cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Does Family Interaction Prevent Adolescent Pregnancy

Summary This study uses data from the 1982 National Survey of Family Growth to ascertain whether family interaction can avert adolescent sexual activity, pregnancy, childbearing and parenthood. The results obtained from using logistic regression procedures indicate that the family may be effective in increasing adolescents' use of contraceptives and selection of abortion or adoption as alternatives to parenthood. Family interaction, however, was not associated with forestalling adolescent sexual activity or with providing for the well-being of the adolescent and her child and it is unlikely that a policy based solely on family interaction will be effective. Characteristics associated with effectiveness in preventing adolescent pregnancy included race, religion, residence, mother's education, the adolescent's age and family income.
Mixed Mycobacterium Avium-Intracellulare and Serratia Marcescens Cellulitis of the Breast in an HIV-Negative Patient with Breast Cancer: A Case Report

Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare (MAI) causes pulmonary infection in patients with chronic lung diseases or severe T-cell deficiency. Cutaneous manifestations caused by MAI are rare and the few cases reported describe mostly patients with hematologic malignancies who were treated with highly immunosuppressive agents. Herein, we report a case of a breast cancer survivor who developed chronic breast cellulitis due to MAI, following localized breast cancer treatment.
Urban Villages and Local Identities: Germans from Russia, Omaha Indians, and Vietnamese in Lincoln, Nebraska. By Kurt E. Kinbacher

Urban Villages and Local Identities: Germans from Russia, Omaha Indians, and Vietnamese in Lincoln, Nebraska . Plains Histories Series. By Kurt E. Kinbacher. Foreword by Timothy R. Mahoney. (Lubbock: Texas Tech University Press, 2015. xiv + 265 pp. Illustrations, maps, tables, notes, index. $39.95, paper.) This is a major piece of scholarship, daring in its use of four languages and ambitious in its incorporation of languages, cultures, and various aspects of diversity. Moreover, author Kurt E. Kinbacher has built into much of his study components of history, political science, and sociology, among other disciplines. The result is a study framed by multicultural concepts, which provide a uniformity that cuts across the entire work, despite the specific significant differences between the Volga Germans (Germans originally from Russia), Omaha Native Americans, and Vietnamese. For each group, … ebarkan{at}csusb.edu
Mongla and the borderland politics of Myanmar

Ceasefire agreements between the Myanmar government and different armed groups in 1989 created a new political map of the Myanmar borderlands. Once called black or brown regions because of their instability, border towns in the frontier areas, particularly in the Kachin and Shan States, became Special Regions. Unlike other border towns in Southeast Asia, where the state makes concession with a newly emerged global hegemon, China, old warlords in Mongla negotiate business transactions over dams, rubber plantations, and casinos with Chinese businessmen from Yunnan, Macau, or Hong Kong. And unlike other border towns where border crossing is at the discretion of an immigration officer, Mongla has no administration of border crossing and exchange of goods by any governing bodies. This situation is underpinned by a fragile relationship between the government and old warlords, a regular feature of border towns in north, north-eastern, and eastern Burma.
Leptin and Hypothalamic Amenorrhea

Amenorrhea is characterized by the lack of regular menstrual periods. It may be classified as primary or secondary in nature. Primary amenorrhea is a delay in menarche beyond the age of 14, if no secondary sexual characteristics have developed, and beyond the age of 16, if secondary sexual characteristics have developed (Sakala, 1997). Secondary amenorrhea is diagnosed when menstruation has been absent for more than 3 months, if menses were previously regular; or 6 months, if menses were irregular (Constantini and Warren, 1994). The causes of amenorrhea among premenopausal women are numerous, among them are premature ovarian failure, past contraceptive use, androgen excess, intensive physical training, nutritional restriction, and stress.
Implementation of 32-bit Ling and Jackson adders

Ling adders factor complexity out of the first stage of an adder to shorten the critical path. In 2004, Jackson and Talwar proposed a generalization of the Ling adder that reduces the complexity of the critical generate path at the expense of increased complexity in the propagate logic. This paper compares implementations of 32-bit Ling and Jackson adders to the optimized Sklansky architecture produced by Design Compiler in a 45 nm process. The Ling adder is 3% faster and uses 7% less energy, achieving a delay of 8.3 FO4 inverters. The Jackson adder is only 1% faster and uses 45% more energy. However, this is the first published implementation of a Jackson adder with all details shown.
OUTCOME AND CHARACTERISTICS OF SHOCKABLE VERSUS NON-SHOCKABLE CARDIAC ARREST IN ST ELEVATION MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION AT A REGIONAL TRANSFER CENTER

Background: In patients presenting with cardiac arrest in the setting of ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), the influence of age and arrest type (shockable vs. non-shockable) on outcome in the percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) era is incompletely understood. Methods: Using a
Clinical affect and sensory correlates in adolescent sports concussions

Objective Identifying risk factors is important in adolescent sports concussions. This study aimed to explore the relationship between affective symptoms and physical symptoms in youth concussions. Design Athletes were split into two groups: self-reported emotional symptoms (irritability/aggression, anxiety, depression, apathy, and/or labile mood; EMO, n=22) and a control group without emotional symptoms (CON, n=15). Groups were examined for differences between post-concussive symptoms and peri-concussive factors. Setting Outpatient clinic. Participants 37 concussed adolescents age 12–17 with persisting concussion symptoms were assessed. Concussion diagnoses were indicated by traumatically induced alterations in mental status (with or without LOC), disruption in brain functioning (memory loss/neurological deficits), and other physiologic symptoms post-concussion. Those with baseline psychiatric history and/or special education were excluded. Assessment of risk factors Post-concussive symptom variable relationships were assessed. Outcome measures group differences were analysed using ANOVAs. Results No differences between positive LOC, positive amnesia, or post-concussive criteria existed, indicating likely comparable severity. While there were no group differences for number of concussions, headaches, or nausea, those in EMO were significantly more likely to endorse photo-sensitivity (p=0.003, F=10.155) and phono-sensitivity (p=0.007, F=8.108). Both anxiety and irritability/aggression were significantly (p Conclusions Results indicate that adolescents who self-report emotional difficulties following sports concussion are more likely to endorse some physical symptoms, particularly photo-sensitivity and phono-sensitivity. Those experiencing anxiety or irritability are also more likely to experience increased attentional difficulties. Competing interests None.
THE HOMOLOGY OF INVARIANT SETS OF FLOWS

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the homology of invariant sets of flows. The invariant sets are characterized as protective chains and are shown to form a chain complex. The chapter discusses a compact subset X W and in particular on the class I(X) of all closed subsets of X, which are invariant under Π.
Nucleotide sequences of the three genes coding for human fibrinogen.

Fibrinogen is synthesized in the liver by hepatic parenchymal cells and is secreted into the circulation (1). Hepatic synthesis of fibrinogen is constitutive but the rate can be modulated by a number of physiological and nonphysiological factors. The three chains of fibrinogen are encoded by distinct species of mRNA that are derived from the expression of three single copy genes (2, 3). Present evidence indicates that the three genes of human fibrinogen are linked and are located in a region that extends approximately 45 kb on chromosome 4q23-q32 (4). The genes are arranged in the order of γ-Aα-Bβ. The γ and Aα genes are transcribed in the same direction while the Bβ gene is transcribed in the opposite direction.
Therapeutic Human Papillomavirus Vaccines

Pre-existing HPV infection is a highly prevalent public health concern that is responsible for considerable morbidity and mortality. Evidence suggests that cellular immunity, particularly antigen-specific T cell-mediated immunity, is required for treatment of established HPV infection (Benton et al., 1992). It is therefore important to develop vaccines that induce cell-mediated immune responses specific for early viral proteins in order to effect regression of established HPV associated lesions and malignant tumors.
Energy poverty vulnerability index: A multidimensional tool to identify hotspots for local action

Abstract Energy poverty is a growing societal challenge that puts the welfare of many European citizens at risk. Several different indicators have been developed with the objective of assessing this phenomenon. The aim of this work is to develop a novel high-resolution spatial scale composite index, focusing on space heating and cooling, to map energy poor regions and identify hotspots for local action. The proposed index (EPVI) combines socio-economic indicators of the population (AIAM sub-index) with building’s characteristics and energy performance (EPG sub-index). The method was tested for all 3092 civil parishes of Portugal and could be potentially replicated at Pan European scale. Results show a higher prevalence of significative EPVIs in the inland region and the islands, particularly in rural civil parishes. Although cooling EPVIs are generally higher, heating may be a more significant issue in terms of energy demand and health hazard. Energy poverty vulnerability assessment at such a disaggregated regional scale could bridge the gap between common overall country analyses and local-scale initiatives targeting vulnerable households. The outcomes of this paper support national and local energy efficiency policies and instruments while fostering better assessments and enabling local actions for tackling this problem.
“Double-hit” follicular lymphoma

![Figure][1] A 93-year-old woman presented with axillary lymphadenopathy. A biopsy showed lymphoid tissue with vaguely nodular architecture. Within the nodule, there was sheet of exclusive large centroblasts with few centrocytes in between (panels A-B; hematoxylin and eosin stain, original
Two-Phase, Generalized Case-Control Designs for the Study of Quantitative Longitudinal Outcomes

We propose a general class of 2-phase epidemiologic study designs for quantitative, longitudinal data that are useful when phase 1 longitudinal outcome and covariate data are available but data on the exposure (e.g., a biomarker) can only be collected on a subset of subjects during phase 2. To conduct a study using a design in the class, one first summarizes the longitudinal outcomes by fitting a simple linear regression of the response on a time-varying covariate for each subject. Sampling strata are defined by splitting the estimated regression intercept or slope distributions into distinct (low, medium, and high) regions. Stratified sampling is then conducted from strata defined by the intercepts, by the slopes, or from a mixture. In general, samples selected with extreme intercept values will yield low variances for associations of time-fixed exposures with the outcome and samples enriched with extreme slope values will yield low variances for associations of time-varying exposures with the outcome (including interactions with time-varying exposures). We describe ascertainment-corrected maximum likelihood and multiple-imputation estimation procedures that permit valid and efficient inferences. We embed all methodological developments within the framework of conducting a substudy that seeks to examine genetic associations with lung function among continuous smokers in the Lung Health Study (United States and Canada, 1986-1994).
High Power Density Medium-Voltage Megawatt-Scale Power Converter for Aviation Hybrid-Electric Propulsion Applications

Hybrid-electric propulsion is an enabling technology to make aircraft more fuel-efficient, quieter, and create lower carbon emissions. This paper presents a high power density medium-voltage (MV) megawatt-scale power converter based on a hybrid three-level active neutral-point-clamped (3L-ANPC) topology. To achieve high efficiency, the switching devices that operate at the carrier frequency are Silicon Carbide (SiC) Metal-Oxide Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistors (MOSFETs). Conventional Silicon (Si) Insulated-Gate Bipolar Transistors (IGBTs) switches operate at the fundamental output frequency. 2.4kV dc bus voltage was chosen to reduce system cable weight. The fundamental output frequency of the converter is 1.4kHz to drive a high speed motor The large fundamental frequency helps reduce system weight. Filters are designed to meet dv/dt limits on ac side and EMI specifications on dc side. Main hardware development and control modulation strategies are presented. Experimental results are included to verify the performance of this MW-scale power converter. The converter achieves a high efficiency of 99.1%, specific power density of higher than 18kVA/kg and high power density of 10MVA/m3.
Inflammasome expression is higher in ovarian tumors than in normal ovary

Chronic inflammation fundamentally influences cancer risk and development. A mechanism of chronic inflammation is the formation of inflammasome complexes which results in the sustained secretion of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL1β and IL18. Inflammasome expression and actions vary among cancers. There is no information on inflammasome expression in ovarian cancer (OvCa). To determine if ovarian tumors express inflammasome components, mRNA and protein expression of NLRP3 (nucleotide-binding domain, leucine-rich repeat family, pyrin domain containing 3), caspase-1, IL1β, and IL18 expression in hen and human OvCa was assessed. Chicken (hen) OvCa a valid model of spontaneous human OvCa. Hens were selected into study groups with or without tumors using ultrasonography; tumors were confirmed by histology, increased cellular proliferation, and expression of immune cell marker mRNA. mRNA expression was higher for hallmarks of inflammasome activity (caspase-1, 5.9x increase, p = 0.04; IL1β, 4x increase, p = 0.04; and IL18, 7.8x increase, p = 0.0003) in hen OvCa compared to normal ovary. NLRP3, caspase-8 and caspase-11 mRNA did not differ significantly between tumor and non-tumor containing ovaries. Similar results occurred for human OvCa. Protein expression by immunohistochemistry paralleled mRNA expression and was qualitatively higher in tumors. Increased protein expression of caspase-1, IL1β, and IL18 occurred in surface epithelium, tumor cells, and immune cells. The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR), a potential tumor suppressor and NLRP3 regulator, was higher in hen (2.4x increase, p = 0.002) and human tumors (1.8x increase, p = 0.038), suggesting a role in OvCa. Collectively, the results indicate that inflammasome expression is associated with hen and human OvCa, although the NLR sensor type remains to be determined.
Association of Cardiac Rehabilitation With Survival Among US Veterans

Importance Participation in cardiac rehabilitation (CR) programs at Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities is low. Most veterans receive CR through purchased care at non-VA programs. However, limited literature exists on the comparison of outcomes between VA and non-VA CR programs. Objective To compare 1-year mortality and 1-year readmission rates for myocardial infarction or coronary revascularization between VA vs non-VA CR participants. Design, Setting, and Participants This cohort study included 7320 patients hospitalized for myocardial infarction or coronary revascularization at the VA between 2010 and 2014 who did not die within 30 days of discharge and who participated in 2 or more CR sessions after discharge. The study excluded individuals hospitalized for ischemic heart disease after December 2014 when the VA Choice Act changed referral criteria for non-VA care. Data analysis was performed from November 2019 to January 2020. Exposures Participation in 2 or more CR sessions within 12 months of discharge at a VA or non-VA facility. Main Outcomes and Measures The 1-year all-cause mortality and 1-year readmission rates for myocardial infarction or coronary revascularization from date of discharge were compared between VA vs non-VA CR participants using Cox proportional hazards models with inverse probability treatment weighting. Results The 7320 veterans with ischemic heart disease who participated in CR programs had a mean (SD) age of 65.13 (8.17) years and were predominantly white (6005 patients [82.0%]), non-Hispanic (6642 patients [91.0%]), and male (7191 patients [98.2%]). Among these 7320 veterans, 2921 (39.9%) attended a VA facility, and 4399 (60.1%) attended a non-VA CR facility. Black and Hispanic veterans were more likely to attend CR programs at VA facilities (509 patients [17.4%] and 378 patients [12.9%], respectively), whereas white veterans were more likely to attend CR programs at non-VA facilities (3759 patients [85.5%]). After inverse probability treatment weighting, rates of 1-year mortality were 1.7% among VA CR participants vs 1.3% among non-VA CR participants (hazard ratio, 1.32; 95% CI, 0.90-1.94;P = .15). Rates of readmission for myocardial infarction or revascularization during the 12 months after discharge were 4.9% among VA CR participants vs 4.4% among non-VA CR participants (hazard ratio, 1.06; 95% CI, 0.83-1.35;P = .62). Conclusions and Relevance These findings suggest that rates of 1-year mortality and 1-year readmission for myocardial infarction or revascularization did not differ for participants in VA vs non-VA cardiac rehabilitation programs. Eligible patients with ischemic heart disease should participate in CR programs regardless of where they are provided.
Does RECIST-defined progression correlate with lack of further sunitinib (SU) benefit in advanced renal cell carcinoma (aRCC)?

e15093 Background: RECIST defined radiographic progression on SU may be confounded by the intermittent dosing schedule and scan timing. Response rates to second line agents are typically lower and ...
Chapter 4 - The Growth in Male Earnings Inequality, 1973–1988: The Role of Earnings Capacity and Utilization

Abstract Estimates of the increase in earnings inequality among males since the early 1970s are presented using several measures of inequality. The increase in earnings inequality for male workers is substantially less than that for all males of working age. The results indicate that the increase in male earnings inequality may have had less to do with changes in labor market opportunities than previous researchers have suggested and more to do with the choices of individuals regarding both work hours and wage rates. The concept of “earnings capacity” is employed in the analysis, and estimates are presented of the changes in inequality of both earnings capacity and the utilization of earnings capacity using data from the March 1974 and 1989 Current Population Surveys.
Impact of volcanic aerosol hemispheric symmetry on Sahel rainfall

The semi-arid African Sahel region is highly sensitive to changes in monsoon precipitation, as much of the region’s workforce is employed in the agricultural industry (Hamro-Drotz and Programme 2011). Thus, studying the response of rainfall and aridity in this region to radiative perturbations is a matter of pressing humanitarian relevance. In addition, there is evidence to suggest that spatially asymmetric volcanic aerosols produce different hydroclimatic responses based on their hemispheric symmetry, both globally and in the Sahel. We use two different climate models, GFDL’s FLOR model (Vecchi et al. in J Clim 27(21):7994–8016, 2014) and NCAR’s CESM 1.1 model (Otto-Bliesner et al. in Bull Am Meteorol Soc 97(5):735–754, 2016), to characterize the response of rainfall in the Sahel to large volcanic eruptions based on the meridional symmetry of the volcanic eruptions. We find that in both the FLOR experiments simulating three large twentieth century eruptions and in the CESM Last Millennium Ensemble simulations of 46 historic volcanic eruptions, asymmetric Northern Hemisphere cooling causes a subsequent drying response in the Sahel, and Southern Hemisphere cooling causes a wetting, or “greening” response. Symmetric volcanic eruptions have a relatively small effect on rainfall in the Sahel. We also find that the FLOR results show a consistent response in the annual rainfall cycle in the Sahel for all three of the eruptions analyzed, with a reduction in rainfall in early summer followed by an increased rainfall in late summer. The annual cycle response of rainfall in the Sahel from the CESM experiments is different, in that the SH eruptions cause a rainfall maximum in August, NH eruptions cause a rainfall minimum in September, and symmetric eruptions show a slight increase in August and a decrease in October. Our results highlight the need for accurate meridional structures in historic volcanic forcing data used for climate models as well as the need for further study on regional effects of hemispherically asymmetric radiative forcing, especially as they might pertain to aerosol geoengineering.
Joint work is not shifted proximally after a long run in rearfoot strike runners.

Distal-to-proximal redistribution of joint work occurs following exhaustive running in recreational but not competitive runners but the influence of a submaximal run on joint work is unknown. The p...
Distribution of rubber particles in the weld zone of fused filament fabricated acrylonitrile butadiene styrene and the impact on weld strength

Abstract Fused filament fabrication (FFF) is a common additive manufacturing method for polymers that has been widely adopted due to its low cost and ease of use. However, FFF remains limited in high performance applications due to the weak mechanical properties of the welds between printed fibers, including for parts manufactured from acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS). This study uses atomic force microscopy (AFM) to obtain high resolution nanomechanical maps of the distribution of butadiene particles around weld interfaces in FFF-ABS specimens. From quantitative image analysis, a decrease in the average size and density of the polybutadiene particles is observed within a 5–10 µm region across multiple welds. We find that the lack of craze-inducing polybutadiene particles within the weld zone promotes brittle fracture between printed fibers and results in a reduced weld strength as measured by trouser tear experiments. To improve the fracture toughness of FFF-ABS, methods to promote particle migration into the weld region during or after printing could be considered.
Differences in COVID-19 Testing and Test Positivity Among Veterans, United States, 2020.

ObjectiveCOVID-19 disproportionately affects racial/ethnic minority groups in the United States. We evaluated characteristics associated with obtaining a COVID-19 test from the Veterans Health Admi...
Development of a cortical delay discounting assay: a potential biomarker of externalizing disorders.

BACKGROUND People who tend to impulsively choose smaller, sooner rewards over larger, later rewards are at increased risk for addiction and psychiatric disorders. A neurobiological measure of the tendency to overvalue immediate gratification could facilitate the study of individuals who are susceptible to these mental disorders. The objective of this research was to develop a cortical assay of impulsive choice for immediate rewards. METHODS A cortex-based assay of impulsive choice was developed using 1105 healthy adults from the Human Connectome Project, and then cross-validated in two independent samples of adults with elevated rates of psychiatric disorders. RESULTS Study 1: Cortical delay discounting (C-DD) was developed using a multivariate additive model of gray matter thickness across both hemispheres. Higher C-DD corresponded to thinner cortex and greater impulsive choice for immediate rewards. It also predicted cannabis use beyond established risk factors for drug use, including familial substance use, childhood conduct problems, personality traits, and cognitive functioning. Study 2: C-DD replicated the association with delay discounting performance from study 1. Structural equation modeling showed C-DD covaried with symptoms of externalizing, but not internalizing disorders. Study 3: C-DD positively predicted future delay discounting behavior (6-34 months later). CONCLUSIONS Across three studies, a cortical assay of impulsive choice evidenced consistent associations with drug use and delay discounting task performance. It was also uniquely associated with psychiatric disorders that share impulsivity as a core feature. Together, findings support the utility of C-DD as a neurobiological assay of impulsive decision-making and a possible biomarker of externalizing disorders.
Longitudinal development of medical students' communication skills in interpreted encounters.

Objective: Describe longitudinal skill development of medical students for the interpreted encounter. Method: Two successive classes of students (n=92 and 100) participated in standardized clinical stations testing general communication skills and skills for working with interpreters at the end of their second year and after completing clinical clerkships during their third year. Performance was rated by standardized patients, interpreters and students using validated scales. Analysis: Analysis of individual matched paired data was performed for each scale item using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Pairwise correlation was used to compare global scores of the standardized patient and standardized interpreter with student self-ratings. Results: Over one year students' (n=124-168) performance worsened in behaviors for 'managing the encounter' (per interpreters' ratings) or remained unchanged (per patients' ratings). By patients' ratings, performance scores in general communication remained high. Students rated themselves as significantly improved in five of eight skills for working with interpreters despite a lack of external evidence of improvement from patient or interpreter. Students showed a trend toward underestimating their own global skills at baseline and overestimating them in comparison with the interpreters' global ratings. Discussion: Students' general communication skills remained excellent over one year of training but some skills for working with interpreters worsened. Over time students showed a pattern of overrating their own skills compared with trained observers. Faculty who teach students should focus on specific behaviors that are most likely to decay without reinforcement and practice.
Genomic Networks: Statistical Inference from Microarray Data

The huge amount of data provided by cDNA microarray measurements must be explored to answer fundamental questions about gene functions and their interdependence, and hopefully to provide answers to questions like what is the type of disease affecting the cells, or which genes have a strong influence on this disease? For given target genes, which genes have the strongest influences on them? Given a set of genes, how do they communicate with each other? The first question involves gene classification; the second question involves gene prediction; and the third question involves constructing genetic networks. In this article, we give a brief overview on modeling genetic networks and statistical inference of genetic networks based on microarray data. Keywords: Boolean networks; Bayesian networks; CDMA microarray; molecular biology; probabilistic Boolean networks; gene clustering; reversible-jump Markov chain Monte Carlo annealing
Peri‐operative assessment of right heart function: role of echocardiography

The right heart contributes significantly to overall cardiac function. Right ventricular (RV) haemodynamics and function have been defined to be physiologically different from the left ventricle, and yet independently associated with outcomes in a spectrum of conditions. In particular, RV function has been shown to influence prognosis of patients undergoing surgery. The assessment of right heart function during the intra-operative and immediate postoperative periods plays an important role in the clinical management of patients having surgery. While a number of techniques are available for the assessment of the right heart intra-operatively, echocardiography remains the prime choice being least invasive, relatively safe, readily accessible and cost-effective. Advancements in the field of echocardiographic have improved ability to assess right heart function. This review examines the role echocardiography and advances in this imaging modality in the assessment of right heart function within the peri-operative setting.
On the magnetic susceptibility of Kondo alloys

Abstract The impurity contribution to the magnetic susceptibility (χ) in Kondo alloy computed using the Bloomfield-Hamann solution for the t -matrix is in good qualitative agreement with recent experimental results.
Ciliary membrane differentiations in Tetrahymena pyriformis. Tetrahymena has four types of cilia.

We have examined thin sections and replicas of freeze-fractured cilia of Tetrahymena pyriformis. The ciliary necklace located at the base of all freeze-fractured oral and somatic cilia has been studied in thin sections. Since electron-dense linkers have been found to connect both microtubule doublets and triplets to the ciliary membrane at the level of the necklace, the linkers and the associated necklace seem to be related to the transition region between the doublets and triplets of a cilium. Plaque structures, consisting of small rectangular patches of particles located distal to the ciliary necklace, are found in strain GL, but are absent in other strains examined in this study. In freeze-cleaved material, additional structural differentiations are observed in the distal region of the ciliary membranes of somatic and oral cilia. Somatic cilia contain many randomly distributed particles within their membrane. Oral cilia can be divided into three categories on the basis of the morphology of their freeze-fractured membranes: (a) undifferentiated cilia with very few randomly distributed particles: (b) cilia with particles arranged in parallel longitudinal rows spaced at intervals of 810–1080 A that are located on one side of the cilium; and (c) cilia with patches of particles arranged in short rows oriented obliquely to the main axis of the cilium. The latter particles, found on one side of the cilium, seem to serve as attachment sites for bristles 375–750 A long and 100 A wide which extend into the surrounding medium. The particles with bristles are located at the tips of cilia in the outermost membranelle and may be used to detect food particles and/or to modify currents in the oral region so that food particles are propelled more efficiently into the buccal cavity. Examination of thin-sectioned material indicates that the particles in oral cilia which form the longitudinal rows could be linked to microtubule doublets. Linkage between microtubule doublets and adjacent membrane areas on one side of the cilium could modify the form of ciliary beat by restricting the sliding of the microtubules. It is suggested that membrane-microtubule interactions may form the basis for the various forms of ciliary beat observed in different organisms.
Extreme galaxies during reionization: testing ISM and disc models

We test the ability of equilibrium galactic disc and one-zone interstellarmedium (ISM)models to describe the physical and emission properties of quasar hosts, submillimetre galaxies, and Lyman a emitters at z≥6. The size, line widths, star formation rates, black hole accretion rates, gas masses and temperatures, and the relationships between these properties are all well described by our model, and we provide approximate fitting formulae for comparison with future observations. However, comparing our carbon line predictions to observations reveals differences between the ISM at low and high redshifts. Our underestimate of the [C II] line emission indicates either higher star formation efficiencies in high-redshift molecular clouds or less depletion of metals into dust at fixed metallicity. Further, our overprediction of the CO(6-5)/CO(1-0) ratio suggests that molecular clouds in real high-redshift galaxies have a lower turbulent Mach number and more subthermal CO(6-5) emission than expected owing either to sizes smaller than the local Jeans mass or to a pressure support mechanism other than turbulence © 2014 The Authors.
Acid and alkaline phosphomonoesterase activities in snake venoms

Abstract 1. 1. Acid and alkaline phosphatase activities of eight different snake venoms were determined quantitatively by using synthetic substrates, o -carboxyphenylphosphate and p -nitrophenylphosphate respectively. 2. 2. It was found that most of Elapidae venoms investigated had both acid and alkaline phosphatase activities. 3. 3. Three Crotalidae venoms investigated did not show any alkaline phosphatase activity. 4. 4. The strength of venom acid phosphatase activity is as follows: Agkistroden acutus > Naja haje > Naja naja samarensis > Naja naja atra > Naja melanoleuca. 5. 5. The strength of venom alkaline phosphatase activity by using p -nitrophenylphosphate is in the order of Naja hannah > Naja haje > Naja naja samarensis > Naja naja atra > Naja melanoleuca. When o -carboxyphenylphosphate was used as a substrate, the order of enzyme activity is Naja hannah > Naja haje > Naja naja samarensis > Naja melanoleuca > Naja naja atra. 6. 6. Acid phosphatase activity of all the Elapidae venoms was inhibited completely by fluoride. The alkaline phosphatase activity of Elapidae venoms was not inhibited by fluoride either using p -nitrophenylphosphate or o -carboxyphenylphosphate. 7. 7. The acid phosphatase of all the Elapidae venoms was not inhibited by zinc ion. However, most of the venom alkaline phosphatases were inhibited by zinc ion. 8. 8. Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) had inhibitory action on venom phosphatase activity. However, tris-(hydroxymethyl)-aminoethane had a counter effect on the inhibitory action of EDTA. 9. 9. Optimum pH studies of the snake venom phosphatases showed that the acid phosphatases of the snake venoms had their highest activity in the range of pH 4–5. The alkaline phosphatases of the snake venoms had their optimum pH at 9. 10. 10. Comparable experiments were also conducted by using chicken intestine alkaline phosphatase and wheat germ acid phosphatase.
Government Career Commitment and the Shaping of Work Environment Perceptions

This article examines government career commitment and its relation to perceptions of the work environment as well as reports of career decisions and behaviors. The results of a field survey of 385...
Shark: scaling file servers via cooperative caching

Network file systems offer a powerful, transparent interface for accessing remote data. Unfortunately, in current network file systems like NFS, clients fetch data from a central file server, inherently limiting the system's ability to scale to many clients. While recent distributed (peer-to-peer) systems have managed to eliminate this scalability bottleneck, they are often exceedingly complex and provide non-standard models for administration and accountability. We present Shark, a novel system that retains the best of both worlds--the scalability of distributed systems with the simplicity of central servers.Shark is a distributed file system designed for large-scale, wide-area deployment, while also providing a drop-in replacement for local-area file systems. Shark introduces a novel cooperative-caching mechanism, in which mutually-distrustful clients can exploit each others' file caches to reduce load on an origin file server. Using a distributed index, Shark clients find nearby copies of data, even when files originate from different servers. Performance results show that Shark can greatly reduce server load and improve client latency for read-heavy workloads both in the wide and local areas, while still remaining competitive for single clients in the local area. Thus, Shark enables modestly-provisioned file servers to scale to hundreds of read-mostly clients while retaining traditional usability, consistency, security, and accountability.
Do lego mindstorms robots have a future in CS education

Lego Mindstorms is an inexpensive robotics system consisting of a microprocessor brick, various sensors and motors, and numerous Lego pieces. It can be programmed in a variety of languages, including Java and C++. Since its initial release in 1996, dozens of papers have been written on its use in computer science education. In fact, a recent search for “MindStorms” in the ACM Digital Library produced 271 hits. Many of these papers describe its use, one way or another, in laboratory settings. Numerous workshops on its use in CS education have been held, attended by hundreds of faculty. Yet the platform’s adoption is not as widespread as this level of interest would suggest. In fact, some early adopters of MindStorms have come to feel that the platform is not all that well suited to CS education, or at least that its supposed benefits have not been proven.
Patterns of type VI collagen compared to types I, III and V collagen in human embryonic and fetal skin and in fetal skin-derived cell cultures

Abstract The distribution of type VI collagen was examined in human embryonic and fetal skin and in cultured cells and matrix from this tissue. Frozen sections were immunolabeled with primary antibodies against type VI collagen a types I, III or V collagen, and processed further for fluorescence microscopy and immunoelectron microscopy. At 6 weeks estimated gestational age (EGA), type VI collagen was identified by positive fluorescence and by immunogold staining of filaments and fibers beneath the dermal-epidermal junction (DEJ), weaker fluorescence in the fine matrix of the dermis, and stronger fluorescence in the subcutis. At progressive stages of gestation, immunolabeling for type VI collagen increased in the dermis in parallel with increased deposition of types I and III collagen. By 15 weeks EGA, type VI collagen stained intensely throughout the dermis. At 13 weeks EGA, type IV, type VI collagen appeared diminished from the growing tips of invaginating hair buds, but as the hair peg developed, type VI collagen accumulated in adnexal sheaths. Cell cultures were derived from fetal skin at 7.5 to 12 weeks EGA. In primary explant cultures containing both keratinocytes and fibroblasts, mats of type V collagen were present beneath keratinocytes and associated with dense spots that co-labeled for both type VI and type V collagen. In passaged cultures of fibroblasts, individual cells with or without pretreatment with monensin were positive for type VI and/or types I, III or V collagen. Fibrous matrix that was labeled for type VI collagen was also immunopositive for type I or III collagen, while filamentous matrix that was type VI collagen positive tender to exclude types I and III collagen but in some areas to overlap with type V collagen. These findings support the hypothesis that type VI collagen present in both filamentous and fibrous matrix and networks of type VI collagen may serve as a fine scaffolding that facilitates the integration of types I and III collagen into developing fibrous matrix.
Biochronology and paleoclimatic implications of Middle Eocene to Oligocene planktic foraminiferal faunas

Abstract Planktic foraminiferal assemblages have been analyzed quantitatively in six DSDP sites in the Atlantic (Site 363), Pacific (Sites 292, 77B, 277), and Indian Ocean (Sites 219, 253) in order to determine the nature of the faunal turnover during Middle Eocene to Oligocene time. Biostratigraphic ranges of taxa and abundance distributions of dominant species are presented and illustrate striking similarities in faunal assemblages of low latitude regions in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. A high resolution biochronology, based on dominant faunal characteristics and 55 datum events, permits correlation between all three oceans with a high degree of precision. Population studies provide a view of the global impact of the paleoclimatic and paleoceanographic changes occurring during Middle Eocene to Oligocene time. Planktic foraminiferal assemblage changes indicate a general cooling trend between Middle Eocene to Oligocene time, consistent with previously published oxygen isotope data. Major faunal changes, indicating cooling episodes, occur, however, at discrete intervals: in the Middle Eocene 44-43 Ma (P13), the Middle/Late Eocene boundary 41-40 Ma ( P14 P15 ), the Late Eocene 39-38 Ma ( P15 P16 ), the Eocene/Oligocene boundary 37-36 Ma (P18), and the Late Oligocene 31-29 Ma ( P20 P21 ). With the exception of the E 0 boundary, faunal changes occur abruptly during short stratigraphic intervals, and are characterized by major species extinctions and first appearances. The Eocene/Oligocene boundary cooling is marked primarily by increasing abundances of cool water species. This suggests that the E 0 boundary cooling, which marks a major event in the oxygen isotope record affected planktic faunas less than during other cooling episodes. Planktic foraminiferal faunas indicate that the E 0 boundary event is part of a continued cooling trend which began during the Middle Eocene. Two hiatus intervals are recognized in low and high latitude sections at the Middle/Late Eocene boundary and in the Late Eocene ( P15 P16 ). These hiatuses suggest that vigorous bottom water circulation began developing in the Middle Eocene, consistent with the onset of the faunal cooling trend, and well before the development of the psychrosphere at the E 0 boundary.
Diffraction studies of the structure of amorphous and nanocrystalline metals and alloys: a review

Abstract Amorphous and nanocrystalline materials exhibit broad or diffuse peaks in their X-ray, neutron, or electron diffraction patterns. A detailed analysis of these patterns permits evaluation of the topological and chemical short-range order in amorphous materials, the size of the coherently diffracting domains (particle size), the elastic strains within these domains, and the dynamic and static atomic displacements in nanocrystalline materials. Metallic, ceramic, and semiconducting materials can be produced in the amorphous state and in the nanocrystalline form by various techniques. Amorphous metallic alloys have been prepared by rapid quenching from the vapor and liquid phases, by electron, proton or ion irradiation, by solid state reactions in multilayer films, and by mechanical alloying and mechanical working in high-energy ball mills. The term nanocrystalline metal has been introduced to describe compacted samples of metallic particles, clusters of particles, or grains of nanometer size, produced by quenching metallic vapor into an inert gas, by precipitation from chemical solutions,and by mechanical grinding of micron-size particles. As examples of metallic glasses, the structures of vapor-quenched CoGd alloys, liquid-quenched BeTiZr alloys and mechanically alloyed WFe alloys are discussed. The structure of nanocrystalline metal powders of NiAl and W(Fe), produced by mechanical grinding in a high-energy ball-mill, is described in terms of particle size and strains, determined from the broadening of the powder pattern peaks, and from the analysis of the atomic distribution functions.
Therapeutic hypothermia after cardiac arrest: performance characteristics and safety of surface cooling with or without endovascular cooling.

Introduction Various methods are available to induce and maintain therapeutic hypothermia after cardiac arrest, but little data is available comparing device-mediated cooling to simple surface methods in this setting.
Place Disparities in Supportive Environments for Extracurricular Physical Activity in North Carolina Middle Schools

Disadvantaged rural youth may be especially at risk for obesity and poorer health due to physical inactivity. Research suggests that extracurricular school programs can increase physical activity for this population. This study sought to determine whether local differences existed in the availability of supportive environments for extracurricular physical activity in North Carolina middle schools. Multiple data sources, including a self-administered questionnaire to personnel at 325 schools were integrated. Multilevel models were estimated using a composite index for supportive environments as the dependent variable and school compositional factors, economic resources, and community social factors as explanatory variables. Study findings suggested adolescents living in socioeconomically deprived rural areas had fewer environmental resources for extracurricular physical activity. Rural schools in poor areas of the state with high racial heterogeneity demonstrated the lowest environmental support. Reduced a...
Empirical rate-distortion study of compressive sensing-based joint source-channel coding

In this paper, we present an empirical rate-distortion study of a communication scheme that uses compressive sensing (CS) as joint source-channel coding. We investigate the rate-distortion behavior of both point-to-point and distributed cases.
Adaptive orthogonalization of opponent-color signals

This paper concerns the processing of the outputs of the two opponent-color mechanisms in the human visual system. We present experimental evidence that opponent-color signals interact after joint modulation even though they are essentially independent under neutral steady adaptation and after exclusive modulation of each mechanism. In addition, prolonged modulation linearizes the response function of each mechanism. The changes in interaction serve to orthogonalize opponent signals with respect to the adapting modulation, and the changes in response functions serve to equalize the relative frequencies of different levels of response to the adapting modulation. Adaptive orthogonalization reduces sensitivity to the adapting color direction, improves sensitivity to the orthogonal direction, and predicts shifts in color appearance. Response equalization enhances effective contrast and explains the difference between the effects of adaptation to uniform versus temporally or spatially modulated stimuli.
CHOLESTASIS IS THE RESULT OF HYPOACTIVE HYPERTROPHIC SMOOTH ENDOPLASMIC RETICULUM IN THE HEPATOCYTE

Abstract Cholestasis is tentatively explained as a hepatocellular process with impaired micellar secretion of bile-salts; this accounts for the light and electron microscopic changes in this condition. Excess monohydroxy bile-acids result from a hypertrophic endoplasmic reticulum in the hepatocytes with enhanced synthesis of cholesterol, the precursor of the bile-salts. Reduced enzyme activity of this hypertrophic endoplasmic reticulum accounts for impaired ring hydroxylation of cholesterol in the formation of bile-salts. Cholestasis by itself aggravates cholestasis by influencing the smooth endoplasmic reticulum, thus creating a vicious cycle. Continued secretion of organic anions other than bile-salts and reabsorption through ductules altered by cholestasis result in a ductular-hepatocellular circulation which also aggravates the cholestasis and ultimately produces intrahepatic obstruction. Confirmation of this hypothesis would strengthen the concept, primarily based on morphological observations, that cholestasis results from specific injury to the hepatocyte.