cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Environmental effects on acute exacerbations of respiratory diseases: A real-world big data study

Abstract Background The effects of weather periods, race/ethnicity, and sex on environmental triggers for respiratory exacerbations are not well understood. This study linked the OneFlorida network (~15 million patients) with an external exposome database to analyze environmental triggers for asthma, bronchitis, and COPD exacerbations while accounting for seasonality, sex, and race/ethnicity. Methods This is a case-crossover study of OneFlorida database from 2012 to 2017 examining associations of asthma, bronchitis, and COPD exacerbations with exposures to heat index, PM 2.5 and O 3. We spatiotemporally linked exposures using patients' residential addresses to generate average exposures during hazard and control periods, with each case serving as its own control. We considered age, sex, race/ethnicity, and neighborhood deprivation index as potential effect modifiers in conditional logistic regression models. Results A total of 1,148,506 exacerbations among 533,446 patients were included. Across all three conditions, hotter heat indices conferred increasing exacerbation odds, except during November to March, where the opposite was seen. There were significant differences when stratified by race/ethnicity (e.g., for asthma in April, May, and October, heat index quartile 4, odds were 1.49 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.42–1.57) for Non-Hispanic Blacks and 2.04 (95% CI 1.92–2.17) for Hispanics compared to 1.27 (95% CI 1.19–1.36) for Non-Hispanic Whites). Pediatric patients' odds of asthma and bronchitis exacerbations were significantly lower than adults in certain circumstances (e.g., for asthma during June – September, pediatric odds 0.71 (95% CI 0.68-0.74) and adult odds 0.82 (95% CI 0.79-0.85) for the highest quartile of PM 2.5). Conclusion This study of acute exacerbations of asthma, bronchitis, and COPD found exacerbation risk after exposure to heat index, PM 2.5 and O 3 varies by weather period, age, and race/ethnicity. Future work can build upon these results to alert vulnerable populations to exacerbation triggers.
Formalisms for Non-Formal Languages

In recent decades computer scientists, linguists, and philosophers converged on offering what are called formal representations of natural languages. In this essay I wish to go back to some earlier work that Dov Gabbay and I did in cooperation, show its significance, and tie it to more recent work that I did on lexical semantics, showing that the early joint work and the recent lexical theory of mine are not only compatible but supplement each other. At the end I wish to make some general remarks about the future of formal representations of natural languages, and propose a way in which such representations can tie in with work in artificial intelligence, provided that we give the latter notion a reinterpretation.
Latino Immigrants and their Perceptions of Religious Institutions: Cubans, Salvadorans and Guatemalans in Phoenix, Arizona

Basado en trabajo de campo cualitativo y entrevistas con 54 inmigrantes, este articulo compara el lugar que ocupan las instituciones religiosas en las vidas de los inmigrantes guatemaltecos, salvadorenos y cubanos en Phoenix, Arizona. La iglesia siempre ha ocupado un lugar destacado en las vidas de los inmigrantes, pero no todos —ni siquiera todos los latinos— comparten las mismas visiones y experiencias. Las diferencias mas notables se presentan entre los cubanos, por un lado, y los salvadorenos y guatemaltecos, por otro. Este ensayo muestraque para los inmigrantes el lugar de las instituciones religiosas y sus actividades estan intimamente ligados a los contextos de salida en sus paises de origen y de destino en los Estados Unidos. ABSTRACT Based on qualitative fieldwork and interviews with 54 immigrants, this article compares the place that religious institutions occupy in the lives of Guatemalan, Salvadoran, and Cuban immigrants in Phoenix, Arizona. The church has always occupied a prominent place in the lives of immigrants, but not all groups —not even all Latinos— share the same views or experiences. The sharpest differences are between the Cubans, on the one hand, and the Salvadorans and Guatemalans, on the other. This article demonstrates that, for immigrants, the place of religious institutions and their activities are intimately linked to the broader contexts of exit from their countries of origin and arrival in the United States.
Properties of the single sulfhydryl group of streptococcal proteinase. A comparison of the rates of alkylation by chloroacetic acid and chloroacetamide.

In order to investigate the nucleophilic reactivity of the single sulfhydryl group of streptococcal proteinase, the rates of alkylation of this group by chloroacetic acid and chloroacetamide have been studied. The pH dependence of rate constants for alkylation by these two reagents, one anionic and one neutral, were compared with each other and with the pH dependence of rate constants for alkylation of the sulfhydryl of reduced glutathione by the same reagents. The pK of the sulfhydryl group of the enzyme is almost certainly higher than 8.0. The protein sulfhydryl group is 50 to 100 times as reactive as the sulfhydryl in glutathione. The curve of k2 with respect to pH is sigmoid when the protein is alkylated by chloroacetamide and bell-shaped when chloroacetic acid is the alkylating agent. Both reactions lead solely to the formation of the corresponding S-substituted cysteine derivative. The rate curves with respect to pH for the alkylation of reduced glutathione by the two reagents do not show such disparities. The data suggest that the immediate environment of the unusually reactive sulfhydryl group of the enzyme changes from a positive one at pH 4 to a negative one at pH 10. These results show that the ionic environment of the sulfhydryl group in the protein is very complex.
Examining the Relationship between Life Expectancy, Reproduction, and Educational Attainment

Life history theory aims to explain the relationship between life events, recognizing that the fertility and growth schedules of organisms are dependent on environmental conditions and an organism’s ability to extract resources from its environment. Using models from life history theory, we predict life expectancy to be positively correlated with educational investments and negatively correlated with adolescent reproduction and total fertility rates. Analyses of UN data from 193 countries support these predictions and demonstrate that, although variation is evident across world regions, strong interactions exist among life expectancy, reproductive investments, and educational attainment, and these relationships occur independently of economic pressures and disease burdens. The interactions are strongest, however, in countries with a life expectancy of ≥60 years as these countries tend to have stable economies and a limited HIV/AIDS burden. These findings suggest that policies aimed at influencing education and reproductive decisions should consider environmental characteristics that drive people’s expectations about their longevity.
When Size Matters: The Case of Equity Index Futures

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange introduced E-mini S&P 500 index futures in September 1997, and E-mini Nasdaq 100 index futures in June 1999. This paper empirically examines the effects from the introduction of the E-mini futures contracts on the market quality of the original S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 index futures markets. The analysis is performed in a structural model framework, using bid-ask spreads, trading volume, and price volatility as measurements of market quality. We also evaluate, by using trader-size distribution data and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's Commitments of Traders reports, whether the introduction of E-mini contracts has achieved their intended goal of attracting smaller investors. Finally, we evaluate any differences in the types of traders who use the E-mini futures contracts versus the original equity index futures contracts. Our empirical results suggest that two measurements of market quality of the original equity index futures (bid-ask spreads and trading volume) have not been negatively impacted, but one other measurement (price volatility) has increased, following the introduction of the E-mini equity index futures. Our empirical results also suggest that the E-mini index futures contracts have successfully attracted smaller investors to the equity index futures markets. In particular, 70 percent of all E-mini contracts traded are in single-contract units, and 95 percent are in units of less than five contracts (that is, less than the dollar value of a single original equity index futures contract). Furthermore, we found that a portion of the new, smaller traders in the E-mini equity index futures markets consists of day traders.
Genetic admixture is associated with plasma hemostatic factor levels in self-identified African Americans and Hispanics: the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

Summary. Background: Epidemiologic studies report that self-identified African Americans typically have higher hemostatic factor levels than do self-identified Caucasians or Hispanics.Objective: To enhance understanding of phenotypic variation in hemostatic factor levels by race/ethnicity, we evaluated the relationship between genetic ancestry and hemostatic factor levels among Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) study participants.Patients/methods: Our sample included 712 African American and 701 Hispanic men and women aged 45 to 84 years. Individual global ancestry was estimated from 199 genetic markers using STRUCTURE. Linear regression models were used to evaluate the relationship between ancestry and hemostatic factor levels, adjusting for age, gender, education, income and study site.Results: Among African Americans, mean ± standard deviation (SD) ancestry was estimated as 79.9% ± 15.9% African and 20.1% ± 15.9% European. Each SD (16%) greater African ancestry was associated with 2.1% higher fibrinogen levels (P = 0.007) and 3.5% higher plasmin–antiplasmin (PAP) levels (P = 0.02). Ancestry among African Americans was not related to levels of factor (F)VIII or D-dimer. Mean ± SD estimated ancestry among Hispanics was 48.3% ± 23.8% Native American, 38.8% ± 21.9% European, and 13.0% ± 8.9% African. In Hispanics, each SD (19%) greater African ancestry was associated with 2.7% higher fibrinogen levels (P = 0.009) and 7.9% higher FVIII levels (P = 0.0002). In Hispanics, there was no relation between African ancestry and D-dimer or PAP levels, or between European ancestry and hemostatic factor levels.Conclusions: Greater African ancestry among African Americans and Hispanics was associated with higher levels of several hemostatic factors, notably fibrinogen. These results suggest that genetic heterogeneity contributes, albeit modestly, to racial/ethnic differences in hemostatic factor levels.
$\mathscr{H}$-Space with a Cosmological Constant

It is demonstrated that a real-analytic 3-manifold with Riemannian conformal metric is naturally the conformal infinity of a germ-unique real-analytic 4-manifold with real-analytic Riemannian metric satisfying the self-dual Einstein equations with cosmological constant — 1. Moreover, this result holds if ‘Riemannian’ is replaced in the first case by ‘Lorentzian’ (i. e. signature + - - ) and in the second case by ‘pseudo-Riemannian with signature + + - - ’, or if ‘real-analytic’ is replaced by ‘complex-analytic’ and 9Riemannian’ is replaced by ‘holomorphic’. This provides a cosmological-constant analogue of Newman’s ℋ-space construction (Newman 1976, 1977).
TRACKS: Musings on Post-Enron Reforms

In the aftermath of one of the worst financial and accounting scandals, the SEC and other regulatory bodies have initiated a flurry of reforms designed to improve corporate governance and to hopefully deter future abuses. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOA) has imposed harsher penalties on errant directors and officers and significantly enhanced the role and responsibility of audit committees and independent directors. But the suggested reforms so far have failed to address the major problem that still besets corporate America today. Namely, the agency costs of managing corporations: CEOs, CFOs, and other directors and officers serve their entrenched—insular interest to the detriment of shareholders. In this article, we intend to survey the landscape of the recent suggested reforms, especially as they relate to accounting and audit failures, and evaluate their effectiveness in terms of their ability to alleviate the agency cost of conducting business. We will also offer a proposed reform which we believe...
Common File Formats

An overview of the many file formats commonly used in bioinformatics and genome sequence analysis is presented, including various data file formats, alignment file formats, and annotation file formats. Example workflows illustrate how some of the different file types are typically used.
Empowering Students to Improve Their College Admission Test Scores

It is generally believed that a student's college admission test scores can influence his or her acceptance at a particular college or university. Parental concerns about the future careers and earnings of their offspring have also resulted in increased pressure on today's high school juniors and seniors to score well on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) in order to have a better chance at that bright future. In what follows, the author reviews the research on the effectiveness of test preparation and commercial coaching programs for the purpose of improving college admission test scores. Emphasis will be placed on studies that focus on improving SAT scores. Educational Testing Service (ETS), the publisher of the SAT, did not recognize coaching as a means of increasing scores in the descriptive materials of the SAT until 1980-1981. That year a statement on coaching stated that such programs produced only minor gains of 10 points or less on the SAT-Verbal (SAT-V) and 15 points or less on the SAT-Mathematics (SAT-M). Now the ETS has abandoned its opposition to coaching and advises students to prepare for the SAT. And the College Board, the association of 2,600 colleges that use the SAT in admission of students, is now selling computer software on preparing for the SAT. There are, in theory, at least three ways to improve test scores: (1) genuine improvements in the abilities measured by the test, resulting in increases in test scores; (2) decreased anxiety, increased familiarity with format, pacing, and so forth, resulting in increased test scores that are more accurate assessments of ability; and (3) heightened test-taking skill (stratagems and answer-selection tricks), resulting in increased test scores that result in an inflated assessment of one's actual ability.
Inference from models of software systems

The inferences which can validly be drawn about a software system based on reasoning about a model of the system depend on the precise relationship between the system and the model. Formal properties of a variety of such modeling relationships are examined, particularly relationships in which, if a given computation is possible in the system, the corresponding computations (if any) are also possible in the model. Therefore, if a particular (perhaps undesirable) computation is not possible in the model, no corresponding computation is possible in the original system. Inferences like these can be used to show, for example, that a particular error is absent from the original system if it is not manifested in the model. It is shown that many modeling techniques that are intuitively rather natural and easy to describe are of this kind.
Relativistic calculation of atomic X-ray transition rates

The fully relativistic transition probabilities in atomic X-ray emission are calculated for a wide range of selected elements of the periodic table, fromZ=21 toZ=93. The treatment includes the effect of the retardation of the radiation field. The atomic model used is the self-consistent relativistic Hartree-Fock, with the Slater approximation for the exchange term. The formulas for EL and ML multipole transition rates are derived, and transition rates are calculated for all transitions to theK-shell,L-subshells, andM-subshells. The contributions of all multipoles, as determined by the angular momentum and parity selection rules, are included in the present work. The calculated values of (Kα2/Kα1), (Kβ1/Kα1), (Kβ3/Kβ1) and (Kβ2Kβ1) transition rates are in good agreement with the available experimental data. Rates for the forbidden (M1) 2s1/2→1s1/2 transitions are also presented.
Connective tissue disease and silicosis

Background: To determine the prevalence of connective tissue disease in a cohort of individuals with silicosis, we reviewed the medical records and questionnaires from individuals reported from 1987 to 1995 to a state surveillance system for silicosis. Reporting of individuals with silicosis is required by state law. Cases were reported by hospitals, physicians, the state workers' compensation bureau, or from death certificates. Only individuals who met the criteria for silicosis developed by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) were included in the analysis. Results: A questionnaire was completed for all 583 cases. Medical records were available for 463. There were 24 people with rheumatoid arthritis, one with scleroderma, and one with systemic lupus erythematosus. All were men. The prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis was 5.2% (relative risk (RR) 2.73, 95% confidence limit (CL) 1.75–4.06). The prevalence of scleroderma was 0.2% (RR 15.65, 95% CL 0.21–87.03) and the prevalence of systemic lupus erythematosus was 0.2% (RR 11.37, 95% CL 0.15–63.23). This is an approximately 2.5–15-fold increased risk for these connective tissue diseases compared to estimated prevalences in the general population. Individuals with silicosis and connective tissue disease did not differ from individuals with silicosis but without connective tissue disease by race, age, type of industry where exposed to silica, history of tuberculosis, whether or not they had applied for workers' compensation, and whether or not they had progressive massive fibrosis on chest x-ray. Conclusion: Although the association between scleroderma and silicosis has been more widely reported in the literature, the prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis was greater than the prevalence of scleroderma or systemic lupus erythematosus among a cohort of individuals with silicosis. Am. J. Ind. Med. 35:375–381, 1999. © 1999 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
A Small-Angle Neutron Scattering Study of Water in Carbon Dioxide Microemulsions

Phase behavior and small angle neutron scattering (SANS) experiments were performed on mixtures of D2O/CO2/ammonium carboxylate perfluoropolyether (PFPE) surfactant as a function of pressure (192−287 bar) and D2O composition (0.8−2.0 wt %) at 35 °C. SANS measurements provided direct evidence of water-swollen inverted micelles in CO2. At a constant PFPE concentration of 2.1 wt % in CO2, the microemulsion core radius increased from 20 to 36 A as the D2O concentration increased from 0.8 to 2.0 wt %. For a constant water concentration, parameters extracted from model fits of the SANS spectra indicated that as the phase boundary was approached on reducing pressure, micellar structure remained essentially unchanged, while critical fluctuations increased.
Economic modelling by lump algebras

The elements of an economic entity are written in vector form, the exchanges are expressed by matrices. By generalizing the Leontieff matrices the exchanges are represented by transform matrices in a way similar to chemical reactions. The model is then used to represent the merger of entities, thus introducing a scator structure.
Transient Failures in Triple Modular Redundancy Systems with Sequential Modules

The effects of transient failures in sequential modules in systems using triple modular redundancy (TMR) cannot be neglected. A transient may place a sequential machine in an erroneous state, and the state may remain erroneous long after the transient has disappeared. We show that the state of a sequential machine can be restored after a transient if and only if the machine has a synchronizing sequence. If synchronizing sequences occur periodically during normal operation of the system, then multiple transients spaced out in time can be tolerated. System structures that have synchronizing sequences are discussed.
Decay of messenger RNA from the tryptophan operon of Escherichia coli as a function of growth temperature

The temperature coefficients for functional decay and chemical loss of the proximal and distal parts of the polycistronic messenger RNA of the trp operon are similar in the range of growth temperatures between 10 ° and 37 °C.
1722 PHOSPHOLIPID PRODUCTION IN FETAL LUNG CELL CULTURE PREPARATIONS

Top of pageAbstract Type-II (T-II) pneumocytes from 27 day fetal rabbit lungs were grown in an organotypic system (OS) and used to study phospholipid (PL) synthesis. Organotypic preparations were also used as a means for isolating purified T-II cells as well as lung fibroblasts. The PL synthetic properties of the various culture preparations were studied using palmitate, choline and acetate as precursors. In all cultures, excepting fibroblasts, saturated phosphatidylcholine (SPC) was a major PL product. The molar incorporation rate into PL for the substrates studied was: palmitate > choline > acetate. The proportion of these substrates incorporated into SPC versus total phosphatidylcholine (PC) differed between OS and monolayer cultures. In the OS the order of substrate incorporation into SPC as a percent of total PC formed, was acetate > choline > palmitate, whereas in T-II cultures the order was choline > acetate > palmitate. Among the culture preparations examined, the greatest similarity was found between the OS and the mixed fibroblast/T-II preparations. In this regard it was observed that a mixed culture of fibroblasts and T-II cells produced larger proportions of SPC and other surfaceactive PL than isolated T-II cells. From these observations it appears that the OS is a useful model for examining surfactant PL synthesis of T-II cells, and furthermore, may serve as an effective system for the isolation and study of T-II pneumocytes.
The Provincial: Calvin Coolidge and His World, 1885-1895

Tracing Coolidge's life from his thirteenth birthday until his graduation from Amherst College ten years later, this work outlines the education of a reluctant young man from rural Vermont.
Multidimensional oversampled filter banks

We present the characterization and design of multidimensional oversampled FIR filter banks. In the polyphase domain, the perfect reconstruction condition for an oversampled filter bank amounts to the invertibility of the analysis polyphase matrix, which is a rectangular FIR matrix. For a nonsubsampled FIR filter bank, its analysis polyphase matrix is the FIR vector of analysis filters. A major challenge is how to extend algebraic geometry techniques, which only deal with polynomials (that is, causal filters), to handle general FIR filters. We propose a novel method to map the FIR representation of the nonsubsampled filter bank into a polynomial one by simply introducing a new variable. Using algebraic geometry and Groebner bases, we propose the existence, computation, and characterization of FIR synthesis filters given FIR analysis filters. We explore the design problem of MD nonsubsampled FIR filter banks by a mapping approach. Finally, we extend these results to general oversampled FIR filter banks.
Creating an Introductory Video Library to Set the Simulation Stage

Faculty in the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at Case Western Reserve University created a series of brief videos to introduce their simulation experiences. Rather than simply reading a case study to students, faculty use the introductory videos to bring to life the clinical scenario and provide students with a visual introduction to each simulation activity. Every clinical course is paired with a unique and clinically focused simulation throughout all 4 years of the baccalaureate curriculum. The goal of this learning strategy is to heighten the realism of simulation experiences by visually introducing students to their simulated patient. The faculty’s aim is for students to feel immersed and present in the simulated clinical setting and to be prepared to deliver effective care to their patients. A series of videos, each 5 minutes in length, introduce baccalaureate nursing students to a variety of simulated clinical experiences in the learning resource center. The case studies used in the simulation experiences provide structure and guidance for developing the content for the introductory videos. Faculty, graduate teaching assistants, and undergraduate nursing students portray the various patients and members of the health care team in actual hospital settings. Simulation topics include comfort care and communication; physical assessment: dizziness and shortness of breath; confusion and lethargy; nausea, vomiting, and severe abdominal pain; pediatric trauma; labor support; pyloric stenosis; and cardiac dysrhythmias. The roles, script, and props are carefully chosen to correspond with objectives from clinical simulations used throughout all 4 levels of the baccalaureate curriculum. Faculty, students, and graduate teaching assistants are
Hair Follicle Biology and Topical Minoxidil: Possible Mechanisms of Action

The mechanism by which minoxidil, whether given orally or applied topically, stimulates hair growth remains undetermined. Possible indirect drug action, such as vasodilatation and increased blood flow to the dermal papilla, or possible local irritation related to minoxidil or to one or more components of the vehicle used for topical application has been suggested. Possible sites of direct drug action include either the dermal papilla of the follicle or hair matrix cells or possibly both. Morphometric studies of control scalp biopsies taken from young male patients with androgenetic alopecia reveal that the primary morphologic event in androgenetic alopecia is miniaturization of terminal hair follicles. Shortening and diminution of follicle size is undoubtedly accompanied by shortening of the hair growth cycle (decreased anagen time). Morphometric evaluation of scalp biopsies of patients receiving topical minoxidil in a vehicle composed of propylene glycol, water and ethanol has revealed growth of larger normally formed follicles when compared with pretreatment biopsies from the same individual. There has been no suggestion in any morphologic studies of minoxidil-treated patients for development of new follicles (follicular neogenesis). Because the dermal papilla of the hair follicle apparently controls both growth and differentiation of hair matrix cells and because there are no observable dysplastic or atypical changes in follicular germinal epithelium during or after application of topical minoxidil, it is concluded that the most probable site for the action of minoxidil is on the specialized mesenchymal cells of the follicular dermal papilla.
Anxiety in the “Age of Hypertension”

In the USA, hypertension affects one in three adults, and anxiety disorders are the most commonly diagnosed mental health disorders. Both hypertension and anxiety have been studied extensively. Yet, a full understanding of anxiety’s relationship to hypertension has been elusive. In this review, we discuss the spectrum of anxiety disorders. In addition, we consider the evidence for acute and long-term effects of anxiety on blood pressure. We review the effect on blood pressure of several “real-world” stressors, such as natural disasters. In addition, we review the effect of anxiety treatments on blood pressure. We explain the American Heart Association’s recent recommendations regarding meditation and other relaxation methods in the management of hypertension. We conclude that novel research methods are needed in order to better elucidate many aspects of how anxiety relates to hypertension.
Circulatory responses to laryngoscopy: the comparative effects of placebo, fentanyl and esmolol.

The circulatory response to a 30-second laryngoscopy followed by orotracheal intubation was recorded in 60 patients of ASA physical status 11I or IV undergoing a variety of non-cardiac surgical procedares. Patients were randomly allocated to either the placebo, esmolol (500 ktg . kg -l . min - j  6 minutes, followed by 3001.~g'kg-i'min -t  9 minutes), or fentanyl (0.8 l.tg.kg -t .min -~ x 10 minutes) group, and the observer was blinded to the infusion administered. Esmolol blunted the heart rate (HR) response, while fentanyl decreased it below the baseline and maintained it there, in spite of laryngoscopy. Similarly, fentanyl decreased the systolic (SBP), mean (MBP) and diastolic blood pressures (DBP) significantly below the baseline, while these pressures were either retained at or elevated slightly above control in the esmolol group. In these doses, the HR response to laryngoscopy was more effectively blocked by fentanyl, while esmolol better retained perfusion pressure. There were no complications or ischaemic electrocardiographic changes in any patient.
The JPL proton fluence model: An update

The development of new technologies and the miniaturization of sensors bring new requirements for our ability to predict and forecast hazardous space weather conditions.
Design of optical imaging systems using freeform surfaces

Conventional design of imaging systems applies rules for low order aberration correction followed by numerical optimization. A different approach is shown that develops freeform surfaces directly to satisfy fundamental relations that underlie image formation.
Safety and effectiveness of ticarcillin plus clavulanic acid in the treatment of community-acquired acute pyelonephritis in adult women

Abstract An open study was conducted to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of ticarcillin plus clavulanic acid in the treatment of 18 adult women with community-acquired Escherichia coil acute pyelonephritis. Eleven of the 18 patients had a history of urinary tract infections, primarily acute pyelonephritis. Six patients had blood culture results positive for E. coli in addition to positive urine culture results. Ticarcillin plus clavulanic acid was administered as the 3.2 g formulation to 11 patients and as the 3.1 g formulation to the other seven. The mean duration of treatment was 9.2 days. Five of the 18 (28 percent) patients had clinical and bacteriologic cures; there were 11 (69 percent) relapses or reinfections and two (11 percent) clinical failures. Adverse reactions (all reversible) were reported in 11 (61 percent) patients, the most frequent of which was phlebitis. These results should prompt further investigation into the treatment of acute pyelonephritis with ticarcillin plus clavulanic acid versus other antibiotics.
The effect of apamin, a small conductance calcium activated potassium (SK) channel blocker, on a mouse model of neurofibromatosis 1.

Abstract Neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1) is a common genetic disorder known to cause a variety of physiological symptoms such as the formation of both benign and malignant tumors, and is also known to cause visuospatial learning deficits. Mouse models of NF1 show increased GTP activation of ras which may alter K+ channels. One candidate K+ channel that may contribute to deficits in NF1 is the SK (small conductance calcium-activated potassium) channel due to its role in regulation of long term potentiation (LTP), a mechanism of learning which has been shown to be impaired in Nf1+/− mice. We found that administration of apamin (SK antagonist) either through i.p. injection or micro-osmotic pump to Nf1+/− mice significantly improved performance on the water maze task in comparison to saline treated Nf1+/− mice on the third day of training and on the corresponding probe test. In this study we demonstrate a possible mechanism for the learning deficits seen in Nf1+/− mice and a possible drug therapy for rescuing these deficits.
Preparation and electrochemical properties of carbon nanofibers derived from polybenzimidazole/polyimide precursor blends

Abstract Carbon nanofibers (CNFs) were fabricated by thermal treatment of electrospun nanofibers obtained from precursor blends of polybenzimidazole (PBI) and Matrimid®. The microcarbon structures of CNFs obtained from PBI, and the 50:50 and 75:25 blends were studied using XRD and Raman spectra. Nitrogen adsorption/desorption measurements revealed that surface area and porosity of CNFs increased with an increase in Matrimid® content. Electrochemical performance of these CNF electrodes was studied for their application in energy storage devices. The CNFs from the PBI/Matrimid® (75:25)-precursor blend showed the lowest electrochemical impedance, and highest specific capacitance (111 F/g) and energy and power densities of 24 and 6 kW/kg, respectively. Steam activation and annealing further enhanced the performance resulting in a specific capacitance of 126 F/g, and energy and power densities of 49 and 7 kW/kg, respectively.
N × N coupled waveguide switch

A general N × N coupled planar waveguide array operating as a switch is examined, in which an input to any channel can be transferred to any other guide. One, and only one, choice of coupling parameters and detuning parameters achieves switching from one guide to a specified other guide. Therefore, an N × N waveguide switch requires independent control of coupling parameters and detuning parameters and may be difficult to realize in practice.
The Evolution of the Vahlkampfiidae as Deduced from 16S‐like Ribosomal RNA Analysis

The amoebae, a phenotypically diverse, paraphyletic group of protists, have been largely neglected by molecular phylogeneticists. To better understand the evolution of amoebae, we sequenced and analyzed the 16S-like ribosomal RNA genes of three vahlkampfiid amoebae: Paratetramitus jugosus, Tetramitus rostratus and Vahlkampfia lobospinosa. The Vahlkampfiidae lineage is monophyletic, branches early along the eukaryotic line of descent, and is not a close relative of the multicellular amoebae that also reversibly transform from amoebae to flagellates.
Synthesis and Reactivity of (Pentamethylcyclopentadienyl)ruthenium Complexes of the Stable Neutral Silylene Si(tBuNCHCHNtBu)

The coordination chemistry of the stable silylene (1) in Cp*Ru complexes has been investigated. Silylene 1 reacts with 0.25 equiv of [Cp*RuCl]4 to give the 16-electron Ru silylene complex (2). This...
α-Ketoglutarate and Malate Uptake and Metabolism by Synaptosomes: Further Evidence for an Astrocyte-to-Neuron Metabolic Shuttle

This study was undertaken to provide further evidence relevant to the hypothesis that astrocytes supply one or more citric acid cycle intermediates to synaptic terminals, thereby serving an anaplerotic function necessitated by the synthesis and release of amino acid neurotransmitters. In our experiments, two populations of synaptosomes obtained from the brain of rats were separated from myelin and mitochondria by using Percoll to generate continuous density gradients. Both synaptosomal populations readily accumulated 14C-labelled alpha-ketoglutarate and L-malate by high-affinity transport systems. Hofstee plots of uptake velocity as a function of substrate concentration were highly nonlinear, indicating that uptake was mediated by two or more carriers, or was subject to negative cooperativity. At least one carrier was selective for alpha-ketoglutarate and another for malate, whereas a third carrier appeared to be present which transported both substrates. At low concentrations (approximately 1 microM), alpha-ketoglutarate transport was almost totally Na+-dependent, whereas malate uptake exhibited little Na+-dependency. The transport of alpha-ketoglutarate was associated with a net influx, and therefore was not due to a homoexchange process. alpha-Ketoglutarate and malate were metabolized rapidly to glutamate and aspartate, respectively, by both synaptosomal preparations; however, in all cases, label accumulated in gamma-aminobutyric acid rather slowly. The incorporation of label into glutamine from alpha-ketoglutarate was much greater in the high-density synaptosomes that in low-density synaptosomes, an indication that the former contained a higher proportion of astrogliasomes.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Activation of aspartate transcarbamoylase by purine nucleotides.

Abstract 1. 1. A previous report demonstrated an increase in aspartate transcarbamoylase activity (carbamoylphosphate: l -aspartate carbamoyltransferase, EC 2.1.3.2) upon incubation of an homogenate of Escherichia coli with ATP, GTP, phosphoenolpyruvate, amino acids and magnesium acetate. The object of this study was to ascertain whether enzyme synthesis de novo or enzyme activation was responsible for the increase in aspartate transcarbamoylase activity. 2. 2. Utilizing density labeling and subsequent equilibrium density centrifugation it was demonstrated that the increase in aspartate transcarbamoylase activity was not due to synthesis de novo of this enzyme or to extensive completion of preexisting peptides. 3. 3. It was shown that incubation of an Escherichia coli homogenate with ATP, GTP, phosphoenolpyruvate, amino acids and Mg2+ resulted in a decrease in the apparent K m of aspartate transcarbamoylase for aspartate while the υ max changed little. 4. 4. Crystalline aspartate transcarbamoylase behaved differently than the enzyme in crude homogenates. Incubation of the crystalline enzyme with ATP, GTP and Mg2+ caused a threefold increase in υ max . This is the first report of an allosteric effector altering the υ max of aspartate transcarbamoylase. 5. 5. ATP, GTP and Mg2+ act in a synergistic manner and must be present together for maximum activation of aspartate transcarbamoylase. Previously published studies showed that ATP is an activator and GTP is an inhibitor of this enzyme. 6. 6. Mg2+ modify the effect of purine nucleotides on aspartate transcarbamoylase activity. GTP in equimolar concentration with Mg2+ had little effect on enzyme activity, while ATP and equimolar Mg2+ together were much better activators than ATP alone. 7. 7. The activation of aspartate transcarbamoylase by ATP and GTP in the presence of Mg2+ reported here may be of biological significance in regulating the relative pool size of pyrimidine nucleotides and purine nucleotides of Escherichia coli.
Smooth muscle fiber types and a novel pattern of thick filaments in the wing of the pteropod mollusc Clione limacina

Wing (parapodial) retraction in the pteropod mollusc Clione limacina is a reflex triggered by tactile stimulation. Light and transmission electron microscopy revealed three groups of smooth muscles in the wing hemocoel that participate in retraction movements: transverse, longitudinal, and dorsoventral. Among these, two subtypes of muscle cells were identified. The first (type A) appears in all three groups and forms a well-organized lattice-like structure. The second (type B) is the major component of transverse muscles and runs in one direction only. Quantitative ultrastructural comparisons of dimensions, abundance, and organization of dense bodies, thick and thin filaments, membrane invaginations, sarcoplasmic reticulum, and mitochondria suggest that type A cells are able to contract and relax more quickly with less endurance whereas type B cells are capable of generating stronger contractions with more endurance and slower relaxation speed. Furthermore, type A cells have a unique pattern of thick filament organization, here referred to as pseudosarcomeres. The roles played by the different cell types in wing retraction are discussed.
Modeling of noise coupling inside multilayer printed circuit boards using cavity model and segmentation technique

The power distribution network in a printed circuit board (PCB) is an effective path for high-speed digital noise. The noise can be coupled by overlapping power/ground areas or by vias passing through them. This paper details a modeling approach and applies it to a multilayer PCB with six power/ground planes. The multilayer power/ground plane structure is modeled using the cavity model combined with segmentation method, and the vias are modeled using a via-plate capacitance model. This model requires considerably less time, and the results closely match those of full-wave simulations.
The Mind's Eye: George G. Simpson's Use of Visual Language

Late in life, the American paleontologist George G. Simpson (1902-1984) remarked that "I compose my writing visually —I think visually, then translate that into words … I visualize at least as much as I verbalize, perhaps more. Even in abstract theory I often visualize first & then describe in words what I saw mentally." In much of his most significant theoretical work, Simpson did indeed use just such visual language to translate his more original concepts and interpretations regarding, for example, statistical inferences about evolving lineages, relationships of spedation to higher taxonomic categories, ratio diagrams of morphological dimensions, and species-density contouring. Simpson's most interesting and innovative visualizations had to do with organism-environment relationships, including adaptive landscapes, prospective and realized functions of organisms and environments, and especially the adaptive grid upon which he summarized his argument for variable rates and patterns of evolution —"tempo an...
National lead markets and the design competition for 3G network applications

Abstract The development of applications for third-generation (3G) wireless networks will feature extensive competition between different “dominant designs.” Design competition is likely to involve a distinctly national dimension, with certain countries becoming trendsetters for others. Based on European Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) auctions and other considerations, it is argued that the UK and Germany have the potential to become national “lead markets” for m-commerce and other applications of 3G even though they were relative laggards in mobile telephony.
Project Uncover Health Information Databases: A Collaboration to Promote the Use of National Library of Medicine Consumer Health Databases

High school and graduate students were discovered using Google and Wikipedia for health information. The Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) Library developed a plan (UnHID) to instruct students and faculty regarding the use of National Library of Medicine databases as resources for trusted consumer health information and how to evaluate Web sites. Attendees were pretested and posttested to assess what resources they would use. MedlinePlus received the highest use after the workshops and was most often cited for future school and personal use. Household Products, AIDSInfo, and Clinical Trials were frequently noted for future use.
A new titrant for perchlorate: Cetyltrimethylammonium bromide☆

Cetyltrimethylammonium bromide is used in the precipitation titration of perchlorate, with potentiometric end-point detection. A perchlorate, fluoroborate or nitrate ion-selective electrode may be used. The method is more sensitive than the commonly used titration with tetraphenylarsonium chloride. It can be used over the pH range from 1.20 to at least 12.8. The titrant is much cheaper than tetraphenylarsonium chloride.
Book Review: Al Jazeera English: Global News in a Changing World, edited by Philip Seib

Al Jazeera English: Global News in a Changing World. Philip Seib, ed. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2012. 204 pp. $95 hbk. $25 pbk.For this look at Al Jazeera English (AJE), Philip Seib, professor of journalism and public diplomacy at the University of Southern California, has drawn together authors remarkable for their knowledge and insights, who are also notable for their distinctly different academic backgrounds, positions, and the passions they bring to their work.Anyone familiar with the topic will recognize these scholars' names-such as el- Nawawy or Gilboa-but that is not to say all of them are gray eminences. The collection presents work by scholars who know what they are writing about, whatever rank they are, and wherever they are to be found. The result is a book that is well worth reading and one, in which the authors themselves brought into a room might have a spirited debate.Shawn Powers, of Georgia State, provides an interesting and well-done review of the history of the channel's creation and development, which opens the book. In the second chapter, Hussein Amin, of the American University in Cairo, considers the shape and reach of AJE's global footprint. In the next chapter, Tine Ustad Figenschou, from the University of Oslo, considers the nature of the channel's news content, pro- viding a rare and detailed analysis of whether the channel was living up to its commit- ment to cover news from the Global South and to extend its reach to sources beyond the normal elite familiar to Western global news consumers.Will Youmans, of George Washington, reviews the challenge AJE executives have faced getting the channel on the cable lineups available to mainstream American audi- ences. Amelia Arsenault, of Georgia State, and Michael Kugelman, of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, explore AJE's experience covering and reaching into Africa and South Asia, respectively. Both find that the channel's efforts have been challenged by conditions on the ground, including among them issues with demand, distribution, and audience access.El-Nawawy, at Queens University of Charlotte, provides a qualitative analysis of AJE's coverage of the Ground Zero mosque controversy-coverage that he finds was notably balanced and conciliatory in a climate where most mainstream media cover- age of the story was neither. The book ends with Seib's effort to pull from all the chapters that came before to make sense of the whole.The most significant chapters in the book, however, are the opposing viewpoints offered of AJE's coverage of events in Gaza in 2008-2009. The Palestinian viewpoint is provided by Rima Najjar Merriman, of Al Quds University, and the Israeli view- point is provided by Eytan Gilboa, of Bar-Ilan University in Israel. …
Eudology: The science of happiness

Aristot le c la imed that we h u m a n s are by na ture goal -or iented [1]. By na ture we seek to enjoy good and avoid evil. Aristotle used the t e rm " e u d a e m o n i a " to refer to the highest good that good which is perfect , complete , and endur ing , that good which domina te s our lives in pursu i t of it. " E u d a e m o n i a " literally m e a n s " g o o d sp i r i t " ( " e u " + " d a e m o n " ) and is usual ly t rans la ted into English by means of " h a p p i n e s s , " for it is by " h a p p i n e s s " that we refer to that ideal state of m i n d and affairs which every person wants . Since the suffix " o l o g y " indicates the s tudy or science of the referent of the root to which it is appended , I p ropose " e u d o l o g y " to s tand tbr the s tudy or science of happiness . Strictly speaking, " e u d a e m o n o l o g y " would be more accurate , but i t 's too m u c h of a mouthfu l . " E u d o l o g y " is adequate .
An Integrative Undergraduate Capstone Course on the Unconscious

Theories and research related to the unconscious can be found in every area of psychology, but there is no course devoted to the topic in the undergraduate curriculum. A capstone course on the unconscious is described. The course integrates topics across the major fields of psychology. Themes in the course include the existence of mental processes that individuals are not aware of, do not have access to, and are not able to control, and how these processes lead to efficiency and confabulation. Course topics related to these themes are organized into subsections including why psychology needs the unconscious, psychodynamic theories, the modern unconscious, and consciousness and free will. Suggestions are made for course readings, assignments, and activities.