cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Controlled drug delivery systems: the next 30 years

The drug delivery scientists need to reexamine the advances made during the past 60 years, analyze our current abilities, and design the future technologies that will propel us to achieve the next level of drug delivery technologies. History shows that the first generation (1G) of drug delivery research during 1950–1980 was quite productive, while the second generation (2G) technologies developed during 1980–2010 were not as prolific. The ultimate goal of drug delivery research is to develop clinically useful formulations to treat various diseases. Effective drug delivery systems can be developed by overcoming formulation barriers and/or biological barriers. The engineering approach has a limit in solving the problem, if biological difficulties are not clearly identified and understood. The third generation (3G) drug delivery systems will have to focus on understanding the biological barriers so that they can be overcome by engineering manipulation of the drug delivery systems. Advances in the next 30 years will be most accelerated by starting open dialogues without any preconceived ideas on drug delivery technologies. The new generation of drug delivery scientists needs to be aware of the successes and limitations of the existing technologies to design the new technologies for meaningful advances in the future.
First-Mover Advantages from Pioneering New Markets: A Survey of Empirical Evidence

Market pioneers can develop first-mover advantages that span decades. The most general first-mover advantage that helps explain higher pioneer market share levels is a broad product line or brand proliferation. In markets for experience goods, pioneers tend to shape consumer tastes and preferences in favor of the pioneering brand. While the preliminary results vary by industry, they indicate that market pioneers donot tend to perish more often than later entrants. Accounting profits for market pioneers generally are lower in the first four years of operation, but higher thereafter. Overall, market pioneers follow innovative strategies that have high initial costs and risks, but yield high potential returns.
Identification Constraints and Inference in Factor Models.

The choice of constraints used to identify a simple factor model can affect the shape of the likelihood. Specifically, under some nonzero constraints, standard errors may be inestimable even at the maximum likelihood estimate (MLE). For a broader class of nonzero constraints, symmetric normal approximations to the modal region may not be appropriate. A simple graphical technique to gain insight into the relative location of equivalent modes is introduced. Implications for estimation and inference in factor models, and latent trait models more generally, are discussed.
Analysis of headspace volatiles of corn gluten meal

ABSTRACT Corn gluten meal is the high-protein fraction from wet milling of corn. Although protein, minerals, and fat compositions have been reported, minor components that cause unpleasant flavor and taste are not known. The objective of this study was to determine the compounds present in headspace of corn gluten meal and wet cake (dryer feed). A solid-phase microextraction device with a polyacrylate coating was used to collect volatiles for 1 hr at 25 and 100°C above a stirred water slurry of corn gluten meal or wet cake. The absorbed compounds were desorbed onto the inlet injector of a gas chromatograph equipped with a mass selective detector. Compound identification was done using a Wiley library and confirmed by retention time of pure compounds in the gas chromatograph. Twenty-nine compounds were identified. Knowledge concerning volatiles of corn gluten meal may lead to improvement of flavor and taste, and increased utilization of this material, produced over 1 million metric tons per year in the Uni...
The Goldston syndrome: report of a case.

We present a case of the Goldston syndrome—that is, cystic renal dysplasia and the Dandy- Walker malformation. The condition was diagnosed by ultrasound in a 635 g fetus in the seventeenth week of gestation. Ultrasound studies showed the fetal head to be somewhat enlarged with slight dilatation of the lateral ventricles and marked dilatation of the fourth ventricle. The kidneys were symmetrically enlarged and multicystic. Autopsy revealed evidence of the oligohydramnios syndrome. The kidneys were typical of the Goldston syndrome as were the microscopic lesions in the liver. To our knowledge this is the first reported case in which this diagnosis was made during intrauterine life.
Reactions of fuel-nitrogen compounds under conditions of inert pyrolysis

Abstract As part of a study of the chemical mechanisms involved in the conversion of fuel-nitrogen compounds to nitric oxide during combustion, fossil fuels and model nitrogen compounds were pyrolysed in helium in a small quartz flow reactor. Hydrogen cyanide was the major nitrogen-containing product obtained in all cases indicating that hydrogen cyanide is formed during the initial pre-flame stages of combustion and is the principal intermediate in the formation of fuel nitric oxide. At a nominal residence time of one second, 50% decomposition of pyrrole, quinoline, benzonitrile and pyridine occurs at 905, 910, 922 and 954 °C, respectively. The fraction of the nitrogen in pyridine that is converted to hydrogen cyanide increases from 40% at 960 °C to 100% at 1100 °C. Benzonitrile produces similar amounts of hydrogen cyanide (49 and 82%). The hydrogen cyanide yields from coals and residual fuel oils increase from the range of 15–25% at 950 °C to 23–42% at 1100 °C. It is not possible to determine from these single-stage experiments if most of the hydrogen cyanide forms in the primary pyrolysis process or in secondary reactions.
Interfacial Tension between Aluminum Alloy and Molten Salt Flux

Recycling of aluminum scrap is economically sound and saves energy. The aluminum alloy scrap is shredded, decoated, and screened for contaminants, before charging in a bath of molten salt flux, so that the melting of aluminum alloy takes place under the cover of salt flux. Flux prevents oxidation of the aluminum alloy and promotes coalescence of molten metal. The salt flux is usually based on equimolar NaCl-KCl composition corresponding to the eutectic composition, because it is cheap, and its melting point is low. The interfacial tension between aluminum alloy and salt plays an important role in the whole remelting process. The present work describes the variation of interfacial tension between Used Beverage Container (UBC) alloy and ternary salt systems having equimolar NaCl-KCl. In this work, the interfacial tension between UBC alloy and molten salts was measured using the drop detachment method. The salt composition was varied by adding varying amounts of NaF, KF, LiF, Na 3 AlF 6 , AIF 3 , MgF 2 , and LiCl in an equimolar NaCl-KCl salt mixture. The variation of interfacial tension with salt composition was related to the adsorption of surface active elements at the metal-salt interface. Adsorption of the surface active elements is dependent on their activity. Measurement of sodium and potassium content in aluminum metal using Electron Probe Micro-Analysis (EPMA) supported this model.
FcεRI–FcγRII Coaggregation inhibits IL-16 production from human langerhans-like dendritic cells

Langerhans-like dendritic cells (LLDC) express the high-affinity IgE receptor FcepsilonRI form that lacks the beta-chain, and may play an important role in allergic inflammation via production of IL-16. Secretion of mediators by human mast cells and basophils is mediated through FcepsilonRI and is decreased by coaggregating these receptors to the low-affinity IgG receptor, FcgammaRII. We used a recently described human Ig fusion protein (GE2), which is composed of key portions of the human gamma1 and the human epsilon heavy chains, to investigate its ability to inhibit IL-16 production from FcepsilonRI-positive Langerhans-like dendritic cells through coaggregation of FcgammaRII and FcepsilonRI. Unstimulated LLDC-derived from CD14-positive monocytes from atopic donors were shown to express FcgammaRII, an ITIM-containing receptor, but not FcepsilonRI or FcgammaRIII which are activating (ITAM) receptors. When passively sensitized with antigen-specific, human IgE and then challenged with antigen, LLDC were stimulated to produce IL-16. However, when FcepsilonRI and FcgammaRII were coaggregated with GE2, IL-16 production was significantly inhibited. Exposure of LLDCs to GE2 alone did not induce IL-16 production. Our results further extend our studies demonstrating the ability of GE2 to inhibit FcepsilonRI-mediated responses through coaggregation with FcgammaRIIB and at the same time show that human LDCC can be modulated in a fashion similar to mast cells and basophils.
Health Facility Planning: An Example of a Decision Flexibility Approach

Decision flexibility is applied to a nursing home locational problem faced by a planning agency. The results of the selection of an initial period decision based upon the flexibility criterion, which maximizes the probability of achieving a selected cut-off, are contrasted with those obtained from applying the expected value criterion.
Synchronization of chaotic outputs in multi-transverse-mode vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers

Abstract We have experimentally explored synchronization of chaotic outputs in unidirectionally coupled vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers in the multi-transverse mode regime. The beam from the transmitter is orthogonally injected into the receiver. High cross correlation between the injection and the Y polarization of the receiver can be achieved for appropriate frequency detuning and injection power. The modal property in synchronization is examined as well.
The oral manifestations of erythroblastic (Cooley's) anemta

Abstract A single report of this condition is to be found in dental literature.∗ This case illustrates the importance of roentgenograms and blood studies in making a diagnosis, because the presence of a local sign in the mouth may often be due to a disease of the blood.
Altered NaCl taste responses precede increased NaCl ingestion during Na(+) deprivation

It has been suggested that Na(+) deficiency alters the sensitivity of taste receptors, thereby rendering NaCl solutions more palatable or preferred and more likely to be ingested. Increased ingestion of concentrated NaCl solutions by rats during dietary Na(+) deprivation occurs only after approximately 8-10 days. To determine whether changes in gustatory responses mediate the deprivation-induced NaCl ingestion (salt appetite), we evaluated taste responses to a range of NaCl concentrations before, during, and after dietary Na(+) deprivation. Rats were trained to lick rapidly in short-duration (10 s) tests by mixing NaCl solutions in a dilute sucrose solution. This method elicited consistent, interpretable rates of licking, even of normally avoided NaCl concentrations, without the necessity of depriving the rats of water. The licking rate increased after dietary Na(+) deprivation of only 2 days, increased further after 5 days of Na(+) deprivation and, after 10 days, was not different from that after 2 days. These results suggest that a change in the response to NaCl taste, as evidenced by increased rates of licking during short-access tests, occurred after 2 days of dietary Na(+) deprivation. In contrast, a significant increase in the 24-h ingestion of a concentrated NaCl solution occurred only after approximately 1 week of maintenance on Na(+)-deficient chow. Thus, it is unlikely that a delayed change in the response to NaCl taste to more palatable or preferred underlies the delayed increase in 24-h NaCl intake during dietary Na(+) deprivation.
Union security and the right to work: A comprehensive bibliography

From scholarly treatises to ideological polemics, more has been written in the past 50 years about union security and the right to work than almost any issue in labor law. It has been a profitable source of study for academics in several disciplines, and practitioners from both sides of the labor bar have contributed generously to the literature. For persons doing current work in the field, this vast accumulation of research and analysis provides an invaluable point of departure. Unfortunately, these materials are often somewhat difficult to find. Combing the traditional indices of legal and periodic literature is a time-consuming task, and a specialized bibliography has heretofore been lacking. Hopefully, this will supply the need. Notwithstanding my best efforts at thoroughness in compiling this bibliography, I will admit that I use the term “comprehensive” with great trepidation, for it is in the nature of things that persons who make such claims are soon taught their folly. Given the scope and popularity of the topic, it is inevitable that I overlooked some worthy books and articles. The bibliography is divided into broad and sometimes overlapping categories, and where a book or article was placed was often a close decision. Within each category, the materials are listed in chronological order.
Management of Seasonal Style-Goods Inventories

This paper develops an inventory model in which season length is specifically included as a variable for seasonal style goods under the assumption that the demands exhibit a simple contagion pattern, namely, the influence of past demands on future occurrence of demands. The paper first derives an s-S optimal order policy as a function of the selling season, then determines the optimal duration and timing of the selling season, and, finally includes an algorithm for computing the optimal season length.
Methiini and Oemini (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Cerambycinae) of Hispaniola

ABSTRACT Two species of Methiini, Tessaropa hispaniolae Lingafelter, new species, and Methia dolichoptera Lingafelter, new species, (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) from Hispaniola are diagnosed, described, and illustrated. The Dominican Republic represents a new country record for Malacopterus tenellus (F.) (Oemini). A discussion of the tribal characters, followed by a key to the four species of both tribes known from Hispaniola, is included.
Dual rotating-compensator multichannel ellipsometer: instrument design for real-time Mueller matrix spectroscopy of surfaces and films

We describe the design of a high-speed multichannel ellipsometer in the optical configuration PC1r(ω1)SC2r(ω2)A having frequency-coupled rotating compensators (C1r and C2r) and a fixed polarizer and analyzer (P and A) symmetrically placed about the sample (S) on the polarization generation and detection arms of the instrument. For this instrument the frequency-coupled compensators rotate continuously at ω1= 5ω and ω2=3ω, where π/ω is the fundamental optical period. Although the dual rotating-compensator configuration has been proposed and demonstrated earlier, we focus on its extension to real-time Mueller matrix spectroscopy of surface modification and thin-film growth utilizing high-speed multichannel detection with a wide spectral range. The proposed instrument design provides the capability of extracting all 16 elements of the unnormalized Mueller matrix of an evolving sample at 1024 points from 1.5 to 6.5 eV with potential acquisition and repetition times of 0.2 s. Techniques of data acquisition, data reduction, and instrument calibration are described for the general case of arbitrary compensator retardances and polarizer and analyzer angles. We expect that the proposed instrument will have important applications in studies of surfaces and thin films that exhibit anisotropy and inhomogeneity.
Load balance and energy efficient data gathering in wireless sensor networks

Many data-gathering protocols for wireless sensor networks use clustering technology for prolonging network lifetime. Cluster-based protocols reduce the total energy consumption via data aggregation and balance energy consumption via clusterhead rotation. However, most existing protocols focus on load balance within each cluster. The energy consumption of the entire network is still unbalanced and this uneven energy dissipation can significantly reduce network lifetime. We propose an even energy dissipation protocol (EEDP) for efficient cluster-based data gathering in wireless sensor networks. In EEDP, sensor data are forwarded to the base station (BS) via multiple chains of clusterheads. Each chain uses a rotation scheme to balance energy consumption among clusterheads and avoid the formation of a hot spot. We developed efficient algorithms to organize clusterheads into multiple chains, such that the traffic load is evenly distributed among different chains. Analysis and simulation results show that EEDP achieves better load balance than several existing protocols and significantly increases network lifetime. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
How will GINA influence participation in pharmacogenomics research and clinical testing

After a 13-year battle in Congress—longer than it took to map the human genome—the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) was passed into law on 21 May 2008. Before its passing, Francis Collins, then director of the National Human Genome Research Institute, testified before the 110th Congress that the success of personalized medicine hinged on the passing of the legislation. How will GINA, which takes effect in 2009, influence participation in pharmacogenomic research and clinical testing? Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics (2009) 86 5, 472–475. doi:10.1038/clpt.2009.146
Auditory perception and cognition

In this article, the essential process of auditory perception and advocated for the integration of structural and functional knowledge of the auditory system is reviewed. A perspective, called the constructionist's paradigm, is suggested which looks at the neuron-anatomical structure for auditory perception in three essential stages with intermediate signal representations that allow interchangeable coupling to accommodate new and improved models within each individual stage. This article introduces to the signal processing audience the exciting new frontiers in auditory research, particularly functional neuroimaging. The discussion and collaboration among researchers in various disciplines is motivated for the ultimate understanding of the human auditory perception process which will eventually lead to many practical applications.
The Role the Collegiate American Marketing Association Plays in Professional and Entrepreneurial Skill Development

Professional student organizations offer members a wide range of learning opportunities for applied marketing experiences. Little research exists in the marketing education literature on the role s...
Annie: Automated Generation of Adaptive Learner Guidance for Fun Serious Games

This paper describes some of the difficulties inherent in building intelligent educational games, specifically the challenge of integrating pedagogy with core game play. We introduce a plan-based knowledge representation that provides a novel framework for infusing the core mechanics of a game with pedagogical content. We describe, in detail, a system that leverages this framework to dynamically adapt a game to individual learners at runtime.
A Reconfiguration Technique for Multilevel Inverters Incorporating Diagnostic System Based on Neural Network

A reconfiguration technique for multilevel inverters incorporating a diagnostic system based on neural network is proposed in this paper. It is difficult to diagnose a multilevel-inverter drive (MLID) system using a mathematical model because MLID systems consist of many switching devices and their system complexity has a nonlinear factor. Therefore, a neural network (NN) classification is applied to the fault diagnosis of a MLID system. Multilayer perceptron networks are used to identify the type and location of occurring faults. The principal component analysis (PCA) is utilized in the feature extraction process to reduce the NN input size. A lower dimensional input space will also usually reduce the time necessary to train a NN, and the reduced noise may improve the mapping performance. The output phase voltage of a MLID can be used to diagnose the faults and their locations. The reconfiguration technique is also proposed. The effects of using the proposed reconfiguration technique at high modulation index are addressed. The proposed system is validated with experimental results. The experimental results show that the proposed system performs satisfactorily to detect the fault type, fault location, and reconfiguration
Separation and preconcentration of uranium from acidic media by extraction chromatography

A systematic examination of the effect of nitric and hydrochloric acid concentrations and of macro levels of selected elements on the sorption of actinide ions by a novel extraction chromatographic resin comprised of a solution of octyl(phenyl)-N,N-diisobutylcarbamoylmethylphosphine oxide in tri-n-butyl phosphate supported on an inert polymeric substrate is described. Actinide sorption is demostrated to be most efficient at high ( > 1 M) nitric acid concentrations, although tetra- and hexavalent actinides are strongly retained even from dilute (e.g., 0.05 M) nitric acid solutions. Macro concentrations of several common anions (e.g., PO−34 and SO2−4 or complexing agents (e.g., oxalic acid) are shown not to adversely affect the sorption of trivalent actinides, while reducing the sorption of tetravalents. Such effects, together with oxidation state adjustments, are shown to provide a basis for the sequential elution of individual actinides and for actinide isolation from environmental and biological matrices.
Adolescent Brain Development and the Risk for Alcohol and Other Drug Problems

Dynamic changes in neurochemistry, fiber architecture, and tissue composition occur in the adolescent brain. The course of these maturational processes is being charted with greater specificity, owing to advances in neuroimaging and indicate grey matter volume reductions and protracted development of white matter in regions known to support complex cognition and behavior. Though fronto-subcortical circuitry development is notable during adolescence, asynchronous maturation of prefrontal and limbic systems may render youth more vulnerable to risky behaviors such as substance use. Indeed, binge-pattern alcohol consumption and comorbid marijuana use are common among adolescents, and are associated with neural consequences. This review summarizes the unique characteristics of adolescent brain development, particularly aspects that predispose individuals to reward seeking and risky choices during this phase of life, and discusses the influence of substance use on neuromaturation. Together, findings in this arena underscore the importance of refined research and programming efforts in adolescent health and interventional needs.
Automatic synthesis of controllers for distributed assembly and formation forming

We consider the task of assembling a large number of self controlled parts (or robots) into copies of a prescribed assembly (or formation). In particular, we introduce a way to synthesize, from a specification of the desired assembly, local controllers to be used by each part which, when taken together, have the global effect of assembling the parts. We pay careful attention to the time and space complexity of the synthesis procedure, showing that the size of the representation of the synthesized controller is polynomial in the size of the specification and that the computational power needed by the controller is low.
a preliMinary case for aMnesic selVes: toWard a clinical Moral psychology

Does episodic memory make us who we are? Scholars from Aristotle to the present claim that episodic memory is necessary for one to be a self, a person, or an agent. A consequence of the episodic necessity hypothesis (N) is that individuals with episodic amnesia fail to qualify as selves, persons, or agents. This ethical demotion requires empirical justification. I show that established dissociations in individuals with episodic amnesia falsify many initially plausible formulations of N. The task going forward is to formulate a hypothesis that avoids falsification or to conclude that no plausible formulation succeeds. This method of clinical moral psychology affords incremental progress in the difficult task of showing how selves, persons, and agents are implemented in cognitive mechanisms.
The In-Basket: Real-World Teaching for a Real-World Task

If the in-basket assignment is to be the "real- world" training that we claim it to be, the entire in-basket environment must be not just assigned, but taught. In- basket items do not appear in a vacuum; they are part of office routine. Fur thermore, there is a method of determining priorities for the items that must be answered—a method based on deadlines, degrees of complexity and im portance, and even one's own working habits—while other items simply can be discarded, or noted and filed. Only when the background and method have been taught can we expect students to approach the actual exercise as a real- world in-basket instead of as discrete additional assignments.
In contrast to robots, in humans internal and manipulation forces are coupled

Internal force is defined as a set of contact forces which does not perturb object equilibrium. The internal forces cancel each other and therefore do not contribute to the resultant (manipulation) force acting upon the object. Mathematically, the internal and manipulation forces are independent. Hence they can be controlled independently and corresponding controllers have been implemented in robotic manipulators. The purposes of this study are to examine whether in humans internal force is coupled with the manipulation force and what kind of grasping strategy the performers utilize. The subjects (n=6) were instructed to make cyclic arm movements with a customized manipulandum and the orientation and the movement direction of the manipulandum were varied. Two major grasping patterns were demonstrated: symmetric grasping synergy when the manipulation force is parallel to finger-object interface; and reciprocal changes of forces when the manipulation force is orthogonal to digit-object interface. In contrast to robotic gripper where controls of internal force and manipulation force are decoupled, in humans the internal and manipulation forces are coupled.
Use of carbohydrates for hydrogen storage

Renewable carbohydrates are a promising hydrogen carrier because of its renewable abundance, low cost, high hydrogen storage density (e.g., > 8% H 2 mass% and > 100 kg of H 2 /m 3 ), carbon-neutrality, and high safety. Theoretical yield and high-purity hydrogen production from carbohydrates becomes possible with a new technology called in vitro synthetic pathway biotransformation (SyPaB). Hydrogen production catalyzed by SyPaB has several distinguishable advantages: the highest chemical energy efficiency (122%), the highest product yield (~ 12 moles of H 2 per mole of hexose), fast reaction rate, and clean products (only H 2 and CO 2 ). The remaining major challenges are how to further decrease costs of enzymes and cofactors, increase their stability, and increase hydrogen production rates. Various potential applications of SyPaB-based hydrogen production include local hydrogen-generating stations as the most feasible application, and sugar fuel cell vehicles as the most ambitious application. These great applications and their potential markets are strong motivation to solve those challenges and bring about a new carbon-neutral hydrogen economy.
Moderne Funktionsdiagnostik der Nase und der Nasennebenhöhlen

Nach Referaten zur Jahreshauptversammlung der Deutschen Gesellschaft fur Hals-Nasen-Ohren-Heilkunde, Kopf- und Halschirurgie uber den Geruchsund Geschmackssinn im Jahre 1975 in Wiesbaden und uber die Diagnostik und Therapie der Nebenhohlenentzundungen 1982 in Bad Reichenhall standen spezielle rhinologische Fragen nicht sehr haufig im Zentrum des Interesses der HNO-Gesellschaft, wenn man die fur die Jahrestagung vergebenen Referate als ein Kriterium ansehen mochte. Aktuelle Teilaspekte der Rhinologie wurden nochmals 1987 in Bad Neuenahr mit immunpathologischen und allergologischen Referaten behandelt.
Insight into the crystallization of amorphous imine-linked polymer networks to 2D covalent organic frameworks

We explore the crystallization of a high surface area imine-linked two-dimensional covalent organic framework (2D COF). The growth process reveals rapid initial formation of an amorphous network that subsequently crystallizes into the layered 2D network. The metastable amorphous polymer may be isolated and resubjected to growth conditions to form the COF. These experiments provide the first mechanistic insight into the mechanism of imine-linked 2D COF formation, which is distinct from that of boronate-ester linked COFs.
Communication Avoiding Algorithms: Analysis and Code Generation for Parallel Systems

Data movement is a critical bottleneck for futuregenerations of parallel systems. The class of .5Dcommunication-avoiding algorithms were developed to addressthis bottleneck. These algorithms reduce communication andprovide strong scaling in both time and energy. As a firststep towards automating the development of communication-avoidinglibraries, we developed the Maunam compiler. Maunam generates efficient parallel code from a high-level, global view sketch of .5D algorithms that are expressed usingsymbolic data sizes and numbers of processors. It supportsthe expression of data movement and communication throughhigh-level global operations such as TILT and CSHIFT as wellas through element-wise copy operations. With the latter, wraparoundcommunication patterns can also be achieved usingsubscripts based on modulo operations. Maunam employs polyhedral analysis to reason about communicationand computation present in a .5D algorithm. After partitioning data and computation, it inserts point-topointand collective communication as needed. Maunam alsoanalyzes data dependence patterns and data layouts to identifyreductions over processor subsets. Maunam-generated Fortran+MPI code for 2.5D matrix multiplicationrunning on 4096 cores of a Cray XC30 supercomputerachieves 59 TFlops/s (76% of the machine peak). Ourgenerated parallel code achieves 91% of the performance of ahand-coded version.
Combination of Two Entomopathogenic Nematode Species for Suppression of an Insect Pest

Laboratory and greenhouse studies were conducted to determine whether combining 2 entomopathogenic nematode species would result in synergistic, additive, or antagonistic effect against 2nd-stage larvae of the western spotted cucumber beetle, Diabrotica undecimpunctata undecimpunctata Mannerheim. After an initial screening of 12 nematode species/strains, the most efficacious Steinernema and Heterorhabditis and 2 Steinernema species that were intermediate in effectiveness were selected for further evaluations. In laboratory soil bioassays, tile lethal concentration resulting in 50% mortality (LC50) for the most virulent nematode, Steinernema carpocapsae (Weiser) All strain, was 14.5 infective juveniles followed by 18.4 infective juveniles for Heterorhabditis bacteriophora Poinar NCI strain, 48.1 infective juveniles for S. riobravis Cabanillas, Poinar and Raulston Texas strain, and 98.6 IJs for Steinernema sp. Hanrim strain. Combining 2 of the 4 nematode species at the LC25 values always resulted in an additive effect, regardless of the effectiveness of the individual nematode species. In the greenhouse, application of S. carpocapsae, S. riobravis, Steinernema sp., or H. bacteriophora was made alone or in paired combinations at the rates of 1 × 108 and 2.5 × 108 infective juveniles/ha against western spotted cucumber beetle larvae. At both rates, the most efficacious single nematode species against the larvae was S. carpocapsae . The combination of 2 nematode species showed variable results. Its efficacy ranged between as high as the better of the 2 combined species alone and as low as the less effective of the 2 species alone. In addition, the combined nematode treatments were always less effective than the most efficacious single nematode species, S. carpocapsae . We conclude that no advantage was gained by combining 2 entomopathogenic nematode species against western spotted cucumber beetle larvae.
Patient comorbidity predicts hospital length of stay after robot-assisted prostatectomy.

We sought to examine the impact of baseline patient characteristics and perioperative outcomes on postoperative hospital length of stay (LOS), following the robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP). We retrospectively reviewed consecutive patients receiving RARP at our institution by two surgeons between January 2012 and March 2014 (n = 274). Baseline patient characteristics were collected, including Charlson comorbidity index (CCI). Discharge criteria were identical for all patients and included: return of bowel function, pain controlled with oral medications, and ambulation without assistance. LOS was calculated as the number of midnights spent in the hospital following surgery. Postoperative hospital LOS was equal to 1 day for 225 patients and >1 day for 49 patients. Baseline patient and tumor characteristics, including age, race, body-mass index (BMI), pathologic stage, and Gleason score, were not significantly different. Mean operative time was shorter for patients with LOS > 1 day (155 vs. 173 min, p 1 day were more likely to have had a complication: 8/49 (17 %) vs. 14/225 (6 %), p 2 as the only independent predictor of LOS > 1 day (OR = 3.2, p = 0.03), controlling for age, race, BMI, Gleason score, tumor stage, blood loss, operative time, and occurrence of complication. In our experience, baseline patient comorbidity, quantified by CCI, was the only independent predictor of hospital LOS greater than 1 day following RARP. Preoperative assessment of patient comorbidity should be used to better counsel patients on their anticipated postoperative course.
Evolution, Complex Systems and the Dialectic

The status of large scale historical macro-theories is contested both in world-systems theory and in sociology as a whole. I distinguish three types of such dynamic models: evolutionary models, systems models and dialectical models. I define dialectical models as a family of complex systems models characterized by positive feedback (self-reinforcement or auto-catalysis). Such models lead to processes of accumulation and polarization, leading to system crisis. The games of Monopoly and Risk provide popular examples. This paper investigates the dynamic properties of three examples of such models: Myrdal's model of cumulative causation; Collins's models of Marxian transformations and geopolitics; and Chaso-Dunn and Hall's iterative model of world-systems transformations. A combination of evolutionary, complex systems and dialectical analyses has consideralble overlap with chaotic, far-from-equilibrium types of models and with analyses of complex adaptive systems. Such discontinuous, nonlinear dynamic models show great potential for solving problems of dynamic analysis both within world-systems theory and within sociology as a whole.
Rat mesangial cells produce granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor

Because inflammatory processes in renal glomeruli may involve monocyte-macrophages (MPs) and T-lymphocytes, we have investigated whether products of glomerular mesangial cells (MCs) can stimulate t...
IVM: a task-based shared memory programming model and runtime system to enable uniform access to CPU-GPU clusters

GPUs have been widely used to accelerate a variety of applications from different domains and have become part of high-performance computing clusters. Yet, the use of GPUs within distributed applications still faces significant challenges in terms of programmability and performance portability. The use of popular programming models for distributed applications (such as MPI, SHMEM, and Charm++) in combination with GPU programming frameworks (such as CUDA and OpenCL) exposes to the programmer disjoint memory address spaces and provides a non-uniform view of compute resources (i.e., CPUs and GPUs). In addition, these programming models often perform static assignment of tasks to compute resources and require significant programming effort to embed dynamic scheduling and load balancing mechanisms within the application. In this work, we propose a programming framework called Inter-node Virtual Memory (IVM) that provides the programmer with a uniform view of compute resources and memory spaces within a CPU-GPU cluster, and a mechanism to easily incorporate load balancing within the application. We compare MPI, Charm++ and IVM on four distributed GPU applications. Our experimental results show that, while the main goal of IVM is programmer productivity, the use of the load balancing mechanisms offered by this framework can also lead to performance gains over existing frameworks.
Assessment of spermatogenesis through staging of seminiferous tubules

Male germ cells in all mammals are arranged within the seminiferous epithelium of the testicular tubules in a set of well-defined cell associations called stages. The cellular associations found in these stages and characteristics of the cells used to identify the stages have been well described. Here we present a binary decision key roadmap for identifying stages and present several examples of how staging tubules can be used to better assess the developmental profile of gene expression during spermatogenesis and defects in spermatogenesis arising in pathological conditions resulting from genetic mutations in mice. In particular, when one or more cells of a cellular association cannot be clearly identified or are missing, the cell types that should be present can be precisely identified by knowledge of the approximate or exact stage of the tubule cross section.
Stimulation of Growth and Differentiation of EBV Transformed Cell Lines by Use of Monoclonal Antibodies to New Differentiation Antigens

The commitment of hematopoetic stem cells to the B-cell lineage and the development of Ig-producing cells involves the rearrangement of Ig genes and the translation and membrane expression of their product. Resting Ig-expressing B lymphocytes are activated by cross-linking of membrane Ig by antigen or anti-Ig (isotype, allotype, or idiotype-specific) antibodies and triggered to proliferate and differentiate by a variety of cytokines (1,2).
Enzymatic Synthesis of Sequence-Defined Synthetic Nucleic Acid Polymers with Diverse Functional Groups.

The development and in-depth analysis of T4 DNA ligase-catalyzed DNA templated oligonucleotide polymerization toward the generation of diversely functionalized nucleic acid polymers is described. The NNNNT codon set enables low codon bias, high fidelity, and high efficiency for the polymerization of ANNNN libraries comprising various functional groups. The robustness of the method was highlighted in the copolymerization of a 256-membered ANNNN library comprising 16 sub-libraries modified with different functional groups. This enabled the generation of diversely functionalized synthetic nucleic acid polymer libraries with 93.8 % fidelity. This process should find ready application in DNA nanotechnology, DNA computing, and in vitro evolution of functional nucleic acid polymers.
SiGe Nanomembrane Quantum-Well Infrared Photodetectors

SiGe quantum wells are promising candidates for the development of intersubband light emitters and photodetectors operating at mid- and far-infrared wavelengths. By virtue of their inherent compatibility with the Si microelectronics platform, these devices may be integrated seamlessly within complex optoelectronic systems for sensing and imaging applications. However, the development of high-quality SiGe intersubband active layers is complicated by the large lattice mismatch between Si and Ge, which limits the number of quantum wells that can be grown on bulk Si substrates before the onset of structural degradation due to inelastic strain relaxation. To address this issue, we investigate the use of lattice matched growth templates consisting of quantum-well nanomembrane stacks that were at one point free-standing, allowing for the internal stress to be relaxed via elastic strain sharing rather than defect formation. SiGe quantum-well infrared photodetectors (QWIPs) based on this approach are developed and...
Tobacco cessation counseling within physical therapist practice: Results of a statewide survey of Florida physical therapists

ABSTRACTIntroduction: Tobacco use is the leading preventable risk factor for chronic disease, disability, and premature mortality. People with disabilities experience higher tobacco use and reduced access to services when compared with the general population. The negative impact on treatment outcomes across all practice settings provides a strong incentive for physical therapists (PTs) to engage in tobacco cessation counseling (TCC). Methods: Prevalence of TCC and barriers toward implementation was explored using an anonymous cross-sectional survey of Florida-licensed PTs. Data were analyzed using frequency counts and percentages. Logistic regression was used to quantify relationships between individual knowledge and opinions, and rates of counseling. Results: Of the 212 respondents, 31% regularly provide cessation advice, 7% assist in identifying specific cessation strategies, 13% recommend additional resources, and 3% arrange for follow-up. More than 90% were unfamiliar with evidence-based TCC guideline...
Automated Demand-Based Vertical Elasticity for Heterogeneous Real-Time Workloads

Cloud computing is revolutionizing the information technology field. However, clouds today have not yet addressed real-time applications. Current work has shown that real-time hypervisors are capable of allowing virtual machines to meet real-time requirements. Other work has looked at statically allocating resources to virtual guests, which allow those guests to meet deadlines. In this paper, we present DART-C (Demand-based Allocation for Real-Time Clouds), a dynamic real-time cloud framework that allows automated adaptation to these types of workloads. Many applications follow dynamic multi-modal execution patterns, with varying computational requirements over time. DART-C provides demand-based elasticity to support changing real-time requirements by enabling applications to report mode changes to a resource manager, which reallocates resources based on need. We also describe a prototype and demonstrate up to 62% in system resource utilization savings compared to a static allocation, when running a synthetic application set.
Understanding How Goal-striving, Goal Orientation, and Shame Influence Self-perceptions after Exposure to Models in Advertising

Marketers frequently use advertisements featuring thin models to promote the goal of self-improvement to consumers. However, many of these appeals lead to detrimental effects on the self-perceptions of the females who view them. This paper integrates components of goal-striving theory and social comparison theory to explain consumer response to these advertisements and investigates how goal attainability may mitigate the negative effects of these ads. Additionally, this work investigates how a promotion-focus goal orientation moderates the effects of the goal-striving process and provides evidence of the mediating effects of shame. Finally, this work addresses a gap in the literature by examining how the interplay of model size and goal attainability impacts male consumers’ self-perceptions. Study 1 reveals that high levels of perceived goal attainability mitigate the negative effects of exposure to thin models on self-perceptions for females. Study 2 demonstrates that a high promotion-focus goal orientation can lead to more favorable self-perceptions for female participants exposed to a thin model with attainable goals, but it does not isolate participants from feelings of shame, which mediates the effects of goal attainability on self-perceptions. Study 3 reveals similar findings for male consumers, but notably finds that shame does not play a significant role in understanding the comparison process for male consumers, suggesting key differences in the comparison processes between sexes.
Sedimentologist's Guide for Recognition, Description, and Classification of Paleosols

Paleosols are an important component of the terrestrial stratigraphic record and are increasingly utilized in stratigraphic analyses and paleoenvironmental and paleoclimate reconstructions. This chapter is designed to be accessible to students and researchers who are new to the study of paleosols. The topics discussed here are particularly relevant to sedimentologists, stratigraphers, and paleoclimatologists who wish to incorporate paleosol data into their research. We review methods for identifying, describing, and classifying paleosols. Modern soil features are described and related to their paleosol counterparts, and recommendations are made for streamlining field descriptions of paleosols without sacrificing valuable data used in paleoenvironmental and paleoclimate reconstructions. Finally, we discuss soil and paleosol classification systems, assess their applicability to paleosols, and evaluate their potential drawbacks.
Martian Fetch: Finding and retrieving sample-tubes on the surface of mars

Mars Sample Return (MSR) was identified by the 2011 planetary science decadal survey as a high priority long-term goal for NASA. A three-mission campaign concept is currently being investigated. The Mars 2020 rover mission is intended to core and collect samples. These samples will be sealed in tubes and left on the surface for potential return to Earth. In the current MSR campaign concept, a Sample Retrieval and Launch (SRL) mission would collect the sample tubes left by the Mars 2020 rover and load them into a Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) to be launched into orbit. The third mission concept involves a spacecraft capturing the samples in Martian orbit and returning them to Earth. This paper focuses on the SRL mission concept to collect the sample tubes, addressing the problem of autonomously detecting, localizing, and grasping sample tubes deposited on the Martian surface. We employ two approaches: The first one is context-based. It would use a high precision map computed from images captured during tube release, to locate the tubes without directly observing them. The second approach directly detects the sample tubes visually and estimates their 6-DoF pose onboard from dense stereo data.
Uncovering Gene Regulatory Networks Controlling Plant Cell Differentiation

The development of multicellular organisms relies on the precise regulation of cellular differentiation. As such, there has been significant effort invested to understand the process through which an immature cell undergoes differentiation. In this review, we highlight key discoveries and advances that have contributed to our understanding of the transcriptional networks underlying Arabidopsis root endodermal differentiation. To conclude, we propose perspectives on how advances in molecular biology, microscopy, and nucleotide sequencing will provide the tools to test the biological significance of these gene regulatory networks (GRN).
Metalation of Pyrazoles and Indazoles

Metalation of pyrazoles and indazoles plays an important role in the regioselective introduction of substituents onto these ring systems. Various metalation strategies related to these heterocycles are discussed in this chapter.