cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Nicotine suppresses the P13 auditory evoked potential by acting on the pedunculopontine nucleus in the rat

We identified a potential novel site of action for nicotine (NIC) since (a) systemic injection of NIC led to a dose-dependent decrease in the amplitude of the sleep state-dependent, vertex-recorded, P13 midlatency auditory evoked potential (generated by the reticular activating system, RAS), (b) localized injections of a nicotinic receptor antagonist into the pedunculopontine nucleus (PPN, the cholinergic arm of the RAS) blocked the effects of systemic NIC on the P13 potential (a measure of level of arousal), and (c) localized injection of a nicotinic receptor agonist into the PPN also led to a decrease in the amplitude of the P13 potential, an effect blocked by PPN injection of a nicotinic receptor antagonist. There were minor changes in the manifestation of the startle response (SR) at the concentrations used; however, NIC did decrease the hippocampal N40 potential, although its effects were not affected by antagonist or agonist injections into the PPN. These results suggest a potential mechanism underlying the anxiolytic effects of NIC-suppression of the cholinergic arm of the RAS.
Hack for the homeless: A humanitarian technology hackathon

In this paper, we discuss our experiences with, and the outcomes of, a hackathon for undergraduates centered on the topic of technology for the homeless. Working closely with a partner NGO, we provided students with ideas, a sample database, programming tutorials and design feedback. Our hackathon was very successful, resulting in high-quality work and student engagement. In addition to reporting on lessons learned, we will also discuss the top two projects. One was Homeless Helpline, an automated voice system that allows homeless clients to call in and receive information about the services available to them in their area. This project ties into our partner NGO's existing database to automatically extract the information needed for the user, allowing anyone with access to a phone - even a payphone or a feature cell phone - to get access to this information, with very little cost to the NGO. The other project we discuss takes a different approach, making the same information available as a smartphone app, allowing the user to get more precise information about the services closest to their current location, alongside directions, etc. The hackathon was successful enough that we intend to make it an annual event. The paper will also discuss our thoughts on how to host your own successful socially-motivated hackathon for undergraduates.
The mass spectra of aluminum isopropoxide

The mass spectra of aluminum isopropoxide show that polymers, [Al(OC3H7)3]x where x = 1 to 7, can be present in the vapor and are, therefore, probably present in the bulk sample. The polymeric composition of the vapor depends on the previous history of the sample. Exact mass measurements on many of the ions along with data on a number of metastable peaks support the proposed fragmentation mechanisms. Loss of 102 mass units between intense peaks in the mass range above 500 a.m.u. leads to the suggestion that the higher polymers may be used as high mass marking substances.
Four‐junction solar cells using lattice‐matched II–VI and III–V semiconductors

Four-junction solar cells are designed using lattice-matched II―VI (ZnCdSeTe) and III―V (AlGaAsSb) semiconductors grown on GaSb substrates. These materials have a zinc blende crystal structure, similar thermal expansion coefficients, and bandgaps that cover the entire solar spectrum. Numerical simulations of the energy conversion efficiencies of various designs for both the AM0 and AM 1.5D spectra are performed using published material parameters. These results indicate that the achievable 1 sun AMO efficiency is 43% for an optimal design and 40% for a more practical design; for comparison the ideal limit provided by Henry's model is 49%. While for the AM1.5D spectrum an optimal design can reach 46% under 1 sun and 55% under 1000 suns while a more practical design can reach 44 and 54%, respectively; for comparison Henry's model gives 51 and 62%, respectively.
Suppression and Facilitation of Pragmatic Performance: Effects of Emotional Content on Discourse Following Right and Left Brain Damage

This study examines the effect of emotional content on the verbal pragmatic aspects of discourse production in right-brain-damaged (RBD), left-brain-damaged (LBD), and normal control (NC) right-han...
Effects of metallic, semiconducting, and insulating substrates on the coupling involving radiative polaritons in thin oxide films.

Through simulations, this work explores the effects of conducting, semiconducting, and insulating substrates on the absorption of infrared radiation by radiative polaritons in oxide layers with thicknesses that range from 30 nm to 9 μm. Using atomic layer deposition, oxide layers can be formed in the nanometer scale. Our results suggest that the chemistry and conductivity of the substrate determine the amount of absorption by radiative polaritons in oxide layers thinner than the skin depth. The effects of the chemistry and conductivity of the substrate are especially effective for oxide films thinner than about 250 nm, which we label as the substrate sensitive thickness of the oxide film.
Self-Adapting Fixed-End-Point Configurational-Bias Monte Carlo Method for the Regrowth of Interior Segments of Chain Molecules with Strong Intramolecular Interactions

An extension to the configurational-bias Monte Carlo method is presented which allows for the efficient conformational sampling of the interior segments of chain molecules whose interactions include strong bonded terms (governing bond stretching, bond angle bending, and dihedral angle rotation). The ability to regrow interior segments overcomes the limitations of conventional configurational-bias methods (where the regrowth is always directed to a free chain end) and now allows for the simulation of chain systems with low concentrations of chain ends, that is, higher molecular weights, networks, or cyclic structures. As previously proposed by Dijkstra et al. [J. Chem. Phys. 1994, 101, 3179] for lattice polymers and by Vendruscolo [J. Chem. Phys. 1997, 106, 2970] for freely jointed polymers, an additional biasing (closing) probability is used that guides the bead-by-bead configurational-bias regrowth of interior segments toward its desired fixed target. However, while the previous methods are limited to ch...
Elastic strain effects on catalysis of a PdCuSi metallic glass thin film

The influence of strain on catalytic activity has previously been examined directly by calculations and indirectly by experiments. The origin of the phenomenon has been attributed to strain-induced changes in the catalyst electronic structure. By employing a Pd-based metallic glass film capable of large elastic strains, we provide direct experimental evidence for catalytic activity being differently influenced by mechanically applied uniaxial tensile and compressive strains. We demonstrate the effect on the oxygen reduction reaction with cyclic voltammetry (CV) curves at different strain levels and compare X-ray photoelectron spectrometry (XPS) results for unstrained and strained (in uniaxial tension) specimens to confirm valence electron band shifts. The experimental findings are complemented by electronic structure calculations on single crystal Pd, as well as alloys with Cu and Si. The CV and XPS shifts observed in the experiments are consistent in both direction and magnitude to those predicted by theory for single crystal Pd.
CELLULAR BASIS FOR GROWTH AND TISSUE DIFFERENTIATION PATTERNS IN LINUM USITATISSIMUM (LINACEAE) STEMS: THE STEM UNIT

The stem unit is defined as the smallest portion of a stem that can duplicate the stem in toto through regular rotations and dilations over successive plastochrons. In stems exhibiting k(m, n) contact parastichy phyllotaxis, the stem unit is delimited vertically and tangentially by the boundaries of four successive leaf primordia along the m-, n-, and (m + n)parastichies and radially by these boundaries extended to the centroid of the stem. With the stem unit concept, node refers only to the region of actual leaf insertion, rather than the entire transverse level of insertion. Many of the conflicting and complicating aspects of the traditional node-internode subdivisions of stems are demonstrated, and the utility of the stem unit in circumventing these is illustrated. The stem unit is proposed as a more useful analytic subunit of the stem with which to examine stem growth and tissue differentiation processes than the more traditional node-internode subdivisions of stems. We know that both stem and root axes arise through expansion and differentiation of cells that are initially derived from meristematic cells comprising their terminal apical meristems. The kinematics of cellular activity with
A prospective randomized clinical trial of prescription of full-time versus as-desired splint wear for de Quervain tendinopathy

There is no consensus on the best protocol for splint wear in the non-operative management of de Quervain tendinopathy. This study aimed to determine if there is a difference between prescription of strict splint wear compared to selective splint wear in patients with de Quervain tendinopathy. We tested the primary null hypothesis that there is no difference in upper-extremity disability eight weeks after initiating splinting between patients prescribed full-time or as-desired splint wear. Secondary study questions addressed differences in grip strength, pain intensity, and treatment satisfaction. Additionally, we evaluated the influence of psychological factors on disability. Eighty-three patients diagnosed with de Quervain tendinopathy were randomly allocated into two different splint-wearing instructions: full-time wear (N = 43) or as-desired wear (N = 40). At enrollment, patients had grip strength measured and completed measures of upper-extremity disability, pain intensity, and psychological distress. An average of 7.5 weeks later, patients returned for a second visit. Analysis was by intention-to-treat and with use of mean imputation for missing data. Fifty-eight patients (70 %; 26 in the full-time cohort and 32 in the as-desired cohort) completed the study. There were no statistically significant differences in disability (p = 0.77), grip strength (p = 0.82), pain intensity (p = 0.36), and treatment satisfaction (p = 0.91) between patients instructed to wear the splint full-time and those instructed to use it as desired. Disability at final evaluation correlated significantly with baseline levels of pain anxiety (p = 0.008), catastrophic thinking (p = 0.001), and symptoms of depression (p < 0.001). The best multivariable linear regression model included symptoms of depression alone and accounted for 32 % of the variability in disability (p < 0.001). There is no difference in patient-reported outcomes and grip strength with prescription of full-time or as-desired splinting, and patients can wear the splint as they prefer. These results suggest that splinting for de Quervain tendinopathy is palliative at best and strict rest is not disease modifying.
Multiple cue integration in transductive confidence machines for head pose classification

An important facet of learning in an online setting is the confidence associated with a prediction on a given test data point. In an online learning scenario, it would be expected that the system can increase its confidence of prediction as training data increases. We present a statistical approach in this work to associate a confidence value with a predicted class label in an online learning scenario. Our work is based on the existing work on transductive confidence machines (TCM) [1], which provided a methodology to define a heuristic confidence measure. We applied this approach to the problem of head pose classification from face images, and extended the framework to compute a confidence value when multiple cues are extracted from images to perform classification. Our approach is based on combining the results of multiple hypotheses and obtaining an integrated p-value to validate a single test hypothesis. From our experiments on the widely accepted FERET database, we obtained results which corroborated the significance of confidence measures - particularly, in online learning approaches. We could infer from our results with transductive learning that using confidence measures in online learning could yield significant boosts in the prediction accuracy, which would be very useful in critical pattern recognition applications.
Conditions for minimization of halo particle production during transverse compression of intense ion charge bunches in the Paul Trap Simulator Experiment (PTSX)

The Paul Trap Simulator Experiment (PTSX) is a compact laboratory Paul trap that simulates propagation of a long, thin chargedparticle bunch coasting through a multi-kilometer-long magnetic alternating-gradient (AG) transport system by putting the physicist in the frame-of-reference of the beam. The transverse dynamics of particles in both systems are described by the same sets of equations— including all nonlinear space-charge effects. The time-dependent quadrupolar voltages applied to the PTSX confinement electrodes correspond to the axially dependent magnetic fields applied in the AG system. This paper presents the results of experiments in which the amplitude of the applied confining voltage is changed over the course of the experiment in order to transversely compress a beam with an initial depressed tune n/n0! 0.9. Both instantaneous and smooth changes are considered. Particular emphasis is placed on determining the conditions that minimize the emittance growth and, generally, the number of particles that are found at large radius (so-called halo particles) after the beam compression. The experimental data are also compared with the results of particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations performed with the WARP code. r 2007 Published by Elsevier B.V.
Will there be a dollar crisis

Almost everyone believes that the US current account deficit must eventually end, and that this end will involve dollar depreciation. However, many believe that this depreciation will take place gradually. This paper shows that any process of gradual dollar decline fast enough to prevent the accumulation of implausible levels of US external debt would impose capital losses on investors much larger than they currently expect. As a result, there will at some point have to be a ‘Wile E. Coyote moment’– a point at which expectations are revised, and the dollar drops sharply. It is much less clear, however, whether this ‘crisis’ will produce macroeconomic problems. — Paul Krugman
Optimal spatiotemporal reduced order modeling for nonlinear dynamical systems

Many physical phenomena governed by nonlinear dynamics possess motions that occur on a wide range of timescales. Numerical solutions for such problems often require a large number of variables to achieve acceptable accuracy. When an insucient resolution is used to evolve a solution, an irreversible loss of information occurs, which can lead to substantial errors. Presented here is a novel method for optimal temporal reduced order modeling (OPTROM), which can be used to enhance the fidelity of any time domain solution technique. Statistical information about the unresolved variables, in the form of conditional expectations, is used to more accurately predict the evolution of the resolved variables. To demonstrate the OPTROM technique, harmonic balance solutions for a Dung oscillator are investigated. The need for, and ecacy of, the technique is greatest when solutions are obtained with a low resolution.
Pathogen accumulation and long-term dynamics of plant invasions

Summary 1. The diversity of pathogens on highly abundant introduced hosts has been positively correlated with time since introduction, geographical range of the introduced species and diversity of invaded habitats. However, little is known about the ecological effects of pathogen accumulation on nonnative invasive plants. 2. Pathogen accumulation on invasive plant species may result from ecological processes such as high plant densities, expanding geographical ranges and pathogen dispersal from the native range, or evolutionary mechanisms such as host range shifts and adaptation of native pathogens to invasive species. 3. Over time pathogen accumulation may cause decline in the density and distribution of invasive plants and facilitate recovery of native species. Alternatively, pathogens might build up on invasive species and then spill back onto co-occurring native species, further exacerbating the effects of invasions. 4. Synthesis. Research efforts should focus on determining the long-term outcomes of pathogen accumulation on invasive species. Such research will require multifaceted approaches including comparative studies of diverse invasive species and habitats, experimental manipulations of hosts and pathogens in nature and controlled environments, and predictive models of host-pathogen interactions within an invasion framework. Results of this research will improve our understanding and ability to predict the outcomes of biological invasions.
Pattern recognition using 3-D moments

A 3-D moment method of object identification and positioning is proposed. Moments are computed from 3-D CAT image functions, 2.5-D range data, space curves, and discrete 3-D points. Objects are recognized by their shapes via moment invariants. Using an algebraic method, scalars and vectors are extracted from a compound of moments using Clebsch-Gordon expansion. The vectors are used to estimate position parameters of the object. Moment features of range data can be used in view-independent object recognition when the three-layer perceptron encodes the feature space distribution of the object in the weights of the network. Objects are recognized from an arbitrary viewpoint by the trained network. >
Responses of Ecosystem Carbon Cycling to Climate Change Treatments Along an Elevation Gradient

Global temperature increases and precipitation changes are both expected to alter ecosystem carbon (C) cycling. We tested responses of ecosystem C cycling to simulated climate change using field manipulations of temperature and precipitation across a range of grass-dominated ecosystems along an elevation gradient in northern Arizona. In 2002, we transplanted intact plant–soil mesocosms to simulate warming and used passive interceptors and collectors to manipulate precipitation. We measured daytime ecosystem respiration (ER) and net ecosystem C exchange throughout the growing season in 2008 and 2009. Warming generally stimulated ER and photosynthesis, but had variable effects on daytime net C exchange. Increased precipitation stimulated ecosystem C cycling only in the driest ecosystem at the lowest elevation, whereas decreased precipitation showed no effects on ecosystem C cycling across all ecosystems. No significant interaction between temperature and precipitation treatments was observed. Structural equation modeling revealed that in the wetter-than-average year of 2008, changes in ecosystem C cycling were more strongly affected by warming-induced reduction in soil moisture than by altered precipitation. In contrast, during the drier year of 2009, warming induced increase in soil temperature rather than changes in soil moisture determined ecosystem C cycling. Our findings suggest that warming exerted the strongest influence on ecosystem C cycling in both years, by modulating soil moisture in the wet year and soil temperature in the dry year.
Noninvasive In Vivo Imaging of Diabetes-Induced Renal Oxidative Stress and Response to Therapy Using Hyperpolarized 13C Dehydroascorbate Magnetic Resonance

Oxidative stress has been proposed to be a unifying cause for diabetic nephropathy and a target for novel therapies. Here we apply a new endogenous reduction-oxidation (redox) sensor, hyperpolarized (HP) (13)C dehydroascorbate (DHA), in conjunction with MRI to noninvasively interrogate the renal redox capacity in a mouse diabetes model. The diabetic mice demonstrate an early decrease in renal redox capacity, as shown by the lower in vivo HP (13)C DHA reduction to the antioxidant vitamin C (VitC), prior to histological evidence of nephropathy. This correlates with lower tissue reduced glutathione (GSH) concentration and higher NADPH oxidase 4 (Nox4) expression, consistent with increased superoxide generation and oxidative stress. ACE inhibition restores the HP (13)C DHA reduction to VitC with concomitant normalization of GSH concentration and Nox4 expression in diabetic mice. HP (13)C DHA enables rapid in vivo assessment of altered redox capacity in diabetic renal injury and after successful treatment.
Network structure and biodiversity loss in food webs: robustness increases with connectance

Food-web structure mediates dramatic effects of biodiversity loss including secondary and ‘cascading’ extinctions. We studied these effects by simulating primary species loss in 16 food webs from terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and measuring robustness in terms of the secondary extinctions that followed. As observed in other networks, food webs are more robust to random removal of species than to selective removal of species with the most trophic links to other species. More surprisingly, robustness increases with food-web connectance but appears independent of species richness and omnivory. In particular, food webs experience ‘rivet-like’ thresholds past which they display extreme sensitivity to removal of highly connected species. Higher connectance delays the onset of this threshold. Removing species with few trophic connections generally has little effect though there are several striking exceptions. These findings emphasize how the number of species removed affects ecosystems differently depending on the trophic functions of species removed.
On the exchange of cyanide with acetonitrile. A test of theoretical calculations

Abstract - The theoretically predicted formation of an adduct between cyanide and anhydrous acetonitrile was tested experimentally; no evidence for such a complex was found. The previously reported radioactivity loss in the reactions of cyanide - 14 C in acetonitrile solutions was possibly due to protonation and loss of hydrogen cyanide, since no exchange between cyanide and acetonitrile was evidenced within the sensitivity limits of 13 C labelling. Potassium cyanide and carbonate in the presence of 18-crown-6 ether catalyze the H/D exchange between acetonitrile and trideuteroacetonitrile.
Static Collapse of Elastic Circular Arches

freedom. These shape functions are derived to be consistent with the approach present by Allman 3 for drilling freedoms. The stress e eld is derived within the natural coordinate system of the element by considering the equilibrium conditions for a dif- ferential beam segment. The element stress e eld is dee ned as beam resultant forces and moments over the cross section. The vector of six resultant forces and moments fae ¤ g are related to the unknown stress parameters fg by a matrix of polynomial approximations along the element ( P)I that is, fae ¤ g6 £ 1 D (P.»/)6 £6fg6 £1 .2/ where(P) is a matrix of polynomial approximation functions along the beam element length and » is the natural coordinate of the ele- ment. The present element has six unknown stress parameters that are used to describe a constant state of axial, torsional, and trans- verse shear stress resultants and a linear distribution of the bending moments along the beam element length. The assumed-stress e eld satise es the equilibrium conditions in a variational sense through the Hellinger -Reissner principle. The formulation ofthe beamis based on thefollowing variational statement:
U.S. Tritium Plant Activities for ITER

The US has contributed to ITER Tritium Plant activities since the beginning of the project. Initial contributions were made to the Conceptual Design Activities in the late 1980's. Both R&D and design contributions were made to the Engineering Design Activity in the 1990 's. As ITER now moves to construction, the US is slated to build and deliver the Tokamak Exhaust Processing (TEP) system. The main purpose of this system is to recover hydrogen isotopes including those bound in molecules such as water and methane, and deliver purified hydrogen isotopes to the isotope separation system. The TEP construction activity will begin with finalizing the detailed design. Then industry will fabricate the system. This will be followed with factory testing, transportation to the ITER site, installation and final acceptance testing. This system is highly integrated with other Tritium Plant subsystems, so close interactions are expected with other procurement package owners and the ITER International team.
ON THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE ATP-INDEPENDENT, MITOCHONDRIAL ASSOCIATED DNA TOPOISOMERASE OF SACCHAROMYCES CEREVISIAE TO THE NUCLEAR TOPOISOMERASE I

A mitochondrial type I-like, ATP-independent, DNA topoisomerase, isolated from highly purified yeast mitochondria, is genetically related to nuclear topoisomerase I. We found that the mitochondrial topoisomerase activity cannot be detected in yeast mitochondrial extracts prepared from strains in which the topoisomerase I gene (TOP1) is disrupted. Thus, the topoisomerase activity associated with mitochondria is dependent upon the expression of the nuclear topoisomerase I gene.
Global parton distributions with nuclear and finite- Q 2 corrections

We present three new sets of next-to-leading order parton distribution functions (PDFs) determined by global fits to a wide variety of data for hard scattering processes. The analysis includes target mass and higher twist corrections needed for the description of deep inelastic scattering data at large x and low Q 2 , and nuclear corrections for deuterium targets. The PDF sets correspond to three different models for the nuclear effects, and provide a more realistic uncertainty range for the d quark PDF, in particular, compared with previous fits. We describe the PDF error sets for each choice of the nuclear corrections, and provide a user interface for utilizing the distributions.
Endothelial cell seeding of small-caliber synthetic grafts in the baboon

Endothelial cell (EC) seeding has been proposed as a method to improve the performance of small-caliber synthetic vascular prostheses. Seeding experiments to date have all been carried out in the dog. This study investigates EC seeding of small-caliber Dacron carotid interposition grafts compared with contralateral control grafts in the baboon. Surface thrombogenicity was assessed at 24 hours, 2 weeks, and 4 weeks after implantation with indium 111-labeled autologous platelets. Morphologic and immunohistochemical techniques were used to assess the identity and homogeneity of the EC inoculum before seeding and to identify cell types on the harvested grafts. There was no significant difference in patency rates between seeded and control grafts at 5 weeks. Platelet accumulation on seeded grafts was significantly less (p less than 0.05) than on paired controls at 2 and 4 weeks after implantation. The luminal lining of seeded grafts had more cellular ingrowth, less adherent thrombus, and more surface cells with the morphologic and histochemical characteristics of EC than did the lining of controls. EC seeding reduces the platelet reactivity and accelerates EC coverage of small-caliber grafts in the baboon.
Current Soviet Psychology: A Systematic Review

Scope and Nature of the Present Report: This presentation is based on materials, primarily books, that have become available since the completion of the chapter on "Recent Developments in Soviet Psychology," published in Vol. 15 of the Annual Review of Psychology (Brozek, 1964, pp. 493-594). It is closer to a commentary on Soviet contributions that are of potential interest to American psychologists (a "bibliography with comment") than to a critical appraisal. The latter is the task of topical reviews and monographic presentations.
Peptide-Modified Dendrimers as Templates for the Production of Highly Reactive Catalytic Nanomaterials

Peptide-driven nanomaterials synthesis and assembly has become a significant research thrust due to the capability to generate a range of multifunctional materials with high spatial precision and tunable properties. Despite the extensive amount of available literature, the majority of studies report the use of free peptides to drive synthesis and assembly. Such strategies are not an entirely accurate representation of nature, as many materials binding peptides found in biological systems are sterically constrained to a larger biological motif. Herein we report the synthesis of catalytic Pd nanomaterials using constrained peptides covalently attached to the surface of small, water-soluble dendrimers. Using the R5 peptide conjugated to polyamidoamine dendrimer as a bioconjugate, Pd nanomaterials were generated that displayed altered morphologies compared to nanomaterials templated with free R5. It was discovered that the peptide surface density on the dendrimer affected the resulting nanoscale morphology. F...
Mating behavior of the female boll weevil.

Mating behavior of the boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis Boheman, was observed in isolated cottonfield plots in Florida and Mississippi. Males did not respond to females over distances greater than 1 or 2 inches, but females often sought males at distances of more than 30 feet, especially from downwind positions. Elaborate tactile behavior by the female was common in inducing males to mate. Successive multiple matings were noted for both sexes.
Augmentation of spinal arthrodesis with autologous bone marrow in a rabbit posterolateral spine fusion model.

STUDY DESIGN Posterolateral spinal fusion with autologous bone marrow aspirate in addition to autograft iliac crest bone graft in a rabbit model. OBJECTIVE To demonstrate that the addition of autologous bone marrow can have positive effects on bone formation and spinal fusion. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA Bone marrow has been shown to contain osteoprogenitor cells. A number of studies have demonstrated that bone formation is possible with autologous marrow injection into orthotopic sites such as that performed in femur fracture models. METHODS A bone paucity model of posterolateral spine fusion was developed. The control animals received 0.8 g of morselized autogenous iliac crest bone graft harvested from a single iliac crest. The graft was mixed with 2 mL of clotted peripheral blood. In the experimental group, 2 mL of bone marrow aspirated from the opposite iliac crest was substituted for the peripheral blood clot. All rabbits were killed at 12 weeks, and the specimens were subjected to evaluation by posteroanterior radiography for the presence of fusion, computed tomography for bone volume, and biomechanical testing for stiffness. RESULTS Successful fusion was achieved in 61% of the animals in the experimental group versus 25% in the control group (P < 0.05). The fusion mass in the experimental group had a mean volume of 919 +/- 387 mm3 versus 667 +/- 512 mm3 for the control group, as measured from computed tomography images. The results of the biomechanical testing validated the radiographic scoring system. The stiffness in specimens, graded as having a radiographic score of 4, was significantly greater than in specimens with radiographic scores of 1 and 2. CONCLUSION In cases for which an adequate quantity of autogenous bone graft is not available, addition of bone marrow may facilitate greater bone formation and successful fusion.
Understanding Spirometry in Primary Care

Purpose. Improving the quality of care provided to patients with pulmonary disorders is imperative, but properly performed and correctly interpreted spirometry is typically missing in primary care....
Lecture 16 ORTHOTICS: Bracing the Upper Extremity: Third of Three Parts

Splints for the upper extremity can be classified as static or dynamic. Static splints support joints when a few muscles are weak, prevent deformity or maintain corrections accomplished by other means, or immobilize until a fracture unites. Dynamic splints usually support part of a paralyzed extremity, provide motive force for paralyzed muscles, or supply a force to help correct contracture or deformity.
Development Status and Application Future of DC Distribution Network

With the development of DC technology,DC distribution network has attracted increasing attention. Compared with AC distribution network,DC distribution network is superior in the inversion links decrease,power loss reduction,power quality improvement,etc.,having great development prospects. This paper compares the various DC distribution network structures,introduces the control methods applicable to of DC distribution network,and presents the problems in DC distribution network protection. Finally,the application prospect for DC distribution network in Shanghai is analyzed and forecast.
Recognition of tone production in Chinese phonation of children with an artificial neural network

Objective Traditionally,tone production is evaluated subjectively using human listeners.The present study was designed to investigate the efficacy of using an artificial neural network in evaluating tone production of Mandarin-speaking children. Methods The subject group included 61 normal-hearing children aged between 3 and 9 years old.The fundamental frequency(F0) of their produced monosyllabic words was extracted.The F0 were then used as inputs to a feed-forward backpropagation artificial neural network.The numbers of inputs and neurons in the hidden layer were 12 and 16,respectively.The output layer consisted of 4 neurons representing the 4 Mandarin tone patterns.The tone-recognition performance of the neural network was further compared with that of native-Mandarin-speaking adult listeners. Results The neural network successfully classified the tone patterns of the 61 children speakers with an accuracy of about 85% correct.The score was shown to be significantly better than the perception score by the adult listeners.There was individual variability in the children's tone production accuracy as revealed by both the tone recognition of the neural network and by the tone perception of the adult listeners. Conclusion This study demonstrates that the artificial neural network can successfully classify Mandarin-Chinese tone patterns produced by multiple children.The neural network can be used as an objective way of evaluating tone production of children.
Preliminary application of magnetic resonance spectroscopy to investigate lactate-induced panic.

OBJECTIVE To characterize changes associated with lactate-induced panic, proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) was used to measure brain lactate during intravenous infusion of 0.5-M sodium lactate in panic disorder patients and comparison subjects. METHOD Eight panic disorder subjects, five medicated and three unmedicated, and eight healthy comparison subjects were studied at baseline, during lactate infusion (5 meq/kg over 20 minutes), and after infusion. Localized proton MRS was used to acquire averaged spectra every 5 minutes from a 27-ml sampling volume in the insular cortex and adjacent regions. Brain lactate levels, quantitatively estimated in relationship to N-acetyl aspartate, were compared to blood lactate levels. RESULTS The procedure was generally well tolerated; one panic subject requested early termination before lactate infusion. Significant rises in brain lactate levels occurred for all subjects during infusion. The panic patients who responded to lactate (N = 3) had significantly higher brain lactate levels before, during, and after infusion than did the comparison subjects (N = 8) and medicated patients who were lactate nonresponders (N = 4). After infusion the panic patients with lactate-induced panic exhibited a striking dissociation between decreasing blood lactate and further increases in brain lactate levels. CONCLUSIONS These preliminary observations indicate that brain lactate increases during a standard lactate infusion. Lactate-induced panic is associated with greater increases than in comparison subjects and with prolonged elevations in brain lactate that are decoupled from falling blood lactate levels after completion of lactate infusion. Further investigation is necessary to clarify the mechanism(s) responsible for these findings and establish whether a causal relationship to the occurrence of lactate-induced panic exists.
Congestive heart failure: new therapeutic strategies.

Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACE-I) are widely used in patients with severe heart failure on the basis of the significant improvement in mortality in the CONSENSUS-I trial in patients with Class IV heart failure. Recent data from the 5-year clinical trial Studies of Left Ventricular Dysfunction (SOLVD) suggest a role for ACE-I in patients with mild to mederate heart failure as well as in those with asymptomatic left ventricular dysfunction. The SOLVD treatment trial in patients with a left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF)≤35% and treated for heart failure with conventional therapy including digitalis, diuretics, or vasidolators demonstrated that the addition of enalapril resulted in a significant reduction in mortality from heart failure as well as in the combined end point of death plus hospitalization from heart failure
National Trends in Prostate Biopsy and Radical Prostatectomy Volumes Following the US Preventive Services Task Force Guidelines Against Prostate-Specific Antigen Screening.

Importance Studies demonstrate that use of prostate-specific antigen screening decreased significantly following the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendation against prostate-specific antigen screening in 2012. Objective To determine downstream effects on practice patterns in prostate cancer diagnosis and treatment following the 2012 USPSTF recommendation. Design, Setting, and Participants Procedural volumes of certifying and recertifying urologists from 2009 through 2016 were evaluated for variation in prostate biopsy and radical prostatectomy (RP) volume. Trends were confirmed using the New York Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System and Nationwide Inpatient Sample. The study included a representative sample of urologists across practice settings and nationally representative sample of all RP discharges. We obtained operative case logs from the American Board of Urology and identified urologists performing at least 1 prostate biopsy (n = 5173) or RP (n = 3748), respectively. Exposures The 2012 USPSTF recommendation against routine population-wide prostate-specific antigen screening. Main Outcomes and Measures Change in median biopsy and RP volume per urologist and national procedural volume. Results Following the USPSTF recommendation, median biopsy volume per urologist decreased from 29 to 21 (interquartile range [IQR}, 12-34; P .001). After adjusting for physician and practice characteristics, biopsy volume decreased by 28.7% following 2012 (parameter estimate, −0.25; SE, 0.03; P P P = .003). Conclusions and Relevance Following the 2012 USPSTF recommendation, prostate biopsy and RP volumes decreased significantly. A panoramic vantage point is needed to evaluate the long-term consequences of the 2012 USPSTF recommendation.
Bone Marrow Derived, De Novo Generated CD4+ T Cells Are Previously Unsuspected Participants in CD8+ T Cell-Mediated Graft-Versus-Host Disease.

Although mature CD8+ T cells are known to be major effectors of acute GVHD, patients receiving T cell-depleted allografts remain at high risk for chronic GVHD. To what extent CD8+, CD4+ or both T cell subsets contribute to this chronic immunopathology is not known. We have recently demonstrated that alloreactive memory T cells develop in mice with acute GVHD and account for the persistence of host tissue injury (Journal of Immunology, 2005;174:3051). Based on these findings, we now ask whether de novo generated donor T cells from engrafted T-BM themselves contribute to persistent host tissue injury in GVHD. Confirming previous observations, we found that transplantation of lethally irradiated C57BL/6SJL (B6, CD45.1) mice with highly purified C3H.SW (CD45.2) CD4+ naive T cells did not cause GVHD, but mice receiving highly purified CD8+ naive T cells together with C3H.SW T-BM, suffered severe acute GVHD. Surprisingly, in these mice receiving only CD8+ T cells, a substantial number of donor CD4+ T cells as well as CD8+ T cells were detected in GVHD target tissues, indicating that these infiltrating CD4+ T cells had arisen de novo from the transplanted T-BM. Donor CD4+ T cells recovered from GVHD mice expressed surface markers of activated effector/effector memory T cells, including CD25, CD69, CXCR3, and CD44hiCD62Llo. In response to host DCs, purified GVHD CD4+ T cells proliferated and expanded 4-5X more, and produced 10X higher levels of IFN-γ than did CD4+ T cells derived from B6 mice receiving C3H.SW T-BM alone. Furthermore, adoptive transfer of these in vivo generated GVHD CD4+ T cells, without CD8+ T cells, into secondary irradiated B6 recipients induced clinical GVHD characterized by delayed onset, weight loss, diarrhea, and lymphopenia, but without cutaneous inflammation. Histologic examination demonstrated chronic inflammation in the liver and intestinal tract, including epithelial apoptosis. Thymic pathology was dramatic in secondary B6 recipients of GVHD CD4+ T cells, including thymic atrophy, loss of thymic cortex, and infiltration of large amount of tingible macrophages. Taken together, these results demonstrate that donor bone marrow derived, de novo generated CD4+ T cells also contribute to GVHD together with transferred mature CD8+ T cells. Moreover, they suggest that these CD4+ T cells, in concert with alloreactive memory CD8+ T cells that develop during the evolution of GVHD, cause the persistence of acute GVHD and its subsequent progression into chronic GVHD. Thus, donor BM-derived, de novo generated CD4+ T cells are the “Hidden Dragon” of CD8+ T cell-mediated GVHD. Understanding how these CD4+ T cells are generated and regulated will prove to be critical to the prevention and treatment of both acute and chronic GVHD.
A Re-examination

As we noted earlier, in the 1920s, we were really in an era when psychiatry was in its infancy, was just coming out of the consulting room, and stepping into the courtroom. There really was only one approach to the treatment of mental disorders—psychoanalysis (treatments such as cognitive behavioral therapy, behavior modification, systematic desensitization, did not make their appearance until the 1960s or later). While the ideas about unconscious motives directing human behavior were intriguing to many, the idea that someone could commit a crime, especially a violent one, was difficult for people to accept. Consider State’s Attorney Crowe’s closing argument in which he stressed the months of planning and premeditation that went into the crime; anything that was that involved clearly did not have the mark of mental illness.
On the Nature of the Function Expressive of the Law of Human Mortality

We omit Gompertz’ method of fitting, which the reader will find in Makeham, below. Also omitted are Gompertz’ mortality tables, and his discussion of life expectancy and annuities under his Law. The hyperbolic logarithms in Art. 5 are the natural logs; we are not able to follow completely his integration, which is by Newton's method of fluxions.
Two Scleroderma Patients with Differing Patterns of Muscle Disease

Systemic sclerosis (SSc or scleroderma) occurs alone or, on occasion, in association with features of another connective tissue disease such as polymyositis/dermatomyositis, systemic lupus erythematosus, or rheumatoid arthritis. Many SSc patients have myalgia which may be difficult to distinguish by history from arthralgia. Most have pain on motion of the shoulders and hips but do not have objective weakness of these muscle groups or laboratory abnormalities suggesting an inflammatory myopathy. In this circumstance, it is unlikely that progressive proximal muscle weakness will occur during the course of the disease and typically no anti-inflammatory or immunosuppressive therapy is indicated. In contrast, some SSc patients have classic inflammatory myopathy, in which case the term “overlap syndrome” is used. The most frequent SSc overlap is with either polymyositis (PM) or dermatomyositis (DM). Within the broad category of SSc-PM/DM overlap syndromes there are distinctive patient subsets which can be recognized by their clinical features, internal organ involvements, laboratory abnormalities, and immunologic findings. It is important to recognize and treat myositis, as failure to do so may result in irreversible damage of skeletal muscle and proximal muscle weakness with disability.
The Adventist Schools: Development and Challenges

The Seventh-day Adventist denomination operates schools and colleges around the globe. Beginning in 1853 with a small home school, the church’s systems includes over 4,500 elementary and 1,100 secondary schools, as well as 95 colleges and universities. This article briefly presents the development of this system and the philosophy that undergirds the education offered by the schools. Maintaining the unique identity of the Adventist schools is a special challenge for the future. Other challenges faced by the schools are briefly discussed.
Global Characteristics of Oceanic Transform Fault Structure and Seismicity

Abstract On mid-ocean ridge-bounded oceanic transform faults (RTFs), previous characterizations of seismicity have utilized the assumed structural simplicity to develop scaling relations between tectonic (fault length and slip rate) and seismic parameters, which have shown that RTFs have low seismic coupling and small maximum magnitudes, despite large fault areas. These studies, however, did not incorporate physical segmentation of the fault trace. Here, we present an updated global characterization of oceanic transform fault structure and use the results to inform an updated scaling analysis. The inclusion of physical segmentation in the analysis does not significantly affect the scaling relations, indicating that segmentation alone cannot account for the low seismic coupling or small earthquake sizes on RTFs. We conclude that varying mechanical properties along the fault must largely control the partitioning of seismic and aseismic slip on RTFs.
Chemical comparison of Prunus africana bark and pygeum products marketed for prostate health.

Abstract The bark of Prunus africana may contain atranorin, atraric acid, beta-sitosterol and its esters, ferulic acid and its esters, and N-butylbenzene sulfonamide, compounds that have been shown to improve the conditions of benign prostatic hyperplasia, enlarged prostate. An analytical scheme, involving liquid-solid extractions, saponifications, and LC-APCI-MS (triple quadrupole) analysis, was developed, optimized, and validated to determine the compounds at μg/g levels. Limits of quantification were in the low ng/mL range except for beta-sitosterol. All of the compounds plus two internal standards eluted in under 10 min on a phenyl-hexyl column with gradient elution involving water-methanol and acetonitrile. The mass fraction of the compounds in Prunus africana bark (four samples) and commercial pygeum products (seven samples), derived from bark, were compared. Bark and pygeum were similar in their content of atranorin and atraric acid, found at low μg/g levels, and in the fact that ferulic acid was almost totally (> 90%) in the form of esters. In contrast, the total amount of ferulic acid was on average four times higher in bark (450 μg/g) than in pygeum while the opposite was true for total beta-sitosterol. Some pygeum samples had levels of total beta-sitosterol above 10,000 μg/g while the compound in bark was relatively invariant at about 680 μg/g. The fraction of free beta-sitosterol varied significantly between bark (33%) and pygeum (nearly all). In pygeum, the measured total beta-sitosterol concentration generally followed the labeled values for phytosterol content. No N-butylbenzene sulfonamide was found in any of the bark and pygeum samples.