cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Vaccination history as a confounder of studies of influenza vaccine effectiveness.

Abstract Background Vaccination history may confound estimates of influenza vaccine effectiveness (VE) when two conditions are present: (1) Influenza vaccination is associated with vaccination history and (2) vaccination modifies the risk of natural infection in the following seasons, either due to persisting vaccination immunity or due to lower previous risk of natural infection. Methods Analytic arguments are used to define conditions for confounding of VE estimates by vaccination history. Simulation studies, both with accurate and inaccurate assessment of current and previous vaccination status, are used to explore the potential magnitude of these biases when using different statistical models to address confounding by vaccination history. Results We found a potential for substantial bias of VE estimates by vaccination history if infection- and/or vaccination-derived immunity persisted from one season to the next and if vaccination uptake in individuals was seasonally correlated. Full adjustment by vaccination history, which is usually not feasible, resulted in unbiased VE estimates. Partial adjustment, i.e. only by prior season's vaccination status, significantly reduced confounding bias. Misclassification of vaccination status, which can also lead to substantial bias, interferes with the adjustment of VE estimates for vaccination history. Conclusions Confounding by vaccination history may bias VE estimates, but even partial adjustment by only the prior season's vaccination status substantially reduces confounding bias. Misclassification of vaccination status may compromise VE estimates and efforts to adjust for vaccination history.
Ropivacaine inhibits pressure-induced lung endothelial hyperpermeability in models of acute hypertension.

Abstract Aims Increases in hydrostatic pressure results in endothelial hyperpermeability via eNOS-dependent pathways. Ropivacaine is known to inhibit eNOS activation and to attenuate lung injury. Herein, we sought to determine if ropivacaine regulates pressure-induced lung endothelial hyperpermeability. Main methods The effects of ropivacaine on lung permeability were assessed in two models of acute hypertension (AH): the isolated perfused lung preparation where acute increases in left atrial pressure model the hemodynamic changes of severe hypertension, and an animal model of AH induced by norepinephrine. In the IPL model, whole lung filtration coefficient (Kf) was used as the index of lung permeability; pulmonary artery pressure (Ppa), pulmonary capillary pressures (Ppc), and zonal characteristics (ZC) were measured to assess the effects of ropivacaine on hemodynamics and their relationship to Kf2/Kf1. In vivo, ropivacaine effects were investigated on indices of pulmonary edema (changes in PaO2, lung wet-to-dry ratio), changes in plasma volume and nitric oxide (NO) production. Key findings Ropivacaine provided robust protection from pressure-dependent barrier failure; it inhibited pressure-induced increases in Kf without affecting Ppa, Ppc or ZC. In vivo, ropivacaine prevented pressure-induced lung edema and associated hyperpermeability as evidence by maintaining PaO2, lung wet-to-dry ratio and plasma volume in levels similar to sham rats. Ropivacaine inhibited pressure-induced NO production as evidenced by decreased lung nitro-tyrosine content when compared to hypertensive lungs. Significance Collectively these data show that ropivacaine inhibits pressure-induced lung endothelial hyperpermeability and suggest that ropivacaine may be a clinically useful agent to prevent endothelial hyperpermeability when pulmonary pressure is acutely increased.
Contemporary Outcomes following Redo Autogenous Infrainguinal Bypass.

Background Revascularization after lower extremity bypass failure poses many challenges. Despite nearly 7 decades of experience with lower extremity revascularization, there is little data on the success of redo bypass particularly when autogenous conduit is utilized. The purpose of this study is to review outcomes of redo infrainguinal bypass constructed solely of autogenous vein. Methods All patients who underwent redo infrainguinal bypass at a single institution by a single surgeon were retrospectively reviewed. Bypasses were categorized into 3 groups: femoral-popliteal, femoral-distal, and popliteal-distal bypasses. Since the repeat bypasses were all done for limb salvage, freedom from above or below knee amputation (FFA) was primary outcome, which was defined as the number of days from redo bypass to subsequent amputation or the most recent follow-up. Results From 2006 to 2016, 100 limbs underwent redo bypass. Fifty-nine (59.0%) limbs had undergone one previous bypass while 41 (41.0%) had undergone 2 or more. The redo configurations consisted of 23 (23.0%) femoral-popliteal, 70 (70.0%) femoral-distal, and 7 (7.0%) popliteal-distal bypasses. Ninety-seven (97.0%) underwent redo using autologous vein grafts including 41 (95.5%) of those who had 2 or more previous bypasses. The 3 patients who ultimately underwent prosthetic bypass had bilateral great and small saphenous veins and bilateral basilic and cephalic veins previously harvested. Nine (9.0%) limbs were subsequently amputated: 2 (2.0%) above knee and 7 (7.0%) below knee amputations. Of these, all had had 2 or more previous bypasses and 2 of the 3 patients who ultimately received prosthetic bypasses were in this group. In patients with one previous bypass, FFA was 775 days (IQR: 213–1,626 days). In patients with 2 or more previous bypasses, FFA was 263 days (IQR: 106–1,148 days). No patients with femoral-popliteal bypasses suffered amputation while 7 (10.0%) of the femoral-distal and 2 (28.6%) of the popliteal-distal bypasses suffered subsequent amputations (P = 0.067). Conclusions Redo infrainguinal bypass is effective in salvaging threatened lower extremities. Furthermore, once a patient is deemed a bypass candidate, revascularization with autologous vein can be achieved. A significant FFA rate is achieved with redo bypass, although patients with more distal disease are harder to salvage.
A Staged Arthroscopic Approach to Fixation of Unstable Osteochondritis Dissecans in the Medial Femoral Condyle of the Knee Using Nonabsorbable Fixation Screws.

Abstract Osteochondritis dissecans is a focal lesion of articular cartilage that can result in fragment instability with progression of early osteoarthritis. Regarding the knee joint, salvage of an unstable lesion can be achieved using arthroscopic-assisted reduction and fixation via a 2-stage process. The first involves arthroscopic fixation of the fragment using nonbioabsorbable screws, whereas the second stage performed 12 weeks later involves removal of the screws and confirmation of successful healing of the lesion. Previous studies have demonstrated excellent outcomes in patients undergoing fixation for unstable chondral lesions not amenable to conservative treatment. A critical component of successful treatment is understanding the importance of hardware placement and technique. The purpose of the Technical Note is to describe a method performing this 2-stage arthroscopic repair of an unstable chondral lesion located on the medial femoral condyle of the knee.
Chapter 4 – Sectional properties

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the industry standards of shapes and sizes of structural elements keeping in mind constraints imposed by manufacturing technologies, transportation, handling safety, and serviceability requirements. With wood within each species, lumber is further classified by its size. Various grades of lumber are then identified for each size classification. The actual (“dressed”) sizes of lumber are currently 1/2 in. to 3/4 in. “Beams and stringers” and “post and stringers” are commonly used for structural purposes. Wide-flange shapes are commonly used for both beams and columns within steel-framed structures, wide-flange (W) sections have parallel flange surfaces, making it somewhat easier to make connections to other structural elements; these sections are manufactured in groups with a common set of inner rollers. Because reinforced concrete is cast-in-place, or site-cast, it is literally made at the building site, the only real constraint on the sizes and shapes of concrete structural elements is the willingness of architects, engineers, owners, and contractors to design the structure and assemble the framework into which the concrete and reinforcement is placed.
ERBB2 amplifications and mutations in 109 advanced breast cancer patients by next-generation sequencing.

3565Background: In advanced breast cancer (ABC) HER2 status is based on ASCO/CAP immunohistochemistry (IHC) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) criteria. Next generation sequencing (NGS) ...
Racial Fairness, School Engagement, and Discipline Outcomes in African American High School Students: The Important Role of Gender.

This preliminary investigation explored associations between African American students’ perceptions of racial fairness, dimensions of school engagement (behavioral, emotional, cognitive) and school...
The M1 muscarinic acetylcholine receptor in the crypt stem cell compartment mediates intestinal mucosal growth

Maintenance of the highly plastic intestinal epithelium relies upon stem cells localized to intestinal crypts. Recent evidence suggests muscarinic acetylcholine signaling impacts epithelial barrier...
Exploiting Satellite Data for Solar Performance Modeling

Developing accurate solar performance models, which infer solar power output in real time based on the current environmental conditions, are an important prerequisite for many advanced energy analytics. Recent work has developed sophisticated data-driven techniques that generate customized models for complex rooftop solar sites by combining well-known physical models with both system and public weather station data. However, inferring solar generation from public weather station data has two drawbacks: not all solar sites are near a public weather station, and public weather data generally quantifies cloud cover—the most significant weather metric that affects solar—using highly coarse and imprecise measurements.In this paper, we develop and evaluate solar performance models that use satellite-based estimates of downward shortwave (solar) radiation (DSR) at the Earth’s surface, which NOAA began publicly releasing after the launch of the GOES-R geostationary satellites in 2017. Unlike public weather data, DSR estimates are available for every 0.5km2 area. As we show, the accuracy of solar performance modeling using satellite data and public weather station data depends on the cloud conditions, with DSR-based modeling being more accurate under clear skies and station-based modeling being more accurate under overcast skies. Surprisingly, our results show that, overall, pure satellite-based modeling yields similar accuracy as pure station-based modeling, although the relationship is a function of conditions and the local climate. We also show that a hybrid approach that combines the best of both approaches can also modestly improve accuracy.
Methods for collecting large numbers of exuviae from Coptotermes (Blattodea: Rhinotermitidae) termite colonies

The nutritional properties of subterranean termite exuviae (shed exoskeletons) are not well-known because obtaining the large quantities necessary for investigation is difficult. A method for collecting large numbers of exuviae is reported here for the Asian subterranean termite, Coptotermes gestroi (Wasmann) (Blattodea: Rhinotermitidae), an invasive and economically important tropical termite species. In this study, groups of 1,000 C. gestroi workers from 4-yr-old laboratory colonies (n = 3) were allowed to feed on a media pad dyed with Nile Blue A for 2 d. Approximately 16% of the original 1,000 workers did not uptake dye. These individuals were then placed into a Petri dish with dyed filter paper and checked hourly (10:00 A.M. to 10:00 P.M.) for 7 d. Newly molted workers and those individuals that started turning blue were removed to prevent feeding on exuviae. An average of 14 workers molted per d that yielded an average of 12 exuviae with an overall mean of 86 exuviae collected over the 7 d study period. We also found the number of individuals that acquired dye during the study significantly decreased by d. However, variables such as the number of exuviae, newly molted individuals, and cadavers were not correlated with d of collection because termites molt asynchronously. Resumen Las propiedades nutricionales de las exuviae de termitas subterraneas (exoesqueletos desprendidos) no son bien conocidas porque es dificil de obtener las grandes cantidades necesarias para su investigacion. Aqui se informa un metodo para recolectar grandes cantidades de exuvias para la termita subterranea asiatica, Coptotermes gestroi (Wasmann) (Blattodea: Rhinotermitidae), una especie de termita tropical invasora y economicamente importante. En este estudio, se permitio que grupos de 1,000 trabajadores de C. gestroi de colonias de laboratorio de 4 anos de edad (n = 3) se alimentaran de una almohadilla de medio tenida con Azul Nilo A durante 2 dias. Aproximadamente el 16% de los 1,000 trabajadores originales no tomaron tinte. A continuacion, estos individuos se colocaron en un plato Petri con papel de filtro tenido y se controlaron cada hora (10:00 A. M. a 10:00 P. M.) durante 7 dias. Los trabajadores recien mudados y los individuos que comenzaron a ponerse azules fueron retirados para evitar alimentarse de las exuvias. Un promedio de 14 trabajadores mudaron por dia, lo que produjo un promedio de 12 exuvias con una media general de 86 exuvias recolectadas durante el periodo de estudio de 7 dias. Tambien encontramos que el numero de individuos que adquirieron tinte durante el estudio disminuyo significativamente por dia. Sin embargo, las variables como el numero de exuvias, los individuos recien mudados y los cadaveres no se correlacionaron con los dias de recoleccion porque las termitas mudan asincronicamente. Key Words: Coptotermes gestroi; ecdysis; exoskeleton; molting; dye; histological stains View this article in BioOne
The Effects of Section 404 of Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 on the Audit Fees of Foreign Firms Listed on U.S. Exchanges

Section 404 of Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires firms to report on the effectiveness of their internal control over financial reporting. The Securities and Exchange Commission requires foreign large accelerated filers to provide both management and auditor Section 404 reports starting for fiscal years ending on or after July 15, 2006. This study examines the change in audit fees for foreign firms in their first year of providing auditor attestation reports for fiscal years ending between July 15, 2006 and July 14, 2007. During this time period, only foreign large accelerated filers have to provide both management and auditor Section 404 reports. Foreign accelerated filers only have to provide management Section 404 reports and non-accelerated filers do not have to provide any Section 404 report. We find that foreign large accelerated filers have an average of 74% increase in audit fees in this first year of Section 404 compliance, while the foreign accelerated filers and non-accelerated filers only have increases in audit fees of 33% and 42%, respectively. We also find that the increase in audit fees among foreign large accelerated filers is negatively associated with the strength of the legal environment in their home countries.
Bowel Ischemia Score Predicts Early Operation in Patients With Adhesive Small Bowel Obstruction.

BackgroundNonoperative management of adhesive small bowel obstruction (SBO) is successful in up to 80% of patients. Current recommendations advocate for computed tomography (CT) scan in all patient...
From ‘Entrepreneur of the Self’ to ‘Care of the Self’: Neo-liberal Governmentality and Foucault’s Ethics

In his 1979 lectures, Foucault took particular interest in the reconfiguration of quotidian practices under neo-liberal human capital theory, re-describing all persons as entrepreneurs of the self. By the early 1980s, Foucault had begun to articulate a theory of ethical conduct driven not by the logic of investment, but of artistic development and self-care. This article uses Foucault’s account of human capital as a basis to explore the meaning and limits of Foucault’s final published works and argues for two interrelated genealogical projects focused on the ethics of economic activity.
Transcriptional and chromatin-based partitioning mechanisms uncouple protein scaling from cell size

Biosynthesis scales with cell size such that protein concentrations generally remain constant as cells grow. As an exception, synthesis of the cell-cycle inhibitor Whi5 sub-scales with cell size so that its concentration is lower in larger cells to promote cell-cycle entry. Here, we find that a transcriptional control uncouples Whi5 synthesis from cell size and, screening for similar genes, identify histones as the major class of sub-scaling transcripts besides WHI5. Histone synthesis is thereby matched to genome content rather than cell size. Such sub-scaling proteins are challenged by asymmetric cell division because proteins are typically partitioned in proportion to new-born cell volume. To avoid this fate, Whi5 uses chromatin-binding to partition similar protein amounts to each new-born cell regardless of cell size. Finally, disrupting both Whi5 synthesis and chromatin-based partitioning compromises G1 size control. Thus, specific transcriptional and partitioning mechanisms determine protein sub-scaling to control cell size.
Principles and Applications of Optical Perturbation-Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (OPEPR)

The study of the dynamics associated with the production of paramagnetic species or states upon optical pumping has been gaining interest in recent years in a large variety of fields. In this chapter, we confine ourselves to describing the direct epr detection of two groups of transient paramagnetic systems that are generated under light excitation: (a) molecules promoted to their photoexcited triplets and (b) free radicals.
Generalized Rayleigh Quotients for Eigenvalue Estimates of Neutron Balance Equations

Generalized Rayleigh quotients are developed to provide estimates of the eigenvalues of the continuous-energy transport equation and its diffusion approximation. The new variational principles exte...
Immigration and Citizenship in Japan

Introduction 1. Is Japan an outlier? Cross-national patterns of immigrant incorporation and noncitizen political engagement 2. Constructing citizenship and non-citizenship in postwar Japan 3. Negotiating Korean identity in Japan 4. Citizenship as political strategy 5. Destination Japan: global shifts, local transformations Conclusion.
Ritchie v. Rupe and the Future of Shareholder Oppression

In June of 2014, the Texas Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Ritchie v. Rupe. The Ritchie opinion gutted the cause of action for shareholder oppression in Texas. By a vote of six to three, the Court held that (1) “oppression” ought be defined very narrowly and that (2) rehabilitative receivership is the only remedy available for shareholder oppression in Texas. Both holdings are at odds with previous decisions from the Texas Courts of Appeals and from other states with similar shareholder-oppression statutes.This Essay argues that Ritchie v. Rupe was wrongly decided. The majority’s puzzling interpretation of the Texas Business Organizations Code cannot be squared with either the plain language of the statute or with accepted canons of statutory interpretation. But the problem is not simply that Ritchie is bad law. Ritchie is also bad policy — indeed, it may have disastrous economic effects. Although the full impact of the opinion has yet to be seen, this Essay contends that Ritchie is likely to disincentivize investment in close corporations, ramp up the frequency of shareholder oppression, and imperil the financial health of many small businesses. For these reasons, other states should hesitate before following Ritchie.
Requisite semiconductor advances for consumer digital radio equipment

Increasing demand for wireless communications services in countries where most frequencies are already allocated means that time must become a multiplexing parameter. Even though time division multiplexing equipment has been used for many years, there have been few instances where time has been used in consumer equipment and even fewer instances involving battery-powered consumer equipment. Digital radio equipment requires functions that can only be performed by digital signal processors or ASICs performing DSP functions. In some systems the processing power required to simultaneously perform the necessary functions with 'off-the-shelf' DSPs reaches well beyond 40 MIPS. With todays DSPs and the associated ROM and RAM, the power dissipation per MIP is usually in the 20-50 mW per MIP range. Thus possibly the most critical requisite for the widespread availability of wireless communications equipment is in dramatically reducing the power dissipation currently required for digital baseband functions. There are multiple approaches to this problem with the evolving component-level products consisting of various combinations of the low-power solutions. >
Communication and Capability URLs in COAST-based Decentralized Services

Decentralized systems are systems-of-systems whose services are governed by two or more separate organizations under distinct spheres of authority. Coordinated evolution of the various elements of a decentralized system may be difficult, if not impossible, as individual organizations evolve their service offerings in response to organization- and service-specific pressures, including market demand, technology, competitive and cooperative interests, and funding. Consequently, decentralized services offer unique challenges for evolution and adaptation that reach well beyond any one single organizational boundary. Client-driven service customization and tailoring is a powerful tool for meeting conflicting, independent client demands in an environment where disorderly and uneven service evolution predominates. COmputAtional State Transfer (COAST) relies on capability security to minimize the risks of client-driven customization, for which fine-grain management of communication capability is critical. We introduce the Capability URL (CURL) as the unit of communication capability and show how two distinct mechanisms, communication capability and mobile code, can be combined to express and enforce constraints on the communications among decentralized computations.
Properties of the major antigens of rat and human Pneumocystis carinii.

The major rat and human Pneumocystis carinii antigens were analyzed for their susceptibility to treatment with enzymes and other procedures by immunoblotting, immunofluorescence, and light microscopy. Carbohydrate residues were further analyzed by lectin-binding experiments. The 116-kilodalton (kDa) band of rat P. carinii was susceptible to proteolytic (e.g., trypsin) and glycolytic (e.g., Zymolyase) treatments but not to a variety of other procedures (e.g., lipase). This moiety reacted strongly with concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin, indicating the presence of mannosyl or glucosyl and N-acetylglucosamine residues. Immunofluorescence staining and surface labeling suggested that the 116-kDa antigen was located on the P. carinii cell wall. The 45- and 50-kDa bands were as sensitive as the 116-kDa band to degradative treatments when studied after immobilization onto nitrocellulose but were more resistant to proteolytic enzymes when studied in situ on whole organisms. These moieties exhibited poor binding to lectins and reactivity by surface-labeling procedures. The 116-kDa band of human P. carinii appeared to be a glycoprotein with characteristics similar to those of its counterpart in rats, whereas the human P. carinii 40-kDa band exhibited protein and carbohydrate properties more closely related to those of the 45- and 50-kDa rat-derived antigens. We conclude that P. carinii antigens are complex glycoproteins and that this information will be helpful in developing strategies for their isolation and purification and study of their function.
Secure chaotic spread-spectrum communication systems

Summary form only given. In a hostile environment, a commercial or military interceptor may try to detect the presence of radio frequency (RF) energy and then to determine the location of its transmitter. Although direct-sequence (DS) spreading signals have generally good low probability of intercept (LPI) performance, there still exist some intercept detectors, such as those with likelihood ratio test technique, which are able to determine the presence of direct-sequence spread-spectrum (SS) signals. To improve the security of the DS SS systems, non-binary and non-periodic chaotic sequences are desirable for covert communications because their pseudorandom waveforms can be very useful in disguising signals as noise. Another advantage of using chaotic sequences is the large number of available spreading sequences for multiple access applications. Several intercept receivers, including energy detectors, synchronous and asynchronous, coherent and non-coherent structures, which are typically used to detect binary DS SS signals, are examined here to detect the presence of chaotic DS SS signals. A simple detection approach using a binary correlating function to detect non-binary chaotic sequences is proposed. Comparisons between systems using chaotic and binary sequences are given in terms of the LPI performance and the performance improvement with chaotic spreading sequences is observed. Another detection scheme employing dual antennas is also explored to detect the presence of chaotic or multi-level spreading signals. The detection performance using dual antennas is compared to that using the simple binary detection method with a single antenna. Detection probability improvement is observed with the use of dual antennas due to the reduction of waveform mismatch. Detection probabilities are also examined when the effect of mutual coupling is considered due to the small antenna spacing between the dual antennas and noticeable performance degradation is observed.
Enzyme site-specific changes in hepatic microsomal fatty acid chain elongation in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats

Abstract The hepatic microsomal fatty acid chain elongation of palmitoyl-CoA and γ-linolenoyl-CoA was diminished by 40–50% in male Sprague-Dawley rats made diabetic for 2 and 4 weeks following the intravenous administration of a single dose (65 mg/kg) of streptozotocin. Analysis of the activities of the four enzymatic components showed that only one enzyme, the condensing enzyme, which catalyzes the initial and rate-limiting step in chain elongation, was altered by the diabetic state. Both chain elongation and condensation activities were depressed to the same extent, whereas β-ketoacyl-CoA reductase, β-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrase and trans -2-enoyl-CoA reductase activities were the same as the values obtained with non-diabetic controls. 2 week administration of 10 units of insulin per day to rats which were diabetic for a 2-week period resulted in the reversal of the reduced palmitoyl-CoA elongation and condensation activities to control values. However, neither the condensation nor the elongation of γ-linolenoyl was reversed by the insulin treatment. These results support the notion of multiple condensing enzymes or chain elongation systems.
WW production from pp collisions.

We calculate the invariant-mass distribution for $\mathrm{pp}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}{W}^{+}{W}^{\ensuremath{-}}X$ without using the effective-$W$ approximation.
Staging in polyacetylene–iodine conductors

Evidence is presented for the existence of highly conducting polyacetylene complexes with structures related to high‐stage graphite, as well as structures related to first‐stage graphite. X‐ray diffraction measurements on polyacetylene–iodine complexes indicate equatorial lines at 7.7–8.0 and 13.8–14.3 A. The shorter spacing arises in part from a structure in which iodine‐rich planes alternate with planes of polyacetylene chains. The longer spacing, which disappears upon atmospheric exposure, is consistent with a structure analogous to third‐stage graphite in which dopant‐rich planes are separated by three close‐packed planes of polyacetylene chains. The third‐stage complex can be viewed as a perturbation of the structure of undoped polyacetylene, with the region between dopant layers consisting essentially of a one unit cell thickness of the parent polymer structure. Packing calculations for this model, in which a linear column of anions (I3− and/or I5−) displaces either every chain or every other chain ...
A problem of tree graph

Because of the widespread applications of tree and tree graph in computer science, we are interested in studying the tree graph. M. Farber, B. Richter and H. Shank in [1] showed that the graph τ2 (G) is connected. The result of this paper is: graph τ2(G) is 2-edge-connected as |V(G) ≥3, at the same time, we will show the best lower bounds about vertex number and minimum degree of graph τ2(G).
Case 1—1996 inadvertent carotid artery cannulation during pulmonary artery catheter insertion

Case 1 A 61-year-old woman was scheduled for urgent orthotopic liver transplantanon. Four months before admission, she developed a flulike illness with acute jaundice. Liver function studies were consistent with acute hepatitis A. Three months later, she was admitted to a regional medical center with fatigue, ascites, and an exacerbation of her liver function abnormalities (SGOT[ALT] 2543 U/L and SGPT[AST] 1868 U/L). Her deterioration continued and she developed a coagulopathy (prothrombin time (PT) 19 sec/control 10.5 sec) and encephalopathy. A percutaneous liver biopsy showed submassive hepatic necrosis, and she was evaluated for potential orthotopic liver transplantation. Physical examination on admission showed a jaundiced woman who was minimally responsive. In the intensive care unit (ICU), her trachea was intubated for airway protection, and an arterial catheter was inserted. Medications included omeprazole, lactulose, solumedrol, synthroid, and spironolactone. Twelve hours after admission, she was brought to the operating room for liver transplantation. The protocol for vascular access involved placement of an 18-gauge right radial arterial catheter, an 8.5F rapid infusion cannula (Arrow International, Reading, PA) in the right antecubital vein, a vasoactive infusion port pulmonary artery catheter (Baxter Healthcare Corp, Irvine, CA) (PAC) in the right internal jugular vein (IJV), and an 8.5F cannula in the left IJV. This latter catheter was connected to a rapid infusion system for transfusion of blood products. The patient was sedated with midazolam, 6 rag, and scopolamine, 0.3 mg IV, and catheter placement was accomplished uneventfully. Unfortunately, the donor liver was found to be unsuitable and the patient was transferred to
Laparoscopic Ladd’s procedure in two adults: Malrotation and the minimally invasive approach

Malroation is an intestinal rotation anomaly rarely diagnosed in adults. In the adult patient, obstructing peritoneal bands may lead to nausea and abdominal distention. Familiarity with this presentation as well as the aberrant anatomy associated with the unusual problem facilitates surgical treatment. While the minimally invasive approach requires meticulous dissection due to this abnormal anatomy, laparoscopic treatment does provide the advantages of short convalescence and low morbidity. This video briefly reviews embryologic intestinal development, rotational anomalies and two laparoscopic Ladd’s procedures.
Disclinations in the Carbonaceous Mesophase

Abstract When the organic precursors to coke and manufactured graphite (petroleum and coal-tar pitches) are carbonized, large, flat, polynuclear aromatic molecules are formed by the reactions of aromatic polymerization. As the molecular weights approach 1500, usually near 450 C, the molecules condense to form a liquid crystal which has been termed the carbonaceous mesophase. The distinctive feature of the carbonaceous mesophase is the plate-like molecule, in contrast to the rod-like molecule of nematic liquid crystals. The carbonaceous mesophase thus appears to be a lamellar liquid crystal in which space is filled by plate-like molecules which may vary in size and shape but tend to pack in parallel arrays. These arrays are free to bend and twist as they trace out a lamelliform or Mobius morphology with topological discontinuities which bear similarities to the disclination structures found in conventional liquid crystals. Two types of lamellar disclinations may be conceived: layer-stacking disclinations r...
Breathing for singing

Summary Methods of teaching breathing for singers are diverse. However, it is universally agreed that breath training and support are essential to good singing technique. One method is presented in detail to illustrate the difficulties in producing good singing technique in the studio and the need for imagery as well as scientific fact. The need for further collaboration among scientists and voice teachers is stressed.
Scheduling in Bandwidth Constrained Tree Networks

In this paper we introduce a new network scheduling model. Here jobs need to be sent via routers on a tree to machines to be scheduled, and the communication is constrained by network bandwidth. The scheduler coordinates network communication and job machine scheduling. This type of scheduler is highly desirable in practice; yet few works have considered combing networking with job processing. We consider the popular objective of total flow time in the online setting. We give a (1+e)-speed O(1/e7)-competitive algorithm when all routers are identical and all machines are identical for any fixed eps >0. Then we go on to show a (2+e)-speed O(1/e7)-competitive algorithm when the routers are identical and the machines are unrelated. To show these results we introduce an interesting combination of potential function and dual fitting techniques as well as a reduction of general tree scheduling to a special case of trees.
Effects of control mode and R-ratio on the fatigue behaviour of a metal matrix composite

Abstract Thick specimens of [0]32 SiC/Ti-15-3 were cycled under a variety of loading conditions. Specimens were fatigued in strain- and load-controlled modes at both R = 0 (zero-tension) and R = −1 (fully reversed) loading ratios. In addition, a hybrid strain-controlled mode at R = 0 was used to simulate the true strain-controlled behaviour. The strain-controlled specimens had longer lives compared with the load-controlled specimens when cycled at an R-ratio of zero. Under fully reversed loading, there was no difference between the strain- and load-controlled modes. The hybrid strain-controlled data were found to approximate the load-controlled data better, rather than the true strain-controlled situation. Damage occurred through transverse fibre cracks for R = 0 loading for both the load- and strain-controlled modes. However, fully reversed loading caused matrix cracking to be the operative damage mechanism.
The catalytic action of Zn2+-metalloenzymes requires a penta-coordinate metal-OH2 complex

A review is presented of the spectroscopic and chemical evidence that the tetra-coordinate active site metal ion of carboxypeptidase A and liver alcohol dehydrogenase accommodates both the substrate and a water molecule in catalytically competent reaction intermediates to form a penta-coordinate complex. In carboxypeptidase A ionization of the metal-OH2 complex forms a potent metal-hydroxide nucleophile for breakdown of the acylenzyme (mixed anhydride) reaction intermediate in esterolysis, while in liver alcohol dehydrogenase a neutral metal-OH2 species serves as a conduit for proton abstraction from the alcoholic hydroxyl group. These results together with correlated observations that the catalytic activity of other Zn2+-metallo-enzymes depends on ionization of a Zn2+-OH2 complex suggests that a penta-coordinate metal-OH2 species is an obligatory species in the catalytic action of this class of enzymes.
Morphology, constraints, and scaling of frontal sinuses in the hartebeest, Alcelaphus buselaphus (Mammalia: Artiodactyla, Bovidae).

The frontal sinuses of bovid mammals dis- play a great deal of diversity, which has been attributed to both phylogenetic and functional influences. In-depth study of the hartebeest (Alcelaphus buselaphus), a large African antelope, reveals a number of previously unde- scribed details of frontal sinus morphology. In A. busela- phus, the frontal sinuses conform closely to the shape of the frontal bone, filling nearly the entire element. How- ever, the horncores are never extensively pneumatized, contrasting with the condition seen in many other bovids. This evidence is inconsistent with the hypothesis that sinuses are opportunistic pneumatizing agents, sug- gesting that phylogenetic factors also play a role in determining sinus size. Both cranial sutures and neuro- vasculature appear to constrain the growth of sinuses in part. In turn, the sinus also affects the growth of the pa- rietal; apparently this element is not truly pneumatized by the sinus in most cases, but the bone's shape changes under the influence of the sinus. Furthermore, the sinuses present relatively few struts when compared with the sinuses of some other bovids, such as Ovis .B y adapting methods previously developed for measuring structural parameters of trabecular bone, it is possible to quantify certain aspects of sinus morphology. These include the number of bony struts within the sinus, the spacing of these struts, and the size of individual cav- ities within the sinus. Some differences in the number of struts are evident between subspecies. Similarly, signifi- cant differences occur in the relative number of struts between male and female A. buselaphus, which may be related to behavior. The volume of the sinus is strongly correlated with the size of the frontal, but less so with overall cranial size. This finding illustrates the impor- tance of choosing variables carefully when comparing sinus sizes and growth between species. J. Morphol.
A Novel System for Recording from Single Neurons in Unrestrained Animals

To observe neural activity in animals engaged in natural behavior, it is often desirable to minimize or eliminate restraint of the animal. We have developed a simple system for recording from single units in unrestrained cats. An implant with multiple guide tubes and a tiny microdrive is placed inside the recording chamber. An indwelling Pt-Ir microelectrode is advanced incrementally during recording sessions that occur over a period of weeks or months. Electrodes can be easily replaced. We obtain excellent recording stability, and also have been able to sample extensively from a region of cortex or brain stem in a single animal. The essential electronics have been miniaturized and sewn into a light-weight walking jacket, so that we can collect data from a cat who is not connected to any fixed equipment.
Compute spearman correlation coefficient with Matlab/CUDA

Given a data matrix where the rows are entities and the columns are features, researchers often want to compute the pairwise distances among the entities. Some common choices of distances are Euclidean distance, Manhattan distance, Chebyshev distance, and Canberra distance. Pearson and Spearman correlation coefficients, with a range from -to 1, can be used to define a distance: 1 minus the coefficient. Matlab is widely used in science and engineering fields for technical computing, and it provides a function in its statistics toolbox to calculate the pairwise distances, which takes a long time when the data matrix is large. Graphics processing units have become powerful co-processors to the CPUs. Nvidia GPUs can be programmed by the CUDA language. The present work studies CUDA implementation of Spearman correlation coefficient that can be called from Matlab to speed up the computation of pairwise distances. Speedups from 7.1 to 28.9 folds are achieved.
Interpretation of electric field effects in the ferrimagnetic resonance of gallium iron oxide

Abstract It is shown that the recently observed influences of an electric field E on the ferrimagnetic resonance of a FeχGa2-χO3 crystal do not provide evidence for the existence of an intrinsic effect of E because such influences can arise also from Joule heating which produces changes in the anisotropy energy of the crystal.
MapReduce for the cell broadband engine architecture

MapReduce is a simple and flexible parallel programming model proposed by Google for large-scale distributed data processing. In this paper, we present a design and prototype implementation of MapReduce for the Cell Broadband Engine® Architecture (CBEA). The MapReduce model provides a simple machine abstraction that shields users from parallelization and other distributed programming complications. The goal of this paper is to describe the tradeoffs in the design of the runtime and demonstrate the potential for high performance. We study the basic characteristics of the MapReduce model and identify three types of MapReduce applications: map dominated, partition dominated, and sort dominated. We evaluate our runtime performance, scalability, and efficiency for microbenchmarks representing each of these application types as well as for complete applications. We find that map-dominated applications map well to the CBEA and that our prototype sustains high performance on these applications. For partition-dominated and sort-dominated applications, we analyze runtime performance, identify sources of inefficiency, and propose several future enhancements to significantly improve performance. Overall, we find that the simplicity and efficiency of the model make it an attractive tool for programming Cell Broadband Engine processor-based platforms.
Low-dose and limited-volume radiotherapy alone for primary dural marginal zone lymphoma: treatment approach and review of published data.

Purpose Primary dural lymphoma is a rare intracranial lymphoma that almost always has a marginal zone histologic type and immunophenotype and often remains localized and is thus potentially curable with radiotherapy (RT) alone. The unusual location and histologic type of primary dural marginal zone lymphoma (PDMZL) distinguish it from primary central nervous system lymphoma and poses treatment dilemmas of technique, volume, and dose that have not been well addressed. We set out to analyze our recent experience in treating PDMZL and reviewed the limited published data available. Methods and Materials Between 2002 and 2006, we treated 5 patients with localized PDMZL. Of these 5 patients, 3 had unilateral and 2 had bilateral/multifocal involvement, and 3 underwent subtotal tumor resection and 2 biopsy only. Whole brain RT was given before involved-field RT (IFRT) in 4 patients and 1 received IFRT alone. The median whole brain RT, IFRT, and total RT dose was 20, 12, and 30 Gy, respectively. The planning computed tomography scan was always fused with the post-gadolinium magnetic resonance imaging scan to assist in the IFRT volume determination. We also analyzed the published data from 27 additional patients. Results The median follow-up was 34 months (range, 31–52). All obtained lasting local control. One patient developed a relapse in the soft tissue of the flank and additional systemic progression but no central nervous system recurrence. At last follow-up, no significant treatment-related neurotoxicity was detected. Conclusion The results of our study have demonstrated that a combination of whole brain RT/IFRT or even low-dose IFRT alone provides excellent durable local control of PDMZL. This approach is potentially curative, possibly without significant neurotoxicity. Additional study and longer follow-up are needed to determine the appropriate RT dose and volume parameters for this rare, debilitating, and yet potentially curable lymphoma.
Augmented reality using personal projection and retroreflection

The support of realistic and flexible training simulations for military, law enforcement, emergency response, and other domains has been an important motivator for the development of augmented reality technology. An important vision for achieving this goal has been the creation of a versatile "stage" for physical, emotional, and cognitive training that combines virtual characters and environments with real world elements, such as furniture and props. This paper presents REFLCT, a mixed reality projection framework that couples a near-axis personal projector design with tracking and novel retroreflective props and surfaces. REFLCT provides multiple users with personalized, perspective-correct imagery that is uniquely composited for each user directly into and onto a surrounding environment, without any optics positioned in front of the user's eyes or face. These characteristics facilitate team training experiences which allow users to easily interact with their teammates while wearing their standard issue gear. REFLCT can present virtual humans who can make deictic gestures and establish eye contact without the geometric ambiguity of a typical projection display. It can also display perspective-correct scenes that require a realistic approach for detecting and communicating potential threats between multiple users in disparate locations. In addition to training applications, this display system appears to be well matched with other user interface and application domains, such as asymmetric collaborative workspaces and personal information guides.
The electric field of an eccentric dipole in a homogeneous spherical conducting medium.

The electrical position of the heart with reference to the electrodes used in studying its field is unknown. For reasons presented, it is more likely eccentric; hence, the equation defining the field of an eccentric dipole in a spherical medium might be useful for projected experimental studies and for better understanding of the way in which a given electrical position determines the electrode potentials. A method introduced by Helmholtz was used for deriving the desired equation. It is discussed since its concepts are of considerable importance to other electrocardiographic problems, too. The more simple mathematical example dealing with the centric dipole in the sphere is discussed. The equation for the field of the eccentric dipole is given and data based upon it are presented in numerical and map form. The Helmholtz equation for the field in the spherical conductor produced by two small spherical electrodes arbitrarily located is also presented and briefly discussed.
A mathematical model for system design and refinement

This paper considers the use of Petri nets in the system design process. It proposes a new class of Petri nets called Information Flow Nets (IFNs) which are particularly suitable for performing refinement in the system design. We first define the class of IFNs and describe their behaviour and some of their useful properties, such as clean termination. The notion of a “well-behaved IFN” is then defined and a top-down refinement technique is presented which allows us to construct arbitrary size well-behaved IFNs. The conditions required for the refinement technique to preserve the properties of a well-behaved IFN are derived. We formally prove that a refined IFN N″, obtained by substituting a well-behaved IFN N′ in a well-behaved IFN N, is itself well-behaved. The significance of such a technique is that it can be used, in a top-down approach to system design, to build systems that are automatically well-behaved. This in turn helps to avoid the difficulty of analyzing large and complex nets.
Resurveys of active mudslides, Mississippi Delta

A survey procedure using digitally acquired, scale-corrected sidescan sonar has been applied to document active submarine landslides in the Mississippi Delta region. Periodic resurveys have been completed for a 70-km2 area in water depths of 10 to 50 m. Sufficient resurvey precision allowed short-term changes in seafloor mapping to be observed. Mudslides showed enlargement by retrogression and downslope surging within a single 5-month period.