary form only given. The reflex triode is a versatile bremsstrahlung source for Nuclear Weapons Effects simulation. The reflex triode employs a rangethin foil anode between two identical face-to-face hollow cathodes. Electrons undergo multiple reflexes through the anode foil converter as they lose their energy and are focused radially. The reflex triode can operate in the high total dose mode; the high dose rate mode; or the "high fidelity" mode, which maximizes the production of warm (5 keV < E < 50 keV) X-ray photons. When compared to bremsstrahlung production devices employing a range-thick anode converter, the use of a range-thin anode converter not only enhances the escape of warm X-rays, but also mitigates converter debris. Despite these advantages, key aspects of the physics of the operation of the reflex triode need to be better understood to optimize its radiation output. One of these unresolved aspects is the detailed motion of the electrons as they reflex through the anode foil. Modeling of the reflex triode operation with 2-1/2 D PIC codes predicts an unexpectedly strong fluctuating electric field adjacent to the anode, having frequencies -/spl square/pe and magnitudes roughly equal to the average electric field. This stochastic electric field causes the average number of reflexes to scale much less strongly that the inverse of the thickness of the anode foil. Results of analytic modeling and 2-1/2 D Particle-in-Cell simulations will be presented which explore the dynamics of reflexing electrons and the accompanying fluctuating electric field in the reflex triode. To isolate this reflexing from other aspects of reflex triode operation, such as radial focusing, these efforts have centered on a simplified, I-D version of the device, which assumes the presence of a strong axial magnetic field. Analytic modeling for the steady state of a relativistic I-D reflex triode suggest that the strong stochastic electric field arises to disrupt a runaway feedback between the space charge limited ion current and the electron density at the anode. Indeed, this analytic modeling predicts that a quiescent steady state exist for operating voltages of interest (0.25 MV - 1.5 MV) only for foils thicker than -1/4 of the electron range in the anode foil material (assumed to be Ta). For thinner anode foils (which includes all anode foils of interest for bremsstrahlung reflex triode operation) the above feedback mechanism produces a runaway electron and ion current. Equilibrium is restored only by the stochastic electric field, which disrupts this feedback. Work is in progress to confirm this hypothesis by comparing the onset of the fluctuating electric field in the PIC simulations with the predictions of the 1-D analytic modeling. Also underway is analytic modeling of a non-quiescent steady state of the 1-D relativistic reflex triode, which includes the effects of a stochastic electric field on the electron dynamics.
Channel-width dependent hot-carrier degradation of thin-gate pMOSFETs

Channel width dependent pMOSFET hot-carrier degradation has been observed for a 0.25 /spl mu/m CMOS technology. A detailed characterization revealed two distinct trapping mechanisms that are unique to both narrow and wide width devices. Device simulations indicate that the electric field difference between the STI edge and channel area is responsible for the channel-width dependent degradation. In addition to data from discrete devices, product burn-in data will also be presented to support the channel-width dependent pMOST degradation mechanism.
Approximate quantiles and the order of the stream

Recently, there has been an increased focus on modeling uncertainty by distributions. Suppose we wish to compute a function of a stream whose elements are samples drawn independently from some distribution. The distribution is unknown, but the order in which the samples are presented to us will not be completely adversarial. In this paper, we investigate the importance of the ordering of a data stream, without making any assumptions about the actual distribution of the data. Using quantiles as an example application, we show that we can design provably better algorithms, and settle several open questions on the impact of order on streams. With the recent impetus in the investigation of models for sensor networks, we believe that our approach will allow the construction of novel and significantly improved algorithms.
Origin of the Martian Crustal Dichotomy" Evaluating Hypotheses

Abstract Any hypothesis for the origin of the Martian global dichotomy should survive three elementary tests: (1) it must account for the observed plan shape and apparent depth of the Martian northern lowland, (2) it must be physically consistent, and (3) it must be compatible with available geological and geophysical data. At present, there are three contending types of hypotheses for the origin of the dichotomy: creation by some endogenic process or processes, creation by a single mega-impact, or creation by several overlapping large impacts. None of these hypotheses can survive all three tests without the incorporation of additional processes. The endogenic and mega-impact hypotheses require the presence of additional impact basins to explain many of the topographic details of the Martian northern lowland and of the dichotomy boundary, and the mega-impact hypothesis probably also requires extensive primordial erosion. The multiple-impact hypothesis requires an additional process or processes to account for the large portion of the northern lowland that is external to the rims of the basins inferred to be the cause of the lowland. While we believe that aspects of the multiple-impact hypothesis are required to account for some topographic details of the boundary and of the lowland, other processes appear better able to account for the dichotomy as a whole. These could include an early mega-impact, endogenic processes, or some combination of these.
On using formal software engineering techniques in an academic environment

A large software simulation system for emission tomography (SimSET) is being developed using structured analysis and design (SAD), a software engineering technique. Most of the researchers in the project were not familiar with formal software engineering. Thus several team organizations and SAD approaches were tried before a productive one was found: the computer scientists work on the software definition; the other scientists anticipate problems that will be encountered developing the simulations and work on solutions to them. Utilizing this modified SAD approach it has been possible to integrate the diverse expertise necessary to produce a large scientific software package. >
On the logarithmic mean profile

Elements of the first-principles-based theory of Wei et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 522, 2005, p. 303), Fife et al. (Multiscale Model. Simul., vol. 4, 2005a, p. 936; J. Fluid Mech., vol. 532, 2005b, p. 165) and Fife, Klewicki & Wei (J. Discrete Continuous Dyn. Syst., vol. 24, 2009, p. 781) are clarified and their veracity tested relative to the properties of the logarithmic mean velocity profile. While the approach employed broadly reveals the mathematical structure admitted by the time averaged NavierStokes equations, results are primarily provided for fully developed pressure driven flow in a two-dimensional channel. The theory demonstrates that the appropriately simplified mean differential statement of Newton's second law formally admits a hierarchy of scaling layers, each having a distinct characteristic length. The theory also specifies that these characteristic lengths asymptotically scale with distance from the wall over a well-defined range of wall-normal positions, y. Numerical simulation data are shown to support these analytical findings in every measure explored. The mean velocity profile is shown to exhibit logarithmic dependence (exact or approximate) when the solution to the mean equation of motion exhibits (exact or approximate) self-similarity from layer to layer within the hierarchy. The condition of pure self-similarity corresponds to a constant leading coefficient in the logarithmic mean velocity equation. The theory predicts and clarifies why logarithmic behaviour is better approximated as the Reynolds number gets large. An exact equation for the leading coefficient (von Karman coefficient κ) is tested against direct numerical simulation (DNS) data. Two methods for precisely estimating the leading coefficient over any selected range of y are presented. These methods reveal that the differences between the theory and simulation are essentially within the uncertainty level of the simulation. The von Krmn coefficient physically exists owing to an approximate self-similarity in the flux of turbulent force across an internal layer hierarchy. Mathematically, this self-similarity relates to the slope and curvature of the Reynolds stress profile, or equivalently the slope and curvature of the mean vorticity profile. The theory addresses how, why and under what conditions logarithmic dependence is approximated relative to the specific mechanisms contained within the mean statement of dynamics. © 2009 Copyright Cambridge University Press.
Ethnic disparities in recovery following distal radial fracture.

Background: Ethnic disparities have been demonstrated in the treatment of chronic diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease. It is unclear if similar ethnic disparities appear with respect to recovery following fracture care. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 496 individuals (253 whites, 100 blacks, and 143 Latinos) with a fracture of the distal part of the radius. Assessment of physical function and pain was conducted at three, six, and twelve months following treatment. The Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) score was used to assess physical function, and a visual analog scale was used to assess pain. Multiple linear regression was used to model physical function and pain across ethnicity while controlling for age, sex, mechanism of injury, level of education, type of fracture, type of treatment (operative or nonoperative), and Workers’ Compensation status. Results: Both blacks and Latinos exhibited poorer physical function and greater pain than whites did at most follow-up points. Latinos reported more pain at each follow-up point in comparison with blacks and whites (p < 0.001 at three, six, and twelve months). These significant differences remained after controlling for Workers’ Compensation status, which was also strongly associated with both pain and function. Conclusions: These findings suggest that recovery is different between ethnic groups following a fracture of the distal part of the radius. These ethnic disparities may result from multifactorial sociodemographic factors that are present both before and after fracture treatment. Level of Evidence: Prognostic Level II. See Instructions to Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.
Computer-Based Training and Assessments: An Exploratory Study of Social Factors

This paper introduces an exploratory research program on different types of hybrid classes to answer those and other questions around its efficacy and applicability for training and education. Our objective is to develop and perform an initial test of a new model designed to trace the influence of individual and technical characteristics on learning outcomes through their effect on in-class and computer training phases of knowledge and skills acquisition and testing. The overall research question is: "Which and how much do CBT, individual student, class, instructor, and CBA factors affect student learning outcomes?" This paper proposes a research model based upon the Leidner and Jarvenpaa (2001) work where they introduce a research model that helps instructors determine the best teaching method depending on course content, available technology, an individual instructor, and student factors. Thirty-six questions were posed to over 400 students with direct and current experience using CBT and CBA for course credit. The findings show that there is a strong potential for student as well as corporate benefits in training using online assessment tools. Online assessment effectiveness should be given further research study given the explosive jump in reported learning.
Establishing Trust for Computation Offloading

Computation offloading can extend the battery life- time of a portable device by migrating computation to grid- powered servers. The server may charge the portable device for the computation performed, thus providing offloading as a service. The portable device has to trust that the server has indeed performed the computation as claimed. We propose a protocol to establish trust for computation offloading. The protocol uses two keys to establish trust. The first key is part of the input for the computation; executing the program with the first key generates the second key. Without executing the program, it is difficult to generate the correct second key. We implement an algorithm that meets the requirements of the protocol on an HP iPAQ PDA and a server. We demonstrate through experiments how the algorithm establishes trust and quantify the overhead required to establish trust.
Optimal natural encoding scheme for discrete multiplicative degraded broadcast channels

Certain degraded broadcast channels (DBCs) have the property that the boundary of the capacity region can be achieved by an encoder that combines independent codebooks (one for each receiver) using the same single-letter function that adds distortion to the channel. We call this the natural encoder for the DBC. Natural encoders are known to achieve the capacity region boundary of the broadcast Gaussian channel, and the broadcast binary-symmetric channel. Recently, they have also been shown to achieve the capacity region of the broadcast Z channel. This paper shows that natural encoding achieves the capacity region boundary for discrete multiplicative DBCs. The optimality of the natural encoder also leads to a relatively simple expression for the capacity region for discrete multiplicative DBCs.
Bacterial reduction of crystalline Fe (super 3+) oxides in single phase suspensions and subsurface materials

Microbiologic reduction of synthetic and geologic Fe{sup 3+} oxides associated with four Pleistocene-age, Atlantic coastal plain sediments was investigated using a dissimilatory Fe reducing bacterium (Shewanella putrefaciens, strain CN32) in bicarbonate buffer. Experiments investigated whether phosphate and anthraquinone-2,6-disulfonate, (AQDS, a humic acid analogue) influenced the extent of crystalline Fe{sup 3+} oxide bioreduction and whether crystalline Fe{sup 3+} oxides in geologic materials are more or less reducible than comparable synthetic phases. Anaerobic incubations (10{sup 8} organisms/mL) were performed both with and without PO{sub 4} and AQDS that functions as an electron repository and shuttle. The production of Fe{sup 2+} (solid and aqueous) was followed with time, as was mineralogy by X-ray diffraction. The synthetic oxides were reduced in a qualitative trend consistent with their surface area and free energy: hydrous ferric oxide (HFO) > goethite > hematite. Bacterial reduction of the crystalline oxides was incomplete in spite of excess electron donor. Biogenic formation of vivianite [Fe{sub 3}(PO{sub 4}){sub 2}{center_dot}8H{sub 2}O] and siderite (FeCO{sub 3}) was observed; the conditions of their formation was consistent with their solubility. The geologic Fe{sup 3+} oxides showed a large range in reducibility, approaching 100% in some materials. The natural oxides were equally or more reducible thanmore » their synthetic counterparts, in spite of association with non-reducible mineral phases (e.g., kaolinite). The reducibility of the synthetic and geologic oxides was weakly effected by PO{sub 4}, but was accelerated by AQDS. CN32 produced the hydroquinone form of AQDS (AHDS), that, in turn, had thermodynamic power to reduce the Fe{sup 3+} oxides. As a chemical reductant, it could reach physical regions of the oxide not accessible by the organism. Electron microscopy showed that crystallite size was not the primary factor that caused differences in reducibility between natural and synthetic crystalline Fe{sup 3+} oxide phases. Crystalline disorder and microheterogeneities may be more important.« less
DETECTORS FOR RADIATION DOSIMETRY

In previous years Radiation Dosimetry in Medicine was concerned mainly with measuring doses produced by x-rays, gamma rays and electrons. These radiations have the common feature that their R.B.E. ≈ 1, and they can be monitored by the same types of detectors.
Processing speed training increases the efficiency of attentional resource allocation in young adults

Cognitive training has been shown to improve performance on a range of tasks. However, the mechanisms underlying these improvements are still unclear. Given the wide range of transfer effects, it is likely that these effects are due to a factor common to a wide range of tasks. One such factor is a participant’s efficiency in allocating limited cognitive resources. The impact of a cognitive training program, Processing Speed Training (PST), on the allocation of resources to a set of visual tasks was measured using pupillometry in 10 young adults as compared to a control group of a 10 young adults (n = 20). PST is a well-studied computerized training program that involves identifying simultaneously presented central and peripheral stimuli. As training progresses, the task becomes increasingly more difficult, by including peripheral distracting stimuli and decreasing the duration of stimulus presentation. Analysis of baseline data confirmed that pupil diameter reflected cognitive effort. After training, participants randomized to PST used fewer attentional resources to perform complex visual tasks as compared to the control group. These pupil diameter data indicated that PST appears to increase the efficiency of attentional resource allocation. Increases in cognitive efficiency have been hypothesized to underlie improvements following experience with action video games, and improved cognitive efficiency has been hypothesized to underlie the benefits of processing speed training in older adults. These data reveal that these training schemes may share a common underlying mechanism of increasing cognitive efficiency in younger adults.
An institutional experience with the bidirectional cavopulmonary shunt: do we know enough about it?

BackgroundThe bidirectional cavopulmonary shunt has become a mainstay in the palliation of patients with a functionally single ventricle. Despite its usefulness, there are a number of concerns following its construction, including issues of timing, the development of pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas, and growth of the pulmonary arteries.MethodsBetween January 1990 and April 1996, we constructed a bidirectional cavopulmonary shunt in 123 patients. Median age at surgery was 9.4 months, and ranged from 24 days to 43 years. In 25 patients (20%), it was the first operative procedure. An auxiliary source of pulmonary blood flow was included in 72 patients (58%).ResultsSix patients (4.9%) died in the early postoperative period, and the overall early rate of failure (death or take-down) was 8.1%(n=10). By multivariate analysis, longer bypass time (p=0.012), age less than 1 month (p=0.03), and higher pulmonary vascular resistance (p = 0.043) were significant. Early reoperation was performed in 11 other patients to decrease (n=8) or increase (n=3) the amount of pulmonary blood flow. Early survivors were followed for a median of 15 months (range: 1 to 48 months), during which time 5 patients died and a Fontan circulation was completed in 30. Including early and late mortality, actuarial survival rates at 1 and 2 years were 91% and 88%, respectively. Among hospital survivors, the only significant predictor of poorer survival by Cox regression was age less than 2 months at the time of the initial cavopulmonary shunt (p=0.02). Atrioventricular valvar regurgitation was decreased after construction of the cavopulmonary shunt in 17 of the 28 patients (61%) in whom echocardiographic data were available to compare preoperative and postoperative status.ConclusionsThe bidirectional cavopulmonary shunt is a useful procedure in the early or intermediate term management of patients with a functionally univentricular heart. Much remains to be learned, nonetheless, about this unique physiologic system. The role of accessory pulmonary blood flow remains unclear, as does the use of the shunt as long-term palliation. Pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas are a serious concern, especially in young patients with heterotaxy syndrome (isomeric atrial appendages).
Leukocyte Count Correlates in Middle-aged Adults: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study

Abstract Cross-sectional associations between leukocyte count and sociodemographic and cardiovascular risk factors were investigated in 14,679 participants aged 45-64 years in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study carried out in four US communities in 1986-1989. Leukocyte count was strongly associated with present or past history of cigarette smoking and was higher in males than in females and in white subjects than in black subjects. Among never smokers, no sex differences were evident after adjustment for other risk factors. Race-associated differences were substantially reduced after other factors were taken into account in multivariate analyses. In never smokers, leukocyte count was higher in those who reported poor health, and it was inversely associated with high density lipoprotein cholesterol, forced expiratory volume at 1 second, physical activity, and, among whites, height and socioeconomic indicators. It was directly associated with indices of body weight and body fat, heart rate, blood pressure, hemoglobin, platelet count, uric acid, fasting insulin and glycemia, triglycerides, fibrinogen, antithrombin III, protein C, factors VII and VIII, and von Willebrand factor. The associations of leukocyte count with cardiovascular risk factors may either represent manifestation of subclinical disease or suggest that leukocyte count is part of the causal chain leading to atherosclerosis. Alternatively, the relation of leukocyte count to cardiovascular disease may be confounded by risk factors and thus be noncausal.
IPM and Insect Resistance Management

Several case studies concerning synthetic chemical insecticides are presented, followed by recommendations concerning the implementation of resistance management. Resistance management must be considered within an IPM framework. Goals and time horizons must be selected and economics considered. Coordination of stakeholders is critical. It is important to adjust plans to account for local social and environmental conditions; predict the risks and implement preventative resistance management; understand and possibly change pest behavior, monitor resistance in populations only when it is worth the costs; realize that evolution of resistance can occur via detoxification, behavioral modification, and mechanisms of maturation; and finally, not delay implementing resistance management.
Wavefront aberration measurement before and after INTACS for the correction of low myopia

Wavefronts were measured with a Hartmann-Shack-Wavefront sensor in patients undergoing surgical correction for myopia by the INTACS procedure. In this procedure, intracomeal ring segments are placed inside the corneal stroma. Measurements showed aberration reduction.
UCODE calibration for recharge/discharge rates using a digital pattern recognition procedure

A parameter estimation program, UCODE, was applied to improve a previously developed recharge/discharge pattern recognition procedure that uses a surface interpolator based on radial basis functions, a recharge/ discharge mapping method, and the Pattern Recognition Utility (PRU), a GUI program utilizing image processing algorithms. The patterns (zones) are easy to generate using the PRU; the recharge/discharge rate is simply the average in the zone. By also using a parameter estimation program, the average recharge/discharge rates were significantly improved; moreover, other parameters (e.g. hydraulic conductivity) can also be estimated together with recharge/discharge rates. This paper shows the improvement of applying UCODE based on the test result from a field model.
How Community Health Providers Can Help Patients Connect to Veterans Affairs Resources

To assist the community provider in understanding and accessing Veterans Affairs (VA) resources, this commentary describes basic information regarding care of veterans. It highlights questions that may be incorporated into routine history taking, provides military culture resources, and clarifies pharmaceutical benefits. Table 2 is a quick reference guide to locate VA-based information on the Internet.
Energy Expenditure at Rest and During Various Types of Physical Activity

Energy is expended constantly as long as the body is alive. This chapter discusses the concept of total daily energy expenditure (TEE) and its components. How TEE is influenced by altering the levels of spontaneous and voluntary physical activity (VPA) is discussed. The basal metabolic rate (BMR) is characterized and used as a benchmark by which changes can be measured. Formulas for calculating energy expenditure in the resting state, activities of ordinary living (spontaneous physical activity) and VPA (exercise) are presented, as is a table showing calculated energy expenditure values for various levels of many activities. Persistent conditions (age, gender, chronic obesity) and transient conditions (food intake, drugs, fever-inducing illness) that can affect BMR are noted.
Effect of Precocene II on Sex Attractancy in the Mediterranean Fruit Fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann)

Precocene II, a simple chromene compound, was topically applied to virgin male adults of the Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann), (Diptera: Tephritidae), at a sublethal concentration of 5 μg/μl of acetone per fly; treated males were presented 24 h later to virgin female adults of identical ages in a Y-choice glass olfactometer. Beginning on day 4 after pupal-adult eclosion, sex attractancy was significantly reduced in precocene-treated individuals when compared with acetone-treated controls. This effect on sex attractancy more or less coincides with the beginning of significant pheromone release by males (i.e., 4 days posteclosion) as measured in our olfactometer under laboratory conditions. The effect on sex attractancy appears to be due to action on male flies, and not to odors given off by precocene II.
The Effect of Ciguatera Toxin on Aplysia Neurons

SummaryCiguatera toxin causes a depolarization of the pedal ganglion cells of Aplysia Juliana. Accompanying the depolarization is a reduction in the firing rate of the cell and a replacement of pacemaker by synaptic activity. This observation provides additional evidence that pacemaker activity can be dissociated from membrane potential changes in particular experimental situations.
George Box’s Bayesian Pragmatism

AbstractGeorge Box was an enthusiastic Bayesian, yet much of his published work is frequentist. This paper speculates about how he reconciled this seeming tension.
Deoxyribonucleic acid fingerprint bands linked to loci coding for quantitative traits in chickens.

Abstract Efficacy of DNA fingerprint (DFP) bands in marker-assisted selection programs for quantitative traits in chickens was evaluated. A cross between two populations of White Plymouth Rock chickens that had been selected for 31 generations for high (HW) or low (LW) 8-wk body weight served as the base population for the experiment. Full- and half-sib families were produced over four generations and 400 offspring were measured for body weight at 8 wk (BW8) and shank length at 12 wk of age (SL12). Distributions were constructed for each quantitative trait in offspring of one F1 sire. The DFP produced from mixed blood of the individuals within each tail of the distribution were compared. From a total of 13 DFP bands that were disparate in intensity between the tails, four bands were chosen for analysis. Matings were made between males and females based on the presence or absence of these bands, but were limited to individuals that were within .5 standard deviation of the mean for the distribution of a particular trait. Quantitative traits of the resulting progeny were analyzed to determine whether parental type (presence or absence of the DFP band) influenced expression of the trait in the offspring. One band out of the four tested was associated with SL12, was an effective predictor of phenotype for both SL12 and BW8, and appeared to be inherited in a dominant fashion.
Decentralized Mode-Adaptive Guidance and Control for DC Microgrid

This paper presents a decentralized, mode-adaptive (DMA) guidance law for a Hamiltonian-based controller of an N-source, dc microgrid. Droop control is commonly used for decentralized control of microgrids. Unfortunately, droop control lacks the ability to autonomously adapt to the addition or removal of a source without the augmentation of an outer-loop controller. Centralized control methods provide solutions to these limitations, as well as providing the ability to globally optimize the system. To their detriment, centralized control methods are not scalable, and require system-wide information to be funneled through a central controller yielding a single point of failure. The DMA power apportionment scheme presented here aims to reduce the gap between droop control and centralized control by providing a method that can operate autonomously in the event of source and bus load fluctuations as well as reduce communication requirements of centralized control and, thus, increase resiliency and scalability. After development of the DMA, its performance is compared to the centrally controlled optimal exergy destruction power apportionment strategy, as well as a Hamiltonian-based droop control strategy. Finally, it is shown that for a sufficiently large number of converters supplying a microgrid, the presented decentralized, mode-adaptive strategy provides an efficient and practical alternative to both droop control and centralized control schemes.
Performance Outcomes in Learning Oriented Supply Chains: Explicating the Role of Process Capabilities

In meeting the challenges of generating superior financial performance and maximizing customer value in intensely competitive environments, companies are shifting focus towards inimitable and tacit ‘how-they-do-it’ capabilities (Ramaswami et al., 2009; Rosenzweig, 2009). Success of supply chain management (SCM) as a strategy for competitive advantage and superior performance rests on developing such capabilities to relentlessly improve and innovate cross-firm processes, particularly those facing end-customers (Rai, Patnayakuni and Seth, 2006; Sambamurthy et al., 2003). However, despite anecdotal evidence, extant literature has little explanation on these pathways by which supply chains generate superior performance outcomes (Ramaswami et al., 2009). Literature implores investigation of such integrated process capabilities that create value in the marketplace (e.g., Rai, Patnayakuni and Seth, 2006).
Modulation of Phosphopeptide Fragmentation via Dual Spray Ion/Ion Reactions Using a Sulfonate-Incorporating Reagent

The labile nature of phosphoryl groups has presented a long-standing challenge for the characterization of protein phosphorylation via conventional mass spectrometry-based bottom-up proteomics methods. Collision-induced dissociation (CID) causes preferential cleavage of the phospho-ester bond of peptides, particularly under conditions of low proton mobility, and results in the suppression of sequence-informative fragmentation that often prohibits phosphosite determination. In the present study, the fragmentation patterns of phosphopeptides are improved through ion/ion-mediated peptide derivatization with 4-formyl-1,3-benezenedisulfonic acid (FBDSA) anions using a dual spray reactor. This approach exploits the strong electrostatic interactions between the sulfonate moieties of FBDSA and basic sites to facilitate gas-phase bioconjugation and to reduce charge sequestration and increase the yield of phosphate-retaining sequence ions upon CID. Moreover, comparative CID fragmentation analysis between unmodified...
Realism Matters: The Role of Perceived Realism in The Biggest Loser

This study investigated implications of viewing The Biggest Loser, NBC’s popular reality television show. Using online survey data collected from 613 participants, results suggest that exposure to ...
Efficient Synthesis of α-Fluoromethylhistidine Di-Hydrochloride and Demonstration of its Efficacy as a Glutathione S-Transferase Inhibitor

Histidine decarboxylase (HDC) is an enzyme that converts histidine to histamine. Inhibition of HDC has several medical applications, and HDC inhibitors are of considerable interest for the study of histidine metabolism. (S)-α-Fluoromethylhistidine di-hydrochloride (α-FMH) is a potent HDC inhibitor that is commercially available at high cost in small amounts only. Here we report a novel, inexpensive, and efficient method for synthesis of α-FMH using methyl 2-aziridinyl-3-(N-triphenylmethyl-4-imidazolyl) propionate and HF/pyridine, with experimental yield of 57%. To identify novel targets for α-FMH, we developed a three step in silico work-flow for identifying physically plausible protein targets. The work-flow resulted in 21 protein target hits, including several enzymes involved in glutathione metabolism, and notably, two isozymes of the glutathione S-transferase (GST) superfamily, which plays a central role in drug metabolism. In view of this predictive data, the efficacy of α-FMH as a GST inhibitor was investigated in vitro. α-FMH was demonstrated to be an effective inhibitor of GST at micromolar concentration, suggesting that off-target effects of α-FMH may limit physiological drug metabolism and elimination by GST-dependent mechanisms. The present study therefore provides new avenues for obtaining α-FMH and for studying its biochemical effects, with potential implications for drug development.