cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Spinal cord aspergillosis in immunosuppressed patients.

Aspergillus is the most common fungal infectious pathogen in immunocompromised individuals, but the diagnosis is hard to obtain. I a patient with spinal cord involvement, MRI groved to be excellent.
Shyness: Introversion or neuroticism?

Abstract The terms shyness and introversion are often used interchangeably in everyday language. However, shyness as a construct is conceptually distinct from the wellknown dimensions of introversion (-extraversion) and neuroticism. In a hierarchical model of personality traits, shyness is a primary factor whereas introversion and neuroticism are higher order factors. The implications of this distinction were examined by comparing several shyness scales with Eysenck and Eysenck's (1968 , The manual of the Eysenck Personality Inventory, San Diego, CA: Educational and Industrial Testing Service) measures of introversion and neuroticism. The results show (1) that shyness items (as well as scales) correlate about equally with measures of introversion and neuroticism, suggesting that the construct of shyness should be located somewhere between these orthogonal dimensions; and (2) that only two items on the Eysencks' scales seem to measure shyness directly—their scales apparently correlate with shyness primarily because they assess constructs related to shyness such as sociability and self-esteem.
Dynamic mechanical analysis of RIM nylon‐6

The β relaxation process was shown to occur at different temperatures and exhibit a different activation energy for dry and wet samples prepared by reaction injection molding (RIM) of Nylon-6. By employing a low operating frequency and controlled low moisture levels, it became possible to distinguish the two β relaxation processes, β1 and β2, in one sample by dynamic mechanical spectroscopy. It was shown that while β1 was associated with moisture in the sample, β2 was related to a structural mechanism independent of moisture. The effect of moisture content on the chain-chain association (α relaxation process) and chain-water association (β1, relaxation process) in nylon-6 was assessed. The annealing mechanism of RIM Nylon-6 at 85°C was probed by both dynamic mechanical spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction.
POSSIBLE NEW PHASES OF COMPOSITE FERMIONS

When the effective filling factor of composite fermions is an integer, the residual interaction between them can often be neglected because the ground state of the non-interacting model is unique and incompressible. However, at non-integer composite fermion (CF) filling factors the ground state of composite fermions is enormously degenerate if the interaction between them is neglected, and consideration of the inter composite fermion interaction is necessary for determining the true ground state. In this article, we summarize certain results regarding what new states the inter composite fermion interaction can possibly produce. More details can be found in Refs. [11] and [12].
Electron-beam CT: use of a calibration phantom to reduce variability in calcium quantitation.

PURPOSE: To measure scanner and patient variation in computed tomographic (CT) numbers for electron-beam CT and to determine the ability of calibration phantoms to reduce variability in calcium quantitation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two calibration phantoms were imaged to ensure longitudinal homogeneity and to determine the short-term intrascanner variation in CT numbers. Each phantom set was imaged twice a day for 14 weeks to determine intra- and interscanner variation. Data from examinations of 167 patients that included the phantom were analyzed to determine the intra- and interpatient variation in CT numbers of objects with known calcium concentrations. RESULTS: The calibration reduced scanner variations by approximately 25%. The calcium concentration associated with a CT number of 130 HU varied from 77.1 to 136.4 mg/cm3 and was dependent on patient girth, sex, smoking history, and image level. CONCLUSION: Scanner and patient variations in CT numbers in electron-beam CT can be reduced with a calibration...
Substance use and related behaviors among suburban late adolescents: The importance of perceived parent containment

This study builds upon prior findings of elevated substance use among suburban high school students, examining the ramifications of different parenting dimensions on substance use and related behaviors. The sample consisted of 258 11th graders in an affluent suburban community. Parenting predictors considered included those well-studied previously such as monitoring and closeness, as well as two newer dimensions: perceived containment (stringency of anticipated reactions in reaction to negative behaviors) and perceived commitment (e.g., helping the child despite other commitments). Outcomes included self-reported substance use, delinquency, and rule breaking, as well as teacher-rated inattentiveness and school grades. Findings showed elevated substance use among these 17-year-olds compared with national norms, especially among girls. Of the parent predictors, significant unique links with multiple outcomes were found for parents' knowledge of their children's activities and perceived parental containment (stringent repercussions) in reaction to the children's substance use. Notably, students reported that their parents were much more tolerant of their substance use than of other problem behaviors such as rudeness to adults and minor acts of delinquency. Results are discussed along with the implications for practice and research.
Equality in Pollard's theorem on set addition of congruence classes

For prime p, we classify those pairs of subsets of Zp for which equality is attained in Pollard’s theorem. Our result may be considered as an extension of the theorem of Vosper characterizing the critical pairs for the Cauchy-Davenport inequality.
Correlating Kinematics and Control Inputs on Small-Scale Helicopters

We present a time-domain technique for correlating the control inputs given to hovering, small-scale helicopters with their corresponding accelerations. The resulting correlations give a simple plant model that can be used for proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller gain tuning, helicopter trimming, and simulations to test low-level controllers. We have collected our data in the Autonomous Controls Environment (ACE), an indoor cooperative control test bed for small, unmanned rotorcraft and ground vehicles. The data collection utilizes pre-existing low-level controllers and the data logs automatically generated by those controllers, so no special system identification arrangements need to be made. We also present two applications of the plant model that we have implemented on the ACE test bed, namely PID gain tuning and automatic in-flight trimming. Nomenclature ai(t) = acceleration in the direction corresponding to channel i ci = proportionality constant relating acceleration to control voltage on channel i di = proportionality constant relating force to control voltage on channel i ei(t) = position error in the direction corresponding to channel i Ei(s) = Laplace Transform of ei(t) Fi(t) = net force in the direction corresponding to channel i i = controller channel corresponding to thrust, roll, pitch, or yaw k = generic PID gain kiP = gain for proportional term of PID controller on channel i kiI = gain for integral term of PID controller on channel i kiD = gain for derivative term of PID controller on channel i Li(s) = open loop transfer function for helicopter and PID controller R 2 = correlation coefficient for line fits td = time delay between control voltage Vi(t) and helicopter kinematics ai(t) or Fi(t) Ti(s) = closed loop transfer function for helicopter and PID controller V0i = reference voltage for trimmed flight on channel i Vi(t) = control input on channel i expressed as a voltage set in the RC helicopter’s transmitter Vi(s) = Laplace Transform of Vi(t) Vtrim,i = value of Vi(t) when there is no acceleration x = Cartesian body frame coordinate corresponding to the pitch direction y = Cartesian body frame coordinate corresponding to the roll direction Yi(s) = Laplace Transform of the output on channel i, namely a yaw angle or position Ydi = Laplace Transform of the desired output on channel i z = Cartesian body frame coordinate corresponding to the thrust direction
Identification of deregulated oncogenic pathways in renal cell carcinoma: an integrated oncogenomic approach based on gene expression profiling

In this age of targeted therapy, identification of molecular pathways that are deregulated in cancer will not only elucidate underlying tumorigenic mechanisms, but may also help to determine the classes of drugs that are used for treatment. In kidney cancer, a spectrum of histological subtypes exists that are characterized both by distinct molecular signatures and increasingly by distinct molecular pathways that are deregulated in each subtype. For example, the VHL/hypoxia pathway is well-known to be deregulated in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (RCC) whereas in papillary RCC activation of the HGF/Met pathway has been implicated. Additional molecular pathways, many not yet identified, may also be involved in the development of the different histologic subtypes. Moreover, differences in pathway activation may reflect differences in tumor progression and response to treatment. In this article, we describe an oncogenomic approach, based on integrative analysis of gene expression profiling data. In this approach, gene expression data is used to identify both cytogenetic abnormalities and molecular pathways that are deregulated in RCC. Ideally, predicted pathway abnormalities can be linked to predicted cytogenetic abnormalities to identify likely candidate genes. Although further cellular and functional studies are warranted to validate the computational models, development of such models in RCC have the potential to open up new avenues of molecular research and may have significant diagnostic and therapeutic implications.
Supersonic quasi-axisymmetric vortex breakdown

An extensive computational study of supersonic quasi-axisymmetric vortex breakdown in a configured circular duct is presented. The unsteady, compressible, full Navier-Stokes (NS) equations are used. The NS equations are solved for the quasi-axisymmetric flows using an implicit, upwind, flux difference splitting, finite volume scheme. The quasi-axisymmetric solutions are time accurate and are obtained by forcing the components of the flowfield vector to be equal on two axial planes, which are in close proximity of each other. The effect of Reynolds number, for laminar flows, on the evolution and persistence of vortex breakdown, is studied. Finally, the effect of swirl ration at the duct inlet is investigated.
A computationally efficient nonlinear system model for CMUT arrays

We present a fast lumped model that predicts the electrical input-output behavior of an ultrasound system using CMUT arrays with arbitrary membrane/electrode geometries. Model capabilities include selection of arbitrary drive signals and transmit-receive circuit impedances for individual array elements, enabling accurate modeling of arrays of single and multiple electrode CMUTs for different ultrasound modalities in a computationally efficient manner. Given the CMUT system description, the pressure at an arbitrary point in the immersion medium and individual membrane displacements are calculated in the time domain for transmit mode. In receive mode, the output electrical signals are calculated as if another ultrasound source is present in the immersion medium. Pulse-echo operation is considered as the transmit-receive mode where the incident field is generated by the image of the CMUT array itself. An example CMUT system consisting of a single circular membrane with multiple electrodes is used to validate all these different modes through comparisons with COMSOL. The results show the ability to capture the nonlinear CMUT behavior accurately and the versatility of the model for different scenarios.
A Kinase-Independent Role for EGF Receptor in Autophagy Initiation

The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is upregulated in numerous human cancers. Inhibition of EGFR signaling induces autophagy in tumor cells. Here, we report an unanticipated role for the inactive EGFR in autophagy initiation. Inactive EGFR interacts with the oncoprotein LAPTM4B that is required for the endosomal accumulation of EGFR upon serum starvation. Inactive EGFR and LAPTM4B stabilize each other at endosomes and recruit the exocyst subcomplex containing Sec5. We show that inactive EGFR, LAPTM4B, and the Sec5 subcomplex are required for basal and starvation-induced autophagy. LAPTM4B and Sec5 promote EGFR association with the autophagy inhibitor Rubicon, which in turn disassociates Beclin 1 from Rubicon to initiate autophagy. Thus, the oncoprotein LAPTM4B facilitates the role of inactive EGFR in autophagy initiation. This pathway is positioned to control tumor metabolism and promote tumor cell survival upon serum deprivation or metabolic stress.
The response of a system when modified by the attachment of an additional sub-system

Abstract A technique is developed by which the effect of the attachment of a sub-system on frequency domain and time domain responses may be evaluated. This involves working with driving point and transfer functions in the frequency domain. Transition to the time domain is accomplished by use of the Fast Fourier Transform algorithm. The technique developed is applied to find the optimal damping for a dynamic vibration absorber attached to the tip of a forced elastic cantilever beam.
Multilayer adsorption of deuterium hydride on graphite

We report ellipsometric-coverage vapor-pressure isotherm measurements for HD on graphite over the temperature range 8.5--16.7 K. As many as 17 discrete layer adsorption steps are resolved at temperatures near 16.0 K, slightly below the bulk triple point ${(T}_{t}=16.60\mathrm{K}).$ Layer condensation critical temperatures are determined for layers two through nine. The sequence of critical temperatures indicates that the roughening temperature ${T}_{r}$ of the close-packed facet of HD is certainly above 14.9 K and could be as high as ${T}_{t}.$ With some assumptions, an estimate of ${T}_{r}=15.3\mathrm{K}$ is obtained. A conspicuous feature of the isotherms is occurrence of hysteresis and splitting over limited temperature ranges in the fourth, fifth, and sixth layer adsorption/desorption steps. This apparently indicates a change in structure of the underlying film when the thickness equals or exceeds four layers.
Structural optimization with stiffness and frequency constraints

Abstract Automated preliminary design algorithms for large aerospace structures require an efficient and reliable method to economically minimize weight, while satisfying multiple types of constraints. Often structural optimization is started with a few cycles of Fully Stressed Design, using the stress ratio method, because of its simplicity and computational efficiency. The present approach is to generalize more sophisticated optimality criteria for more than one type of constraint. The goal is to account for more than just stress constraints, while retaining the computational efficiency of the simple stress ratio method. Previous optimality criteria methods for static and frequency constraints are combined in a new algorithm that handles both types of constraints simultaneously. Two trusses and one wing structure are used to demonstrate the validity of an Optimality Criteria method for multiple behavior constraints.
The use of visual information by house flies, Musca domestica (Diptera: muscidae), foraging in resource patches.

House flies, Musca domestica, respond to visual contrasts on the substrate if a resource is associated with the contrasting patterns. Visible resource patch boundaries serve as a signal to flies that they are about to leave a rewarding patch. Searching flies respond to such visual information by walking along the resource patch boundary and turning back into the patch at its edge. This edge detection and response serve as a mechanism for flies with visual cues to stay in a rewarding patch and locate more resources within it. The intensity of their response correlates with the quality of the resource. In the absence of visual cues, patch shape affects foraging success; flies find more resources in circular than in linear resource distributions. The effects of visual cues, however, render patch shape unimportant. Various substrate contrasts are effective as resource information for flies: dark (e.g., green) figures on bright (e.g., white) backgrounds or bright figures on dark backgrounds. Responses to substrate contrasts measured in this study indicate that, over the short term, house flies can learn a visual cue associated with a food source.
Forcing, Freedom, & Uniqueness in Graph Theory & Chemistry

Harary’s & Randic’s ideas of “forcing” & “freedom” involve subsets of double bonds of Kekule structure such as to be unique to that Kekule structure. Such forcing sets are argued to be greatly generalizable to deal with various other coverings, and thence forcing seems to be fundamental, and of notable potential utility. Various forcing invariants associated to (molecular) graphs ensue, with illustrative (chemical) examples and some mathematical consequences being provided. A complementary “uniqueness” idea is noted, and the general characteristic of “derivativity” of “forcing” is established (as is relevant for QSPR fittings). Different ways in which different sorts of forcings arise in chemistry are briefly indicated.(doi: 10.5562/cca2000)
The nature of spontaneous sleep across adulthood

The decline in sleep quality that often accompanies aging is thought to be the consequence of alterations in both circadian and homeostatic processes widely assumed to be responsible for sleep/wake regulation. A number of experimental approaches have been used to examine various aspects of age-related sleep changes, but none has examined spontaneous sleep across the entire 24-h day. Using the 'disentrainment' protocol, we studied such sleep in young, middle-aged and older adults. All subjects exhibited polyphasic sleep patterns, characterized by relatively short intervals of both sleep and waking. Whereas, the average duration of major nighttime sleep was significantly shorter in middle-aged and older subjects than in young adults, daytime napping was essentially unaffected by age. Comparisons of sleep and circadian variables between age groups suggest differential effects on sleep of the two regulatory processes, with changes in homeostatic drive preceding those of the circadian component. These findings add to a surprisingly scant literature on the longitudinal decline in sleep quality associated with aging.
Interaction of stresses with inclusions in solids — a review

Abstract A theoretical method of assessing the influence of stress and temperature gradients on the motion of inclusions in solids is developed. In nonuniform stress fields, the stress distribution on the surface of the cavity is calculated and transformed to a chemical potential gradient for driving a surface atom flux. The bubble migration velocity is related to the first Legendre coefficient of the surface flux. Higher order components represent distortion. The stress gradient effect appears only in small-magnitude terms in the surface chemical potential, specifically in the stress effect on the solid atomic volume and in the elastic energy density. The migration velocities of spherical and faceted bubbles in stress gradients are computed and the distortion of a spherical bubble is estimated. The role of vacancy exchange with the bulk solid on the migration velocity is assessed.
Challenges in Preserving Location Privacy in Peer-to-Peer Environments

In location-based services (LBS), users have to continuously report their locations to the database server to entertain the service. For example, a user asking about her nearest gas station has to report her exact location to the database server. With untrustworthy servers, LBS may pose a major privacy threat on its users. In other words, the existing model of LBS trades service for user privacy. To tackle this privacy threat, several centralized privacy-preserving frameworks are proposed for LBS, in which a third trusted party is used as a middleware to blur user exact locations into spatial regions, in order to achieve k-anonymity, i.e., a user is indistinguishable among other k - 1 users. However, the centralized third trusted party could be the system bottleneck or single point of failure. The state-of-the-art peer-to-peer (P2P) communication technology adds a new dimension to the privacy-preserving techniques in LBS. The users holding P2P communication devices possess the ability to collaborate with one another to blur their exact locations into spatial regions without any help from centralized third trusted parties. In this paper, we present the challenges and research issues that emerge from deploying the P2P privacy-preserving framework in LBS.
Societal implications of the pharmacoeconomics of α1-antitrypsin deficiency

The use of intermittent augmentation therapy for patients with α1-antitrypsin deficiency assists in slowing disease progression and may, as a result, reduce the likelihood of hospitalization and significant clinical events. There are significant cost and access issues related to current therapy management, since currently marked augmentation therapy is expensive and there have been periodic shortages. The high cost, access and reimbursement concerns have prompted questions about the potential pharmacoeconomic advantages of future treatments. In this review, we provide an overview of published research findings concerning the effectiveness of current therapy, reimbursement and cost issues and potential future advances in treatment for α1-antitrypsin deficiency.
The Effect of Crystalline Electric Fields on the Paramagnetic Susceptibility of Cupric Salts

The paramagnetic susceptibility of the cupric ion in the hexahydrate sulphates Cu${(\mathrm{N}{\mathrm{H}}_{4})}_{2}$${(\mathrm{S}{\mathrm{O}}_{4})}_{2}$: 6${\mathrm{H}}_{2}$O and Cu${\mathrm{K}}_{2}$${(\mathrm{S}{\mathrm{O}}_{4})}_{2}$: 6${\mathrm{H}}_{2}$O has been computed on the assumption that the crystalline field has monoclinic symmetry but deviates only slightly from cubic symmetry. The computed variation of the magnitudes of the principal susceptibilities with temperature agrees with the data over the limited range of experimental measurements. The mean susceptibility should follow quite closely the simple formula $\ensuremath{\chi}=\frac{A}{T}+B$, even if the individual susceptibilities do not. This agrees very well with the observations of de Haas and Gorter on the mean susceptibility of CuS${\mathrm{O}}_{4}$: 5${\mathrm{H}}_{2}$O for the temperature range 14\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}K to 290\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}K. In a rhombic field, such as was previously used by Schlapp and Penney for calculations on ${\mathrm{Co}}^{++}$ and ${\mathrm{Ni}}^{++}$, the directions of the principal magnetic axes are independent of temperature, while the more general monoclinic field gives a rotation of the magnetic axes as the temperature is varied. The calculated variation of the direction of the principal axes with temperature in ${\mathrm{Cu}}^{++}$ is in qualitative accord with the observations of Bartlett, but the numerical agreement is not very good. The introduction of an exceedingly asymmetrical diamagnetic correction greatly improves the agreement for the potassium salt, but more likely, the large rotations observed by Bartlett are due to allotropic changes, since the temperature range is not far below the temperatures at which dehydration and decomposition take place. From the choice of parameters which give agreement with the magnetic data, conclusions are drawn about the structures of these crystals.
A system for specification and verification of interactive, data-driven web applications

When comparing alternative query execution plans (QEPs), a cost-based query optimizer in a relational database management system needs to estimate the selectivity of conjunctive predicates. To avoid inaccurate independence assumptions, modern optimizers try to exploit multivariate statistics (MVS) that provide knowledge about joint frequencies in a table of a relation. Because the complete joint distribution is almost always too large to store, optimizers are given only partial knowledge about this distribution. As a result, there exist multiple, non-equivalent ways to estimate the selectivity of a conjunctive predicate. To consistently combine the partial knowledge during the estimation process, existing optimizers employ cumbersome ad hoc heuristics. These methods unjustifiably ignore valuable information, and the optimizer tends to favor QEPs for which the least information is available. This bias problem yields poor QEP quality and performance. We demonstrate MAXENT, a novel approach based on the maximum entropy principle, prototyped in IBM DB2 LUW. We illustrate MAXENT's ability to consistently estimate the selectivity of conjunctive predicates on a per-table basis. In contrast to the DB2 optimizer's current ad hoc methods, we show how MAXENT exploits all available information about the joint column distribution and thus avoids the bias problem. For some complex queries against a real-world database, we show that MAXENT improves selectivity estimates by orders of magnitude relative to the current DB2 optimizer, and also show how these improved estimate influence plan choices as well as query execution times.
Athletes Are Guinea Pigs

While it is unquestionably true that an open, in-depth discussion of sports-medicine ethics is long overdue in bioethics, it is equally true that the terms and context of such a discussion will det...
Toward Rational Design of Protein Detergent Complexes: Determinants of Mixed Micelles That Are Critical for the In Vitro Stabilization of a G-Protein Coupled Receptor

Although reconstitution of membrane proteins within protein detergent complexes is often used to enable their structural or biophysical characterization, it is unclear how one should rationally choose the appropriate micellar environment to preserve native protein folding. Here, we investigated model mixed micelles consisting of a nonionic glucosylated alkane surfactant from the maltoside and thiomaltoside families, bile salt surfactant, and the steryl derivative cholesteryl hemisuccinate. We correlated several key attributes of these micelles with the in vitro ligand-binding activity of hA2aR in these systems. Through small-angle neutron scattering and radioligand-binding analysis, we found several key aspects of mixed micellar systems that preserve the activity of hA2aR, including a critical amount of cholesteryl hemisuccinate per micelle, and an optimal hydrophobic thickness of the micelle that is analogous to the thickness of native mammalian bilayers. These features are closely linked to the headgroup chemistry of the surfactant and the hydrocarbon chain length, which influence both the morphology and composition of resulting micelles. This study should serve as a general guide for selecting the appropriate mixed surfactant systems to stabilize membrane proteins for biophysical analysis.
Linkage, case-control association, and family-based association tests for complex disorders.

We carried out an analysis of the Genetic Analysis Workshop 15 simulated Problem 3 data. We restricted ourselves to the present/absent phenotype. Linkage analysis revealed a very strong signal on chromosome 6. Association analysis revealed additional susceptible loci located on chromosomes 11 and 18. The latter two signals were subsequently verified with linkage analysis – but only after 20 replicates were pooled. Analysis of linkage disequilibrium patterns, in concert with family-based association tests, led us to infer the presence of a second chromosome 6 locus located in the vicinity of single-nucleotide polymorphisms 160–162. These analyses were carried out without knowledge of the model used to generate the simulation.
ISWI chromatin remodeling: One primary actor or a coordinated effort?

The ISWI family of ATP-dependent chromatin remodelers regulates transcription of coding and noncoding RNA by mobilizing nucleosomes and controlling the length of linker DNA separating nucleosomes (spacing). Nucleosome movement is tightly coupled to the DNA translocation activity of the helicase domain in the catalytic subunit. There may be other domains besides the helicase domain needed to move DNA in and out of nucleosomes. The C terminus of the ISWI catalytic subunit with the conserved HAND, SANT, and SLIDE domains may be involved in nucleosome spacing. There are several models of how the C terminus may facilitate in ISWI remodeling such as regulating the activity of the helicase domain and causing the helicase domain to translocate more efficiently on DNA or to enhance its selectivity for nucleosomes. Another possibility is that domains like SLIDE promote linker DNA entering into nucleosomes in a coordinated manner with the helicase domain.
Sexual function and dysfunction in women

Multiple factors may affect sexual functioning in women, requiring a thorough assessment of all possible etiologies to guide appropriate treatment. Interventions may also be multifaceted, ranging from sex education to psychotherapy to medical treatment. Restoration of sexual functioning is the goal of treatment, but more research is needed for true success to be realized.
Surgical and Nonsurgical Therapy for Lung Metastasis: Indications and Outcomes

The management of pulmonary metastasis is a broad and multifaceted topic. Because of the filtration function and the favorable microenvironment of the lung, most malignancies cause pulmonary metastases. This article focuses on recent experience with secondary lung malignancies and their newer treatment options, indications, and technical aspects.
IMMUNOPATHOLOGICAL STUDIES OF ORTHOTOPIC HUMAN LIVER ALLOGRAFTS

Abstract Twenty-six specimens obtained from twenty human orthotopic liver allografts 10-968 days after transplantation were studied by light microscopy, electron microscopy, and immunofluorescence. The main lesions consisted of mononuclear-cell infiltration around the portal tracts, centrilobular cholestasis, liver-cell atrophy and reticulin collapse, obliterative intimal thickening of hepatic arteries, and fibrosis. Moderate amounts of IgG and/or IgM and complement (β1C/β1A globulin or C'lq) were observed in four of the liver samples and smaller deposits were present in another five. A further three specimens contained IgG without complement. IgA was detected in only one of the samples. The immunoglobulins were found in the walls of the portal and central veins and of the sinusoids in all thirteen positive liver samples, in the walls of branches of the hepatic artery in three, and in the cytoplasm of some of the mononuclear cells infiltrating the portal tracts in nine of the specimens. Fibrinogen was seen in eight of the samples, usually in the spaces of Disse. Accumulations of immunoglobulins and complement were less frequent in liver than in kidney and heart allografts. These findings suggest that in the failure of human liver allografts cell-mediated immunity and non-immunological factors may be more important than humoral antibody.
Text Mining Promise and Reality

This paper provides taxonomy of common text mining tasks and approaches. We surveyed the market of modern text mining tools, compared their features and grouped them into information retrieval, standard or intelligent text mining categories in order to examine how theoretical promises materialized in modern technologies. The study is the first one in a series of studies trying to provide an understanding of impediments in the development of text mining products and users’ expectations.
A study on impact of loading effect on capacitive crosstalk noise

Decreasing process geometries and increasing operating frequencies have made VLSI circuits more susceptible to signal integrity related failures. Capacitive crosstalk is one of the major causes for such kind of failures. Typically, crosstalk faults result from switching of neighboring lines that are capacitively coupled. As we move deep into nanometer regime, transistor gate leakage introduces considerable voltage noise in internal circuit nodes. This phenomenon is known as loading effect. The objective of this paper is to study the impact of this voltage noise on capacitive cross-talk related signal integrity problems. A simplified cross-talk analysis system assumes that all aggressors of a net can switch at the same time. This leads to excessive pessimism that can be reduced by considering the timing window of aggressor switching as well as their Boolean relationships. In order to evaluate the impact of loading effect on cross-talk noise, we devised a dynamic simulator that performs dynamic timing simulation. By performing simulations on ISCAS-85 benchmark circuits we established that loading effect is a significant aggravator of cross-talk noise that leads to increased number of failures. The main contributions of this paper are (i) showing that loading effect worsens cross-talk related signal integrity problems and (ii) an efficient dynamic timing simulator for simulating crosstalk effects that provide a quantities measure.
Achieving operational hydrologic monitoring of mosquitoborne disease

Mosquitoes and mosquitoborne disease transmission are sensitive to hydrologic variability. If local hydrologic conditions can be monitored or modeled at the scales at which these conditions affect the population dynamics of vector mosquitoes and the diseases they transmit, a means for monitoring or modeling mosquito populations and mosquitoborne disease transmission may be realized. We review how hydrologic conditions have been associated with mosquito abundances and mosquitoborne disease transmission and discuss the advantages of different measures of hydrologic variability. We propose that the useful application of any measure of hydrologic conditions requires additional consideration of the scales for both the hydrologic measurement and the vector control interventions that will be used to mitigate an outbreak of vectorborne disease. Our efforts to establish operational monitoring of St. Louis encephalitis virus and West Nile virus transmission in Florida are also reviewed.
Surface and Bulk Defect Equilibria in Strontium-Doped Lanthanum Cobalt Iron Oxide

Strontium-doped lanthanum cobalt iron oxide is used in solid oxide fuel cells, oxygen separation membranes, and fuel reforming applications because of its mixed ionic and electronic conductivity. With changes in temperature and oxygen partial pressure (Po 2 ), the defect concentration changes and there is a corresponding change in strain (chemical expansion) and performance. In this paper, the oxygen nonstoichiometry of 0.5% A-site cation deficient La 0 . 6 Sr 0.4 Co 0.2 Fe 0 . 8 O 3-δ is studied in the temperature range of 600-900°C and modeled using a metallic model and three semiconductor models assuming itinerant electrons and holes or electrons localized on B-site, cations, with holes localized on either B-site cations or oxygen anions. The model consisting of holes localized on B-site cations fits the data best. The surface oxygen nonstoichiometry was determined by measuring oxygen loss of samples with different surface areas, and the surface is much more defective than the bulk. A long-term mass change measurement was also performed at 800°C in air, and a mass loss was observed that may be due to cation segregation to the surface.
Unit Bias A New Heuristic That Helps Explain the Effect of Portion Size on Food Intake

People seem to think that a unit of some entity (with certain constraints) is the appropriate and optimal amount. We refer to this heuristic as unit bias. We illustrate unit bias by demonstrating large effects of unit segmentation, a form of portion control, on food intake. Thus, people choose, and presumably eat, much greater weights of Tootsie Rolls and pretzels when offered a large as opposed to a small unit size (and given the option of taking as many units as they choose at no monetary cost). Additionally, they consume substantially more MM in some cases, people served small portions would simply eat additional portions if it were not for unit bias. We argue that unit bias is a general feature in human choice and discuss possible origins of this bias, including consumption norms.
Mineral aerosol contamination of TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) temperature and moisture retrievals

[1] Since mineral aerosols absorb significant amounts of infrared radiation, they may contribute to errors in the retrievals of atmospheric and surface parameters from the TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) High-Resolution Infrared Radiation Sounder (HIRS) if the atmosphere is assumed clear. TOVS is an operational sounder on NOAA polar satellites. To see if observed brightness temperatures are reduced by mineral aerosol, we analyzed results from the Data Assimilation Office (DAO) Finite Volume Data Assimilation System (fvDAS). Every 6 hours the assimilated temperature and moisture profiles are used as a first guess in the DAO interactive cloud-clearing TOVS retrieval system. The observed minus the forecast (O–F) brightness temperature, which is a measure of the accuracy of the first guess and radiative transfer parameters, becomes more negative with increasing dust concentrations. Dust concentrations are from the Goddard Ozone Chemistry Aerosol Radiation Transport (GOCART) model. Since there was no account of dust during this fvDAS run, the dependence of O–F on the estimated atmospheric dust concentrations from GOCART indicates that the dust is affecting the TOVS brightness temperatures. HIRS channels that are sensitive to the surface temperature, lower tropospheric temperature, and moisture are subject to a 0.5 K or more reduction in the brightness temperature during heavy dust loading conditions. The radiative transfer module used in the TOVS retrieval system was modified to account for dust assuming a composition of illite, and the fvDAS run was repeated. Accounting for dust absorption in the retrieval system yields warmer surface temperatures (0.4 K) and warmer lower tropospheric temperatures in regions of moderate dust loading over the tropical Atlantic.
Mass spectrometry as a novel method for detection of podocyturia in pre-eclampsia

Background Podocyturia, i.e. urinary loss of viable podocytes, may serve as a diagnostic tool for pre-eclampsia and as a marker of active renal disease. The current method to detect podocyturia is technically complex, lengthy and requires a high level of expertise for interpretation. The aim of this study was to develop a new technique for the identification of urinary podocytes, based on the detection of podocyte-specific tryptic peptides by liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), which will provide an operator-independent and highly reproducible method.
Theta Functions with Harmonic Coefficients over Number Fields

Abstract We investigate theta functions attached to quadratic forms over a number field K . We establish a functional equation by regarding the theta functions as specializations of symplectic theta functions. By applying a differential operator to the functional equation, we show how theta functions with harmonic coefficients over K behave under modular transformations.
The effects of long alpha-stopping distances on (U‐Th)/He ages

A mathematical framework for quantitative evaluation of alpha-stopping effects on (U-Th)/He ages has been developed. Alpha stopping ranges in the ^(238)U, ^(235)U, and ^(232)Th chains vary between ∼10 and ∼30 μm, depending on decay energy and density/composition of the stopping medium. In the case of U- and Th-rich accessory minerals (e.g. apatite, zircon, titanite), the dominant effect of long stopping distances is alpha ejection to adjacent minerals. For grains smaller than a few hundred microns in minimum dimension, ejection effects will cause measured helium ages to substantially underestimate true ages. For example, a sphere of 100 μm radius retains only ∼82% of its alphas. For a homogeneous distribution of parent nuclides, the fraction of alphas ejected is ∼ 1/4 of the mean alpha range multiplied by the crystal surface to volume ratio, independent of geometry. Removal of the outer 20 μm of a crystal prior to dating eliminates the region which has experienced alpha loss, but may lead to erroneous ages when crystals are strongly zoned with respect to uranium and thorium. By careful characterization of four sieved apatite separates from a single sample, we show that it is possible to accurately correct (U-Th)/He ages for alpha ejection even when ejection exceeds 35% of total decays. Our results are useful for identifying the size and shape of grains which are best suited for (U-Th)/He dating and provide the basis for correcting ages when ejection effects are significant. This work underscores that meaningful (U-Th)/He ages require either large crystals, or correction of measured ages for alpha ejection.
BRAFV600E Mutation and Papillary Thyroid Cancer: Chicken or Egg?

The BRAFV600E mutation, resulting from a T1799A transversion nucleotide change in the BRAF gene, was discovered in papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) initially in 2003 (1). Many other studies quickly showed that, among different thyroid cancers, this was a PTC-specific genetic event, occurring in about 45% of cases on average (2); the only other thyroid cancer in which this mutation occurs sometimes is the presumably PTC-derived type of anaplastic thyroid cancer (3, 4). Although research in this area has seen explosive progress since then, the issue of whether BRAFV600E mutation is a primary or secondary genetic event in PTC remains debatable. The recent study on the clonal status of BRAFV600E in PTC by Guerra et al. (5) from Professor Mario Vitale's group and their subsequent sister study (6) published in this issue of the JCEM have shone new light on this issue.
Getting the picture: Photo‐assisted conversations as interviews

According to the literature, there are problems inherent in interviewing people with intellectual disabilities. This paper reports on a small pilot project in which photographs were used to assist in interviews with such informants, the idea being that this might help to circumvent some of these problems. This author took pictures of some informants in daily life situations in their own homes. Other informants, living in other grouped homes, were asked to take pictures themselves. The photographs were examined collaboratively by the informant and the author in an interview‐as‐conversation situation. The photographs supplied a concrete point of departure for conversations, provided informants with a helpful platform for expressing points of view, supplied contextual clues helpful in understanding informants’ actual language, and enhanced “serendipity” in the interview situations.
Assessing Students' Ability to Trace Matter in Dynamic Systems in Cell Biology.

College-level biology courses contain many complex processes that are often taught and learned as detailed narratives. These processes can be better understood by perceiving them as dynamic systems that are governed by common fundamental principles. Conservation of matter is such a principle, and thus tracing matter is an essential step in learning to reason about biological processes. We present here multiple-choice questions that measure students' ability and inclination to trace matter through photosynthesis and cellular respiration. Data associated with each question come from students in a large undergraduate biology course that was undergoing a shift in instructional strategy toward making fundamental principles (such as tracing matter) a central theme. We also present findings from interviews with students in the course. Our data indicate that 1) many students are not using tracing matter as a tool to reason about biological processes, 2) students have particular difficulties tracing matter between systems and have a persistent tendency to interconvert matter and energy, and 3) instructional changes seem to be effective in promoting application of the tracing matter principle. Using these items as diagnostic tools allows instructors to be proactive in addressing students' misconceptions and ineffective reasoning.
Serotonin2A Receptors in Schizophrenia: Relation to Suicide

In reply The density of 5-HT 2 receptors in the frontal cortex of patients with schizophrenia has been reported to be decreased in three studies 1-3 and unchanged in four studies. 4-7 Obviously, this discrepancy could be due to several factors, such as differences in ligands (iodine 125—labeled LSD vs tritiated ketanserin vs tritiated spiperone), differences in prior medication exposure, or differences in theclinical and demographic characteristics of the patients. In our study, the patients with schizophrenia who died of natural causes had frontal 5-HT 2 receptor B max values (mean±SEM; n=7, 76±16 fmol/mg of protein) significantly lower than controls (n=13, 164±14 fmol/mg of protein), schizophrenic patients who committed suicide (n=5, 162±25 fmol/mg of protein), and nonschizophrenic suicide victims (n=9, 205±22 fmol/mg of protein). The overall difference among groups was significant (analysis of covariance, P=.006) and the post hoc comparison revealed that the group of patients with schizophrenia who died of
Adhesion of Thin Plasma Polymer Films to Plastics

To date, no comprehensive study of the adhesion of plasma-polymerized films on plastics has been made. In the present work, 1400-A films produced by the radio frequency discharge plasma polymerization of styrene and acrylonitrile were deposited on polyethylene, polystyrene, polypropylene, poly(ethyleneterephthalate) (Mylar), polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon), polycarbonate (Lexan), polyimide (Kapton), poly(methyl methacrylate) (Lucite), polyamide (Nylon 6), poly(oxymethylene) (Delrin), and poly(vinyl fluoride) (Tedlar) substrates. Adherence of these films was then measured by applying a ½ by 2 in. (1.27 by 5 cm) piece of Scotch No. 810 tape to the film and then removing the tape in a 90-deg peel. This provides a lower limit of 190 g/in. for the adhesion of the polymer film to the substrate. It was found that both plasma polystyrene and plasma polyacrylonitrile were removed by this procedure from poly(oxymethylene), polypropylene, poly(methyl methacrylate), and polycarbonate. Both films remained adhered to the other seven plastics during this test. These results can be explained on the basis of molecular structure and can be correlated with literature data on bond strength results for activated gas-treated substrates. It was also concluded. considering the divergent properties of the two plasma polymers, that adhesion to any substrate is not dependent on the structure of the plasma polymer. Soaking films of plasma-deposited polyacrylonitrile on Mylar in solvents of varying polarity for long periods of time did not reduce the adhesion of the film to the substrate. It would seem that the film-substrate bond is either a physical one of a very high order or more likely a true chemical bond.