cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Probabilistic Tracking with Exemplars in a Metric Space

A new, exemplar-based, probabilistic paradigm for visual tracking is presented. Probabilistic mechanisms are attractive because they handle fusion of information, especially temporal fusion, in a principled manner. Exemplars are selected representatives of raw training data, used here to represent probabilistic mixture distributions of object configurations. Their use avoids tedious hand-construction of object models, and problems with changes of topology. Using exemplars in place of a parameterized model poses several challenges, addressed here with what we call the “Metric Mixture” (M2) approach, which has a number of attractions. Principally, it provides alternatives to standard learning algorithms by allowing the use of metrics that are not embedded in a vector space. Secondly, it uses a noise model that is learned from training data. Lastly, it eliminates any need for an assumption of probabilistic pixelwise independence. Experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of the M2 model in two domains: tracking walking people using “chamfer” distances on binary edge images, and tracking mouth movements by means of a shuffle distance.
A randomized trial to evaluate a management training program to prevent illegal alcohol sales.

AIMS: To evaluate effects of a training program for owners/managers of alcohol establishments-Alcohol Risk Management (ARM)-on: (i) propensity to sell alcohol to obviously intoxicated patrons; and (ii) changing establishment-level policies/practices. DESIGN: We assigned alcohol establishments randomly to intervention (full-ARM) and delayed-intervention/control (ARM Express) conditions. SETTING: One large metropolitan area in Midwestern United States. PARTICIPANTS: Owners and managers at 231 on-premise alcohol establishments (i.e. bars, restaurants). INTERVENTION: Training programs consisted of one-to-one sessions with the owner/manager at each establishment. The goal of training was to help owners/managers to select and implement alcohol control policies in their establishments. The full-ARM training consisted of four one-to-one sessions and the ARM Express was a single session. MEASUREMENTS: We measured intervention effects through baseline and follow-up pseudo-intoxicated alcohol purchase attempts (i.e. feigning intoxication while attempting to purchase alcohol) and telephone surveys of owners/managers at alcohol establishments. FINDINGS: Sales rates to pseudo-intoxicated patrons reduced 23% (relative to delayed-intervention/control condition) at the first follow-up purchase attempt (P = 0.06) but returned to baseline levels 3 months later. On average, establishments selected 13 of 18 recommended policies, but in multivariate models we observed no significant differences at follow-up in reported policies/practices across establishments. CONCLUSIONS: Reliance on manager training to promote responsible establishment alcohol policies is not sufficient to prevent illegal alcohol sales to obviously intoxicated patrons and to reduce alcohol-related problems. Language: en
Effect of Texture on the Rate of Hydroxyapatite Formation on Gel-Silica Surface

An apatite layer can be formed on pure gel-silica soaked in simulated body fluid. The rate of formation depends on solution parameters and sintering temperature of the gelsilica. In this study, the effect of the texture of the gel-silica on the rate of hydroxyapatite formation was investigated. The apatite formation was monitored by means of Fourier-transform infrared reflection spectroscopy as well as by the measurement of changes in the ion concentration of the fluid. The induction time for apatite nucleation on the gel silica decreased as pore size and pore volume increased. The substrate parameters that affect nucleation are discussed and a mechanism that assumes pores as nucleation sites for hydroxyapatite is proposed.
Bilateral Diffuse Tumorous Pseudoangiomatous Stromal Hyperplasia: A Case of Bilateral Mastectomy in a 29-Year-Old Woman

Pseudoangiomatous stromal hyperplasia (PASH) is a benign breast lesion commonly encountered as an incidental microscopic finding. However, it can also manifest as a mass-forming lesion (tumorous PASH) capable of recurrence after surgical excision. Most of the previously reported cases of tumorous PASH present as a single dominant mass. Here we reported a rare case of diffuse tumorous PASH involving bilateral breasts clinically mimicking malignancy. A 29-year-old African-American female presented with a one-year history of bilateral breast enlargement and asymmetry. Physical examination revealed multiple palpable nodules in bilateral breasts. Imaging studies demonstrated innumerable homogeneously enhancing masses throughout both breasts, greater on the left, with multiple cysts and edema. Biopsy of the breast nodules demonstrated histopathological changes consistent with PASH. Due to the extent of the lesions and progressive clinical symptoms, decision was made to perform bilateral mastectomy. Macroscopic examination of the bilateral mastectomy specimens revealed markedly enlarged breasts with marked edema and numerous well-defined firm nodules. Microscopic evaluation of the nodules confirmed the diagnosis of PASH. No evidence of malignancy was identified. Recognition of this rare form of PASH is essential for the proper clinical management.
The GMO experience in North and South America

This paper surveys the level and distribution of economic impacts of GMOs in the Americas from 1996-2004. Key institutional factors influencing GMO diffusion are discussed. In 2004 the Americas accounted for 94%, of world GMO area. Diffusion has been concentrated; four countries, four crops and two traits account for the vast majority of area. The economic benefits of the diffusion of GMOs have been widely shared among farmers, industry, and consumers even though delivery has been through the private sector. GMOs have had a favourable environmental impact by facilitating reduced pesticide use and adoption of conservation tillage.
Nuclear Receptor Coactivators in Neuroendocrine Function

Steroid hormones influence a variety of neuroendocrine events, including brain development, sexual differentiation and reproduction. Hormones elicit many of these effects by binding to neuronal steroid receptors, which are members of a nuclear receptor superfamily of transcriptional activators. However, the mechanisms by which activated steroid receptors regulate gene expression in brain are not well understood. Recently, a new class of proteins, known as nuclear receptor coactivators, have been found to dramatically enhance steroid receptor mediated transactivation of genes in vitro. Here, the proposed molecular mechanisms of how these coactivators enhance the transcriptional activity of steroid receptors are summarized. While much is known about the mechanisms of these coactivators in vitro, it is unclear how these cofactors function in hormone action in vivo or in the brain. This paper discusses some of the initial and enticing investigations into the role of these important coregulatory proteins in neuroendocrine events. Finally, some of the critical issues and future directions in nuclear receptor coactivator function in neuroendocrinology are highlighted.
Determining landscape extent for succession and disturbance simulation modeling

Dividing regions into manageable landscape units presents special problems in landscape ecology and land management. Ideally, a landscape should be large enough to capture a broad range of vegetation, environmental and disturbance dynamics, but small enough to be useful for focused management objectives. The purpose of this study was to determine the optimal landscape size to summarize ecological processes for two large land areas in the southwestern United States. We used a vegetation and disturbance dynamics model, LANDSUMv4, to simulate a set of nine scenarios involving systematically varied topography, map resolution, and model parameterizations of fire size and fire frequency. Spatial input data were supplied by the LANDscape FIRE Management Planning System (LANDFIRE) prototype project, an effort that will provide comprehensive and scientifically credible mid-scale data to support the National Fire Plan. We analyzed output from 2,000 year simulations to determine the thresholds of landscape condition based on the variability of burned area and dominant vegetation coverage. Results show that optimal landscape extent using burned area variability is approximately 100 km2 depending on topography, map resolution, and model parameterization. Variability of dominant vegetation area is generally higher and the optimal landscape sizes are larger in comparison to those features determined from burned area. Using the LANDFIRE project as a case study, we determined landscape size and map resolution for a large mapping project, and showed that optimal landscape size depends upon geographical, ecological, and management context.
Sequential optimization: robust subspace fitting for multiple source location

An efficient algorithm designed to solve the multiple source location problem using sensor arrays is described. The algorithm is one of the class of subspace fitting techniques for source location and, in practice, it matches the performance of maximum likelihood estimation procedures. The method minimizes the error between a model of the array steering vector and the weighted eigenvectors from the measured covariance matrix of the actual array. An extension is developed for the purpose of improving estimation accuracy in the presence of sensor array errors. Simulated and experimental results are presented. >
Thermal management for high performance computing in spaceborne applications

Power is a threefold problem for mobile electronic applications-generation, dissipation and junction temperature. Of the three, dissipation is the most limiting for spaceborne applications. Advances in high performance computing and high density packaging exacerbates the power dissipation problem and, hence, the junction temperature problem. In many space applications, particularly on smaller space vehicles, articulated space radiator systems with sealed coolant loops, pumps, etc. are neither practical nor available. Hence, the ultimate limitation is the ability to radiate heat to other sinks-primarily and ultimately to deep space. This paper considers the limitation of deep space as a heat sink for given vehicle parameters such as maximum operating temperatures, available radiating surface area, and emissivity. Different techniques of vehicle cooling are reviewed with a brief discussion of the pros and cons of each technique. Consideration of current and future material availability with better thermal and electrical conductivity is presented. Better thermal conductivity tends to isothermalize the radiating area, thereby increasing radiant heat transfer proportional to the fourth power of the absolute temperature. Increased electrical conductivity reduces power consumption and hence the need for heat dissipation. Such considerations are included in projections of self-dissipation capability per circuit board using advanced composite materials. The direct radiation approach is addressed, including a brief discussion of the conflict between the need for spacing for thermal considerations versus the desire to keep the length of signal paths as short as possible and elimination of the beneficial effects of the spacecraft and chassis shielding. A comparison of power and thermal constraints for a 10 GFLOPS onboard processing system is traded off against current and future material availability, power dissipation, radiation surface area available, and the projected performance density of candidate onboard processing architectures using COTS components.
Symbolic algebra and timing driven data-flow synthesis

The growing market of multi-media applications has required the development of complex ASICs with significant data-path portions. Unfortunately, most high-level synthesis tools and methods cannot automatically synthesize data paths such that complex arithmetic library blocks are intelligently used. Symbolic computer algebra has been previously used to automate mapping data flow into a minimal set of complex arithmetic components. In this paper, we present extensions to the previous methods in order to find the minimal critical path delay (CPD) mapping. A new algorithm is proposed that incorporates symbolic manipulations such as tree-height-reduction, factorization, expansion, and Horner transformation. Such manipulations are used as guidelines in initial library element selection. Furthermore, we demonstrate how substitution can be used for multi-expression component sharing and critical path delay optimization.
Media portrayal of foods during Saturday morning television programming and in children's magazines

Eating habits are established in childhood and media portrayal of foods may affect food choices of children. To determine how foods are portrayed by the media, the contents of Saturday morning television programmes and commercials and three children's magazines were analysed. Foods portrayed during Saturday morning television programmes and commercials and in children's magazines were categorized as normal ‘food use’ (97.1% and 86.0%, respectively). Foods on television (91.3%) and in magazines (77.4%) were portrayed in a positive context. Foods were more often portrayed neutrally in magazines (206%) than on television (64%). The number of fruits and vegetables mentioned or shown on television did not statistically differ from the number of breads or cereals (P ≥ 0–05). In contrast, when combined as one group. fruits and vegetables that were included in magazines appeared more often than bread or cereals (P ≤ 0.05). Eighty per cent of all foods mentioned/shown on Saturday morning television were part of commercials, whereas only 12% of all foods in magazines were located in advertisements. Results indicate that opportunities exist in print and electronic media to convey positive nutritional messages about foods to children.
Low complexity codes for writing a write-once memory twice

A write-once memory (wom) is a storage medium formed by a number of “write-once” binary cells, where each cell initially is in a ‘0’ state and can be changed to a ‘1’ state irreversibly. Examples of write-once memories include SLC flash memories and optical disks. This paper presents some low complexity codes for writing such write-once memories twice.
ADOLESCENT ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS AND DELINQUENCY INVOLVEMENT

While much attention has centered on the role of peer influence for adolescent delinquency, that of romantic partners has been largely neglected. Recent analyses of romantic relationships during the adolescent period suggest their general importance to development; research highlights that adolescents themselves frequently describe these relations as relatively intimate and influential. Thus, while classic theoretical frameworks such as differential association theory have often centered on the role of peers, their general logic is consistent with the notion that such relationships may indeed “matter” as a source of influence on delinquent behavior. Data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health are well suited for examining the role of romantic partners because they allow for the identification and recreation of friendship networks and connections between romantic partners. Forging these interconnections, we link friends' and romantic partners' delinquency to respondents' own delinquency, enabling an examination of romantic partner influence on adolescent delinquency, beyond that influence associated with friends' behaviors. Drawing on theories of gender stratification, we also explore whether the effect of romantic partners' behavior is conditioned by gender. Findings reveal that romantic partners' delinquency exerts a unique effect on respondents' delinquency net of friends' delinquency and control variables. Additionally, romantic partners' deviance has a stronger effect on female involvement in minor deviance. We find no evidence, however, that gender conditions the strength of romantic partners' more serious delinquency on respondents' serious delinquency.
Computer Synthesis of Character-Recognition Systems

A SAP (Symbolic Assembly Program) package has been developed for the IBM 704 computer to simulate the logical tree of circuitry associated with a character-recognition device. The program has two major inputs: a particular set of logic statements (of AND and OR type) on cards, for flexibility, and tape reels of binary images of ideal or real characters. The output is the ``score'' of the logic: how many misjudgments it made on the images, what areas of the logic caused the misjudgments, and possible improvements of these areas.
Effect of Amino Acids on Larvae and Adults of Ceratitis capitata (Diptera: Tephritidae)

Grouped or individual amino acids from two diets were deleted to evaluate the effects of amino acids on larvae and adults of the Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann). Larvae died when fed with diets free of 10 exogenous essential amino acids (arginine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, histidine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, and valine) or containing nine exogenous amino acids with removal of any one of the 10 essential amino acids. However, when larvae were reared on diets lacking all eight of the exogenous nonessential amino acids together (alanine, aspartic acid, cystine, glutamic acid, glycine, proline, serine, and tyrosine), or either glycine or serine, they survived but exhibited significantly delayed larval development. When adults fed on a diet lacking all 10 essential amino acids or all eight nonessential amino acids, no effect on adult survivorship, sexual maturity, or egg hatch was observed, but the fecundity was significantly reduced. Removal of arginine, histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, threonine, tryptophan, methionine, tryptophan, or valine from adult diets decreased fecundity significantly.
Cholesterol homeostasis is modulated by amphiphiles at transcriptional and post-transcriptional loci

A variety of amphiphiles inhibit plasma membrane cholesterol esterification and induce 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase accumulation in cultured cells; among these are steroids, hydrophobic amines, phenothiazines, ionophores, colchicine, and lysophosphatides. It has been proposed that these amphiphiles signal a sterol deficiency to regulatory sites by blocking the movement of plasma membrane cholesterol into the cell (Lange, Y., and Steck, T. L. 1994. J. Biol. Chem. 269: 29371-29374). If this were the case, these agents also should enhance transcription of sterol responsive genes and stabilize 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase. As a test of this hypothesis, the effect of the amphiphiles on such transcriptional and post-transcriptional events was assessed. A mouse embryo cell line was transfected with a construct containing the promoter for the human low density lipoprotein receptor upstream of the DNA sequence coding for chloramphenicol acyltransferase (CAT). Incubation of these cells for 7-18 h with the aforementioned agents caused the level of expression of the promoter/CAT construct to increase 2- to 9-fold. We showed further that the amphiphiles stimulated 3-hydroxy-3 methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase activity by increasing gene transcription as well as by decreasing degradation of the enzyme. These are the predicted homeostatic responses to cell cholesterol deficiency. These findings support the hypothesis that certain amphiphiles falsely signal a cholesterol deficiency to the intracellular sites regulating cholesterol homeostasis.
Ecological Relationships in Recent Plains Society

Because descriptions of the Plains tribes prior to the nineteenth century tend to be extremely sketchy, the relationship proposed here between human organization and environmental conditions is tested most reliably on data from the 1800s. Furthermore, it is reasonable to assume that the data available in the ethnographic record should be most applicable to the more recent periods of the tribes’ histories and should be progressively less accurate farther back in time. The focus of this section of the analysis is therefore on the decade from 1840 to 1850, as the most recent period that is likely to represent a reasonably intact aboriginal way of life. The discussion in the preceding chapter indicates that before this time, the tribes had not settled into their final locations; after this time, government handouts, increasingly severe conflicts with whites, and the progressive destruction of the bison herds fundamentally altered the Plains way of life.
Operational cost of deploying Moving Target Defenses defensive work factors

Moving Target Defense (MTD) is the concept of controlling change across multiple information system dimensions with the objective of increasing uncertainty and complexity for attackers. Increased uncertainty and complexity will increase the costs of malicious probing and attack efforts and thus prevent or limit network intrusion. As MTD increases complexity of the system for the attacker, the MTD also increases complexity in the desired operation of the system. This introduced complexity results in more difficult network troubleshooting and can cause network degradation or longer network outages. In this research paper the authors describe the defensive work factor concept. Defensive work factors considers in detail the specific impact that the MTD approach has on computing resources and network resources. Measuring impacts on system performance along with identifying how network services (e.g., DHCP, DNS, in-place security mechanisms) are affected by the MTD approach are presented. Also included is a case study of an MTD deployment and the defensive work factor costs. An actual experiment is constructed and metrics are described for the use case.
Healing at the End of Life: The Voice of the Patient

In palliative care we have the privilege to care for seriously ill people and their families. Some people value capturing their life story or illness journey on film. I have been fortunate to have been invited into the lives of many people close the end of life for a heartfelt conversation.On an interactive iPad incorporated in the poster, the recorded narrative of patients and one bereft spouse the poster audience will experience the lived experience of people close to the end of life as they reflect on their lives. The narratives will demonstrate how each lived with a new found improved quality of life in the face of increasing symptoms, declining functioning and the approaching end of life; otherwise known as healing. Topics of healing and quality of life, patient-centered care, dignity, human development, spirituality and love will be the focus of their stories. The stories lay bare the very practical, emotional, existential, and personal experience central to our provision of whole person care through palliative care. The poster audience will experience a renewed sense of the impact of a dedicated approach to whole person care as experienced through those on the receiving end.
Effect of exercise, hyperpnea, and bronchoconstriction on plasma atrial natriuretic peptide

To examine whether endogenous secretion of atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) modifies the bronchomotor response to moderately strenuous exercise and, conversely, whether hyperpnea of exercise or bronchoconstriction alone modulates the release of ANP, we compared the rise in specific airway resistance and the rise in circulating immunoreactive ANP (IR-ANP) induced by a 5-min submaximal exercise and by eucapnic hyperpnea with cold dry air and exercise-matched minute ventilation in six healthy individuals and in five subjects with clinically stable asthma. As expected, the increase in specific airway resistance from base line provoked by exercise was greater in the asthmatic subjects (from 11.8 +/- 7.1 to 34.0 +/- 18.6 l.cmH2O.l-1.s-1) than in the healthy subjects (from 3.7 +/- 1.2 to 4.5 +/- 1.9 l.cmH2O.l-1.s-1). In both groups, exercise was associated with a similar and significant rise in plasma IR-ANP levels, ranging from 222 to 550% from base-line value in the healthy group and from 176 to 1,120% from base-line value in the asthmatic group. Peak plasma IR-ANP levels occurred from 3 to 15 min after completion of exercise with a return to base-line values within 60 min. Although eucapnic hyperpnea was associated with a similar increase in specific airway resistance as was exercise, it provoked an increase in circulating IR-ANP in only one subject.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Creating the Urban Eden: Sustainable Landscape Establishment in Theory and Practice

Creating the Urban Eden, a course taught jointly by faculty in Landscape Architecture and Horticulture at Cornell University, is a unique two-semester class spanning the academic year from August to May. Students face the task of creating viable, sustainable landscapes both in theory and practice. The success and sustainability of any planting design is ultimately dependent upon knowledgeable site assessment and analysis, appropriate plant selection, and clear communication of design intentions. This class teaches all aspects of landscape establishment, including detailedsiteassessment,woodyplant identification,choiceofappropriateplants,planting design, soil remediation, transplanting, and early maintenance in human-impacted landscapes. In addition to designing for a specific site, students learn about written specifications for technical planting and graphic details to communicate and implement design proposals. Every year on the Cornell University campus, the students in this class implement, in a hands-on manner, all aspects of landscape establishment that they have learnedbycreatingnewlandscapes that serve to integrate theory,principles,practice, and provide a demonstration of fundamentals taught in the class.
Shortest Paths and Geodesics

INTRODUCTION Both shortest paths and geodesics are paths on a surface which “unfold” or “develop” on a plane to straight lines. This gives them a special role in unfolding, and underlies the two known (general) unfoldings of a convex polyhedron to a nonoverlapping polygon, the source and the star unfolding (mentioned previously on p. 306). In this chapter we describe these two unfoldings, as well as investigate shortest paths and geodesics for their own sake and for their possible future application to unfolding. Let P be a polyhedral surface embedded in ℝ 3 , composed of flat faces. We will insist that each vertex be a “true,” nonflat vertex, one with incident face angle ≠ 2π. A shortest path on P between two points x and y on P is a curve connecting x and y whose length, measured on the surface, is shortest among all curves connecting the points on P . Several important properties of shortest paths are as follows: There always exists a shortest path between any two points, but it may not be unique: several distinct but equally shortest curves may connect the points. Shortest paths are simple in that they never self-cross (otherwise they could be shortcut). […]
Athermal, Stress and Strain Induced Transformation Strengthening in Multiphase Stainless Steels

ABSTRACT A new type of high strength/high ductility multiphase: austenite, ferrite, athermal martensite, stress/strain induced martensite (MFAFM) stainless steels have been developed.
Patient Compliance in the Setting of BI-RADS Category 3: What Factors Impact Compliance With Short-Term Follow-Up Recommendations?

The study aims to define how imaging findings, patient demographics, patient–provider interactions, and health care practices may affect a woman's decision to follow-up in the setting of a BI-RADS Category 3. A total of 398 women from the University of Arizona Breast Imaging Center with a BI-RADS Category 3 assessment for mammography and/or ultrasound findings were evaluated between February 2012 and June 2014. Demographic information was analyzed for all patients, regardless of follow-up. Women who returned for follow-up within the recommended time period were given one survey at the time of their follow-up appointment, and women who returned for follow-up, but later than recommended, were given a separate survey to complete. Age, palpability of a lesion, and menopause status were related to follow-up. Self-rated general health was the only factor found to be associated with the decision to follow-up on time. The majority of patients who followed up on time reported that mailed reminder cards were the primary practice that prompted follow-up. Of patients who followed up later than recommended, the major reason was “no time.” The findings suggest that additional counseling regarding the benefits of short-interval imaging follow-up might be advantageous for patients.
Sampling strategies for information extraction over the deep web

First large-scale and fine-grained evaluation of query-based sampling techniques.Learned keyword queries perform substantially better than queries derived from tuples.Focusing onand processing exhaustivelyeffective queries leads to high efficiency.Focusing onand processing in roundsless-effective queries favors quality.Filtering underperforming queries favors sampling efficiency but hurts quality. Information extraction systems discover structured information in natural language text. Having information in structured form enables much richer querying and data mining than possible over the natural language text. However, information extraction is a computationally expensive task, and hence improving the efficiency of the extraction process over large text collections is of critical interest. In this paper, we focus on an especially valuable family of text collections, namely, the so-called deep-web text collections, whose contents are not crawlable and are only available via querying. Important steps for efficient information extraction over deep-web text collections (e.g., selecting the collections on which to focus the extraction effort, based on their contents; or learning which documents within these collectionsand in which orderto process, based on their words and phrases) require having a representative document sample from each collection. These document samples have to be collected by querying the deep-web text collections, an expensive process that renders impractical the existing sampling approaches developed for other data scenarios. In this paper, we systematically study the space of query-based document sampling techniques for information extraction over the deep web. Specifically, we consider (i) alternative query execution schedules, which vary on how they account for the query effectiveness, and (ii) alternative document retrieval and processing schedules, which vary on how they distribute the extraction effort over documents. We report the results of the first large-scale experimental evaluation of sampling techniques for information extraction over the deep web. Our results show the merits and limitations of the alternative query execution and document retrieval and processing strategies, and provide a roadmap for addressing this critically important building block for efficient, scalable information extraction.
Methamphetamine and Ovarian Steroid Responsive Cells in the Posteriodorsal Medial Amygdala are Required for Methamphetamine-enhanced Proceptive Behaviors

Methamphetamine (Meth) is a psychomotor stimulant strongly associated with increases in sexual drive and impulse in both men and women. These changes in sexual motivation have a greater impact on women due to their likelihood of facing the greater burden of unplanned pregnancies, as well as increased risk for psychiatric co-morbidities such as depression. We have previously established a rodent model of Meth-induced increases in sexual motivation. Using this model, we have identified the posteriodorsal medial amygdala (MePD) via excitotoxic lesion studies as a necessary nucleus in Meth-facilitated female sexual motivation. While lesion studies give us insight into key nuclei that may be targets of Meth action, such an approach does not give insight into the identity of the specific MePD neurons or neural circuitry involved in Meth-induced increases in proceptive behaviors. Using the DAUN02 inactivation method, a recently established technique for removing behaviorally relevant cell populations, we present evidence that the ovarian steroid/Meth responsive cells in the MePD are necessary for Meth-induced facilitation of proceptive behaviors. These findings form the basis for future work that will allow for the classification of neuronal subtypes involved in the MePD’s modulation of proceptive behavior as well as a stronger understanding of the neurocircuitry of female sexual motivation.
Novel plasma telomerase detection method to improve cancer diagnostic assessment

Background The activity levels of telomerase and its mRNA have been found to be more diagnostically sensitive than cytological results in many cancerous tissues and correlate well with the clinical disease stage. Currently, there are several methods of detecting telomerase in tissues and in blood. The most commonly used method is a conventional quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) which is time and labor exhausting. Methods We have developed a simple and innovative blood test method that allows us to diagnose cancer and relapsed cancer in a cost- and time -effective manner. We had evaluated our novel method in two populations: 1) in vivo in three mice with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) versus one control mouse and 2) clinically in 30 cancer patients versus 10 individuals without cancer. We compared our novel method with the old conventional method. At least one sample was obtained from each patient included in the study. Results The novel method substantially increased the sensitivity (from 37% to 77%, p<0.001) and negative predictive value (from 32% to 56%, p = 0.005) of the telomerase test for all cancer patients (those who were substantially treated and those who were not). There was no significant difference in telomerase activity between cancer patients and healthy volunteers using the conventional method (p = 0.13), whereas there was a significant difference using the novel method (p = 0.001). Conclusion Conventional method shows no significant difference in telomerase activity between cancer patients and healthy volunteers (p = 0.13), whereas there was a significant difference using the novel method (p = 0.001).
Montana Audubon’s Riparian Bird Research and Conservation: What’s New, What’s Next?

Audubon’s Important Bird Area (IBA) program is a data-driven, science-based approach for on-the-ground conservation projects. We will describe how our current IBA program is working: how we collect bird data, use these data to map key riparian areas, connect with our partners and volunteers, work toward habitat protection and enhancement, and use our knowledge to affect policy. We report on recent data collection efforts on key species, including Lewis’s woodpeckers (Melanerpes lewis), red-headed woodpeckers (Melanerpes erythrocephalus), and Black-billed Cuckoos (Coccyzus erythropthalmus). We will also share various educational products and stories that resonate with those who care about birds, own and manage the land, and who advocate for wildlife conservation—from Best Management Practice brochures to multi-media films. Finally, we outline how we are prioritizing our IBA work and plans for the future.
CHAPTER 45 – The Metabolism of Organophosphorus Insecticides

The organophosphorus insecticides are metabolically highly labile. This metabolic lability, along with their general lack of extreme lipophilicity, prevents their bioaccumulation. A variety of oxidation, reduction, hydrolysis, and conjugation reactions are possible within the group of organophosphorus insecticides. The mechanism of their acute toxicity is the inhibition of acetyl cholinesterase. Some of the organophosphorus insecticides are active anticholinesterases, and any metabolism is, therefore, a detoxication. The potency of the organophosphorus insecticides or their active metabolites as inhibitors of target brain acetyl cholinesterase does not correspond to the acute toxicity levels, indicating that metabolism and disposition are of great significance in determining the overall acute toxicity level of these insecticides. Many of the insecticides, however, are not active anticholinesterases in their parent form and require bioactivation in order to be effective anticholinesterases. The P450 mediated desulfuration reaction is responsible for the majority of these bioactivation. Most other routes of metabolism would be detoxication. Many of the insecticides, or the active metabolites of those insecticides requiring bioactivation, are potent anticholinesterases, and others are not.
Delayed extrusion of embolic coils into the airway after embolization of an external carotid artery pseudoaneurysm

Carotid blowout syndrome (CBS) is a known devastating complication of head and neck surgery. The risk of developing CBS increases in the setting of radiation therapy, wound breakdown, or tumor recurrence. Traditionally, the treatment of choice for CBS is surgical ligation of the bleeding artery; however, recently, endovascular occlusion has become a more common option. If a pseudoaneurysm is present, treatment consists of trapping with endovascular coils or occlusion with a liquid embolic agent. Delayed migration of embolization coils into the airway causing acute respiratory distress is a rare occurrence. This report presents a case of a 57-year-old woman who presented to her otolaryngologist after experiencing an episode of acute respiratory distress which resolved when she expectorated embolization coil material from her tracheostomy tube. Three months prior to the episode she underwent coil embolization of an external carotid artery pseudoaneurysm for life-threatening hemorrhage.
Learning from employee communication during technological change

Purpose – The purpose of this research is to examine stories of and by employees as they implemented a transformative organizational change, involving outsourcing, off‐shoring, and the make‐over induced by technology.Design/methodology/approach – Three types of data were analyzed – organizational documents, responses to oral and written questions, and observational field notes. Two interpretive approaches were used – qualitative content analysis and “grounded theory”. Additionally, the Burkean pentad was applied to examine how the change was perceived and characterized by the change participants.Findings – During technological change, planned storytelling may provide a platform for understanding the perceived and real people costs and benefits of the change. The organizational opportunity to tell stories was enabled by three mechanisms: visual representation, distillation and documentation, and innovative ways to learn. The Burkean pentad tool indicated highly knowledgeable and engaged individuals. Thus, ...
Disaster Training in 24 Hours: Evaluation of a Novel Medical Student Curriculum in Disaster Medicine.

Abstract Background Over a decade ago, the Association of American Medical Colleges called for incorporation of disaster medicine training into the education of medical students in the United States. Despite this recommendation, similar suggestions by other professional organizations, and significant interest from medical students and educators, few medical schools explicitly include robust disaster training in their curricula. Objectives This study describes the results of the implementation of a novel medical student curriculum in disaster response at an allopathic U.S. medical school. Specifically, this study evaluates the effectiveness of a voluntary training program in increasing the knowledge of medical students to respond to disasters. Methods Over 2 years, 24 hours of training consisting of didactics and hands-on exercises was delivered to medical students by volunteers from the Department of Emergency Medicine. Student knowledge was tested prior to and after each training session through a multiple-choice questionnaire and evaluated using a paired t-test. Results Consistent with previous studies, this voluntary disaster curriculum improved students' knowledge of emergency preparedness. The mean test score for all students participating in the training increased from 5.30 ± 1.05 (with a maximum score of 10), to 7.98±0.96 post course. Conclusion This intervention represents a low-cost, high-impact mechanism for improving the capacity of an underutilized segment of the health care team to respond to public health emergencies.
Near-field dynamics of high-speed spray dryer coannular two fluid nozzle: Effects of operational conditions and formulations

Abstract The scaling-up of spray drying processes is an important and challenging step in commercializing specialty products with an ensured quality because it mandates a comprehensive understanding of several steps in the process such as atomization, efficient solvent removal, and particle segregation. The formation of needed particle sizes and shapes is impossible without appropriate atomization through spray dryer nozzles. Hence, research is discussed that investigates the atomization mechanism for a pilot scale externally-mixed, two-fluid nozzle spray dryer by using time resolved particle-image velocimetry to study the behavior of droplets in the near-field of the nozzle tip. Important near-field dynamics of droplets emanating from the nozzle are described, and particle formation characteristics are discussed for several formulations which are widely used in the pharmaceutical industry. Spray angle, droplet breakup length, and droplet sizes and velocity distributions are characterized. Understanding these parameters assists the interpretation of particle formation and enables the modeling of the spray drying process.
Posterior Reversible Encephalopathy Syndrome as a Complication of Induced Hypertension in Subarachnoid Hemorrhage: A Case-Control Study.

BACKGROUND Induced hypertension (IH) remains the mainstay of medical management for delayed cerebral ischemia (DCI) after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). However, raising blood pressure above normal levels may be associated with systemic and neurological complications, of which posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) has been increasingly recognized. OBJECTIVE To ascertain the frequency and predisposing factors for PRES during IH therapy. METHODS We identified 68 patients treated with IH from 345 SAH patients over a 3-yr period. PRES was diagnosed based on clinical suspicion, confirmed by imaging. We extracted additional data on IH, including baseline and highest target mean arterial pressure (MAP), comparing PRES to IH-treated controls. RESULTS Five patients were diagnosed with PRES at median 6.6 d (range 1-8 d) from vasopressor initiation. All presented with lethargy, 3 had new focal deficits, and 1 had a seizure. Although baseline MAP (prior to DCI) did not differ between cases and controls, both MAP immediately prior to IH (112 vs 90) and highest MAP targeted were greater (140 vs 120 mm Hg, both P < .01). Magnitude of MAP elevation was greater (54 vs 34 above baseline, P = .004) while degree of IH was not (37 vs 38 above pre-IH MAP). All 4 surviving PRES patients had complete resolution with IH discontinuation. CONCLUSION PRES was diagnosed in 7% of SAH patients undergoing IH therapy, most often when MAP was raised well above baseline to levels that exceed traditional autoregulatory thresholds. High suspicion for this reversible disorder appears warranted in the face of unexplained neurological deterioration during aggressive IH.
Mg2+ Homeostasis in cardiac ventricular myocytes

Magnesium ion (Mg2+) is abundantly represented in mammalian and non mammalian cells. The concentration of total Mg2+ in cardiac ventricular myocytes ranges between 17 and llmM (Polimeni and Page, 1973; Paradise et al., 1978; Gupta et al., 1984; Wu et al., 1981; Hess et al., 1982; Blatter and McGuigan, 1986; Fry, 1986; Masuda et al., 1990; Romani and Scarpa, 1992; Romani et al., 1993; Murphy et al., 1989), depending on the technique used and the animal species investigated. The majority of cellular Mg2+ is present as a complex with ATP (Polimeni and Page, 1974), bound to cytosolic proteins (Page and McCallister, 1973) or metabolites (Garfinkel et al., 1986), or internalized within intracellular structures (Polimeni and Page, 1974; Garfinkel et al., 1986), so that only a small fraction of total Mg2+ isfree within the cytosol. Yet, because of the indirect techniques used (Paradise et al., 1978; Hess et al., 1982; Blatter and McGuigan, 1986; Fry, 1986) and/or the difficulty in proper quantitation (Polimeni and Page, 1973; Gupta et al., 1984; Hess et al., 1982; Fry, 1986; Romani et al., 1993; Murphy et al., 1989), the values of cytosolic free Mg2+ reported to be present in cardiac ventricular myocytes under physiological conditions vary considerably. Table 1 summarizes data from various laboratories which measured the absolute value for cytosolic Mg2+ by using the equilibria of Mg2+-sensitive cellular enzymes (Masuda et al., 1990), or the spectral shift of ATP by31P NMR (Gupta et al., 1984), or fluorescent indicators (Murphy et al., 1989), or selective Mg2+ electrodes and intracellular recordings (Hess et al., 1982; Blatter and McGuigan, 1986; Fry, 1986), or 28Mg2+ distribution (Polimeni and Page, 1973; Romani et al., 1993).
Rotifer Ingestion Test for Rapid Assessment of Toxicity

Objective and scope of test method This method is intended to be used as a screening tool for rapid toxicity assessment. The test is designed for use with fresh or marine waters, to evaluate chemicals, surface waters, effluents, pore waters, drinking waters, and contamination emergencies. Because of its speed and simplicity, this test could easily be integrated into a battery of tests representing several species. Rotifers are generally responsive to a wide variety of toxicants, including metals, organics, pesticides, and endocrine disruptors. The ingestion test is performed in one hour in 24-well microplates in volumes of 750 L.
Black/Female/Body Hypervisibility and Invisibility: A Black Feminist Augmentation of Feminist Leisure Research

Through an interdisciplinary lens, this paper proposes two concepts for Black feminist analysis (visibility and hypervisibility) to augment feminist leisure scholarship. We examine questions of inv...
Game Models of Peace and War: Some Recent Themes

In 1994 I surveyed game models of peace and war for the Handbook of Game Theory: this review summarizes some of the developments since that time. When the Cold War ended, concern over nuclear war yielded to broader issues, such as ethnic conflict, humanitarian intervention, nuclear proliferation, sanctions as tools of compellance, the establishment of stable democracies in new nations, globalization and trade, and the formation of supranational bodies. Current game theory applications on war and peace responded to these political changes, so that the variety of topics the field now treats has made it especially interesting. More than before, the literature can be seen as analyses of different kinds of international bargaining.
Service Providers: Form Over Content

Contemporary film directors, most of whom work within rigid genre formats, have become little more than “service providers” who create long, loud, open-ended, and ultimately unsatisfying “epic” films for an even more indiscriminate audience. And yet, it really isn’t the fault of the viewers who flock to see the endless iterations of Star Wars, Harry Potter, Star Trek and other franchise films; there’s nothing else on offer at the multiplex, and with everything online—behind a pay wall and usually with a subscription attached—any impulse to be adventurous in one’s viewing habits died long ago. It’s reliably available and always the same. And yet, there seems to be evidence—anecdotal at present but seemingly growing—that millennial audiences are increasingly dissatisfied with what they see at the local multiplex.