cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Combined interferon and lamivudine therapy: is this the treatment of choice for patients with chronic hepatitis B virus infection?

Background, aim and methods-Alpha interferon is the generally approved therapy for HBe antigen positive patients with chronic hepatitis B, but its efficacy is limited. Lamivudine is a new oral nucleoside analogue which potently inhibits hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA replication. To investigate the possibility of an additive effect of interferonlamivudine combination therapy compared with interferon or lamivudine monotherapy, we conducted a randomised controlled trial in 230 predominantly Caucasian patients with hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) and HBV DNA positive chronic hepatitis B. Previously untreated patients were randomised to receive: combination therapy of lamivudine 100 mg daily with alpha interferon 10 million units three times weekly for 16 weeks after pretreatment with lamivudine for eight weeks (n = 75); alpha interferon 10 million units three times weekly for 16 weeks (n = 69); or lamivudine 100 mg daily for 52 weeks (n = 82). The primary efficacy end point was the HBeAg seroconversion rate at week 52 (loss of HBeAg, development of antibodies to HBeAg and undetectable HBV DNA). Results-The HBeAg seroconversion rate at week 52 was 29% for the combination therapy, 19% for interferon monotherapy, and 18% for lamivudine monotherapy (p = 0.12 and p = 0.10, respectively, for comparison of the combination therapy with interferon or lamivudine monotherapy). The HBeAg seroconversion rates at week 52 for the combination therapy and lamivudine monotherapy were significantly different in the per protocol analysis (36% (20/56) v 19% (13/70), respectively, p = 0.02). The effect of combining lamivudine and interferon appeared to be most useful in patients with moderately elevated alanine aminotransferase levels at baseline. Adverse events with the combination therapy were similar to interferon monotherapy; patients receiving lamivudine monotherapy had significantly fewer adverse events. Conclusions-HBeAg seroconversion rates at one year were similar for lamivudine monotherapy (52 weeks) and standard alpha interferon therapy (16 weeks). The combination of lamivudine and interferon appeared to increase the HBeAg seroconversion rate, particularly in patients with moderately elevated baseline aminotransferase levels. The potential benefit of combining lamivudine and interferon should be investigated further in studies with different regimens of combination therapy.
Tontine Insurance and the Armstrong Investigation: A Case of Stifled Innovation, 1868–1905

Tontine insurance, introduced in 1868, combined the features of life insurance with an unusual old-age saving plan. A portion of the annual premium was accumulated in a fund that was divided among the surviving policyholders after twenty years. By 1905, two-thirds of all life insurance in force was of this type. Despite consumer appeal, sales of tontine policies were prohibited in 1906 after the Armstrong Investigation charged the tontine business with corruption and extravagance. We argue that tontine insurance was actuarially sound and an attractive life-cycle investment. Prohibition was probably unnecessary.
Long term periodicity in solar wind velocity during the last three solar cycles

Solar wind measurements from the Pioneer 10, Pioneer 11, Voyager 2, IMP 8, and Pioneer Venus Orbiter (PVO) spacecraft were examined to search for long-term periodicities during the last three solar cycles. For the time of the last solar maximum, these measurements confirm the existence of the periodic 1.3-year enhancements in solar wind velocity reported by Richardson et al. (1994). For most of the preceding two solar cycles, long-term velocity enhancements occurred that were similar in structure but lacked the 1.3-year periodicity. It appears that long-term enhancements in solar wind velocity, with durations on the order of a few months to a year, are a common feature throughout the heliosphere.
Conjunctival changes associated with glaucoma therapy: implications for the external disease consultant and the treatment of glaucoma.

PurposeEnhance recognition by the external disease specialist of the conjunctival changes associated with glaucoma therapy and the reported association with glaucoma filtration surgery.MethodsLiterature search with emphasis on the cellular and subcellular changes induced by antiglaucoma medications,
Optimal trajectories between Earth and Mars in their true planetary orbits.

The optimal transfers from Earth to Mars and from Mars to Earth, considering the actual planetary orbits, are presented as functions of the corresponding idealized Hohmann transfers. The numerically exact two-impulse optimal trajectories are given in graphical form for all possible Hohmann windows. The two-impulse transfers which are absolute optimals and those for which a third impulse provides the absolute optimal are delineated. These data are designed to provide all the information necessary for quick orbit calculations for preliminary Martian mission analysis. In this form, they are as easy to use as the standard Hohmann transfer approximations and provide much greater accuracy.
Patient-Reported Outcomes in Phase II Cancer Clinical Trials: Lessons Learned and Future Directions

With increasing limits on the resources available to conduct cancer clinical trials, the inclusion of patient-reported outcomes (PROs) in treatment and symptom management trials must be prioritized. Although it has been suggested on occasion that phase III trials should take precedence over phase II trials, we argue that there is a clear and important role for PRO assessment in phase II trials going forward. To illustrate the value realized from including PROs in phase II trials, we provide case examples from cancer treatment and supportive care. The benefits of including PROs in symptom management intervention research are exemplified using phase II trials targeting cognitive impairment. The inclusion of PROs in phase II cancer clinical trials adds important information about the impact of treatment in health-related quality of life, and advances the science of PRO measurement. These contributions significantly enhance the design of phase III trials, ultimately leading to the efficient utilization of clinical trial resources.
An Insect Olfactometer

Briefly stated, the insect olfactometer consists of a specially constructed Y-tube through which insects pass from a dark chamber, being attracted by a light suspended near the free ends of the forks of this tube. The dark chamber is attached to the base of the Y-tube, while a suction apparatus to draw odors through the forks is attached at the point where the base and forks unite. The principle involved is to attract the insects equally toward the entrances of the forks by the light stimulus, but when ready to enter these forks they are influenced unequally by the odors drawn through the forks, one fork serving as an attractive or repellent side and the other fork as the control side. The whole apparatus is so constructed and manipulated that the interfering factors are practically controlled, leaving only the olfactory responses to be recorded. It seems that so far as the insects are concerned, the key to success in work of this kind depends upon the proper physiological state of the species which is being tested. The proper state perhaps includes many factors, but particularly the proper age and sexual condition, and a hungry condition when food odors are being used. In this investigation it was shown by a large series of experiments that potato beetles can be induced to respond to their food odors by subjecting them to the odors from water extracts and steam distillates of their host plants, and it was further shown by another large series of experiments that these insects can be induced to respond to the emanations from their living host plants, giving experimental proof for the first time that plants attract insects by emitting odors. Emanations, drawn through the apparatus from living potato plants, could not be detected by the writer, but in every one of the 24 experiments conducted the potato beetles gave attractive responses, the highest percentage being 76.7 per cent. After aerating the steam distillates of potato foliage, potato tubers, horsenettle, henbane, and tomato plants for some time, the odors from all of these distillates became attractive to insects, and the writer could detect a common odor among them. This odor closely resembled that from boiling potatoes or from the juice of freshly cut potatoes, and might be called a potato odor. Since all these plants belong to the potato family (Solanaceas), it would be interesting to know whether they possess a particular constituent or constituents which emit a common odor, as is indicated by the responses of the beetles and by the writer's nose. If so, it is suggested that the chemist tell us what they are, so that we may use them in poisoned baits or in traps, thereby perhaps reducing the cost of controlling potato beetles which must now be done by dusting and spraying the potato plants.
Retinol esterification in lamb kidney.

Abstract Retinol esterification was demonstrated in vivo and in vitro in lamb kidney. Retinol labeled with hydrogen-3 injected into the renal artery of lambs appeared in the labeled retinyl ester fraction in the renal vein. Degree of tracer incorporation into retinyl esters increased with vitamin A intake. In homogenates, activity was concentrated in microsomes and enhanced fourfold by addition of adenosine 5’-triphosphate and coenzyme A to the incubation mixture. These findings suggest that the esterification is a function of fatty acyl coenzyme A:retinol acyl transferase. Renal esterification may play a role in retinol homeostasis.
Multizone Chimera Algorithm for Solving the Full-Potential Equation

A numerical scheme utilizing a chimera zonal grid approach for solving the three-dimensional fullpotential equation is described. Within each grid zone a new approximate factorization scheme based on the approximation factorization scheme 2 algorithm is utilized to advance the solution one iteration. This is followed by the explicit advance of all common zonal grid boundaries using trilinear interpolation of the velocity potential. Two spatial discretization variations are presented; one using a hybrid e rst-order/ second-order-accurate scheme and the second using a fully second-order-accurate scheme. The presentation is highlighted with a grid ree nement study and a number of transonic wing e owe eld computations.
Magnetic Fields in Star Formation Regions: 1.3 Millimeter Continuum Polarimetry

We present a nine-point λ=1.3 mm continuum polarization map of the inner arcminute of the DR 21 cloud core. The polarization and position angles are very uniform, and the inferred magnetic field (P.A.~75°) is nearly orthogonal to the cloud elongation (P.A.~7°). Applying the virial theorem and comparing the continuum polarimetry, we find that the magnetic field strength must be greater than a few mG to have a significant impact. Turbulent gas motions are probably a more significant source of support against self-gravity in the cloud core than in the magnetic field. We also report a survey of the λ=1.3 mm polarization of 14 star-forming cloud cores (P=1.6%). The λ=1.3 mm distribution is similar to the λ=100 μm and λ=800 μm polarization distributions in the literature except that the 1.3 mm distribution peaks at P 1.5×107 cm-3 than for those with nH2<1.5×107 cm-3. The sky-plane projection of the magnetic field lines in the seven elongated cloud cores with 800 μm or 1.3 mm polarization detections greater than 3 σ appear randomly distributed with respect to the position angles of cloud core elongations. This implies that magnetic fields do not provide substantial anisotropic support against self-gravity in this sample of star-forming cloud cores. The magnetic fields in the cloud cores also appear randomly oriented with respect to the Galactic plane.
Retrograde Intraflagellar Transport Mutants Identify Complex A Proteins With Multiple Genetic Interactions in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

The intraflagellar transport machinery is required for the assembly of cilia. It has been investigated by biochemical, genetic, and computational methods that have identified at least 21 proteins that assemble into two subcomplexes. It has been hypothesized that complex A is required for retrograde transport. Temperature-sensitive mutations in FLA15 and FLA17 show defects in retrograde intraflagellar transport (IFT) in Chlamydomonas. We show that IFT144 and IFT139, two complex A proteins, are encoded by FLA15 and FLA17, respectively. The fla15 allele is a missense mutation in a conserved cysteine and the fla17 allele is an in-frame deletion of three exons. The flagellar assembly defect of each mutant is rescued by the respective transgenes. In fla15 and fla17 mutants, bulges form in the distal one-third of the flagella at the permissive temperature and this phenotype is also rescued by the transgenes. These bulges contain the complex B component IFT74/72, but not α-tubulin or p28, a component of an inner dynein arm, which suggests specificity with respect to the proteins that accumulate in these bulges. IFT144 and IFT139 are likely to interact with each other and other proteins on the basis of three distinct genetic tests: (1) Double mutants display synthetic flagellar assembly defects at the permissive temperature, (2) heterozygous diploid strains exhibit second-site noncomplemention, and (3) transgenes confer two-copy suppression. Since these tests show different levels of phenotypic sensitivity, we propose they illustrate different gradations of gene interaction between complex A proteins themselves and with a complex B protein (IFT172).
Robert Henryson's Orpheus and Eurydice and the Orpheus Traditions of the Middle Ages

IT is not the vogue in contemporary criticism to argue that a particular work marks the culmination of a tradition, but that is exactly what Robert Henryson's Orpheus and Eurydice does for the dual mediaeval traditions of the Orpheus myth. That critics have tended to ignore the poem is unfortunate, for it tells us a great deal about the agglomerative poetic methods of a mediaeval poet, underlines the two distinct mediaeval approaches to classical fables, and emphasizes the depth of allusion which a mention of Orpheus generated for an intelligent, moderately-educated mediaeval reader. The myth of Orpheus and Eurydice was, of course, known to men of the Middle Ages primarily from Ovid's Metamorphoses, Virgil's Georgics, and Boethius' Consolation of Philosophy.' But that was only the beginning. Translations and commentaries, from King Alfred's version of Boethius to the compendious fourteenthcentury Ovide moralise, twisted and distorted elements of the story to fit Christian doctrine and instruction. By applying the four-fold interpretation of tales that had long been standard procedure for studying scripture and classical literature in general, commentators expanded the myth to two and three times its normal length. The anonymous Ovide moralise, for example, a work more widely read by late mediaeval French poets than the Metamorphoses itself,2 interprets different parts of the myth as allegories of the Vices, the Virtues, the life of Christ, Adam and Eve and the serpent, Heaven and Hell, the religious life, and contemporary abuses in the Church. Growing like Pinocchio's nose, these allegories and moralizations mark one of the Orpheus traditions in the Middle Ages what might be called the textual tradition in which Orpheus exemplifies the man dominated by the senses who is forever looking longingly back on earthly things, and Eurydice represents man's passion which constantly flees from virtue (Aristaeus) and, in so doing, runs through fields and meadows symbolic of mortal desires where the serpent, or deadly sin, is waiting to strike.3 There is, however, another Orpheus tradition in the period, one which most certainly arises from the oral tradition, and which is related to the prominent position in mediaeval society of the singer of tales the scop, the minstrel, or the minnesinger. In England and, indeed, among Teutonic peoples in general, the
Computer Study of a Diversity Augmented, Vehicular, Radio Communication System in a Man-Made Noise Environment

The communication performance in the presence of man-made interference of a multiple terminal, diversity augmented, vehicular, radio relay communication system dispersed throughout a large geographical area has been studied by a computer modeling of the multinode system. The radio relay system operating at UHF in the presence of unintentionally generated man-made radio noise has been evaluated from the viewpoint of message propagation rate and completeness of coverage for varying relay point distributions. The communication performance for several distributions of mobile relays dispersed in a specified operational area of western Europe was examined under the influence of man-made UHF noise generated by 52 urban industrial centers in the region. The effectiveness of message repetition in overcoming the adverse effect of intense man-made noise was measured as a function of relay point density.
Is strategic decision making chaotic

Collective decision making in politics or economics often involves strategic behavior, where decisions at the individual or subgroup level are contingent upon the choices and actions of others. This structure of interdependency implies a nonlinear process. Because the dynamics of chaotic systems are nonlinear, chaos theory has recently begun to attract attention as a potential model in the social sciences. However, these preliminary discussions have not been empirically supported. This article presents experimental and empirical evidence that strategic decision making can indeed exhibit chaotic behavior.
Napoleon and the ethics of realism: Hebel, Hölderlin, Büchner, Celan

In this essay, the presence of Napoleon in Sebald’s work is shown to be a major structuring element of his conception of realism, which he sees as an ethical response to mass historical catastrophes. Sebald understands the violence of the modern period as originating during the Napoleonic era and extending to World War II and the Holocaust; the realism of Stendhal, Balzac, Hebel and Buchner is thus fundamentally linked to the documentary realism of Nossack, Kluge, Weiss and Sebald himself. Drawing on Celan’s notion of the ‘Meridian’ connecting the madness of Buchner’s ‘Lenz’ to the Final Solution, Sebald consistently posits a contingent link between the Napoleonic and Hitler eras, between historical and personal catastrophes.
A radioimmunoassay employing polyethylene glycol (PEG) for measuring dilute concentrations of rat hemopexin, albumin and haptoglobin☆

Abstract A simple, sensitive and highly reproducible radiommunoassay employing PEG is described. This procedure allows quantitation of a large number of samples at room temperature. The method was developed for the determination of hemopexin, albumin and haptoglobin of the rat. Antigen concentrations as low as 0.03 μg/ml are measurable. The assay, routinely used for the range 0.1–1.0 μg/ml, is approximately 300 times more sensitive than the Mancini technique.
Experimental investigation of the fluid surface damping technique

A fluid surface damping (FSD) element has been designed, produced and applied for the vibration suppression of a cantilever aluminum beam. The experimental steady-state frequency response of the treated beam, measured at the free end and subjected to a burst white noise excitation at the base, is determined and compared with the corresponding analytical results. The comparison shows a disagreement between the predicted and experimental results. Discussion of the potential sources of disagreement and of possible remedial measures is presented.
The major site of murine K papovavirus persistence and reactivation is the renal tubular epithelium

K virus, a murine papovavirus, produces a lethal pneumonia in newborn mice. Animals surviving acute illness develop a persistent infection which reactivates under conditions of immunosuppression. The present study was conducted to identify the cell populations which support persistent K virus infection and to determine the cell populations in which this persistent infection is reactivated during immunosuppression. Mice inoculated by the oral route with 100 50% newborn mouse lethal doses (LD50) of K virus at 14 days of age were followed over a period of 7 months. The distribution of infection was studied by virus assay, immunohistochemistry, and in situ nucleic acid hybridization methods. Viral replication during the acute phase of infection was confined to pulmonary and systemic vascular endothelial cells, as well as to scattered, apparently lymphoid cells within spleens. Beginning 2 months after inoculation, however, specific hybridization for K virus nucleic acids was detected in rare renal tubular epithelial cells, and by 6 months after inoculation renal tubular epithelial cells represented the major site of viral persistence. Positive cells were frequently present in groups of two or more, and a minority of positive cells also expressed viral capsid (V) antigen. Immunosuppression with cyclophosphamide resulted in reactivation of infection, with highest titers of virus being detected in kidneys and with increased numbers of renal tubular epithelial cells expressing viral capsid antigen. Capsid antigen was also detected in rare endothelial cells in kidneys, livers and lungs of these immunosuppressed mice. Although K virus behaves as an endotheliotrope during acute infection, the major site of K virus persistence and reactivation, the renal tubular epithelial cell, is similar to that involved during persistent infection by polyoma virus in mice, SV40 virus in monkeys, and BK and JC viruses in man. The observation that persistently infected renal tubular epithelial cells occur in groups of two or more and occasionally express capsid antigen suggests that virus may persist as a productive infection which is confined by antiviral antibody but maintains itself by cell-to-cell-spread. The present study represents the first instance in which the cell populations which support infection by a member of the polyomavirus subgroup in its natural host have been defined during acute, persistent, and reactivated infection.
Production of Zinc Sulfide Pigment from Zinc-Containing Wastes

This paper describes a new process for making zinc sulfide pigment from fiber industry waste. Technical-grade ZnO and high-quality ZnS were made in an environmentally clean manner, without any other waste product being produced. The equation and rate of ZnO dissolution (0.114 L3/4 mol-3/4 min-1), as well as an empirical equation for determining the rate of ZnS precipitation, were found. Calculated and experimental data were in good agreement (<15%).
Cytopathology training in the United States – a personal view

In this review we present an outline of cytopathology training in the United States, for a non-US readership.
PORTSIM 5: Modeling from a seaport level

This paper describes PORTSIM 5, a discrete-event seaport simulation model. Specifically, we discuss the developmental efforts and existing system limitations that have led up to the current efforts being undertaken by the Military Traffic Management Command Transportation Engineering Agency and Argonne National Laboratory. PORTSIM 5 builds on the knowledge and expertise gained from two preceding port simulation models, PORTSIM 4.3 and CPORTS 1.4, and incorporates a set of rules and conventions to address the issue of resource competition. We will provide a brief description of the preceding models and illustrate their individual shortcomings. The paper will go on to describe PORTSIM 5 and the three main areas it models, port areas of operation, port processes, and port resources. Port resource allocation methods will also be addressed. In PORTSIM 5, the graphical user interface (GUI) has been decoupled from the simulation. Here we provide a short section on the GUI and illustrate with sample screens and output. Finally, future enhancements are suggested.
Serum von Willebrand factor, matrix metalloproteinase-9, and vascular endothelial growth factor levels predict the onset of cerebral vasospasm after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Objective Endothelial damage and intimal proliferation occur in vasospastic cerebral arteries after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). In the peripheral vasculature, endothelial damage increases intimal matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) levels, causing neointimal proliferation. We hypothesized that serum von Willebrand factor (vWF) (a marker of endothelial cell death), MMP-9, and VEGF levels could serve as prognostic markers in predicting the occurrence of cerebral vasospasm. Methods Venous serum vWF, MMP-9, and VEGF levels were prospectively measured daily, for 12 days or until the onset of vasospasm, for 45 consecutive patients admitted with SAH (n = 38) or admitted for elective aneurysm clipping (control subjects, n = 7). The development of transcranial Doppler flow velocities of more than 180 cm/s and/or new focal neurological deficits with angiographically confirmed vasospasm was considered the onset of vasospasm. To establish whether these markers were specific for vasospasm versus ischemia, blood samples were obtained from a concurrent group of 42 patients within 24 hours after stroke onset unrelated to SAH. Results Fifty-seven percent of patients (22 of 38 patients) developed vasospasm, 4 to 11 days after SAH (median, 7 d). Mean peak serum vWF, MMP-9, and VEGF levels were increased in the SAH prevasospasm cohort, compared with the SAH nonvasospasm cohort (vWF, 5526 +/- 929 versus 4934 +/- 599 ng/ml, P = 0.01; MMP-9, 705 +/- 338 versus 438 +/- 154 ng/ml, P = 0.006; VEGF, 0.12 +/- 0.06 versus 0.06 +/- 0.06 ng/ml, P = 0.023). Mean peak vWF, MMP-9, and VEGF levels for the focal ischemia cohort (vWF, 4645 +/- 875 ng/ml, P = 0.01; MMP-9, 250 +/- 308 ng/ml, P = 0.001; VEGF, 0.03 +/- 0.04 ng/ml, P = 0.001) were markedly lower in comparison with the SAH prevasospasm cohort and were unchanged in comparison with the control cohort. vWF levels of more than 5500 ng/ml, VEGF levels of more than 0.12 ng/ml, and MMP levels of more than 700 ng/ml each independently increased the odds of subsequent vasospasm (18-, 20-, and 25-fold, respectively). Conclusion The development of cerebral vasospasm after SAH was preceded by increases in serum vWF, MMP-9, and VEGF levels. Increased serum vWF, MMP-9, and VEGF levels could accurately predict the onset of cerebral vasospasm after SAH. These factors were not elevated by SAH alone or in a separate cohort of patients with ischemic stroke, suggesting that these factors might play a role in the pathogenesis of human cerebral vasospasm.
Laser annealing of neutron irradiated boron-10 isotope doped diamond

10B isotope doped p-type diamond epilayer grown by chemical vapor deposition on (110) oriented type IIa diamond single crystal substrate was subjected to neutron transmutation at a fluence of 2.4 × 1020 thermal and 2.4 × 1020 fast neutrons. After neutron irradiation, the epilayer and the diamond substrate were laser annealed using Nd–YAG laser irradiation with wave length, 266 nm and energy, 150 mJ per pulse. The neutron irradiated diamond epilayer and the substrate were characterized before and after laser annealing using different techniques. The characterization techniques include optical microscopy, secondary ion mass spectrometry, X-ray diffraction, Raman, photoluminescence and Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy, and electrical sheet conductance measurement. The results indicate that the structure of the irradiation induced amorphous epilayer changes to disordered graphite upon laser annealing. The irradiated substrate retains the (110) crystalline structure with neutron irradiation induced defects.
Geometry Of Discrete Sets With Applications To Pattern Recognition

In this paper we present a new framework for discrete black and white images that employs only integer arithmetic. This framework is shown to retain the essential characteristics of the framework for Euclidean images. We propose two norms and based on them, the permissible geometric operations on images are defined. The basic invariants of our geometry are line images, structure of image and the corresponding local property of strong attachment of pixels. The permissible operations also preserve the 3x3 neighborhoods, area, and perpendicularity. The structure, patterns, and the inter-pattern gaps in a discrete image are shown to be conserved by the magnification and contraction process. Our notions of approximate congruence, similarity and symmetry are similar, in character, to the corresponding notions, for Euclidean images [1]. We mention two discrete pattern recognition algorithms that work purely with integers, and which fit into our framework. Their performance has been shown to be at par with the performance of traditional geometric schemes. Also, all the undesired effects of finite length registers in fixed point arithmetic that plague traditional algorithms, are non-existent in this family of algorithms.
On the use of open-channel flows to measure the second normal stress difference

This paper deals with the measurement of the second normal stress difference in a viscoelastic flow in an open semi-circular inclined channel; associated theory is also given. The theory shows that simple correlations exist for the second normal stress difference, the shear stress, and the profile (or the deflection) of the free surface of the flow. It leads to a method for deducing the second normal stress from the measured surface profile. A treatment of surface tension, whose effect has been ignored in previous analyses is given as an integral part of the formulation. Samples of polyisobutylene/cetane and some aqueous solutions of different concentrations were used for measurements using two tubes of different materials and sizes tilted at different angles. The N.B.S. No. 1 nonlinear sample was also tested. Agreements between results for different tube sizes and angles indicate the consistency of the theory and measurements. The results presented here show that the ratio of the second to the first normal stress differences is negative and the functional form of the second normal stress difference is close to a square law in shear stress in the range investigated. Relatively speaking, we find the ratio |N2/N1| to be greater for more dilute solutions. A summary of available data onN2 is given for polyisobutylene, and reasonable consistency between various investigators is demonstrated for this material. Besides, a correlation ofN2 for various polymer solutions is also shown.
Trimethylthiazoline supports conditioned flavor avoidance and activates viscerosensory, hypothalamic, and limbic circuits in rats

Interoceptive stimuli modulate stress responses and emotional state, in part, via ascending viscerosensory inputs to the hypothalamus and limbic forebrain. It is unclear whether similar viscerosens...
Momentary Reports of Social-Evaluative Threat Predict Ambulatory Blood Pressure

Although laboratory research indicates that social-evaluative threat evokes a physical stress response, naturalistic studies of its situational determinants remain scarce. This work investigates th...
The demand operation in the schematic protection model

Abstract We show that the demand operation in the schematic protection model is redundant in that it can be simulated by copy and create operations. We also consider to what extent amplification (or conditional demand) can be simulated by similar constructions.
Some of my best friends are linguists

This article concerns the relationship between linguistics and the work carried out during 1972–1993 at IBMResearch in automatic speech recognition (ASR) and natural language processing (NLP). Many statements I will make will be incomplete: I am not that conversant with the literature. I apologize to those whomImayoffend.Conceivably itwouldhavebeenmuchbetter to leave things alone, stay silent. Hopefully this journal will be willing to devote some of its pages to Letters to the Editor to correct the record or air opposing views. The starting point is the following quote attributed to me: Whenever I fire a linguist our system performance improves. I have hoped for many years that this quote was only apocryphal, but at least two reliable witnesses have recently convinced me that I really stated this publicly in a conference talk (Jelinek, 1998). Accepting then that I really said it, I must first of all affirm that I never fired anyone, and a linguist least of all. So my motivation is defensive: to show that neither I nor my colleagues at IBM ever had any hostility to linguists or linguistics. In fact, we all hoped that linguists would provide us with needed help. We were never reluctant to include linguistic knowledge or intuition into our systems: if we didn’t succeed, it was because we didn’t find an efficient way to do include it.
The effect of estrogen priming on the uptake of radioactive estradiol.

The action of estrogens on target organs has been amply reviewed (1-3). Since the report by Jensen and Jacobson (4), demonstrating accumulation and retention of estradiol in rat uterine tissue, many investigators have turned to the use of tritiated estradiol with high specific activity as a tool for studying mechanisms of estrogen action. The effect of estrogen pretreatment on the uptake of radioactive estradiol has been studied in several laboratories with variable results (4-8). This report defines the conditions under which various estrogens stimulate the uptake of tracer estradiol by the mouse uterus.Materials and Methods. Five to ten female Cox mice weighing 11-13 g were used per group. At sacrifice, the uteri were quickly removed, dissected free of extraneous tissue, and weighed after uniform blotting to remove excess fluid. The uteri were transferred directly to counting vials and dissolved in 1.0 ml NCS Reagent (Nuclear Chicago) with gentle warming. Diatol was added and radio-activity was determin...
MICROSTRUCTURAL AND MECHANICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF CARBON NANOFIBER REINFORCED COMPOSITES

Carbon nanofibers, such as single walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT), multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNT) and vapor-grown carbon nanofibers (VGCF or VGCNF) are routinely compounded with polymers to create thermally and electrically conductive polymer nanocomposites. Our group is interested in combining the conduction with structural functionality by reinforcing a high-performance thermotropic liquid crystal polymer (LCP) matrix with vapor-grown carbon nanofibers and single walled carbon nanotubes. High strength and stiffness can be achieved in LCPs through the alignment of molecular domains during high-shear mixing and extrusion. Further strength and stiffness enhancements are potentially possible if the carbon nanofibers could also be aligned, perhaps, with the assistance of the aligned domains of the LCP matrix. However, the geometrical structure of VGCF is quite different and the diameter is one to two orders of magnitude larger than that of SWNT. Therefore, the processing conditions and the interactions between the LCP domains and the nanofibers are expected to lead to different dispersion and alignment characteristics of VGCF and SWNT within the LCP matrix. In this work, twin-screw and Maxwell-type mixer-extruders were used to produce neat LCP filaments and LCP-nanofiber composite filaments with various concentrations of VGCF and SWNT. The dispersion and orientation of the VGCF and SWNT reinforcements were determined by X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy. The filaments were loaded in quasi-static uniaxial tension until fracture to determine the tensile modulus, strength and strain-to-failure. The mechanical properties showed a strong dependence on the filament diameter, nanofiber concentration and processing parameters. A significant increase in mechanical performance was observed with decreasing filament diameter irrespective of the carbon nanofiber concentration. Fracture surfaces examined under electron microscopy revealed hierarchical features at multiple length scales. At the macroscopic scale, a skin-core configuration was observed in the filament cross-section with the skin possessing a greater degree of LCP molecular alignment and nanofiber alignment than the core. The mechanical and electrical properties of the LCP, LCP-VGCF and LCP-SWNT nanocomposite filaments will be described and related to processing parameters, the type of carbon nanofibers (VGCF or SWNT) and the resulting composite microstructure.Copyright © 2006 by ASME
Calculation of Neutron and X-Ray Scattering Amplitudes for bcc Iron

The charge and spin densities for bcc iron were obtained from Bloch wave functions calculated by the augmented-plane-wave (APW) method. An iterative spin-dependent Hartree-Fock-Slater calculation was carried out and was found to yield a total spin per unit cell considerably in excess of the experimental value. The APW method was also applied to the potential of Wakoh and Yamashita, and the x-ray and neutron-scattering amplitudes were calculated from the resulting charge and spin densities for direct comparison with experiment. The neutron amplitudes are in reasonable agreement with experiment, and the calculated spin density confirms the existence of a region of negative magnetization density which has been inferred from experiment. The x-ray amplitudes for paired reflections indicate a much more nearly spherical charge distribution than do the experimental values. The sensitivity of these results to the potential used and the question of self-consistency have been investigated.
Passivation of Poly-Si Thin-Film Transistors With Ion-Implanted Deuterium

A comparison of ion-implanted deuterium and ion implanted hydrogen for passivation of grain boundary states in poly-Si thin film transistors (TFTs) is presented for the first time. Gate-drain bias stressing was carried out after anneals at 350 °C, 400 °C, and 450 °C. Under stress, deuterated TFTs are more resistant to bias stress than hydrogenated TFTs in terms of most PMOS performance parameters and NMOS leakage current, but are markedly less resistant to NMOS threshold degradation. While still showing promise, these results are not as impressive as those shown for hot carrier degradation in very large scale integration (VLSI) MOS devices. After 350 °C activation anneal, deuterium is less effective than hydrogen at initial device passivation, probably as a result of excessive implant damage. After anneals at 400 or 450 °C, deuterium becomes more effective at passivation than hydrogen, possibly due to differences in diffusion between hydrogen and deuterium.
Synthesis and DNA binding studies of bis-intercalators with a novel spiro-cyclic linker

Threading polyintercalation has been demonstrated as a unique DNA binding mode in which a polyintercalating moiety threads back and forth through the DNA double helix. This binding topology necessitates linkers residing in both the minor and major grooves in an alternating fashion. In the present work, two novel, rigid, cis and trans oriented spiro-cyclic linkers were synthesized as potential groove binding elements in the context of threading bis-intercalation. Analysis of dissociation kinetics indicated that the cis oriented dimer has dramatically slower dissociation from poly(dGdC) and calf thymus (CT) DNA compared to the trans oriented dimer and a linear dimer control.
Characterization of binary string statistics for syntactic landmine detection

Syntactic landmine detection has been proposed to detect and classify non-metallic landmines using ground penetrating radar (GPR). In this approach, the GPR return is processed to extract characteristic binary strings for landmine and clutter discrimination. In our previous work, we discussed the preprocessing methodology by which the amplitude information of the GPR A-scan signal can be effectively converted into binary strings, which identify the impedance discontinuities in the signal. In this work, we study the statistical properties of the binary string space. In particular, we develop a Markov chain model to characterize the observed bit sequence of the binary strings. The state is defined as the number of consecutive zeros between two ones in the binarized A-scans. Since the strings are highly sparse (the number of zeros is much greater than the number of ones), defining the state this way leads to fewer number of states compared to the case where each bit is defined as a state. The number of total states is further reduced by quantizing the number of consecutive zeros. In order to identify the correct order of the Markov model, the mean square difference (MSD) between the transition matrices of mine strings and non-mine strings is calculated up to order four using training data. The results show that order one or two maximizes this MSD. The specification of the transition probabilities of the chain can be used to compute the likelihood of any given string. Such a model can be used to identify characteristic landmine strings during the training phase. These developments on modeling and characterizing the string statistics can potentially be part of a real-time landmine detection algorithm that identifies landmine and clutter in an adaptive fashion.
Ethics Skills Laboratory Experience for Surgery Interns

Introduction and Purpose Ethics curricula are nearly universal in residency training programs, but the content and delivery methods are not well described, and there is still a relative paucity of literature evaluating the effect of ethics curricula. Several commentators have called for more ethics curriculum development at the postgraduate level, and specifically in surgery training. We detail our development and implementation of a clinical ethics curriculum for surgery interns. Methods We developed curricula and simulated patient cases for 2 core clinical ethics skills—breaking bad news and obtaining informed consent. Educational sessions for each topic included (1) framework development (discussion of interns’ current experience, development of a consensus framework for ethical practice, and comparison with established frameworks) and (2) practice with simulated patient followed by peer and faculty feedback. At the beginning and end of each session, we administered a test of confidence and knowledge about the topics to assess the effect of the sessions. Results A total of 98 surgical interns participated in the ethics skills laboratory from Spring 2008 to Spring 2011. We identified significant improvement in confidence regarding the appropriate content of informed consent ( Conclusions Through faculty-facilitated small group discussion, surgery interns were able to develop frameworks for ethical practice that paralleled established frameworks. Skills-based training in clinical ethics resulted in an increase in knowledge scores and self-reported confidence. Evaluation of 4 annual cohorts of surgery interns demonstrates significant successes and some areas for improvement in this educational intervention.
Effects of radiation and convective boundary conditions on the stability of fluid in an inclined slender slot

Abstract The neutral stability of an absorbing, emitting, scattering, nongray viscous fluid contained inside an inclined slender slot and subjected to convective boundary conditions is examined for inclination from 0° to 180°. The modified P-1 approximation (Eddington approximation) is employed for the radiation part of the problem. The effects of the Biot numbers h 1 and H 2 at the lower and upper surfaces, the conduction-to-radiation parameter, N, optical thickness τ 0 , single scattering albedo ω, the wall emissivities e 1 and e 2 , the nongrayness factor η and the inclination angle δ on the onset of stability in gases are determined for both the longitudinal and transverse vortex rolls. The results show that radiation besides its stabilizing effect significantly shifts the transition angle for cross over from the transverse to the longitudinal rolls towards horizontal.
H and O atom profiles measured by ESR in C2 hydrocarbon-O2 flames

The feasibility of measuring labile atom profiles in flames by probe sampling combined with quantitative ESR spectroscopy is demonstrated for the first time. The method relies on using O2 as a reference calibrating gas, the validity of this procedure having been proven elsewhere. In this case the O2 was present as a diluent in the flame gases. The great potentialities of this technique in flame kinetic studies are shown by preliminary examples of absolute mole fraction profiles of H and O atoms measured in 0.1 atm flat flames of C2H5−O2, C2H4−O2, and C2H2−O2. These are the same flames whose major stable species concentration profiles were previously reported at the Seventh Symposium, and data obtained subsequently on their temperature and velocity profiles are also given. The major species profiles were corrected for diffusion and converted to net reaction rate profiles in the usual way. Profiles of OH concentration were computed from the measured CO2 formation rates using a rate constant for CO+OH→CO2+H fitted to a variety of reported data. The striking fact about the data is that the OH and fuel disappearance rate profiles definitely precede the appearance of any measurable H or O in each flame, thus pointing strongly to the exclusive reaction of the fuel with OH rather than with H or O. Since the O2 loss rate coincides with that of the fuel, it seems likely that the O2 reacts with the hydrocarbon fragment left after OH attack, with reaction via H+O2→OH+O occurring only later in the flame. The consequences of these observations are discussed. Rate constants estimated from the data are (cm3 mole−1 sec−1): 5×1012 for C2H6+OH in the range 1300°–1550°K, 1×1013 for C2H4+OH in the range 1250°–1400°K, and 5×1015exp(−1300/RT) for H2CO+OH.
The radular muscle myoglobins of the gastropod molluscs, Acmaea testudinaus scutum eschscholtz, Hauotis kamtschatkana jones, Tegula funebralis adams, Fusitriton oregonexsis redfield, and Thais lamellosa gmelin

Abstract 1. 1. The radular muscle myoglobin of the gastropod mollusc Fusitriton oregonensis has been purified. 2. 2. Fusitriton carbonmonoxymyoglobin has a molecular weight of about 35,400 and is cleaved by p-hydroxymercuribenzoate into subunits of apparent molecular weight approximately 17,000. 3. 3. The amino-acid composition of the half molecule of Fusitriton radular muscle myoglobin is: Lys16.5, His83 Arg3, 1 2 Cys 2 , Asp1τ, Thr8, Ser8 Glu9, Pro4, Gly14.5, Ala24, Val9.5, Ileu5, Met9.5, Leu14.5, Tyr2.4, Phe12.5, Trp present. 4. 4. The radular muscle myoglobins of Aanata testudinalis scutum, Haliotis kamtschat-kaaa, Thais lamellosa, and Tegula funebralis all have apparent molecular weights of about 34,000. 5. 5. The radular muscle myoglobins of the gastropod molluscs are compared.
Accordion summarization for end-game browsing on PDAs and cellular phones

We demonstrate a new browsing technique for devices with small displays such as PDAs or cellular phones. We concentrate on end-game browsing, where the user is close to or on the target page. We make browsing more efficient and easier by Accordion Summarization. In this technique the Web page is first represented as a short summary. The user can then drill down to discover relevant parts of the page. If desired, keywords can be highlighted and exposed automatically. We discuss our techniques, architecture, interface facilities, and the result of user evaluations. We measured a 57% improvement in browsing speed and 75% reduction in input effort.