cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
An approach to restructurable computer systems

This paper develops the concept of resource structuring in an attempt to remove the structural rigidity present in a conventional computer system. It is claimed that the concept can lead to building better and more efficient computer systems. A language is developed to assist in resource structuring. The language can specify structures such as an arithmetic pipeline or an array configuration. It handles vector and matrix applications efficiently and can be used at the user as well as the system level. Resource structuring in a computer system has other advantages which include reduction of supervisory control on operand routing and transformation of the system to exhibit failsoft behavior. To implement structuring, tagged architecture is suggested and shown to be an eligible candidate.
Carotid endarterectomy in octogenarians and nonagenarians : is it worth the effort?

Purpose : The safety, effectiveness and cost issues of carotid endarterectomy (CEA) in the elderly patient have been debated due to the limited life expectancy and presumably increased rate of complications. This is despite multiple reports in the literature of excellent results in this population. To further examine this issue, we compared char- acteristics of three populations who underwent CEA at our institution : 53-79 year old patients (youngest group), 80-89 years old patients (middle group), and 90-98 year old patients (oldest group). Methods : Medical and financial data were obtained by retrospective review of hospital charts and billing records. We analyzed 266 random CEAs performed in 251 patients in the youngest group, 280 CEAs performed in 247 patients in the middle group and 19 CEA in 16 patients in the oldest group performed between 2/1/90 and 2/5/01. Results : Comparing each CEA group, there were no differences in gender (males : 56% vs. 51% vs. 53%), incidence of preoperative symptoms (43% vs. 43% vs. 42%), hypertension (68% vs. 60% vs. 42%), combined perioperative death and stroke rate (1.8% vs. 2.1% vs. 10%) or other complications (11% vs. 10% vs. 10%). Significant differences (p 80 year old patients ($7,842 vs. $9,400). Conclusions : Carotid endarterectomy can be performed in the elderly as safely and cost effectively as in the younger population.
Emerging first line treatment options for bladder cancer: a review of phase II and III therapies in the pipeline.

ABSTRACTIntroduction: The treatment of urothelial carcinoma (UC) had remained unchanged for several years until the recent FDA approval of immune checkpoint inhibitors (CPIs) in the salvage setting. Novel dual CPI-CPI and CPI-chemotherapy combinations are now being investigated aggressively as first line therapy for metastatic disease.Areas covered: We discuss the recent insights into the tumor biology of UC, which may impact the prognosis as well as assist in developing precision medicine. This is followed by an overview of existing treatment including conventional chemotherapy as well as the trials that led to the recent approval of PD-1 and PD-L1 inhibitors. Ongoing phase II and phase III trials developing PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors, CTLA-4 inhibitors and VEGF inhibitors as first-line therapy are discussed.Expert opinion: The treatment paradigm for the first-line therapy of UC is expected to shift from conventional platinum-based combination chemotherapy towards novel therapy incorporating CPI immunotherapy...
Making Chronic Disease Care Great

The authors of this book believe that advocating for the status quo is unacceptable. The assertion that we have “the best health system in the world” ignores copious statistical evidence to the contrary, as well as the less quantifiable but critically relevant stress and suffering of physicians and patients caught in the current chaos. Our challenge: getting from where we are to a better future by skillfully managing change.
"Being, Becoming, Feeling: Bridging Research on Identity, Identification, & Affect in Organizations"

This symposium highlights new research on identity, identification, and affect in a variety of contexts. Topics addressed include the role of perceived success and failure during role performances (i.e., emotional events that occur while "playing professional") in identity formation among professionals in residency programs; how socialization (i.e., "controlling targets’ identities") induces negative feelings for socializing agents especially when their social identities differ from their targets’; how identity and image influence the experience and outcomes of guilt for managers who perform "necessary evils" at work; and legacy identification of university alumni when the university is under significant identity threat and how alumni reconcile a range of emotions (including emotional ambivalence) in the process of maintaining their identification. This symposium aims to accomplish three goals: 1) to highlight new findings and emerging theory on the relationships among identity, identification, and affect...
Plumbagin-Loaded Nanoemulsion Drug Delivery Formulation and Evaluation of Antiproliferative Effect on Prostate Cancer Cells

Background. Plumbagin, a medicinal plant-derived 5-hydroxy-2-methyl-1,4-naphthoquinone, is an emerging drug with a variety of pharmacological effects, including potent anticancer activity. We have previously shown that plumbagin improves the efficacy of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) in prostate cancer and it is now being evaluated in phase I clinical trial. However, the development of formulation of plumbagin as a compound with sparing solubility in water is challenging. Methods. We have formulated plumbagin-loaded nanoemulsion using pneumatically controlled high pressure homogenization of oleic acid dispersions with polyoxyethylene (20) sorbitan monooleate as surfactant. Nanoemulsion formulations were characterized for particle size distribution by dynamic light scattering (DLS). The kinetics of in vitro drug release was determined by equilibrium dialysis. Anticancer activity toward prostate cancer cells PTEN-P2 was assessed by MTS (Owen’s reagent) assay. Results. Particle size distribution of nanoemulsions is tunable and depends on the surfactant concentration. Nanoemulsion formulations of plumbagin with 1-3.5% (w/w) of surfactant showed robust stability of size distribution over time. Plumbagin-loaded nanoemulsion with average hydrodynamic diameter of 135 nm showed exponential release of plumbagin with a half-life of 6.1 h in simulated gastric fluid, 7.0 h in simulated intestinal fluid, and displayed enhanced antiproliferative effect toward prostate cancer cells PTEN-P2 compared to free plumbagin. Conclusion. High drug-loading capacity, retention of nanoparticle size, kinetics of release under simulated physiological conditions, and increased antiproliferative activity indicate that oleic-acid based nanoemulsion formulation is a suitable delivery system of plumbagin.
Using Concepts from the Study of Social Movements to Understand Community Response to Liquefied Natural Gas Development in Clatsop County, Oregon

Shifts in natural gas supply and demand since the early 2000s have triggered proposals for import and export terminals in coastal locations around the United States. Demand for such facilities is likely to grow with increasing rates of natural gas exports. Clatsop County, Oregon, is one such location that experienced over 10 years of debate surrounding the development of these facilities. The first liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility was proposed in this area in 2004; the final was withdrawn in 2016. While residents expressed both support and opposition early on, opposition dominated by the end. Drawing on insights from the literature on social movements, we conduct a case study of community response to LNG proposals in Clatsop County. We show how opponents were able to successfully frame the potential risks of LNG in a manner that had strong community salience, allowing them to appropriate resources and create political opportunities to advance their cause and influence local and state decisions. Engaging with this case provides an opportunity to observe the behavior and decisions of both opponents and supporters over time, and how they affected project outcomes. LNG proposals in Oregon have been among the most controversial cases of LNG development in the United States. As shale gas development continues to grow, understanding the conflicts involved with its associated infrastructure is critical to creating a more just and equitable energy system.
Enantioselective synthesis of trifluoromethyl-substituted cyclopropanes.

The reaction of 1-aryl-2,2,2-trifluorodiazoethanes with alkenes, catalyzed by the adamantylglycine-derived dirhodium complex Rh2(R-PTAD)4, generates trifluoromethyl-substituted cyclopropanes with high diastereoselectivity (>94%) and enantioselectivity (88−>98%).
In Reply: A Comparison of Minimally Invasive and Open Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion for Grade 1 Degenerative Lumbar Spondylolisthesis: An Analysis of the Prospective Quality Outcomes Database.

Background It remains unclear if minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MI-TLIF) is comparable to traditional, open TLIF because of the limitations of the prior small-sample-size, single-center studies reporting comparative effectiveness. Objective To compare MI-TLIF to traditional, open TLIF for grade 1 degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis in the largest study to date by sample size. Methods We utilized the prospective Quality Outcomes Database registry and queried patients with grade 1 degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis who underwent single-segment surgery with MI- or open TLIF methods. Outcomes were compared 24 mo postoperatively. Results A total of 297 patients were included: 72 (24.2%) MI-TLIF and 225 (75.8%) open TLIF. MI-TLIF surgeries had lower mean body mass indexes (29.5 ± 5.1 vs 31.3 ± 7.0, P = .0497) and more worker's compensation cases (11.1% vs 1.3%, P .001). In multivariable adjusted analyses, MI-TLIF was associated with lower ODI (β = -4.7; 95% CI = -9.3 to -0.04; P = .048), higher EQ-5D (β = 0.06; 95% CI = 0.01-0.11; P = .02), and higher satisfaction (odds ratio for North American Spine Society [NASS] 1/2 = 3.9; 95% CI = 1.4-14.3; P = .02). Though trends favoring MI-TLIF were evident for NRS-BP (P = .06), NRS-LP (P = .07), and reoperation rate (P = .13), these results did not reach statistical significance. Conclusion For single-level grade 1 degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis, MI-TLIF was associated with less disability, higher quality of life, and higher patient satisfaction compared with traditional, open TLIF. MI-TLIF was associated with higher rates of RTW, less blood loss, but longer operative times. Though we utilized multivariable adjusted analyses, these findings may be susceptible to selection bias.
Population Pharmacokinetic/Pharmacodynamic Modeling of Methylprednisolone in Neonates Undergoing Cardiopulmonary Bypass.

Methylprednisolone is used in neonates to modulate cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB)-induced inflammation, but optimal dosing and exposure are unknown. We used plasma methylprednisolone and interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-10 concentrations from neonates enrolled in a randomized trial comparing one vs. two doses of methylprednisolone to develop indirect response population pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic models characterizing the exposure-response relationships. We applied the models to simulate methylprednisolone dosages resulting in the desired IL-6 and -10 exposures, known mediators of CPB-induced inflammation. A total of 64 neonates (median weight 3.2 kg, range 2.2-4.3) contributed 290 plasma methylprednisolone concentrations (range 1.07-12,700 ng/mL) and IL-6 (0-681 pg/mL) and IL-10 (0.1-1125 pg/mL). Methylprednisolone plasma exposure following a single 10 mg/kg intravenous dose inhibited IL-6 and stimulated IL-10 production when compared with placebo. Higher (30 mg/kg) or more frequent (twice) dosing did not confer additional benefit. Clinical efficacy studies are needed to evaluate the effect of optimized dosing on outcomes.
Three-Dimensional Single Particle Tracking and Its Applications in Confined Environments

Single particle tracking (SPT) has proven to be a powerful technique in studying molecular dynamics in complicated systems. We review its recent development, including three-dimensional (3D) SPT an...
The spatial structure of US metropolitan employment: New insights from administrative data

Urban researchers have long debated the extent to which metropolitan employment is monocentric, polycentric, or diffuse. In this paper I use high-resolution data based on unemployment insurance rec...
Role of high-dose exposure in transmission hot zones as a driver of SARS-CoV2 dynamics

Epidemiological data on the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in the absence and presence of various non-pharmaceutical interventions indicate that the virus is not transmitted uniformly in the population. Transmission tends to be more effective in select settings that involve exposure to relatively high viral dose, such as in crowded indoor settings, assisted living facilities, prisons, or food processing plants. To explore the effect on infection dynamics, we describe a new mathematical model where transmission can occur (i) in the community at large, characterized by low dose exposure and mostly mild disease, and (ii) in so called transmission hot zones, characterized by high dose exposure that can be associated with more severe disease. Interestingly, we find that successful infection spread can hinge upon high-dose hot zone transmission, yet the majority of infections are predicted to occur in the community at large with mild disease. This gives rise to the prediction that targeted interventions that specifically reduce virus transmission in the hot zones (but not in the community at large) have the potential to suppress overall infection spread, including in the community at large. The model can further reconcile seemingly contradicting epidemiological observations. While in some locations like California, strict stay-home orders failed to significantly reduce infection prevalence, in other locations, such as New York and several European countries, stay-home orders lead to a pronounced fall in infection levels, which remained suppressed for some months after re-opening of society. Differences in hot zone transmission levels during and after social distancing interventions can account for these diverging infection patterns. These modeling results warrant further epidemiological investigations into the role of high dose hot zone transmission for the maintenance of SARS-CoV-2 spread.
Examining the impact of socioeconomic variables on COVID-19 death rates at the state level

This study uses a step-wise regression model to identify the socioeconomic variables most significant in explaining COVID-19 death rates on a state-level basis. The regression tests cover the 1/1/2020 to 12/1/2020 period as well as the first and second halves of 2020. This study also uses the Oxford stringency index to measure more precisely the efficacy of governmental mandates at the state level. The results in this study rigorously showed that while the density variables were the most significant explanatory variables during the first half of the year, their significance fell during the second half. Use of the Oxford stringency index revealed that more stringent mandates led to significant reductions in COVID-19 death rates, especially during the second half of the year. The study’s findings also reveal that a higher poverty rate in a state is significantly associated with higher COVID-19 death rates during all three periods tested.
Effects of outdoor weathering and laundering on the detection and classification of fluorinated oil-and-water-repellent fabric coatings.

Fluorinated polymer coatings are used to impart durable oil-and-water-repellent properties on fabrics, potentially offering a persistent fiber characteristic for forensic fiber comparisons. To evaluate the persistence of these coatings, we investigate effects of outdoor weathering and laundering on detection and classification of the fluorinated oil-and-water-repellent coatings on 9 garments and 2 spray-coated fabric samples. Single fibers from the samples are pyrolyzed and subjected to gas chromatography coupled to a fluorine-selective detector. The positive detection of coatings is indicated by a signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) >50 for the tallest peak in the pyrograms. Moreover, a multinomial logistic regression model trained using fibers prior to weathering and laundering is utilized to determine the class of the weathered and laundered fibers, providing a metric to evaluate the effect of these processes on fiber classification. Notably, fluorinated coatings are detected on all of the fibers exposed to outdoor elements in Arlington, VA, up to 12 weeks from August to October 2020, while a detection rate of 95.5% is achieved for samples laundered up to 10 wash cycles. The detection rate prior to weathering and laundering was 98%, indicating negligible effect of these processes on detection of coatings. The classification accuracy is determined to be 99% and 100% for weathered and laundered samples, respectively, illustrating that these processes do not significantly affect the major pyrolysis products of the coatings responsible for classification. These results highlight the persistence of the fluorinated oil-and-water-repellent fabric coatings and their potential for forensic fiber discrimination at single-fiber level.
A Description of Middle School Male Singers’ Voice Change and Voice Part Assignment:

The purpose of this study was to describe the voice change and voice part assignment of male middle school choir members. Volunteers (N = 92) were recruited from three public middle school choral p...
Prescription opioid policies and associations with opioid overdose and related adverse effects

Abstract Background United States (US) policies to mitigate the opioid epidemic focus on reducing access to prescription opioids to prevent overdoses. We examined the impact of state policies in Vermont (July 2017) and Maine (July 2016) on opioid overdoses and opioid-related adverse effects. Methods Study population included patients 15 years and older in all-payer claims of Vermont (N = 597,683; Jan.2016-Dec.2018) and Maine (N = 1,370,960; Oct.2015-Dec.2017). We used interrupted time series analyses to assess the impact of opioid prescribing policies on monthly opioid overdose rate and opioid-related adverse effects rate. We used the International Classification of Disease-10-CM to identify overdoses (T40.0 × 1-T40.4 × 4, T40.601-T40.604, T40.691-T40.694) and adverse effects (T40.0 × 5, T40.2 × 5-T40.4 × 5, T40.605, T40.695). Results Immediately after the policy, the level of Vermont's opioid overdose rate increased by 34% (95% confidence interval, CI: 1.09, 1.65) while the level of opioid-related adverse effects rate decreased by 29% (95% CI: 0.58, 0.87). In Maine, there was no level change in opioid overdose rate, but the slope of the adverse effects rate after the policy decreased by 3.5% (95% CI: 0.94, 0.99). These results varied within age and rurality subgroups in both states. Conclusion While the decrease in rate of adverse effects following the policy changes is promising, the increase in Vermont's opioid overdose rate may suggest there is an association between policy implementation and short-term risk to public health.
On Gifts and Heroes

The language of gratitude and of heroism, pervasive in public discourse about essential workers, is well-intended but belies a problematic blurring of the difference between gifts, contracts, and professionalism. "Heroism," a term frequently invoked by society, usually describes the giving of oneself beyond reasonable boundaries. This noble concept affirms our essential connections to each other. However, labeling someone's labor as a gift can make givers feel obligated exceed both contracts and professionalism. Contracts define the boundaries of expected work for expected compensation. Like heroism, professionalism in healthcare implies undertaking duties to others beyond the contractual. Careless use of these words, however, can lead to negative consequences. Gifts and heroism are best applied to special needs in special circumstances. Professionalism goes beyond special circumstances to address ongoing commitments to others. When the language of gifts, heroism, or professionalism are used to promote the ongoing performance of dangerous, excessive work, however, they become instruments of injustice and burnout. The experiences of the COVID pandemic can help identify the proper scope of gift-giving, heroism and professionalism - which cement our social bonds - while avoiding misuses of these terms, in order to improve the safety and fairness of the work environment.
K2: Reading Quickly from Storage Across Many Datacenters

The infrastructure available to large-scale and medium-scale web services now spans dozens of geographically dispersed datacenters. Deploying across many datacenters has the potential to significantly reduce end-user latency by serving users nearer their location. However, deploying across many datacenters requires the backend storage system be partially replicated. In turn, this can sacrifice the low latency benefits of many datacenters, especially when a storage system provides guarantees on what operations will observe. We present the K2 storage system that provides lower latency for large-scale and medium-scale web services using partial replication of data over many datacenters with strong guarantees: causal consistency, read-only transactions, and write-only transactions. K2 provides the best possible worst-case latency for partial replication, a single round trip to remote datacenters, and often avoids sending any requests to far away datacenters using a novel replication approach, write-only transaction algorithm, and read-only transaction algorithm.
1000 Years of Climate Change

It has long been believed that the 20th warming was preceded by the "Little Ice Age" and the "Medieval Warm Period" as a result of the natural variability of climate. But as [Bradley][1] explains in this Perspective, recent research has shown that these climate patterns may not have been global, and are much more variable in time and space than previously assumed. However, one fact remains indisputable, namely that end-20th century temperatures were higher than at any time during the last millenium. [1]: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/288/5470/1353
Evolving Nonlinear Controllers for Backing up a Truck-and-Trailer Using Evolutionary Programming

Control laws for backing up a simulated truck-and-trailer to a loading dock in a parking lot are developed. Evolutionary programming (EP) with a set of mutation operators is used to automatically generate optimal control laws. EP produces an optimal nonlinear control strategy that takes the state variables as inputs and determines the direction and angle by which the truck's front wheels must be steered. Results indicate that the generated control laws successfully back up the truck-and-trailer system in an optimal manner and are capable of generalizing well over previously unseen input states.
A new interferometric sensor with ring-feedback MZI

An interferometric sensor configuration is proposed. This configuration is modified from a conventional Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) with a provision of a feedback path. Such scheme possesses large transmission intensity change with a small phase unbalance between two arms of MZI. This property can greatly enhance the sensitivity by one to two order of magnitude compared with a traditional MZI-based sensor. The same configuration can be further enhanced in slope and detection range with introduction of small gain into the feedback path.
Price and Pretense in the Baby Market

Throughout the world, baby selling is formally prohibited. And throughout the world babies are bought and sold each day. As demonstrated in this Essay, the legal baby trade is a global market in which prospective parents pay, scores of intermediaries profit, and the demand for children is clearly differentiated by age, race, special needs, and other consumer preferences, with prices ranging from zero to over one hundred thousand dollars. Yet legal regimes and policymakers around the world pretend that the baby market does not exist, most notably through prohibitions against baby selling - typically defined as a prohibition against the relinquishment of parental rights in exchange for compensation. This Essay explores the costs of societal pretense that legal baby markets do not exist. Those costs include scarcity, foregone opportunities to address market failures, an inability to develop regulations designed to further particular public policies unlikely to be advanced solely through the goal of profit-maximization, and the promotion of rent-seeking. This Essay focuses specifically on the rent-seeking problem, arguing that, although frequently defended by those who contend that commercial markets in parental rights commodify human beings, compromise individual dignity, or jeopardize fundamental values, bans against baby selling (at least as currently written and enforced) serve little purpose other than enabling anti-competitive behavior by the most economically and politically powerful baby market participants.
Combinations of Predications

Before considering in detail the internal structure of predications (as in Chapters 6 and 7), combinations of predications into larger units are presented here as a more immediate and pressing concern for the student of discourse. This chapter attempts to delineate and define the relations which are involved in such combinations. To this end a kind of formal semantics is developed and applied to combinations of predications within the sentence itself. Then, in the following chapter the relations so defined and illustrated are shown to characterize intersentential groupings in local spans of text, i. e., in paragraphs, as well. The two chapters thus form a progression from simpler to more complex material.
Computing coprime factorizations of distributed parameter systems using Laguerre series

This paper presents a way to compute approximations to the auxiliary functions associated with the Q-parameterization approach to control system design for distributed parameter systems. The technique is put in a form that can be used to recursively compute the (m+1)st approximation in terms of the mth approximation. In addition, the recursive formulation highlights the contribution of the new information thereby allowing the designer to decide if the new information is worth the additional computational effort.
Narrative Medicine: Honoring the Stories of Illness

I: WHAT IS NARRATIVE MEDICINE 1. The source of Narrative Medicine 2. Bridging Health Care's Divides 3. Narrative Features of Medicine II: NARRATIVES OF ILLNESS 4. Telling One's Life 5. The Patient, the Body, and the Self II: DEVELOPING NARRATIVE COMPETENCE 6. Close Reading 7. Attention, Represenation, and Affiliation 8. The Parallel Chart III: DIVIDENDS OF NARRATIVE MEDICINE 9. Bearing Witness 10. The Bioethics of Narrative Medicine 11. A Narrative Vision for Health Care
MEK Inhibitor PD-0325901 Overcomes Resistance to PI3K/mTOR Inhibitor PF-5212384 and Potentiates Antitumor Effects in Human Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Purpose: Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas exhibit variable sensitivity to inhibitors of the PI3K/mTOR pathway, an important target of genomic alterations in this cancer type. The mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase (MEK)/ERK/activator protein 1 (AP-1) and nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) pathways are also frequently co-activated, but their roles in resistance mechanisms to PI3K/mTOR inhibitors and as therapeutic targets in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) are not well defined. Experimental Design: We determined the IC 50 s of dual PI3K/mTOR inhibitor PF-05212384 (PF-384) by XTT assays in 14 HNSCC lines with PI3K/Akt/mTOR cascade alterations. In two resistant models, we further characterized the molecular, cellular, and in vivo attributes and effects of combining PF-384 with MEK inhibitor PD-0325901 (PD-901). Results: PF-384 IC 50 s varied between 0.75 and 133 nmol/L in 14 HNSCC lines with overexpression or mutations of PIK3CA , and sensitivity correlated with increased phospho-AKT(T308/S473). In resistant UMSCC-1 and -46 models, PF-384 increased G 0 -/G 1 -phase accumulation but weakly induced sub-G 0 cell death. PF-384 inhibited direct targets of PI3K/mTOR, but incompletely attenuated co-activated ERK and UMSCC-1 xenograft growth in vivo . PD-901 strongly inhibited MEK/ERK targets, and the combination of PF-384 and PD-901 inhibited downstream NF-κB and AP-1 transactivation, and IL8 and VEGF production in vitro . PD-901 potently inhibited tumor growth alone and with PF384, enhanced antiproliferative, apoptotic, and anti-angiogenesis activity in vivo . Conclusions: PI3K/mTOR inhibitor PF-384 exhibits variable activity in a panel of HNSCC cell lines with differing PIK3CA expression and mutation status. MEK inhibitor PD-901 overcomes resistance and enhances antitumor effects observed with PF-384 in vivo . Clin Cancer Res; 21(17); 3946–56. ©2015 AACR .
Gastric and esophageal dysfunction after ingestion of acid

Abstract Esophageal and gastric function was measured in a patient who swallowed a household acid solution. Dysphagia, transient ulceration of the esophagus with luminal narrowing, and complete loss of peristalsis without loss of lower esophageal sphincter function were noted. Gastric dysfunction appeared 2 weeks after ingestion with complete obstruction, necessitating antral resection. The proximal stomach was relatively spared.
The Development of Memory: Life-Span Perspectives

Publisher Summary Although there is no single study of memory development across the entire life-span, from infancy through old age, an extensive research has been carried out on memory in childhood and in old age. This chapter compares the data from these two age periods to show that a life-span perspective can influence the study of memory development by influencing the development of an explanatory model, the selection of specific research methodologies, and the direction of research programs. The research on the two age periods is surveyed separately, is compared, and finally the implications of the comparison are discussed focusing on the field of child development.
Secretin inhibits gastric acid secretion via a vagal afferent pathway in rats

Secretin is an enterogastrone that inhibits gastric acid secretion and motility. Recently, it was reported that secretin inhibited gastric emptying via a capsaicin (Cap)-sensitive vagal afferent pa...
The use of network theory to model disparate ship design information

ABSTRACT This paper introduces the use of network theory to model and analyze disparate ship design information. This work will focus on a ship's distributed systems and their intra- and intersystem structures and interactions. The three system to be analyzed are: a passageway system, an electrical system, and a fire fighting system. These systems will be analyzed individually using common network metrics to glean information regarding their structures and attributes. The systems will also be subjected to community detection algorithms both separately and as a multiplex network to compare their similarities, differences, and interactions. Network theory will be shown to be useful in the early design stage due to its simplicity and ability to model any shipboard system.
Selectivity in tyrosyl iodination sites in human thyroglobulin

Previous studies indicate that when low iodine thyroglobulin (Tg) is iodinated enzymatically with thyroid peroxidase (TPO), the tyrosyl residues that are used for the formation of thyroid hormone (hormonogenic sites) are selected for early iodination. The aim of the present study was to assess the relative importance of the substrate (Tg) and the enzyme (TPO) in the selection of the early tyrosyl sites that undergo iodination. For this purpose, low iodine human Tg (2.0 atoms I per 660,000 dimer) was iodinated chemically with (125)I-(3) and enzymatically with TPO + 125I- to a matched low level of iodination (approximately 8 added I atoms per molecule). After reduction and alkylation, the two Tg preparations were digested with trypsin, and the tryptic digests were separated by reverse-phase HPLC into 10 125I-containing pools. Each pool was further fractionated by HPLC to provide purified 125I-peptides suitable for sequence analysis. From the sequence information and the known amino acid sequence of Tg, it was possible to define the location of the iodinated tyrosyl residues. Surprisingly, almost identical results were obtained with chemically and enzymatically iodinated Tg. Not only were the 125I-peptide maps very similar, but all of the recovered 125I in the purified peptides from both samples was located in only three different tyrosyl sites, 5, 2553, and 2520. Tyr 5 and Tyr 2553 are well-established sites of thyroxine formation, while Tyr 2520 has previously been proposed by us to be a donor site. Our observation that the same hormonogenic tyrosyl sites are iodinated by chemical as well as enzymatic iodination indicates that preferential iodination of hormonogenic sites is dependent primarily on the native structure of Tg. TPO plays a minor role, if any, in the selection of early tyrosyl iodination sites in Tg. Consistent with this conclusion was our finding that chemical iodination, as well as enzymatic iodination, led to formation of uniformly iodinated Tg, as determined by isopycnic centrifugation in rubidium chloride. However, we observed a slightly higher diiodotyrosine (DIT) content and a correspondingly lower monoiodotyrosine content in enzymatically iodinated Tg, compared to matched chemically iodinated Tg. This was not observed with two other proteins, bovine serum albumin and trypsinogen, or with free tyrosine, as substrates for iodination. The same preferential formation of DIT in Tg was, however, observed when lactoperoxidase was substituted for TPO. Preferential formation of DIT, therefore, appears to involve interaction between Tg and the peroxidase.
Molecular-dynamics simulation of electron-ion recombination in a nonequilibrium, weakly ionized plasma

Electron-ion recombination in a weakly ionized molecular gas has been studied by the application of molecular-dynamics and Monte Carlo simulations. Plasma screening effects have been investigated for electron densities exceeding ${10}^{13}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$. Screening can reduce the recombination rate coefficient $\ensuremath{\alpha}$ by as much as one half, for ${n}_{e}={10}^{15}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$, before $\ensuremath{\alpha}$ increase again with ${n}_{e}$ due to electron-stabilized three-body collisional radiative recombination. In a plasma with an applied electric field, $\ensuremath{\alpha}$ is found to decrease approximately proportional to ${(\frac{E}{N})}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$ for $\frac{E}{N}$ greater than a threshold value.
Hydromechanics of the Koyna–Warna Region, India

Continuous reservoir-induced seismicity has been observed in the Koyna–Warna region in western India following the beginning of impoundment of Koyna and Warna Reservoirs in 1961 and 1985, respectively. This seismicity includes 19 events with M ≥ 5.0 which occurred in 7 episodes (I–VII) between 1967 and 2005 at non-repeating hypocentral locations. In this study, we examined the first six episodes. The seismicity occurs by diffusion of pore pressures from the reservoirs to hypocentral locations along a saturated, critically stressed network of NE trending faults and NW trending fractures. We used the daily lake levels in the two reservoirs, from impoundment to 2000, to calculate the time history of the diffused pore pressures and their daily rate of change at the hypocentral locations. The results of our analysis indicate that Episodes I and IV are primarily associated with the initial filling of the two reservoirs. The diffused pore pressures are generated by the large (20–45 m) annual fluctuations of lake levels. We interpret that critical excess pore pressures >~300 kPa and >~600 kPa were needed to induce Episodes I–III and Episodes IV–VI, respectively, suggesting the presence of stronger faults in the region. The exceedance of the previous water level maxima (stress memory) was found to be the most important, although not determining factor in inducing the episodes. The annual rise of 40 m or more, rapid filling rates and elevated dp/dt values over a filling cycle, contributed to the rapid increase in pore pressure.
Immature oocyte retrieval: lessons from unstimulated IVF cycles

Abstract Objective: To describe retrieval of immature oocytes during unstimulated IVF and assess the in vitro maturation and fertilization rates. Design: Retrospective analysis. Setting: The USC program for assisted reproduction. Patient(s): Spontaneously ovulatory women with predominantly pelvic factor as their principal cause of infertility, under the age of 40, and no male factor. Intervention(s): HCG administration in mid-cycle, aspiration of all visible follicles, in vitro maturation of immature oocytes in culture media versus 50% follicular fluid in media, IVF, and embryo transfer. Main Outcome Measure(s): Rates of in vitro maturation, fertilization, and implantation after embryo transfer. Result(s): A total of 101 immature oocytes were obtained during 59 follicle aspirations. Thirty percent of prophase I oocytes matured to metaphase II in vitro compared with 44% of metaphase I oocytes. Fertilization rates for matured prophase I oocytes were 62% for those cultured in standard culture media (controls) and 87% for follicular fluid culture media. Two pregnancies resulted from the transfer of embryos derived from immature oocytes when no other embryos were transferred. Conclusion(s): Immature oocytes may be retrieved successfully during the mid-cycle aspiration of the dominant follicle in unstimulated IVF cycles. Maturation of immature oocytes in vitro with follicular fluid results in similar maturation and fertilization rates as for control incubation. Immature oocytes thus retrieved contribute to the overall pregnancy success of unstimulated IVF cycles. It may be better to retrieve immature oocytes during unstimulated cycles than during the follicular phase of natural cycles.
Intra- and intermolecular hydrogen bonding of 2-methoxyethanol and 2-butoxyethanol in n-hexane

Glycol−ether compounds such as 2-methoxyethanol (CH3OCH2CH2OH) and 2-butoxyethanol [CH3(CH2)3OCH2CH2OH] form both intra- and intermolecular hydrogen bonds. Using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, we have measured extent of intra- and intermolecular hydrogen bonding in these compounds dissolved in n-hexane at varying concentrations and temperatures. Intramolecular hydrogen bonds are present at all conditions, whereas intermolecular bonds appear at higher concentrations. Using lattice-fluid-hydrogen-bonding theory, equilibrium constants for the formation of intra- and intermolecular hydrogen bonds are determined. The results show that the equilibrium constant for intermolecular bond formation is approximately 6 times the intramolecular equilibrium constant for 2-methoxyethanol systems at 35 °C. Experiments at higher temperature, 45 °C, with 2-methoxyethanol show less hydrogen bonding as expected due to higher thermal energy. Due to steric hindrance, 2-butoxyethanol has a lower degree of hydrogen bond...
The genetics of hyperuricaemia and gout

Gout is a common and very painful inflammatory arthritis caused by hyperuricaemia. This review provides an update on the genetics of hyperuricaemia and gout, including findings from genome-wide association studies. Most of the genes that associated with serum uric acid levels or gout are involved in the renal urate-transport system. For example, the urate transporter genes SLC2A9, ABCG2 and SLC22A12 modulate serum uric acid levels and gout risk. The net balance between renal urate absorption and secretion is a major determinant of serum uric acid concentration and loss-of-function mutations in SLC2A9 and SLC22A12 cause hereditary hypouricaemia due to reduced urate absorption and unopposed urate secretion. However, the variance in serum uric acid explained by genetic variants is small and their clinical utility for gout risk prediction seems limited because serum uric acid levels effectively predict gout risk. Urate-associated genes and genetically determined serum uric acid levels were largely unassociated with cardiovascular-metabolic outcomes, challenging the hypothesis of a causal role of serum uric acid in the development of cardiovascular disease. Strong pharmacogenetic associations between HLA-B*5801 alleles and severe allopurinol-hypersensitivity reactions were shown in Asian and European populations. Genetic testing for HLA-B*5801 alleles could be used to predict these potentially fatal adverse effects.
Nerve-End Recording in Conducting Volume

When the end of a freshly cut nerve is drawn into a tube by means of a hydraulic device that serves as a holder and as an electrode, monophasic positive records of action potentials are recorded. A trailing positive phase develops, with time, after the cut. After-potentials can also be recorded by this method.
Particle clouds in homogeneous and stratified environments

We examine the settling of monodisperse heavy particles released into a fluid when the resulting motion is sufficiently vigorous that the particle cloud initially assumes the form of a turbulent thermal. A laboratory study is complemented by numerical simulations of particle cloud dynamics in both homogeneous and stratified ambients. In the homogeneous ambient, the cloud generated by a total buoyancy excess . Criteria for three distinct modes of particle deposition in a stratified ambient are developed.
Articulating the theory of bullying intervention programs: Views from social psychology, social work, and organizational science

Abstract Outcomes associated with bullying intervention programs have been described in their collective as “disappointing” (Stassen Berger, 2007). As anxiety mounts about the prevalence and severity of bullying incidents in schools, reactive yet ineffective policy initiatives often result (e.g., criminalizing bullying). These initiatives, though well intentioned, result from a lack of understanding of the complexity of the school ecology and mechanisms of behavioral change. Moreover, the modest effects often found for antibullying interventions may be due, in part, to the lack of a clearly articulated, comprehensive, and coherent theoretical grounding to explain each programmatic element of commonly used interventions in North America, and, importantly, the interactions among them. In this opening piece to the present collection of papers, we focus on the mechanisms underlying the attitudes and behaviors of constituents within a school's ecology and the communities within which the school is embedded. To that end, the present piece articulates theoretical views from social psychology, social work, and organizational science, frameworks heretofore overlooked by the bullying intervention literature. Strategies for increasing the visibility of this work to community stakeholders are also discussed. Thus, this special issue seeks to stimulate dialog among interventionists to improve the policy and practice response to bullying behavior among children and adolescents.
Effect of streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitus on release of vasoactive intestinal polypeptide from rodent small intestine

Representative longitudinal muscle strips (6 × 10 mm) from proximal and distal small intestine were excised from control and streptozotocin-treated rats after one month of untreated and insulin-treated diabetes. Untreated diabetes significantly reduced tissue concentrations of vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) at both intestinal loci. Insulin treatment of the diabetic animals restored tissue VIP concentrations to control group levels, although the beneficial effect of insulin treatment was only significant in the duodenum. Spontaneous release of VIP was significantly attenuated by untreated diabetes at both intestinal sites. In the duodenum, insulin treatment of the diabetic animals restored VIP release to levels indistinguishable from control group values. In the ileum, insulin treatment produced levels of VIP release that were not significantly different from those of the control and untreated diabetic groups. Tetrodotoxin (5 × 10−6 M) significantly—but incompletely—inhibited VIP release from control group animals at both intestinal sites. These observations indicate that diabetes mellitus significantly diminishes VIP tissue concentrations and release from intestinal myenteric nerves. These abnormalities improve with insulin treatment. However, the mechanisms of VIP release from proximal and distal intestine appear to differ not only in their response to the diabetic state, but also in their response to insulin treatment.
Pelvic and Para-aortic Lymphadenectomy for Surgical Staging of High-Risk Endometrioid Adenocarcinoma of the Endometrium

The objective of this study was to analyze the results of pelvic and para-aortic lymphadenectomy in high-risk patients with endometrioid adenocarcinoma of the endometrium and no clinical or gross surgical evidence of extrauterine metastases. From August 1987 to October 1992, 50 patients with high-risk endometrioid adenocarcinoma of the endometrium had pelvic and para-aortic lymphadenectomy performed. The median number of lymph nodes removed was 18. No preoperative radiotherapy was administered. Pelvic lymph node metastases (20.0%) and para-aortic lymph node metastases (16.0%) were the most common sites of extrauterine metastases diagnosed. Eight patients (80.0%) with pelvic lymph node metastases also had para-aortic metastases. All 8 patients with para-aortic lymph node metastases had pelvic lymph node metastases. Pelvic lymphadenopathy was diagnosed on surgical exploration in 30% of patients with pelvic lymph node metastases, and para-aortic lymphadenopathy was present in 50% with para-aortic metastases. Six of 46 patients (13.0%) without pelvic or para-aortic lymphadenopathy had microscopic lymph node metastases. Palpation of the pelvic and para-aortic lymph node areas alone is inadequate in identifying patients with lymph node metastases. The addition of routine pelvic and para-aortic lymphadenectomy to TAH/BSO will identify subclinical lymph node metastases in a significant number of patients who may benefit from individualized postoperative therapy.
Radiometric age determinations on Pliocene/Pleistocene formations in the lower Omo basin, Ethiopia

THE potassium–argon ages presented here were obtained during 1966 to 1969 in order to provide an absolute time scale for the stratigraphic work by the international Omo Research Expedition in the Pliocene/Pleistocene formations (unpublished work of F. H. B., J. de Heinzelin and F. C. Howell) in south-west Ethiopia. Although some of these dates are not new1–3, most of the analytical procedures and data have not been presented. We also present a list of fossil localities recorded by the University of Chicago contingent of the expedition within the Shungura Formation. Preliminary descriptions of the Hominidae have been published already3,4.