cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Histologic characterization of the post-radiation urethral stenosis in men treated for prostate cancer

To evaluate histological changes in stenotic urethral tissue post-radiation therapy. Treatment of prostate cancer by radiation therapy carries a risk of off-target injury to the membranous urethra causing urethral stenosis. Limited characterization of post-radiation urethral stenosis exists in the literature. We hypothesize that specific histopathologic parameters distinguish this stricture etiology. Eighty-two consecutive patients with membranous urethral stenosis underwent urethroplasty between 2013 and 2018. Seventy specimens (86.4%) were available for evaluation: 51 from patients without radiation exposure and 19 from patients with history of radiation therapy for prostate cancer. All specimens were reviewed by a pathologist blinded to patient/stricture information. Histological scoring system was used for the quantification of collagen density, collagen organization, hyalinized fibrosis, vascular density, spindle-cell change, necrosis, hemorrhage, fat entrapment, vacuolation, acute and chronic inflammation, and foreign-body giant cells. Differences in histologic outcomes between groups were statistically analyzed. Post-radiation specimens had a higher collagen density (p = 0.01), higher collagen organization (p = 0.001), increased hyalinized fibrosis (p = 0.03), fat entrapment (p = 0.005) and spindle cell change (p = 0.005) when compared to membranous specimens without prior exposure to radiation. Post-radiation specimens also had a significantly decreased vascularity compared to specimens of non-radiated etiology (p = 0.0005). Fibrous connective tissue degenerative change with vacuolation was pronounced in post-radiation specimens and seldom seen in those without radiation (p = 0.0001). Membranous urethral stenosis following radiation demonstrates specific histologic characteristics including vascular loss and increased scarring (collagen density, organization). This histologic grading system may be used in grading severity of radiation damage, and conceivably adopted for correlation with clinical outcomes.
One Case, Two Decisions: Khalid v. Bush, In re Guantanamo Detainee Cases, and the Neutral Decisionmaker

These statements lie at the core of two recent decisions by judges of the District Court for the District of Columbia. Each judge ruled on identical motions to dismiss, supported and opposed by identical briefs, deciding whether indefinite detention of alien enemy combatants at Guantanamo Bay was impermissible under a variety of legal theories ranging from executive overreach to customary international law. On January 19, 2005, Judge Richard Leon answered an unequivocal no, dismissing each of the petitioners claims. Less than two weeks later, Judge Joyce Hens Green denied the motion to dismiss, granting that the petitioners had cognizable rights under both the Fifth Amendment and the Geneva Conventions and that the current system of Combat Status Review Tribunals (CSRTs) was insufficient to vindicate those rights. These cases thus provide a unique empirical demonstration of a core tenet
On Being a Mother and Obstetrician

Through the generosity of Charles R. Millikan, DMin, vice president for Spiritual Care and Values Integration, an annual award competition was established at Houston Methodist Hospital among the resident staff. To enter the writing competition, residents must submit a poem or essay of 1,000 words or less on the topic, “On Being a Doctor.” A committee of seven was selected from Houston Methodist Hospital Education Institute to establish the judging criteria and select the winning entries. The following is the first-place winning entry for 2019; the second- and third-place entries will be published in the next two issues of this journal.
Short-term Effects of Hypoxia Are More Important Than Effects of Ocean Acidification on Grazing Interactions With Juvenile Giant Kelp (Macrocystis Pyrifera)

Species interactions are crucial for the persistence of ecosystems. Within vegetated habitats, early life stages of plants and algae must survive factors such as grazing to recover from disturbances. However, grazing impacts on early stages, especially under the context of a rapidly changing climate, are largely unknown. Here we examine interaction strengths between juvenile giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) and four common grazers under hypoxia and ocean acidification using short-term laboratory experiments and field data of grazer abundances to estimate population-level grazing impacts. We found that grazing is a significant source of mortality for juvenile kelp and, using field abundances, estimate grazers can remove on average 15.4% and a maximum of 73.9% of juveniles per m2 per day. Short-term exposure to low oxygen, not acidification, weakened interaction strengths across the four species and decreased estimated population-level impacts of grazing threefold, from 15.4% to 4.0% of juvenile kelp removed, on average, per m2 per day. This study highlights potentially high juvenile kelp mortality from grazing. We also show that the effects of hypoxia are stronger than the effects of acidification in weakening these grazing interactions over short timescales, with possible future consequences for the persistence of giant kelp and energy flow through these highly productive food webs.
Pharmacologic pupillary constriction after dilated fundus examination for ectopia lentis to prevent further subluxation.

Abstract Purpose To describe two cases of ectopia lentis with different preoperative management strategies following the initial diagnostic dilated exam. Observations In both cases, the patients presented with bilateral subluxation of the crystalline lens. Neither patient had a known history of Marfan's disease, homocystinuria or other systemic disorders that affect the body's connective tissue possibly leading to lens subluxation. Patient 1 was sent home after dilated fundus examination with no special precautions. That same night, he developed severe right eye pain and further decreased vision. He was found to have complete dislocation of his right crystalline lens into the anterior chamber with corneal edema and an elevated pressure, requiring an urgent pars plana lensectomy. In our second case of ectopia lentis, patient 2 was examined prior to dilation and noted to have bilateral subluxation of the lens into the vitreous. Twenty minutes after dilation, the crystalline lens was noted to be in the anterior chamber in the right eye. The patient was laid supine for several minutes and once the lens was in the posterior cavity, she was given 1% pilocarpine in both eyes to constrict the pupil to prevent dislocation in the anterior chamber. Patient 2 had an uneventful perioperative period and did not suffer worsening subluxation after her initial visit. Conclusion and importance Unlike patient 1, patient 2 did not suffer further subluxation after her initial dilated eye exam, therefore avoiding a more arduous clinical and surgical course. Patients presenting with completely dislocated lenses may benefit from the reversal of pupillary dilation by being placed in the supine position and given reversal drops such as 1% pilocarpine prior to leaving the office. This method may help prevent complications from anterior lens subluxation and pupillary block glaucoma until definitive surgical managment.
Optical Assessment of Cone Function through Adaptive Optics Scanning Laser Ophthalmoscopy - the Cone Optoretinogram

We use adaptive optics scanning laser ophthalmoscopy to measure the cone optoretinogram, an optical measure of photoreceptor function that arises from a change in nearinfrared reflectance in response to visual stimuli.
Hetero-core fiber SPR sensor with ionic liquid gel coating for CO 2 detection

We proposed a CO 2 sensor based on a hetero-core structured fiber optic SPR sensor with ionic liquid (IL) gel coating. As an IL, we used 1-Ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate ([EMIM][BF 4 ]) which is known to have a good CO 2 adsorption property. In this study, we investigated whether the CO 2 concentration in the surrounding environment could be measured by detecting the change in transmitted light loss using a hetero-core structured optical fiber SPR sensor. The results showed that the relationship between the light loss and the CO 2 concentration was linear in the range of 25-100% of the CO 2 concentration, and the sensitivity was 0.002 dB/%. The response time for 100% CO 2 was approximately 2 min. It indicates that the proposed sensor has a potential to measure CO 2 concentration in the surrounding environment with a cost-effective sensing system that uses an LED with a wavelength of 850 nm and an optical power meter.
Youden’s J and the Bi Error Method

Incorrect usage of p-values, particularly within the context of significance testing using the arbitrary .05 threshold, has become a major problem in modern statistical practice. The prevalence of this problem can be traced back to the context-free 5-step method commonly taught to undergraduates: we teach it because it is what is done, and we do it because it is what we are taught. This hold particularly true for practitioners of statistics who are not formal statisticians. Thus, in order to improve scientific practice and overcome statistical dichotomania, an accessible replacement for the 5-step method is warranted. We propose a method foundational on the utilization of the Youden Index as a potential decision threshold, which has been shown in the literature to be effective in conjunction with neutral zones. Unlike the traditional 5-step method, our 5-step method (the Bi Error method) allows for neutral results, does not require p-values, and does not provide any default threshold values. Instead, our method explicitly requires contextual error analysis as well as quantification of statistical power. Furthermore, and in part due to its lack of usage of p-values, the method sports improved accessibility. This accessibility is supported by a generalized analytical derivation of the Youden Index.
Emotional recovery following divorce: Will the real self-compassion please stand up?

Self-compassion is a positive psychological construct associated with heightened well-being, but the construct is largely measured via self-report. In a study of divorcing adults (N = 120), we soug...
The pragmatic use of metaphor in empirical psychology

Metaphors of mind and their elaboration into models serve a crucial explanatory role in psychology. In this article, an attempt is made to describe how biology and engineering provide the predomina...
Seven principles of efficient human robot interaction

Advances in robot technology and artificial intelligence have increased the range of robot applications as well as the importance of supporting human interaction with robots and robot teams. Previous work by the authors has highlighted the importance of creating neglect tolerant autonomy and efficient interfaces. In this paper, lessons learned from evaluating neglect tolerance and interface efficiency are compiled into a set of principles for efficient interaction. Emphasis is placed on designing efficient interfaces, but many of the principles require autonomy levels that support the principles. Each principle is illustrated by an example and motivated by citing relevant factors from cognitive information processing.
Differential down-regulation of protein kinase C isozymes.

Abstract Types I, II, and III protein kinase C have been shown to be products of, respectively, gamma, beta, and alpha genes of this enzyme family (Huang, F. L., Yoshida, Y., Nakabayashi, H., Knopf, J. L., Young, W. S., III, and Huang, K.-P. (1987) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 149, 946-952). Incubation of the highly purified rat brain protein kinase C isozymes with trypsin (kinase/trypsin (w/w) = 100) under identical conditions results in a preferential degradation of types I and II enzymes, whereas the type III enzyme was relatively resistant to tryptic proteolysis. Degradation of the type III enzyme by trypsin could be facilitated with the addition of Ca2+, phosphatidylserine, and dioleoylglycerol; none of these components alone was effective. Limited proteolysis of the three protein kinase C isozymes generated distinctive fragments for each isozyme, indicating that each isozyme has different trypsin-sensitive sites. Tryptic digestion of the type III protein kinase C was used as a model to determine the effects of various modulators on protein kinase C degradation. While Ca2+ and phosphatidylserine together were sufficient to convert the type III protein kinase C from a trypsin-insensitive to a -sensitive form, addition of dioleoylglycerol greatly reduced the Ca2+ requirement for such a conversion. Among the various phospholipids tested, in the presence of either dioleoylglycerol or phorbol ester, phosphatidylserine, cardiolipin, and phosphatidic acid were the most effective, and phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine were the least effective in supporting the digestion of type III protein kinase. Other acidic phospholipids, such as lysophosphatidylserine and phosphatidylinositol, were also effective in supporting the degradation in the presence of phorbol ester but not in the presence of dioleoylglycerol. The relevance of these proteolytic reactions to physiological responses was assessed with phorbol ester on rat basophilic leukemia RBL-2H3 cells, which contained both types II and III protein kinase C. Immunoblot analysis with the isozyme-specific antibodies revealed that phorbol ester induced a faster degradation of type II than that of type III isozyme in these cells. The results demonstrate that the various protein kinase C isozymes have different susceptibilities to proteolysis in vitro, when tested with trypsin, as well as to endogenous proteases in intact cells.
Research Limitations and the Necessity of Reporting Them

(2004). Research Limitations and the Necessity of Reporting Them. American Journal of Health Education: Vol. 35, No. 2, pp. 66-67.
Two-sided Approximation to Solutions of Nonlinear Operator Equations - a Comparison of Methods from Classical Analysis, Functional Analysis, and Interval Analysis

Two-sided approximation methods from classical and functional analysis require various conditions; ergo: monotonicity, Lipschitz, differentiability, or convexity. On the other hand, there are methods from interval analysis which require weaker conditions and which facilitate the construction of a suitable starting point for iterative computation. Specific methods from each of the three disciplines are given. An interval analytic method is shown to converge pointwise, inclusion-monotonically to an interval valued function. Illustrations are given in which the resulting function is sometimes the unique real solution of a given operator equation and sometimes an interval valued function containing a whole continuum of distinct real solutions. Thus, two-sided approximations can be computed for a whole family of solutions corresponding to initial or boundary data and constants known only to lie in certain intervals.
Promoting Positive Leadership

Drawing from positive organizational scholarship, the authors describe strategies for moving from an ineffective focus on problems to leveraging organizational strengths for productive change.
Analytical solutions for steady state vertical infiltration

[1] In this note, some analytical solutions for steady state vertical infiltration are presented. The forms of unsaturated hydraulic conductivity function used in the study are the rational power model of the form K(ψ) = KS/[1 + (αψ)β] and the Brooks and Corey [1964] model. The work presented in this note complements Warrick's [1988] solutions for evaporation and provides analytical solutions for vertical infiltration.
Bactericidal Activity of Low‐Dose Ceftizoxime Plus Metronidazole Compared With Cefoxitin and Ampicillin‐Sulbactam

Eighteen volunteers received ceftizoxime 1 g plus metronidazole 500 mg intravenously every 12 hours, cefoxitin 2 g intravenously every 6 hours, and ampicillin-sulbactam 3 g every 6 hours in a triple-crossover, open-label study to compare serum bactericidal titers (SBTs) against two strains of Escherichia coli and Bacteroides fragilis. Serum was analyzed for drug concentration and bactericidal activity. Ceftizoxime-metronidazole exhibited a significantly greater (p < 0.05) area under the bactericidal curve and percentage of the dosing interval with SBTs of 1:2 or above against E. coli than cefoxitin or ampicillin-sulbactam. The respective values were equal to those of ampicillin-sulbactam for one strain of B. fragilis (both greater than cefoxitin) and greater than cefoxitin and ampicillin-sulbactam for the other strain. A 1-g dose of ceftizoxime given with metronidazole 500 mg every 12 hours should be an effective alternative to standard antibiotic treatment of mixed aerobic-anaerobic bacterial infections.
A simple model of electron emission through adsorbed molecules

Abstract When electron emission from a field emitter is visually observed on a phospor screen, images of two fold or four fold symmetry can be made to appear by depositing certain organic molecules onto the emitter tip. It is argued in this paper that under certain conditions the visually observed patterns are due to field emission from single molecules, and that the observed images reflect the symmetry of the local electric field around the molecules. A simple model calculation is carried out which explains most of the observed experimental features except the exact shape of the patterns of the experimental images.
The Nose: Principles of Surgical Treatment

Surgery on the nose is inseparable from the practice of dermatology. Extensive training and experience is required to account for the nose's unique role in determining individuality, its function as an airway, and its predilection for hosting aggressive tumors. This overview of anatomy and general surgical principles provides the novice with a foundation on which to build and the experienced practitioner a review of pertinent literature.
Externally Modulated Rayleigh-Bénard Convection: Experiment and Theory

Quantitative experimental results are presented on the response of a convecting fluid to periodic modulation of the imposed heat current. A theoretical model which is a generalization of the Lorenz equations is proposed to describe the results. It yields semiquantitative agreement with experiment in both linear and nonlinear regimes.
A STAKEHOLDER APPROACH TO THE CORPORATE SINGLE AUDIT

Abstract In their paper, “Towards a Framework for a CorporateSingle Audit,” Sutton and Arnold use the governmental sector's Single Audit Act of 1984 as a model for the development of a corporate single audit. This corporate single audit would require regulated, mandatory corporate social reporting. It is designed to help meet the information needs of a broad set of users who are interested in a corporation's social as well as financial performance. In this commentary I argue that stakeholder theory provides an appropriate framework from which to develop a corporate single audit that is responsive to the information needs of multiple corporate stakeholders. I conclude that the utimate success of a stakeholder-based corporate single audit depends on (1) the development of reporting and attestation requirements that lead to the dissemination of reliable corporate social responsibility information and (2) a change in the relative power of the corporate stakeholder groups that influence the adoption of regulated, mandatory corporate social reporting.
The contribution of personality, acculturative stressors, and social affiliation to adjustment: A longitudinal study of Taiwanese students in the United States

Abstract Cross-cultural living is accompanied by a myriad of stressors that precipitate coping responses of assimilation (reliance on pre-existing methods) and accommodation (development of new ones). Utilizing a quantitative, longitudinal design, the study examined whether assimilation or accommodation was more effective in enhancing adjustment of 155 Taiwanese students studying in the United States. Specifically, social affiliation with Taiwanese (assimilation) and Americans (accommodation) during their second semester of study was hypothesized to mediate the impact of pre-departure personality on functional adjustment and emotional well-being in the third semester, controlling for acculturative stressors encountered in the first semester. Multivariate analyses showed that affiliation with Americans partially mediated the effect of extroversion on functional adjustment, supporting the effectiveness of accommodation. In addition, extroversion diminished depression level while acculturative stressors reduced functional adjustment and well-being. Finally, women enjoyed more intercultural relationships than men. Altogether, these findings suggest the utility for orientation programs that involve American peers to assist with cross-cultural adjustment, particularly for Taiwanese men.
Does the Asian Development Bank Respond to Past Environmental Performance when Allocating Environmentally Risky Financing

Summary This paper provides an empirical test of whether the Asian Development Bank (ADB) adjusts allocation decisions about environmentally risky projects to reflect borrower environmental performance in previous projects. This type of performance-based decision-making has been repeatedly highlighted as key to achieving favorable development assistance outcomes in a variety of programming areas. I collect recipient environmental performance information from all available post-project evaluations since 1990 and create an indicator of environmental reputation using a Bayesian updating model. I use this environmental reputation indicator to demonstrate that the ADB responds to previous borrower environmental performance when approving environmentally risky projects, but that past environmental performance does not positively influence the allocation of projects with no environmental risks. These results demonstrate that performance-based allocation decisions are possible for development organizations within specific programmatic areas when low performance is a significant risk to the core functions of the organization, which in this case is the ability to approve and disburse lending projects.
Bayesian Equilibria of Finite Two-Person Games with Incomplete Information

The equivalence of Bayesian equilibria of two-person games with incomplete information and Nash equilibria of certain n-person polymatrix games is demonstrated by means of a specific “Selten model.” As a byproduct, constructions recently developed for polymatrix games are available for Bayesian equilibria.
Framus – built in the heart of Bavaria: the history of a German musical instrument manufacturer 1946–1977

Framus – built in the heart of Bavaria: the history of a German musical instrument manufacturer 1946–1977, by Christian Hoyer, Bubenreuth, Edition Framus, 2007, 289 pp., illus., maps, £29.35 (hardb...
Protein cofactor-dependent acquisition of novel catalytic activity by the RNase P ribonucleoprotein of E. coli.

Abstract Escherichia coli RNase P derivatives were evolved in vitro for DNA cleavage activity. Ribonucleoproteins sampled after ten generations of selection show a >400-fold increase in the first-order rate constant ( k cat ) on a DNA substrate, reflecting a significant improvement in the chemical cleavage step. This increase is offset by a reduction in substrate binding, as measured by K M . We trace the catalytic enhancement to two ubiquitous A → U sequence changes at positions 136 and 333 in the M1 RNA component, positions that are phylogenetically conserved in the Eubacteria. Furthermore, although the mutations are located in different folding domains of the catalytic RNA, the first in the substrate binding domain, the second near the catalytic core, their effect on catalytic activity is significantly influenced by the presence of the C5 protein. The activity of the evolved ribonucleoproteins on both pre-4.5 S RNA and on an RNA oligo substrate remain at wild-type levels. In contrast, improved DNA cleavage activity is accompanied by a 500-fold decrease in pre-tRNA cleavage efficiency ( k cat / K M ). The presence of the C5 component does not buffer this tradeoff in catalytic activities, despite the in vivo role played by the C5 protein in enhancing the substrate versatility of RNase P. The change at position 136, located in the J11/12 single-stranded region, likely alters the geometry of the pre-tRNA-binding cleft and may provide a functional explanation for the observed tradeoff. These results thus shed light both on structure/function relations in E. coli RNase P and on the crucial role of proteins in enhancing the catalytic repertoire of RNA.
Deposition of composite coatings from particle-particle and particle-yeast blends by convective-sedimentation assembly.

Abstract The structures resulting from convective-sedimentation assembly (CSA) of bimodal suspensions (4.1–10% solids) of strongly charged sulfate latex microspheres (zeta potential −55.9 ± 1.8 mV at pH 8.0) and weakly charged Saccharomyces cerevisiae (zeta potential −18.7 ± 0.71 mV at pH 8.0) on glass, polyester, polypropylene, and aluminum foil substrates was evaluated. This study shows how substrate wettability, suspension composition, particle size ratio and surface charge affect the deposition process and resulting coating microstructure (particle ordering and void space). Size ratio and charge influence deposition, convective mixing or demixing and relative particle locations. Substrate wettability and suspension composition influence coating microstructure by controlling suspension delivery and spreading across the substrate. S. cerevisiae behave like negatively-charged colloidal particles during CSA. CSA of particle–yeast blends result in open-packed structures (15–45% mean void space), instead of tightly packed coatings attainable with single component systems, confirming the existence of significant polymer particle–yeast interactions and formation of particle aggregates that disrupt coating microstructure during deposition. Further optimization of the process should allow void space reduction and deposition of cells plus adhesive polymer particles into tightly packed adhesive monolayer coatings for biosensors, biophotoabsorbers, energy applications, and highly reactive microbial absorbers.
Transpericardial exposure of distal part of esophagus and descending thoracic aorta.

Abstract In three instances the authors have had occasion to expose posterior mediastinal structures transpericardially (the esophagus in 2 patients, the aorta in 1). Inasmuch as most cardiac surgical procedures currently are performed through a median sternotomy incision, attention is called to the fact that in selected instances the approach to the aorta and esophagus described here may prove very useful.
Power and Persuasion

Rejetant l'explication raciste et politique de R. Roberts concernant la non-reparation des injustices subies par les Noirs aux Etats-Unis, l'A. retrace l'histoire du debat sur l'action affirmative et met en evidence l'inegalite du pouvoir entre les groupes ethniques.
Dapsone Suppresses Integrin-Mediated Neutrophil Adherence Function

The anti-inflammatory influence of dapsone may involve suppression of neutrophil chemotaxis to selected attractants, but other actions of the drug are likely also involved. We have discovered that dapsone may suppress migration of neutrophils to extravascular sites through inhibition of adherence functions required for neutrophil recruitment. Neutrophil adherence mediated by integrins (CD11/CD18 or Mac-1 family receptors) was measured in vitro in terms of binding of stimulated cells to albumin-coated wells of microtiter plates, using phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) and N-formylmethionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (FMLP) as stimuli. Adherence was assessed by staining attached cells with crystal violet dye and measuring the dye concentration at OD590 using an automated plate reader. The role of integrins in this assay was confirmed by the ability of anti-integrin antibody to suppress stimulated neutrophil adherence. The OD590 value for cells adhering to albumin in the absence of stimulus and dapsone averaged 0.2 +/- 0.04 (SEM) over five experiments. In the presence of 0.1 microM PMA or 10(-6) M FMLP, the OD590 values averaged 0.88 +/- 0.1 and 0.75 +/- 0.12, respectively. Dapsone did not affect unstimulated neutrophil adherence but, when present with stimulus, produced a dose-related inhibitory effect on adherence. Fifty percent inhibitory doses were approximately 150 micrograms/ml dapsone for both stimuli. Sulfapyridine reproduced the inhibitory effect of dapsone, but two structurally related compounds, hydrochlorothiazide and furosamide, did not. The observed ability of dapsone to inhibit neutrophil chemotaxis under agarose to FMLP and interleukin-8 may also be explained by interference with integrin-mediated adherence required for motility in this assay system. To consider if dapsone might have a similar inhibitory influence on neutrophil adherence in vivo, we tested the stimulated adherence function of neutrophils isolated from three individuals on dapsone therapy for dermatitis herpetiformis. Stimulated adherence of patients' cells averaged less than 40 percent of the control value. Suppression of leukocyte integrin function may therefore also contribute to the ability of dapsone to inhibit neutrophil infiltration in neutrophilic dermatoses.
Southerly Extension of Poplar Leaf Blight (Linospora tetraspora) in the Pacific Northwest.

Poplar leaf blight caused by Linospora tetraspora G. E. Thompson (Ascomycetes, Valsaceae) is widespread on Populus balsamifera in Canada from Quebec to British Columbia (1). The only United States records of this northerly fungus are from Vermont, Wisconsin, and Alaska (1,2). There are no records of this fungus on the Pacific Coast south of British Columbia, despite the presence of susceptible hosts (i.e., Populus trichocarpa and its hybrids). However, in September of 1997, the disease was observed in a hybrid poplar plantation at latitude 47.9°N and longitude 122.1°W near Snohomish, Washington. Blight affected the lower crown of trees in their second year of growth. Leaf lesions, with their characteristic black stromata, were easily distinguished from symptoms of other diseases. Some individual lesions of L. tetraspora affected entire leaf laminae, but there appeared to be little premature defoliation at the time of observation. Populus trichocarpa × P. deltoides hybrids were more commonly blighted than were P. trichocarpa × P. maximowiczii hybrids (i.e., 13/18 clones affected versus 4/11, respectively). A voucher specimen was deposited in the Herbarium at the Pacific Forestry Centre (DAVFP 25289). References: (1) M. E. Barr. Mycol. Mem. No. 7:130, 1978. (2) D. F. Farr. et al. 1989. Fungi on Plants and Plant Products in the United States. American Phytopathological Society, St. Paul, MN.
A new method for estimating the efficiency of atom formation in premixed flames

Abstract The efficiency of atom formation in premixed flames can be estimated if the atomic absorption and metal monoxide emission are measured in flames with a series of differing fuel-to-oxidant ratios all at a constant temperature. Nitrogen was used as a coolant to lower the temperature of more nearly stiochiometric flames to that of the most fuel-rich flame studied. Two equations were used to solve for the ratio of metal atoms to the metal monoxide. The method was applied to the rare earths (except cerium), aluminum, beryllium, titanium and vanadium. The apparent free-atom fractions, or β-values of the rare earths ranged from 0·08 for lutecium to 0·84 for europium. The method yields important clues to the behavior of elements that appear to have complex flame chemistry even though reliable β-values may not be obtained for those elements.
Temporal Trends in Adoption of and Indications for the Artificial Urinary Sphincter

Purpose: The introduction of the artificial urinary sphincter represented a significant advance in treating urinary incontinence. We examined temporal trends in artificial urinary sphincter use, focusing on adoption of the device with time, individual surgeon volume, indications for placement and differences in application by gender.Materials and Methods: Data on artificial urinary sphincter related operations performed in the United States from 1975 and thereafter were provided by the manufacturer. Surgical and demographic data on each patient were recorded and analyzed on an annual basis at 5-year intervals to determine the number of procedures performed as well as individual surgeon volume. Indications for implantation or revision were also studied and recorded in 5-year increments.Results: Artificial urinary sphincter use increased dramatically from 11 cases in 1975 to 3,762 in 2005. Most increased volume was due to an increase in device use in men with little growth in use in women. More than 90% of ...
Water use by shrubs as affected by energy exchange with building walls

Abstract Landscape plants in urban areas are routinely grown next to buildings which are sources of sensible heat and radiation. An experimental study was conducted to explore how building walls affect water use by adjacent landscape plants. Instantaneous rates of sap flow were measured using heat-balance, stem-flow gauges attached to wax leaf ligustrum shrubs growing adjacent to all four walls of a building shell. For comparison, sap flow was also measured on shrubs grown away from the influence of the building. Peak flow in plants adjacent to each wall occurred when direct beam irradiance on the wall and wall temperature were at their maxima. Peak flow was highest in plants adjacent to east and west walls, and lowest in plants adjacent to the north wall. Longwave radiation emitted by the walls appeared to be a major factor affecting flow while reflected radiation from walls was of secondary importance because of the low albedo of the walls. Cumulative flow was greatest in the shrubs grown away from the influence of the building, probably due to the absence of any shading by walls during the day, and to wind speeds that were higher than those adjacent to the building.
Pseudomembranous Colitis Associated with Erythromycin

Excerpt Tissue culture assays and bacterial cultures indicate thatClostridium difficileis commonly responsible for the diarrheal complications of antimicrobial use. Multiple agents have been implic...
Pattern transfer with stabilized nanoparticle etch masks

Self-assembled nanoparticle monolayer arrays are used as an etch mask for pattern transfer into Si and SiOx substrates. Crack formation within the array is prevented by electron beam curing to fix the nanoparticles to the substrate, followed by a brief oxygen plasma to remove excess carbon. This leaves a dot array of nanoparticle cores with a minimum gap of 2?nm. Deposition and liftoff can transform the dot array mask into an antidot mask, where the gap is determined by the nanoparticle core diameter. Reactive ion etching is used to transfer the dot and antidot patterns into the substrate. The effect of the gap size on the etching rate is modeled and compared with the experimental results.
The Future of SCPS as an Acceleration Solution

The Department of Defense (DoD) is in the process of implementing widespread usage of IP Modems on its global network and planning to standardize them. The Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) has recently published a Joint IP Modem Specification (JIPM) that defines future standards for IP modems for the entire armed forces. Included in this specification is an option for a Performance Enhancing Proxy (PEP) embedded within the modem that adheres to a communication standard published in 2005 called the Interoperable PEP (I-PEP) proposed by the Satlabs group, a European conglomerate. I-PEP builds on top of TCP, SCPS-TP, and recent TCP extensions while maintaining backward compatibility with TCP and SCPS-TP. With the introduction of a newer, optimized, open standard, it is unclear if SCPS-TP will remain the de facto standard. SCPS has been used successfully for several years in fixed bandwidth environments, but is still proving it can work successfully in all dynamic bandwidth environments that use IP modems. The direction that the MILSATCOM community is heading in regards to dynamic bandwidth environments, coupled with SCPS-TP's questionable performance metrics in those environments, brings the future of the SCPS protocol into question. Building and maintaining an open protocol benefits the military community by fostering competition from multiple vendors while still allowing for interoperability and not sacrificing performance. This paper examines a few possible alternatives to the SCPS standard given the current environment.
Some manifestations of energy storage in algae and chloroplasts.

Dark-adapted plants must be “activated” by a flash of light before they can evolve oxygen in response to a subsequent flash. The chemiluminescence of chloroplasts, evoked by a change of pH or of oxidation potential, also requires prior illumination. Delayed fluorescence and thermoluminescence are by definition dependent on prior illumination.
Abstraction as a basis for the computational interpretation of creative cross-modal metaphor

Various approaches to computational metaphor interpretation are based on pre-existing similarities between source and target domains and/or are based on metaphors already observed to be prevalent in the language. This paper addresses similarity-creating cross-modal metaphoric expressions. It is shown how the “abstract concept as object” (or reification) metaphor plays a central role in a large class of metaphoric extensions. The described approach depends on the imposition of abstract ontological components, which represent source concepts, onto target concepts. The challenge of such a system is to represent both denotative and connotative components which are extensible, together with a framework of general domains between which such extensions can conceivably occur. An existing ontology of this kind, consistent with some mathematic concepts and widely held linguistic notions, is outlined. It is suggested that the use of such an abstract representation system is well adapted to the interpretation of both conventional and unconventional metaphor that is similarity-creating.
Versatile design and synthesis platform for visualizing genomes with Oligopaint FISH probes

A host of observations demonstrating the relationship between nuclear architecture and processes such as gene expression have led to a number of new technologies for interrogating chromosome positioning. Whereas some of these technologies reconstruct intermolecular interactions, others have enhanced our ability to visualize chromosomes in situ. Here, we describe an oligonucleotide- and PCR-based strategy for fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and a bioinformatic platform that enables this technology to be extended to any organism whose genome has been sequenced. The oligonucleotide probes are renewable, highly efficient, and able to robustly label chromosomes in cell culture, fixed tissues, and metaphase spreads. Our method gives researchers precise control over the sequences they target and allows for single and multicolor imaging of regions ranging from tens of kilobases to megabases with the same basic protocol. We anticipate this technology will lead to an enhanced ability to visualize interphase and metaphase chromosomes.
A convenient temperature control system for acute animal preparations

Abstract A device is described for regulating body and oil pool temperatures of small mammals in acute experimental conditions. The system is fully automatic, comparatively inexpensive, and will not introduce artefacts into physiolological recordings. The risk of overheating an animal preparation is eliminated when the device is properly used.
Confidence procedures for two-sample problems

In the usual two-sample problem one is estimating the constant additive effect of a treatment or the additive constant by which two random variables differ. However, if the treatment-effect may depend on the response level, then a more general approach to twosample problems seems appropriate. We define a treatment-effect function t and characterize distribution-free confidence bounds for the function t both in the case where t has specified parametric forms and in the case where t is not parameterized.
An electrode-containing rabbit ear chamber for microvascular measurements.

Abstract In this paper the design, construction, implantation, and application of an electrode-containing rabbit ear chamber are described. This device allows measurement of oxygen availability and blood flow within a small, definable segment of tissue which can be observed and photographed microscopically at the same time.
Ground-penetrating radar facies characterization of deepwater turbidite outcrops

High-resolution outcrop studies are becoming an increasingly important tool in building reservoir architectural models (Slatt, 2000). By providing attributes of strata in both the lateral and vertical directions, outcrop studies can help constrain reservoir characterization models (e.g., identify seals or barriers to fluid flow). Outcrop exposures, at best, are limited in their extent. Boreholes, even when they are spaced tightly together, may yield an inaccurate picture of sedimentary features. Because the type and scale of information important to hydrocarbon production can be beneath the resolution of 3D seismic data, there is a need for a geophysical method that yields a high-resolution, continuous image of the subsurface. Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) is one of the more recent geophysical technologies used in examining outcrops (Slatt, 2000;Young et al., 2001). GPR is an electromagnetic imaging procedure that generates reflections from boundaries between layers and can use modified seismic processing to create images (Young et al., 1995). The short wavelengths of GPR signal provide data, which is subseismic scale in resolution. The resulting profiles are good for interpreting small-scale sedimentary features of bed continuity, stratification patterns, and facies boundaries. This paper presents the results from a GPR study of the Lewis Shale turbidite outcrops in Wyoming. The objective of the project is to collect subseismic scale resolution data to aid in determining small-scale sedimentary features. The interpretations, in turn, could be used to provide a better understanding of fluid flow and reservoir production modeling. The Lewis Shale, a Cretaceous age turbidite deposit, is an active gas exploration target and analog for the lower Cretaceous sequences in South Africa and tertiary deposits in the Gulf of Mexico. The formation crops out along the western edge of the Rawlins-Sierra Madre uplift within southeast Wyoming. The geology of three areas along the Lewis Shale outcrop has been studied. …
Current Energy Requirements in the Copper Producing Industries

An analysis of energy usage in the production of refined cathode copper was made from mining ore to cathode copper. In mining copper ore the greatest energy consumers are ore hauling and blasting. Another important factor is the “recovery efficiency” of the metallurgical processes used to extract the copper. The mining and mineral concentrating energies are directly proportional to the “recovery efficiency,” with a typical mining operation requiring about 20 million Btu/ton of cathode copper produced. Mineral concentrating was also found to be a large energy consumer, requiring about 43 million Btu/ton of cathode copper. Some possibilities for energy savings in the mineral processing area include use of autogenous grinding and computer control for optimizing grinding operations, improved classifier efficiency, and optimizing the entire concentrator plant performance by interrelating all plant operations. In acid plants, optimization of input SO2 concentration can make the plant a net producer rather than a net user of energy. The conventional smelting process utilizes very little of the energy from the combustion of sulfides in the charge. Several of the newer copper pyrometallurgical processes which utilize more of the combustion energy of the sulfides as heat show a significant improvement over conventional smelting. Generally, increased use of oxygen decreases Level 1 energies but proportionately increases Level 2 energies. Hydrometallurgical processes are, in general, more energy intensive than smelting processes, mainly because of the inability to utilize the heat of reaction of the sulfides. Electrowinning used in most hydrometallurgy processes is also energy intensive, and research in these areas could produce significant energy savings. Combination pyrometallurgical processes are generally less energy intensive than entirely hydrometallurgical processes. Significant improvements may be made in energy use in hydrometallurgical processes by more effective waste heat recovery, new electrowinning technology, and combined hydrometallurgical and pyrometallurgical low energy consumption unit processes.
Effect of Buffer and pH on Detergent-Assisted Foam Fractionation of Cellulase

Foam fractionation can be used to concentrate hydrophobic proteins (such as bovine serum albumin) in solution. However, it cannot be used directly to concentrate cellulase because cellulase solution alone produces only a small amount of foam when aerated. The addition of a surfactant to a cellulase solution makes it possible to foam nonfoaming proteins, such as cellulase. In this paper, three surfactants, namely, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB, a cationic detergent), sodium dedecyl sulfate (SDS, an anionic detergent), and pluronic F-68 (a nonionic detergent), were individually added to a 200 mg/L cellulase solution and then aerated. The addition of these surfactants increased the amount of foam produced and enhanced the volume of foamate, the collapsed foam product. The detergent CTAB exhibited the highest enrichment and mass recovery ratios of the three detergents tested. Small changes in the pH in the cellulase foam fractionation process had a strong effect on the cellulase enrichment ratio. At an...
Extended stability of 5-fluorouracil and methotrexate solutions in PVC containers

Abstract The extended physical and chemical stability of 5-fluorouracil and methotrexate in 0.9% sodium chloride injection in PVC containers was monitored for periods of up to 3 months and compared to solutions stored in glass containers. For 5-fluorouracil, 50 mg/ml solutions stored at room temperature are stable for up to 42 days and 5 mg/ml solutions for up to 13 weeks of refrigerated storage (5 ± 3°C) plus an additional week at room temperature. Methotrexate solutions at concentrations ranging from 1.25 to 12.5 mg/ml are stable for up to 15 weeks of refrigerated storage followed by an additional week at room temperature. No physical or chemical modifications of the solutions were observed, the only limiting factor for long-term stability being a progressive increase in drug concentration due to evaporative water loss from the PVC containers. Except for this slight increase in drug concentration, the same results were obtained for both plastic and glass containers.