cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Use of the Woodcock–Johnson IV in the Identification of Specific Learning Disabilities in School-age Children

Abstract This chapter provides guidance on the use of the WJ IV within the context of the research-based Dual-Discrepancy Consistency (DD/C) operational definition of specific learning disability (SLD). The DD/C model is consistent with both the federal definition of SLD (i.e., IDEA) and the third option, or pattern of strengths and weaknesses (PSW) approach, specified in its attendant regulations. Emphasis is placed on a select set of WJ IV variation and comparison procedures that assist in determining whether an individual’s WJ IV performance demonstrates a PSW that is consistent with SLD according to the DD/C model. Because the specifications and procedures inherent in the DD/C definition are grounded in CHC theory – the same theory underlying the WJ IV – this instrument is well suited for use in SLD evaluations that follow a PSW model.
Oxidative potential of on-road fine particulate matter (PM2.5) measured on major freeways of Los Angeles, CA, and a 10-year comparison with earlier roadside studies

Abstract This study describes on-road measurements of fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) using a mobile instrumentation platform to assess the chemical composition and oxidative potential of PM 2.5 , using the dithiothreitol (DTT) assay, over three representative roadways in the Los Angeles Basin: the I-110 and I-710 freeways, the Wilshire/Sunset boulevards as well as the main campus of the University of Southern California (USC), used as a reference urban background site. Samples were chemically analyzed for elemental carbon (EC), organic carbon (OC), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and 50 elements. The cumulative mass fraction of the measured PAHs was highest on the freeways (0.16 ± 0.01 and 0.15 ± 0.01 ng/μg PM, on I-110 and I-710, respectively); which on average was 3 and 3.3-fold higher than at Wilshire/Sunset and USC site, respectively. Mass fractions of Ba, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sb and Zn, tracers of vehicular abrasion, were 3.8 ± 0.8 times higher on both freeways in comparison to Wilshire/Sunset. The observed intrinsic (normalized per PM mass) DTT activity was greatest on freeways, averaging 30.13 ± 3.15 nmol/min mg PM and being roughly 1.9 and 2.1 times higher than the values obtained at Wilshire/Sunset and USC, respectively. Furthermore, comparison of our results with previous on-road and roadside studies conducted in the last decade in Los Angeles indicated an overall reduction in the contribution of carbonaceous species and PAHs (important tracers of exhaust emissions) to PM mass, especially on I-710 freeway with the higher heavy-duty diesel vehicle fraction, indicating the effectiveness of diesel vehicle emissions control policies implemented in recent years in California. In contrast, greater contributions of certain groups of metals and trace elements that are indicators of non-tailpipe emissions compared to previous studies provide evidence on the increasing importance of non-tailpipe emissions to the oxidative potential of on-road PM 2.5 as vehicular exhaust emissions becomes cleaner. This finding was also reflected in the increased levels of on-road DTT activity by factors of 1.4–1.5 in comparison to the DTT activity of vehicular emissions estimated in previous dynamometer studies.
Differential responses of positive affect, negative affect, and worry in CBT for generalized anxiety disorder: A person-specific analysis of symptom course during therapy.

AbstractIntroduction: Research indicates that individuals with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) may experience deficits in positive affect (PA), and tend to dampen or intentionally suppress PA. Despite the presence of PA-related pathology in GAD, little is known about change in PA during GAD treatment. Objective: This study examines changes in PA, negative affect (NA) and worry in seven participants during cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for GAD. Method: Intensive repeated measures (i.e., time series) data were subjected to person-specific regression analysis to delineate individual change trajectories. Results: Significant improvement in worry was observed in all but one participant. Fear and irritability - indices of NA - each improved in 5/7 participants while sadness improved in 4/7 participants (worsening in one). Of all symptom domains, PA had the poorest treatment response: PA improved in only 2/7 participants and actually significantly worsened in 5/7 individuals even as NA and worry improved...
Is healthcare information technology based on evidence

Summary Is healthcare information technology (HIT) based on evidence of efficacy? Are the trillions of dollars already devoted and in the pipeline for HIT implementations based on systematic evaluations? If evaluated, would those evaluations focus on patient safety, return on investment, clinical efficiency, improved clinician satisfaction, and/or workflow integration? Do we have reliable evidence of usable interfaces, of successful implementations, of data standards allowing interoperability, of continuous improvement, of responsiveness to clinician feedback? While measurement of HIT’s efficacy is extraordinarily difficult—complicated by a myriad of other factors involved in providing healthcare and in organizational dynamics—it is not impossible. But is such evidence required before most implementations? Any implementation? Or are the goals of patient safety and efficiency so self-evident, profoundly desired, and laudable that HIT’s beneficence is accepted without rigorous data? Note that lack of systematic evidence does not mean HIT is ineffective. HIT may provide untold benefits even if there is no hard proof of those benefits. We find that HIT is seldom objectively measured, and that evidence of its efficacy is at best spotty, and often influenced by self-promotion. Most measures, especially those associated with cost-benefit analyses, are aspirational or hubris transubstantiated into numbers.
"Advanced Design Techniques and Realizations of Microwave and RF Filters" - Livre WILEY & IEEE Press

Microwave and RF filters play an important role in communication systems and due to the proliferation of radar, satellite, and mobile wireless systems there is a need for design methods that can satisfy the ever increasing demand for accuracy, reliability, and fast development times. This book provides modern design techniques for a wide variety of microwave filters operating over a frequency range from 1 GHz to 35 GHz. It has grown out of the authors own research and teaching and as such has a unity of methodology and style, essential for a smooth reading. The book is intended for researchers and RF and microwave engineers but is also suitable for an advanced graduate course in the subject area. Furthermore, it is possible to choose material from the book to supplement traditional courses in microwave filter design. The fundamental principles that can be applied to the synthesis and design of microwave filters are first recalled in a concise manner. Each of the ten design chapters provides a complete analysis and modeling of the microwave structure used for filtering as well as the design methodology. We hope that this will provide the researcher with a set of approaches that he/she could use for current and future microwave filter designs. We also emphasize the practical nature of the subject by summarizing the design steps and giving numerous examples of filter realizations and measured responses so that RF and microwave engineers can have an appreciation of each filter in view of their needs. This approach, we believe, has produced a coherent, practical and real-life treatment of the subject. The book is therefore theoretical but also experimental with over 20 microwave filter realizations.
Lussier, Robert N. Management fundamentals: Concepts, applications, and skill development

The text presents a thoughtful perspective relating to the way the field of management is being affected by a rapidly changing global economy. In this regard, Lussier focuses on numerous challenges...
Basins of Attraction in Disordered Networks

Abstract An explicit portrait of basins of attraction in disordered cellular automata networks are accessible for the first time. Such networks are discrete generalisations of connectionist models. Basin of attraction (fields) may serve as the basis of a mind model, and sculpting basin fields may offer a new approach for brain-like computation.
The uranium trioxide-water system

The uranium trioxide-water system has been investigated in detail. The compounds prepared are UO3. 2H2O, UO3. 0·8H2O, α,β and γ UO2(OH)2 and U3O8(OH)2. The deuterated forms of these phases were also studied. Each of the compounds was characterized by X-ray diffraction, i.r., Raman and thermoanalytical methods.
Blocking COX-2 for sickle cell pain relief.

In this issue of Blood , Khasabova et al demonstrate the analgesic efficacy of R -flurbiprofen, an inhibitor of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2)-mediated 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) oxidation, and MRS2578, a P2Y6 receptor antagonist, in the Berkeley transgenic mouse model of sickle cell disease (SCD). 1
Index of refraction change in common chalcogenide glasses due to precision glass molding

Due to changes in the fictive temperature as a result of the precision glass molding process there is an induced change in the index of refraction. This can be on the order of 0.001 in oxide glasses and as high as 0.02 in the chalcogenide glasses. It is important to accurately define the expected index of refraction and the tolerance of it after molding as there may be an impact on the optical design tolerances and system performance. We report on the measured change in index of refraction in common chalcogenide glasses due to the Rochester Precision Optics (RPO) precision glass molding process. We will compare the change in index of refraction between as advertised, as measured, as molded, and we will look at post mold annealing recovery. Utilizing an upgraded M3 refractometer we will be able to measure the index from the visible to the LWIR.
T cell Receptor Vβ9 in Method for Rapidly Quantifying Active Staphylococcal Enterotoxin Type-A without Live Animals

Staphylococcal food poisoning is a result of ingestion of Staphylococcal enterotoxins (SEs) produced by Staphylococcus aureus. Staphylococcal enterotoxin type A (SEA) is the predominant toxin produced by S. aureus strains isolated from food-poisoning outbreak cases. For public safety, assays to detect and quantify SEA ideally respond only to the active form of the toxin and this usually means employing disfavored live animal testing which suffers also from poor reproducibility and sensitivity. We developed a cell-based assay for SEA quantification in which biologically-active SEA is presented by Raji B-cells to CCRF-CEM T-cells resulting in internalization of Vβ9 within 2 hours with dose dependency over a 6-log range of SEA concentrations. This bioassay can discern biologically active SEA from heat-inactivated SEA and is specific to SEA with no cross reactivity to the homologically-similar SED or SEE. In this study, we terminated any ongoing biochemical reactions in accessory cells while retaining the morphology of the antigenic sites by using paraformaldehyde fixation and challenged the current model for mechanism of action of the SEA superantigen. We demonstrated for the first time that although fixed, dead accessory cells, having no metabolic functions to process the SEA superantigen into short peptide fragments for display on their cell surface, can instead present intact SEA to induce T-cell activation which leads to cytokine production. However, the level of cytokine secretion induced by intact SEA was statistically significantly lower than with viable accessory cells, which have the ability to internalize and process the SEA superantigen.
Voltammetry and Spectroelectrochemistry of TCNQ in Acetonitrile/RTIL Mixtures.

Understanding the solvation and ion-pairing interactions of anionic substrates in room-temperature ionic liquids (RTIL) is key for the electrochemical applications of these new classes of solvents. In this work, cyclic voltammetry and visible and infrared spectroelectrochemistry of tetracyanoquinodimethane (TCNQ) was examined in molecular (acetonitrile) and RTIL solvents, as well as mixtures of these solvents. The overall results were consistent with the formation of RTIL/acetonitrile nanodomains. The voltammetry indicated that the first electrogenerated product, TCNQ−, was not incorporated into the RTIL nanodomain, while the second electrogenerated product, TCNQ2−, was strongly attracted to the RTIL nanodomain. The visible spectroelectrochemistry was also consistent with these observations. Infrared spectroelectrochemistry showed no discrete ion pairing between the cation and TCNQ− in either the acetonitrile or RTIL solutions. Discrete ion pairing was, however, observed in the acetonitrile domain between the tetrabutylammonium ion and TCNQ2−. On the other hand, no discrete ion pairing was observed in BMImPF6 or BMImBF4 solutions with TCNQ2−. In BMImNTf2, however, discrete ion pairs were formed with BMIm+ and TCNQ2−. Density function theory (DFT) calculations showed that the cations paired above and below the aromatic ring. The results of this work support the understanding of the redox chemistry in RTIL solutions.
Automatic registration of 2D MR cine images for swallowing motion estimation.

© 2020 Yang et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Purpose To automate the estimation of swallowing motion from 2D MR cine images using deformable registration for future applications of personalized margin reduction in head and neck radiotherapy and outcome assessment of radiation-associated dysphagia. Methods Twenty-one patients with serial 2D FSPGR-MR cine scans of the head and neck conducted through the course of definitive radiotherapy for oropharyngeal cancer. Included patients had at least one cine scan before, during, or after radiotherapy, with a total of 52 cine scans. Contours of 7 swallowing related regions-of-interest (ROIs), including pharyngeal constrictor, epiglottis, base of tongue, geniohyoid, hyoid, soft palate, and larynx, were manually delineated from consecutive frames of the cine scan covering at least one swallowing cycle. We applied a modified thin-plate-spline robust-point-matching algorithm to register the point sets of each ROI automatically over frames. The deformation vector fields from the registration were then used to estimate the motion during swallowing for each ROI. Registration errors were estimated by comparing the deformed contours with the manual contours. Results On average 22 frames of each cine scan were contoured. The registration for one cine scan (7 ROIs over 22 frames) on average took roughly 22 minutes. A number of 8018 registrations were successfully batch processed without human interaction after the contours were drawn. The average registration error for all ROIs and all patients was 0.36 mm (range: 0.06 mm– 2.06 mm). Larynx had the average largest motion in superior direction of all structures under consideration (range: 0.0 mm– 58.7 mm). Geniohyoid had the smallest overall motion of all ROIs under consideration and the superior-inferior motion was larger than the anterior-posterior motion for all ROIs. Conclusion We developed and validated a deformable registration framework to automate the estimation of swallowing motion from 2D MR cine scans.
Starting from (Sort of) Scratch: Strategies for Developing a Long-Term and Sustainable Online Library Instruction Plan.

As the sole librarian responsible for online instruction, there are many challenges and opportunities when developing a program almost from scratch. This case study will examine how an individual o...
31.3 A Compute-Adaptive Elastic Clock-Chain Technique with Dynamic Timing Enhancement for 2D PE-Array-Based Accelerators

Dynamic timing error detection and correction techniques, e.g. razor flops, have been previously applied to microprocessors to exploit the dynamic timing margin within pipelines [1]. Adaptive clock techniques have also been adopted to enhance microprocessor performance, such as schemes to reduce the timing guardband for on-chip supply droops [2]–[3] or to exploit instruction-level dynamic timing slack [4]. Recently, 2D PE array-based accelerators have been developed for machine learning (ML) applications. Many efforts have been dedicated to improve the energy efficiency of such accelerators, e.g. DVFS management for the DNN under various bit precision [5]. A razor technique was also applied to a 1D 8-MAC pipelined accelerator to explore timing error tolerance [6]. Despite the above efforts, a fine-grained dynamic-timing-based technique has not been implemented within a large 2D array based ML accelerator. One main challenge comes from the large amount of compute-timing bottlenecks within the 2D array, which will continuously trigger critical path adaptation or pipeline stalls, nullifying the benefits of previous dynamic-timing techniques [4], [6]. To deal with the difficulty, we propose the following solutions. A local in-situ compute-detection scheme was applied to anticipate upcoming timing variations within the PE unit and guide both instruction-based and operand-based adaptive clock management. To loosen the stringent timing requirements in a large 2D PE array, an “elastic” clock-chain technique using multiple loosely synchronized clock domains was developed enabling dynamic-timing enhancement through clusters of PE units.
Simulation of cancer prognosis

Most mechanobiology phenomena commonly involve biological growth and deformation. In this work, we propose an innovative model of cancerous growth which posits that an expandable tumor can be descr...
Location as Health

The location data of millions of Americans is for sale. This effectively means that the health data of millions is also for sale. One GPS ping could show an individual entering a safe-injection site, visiting a psychiatrist, or working out at the gym. Our daily travel habits highlight neighborhoods, built environments, and other social determinants of health. Location data is health data. What’s more, it is difficult to guarantee anonymity of location data. Even with aggregate data, a simple cross-check with public records can unmask the individual behind the data point. Additionally, private companies control the data—companies that fall largely outside of health privacy protections, like the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Much literature explores how privacy laws fail to adequately address health mobile applications (apps), including those that track geolocation, and other big data, but have not focused on the health information revealed by location data alone. This paper will examine how the location data that is incessantly generated by phones and devices is collected, utilized, and regulated. It will explore how such data can be used by private companies to infer health information, with both beneficial and pernicious potential consequences. The answer of how to more broadly protect location data as health data hinges on whether this ultimately is viewed as a health privacy problem or a data privacy problem. The paper teases out this distinction and recommends ways law can address privacy concerns stemming from health adjacent information.
Temporary stays with housed family and friends among older adults experiencing homelessness: Qualitative findings from the HOPE HOME study:

BackgroundThe proportion of adults age 50 and older experiencing homelessness is growing. People at risk for homelessness may stay with family and friends during homelessness episodes. Moving in wi...
Use of infusion ports in patients with sickle cell disease: Indications and complications

Background Peripheral venous access in patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) can become difficult over time due to frequent access and scarring. Infusion ports provide reliable central venous access. Deep venous thrombosis (DVT) and infections are complications associated with SCD and infusion ports. Methods We performed a 17.5-year single-institution retrospective chart review (January 2000 to July 2018) with literature review regarding use of infusion ports in patients with SCD. Results We identified 32 patients with infusion ports placed for a total of 63 devices (48 for chronic transfusion [CT] and 15 for poor venous access [PVA], not on CT) for a total of 99,272 catheter days. The mean age at first insertion was 8 years (range 1-20 years). Complications included malfunction, infection, thrombosis, difficult access, and pain over infusion port site. The rate of infection was 0.2 per 1000 catheter days. Thrombosis was identified in three devices (5%) in three patients (9%), with a rate of 0.03 per 1000 catheter days. There was no difference in complications by site in either the left or right subclavian vein (p = 1). The rate of premature removal was 0.36 per 1000 catheter days, which was higher among patients with infusion ports solely for PVA (0.87 per 1000 catheter days) compared with those placed for CT (0.29 per 1000 catheter days). Conclusion Infusion ports in patients with SCD was associated with low rates of thrombosis, infection, and malfunction, and may be considered as an alternative to frequent intravenous access, especially in patients requiring CT.
Design Training via Industry Sponsored Projects in Undergraduate Engineering Program

The industrial engineering (IE) program at University of Wisconsin-Platteville (UW-Platteville) provides training to students via a wide variety of activities that are incorporated into the undergraduate curriculum. These activities are outlined and discussed. Activities in courses include case studies, class participation problems, and industry sponsored projects. The process for defining industry sponsored projects is presented. The above details will be useful to the audience in implementing these ideas in other curricula. The paper also presents reflections from students and these provide a summary skills and knowledge gained by students while designing and/or improving integrated systems of people, equipment, and all other essential resources. This paper will stress that design training based upon hands-on training is essential for all engineers.
Industry Leader Profile: Robert Duncan

After earning BBA, MBA, and LLB degrees from the University of Texas at Austin, Mr. Duncan began his career with Trammell Crow in Dallas, Texas. He was responsible for commercial operations in San Antonio in 1978, when he left to form Transwestern. Since then, he has directed Transwestern’s expansion from a small Texas development company into a highly diversified national real estate investment and operating organization. Throughout his career he has been known for timely and effective responses to challenging markets and crises dating back to the oil and energy shocks of the 1970s. During a distinguished career in the real estate industry, Mr. Duncan has built a strong reputation for integrity, service to clients, and putting his people and organization first. Today Transwestern is one of the largest privately held commercial real estate firms in the United States. A diversified company, Transwestern is active in the real estate services, development, and investment management businesses. Transwestern was awarded the Energy Star Partner of the Year award in 2004 and 2005. In addition, the firm has received Energy Star’s Sustained Excellence Award six years in a row. Vigilant in preserving its culture of empowerment, Transwestern has been consistently recognized by numerous periodicals as one of the “Top Places to Work” in cities and states across the country.
Distribution of Carbonic Anhydrase Among Human Photoreceptors

The distribution of carbonic anhydrase (CA) among human photoreceptors has been a topic of dispute.In our experiments, by modifying an established enzyme histochemical technique, reproducible stain-ing was observed. Of the cones in the peripheral retina, 91% were positive for CA. The CA-negative(CA—) cones were absent within approximately 8 arc min of the foveal center and their density peakedat 2 arc deg. No CA activity was found in the rods. Morphologic differences were noted between theCA-positive (CA+) and CA— cones. Compared to the CA+ cones, the CA— cones had longer and morenearly columnar inner segments, more nearly spherical nuclei, and more generous amounts of peri-karyal cytoplasm. In the peripheral retina, the distance between CA+ to CA+ nearest neighbors werelarger compared to CA— to CA+ nearest neighbors (P < 0.0001). The frequency distribution andmorphology of the CA— cones suggest that they are the blue-sensitive cones. As such, this studydemonstrates a biochemical similarity between blue cones and rods that may provide insight into thefunction and phylogeny of the blue cones. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 31:1451-1458,1990
Integration of No-Take Marine Reserves in the Assessment of Data-Limited Fisheries

No-take marine reserves show great promise as conservation tools, yet the integration of reserves into assessment models for data-limited fisheries management is just emerging. We develop a framework for integrating marine reserves into two data-limited assessment models: spawning potential ratio (SPR) and yield per recruit (YPR). We use Monte Carlo simulation to test the applicability of the framework to a sedentary species with a dispersive larval stage under process and observation uncertainties. The reserve-based approach increased estimates of spawning potential while reducing YPR and had a consistent estimation bias of less than 15%. Using the framework, we assessed a commercial fishery targeting grass rockfish (Sebastes rastrelliger) in southern California, USA and found that inclusion of reserves reduced the probability of overfishing. The reserve-based assessment approach may create win–win policy solutions for conservation and fisheries objectives in many nearshore fisheries with well-enforced marine reserves that target sedentary species with a dispersive larval stage.
Global Water Cycle (Fundamental, Theory, Mechanisms)

Water cycle is the never-ending movement of water on Earth. Water continuously cycles through various reservoirs in the ocean, sky, and soil. A variety of measurement systems are necessary to quantify the fluxes between reservoirs, ranging from simple buckets to measure rainfall to sophisticated satellites orbiting the Earth. The hydrologic cycle is mainly characterized by its variability in space and time. The Earth contains an incredible diversity in climates, including rainforests, parched deserts and frozen tundra. Water cycle at any given location changes both rapidly and slowly, with the passing of flash floods to the decadal shifts in ocean patterns. Anticipated impacts of human-induced climate change on the hydrologic cycle are as yet unknown, but the consequences are potentially severe. Nonetheless, humans have a long history of altering the hydrologic cycle including the diversion and impoundment of streamflow, pumping of groundwater, irrigation of fields and management of forests. While the water cycle has been recognized for ages, many interesting fundamental research questions remain. Keywords: water cycle; precipitation; evaporation; streamflow; hydrologic data; simulation models; climate change and land use
When Johnny and Jane Come Marching Home: How All of Us Can Help Veterans, by P. Caplan

Arthur Kleinman (2006) related the powerful story of seeing Winthrop Cohen, a World War II veteran who suffered from depression late in life and agonized intensely over having killed a young enemy ...
Study of activated T cells in man. I. Discrepancy between Tac antigen and DR Antigen on T cells in patients with primary immunodeficiency.

DR and Tac antigens are present on T cells activated in vitro with mitogens and antigens but lacking on resting T cells. Freshly prepared peripheral blood T cells from patients with common variable immunodeficiency ( CVI ) and isolated IgA deficiency ( IAD ) were examined for the presence of DR and Tac antigens, using monoclonal antibodies and a fluorescence-activated cell sorter. Both Tac+ and DR+ T cells were significantly (P less than 0.05) increased in the patient group when compared with age- and sex-matched controls; however, a discrepancy was observed in the proportions of Tac+ T cells and DR+ T cells. This study demonstrates that, in certain patients with CVI and IAD , T cells are activated in vivo, and Tac and DR antigens could be expressed during different stages of T-cell activation.
Absinthe and gamma-aminobutyric acid receptors.

Absinthe is an emerald-green liqueur that achieved fantastic popularity at the close of the 19th century. It was associated with the Bohemian lifestyle and was credited with the inspiration of famous artists and poets (1, 2). Because of its widespread abuse and the associated toxicity of its content of oil of wormwood, absinthe was made illegal in most countries in the 1910s. The most likely ingredient responsible for toxicity is believed to be the terpenoid α-thujone (1–4). Oil of wormwood has convulsant activity as well as activity in killing worms and insects (5). The mechanism of action of thujone has remained speculative until now. In a recent issue of PNAS, Hold et al. (6) provided evidence that thujone acts as a γ-aminobutyric acid type A (GABAA) receptor chloride channel blocker, much like the plant convulsant picrotoxin, and related synthetic analogs.
Molecular Shuttle with Calcium Dependent Cargo-Loading System using Kinesin-Cam Fusion Protein and Liposome

Recently, attention is being focused on the application of molecular shuttle based on kinesin and microtubules. Essential point regarding molecular shuttles is the cargo-loading system. Since the intrinsic physiological mechanism underlying the selective binding of cargo to the tail domain of kinesin has not been clarified thus far, artificial binding systems have been utilized for cargo binding. For instance, in a previous study, biotin-avidin and antigen-antibody systems were used for cargo loading. These systems are known to be highly specific with extremely strong binding. However, they have a defect that the shuttle cannot release the cargoes. Therefore, it is required that the molecular shuttle should have the reversible cargo-loading function. In this study, we developed a new molecular shuttle system in which the cargoes of liposome labeled with M13 peptide reversibly binds to the shuttle of kinesin-CaM fusion protein in a Ca2+ concentration dependent manner. We prepared K560-CaM that consists of the N-terminal motor domain, neck region, α-helical coiled-coil region and CaM at the C-terminus. K560-CaM showed Ca2+ dependent reversible binding to M13-GFP. Liposome labeled with fluorescent probe was prepared and its stability as a cargo was examined. Also maleimide- conjugated liposome was prepared. We also designed and synthesized the M13 peptide that has a single cysteine at N-terminus. It is known that the peptide is combined with a maleimide on the surface of the liposome. Currently we are studying the Ca2+ dependent interaction between M13-liposime and K560-CaM.
Entrapped Collagen Type 1 Promotes Differentiation of Embryonic Pancreatic Precursor Cells into Glucose-Responsive β-Cells When Cultured in Three-Dimensional PEG Hydrogels

Development of an alternative source of functional, transplantable β-cells to replace or supplement cadaveric tissue is critical to the future success of islet cell transplantation therapy. Embryonic pancreatic precursor cells are desirable as a renewable source of β-cells as they are both proliferative and inherently capable of pancreatic cell differentiation. We have previously shown that precursor cells undergo selective β-cell differentiation when dissociated and photoencapsulated in a polyethylene glycol (PEG) hydrogel network; however, these cells remained immature and were not glucose responsive. Collagen type 1 supports mature cell viability and function in many cell types and we hypothesized that incorporating it within our gels may support differentiating β-cells and facilitate β-cell maturation. For these studies, collagen-1 was entrapped with dissociated pancreatic precursor cells in a PEG hydrogel matrix (PEGCol) with the following key findings: (1) mature, glucose-responsive, islet-like structures differentiated from spontaneously forming precursor cell clusters in PEGCol, but not unmodified PEG, hydrogels; (2) a balance existed between providing sufficient collagen-1 signaling to support precursor cell development and providing an overabundance of adhesive sites allowing contaminating mesenchymal cells to thrive’ and (3) mechanical stability provided by the PEG hydrogel platform is important for successful precursor cell culture, as PEGCol hydrogels encourage glucose responsiveness and high-insulin gene expression, while pure collagen gel cultures, with the same collagen concentration, have negligible insulin gene expression. These results indicate that PEGCol hydrogels are a useful culture platform to promote differentiation of a glucose-responsive β-cell population from dissociated precursor cells.
A Study of Opportunity-Based Suicide Rates: The Use of Guns

showed a similar pattern of correlations with the social variables: positively correlated with percent black (A4 = 10.2%), murder rate (M = 7.6%), and divorce rate (M = 3.7%), and negatively with median age (27.8 yr.) and percent urban (M = 71.8%). The five social variables explained 98% of the variance of the firearm suicide rate per capita in a full multiple regression and 96% of the variance of the percentage of households owning firearms. In contrast, the firearm suicide rate per gun-owning household correlated positively with the percent urban and the divorce rate and negatively with the percent black, the median age, and the murder rate. The five variables explained only 73% of the variance in the firearm suicide rate per gun-owning household in a full multiple regression, and none of the beta coefficients were significant. The mean fiiarm suicide rate per household was 20.2 (SD = 7.5) and per gun-owning household 41.2 (SD = 8.0). The firearm suicide rate per gun-owning household was less variable than the fiiarm suicide rate per household and less associated with the social variables. These results suggest that opportunity-based suicide rates may provide different results in regional studies than population-based suicide rates.
Spontaneous Generation of Amphiphilic Block Copolymer Micelles with Multiple Morphologies through Interfacial Instabilities

We introduce a method for the formation of block copolymer micelles through interfacial instabilities of emulsion droplets. Amphiphilic polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) (PS−PEO) copolymers are first dissolved in chloroform; this solution is then emulsified in water and chloroform is extracted by evaporation. As the droplets shrink, the organic solvent/water interface becomes unstable, spontaneously generating a new interface and leading to dispersion of the copolymer as micellar aggregates in the aqueous phase. Depending on the composition of the copolymer, spherical or cylindrical micelles are formed, and the method is shown to be general to polymers with several different hydrophobic blocks: poly(1,4-butadiene), poly(ϵ-caprolactone), and poly(methyl methacrylate). Using this method, hydrophobic species dissolved or suspended in the organic phase along with the amphiphilic copolymer can be incorporated into the resulting micelles. For example, addition of PS homopolymer, or a PS−PEO copolymer of di...
Active centre structure and the stereoregulation process in anionic polymerization

The mechanism of stereoregulation in the anionic polymerization of butadiene and isoprene is discussed in terms of what is known about the structure of the active centres. This includes the effect of the presence of cis and trans isomers and the dynamics of their interconversion and in the isoprene case, the effect of two distinct types having 1,4 and 4,1 structures.
A subcutaneous heterotopic limb transplantation model in the mouse for prolonged allograft survival.

A heterotopic position of a limb allograft is advantageous in the fragile mouse model to reduce mortality but is prone to autotomy. The purpose of this study was to describe a new heterotopic limb transplantation model in the mouse for prolonged allograft survival. Eleven lower hindlimbs were transplanted in a heterotopic subcutaneous position in the groin of the recipient animal with the donor skin inset as a skin paddle for monitoring. Seven transplants were syngeneic (Balb/c) and four were allogeneic (C57Bl/6 donor). The overall success rate (acute survival < 7 days) was 73% (8/11) and the mortality rate was 18% (2/11). Five of seven syngeneic transplants survived for 60 days and were harvested for histology. Recipients of successful allogeneic transplants (n = 3) received no immunosuppression and rejected their allografts between 8 and 11 days postoperatively. Mixed lymphocyte culture and flow cytometry demonstrated secondary immune responses by pre-sensitized animals, and histology showed lymphocytic infiltration and necrosis consistent with acute rejection. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc. MICROSURGERY 21:298–305 2001
Oral considerations of the myofascial pain dysfunction syndrome.

Abstract This study analyzed the oral health of patients diagnosed as suffering from the myofascial pain dysfunction syndrome. Trends indicated that these patients had better periodontal health than anticipated, which may be attributed to bruxism. This article discusses the clinical considerations in the diagnosis of the myofacial pain dysfunction syndrome and presents a physiologic approach to treatment.
Intermittent Noninfarction Q Waves: A Finding Suggestive of Latent Preexcitation

Objective To describe 3 patients who presented with chest pain and intermittent Q waves on the electrocardiogram (ECG) and were subsequently found to have latent preexcitation. Patients and Methods During a span of 8 years, 3 patients were evaluated because of atypical chest pain and pathologic Q waves in the inferior leads; in all 3 patients, the Q waves were intermittent. No patient had a history of arrhythmia or had Wolff-Parkinson-White pattern on the ECG. Diagnostic and therapeutic interventions for suspected myocardial infarction included cardiac catheterization in 2 patients, intravenous thrombolytic therapy in 1 patient, and heparin in 2 patients. Ischemic heart disease was excluded in all. Patients underwent pharmacological testing and/or electrophysiologic study for suspected preexcitation. Results Despite the absence of ECG markers of preexcitation, the presence of a latent accessory atrioventricular connection was confirmed in each patient by pharmacological or electrophysiologic studies. Conclusion In patients who present with intermittent noninfarction Q waves, the most likely diagnosis is latent preexcitation. Clinicians need to be educated about this clinical diagnosis and encouraged to pursue confirmatory testing. Such patients should be informed about the nature and importance of their electrocardiographic abnormality.
Inflammation‐independent defective early B cell tolerance checkpoints in rheumatoid arthritis

The efficacy of B cell depletion by anti-CD20 therapy in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) suggests a critical role for B cells in the pathology of RA (1), although the pathogenic mechanisms are unknown. We previously described abnormalities in early B cell tolerance checkpoints in treatment- naive active RA, which deviated from the evolution of autoreactive B cell frequencies during B cell development in healthy donors (2). Random V(D)J recombination generates a large number of autoreactive B cells that are counterselected in healthy donors at two major checkpoints. A first checkpoint occurs in the bone marrow between the early immature and immature B cell stages and silences most polyreactive and anti-nuclear antibody expressing B cells (3, 4). A second counterselection step takes place in the periphery and further removes autoreactive B cells that recently emigrated from the bone marrow before they enter the long-lived mature naive B cell pool (3, 4). In clinically active RA, we found that both central and peripheral B cell tolerance checkpoints were defective resulting in the accumulation of a large number of autoreactive B cells in the mature naive B cell compartment of these patients (2). It remains to be determined if defective B cell tolerance checkpoints resulting in altered antibody reactivity selection is primary to the disease or merely represent a byproduct of the disease induced by cytokine imbalances. Methotrexate and anti-TNFα agents remain the standard of care in RA (5), although little is known about their effect on the loss of B cell tolerance and the persistence of autoreactive B cells. By analyzing RA patients who clinically improved after either methotrexate or anti-TNFα therapy, we demonstrate that B cell tolerance checkpoints remain defective post-therapy as evidenced by the increased frequency of self-reactive mature naive B cells. This suggests that the early B cell tolerance defects in RA do not result from the production of proinflammatory cytokines, but rather are more likely due to intrinsic genetic predisposition.
Fertility and the Development of Agriculture in the Prehistoric Midwest

In this article we develop and apply a method for estimating fertility in paleodemographic study. The proportion D30+/D5+, generated from standard life table calculations, is used to estimate relative fertility rates for eight Woodland and Mississippian populations represented by skeletal series from west-central Illinois. The inferred pattern of fertility increase through time is then considered in the context of key variables that define diet, technology, and sedentism. We conclude that changes in diet or food preparation techniques are implicated in this demographic change. The absence of a significant increment in juvenile mortality in association with the elevated fertility rates suggests that these changes in fertility explain the regional population increase previously inferred from mortuary and habitation site densities.
Analysis of a rigid body obliquely impacting granular matter

The model of the oblique rigid body impact with a granular matter is studied. The force acting on the body is a linear superposition of a static (velocity-independent) friction force and a dynamic (velocity-dependent) resistance force. The impact of a sphere, a mathematical and a compound pendulum are modeled and simulated using different initial impact velocity conditions and different impact angles. We analyze how rapidly the rigid body impacting a granular media slows upon collision. For most of the analyzed cases the rigid body under high-force impact (higher initial velocity) comes to rest faster in a granular matter than the same body under low-force impacts (lower initial velocity). Researchers were able to explain this interesting phenomena, not shared by solids or liquids, for the vertical impact of spheres. The simulations for some configurations with small initial impact angles show that as the speed at which the rigid body impacts the media increases, the later it will come to rest.
Ultraviolet light detection by the homing pigeon

HUMANS cannot see the near ultraviolet (UV) wavelengths (320–400 nm) in sunlight. By analogy, it is often assumed that most vertebrates are also UV-blind1. This generalisation has been called into question by recent experimental evidence showing that toads, newts, lizards, and hummingbirds are behaviourally responsive to UV light2–5. We present here evidence suggesting that homing pigeons (Columba livia) are sensitive to UV wavelengths and capable of responding to the intensities of UV light that prevail in nature. Our results were obtained by a cardiac conditioning technique used previously to demonstrate homing pigeon sensitivity to barometric pressure changes, polarised light and infrasound6–10.
Can orthodox stabilization and adjustment work? Lessons from New Zealand, 1984–90

Most debate about the efficacy of orthodox stabilization programs, such as those of the International Monetary Fund, has been fruitless. First, rarely are these programs fully implemented or sustained for long periods. Second, defenders and critics of the programs hold differing premises about the nature of capitalist economies. The debate is therefore not about the appropriate balance of supply-and demand-side measures but, rather, about what sort of supply- and demand-side measures will address the supply- and demand-side problems that each group perceives. The results of an orthodox stabilization program which incorporated demand- and supply-side elements and which was fully implemented and sustained by the New Zealand government from 1984 to 1990 reveal the limits to orthodox programs. New Zealand, a primary product exporter, suffers from a structural imbalance of payments and from an external debt burden equal in scale to that of the Latin American and other highly indebted less developed countries (LDCs), but it does not have the serious supplyside constraints on growth that critics claim typify underdeveloped economies. This makes New Zealand an appropriate test of the typical orthodox stabilization program. Despite the fact that its administrative capacity, political will, domestic support, and access to external resources were far in excess of those of the typical would-be LDC stabilizer, New Zealand achieved only a precarious macroeconomic and international payments stability. Moreover, as the case of New Zealand demonstrates, inflation control and financial liberalization policy components of orthodox plans have contradictory consequences for payments balance. This suggests that long-term stabilization, in New Zealand and elsewhere, cannot be achieved solely by internal reforms.
Physical activity and academic achievement in children: A historical perspective

Abstract As the focus on academic achievement has increased, physical activity (PA) opportunities in schools have decreased in the United States. In an attempt to discover how the decline in PA may affect academic achievement, researchers have been studying the effects of PA on cognition and academic achievement in children for more than 50 years. This review takes a historical perspective on the science of PA and academic achievement prior to and during the past 5 years. A total of 125 published articles were included and reviewed. Fifty-three of these articles were published in the past 5 years. In recent years, the overall quality of the studies has increased, but the results continue to be inconsistent. Many use cross-sectional designs and the methods vary substantially. The majority of conclusions show a positive effect of PA on constructs related to academic achievement. Future studies should use strong study designs to examine the types and doses of PA needed to produce improvements in academic achievement.
Potential reaction intermediates of NOx reduction with propane over Cu/ZSM-5

Adsorption complexes that are formed by exposing Cu/ZSM-5 to nitric oxides have been identified by FTIR. Some of them are thermally decomposed below 200°C, but others, though much more stable thermally, are reduced at low temperature by chemical interaction with gaseous propane. The FTIR spectra suggest that the latter complexes are nitro and/or nitrate groups associated with Cu ions. Their formation and reduction when Cu/ZSM-5 is exposed to NO + O2 + C3H8 seems consistent with the assumption that they are intermediates in catalytic NOx reduction. Mass spectrometric analysis of the gases that are released when these complexes react with propane reveals formation of N2, whereas thermal decomposition at higher temperatures only yields NO2, NO, H2O, traces of O2, but no N2. The results suggest that adsorbed NOy, groups (y ⩾ 2) are able to abstract H atoms from hydrocarbon molecules.