cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The association of tumor volume with mortality following radical prostatectomy

BACKGROUND Data regarding the prognostic significance of tumor volume (TV) in prostate cancer are conflicting. Herein, we evaluated the association of TV with prostate cancer mortality following radical prostatectomy (RP), and assessed the additive prognostic value of TV to an established predictive model. METHODS We identified 13,687 patients who underwent RP without preoperative therapy between 1987 and 2009. TV was estimated using the prolate ellipsoid formula. Survival was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared with the log-rank test. Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to evaluate the association of TV with mortality. The ability of TV to enhance the performance of an established prognostic model (Mayo Clinic GPSM (Gleason, PSA, seminal vesicle and margin status) score) was assessed using the c-index. RESULTS Median TV was 1.57 cm(3) (interquartile range (IQR) 0.48-4.19). Increasing TV was associated with significantly higher risks of seminal vesicle invasion (hazard ratio (HR) 1.58; P<0.0001), positive surgical margins (HR 1.28; P<0.0001) and lymph node involvement (HR 1.26; P<0.0001). Median postoperative follow-up was 9.4 years (IQR 5.0-14.5). Patient grouping into quartiles according to TV resulted in a significant stratification of outcome, as the 15-year cancer-specific survival by TV quartile was 99%, 98%, 95% and 88%, respectively (P<0.0001). Moreover, on multivariate analysis, greater TV remained associated with significantly increased risks of systemic progression (HR 1.27; P<0.0001), death from prostate cancer (HR 1.29; P<0.0001) and all-cause mortality (HR 1.05; P<0.0001). Meanwhile, addition of TV to the GPSM score increased the c-index for the model's prediction of prostate cancer mortality from 0.803 to 0.822. CONCLUSIONS TV is associated with survival following RP, and enhances, although modestly, the performance of an established prediction model. As such, TV warrants continued assessment in risk stratification tools.
Early inhibition of caspase-3 activity lessens the development of graft coronary artery disease.

Background The role of apoptosis in the development of graft coronary artery disease (GCAD) is poorly understood. We have previously shown that early overexpression of the anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 lessens the development of GCAD. We hypothesized that early inhibition of apoptosis with a caspase-3 inhibitor would also lessen the development of GCAD. Methods Heterotopic heart transplantation was performed in 4 groups of rats. Donor hearts were pretreated with 50 μg DEVD-CHO, a cell-permeable caspase-3 inhibitor, or vehicle. Recipient animals were pretreated with 1.7 mg/kg intraperitoneal DEVD-CHO or vehicle. Animals were treated with 7.5 mg/kg/d cyclosporine for 10 days to prevent acute rejection. On post-operative day 90, the animals were sacrificed and the transplanted hearts were assessed morphometrically for evidence of GCAD. Results At 90 days, intimal proliferation was significantly higher in vehicle treated animals than in inhibitor treated animals. Moreover, the percentage of vessels with high-grade occlusion (>50%) was also lower in inhibitor treated animals. Conclusions Early inhibition of caspase-3 activity with cell-permeable DEVD-CHO lessens the development of GCAD. Caspase-3 inhibition may be a useful strategy for prevention of GCAD in clinical transplantation.
Robust Reproducible Resting State Networks in the Awake Rodent Brain

Resting state networks (RSNs) have been studied extensively with functional MRI in humans in health and disease to reflect brain function in the un-stimulated state as well as reveal how the brain is altered with disease. Rodent models of disease have been used comprehensively to understand the biology of the disease as well as in the development of new therapies. RSN reported studies in rodents, however, are few, and most studies are performed with anesthetized rodents that might alter networks and differ from their non-anesthetized state. Acquiring RSN data in the awake rodent avoids the issues of anesthesia effects on brain function. Using high field fMRI we determined RSNs in awake rats using an independent component analysis (ICA) approach, however, ICA analysis can produce a large number of components, some with biological relevance (networks). We further have applied a novel method to determine networks that are robust and reproducible among all the components found with ICA. This analysis indicates that 7 networks are robust and reproducible in the rat and their putative role is discussed.
Exfoliated Graphene Separated by Platinum Nanoparticles

Aggregation of isolated graphene sheets during drying graphene dispersions leads to a loss of its ultrahigh surface area advantage as a two-dimensional nanomaterial. We report a metal nanoparticle-graphene composite with a partially exfoliated graphene morphology derived from drying aqueous dispersions of platinum nanoparticles adhered to graphene. Platinum nanoparticles with diameters spanning several nanometers are adhered to graphene by a chemical route involving the reduction of metal precursors in a graphene dispersion. Face-to-face aggregation of graphene sheets is arrested by 3−4 nm fcc Pt crystallites on the graphene surfaces, and in the resulting jammed Pt−graphene composite, the Pt acts as spacers resulting in mechanically exfoliated, high-surface-area material of potential interest for supercapacitors and fuel cells.
Skin testing methods

Abstract No evidence has been found in the literature to support the statements that routine multiple skin testing is more dangerous than a few tests at one sitting. Evidence is offered that numerous simultaneous average positive skin tests do not cause systemic reactions by their cumulative effects. On the contrary, systemic reactions seem to be associated with one reaction, or a few huge, rapidly developing local reactions, indicative of extreme hypersensitiveness to one or perhaps to a few allergens. Only two of 2,018 patients, tested with from 80 to 150 allergens at one sitting, had constitutional reactions. Neither of the reactions was alarming. In all, over 200,000 tests were done. It must be emphasized that one precaution has to be taken before doing multiple skin tests at one sitting. That precaution is a preliminary scratch test with allergens which commonly produce strong skin reactions or to which the history suggests the patient might be strongly sensitive.
Brain‐Derived Neurotrophic Factor and Peripheral Nerve Regeneration: A Functional Evaluation

The potential benefit of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) on motor-nerve regeneration after transection injury in 24 adult rats was evaluated after entubulation repair. Gait analysis for ankle angle and tension transduction device (TTD) strain-gauge measurements yielded functional evaluation of regeneration. The BDNF (15 mg/mL) or phosphate buffered saline (control) was injected into the silicone elastomer (Silastic) channel. Gait analysis performed 0, 2, 4, 6, 10, and 12 weeks after injury demonstrated a significant difference between uninjured and injured legs of 23 and 43 degrees, respectively (P<.001, analysis of variance). The TTD evaluation 13 weeks after injury demonstrated a significant decrease in force development of injured compared to uninjured legs, 148 and 58 g, respectively (P<.001). No functional benefits were demonstrated between BDNF-treated versus control-treated animals in either model for a single exposure to BDNF.
Computers in historical analysis

An image of my early days as a graduate student sticks in my mind after more than twenty years. Half a dozen of us are standing around a clanking, whirring machine in a harshly lighted basement room. There in the middle is sociologist Samuel Stouffer, talking fast, cigarette swinging from his mouth, ashes showering his vest. Stouffer grabs a deck of punched cards, shoves them into the hopper at one end of the machine, pushes a button, and watches the cards sort themselves into glass-topped bins. He peers at the size of the various piles. Then he says, "OK. Now let's try breaking on religion." He whips each stack of cards from its bin and slaps it onto the glass above the bin. Then he grips the first stack, fans it out, drops it into the hopper again, taps to straighten the cards, sets a weight on top of the stack in the hopper, turns a crank, and pushes the button again. We, the graduate students, were learning a crude but serviceable way of analyzing data, i.e., translating arguments about social phenomena into statements about variables and units of analysis. (The units were most often individual survey respondents and the variables their responses to standardized questions, but neither was essential to the logic we absorbed with the cigarette smoke.) Then we were supposed to identify the variable to be explained, cast our explanations in terms of differences with respect to other variables, represent obvious alternative explanations as "control" variables, and then carry out a cross-classification of the units which would reveal whether they did, indeed, vary as expected. We might, for example, have tried to determine whether people living on farms actually said they wanted more children than people in big cities, once we "controlled," or held constant, the present family positions of respondents in the two populations. The machine was not indispensable to this sort of analysis. In principle, one could do it with pencilled tallies or with slips of paper sorted on a large tabletop. (I have done both things myself in emergencies.) Compared with the other alternatives we knew, however, only the machine made the analysis quick and practical. The clanking old machine was not, of course, an electronic computer. It was a counter-sorter, a contraption in which electrified metal brushes responding to the presence or absence of holes at different positions in a Hollerith card activated gates along a belt on which the cards were moving, thus shunting the cards into one bin or another, and counted the cards shunted into each bin. Although people who work with punched cards still use the quicker, smoother descendants of our old basement machine in getting their data ready for the computer, the counter-sorter has practically disappeared as a tool of analysis in the social sciences. Still the memory is useful. It sums up the predominant experience of social scientists with analytic machines until very recent years: the machine has greatly
Enhanced angiotensin II-induced activation of Na+, K+-ATPase in the proximal tubules of obese Zucker rats.

Renal angiotensin II (AII) is suggested to play a role in the enhanced sodium reabsorption that causes a shift in pressure natriuresis in obesity related hypertension; however, the mechanism is not known. Therefore, to assess the influence of AII on tubular sodium transport, we determined the effect of AII on the Na+, K+-ATPase activity (NKA), an active transporter regulated by the AT1 receptor activity, in the isolated proximal tubules of lean and obese Zucker rats. Also, we determined the levels of the tubular AT1 receptor and associated signal transducing G proteins, as the initial signaling components that mediate the effects of AII on Na+, K+-ATPase activity. In the isolated proximal tubules, AII produced greater stimulation of the NKA activity in obese compared with lean rats. Determination of the AT1 receptors by Scatchard analysis of the [125I] Sar-Ang II binding and Western blot analysis in the basolateral (BLM) and brush border membrane (BBM) revealed a modest but significant increase (23%) in t...
Sustained Decrease in Incidence of Acute Urinary Retention and Surgery With Finasteride for 6 Years in Men With Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia

ABSTRACTPurpose: We determined the effect of long-term treatment with finasteride on the incidence of acute urinary retention (AUR) and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) related surgery in men with BPH.Materials and Methods: The Proscar (Merck and Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, New Jersey) Long-Term Efficacy and Safety Study (PLESS) was comprised of 3,040 men with enlarged prostates, moderate to severe symptomatic BPH and no clinical evidence of prostate cancer. Patients were randomized to placebo or 5 mg finasteride daily for 4 years. Of the 3,016 randomized patients with available efficacy data 62% completed the original 4-year study (1,006 on finasteride and 891 on placebo) and 89% of these (908 from the original finasteride arm and 785 from the placebo arm) continued in a 2-year open extension on finasteride. Followup was attempted in discontinued patients. Complete 6-year outcomes data, including 6-year followup in 770 men who had discontinued treatment during years 1 to 6, were available for 2,463 ...
Phylogenetic analysis of the succession of bacterial communities in the Great South Bay (Long Island).

Bacterial community composition and succession were examined over the course of the summer season in the Great South Bay, Long Island, NY, USA, using a 16S rDNA clone library approach. There was a progression of changes in dominant species in the libraries during the summer of 1997. The July library had several groups dominant, the SAR407 relatives of the α-Proteobacteria (24%) and the SAR86 (18%), sulfur-oxidizing symbiont relatives (8%) of the γ-Proteobacteria, and unidentified Cytophaga–Flexibacter representatives (22%). In August, the Cytophaga–Flexibacter (Gelidibacter sp. and unidentified Cytophaga–Flexibacter representative) and Cyanobacteria (Synechococcus sp.) increased to 28% and 14%, respectively. High GC Gram-positives appeared at 18%, and β-Proteobacteria (Ralstonia sp.) at 10%. By September these groups had either declined or were absent, while the SAR86 cluster, Pseudoalteromonas and Alteromonas of the γ-Proteobacteria were dominant in the community (61%). The dominance of open ocean bacteria along with the presence of Aureococcus anophagefferens (Pelagophyceae) in July suggests possible open ocean coupling to bloom events. Many clones in this study were related to previously described clones from a wide distribution of marine environments, substantiating the cosmopolitan nature of pelagic bacteria. Only one isolated bacterium was closely related to 16S rDNA found in the August library.
Inhibition of monoamine oxidase action on kynuramine by substrate amines and stereoisomeric α-methyl amines

Abstract Kynuramine oxidation by rat liver monoamine oxidase was inhibited by dopamine, norepinephrine, phenethylamine, phenylbutylamine, serotonin, or tyramine. Although these were all substrates for the enzyme preparation, there was no consistent relationship between degree of inhibition and efficacy as substrate. The α-methyl analogues of dopamine, norepinephrine, phenethylamine, tyramine, or 4-chlorophenethylamine also inhibited kynuramine oxidation. The degree of inhibition by the α-methyl compounds was, in most cases, less than that by the parent compounds. Inhibition of MAO by α-methyl amines (amphetamine, 2, 4-dichloroamphetamine, 4-chloro-N-methyl-amphetamine, or 3, 4-dichloroamphetamine) was greater with the dextrorotatory isomers than with the levorotatory isomers.
Update on the Targeted Therapy of Melanoma

Melanoma is the most aggressive of the cutaneous malignancies, causing more than 9,000 deaths in the past year in the United States. Historically, systemic therapies have been largely ineffective, because melanoma is usually resistant to cytotoxic chemotherapy. However, during the past few years, several targeted therapies have proved effective in this challenging disease. These recent advances have been facilitated by an improved understanding of the driving genetic aberrations of melanoma, particularly mutations in the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway. Vemurafenib, a BRAF inhibitor, demonstrated an overall survival advantage in phase III trials and is an appropriate option for first-line therapy in metastatic BRAF mutant melanoma. Dabrafenib, another BRAF inhibitor, and trametinib, a MEK inhibitor, also have been shown to be effective in phase III trials for BRAF mutant melanoma and may be additional treatment options as monotherapy or in combination pending regulatory approval. Additionally, imatinib is a promising targeted therapy for patients whose tumors harbor a KIT mutation in exons 11 and 13. Although these targeted agents cause objective responses and clinical benefit in patients with metastatic melanoma, resistance invariably develops. New targets and strategies to overcome acquired resistance are urgently needed. Furthermore, no effective targeted therapy has been developed for NRAS mutant tumors or in melanomas with as yet unknown driver mutations. In this review, we discuss current molecular targeted treatment options and promising ongoing research to develop new strategies to treat melanoma.
Three-dimensional optical diffusion tomography using iterative coordinate descent optimization

We demonstrate accurate and efficient three-dimensional optical diffusion imaging using simulated noisy data from a set of measurements at a single modulation frequency. A Bayesian framework provides for prior model conditioning, and a dual-step cost function optimization allows sequential estimation of the data noise variance and the image.
Effects of Exercise and Testosterone Replacement Therapy on Elderly Males with Osteoarthritis and Hypogonadism

PURPOSE Osteoarthritis commonly causes activity limitations in the elderly. Furthermore, males over 50 yr have an increased frequency of hypogonadism. The purpose of this 2 yr randomized trial is to determine the impact of PoleStriding(walking with poles in a motion similar to cross-country skiing) on elderly males (age = 71.0 ± 4.9 yr) with OA of the hip and/or knee and hypogonadism (testosterone = 198.3 ± 55.9 mg/ml) on measures of aerobic capacity, muscle strength, perceived pain and quality of life.
Legume consumption and severe depressed mood, the modifying roles of gender and menopausal status.

Objective: Legumes have been recommended as staple foods in the anticipation of disease prevention. However, the scientific evidence of their benefits, particularly on mental well-being, remains preliminary. We longitudinally assessed the association between legume consumption and the risk of severe depressed mood (SDM) among a national cohort. Design: The study included adults aged 25―74 years who were examined in 1971―1975 as a part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Legume consumption at baseline was obtained from a 3-month FFQ and categorised as infrequent (<1 time/week), moderate (1―2 times/week) and frequent (≥3 times/week). SDM was defined as Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale score ≥22 or taking anti-depression medication after an average of 10·6 years of follow-up (from 8·0 to 12·5 years). Results: Among women, the proportion of individuals with SDM was 17·75%. For premenopausal women (n 1778), a significant linear trend of deleterious effect from legume consumption was observed (P for trend = 0·0148). The relative risks (RR) for infrequent, moderate and frequent consumptions were 1 (reference), 1·24 (95% CI=0·91, 1·70) and 1·75 (1·12, 2·75), respectively. However, moderate consumption showed a significant protective effect (RR = 0·52 (0·27, 1·00)) among women undergoing the menopausal transition (n 454). No association was obtained from either postmenopausal women (n 601) or men (n 2036). Conclusions: These findings suggest that gender and menopausal status were effect modifiers of the association between legume consumption and SDM. Detrimental effects of frequent consumption of legumes may exist among premenopausal women; moderate consumption, however, may protect perimenopausal women against SDM.
Mantle peridotite xenoliths in andesite lava at El Peñon, central Mexican Volcanic Belt: Isotopic and trace element evidence for melting and metasomatism in the mantle wedge beneath an active arc

Peridotites in the mantle wedge and components added to them from the subducting slab are thought to be the source of most arc magmas. However, direct sampling of these materials, which provides a glimpse into the upper mantle beneath an active margin, is exceedingly rare. In the few arc localities where found, peridotite xenoliths are usually brought to the surface by basaltic magmas. Remarkably, the hornblende-bearing ultramafic xenoliths and clinopyroxene megaxenocrysts from El Penon in the central Mexican Volcanic Belt were brought to the surface by a Quaternary high-Mg siliceous andesite, a rock type usually considered too evolved to be a direct product of mantle melting. The xenoliths and megaxenocrysts from El Penon represent lithospheric mantle affected by significant subduction of oceanic lithosphere since as early as the Permian. Trace element and radiogenic isotope data we report here on these materials suggest a history of depletion by melt extraction, metasomatism involving a fluid phase, and finally, limited reaction between the ultramafic materials and the host andesite, probably during transport. They also show that high-Mg siliceous andesite can be a direct product of 1–5% melting of H2O-bearing spinel lherzolite. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
When Going in Circles is Going Backward: Outcome Uncertainty in NASCAR:

Using data from the 2007, 2008, and 2009 National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) seasons, this article shows that the uncertainty of outcome hypothesis pertains to both race attendance and television audience, with the former only responding to season-level uncertainty and the latter responding to both race-level and season-level uncertainties. Counter to conventional wisdom, the price of gasoline and unemployment were unrelated to the reported level of attendance. Furthermore, NASCAR broadcasts lose audience when competing against other high-interest sporting events and declines in both television ratings and audience size during the NASCAR season were not unique to 2009. Overall, the empirical evidence suggests that declining competitive balance might have been the common factor that reduced both television audiences and race attendance during this period.
Mechanical properties and interlaminar toughness of cross-plied laminates containing adhesive strips

The critical strain energy release rate Gc of graphite/epoxy composites with adhesive strips at the interface is determined using the double cantilever beam test, and comparison is made with composites without adhesive. It is found that delamination fracture toughness increases substantially when adhesive strips are added at the interface, reaching a limiting value for increased adhesive widths. A micromechanica l model is developed for stiffness predictions of composites with adhesive strips. A comparison with experimental values is found in good agreement and indicates a reduction in stiffness approximately equal to the percentage of adhesive used in the composite. Strength tests are performed and showed similar reductions for unnotched specimens with adhesive strips. Strength reductions for notched specimens with adhesive are found to vary, depending on notch size and adhesive width.
Making fault-sensitive algorithms tolerate link failures

We present a unified approach for converting a class of distributed algorithms that are fault-sensitive into algorithms tolerating undetectable link failures in asynchronous distributed systems. Single and multiple link failures not leading to a network partition are considered. Our technique is applied on several examples and fault-tolerant algorithms are derived. On the message complexity measure, the derived fault-tolerant distributed algorithms compare well with the fault-sensitive algorithms.
Strengthening rural development management through international assistance projects

The importance of project management is well recognized and the favoured approach to improving management is to discard classroom based, technical transfer models of management development and develop training of direct relevance to field responsibilities. This article highlights the importance of recognizing in aid assisted projects that development projects serve some bureaucratic interests and hurt others with the consequence that projects need to be designed so as to maximize those interests which support its goals. The article is built around a case study of an Agricultural Management Development project in Ghana, begun in 1975 and appraised by a team led by the author in 1979. The appraisal revealed considerable achievements but also focused on facets where there were significant difficulties. These difficulties can be understood and explained in terms of the bureaucratic political interests in the Ministry of Agriculture which stood to lose from the development project, and the author indicates how the project itself could have been assisted by adding to it incentives which made the success of the project attractive to additional bureaucratic interests.
A general method for the solid-phase synthesis of unsymmetrical tri- and tetrasubstituted ureas.

A general method for the preparation of unsymmetrical di, tri-, and tetrasubstituted ureas on polymer supports is presented. Polymer-bound primary and secondary amines react with imidazolium salts (urea donors), which are generated from the reaction of N,N‘-carbonyldiimidazole (CDI) with primary and secondary amines followed by alkylation with MeI to give tri- and tetrasubstituted ureas in excellent yields (76−98%) and purities (80−99%).
Early defibrillation by police: Initial experience with measurement of critical time intervals and patient outcome

Study objective: To assess the feasibility of consistent acquisition of precise and clinically important time intervals in a city police department defibrillation study. Design: On a daily basis, clocks at 911 dispatch were synchronized with those at ambulance dispatch, and all clocks on all defibrillators were synchronized to this time. Times were obtained from recordings at dispatch centers and from defibrillator memory modules. Setting: City with a population of 70,745 and an area of 30 square miles. Participants: All patients in ventricular fibrillation (VF) treated by police officers using semiautomated defibrillators. Interventions: On receipt of a call at 911 dispatch, the nearest squad car was dispatched. If police arrived before the ambulance and a cardiac arrest was confirmed, the closest squad car with a defibrillator was dispatched. Police delivered up to three shocks before ambulance arrival. Results: Of 44 patients with VF, 14 were initially treated by police. Seven of 14 regained a spontaneous circulation with police shocks and seven required additional advanced life support care for restoration of pulses. Ten of the 14 were discharged home. The 911 call-to-shock time interval was 4.9±1.3 minutes for the seven who regained a spontaneous circulation with police shocks and 6.1±0.7 minutes for the seven without restoration of pulses by police ( P =.035, one-sided, two-sample t -test). Conclusion: Acquisition of precise times for determination of time intervals is feasible with a concerted effort to synchronize all clocks from which times are derived. Even small differences in call-to-shock time intervals appear to be critical determinants of restoration of a spontaneous circulation.
Monitoring motility, spreading, and mortality of adherent insect cells using an impedance sensor.

An emerging sensor technology referred to as electric cell−substrate impedance sensing (ECIS) has been extended for monitoring the behavior of insect cells including attachment, motility, and mortality. In ECIS, adherent cells were cultured on an array of eight small gold electrodes deposited on the bottom of tissue culture wells and immersed in a culture medium. Upon the attachment and spreading of cells on the gold electrode, the impedance increased because the cells acted as insulating particles to restrict the current flow. Experimental data revealed that insect cells interacted differently with various proteins used to precoat the gold electrode with concanavalin A as the best promoter to accelerate the rate of cell attachment. After the cells were fully spread, the measured impedance continued to fluctuate to reflect the constant motion and metabolic activity of the cells. As the cell behavior was sensitive to external chemicals, the applicability of ECIS for inhibition assays was demonstrated with ...
HIGH RESOLUTION DRIFT CHAMBERS

Abstract High precision drift chambers capable of achieving ≤ 50 μm resolutions are discussed. In particular, we compare so-called cool and hot gases, various charge collection geometries, several timing techniques and we also discuss some systematic problems. We also present what we would consider an “ultimate” design of the vertex chamber.
Dynamic information in the identification and discrimination of vowels.

The dynamic theory of vowel perception emphasizes the importance of the consonant transitions in CVC syllables to the identification of the vowel itself. However, the dynamic theory is relatively vagu
The Lp lipoprotein in Japanese

The Lp gene frequency is estimated to be 0.083 in Japanese, but with our method of assay the evidence favoring a major locus is marginal. The sinking pre-beta band is significantly associated with elevated cholesterol and depressed triglyceride. The biological significance of these observations is discussed.
Automated dependency resolution for open source software

Opportunities for software reuse are plentiful, thanks in large part to the widespread adoption of open source processes and the availability of search engines for locating relevant artifacts. One challenge presented by open source software reuse is simply getting a newly downloaded artifact to build/run in the first place. The artifact itself likely reuses other artifacts, and so depends on their being located to function properly. While merely tedious in the individual case, this can cause serious difficulties for those seeking to study open source software. It is simply not feasible to manually resolve dependencies for thousands of projects, and many forms of analysis require declarative completeness. In this paper we present a method for automatically resolving dependencies for open source software. It works by cross-referencing a project's missing type information with a repository of candidate artifacts. We have implemented this method on top of the Sourcerer, an infrastructure for the large-scale indexing and analysis of open source code. The performance of our resolution algorithm was evaluated in two parts. First, for a small number of popular open source projects, we manually examined the artifacts suggested by our system to determine if they were appropriate. Second, we applied the algorithm to the 13,241 projects in the Sourcerer managed repository to evaluate the rate of resolution success. The results demonstrate the feasibility of this approach, as the algorithm located all of the required artifacts needed by 3,904 additional projects, increasing the percentage of declaratively complete projects in Sourcerer from 39% to 69%.
Importance of anisotropy on design of compression-loaded composite corrugated panels

An investigation is conducted of the importance of anisotropic terms in the design of composite corrugated panels, for a range of axial compressive load intensities. The two panel configurations treated were panels with tailored laminates and panels with a continuous laminate; both are of interest to aircraft designers and prone to anisotropic effects which are of as-yet undetermined extent. The importance of the anisotropic terms is measured by the difference between the design load and the buckling load obtained from the ultimate structural analysis.
Investigation of thiazole polymers for thermally stable plastics

Sixteen polymers containing thiazole and aromatic rings in the polymer chain were prepared and investigated for the production of fibers and films that would be useful up to about 500°C. None of these polymers was completely satisfactory. Some of the polymers gave tough fibers and films, but they had relatively low melting points (<300°C). Other polymers did not melt below 500°C, but they did not have good fiber and film forming properties because of their low molecular weights. Fibers and films of one of the polymers (polytetramethylenephenylenethiazole) were prepared, and their physical properties, hydrolytic stabilites under acid and alkaline conditions, and resistence to ultraviolet and gamma radiations were determined.
Lesbians and Alcohol Abuse: Identifying Factors for Future Research

This article explores the reasons why lesbians become substance abusers more frequently than individuals in the heterosexual population. A variety of reasons for this phenomenon are explored using ...
Effects of blinding, olfactory bulbectomy, and pinealectomy on prolactin and growth hormone cells of the rat, with special reference to ultrastructure

The effects of combined blinding and olfactory bulbectomy alone or with pinealectomy on body growth, and pituitary and serum levels of growth hormone and prolactin were examined in young female rats. The animals were 23–24 days old at the time of the operations, and they were sacrificed 52 days later. Blind, anosmic rats had elevated serum and depressed pituitary stores of prolactin. The blind, anosmic rats which were also pinealectomized showed prolactin levels which were intermediate between those of the blind, anosmic and sham control animals. On the other hand, combined blindness and anosmia decreased serum growth hormone levels and again pinealectomy prevented this effect. The observed changes in the ultrastructure of prolactin and growth hormone cells were well correlated with these alterations in hormone levels.
Surficial textures of the Galilean satellites

The observations of the Galilean satellites of Jupiter obtained with the IUE have been analyzed as a function of solar phase angle. By fitting the measurements to a shadowing model, comparative descriptions of the microtextures of the optically active portion of the surfaces of the satellites are derived. Important differences among the satellites and between leading and trailing hemispheres of individual satellites result from the different processes of meteoritic bombardment, magnetospheric interaction, and geological resurfacing that operate in the Jovian system. Io and Callisto have the most tenuous upper regoliths, whereas the surface of the leading side of Europa is the most compact.
The effects of childhood sexual abuse on cortisol trajectories in pregnancy are moderated by current family functioning

The goal of this study was to understand the roles of maternal history of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) and current family functioning on the cortisol awakening response (CAR) in pregnancy. Participants were 185 pregnant women (ages 18-40) who completed items from the Adverse Childhood Experiences scale to measure child maltreatment history and the Family Assessment Device to measure current family functioning. Participants provided saliva samples at wake-up and 30minutes after wake-up at 25, 29, and 35 weeks gestation to measure CAR. A moderation effect was found such that participants with more severe CSA histories and poorer perceived family functioning had increasing CAR in pregnancy compared to participants with less severe CSA histories and better family functioning. These findings highlight the importance of considering stress in both childhood and current environments in predicting maternal cortisol in pregnancy. Language: en
The international congresses on medical librarianship. Thirty years of evolutionary change

Etude historique detaillee sur les participants et les themes abordes aux congres internationaux des bibliotheques medicales depuis le 1er congres de 1953 jusqu'au cinquieme congres de 1985
Fluorescence Lifetime Studies of Cyanobacterial Photosystem II Mutants

In cyanobacteria and red algae the fluorescence decay kinetics of whole cells are very complex because of a variety of chromophores in different protein environments. Many time-resolved fluorescence studies of isolated phycobilisomes have been published (1), but only a few deal with whole cells of cyanobacteria (2). Their fluorescence characteristics are complicated by the fact that the phycobilisomes are attached to the thylakoid membrane and are energetically coupled to the chlorophyll a core antenna of PS II. To assign phases of fluorescence decay to particular parts of the cyanobacterial antenna system, we measured the fluorescence characteristics of cyanobacterial mutants that do not have PS II or whose PS II complex has been altered, and compared it with the fluorescence patterns of wild type. The cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 is particularly suitable for such studies, since we have generated a number of mutants of this organism that are specifically impaired in certain PS II genes (3,4). From a comparison of the decay kinetics of the mutants with wild type it should be possible to assign fluorescence lifetimes to certain antenna components and to draw conclusions about the coupling between the phycobilisomes and PS II or PS I.
Regional distribution of cerebral blood flow in experimental intrauterine growth retardation

Abstract The regional distribution of cerebral blood flow was assessed in eight control and eight morphometrically growth-retarded fetal lambs to determine whether perfusion patterns within the cerebral circulation are altered in this model of intrauterine growth retardation. Growth retardation was induced by repetitive embolization of the uterine circulation, and flow distribution was assessed by use of microspheres. Distribution to 22 separate areas, expressed as a flow/weight ratio, was virtually identical in the two groups. Cortical gray matter received 56% of total cerebral flow, and cortical white matter received 7%. However, flow · gm −1 in cortical white matter was 85% of that in cortical gray matter. We conclude that perfusion patterns within the cerebral circulation are not altered in this model of intrauterine growth retardation and that, compared to gray matter, cortical white matter has a high flow · gm −1 in fetal life.
Spectral shifts of methane lines in collisions with hydrogen, helium, nitrogen, and argon

Pressure-induced shifts of rotational-vibrational lines in CH4 have been measured at very high spectral resolution in the R-branch of the 3nu(3) overtone. The colliding gases were H2, He, N2, and Ar. Results are presented as functions of rotational and tetrahedral quantum numbers. Mean values (in 0.001/cm per torr) for the R0-R6 multiplets are -0.01109 (CH4-H2), +0.00547 (opposite sense) (CH4-He), -0.01990 (CH4-N2), and -0.02126 (CH4-Ar).
Application Of A Dual-Array Self-Scanned Digicon To Faint Object Spectroscopy

A series of Self-Scanned Digicon image detectors has been constructed in which the target of the photoelectron imaging section is a Reticon type RL-1872F self-scanned photodiode array modified as a 2 X 936-element dual array. This paper describes an application in which the dual array is used for simultaneous spectroscopy of a faint object and a neighboring patch of skylight, Performance in this application has been tested using a Cassegrain spectrograph built for these tests and the 2.1 m Struve telescope at McDonald Observatory. Tests performedduring the course of several observing programs have demonstrated that subtraction of background skylight is complete to within limits set by photoelectron shot noise. Radial velocities of galaxies have been measured to a precision of ± 34 km/sec to v = 13,700 km/sec. The paper describes the detector, the spectrograph, the observing techniques, and the observational results.© (1979) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Does hormonal therapy influence sexual function in men receiving 3D conformal radiation therapy for prostate cancer

Abstract Purpose: We evaluated the effect of three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3D-CRT) with or without hormonal therapy (HT) on sexual function (SF) in prostate cancer patients whose SF was known before all treatment. Methods and Materials: Between March 1996 and March 1999, 144 patients received 3D-CRT (median dose=70.2 Gy, range 66.6–79.2 Gy) for prostate cancer and had pre- and post-therapy SF data. All SF data were obtained with the O'Leary Brief SF Inventory, a self-administered, multidimensional, validated instrument. We defined total sexual potency as erections firm enough for penetration during intercourse. Mean follow-up time was 21 months (SD ± 11 months). The Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to test for significance of the change from baseline. Results: Before 3D-CRT, 87 (60%) of 144 men were totally potent as compared to only 47 (47%) of 101 at 1-year follow-up. Of the 60 men totally potent at baseline and followed for at least 1 year, 35 (58%) remained totally potent. These changes corresponded to a significant reduction in SF ( p p = 0.012); however, they were also more likely to be potent at baseline (71% vs. 44%, p = 0.001). Although these two groups had a significant reduction in SF from baseline, their change was not significantly different from each other. Conclusion: These data indicate that 3D-CRT causes a significant reduction in total sexual potency as compared to pretreatment baseline. The addition of HT does not appear to increase the risk of sexual dysfunction.
A proximal-based decomposition method for convex minimization problems

This paper presents a decomposition method for solving convex minimization problems. At each iteration, the algorithm computes two proximal steps in the dual variables and one proximal step in the primal variables. We derive this algorithm from Rockafellar's proximal method of multipliers, which involves an augmented Lagrangian with an additional quadratic proximal term. The algorithm preserves the good features of the proximal method of multipliers, with the additional advantage that it leads to a decoupling of the constraints, and is thus suitable for parallel implementation. We allow for computing approximately the proximal minimization steps and we prove that under mild assumptions on the problem's data, the method is globally convergent and at a linear rate. The method is compared with alternating direction type methods and applied to the particular case of minimizing a convex function over a finite intersection of closed convex sets.
Competitive advantage and collusive optima

Cost differences may often be important in real oligopolies. If side payments are impossible the standard cartel objective, total industry profits, lacks plausibility when costs differ. This essay considers plausible alternatives. Four different technologies for effecting collusion, which are essentially identical when costs are equal, define sets of possible profits. Axiomatic bargaining models are used to select unconstrained optima from among these possibilities. Simple functional forms are employed. Low-cost firms with large shares in Cournot equilibrium may have little to gain from collusion. If collusion is effective, low cost firms will have relatively low estimated conjectural variations.
Fatal autoimmunity results from the conditional deletion of Snai2 and Snai3

Transcriptional regulation of gene expression is a key component of orchestrating proper immune cell development and function. One strategy for maintaining these transcriptional programs has been the evolution of transcription factor families with members possessing overlapping functions. Using the germ line deletion of Snai2 combined with the hematopoietic specific deletion of Snai3, we report that these factors function redundantly to preserve the development of B and T cells. Such animals display severe lymphopenia, alopecia and dermatitis as well as profound autoimmunity manifested by the production of high levels of autoantibodies as early as 3 weeks of age and die by 30 days after birth. Autoantibodies included both IgM and IgG isotypes and were reactive against cytoplasmic and membranous components. A regulatory T cell defect contributed to the autoimmune response in that adoptive transfer of wild type regulatory T cells alleviated symptoms of autoimmunity. Additionally, transplantation of Snai2/Snai3 double deficient bone marrow into Snai2 sufficient Rag2(-/-) recipients resulted in autoantibody generation. The results demonstrated that appropriate expression of Snai2 and Snai3 in cells of hematopoietic derivation plays an important role in development and maintenance of immune tolerance.
A Tale of Two Tropes: How Metaphor and Simile Differ

Four experiments tested three competing theories of metaphor comprehension: comparison, categorization, and career-of-metaphor. The findings shed light on key mechanisms involved in metaphor processing and conceptual combination. They show that some novel tropes are privileged in metaphor over simile form, and others may express different interpretations in simile and in metaphor form. These results speak against the assumption that metaphors and similes are interchangeable, thus providing support for the categorization model. A unifying account of metaphor comprehension is proposed, along with a discussion of implications for conceptual combination.
A Rapid Method for Characterization of Protein Relatedness Using Feature Vectors

We propose a feature vector approach to characterize the variation in large data sets of biological sequences. Each candidate sequence produces a single feature vector constructed with the number and location of amino acids or nucleic acids in the sequence. The feature vector characterizes the distance between the actual sequence and a model of a theoretical sequence based on the binomial and uniform distributions. This method is distinctive in that it does not rely on sequence alignment for determining protein relatedness, allowing the user to visualize the relationships within a set of proteins without making a priori assumptions about those proteins. We apply our method to two large families of proteins: protein kinase C, and globins, including hemoglobins and myoglobins. We interpret the high-dimensional feature vectors using principal components analysis and agglomerative hierarchical clustering. We find that the feature vector retains much of the information about the original sequence. By using principal component analysis to extract information from collections of feature vectors, we are able to quickly identify the nature of variation in a collection of proteins. Where collections are phylogenetically or functionally related, this is easily detected. Hierarchical agglomerative clustering provides a means of constructing cladograms from the feature vector output.
Spontaneous Closure of a Residual Postoperative Ventricular Septal Defect

A case is presented of a 16-year-old boy who showed clinical and laboratory evidence of spontaneous dosare of a ventricular septal defect that had apparently reopened following corrective surgery at the age of three years. It is suggested that closure may have been produced by adherence of the septal leaflet of the tricuspid valve to the septum.
Pleopod Rowing is used to Achieve High Forward Swimming Speeds during the Escape Response of Odontodactylus havanensis (Stomatopoda)

ABSTRACT The escape responses of twelve individuals of the stomatopod Odontodactylus havanensis (35–64 mm body length) were recorded with conventional and high-speed (60 and 500 images per second) video cameras. Unlike the typical pattern of escape swimming seen in most elongate Malacostracan crustaceans in which quick backward swimming is achieved by rapid pleonal flexion (tail-flipping), O. havanensis always swam forward during its escape response. Rowing of the pleopods provided thrust during swimming. The power phase was metachronal and the recovery phase was approximately synchronous. The mean stroke frequency, from high-speed video, was 17 Hz. With this swimming mode, speeds of 1.25 to 1.62 meters per second and 21 to 40 body-lengths per second were attained. The intermittent nature of the rowing propulsive mode led to temporally unsteady kinematics marked by periodicity. Although forward swimming via pleopod rowing is a very common form of locomotion employed by elongate crustaceans, it is typicall...