cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Professional Development Through Engineering Academies: An Examination of Elementary Teachers' Recognition and Understanding of Engineering

Background K-12 teachers typically lack formal instruction on engineering. To address this issue, the Institute for P-12 Engineering Research and Learning (INSPIRE) developed engineering academies for elementary teachers. During 2006 and 2007, 40 teachers participating in the academies each completed an engineering photo journal. Purpose(Hypothesis) The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of week-long engineering summer academies on elementary teachers' recognition and understanding of engineering in the world around them. Design/Method The change in teachers' recognition and understanding of engineering in the world around them was measured by analyzing pre/post academy engineering photo journal entries using the Revised Bloom's Taxonomy as a framework to code the journal responses. Paired t-tests were conducted and effect sizes calculated to determine change from pre to post academy for each academy year, and for each Revised Bloom's Taxonomy Cognitive Level. Results Results showed teachers demonstrated change in understanding after participation in the engineering academies. Further, 2007 teachers showed greater change than did 2006 teachers. Overall, teachers demonstrated significant changes in the Cognitive Levels of Remember, Analyze, and Evaluate during the academies. Conclusion The photo journal and corresponding coding scheme were used successfully to measure teachers' change in recognition and understanding of engineering. These tools helped INSPIRE researchers to better understand teachers' abilities to communicate engineering ideas. These tools will be useful in classroom settings to assess teacher and student ideas and understanding about engineering.
Monte Carlo simulation of two interacting liquid/vapour interfaces

Abstract Two interacting liquid/vapor interfaces are modelled via a grand canonical Monte Carlo simulation of a Lennard-Jones 12-6 fluid. The resulting density profiles and interfacial free energies suggest that at a critical separation equal to or greater than four atomic diameters, an instability develops in the interstitial region, and coalescence takes place.
The LS stars at 25 years

Abstract Since its publication in 1971, Stephenson and Sanduleak's Luminous Stars in the Southern Milky Way has served as a starting point for a whole generation of investigations of galactic structure and the characteristics of massive, early-type stars. This paper presents a silver-anniversary review of the Stephenson-Sanduleak “LS” stars: their distribution on the sky, observed magnitudes, colors and spectral types, their distribution in space, and the characteristics of some of the more unique individual objects. While much has been learned of and from these objects, much fundamental data remain to be acquired.
Reducing the computational requirements of the minimum-distance classifier

Abstract Computationally efficient forms of the Euclidean distance measurement and class eliminating criteria can be implemented which significantly decrease the computational requirements of the minimum-distance classifier used in remote sensing applications without sacrificing accuracy. Several minimum-distance algorithms for identifying the nearest of K classes to an unclassified pixel are presented. Comparisons between previously suggested minimum-distance algorithms and several new algorithms were conducted for a 5-, 20-, 50-, and 100-class classification using from two to six bands. A new algorithm was more efficient than the other algorithms tested—up to four times faster than the squared Euclidean distance measurement.
Increased frequency of calcium waves in Xenopus laevis oocytes that express a calcium-ATPase

When inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate (IP3) receptors are activated, calcium is released from intracellular stores in excitatory propagating waves that annihilate each other upon collision. The annihilation phenomenon suggests the presence of an underlying refractory period that controls excitability. Enhanced calcium-adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) activity might alter the refractory period of calcium release. Expression of messenger RNA encoding the avian calcium-ATPase (SERCA1) in Xenopus laevis oocytes increased the frequency of IP3-induced calcium waves and narrowed the width of individual calcium waves. The effect of SERCA1 expression on calcium wave frequency was dependent on the concentration of IP3 and was larger at higher (1 microM) than at lower (0.1 microM) concentrations of IP3. The results demonstrate that calcium pump activity can control IP3-mediated calcium signaling.
Ten Observations on High School Economics Textbooks

This study focuses on the content of eleven high school economics textbooks currently being used throughout the United States. We reviewed them with regard to their attention to the Voluntary Natio...
Is non-Gaussianity sufficient to produce long-range volatile correlations?

Abstract Scaling analysis of the magnitude series (volatile series) has been proposed recently to identify possible non-linear/multifractal signatures in the given data [Y. Ashkenazy, et al. Phys. Rev. Lett. 86 (2001) 1900; Y. Ashkenazy, et al. Physica A 323 (2003) 19; T. Kalisky, Y. Ashkenazy, S. Havlin. Phys. Rev. E 72 (2005) 011913]. In this article, correlations of volatile series generated from stationary first-order linear feedback process with Gaussian and non-Gaussian innovations are investigated. While volatile correlations corresponding to Gaussian innovations exhibited uncorrelated behavior across all time scales, those of non-Gaussian innovations showed significant deviation from uncorrelated behavior even at large time scales. The results presented raise the intriguing question whether non-Gaussian innovations can be sufficient to realize long-range volatile correlations.
A Test in Development

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a collection of developmental disorders that occur before 3 years of age and include autistic disorder, Asperger syndrome, and pervasive developmental disorder, not otherwise specified. Children with ASD show signs of delays in communication and social interaction along with repetitive behaviors and interests. Today, diagnosis is performed by clinical assessments that involve an examiner observing a patient as he or she performs tasks as well as an interview of the patient's parents for a detailed developmental history. The current median age at diagnosis is 5.7 years—an age that frustrates families and doctors because some research suggests that an earlier diagnosis can lead to better outcomes. “Only 20% of children are diagnosed before three,” says Stan Lapidus, founder and CEO of SynapDx, which is developing a commercial assay for ASD and working to shift diagnosis to earlier in life. “There is a clear unmet medical need for which a diagnostic could make a difference.” Nearly a decade ago, Dr. Leonard Rappaport, now Chief of Developmental Medicine at Boston Children's Hospital, asked his colleague Dr. Isaac Kohane, Professor of Pediatrics and Health Sciences Technology at Harvard Medical School, to do something with him on ASD. Kohane, a quant turned biomedical researcher, considered ASD to involve the brain, and since he worked on RNA, he felt he'd have little to contribute. But then he had a realization and went back to Rappaport with a thought metaphor—and a yes. Dr. Isaac Kohane “Let's think …
A formalism and computer program for coupled lattices

A formalism for calculating the lattice functions and emittances of a coupled electron-positron storage ring is presented. The lattice functions are calculated directly from the modal matrix of the betatron transport matrix for the ring. The emittances and damping rates are then calculated from the invariants found in the diagonalized representation. In addition, a computer program is described which uses the formalism to calculate the coupled lattice functions, emittances, and damping rates. The program can either reconstruct the closed orbit from beam position monitor data and dipole corrector strengths, or construct an orbit from misalignments entered into the lattice and then optionally correct the orbit with dipole correctors. The lattice functions, emittances, etc. are then calculated about the resulting closed orbit. >
The Super-Schottky Diode

The super-Schottky-barrier diode, a superconductor-semiconductor tunneling junction, has been established as the most sensitive detector of microwaves. These record sensitivities were obtained in both the video and mixing modes of operation. Measurements at X-band have yielded a video NEP of 5 x 10/sup -16/ W/Hz/sup 1/2/ and a mixer input noise temperature of 6 K. The super-Schottky mixer provides a front-end component for ultralow-noise receivers that is superior in bandwidth to available parametric and maser amplifiers and yet has a comparable noise temperature. This article reports the design, fabrication, and measurement of Pb on p-GaAs super-Schottky diodes which perform as nearly ideal low-noise mixers at 9 GHz.
Ageing and infection

Average life expectancy throughout developed countries has rapidly increased during the latter half of the 20th century and geriatric infectious diseases have become an increasingly important issue. Infections in the elderly are not only more frequent and more severe, but they also have distinct features with respect to clinical presentation, laboratory results, microbial epidemiology, treatment, and infection control. Reasons for increased susceptibility include epidemiological elements, immunosenescence, and malnutrition, as well as a large number of age-associated physiological and anatomical alterations. Moreover, ageing may be the cause of infection but infection can also be the cause of ageing. Mechanisms may include enhanced inflammation, pathogen-dependent tissue destruction, or accelerated cellular ageing through increased turnover. In most instances, treatment of infection leads to a satisfactory outcome in the elderly. However, in palliative care situations and in patients with terminal dementia, the decision whether or not to treat an infectious disease is becoming a difficult ethical issue.
Song of Costa's Hummingbird (Calypte Costae)

Abstract Costa's Hummingbird (Calypte costae) is a North American species that breeds in desert scrub in the southwestern United States. Males sing a whistled song that is relatively simple compared to the complex learned song of the species' congener, Anna's Hummingbird (C. anna). Because hummingbirds are one of only three groups of song-learners separated by intervening taxa of non-song-learners, this family is an important group in the study of song evolution. We characterize the structure of Costa's song and identify song features that vary among males. More than 300 songs from 26 individual male Costa's Hummingbirds were recorded during the 2006 spring breeding season in Anza Borrego State Park. We found that the song, which is, on average, 2.5 s in length, has a stereotyped structure consisting of four elements in an invariant sequence. The song can occur singly or be repeated multiple times in a bout. All song features measured show significant variation among individuals; however, it is not known ...
Crystal Structure of a β-Catenin/BCL9/Tcf4 Complex

Summary The canonical Wnt pathway plays critical roles in embryonic development, stem cell growth, and tumorigenesis. Stimulation of the Wnt pathway leads to the association of β-catenin with Tcf and BCL9 in the nucleus, resulting in the transactivation of Wnt target genes. We have determined the crystal structure of a β-catenin/BCL9/Tcf-4 triple complex at 2.6 A resolution. Our studies reveal that the β-catenin binding site of BCL9 is distinct from that of most other β-catenin partners and forms a good target for developing drugs that block canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling. The BCL9 β-catenin binding domain (CBD) forms an α helix that binds to the first armadillo repeat of β-catenin, which can be mutated to prevent β-catenin binding to BCL9 without affecting cadherin or α-catenin binding. We also demonstrate that β-catenin Y142 phosphorylation, which has been proposed to regulate BCL9-2 binding, does not directly affect the interaction of β-catenin with either BCL9 or BCL9-2.
Kinematics of plate convergence deduced from Mesozoic structures in the Western Cordillera

Mesozoic structures in the western Cordillera of the United States yield important constraints for kinematic reconstruction of plate motions relative to North America. Structures in the Mesozoic arc(s) of the northern Sierra Nevada and of northeastern Oregon are remarkably uniform in timing, style, and with Late Cretaceous and/or Cenozoic rotations removed, orientation. Rocks of both regions experienced three major episodes of contraction occurring in the Triassic-Early Jurassic, the Late Jurassic, and the Early Cretaceous. Cross folds were developed after the first two deformations but were not associated with significant shortening. The three major deformations are nearly homoaxial and have shortening axes oriented subperpendicular (NE-SW) to the regional trend of the arc system. In the back arc region of the northwestern Great Basin, deposition was continuous during the Triassic and Early Jurassic, and the region was shielded from tectonism in the arc to the west. Development of a regional fold-thrust belt associated with major NW-SE shortening was initiated in the back arc region during the Middle or Late Jurassic and continued through the Early Cretaceous. Corresponding deformation did not occur in the arc, and the arc and back arc were decoupled by a major left-lateral fault system that subparallelled the arc axis. In the mid-Cretaceous (approximately 100 m.y. B.P.), regional compression in the back arc abruptly changed to NE-SW, and both the arc and back arc experienced major shortening. Development of homoaxial structures in the Sierran arc is probably analogous to shortening in present-day arc systems undergoing oblique subduction, in which the shortening axis is parallel to the normal component of convergence. Thus the dominant structures in the Sierran arc simply may be a reflection of the orientation of the trench and may not constrain the sense of obliquity of convergence. Strike-slip faults and related compressional structures, such as the back arc left-lateral fault and associated fold-thrust belt, are probably the response to the strike-slip component of convergence and indicate a period of left-oblique subduction. Relative plate motions constrained by paleomagnetic data are in agreement with regional structures and indicate strong right-lateral components of motion for the last 100 m.y. Before 100 m.y. B.P., relative plate motions are inadequately constrained by paleomagnetic data and regional structures indicate a period of left-oblique convergence from the Middle or Late Jurassic to approximately 100 m.y. B.P. During the Triassic and Early Jurassic the relative sense of convergence is equivocal and the possibility exists that continuous left-oblique convergence occurred throughout the late Paleozoic and early Mesozoic (until 100 m.y. B.P.). Based on the available data, we cannot discount the possibility that a complex convergence history existed, however, with changes from right to left convergence in the Middle or Late Jurassic and from left to right convergence in the mid-Cretaceous.
Sulfation factor measurement as an aid in the recognition of pituitary dwarfism.

Sulfation factor (SF) activity has been measured in the serum of 51 patients with growth impairment without skeletal deformities or gross destructive pituitary disease In 17 cases, SF was low as compared with that of a control series. The patients with low SF exhibited greater retardation of skeletal growth and more frequent hypoadrenalcorticism. Thyroid deficiency was no more common in patients with low than with normal sulfation factor. Similar studies have been carried out in sera from 12 patients with gonadal agenesis. Sulfation factor activity was normal in 8, low in 3, and high in one case. Patients with low SF appeared to require smaller doses of growth hormone than patients with normal SF to induce a reduction of urinary nitrogen. Long-term human growth hormone treatment of the 8 patients with low SF produced excellent growth responses in 5 and less definite response in 2. The treatment of 5 patients with normal SF failed to produce a major stimulation of growth in any case. It is concluded that m...
Effects of voluntary force generation on the elastic components of endpoint stiffness

The goal of this work was to determine how force loads applied at the hand change the elastic mechanical properties of the arm. Endpoint stiffness, which characterizes the relationship between hand displacements and the forces required to effect those displacements, was estimated during the application of planar, stochastic displacement perturbations to the human arm. A nonparametric system identification algorithm was used to estimate endpoint stiffness from the measured force and displacement data. We found that changes in the elastic component of arm stiffness during isometric force regulation tasks were due primarily to the actions of the single-joint muscles spanning the shoulder and elbow. This was shown to result in a nearly posture-independent regulation of joint torque-stiffness relationships, suggesting a simplified strategy that is used to regulate arm mechanics during these tasks.
A note on the complexity of reliability in neural networks

It is shown that in a standard discrete neural network model with small fan-in, tolerance to random malicious faults can be achieved with a log-linear increase in the number of neurons and a constant factor increase in parallel time, provided fan-in can increase arbitrarily. A similar result is obtained for a nonstandard but closely related model with no restriction on fan-in. >
Elastin metabolism of the infrarenal aorta

Abstract Aortic tissue elastase and α 1 -antitrypsin were assayed in 67 patients with different types of infrarenal aortic disease; occlusive disease, elective abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs), multiple aneurysms, and ruptured aneurysms. Elastase modified by α 1 -antitrypsin (elastase/α 1 -antitrypsin) increased significantly as the type of aortic disease changed from occlusive to aneurysmal disease. Aortic elastase was significantly higher in patients with AAAs, multiple aneurysms, and ruptured AAAs compared with occlusive disease. The α 1 -antitrypsin was significantly lower in patients with multiple aneurysms and ruptured AAAs. These data suggest that the ratio between elastase and its major serum inhibitor, α 1 -antitrypsin, is significantly altered in the aortic wall in different types of infrarenal aortic disease. In addition, the ratio between these two enzyme systems changes in favor of more proteolytic activity as the type of infrarenal disease changes from occlusive to aneurysmal. (J VASC SURG 1988;7:210-4.)
Coloniality has evolved once in Stolidobranch Ascidians.

Synopsis Ascidians exhibit a rich array of body plans and life history strategies. Colonial species typically consist of zooids embedded in a common test and brood large, fully developed larvae, while solitary species live singly and usually free-spawn eggs that develop into small, undifferentiated larvae. Ascidians in the order Stolidobranchia include both colonial and solitary species, as well as several species with intermediate morphologies. These include social species, which are colonial but do not live completely embedded in a common test, and a few solitary species that brood embryos and larvae until they are competent to metamorphose. We examined how many times coloniality has evolved within the Stolidobranchia, with phylogenetic analyses using full-length 18S rDNA and partial cytochrome oxidase B sequences for taxa in the families Molgulidae, Styelidae, and Pyuridae. Tunicata orders Phlebobranchia and Stolidobranchia are sister groups, and the family Molgulidae is a monophyletic group and should be raised to the subordinal level, as shown previously by analyses from this lab with partial 18S sequences. In contrast to previous studies, styelids and pyurids are separated into monophyletic groups by ML and Bayesian analyses. We show a single clade within the family Styelidae that contains two colonial (compound) botryllid species, a Symplegma (colonial compound), a colonial (social) species Metandrocarpa taylori, as well as four solitary species, thus confirming that the botryllids are a subfamily of the Styelidae. These results suggest that the ancestor of the Stolidobranchia was solitary and that coloniality has evolved only once within this clade of ascidians. Further phylogenetic analyses of aplousobranch and phlebobranch ascidians will be necessary to understand the number of times that coloniality has evolved within the class Ascidiacea.
A Robust Abstraction for First-Person Video Streaming: Techniques, Applications, and Experiments

The emergence of personal mobile computing and ubiquitous wireless networks enables powerful field applications of video streaming, such as vision-enabled command centers for hazardous materials response. However, experience has repeatedly demonstrated both the fragility of the wireless networks and the insatiable demand for higher resolution and more video streams. In the wild, even the best streaming video mechanisms result in low-resolution, low-frame-rate video, in part because the motion of first-person mobile video (e.g., via a head-mounted camera) decimates temporal (inter-frame) compression. We introduce a visualization technique for displaying low-bit-rate first-person video that maintains the benefits of high resolution, while minimizing the problems typically associated with low frame rates. This technique has the unexpected benefit of eliminating the "Blaire Witch Project" effect -- the nausea-inducing jumpiness typical of first-person video. We explore the features and benefits of the technique through both a field study involving hazardous waste disposal and a lab study of side-by-side comparisons with alternate methods. The technique was praised as a possible command center tool, and some of the participants in the lab study preferred our low-bitrate encoding technique to the full-frame, high resolution video that was used as a control.
How can drug addiction help us understand obesity

To the degree that drugs and food activate common reward circuitry in the brain, drugs offer powerful tools for understanding the neural circuitry that mediates food-motivated habits and how this circuitry may be hijacked to cause appetitive behaviors to go awry.
Tai chi mind-body exercise in patients with COPD: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a chronic, progressively debilitating condition that is prevalent in the US and worldwide. Patients suffer from progressive dyspnea and exercise intolerance. Physical exercise is beneficial, but conventional pulmonary rehabilitation programs are underutilized. There remains a need for novel interventions that improve symptoms, quality-of-life, and functional capacity. Tai chi is an increasingly popular mind-body exercise that includes physical exercise, breathing training, mindful awareness, and stress management–components that are essential to the self-management of COPD. There are, however, limited data on the effectiveness of tai chi as a therapeutic intervention in this population. Methods/Design: The Primary Aims are to evaluate the efficacy, safety, and feasibility of a 12-week tai chi program for patients with COPD. We utilize a randomized controlled trial design, with participants assigned in a 2:1 ratio to either a group tai chi program (N = 63) or a time/attention-matched education control (N = 31). Our primary outcomes are COPD-specific quality-of-life and exercise capacity. Secondary outcomes include dyspnea, mood, functional status, self-efficacy, and lung function. Cardiopulmonary exercise testing is done in a subset of patients (N = 50). To explore optimal training duration, a subgroup of patients in tai chi are randomly assigned to complete an additional 12 weeks training (total 24 weeks) (Exploratory Aim 1). To explore the impact of a simplified seated intervention including only a subset of tai chi’s training components, a third randomly assigned group (N = 31) receives a 12- week mind-body breathing program (N = 31) (Exploratory Aim 2). Discussion: Results of the BEAM study (Breathing, Education, Awareness, Movement) will provide preliminary evidence regarding the value of tai chi for improving quality of life and exercise capacity in patients with COPD, including information regarding optimal duration. They will also inform the feasibility and potential benefit of an alternative mind-body breathing intervention, and provide insight regarding how isolated mind-body exercise components contribute to the overall effects of tai chi. Should the results be positive, tai chi and related mind-body practices may offer a novel exercise option that is potentially accessible to a large proportion of patients with COPD. Trial registration: This trial is registered in Clinical Trials.gov, ID number NCT01551953. Date of Registration March 1 2012.
The IFAC Framework: International Accounting and the Public Interest

The International Federation of Accountants has proposed a framework for developing a regulatory system worldwide that will serve to promote the accounting profession’s service to the public interest. Laudable though the goal, this chapter argues that the IFAC proposal comes up short as a proposal for achieving that goal. Accounting does not inherently serve the public interest in its structure the way that traditional professions like medicine and law do. Medicine provides health to everyone via the Hippocratic Oath to serve every human. Law provides “justice under the law” via a process of legal representation for all parties in a legal dispute. Accounting’s service to the public interest is not so straightforward since serving the interests of a client does not, per se, serve any interest other than that of the client which may not be consonant with the interests of the society. IFAC takes the position that the public interest is served via accounting’s provision of decision useful information to markets. This chapter demonstrates that the IFAC characterization of markets and how they function for the good of the public is too simplistic. The author argues for a more explicit emphasis on accounting’s historical function based in accountability. Accounting has been throughout its history a social regulatory activity, i.e. it serves to express and to help consummate accountability relationships within society. A more explicit consideration of what are these relationships and more thoughtfulness about what they should be moves accounting’s focus toward a more ethical consideration of its role.
A half-log increase in BCR-ABL RNA predicts a higher risk of relapse in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia with an imatinib-induced complete cytogenetic response.

Purpose: Imatinib induces a complete cytogenetic response (CCR) in most chronic myeloid leukemia patients in chronic phase. Although CCR is usually durable, a minority of patients relapse. Biomarkers capable of predicting those CCR patients with a higher risk of relapse would improve therapeutic management. Experimental Design: To assess whether changes in BCR-ABL RNA levels are a prognostic biomarker predictive of relapse, we regularly monitored transcript levels [every 3 months (median)] in 90 patients with CCR during 49 months (median) of imatinib therapy. Results: Throughout follow-up, the 20 patients with eventual relapse had higher transcript levels than the durable responders. Major molecular response (MMR; >3-log reduction of BCR-ABL RNA) was attained by 76 patients (12 with subsequent relapse) and was a significant predictor of prolonged relapse-free survival ( P = 0.0008). A minimal 0.5-log increase in transcripts (before relapse; experienced by 42 patients, 16 with subsequent relapse) conveyed a significantly shorter relapse-free survival ( P = 0.0017). Loss of MMR (transcript increase to P = 0.0003). A complete molecular response (undetectable transcripts by nested PCR) was attained by 28 MMR patients (one with subsequent relapse) and conveyed a significantly prolonged relapse-free survival ( P = 0.0052). Conclusions: In chronic myeloid leukemia patients with an imatinib-induced CCR, a minimal half-log increase in BCR-ABL RNA (including loss of MMR) is a significant risk factor for future relapse. The achievement of a complete molecular response imparts longer progression-free survival than the achievement of an MMR.
On the impact of sensor maintenance policies on stochastic-based accuracy

The concept of stochastic-based accuracy and its calculation procedure for the case of corrective maintenance in data reconciliation-based systems were recently presented [Bagajewicz, M. (2005b). On a new definition of a stochastic-based accuracy concept of data reconciliation-based estimators. In: Proceedings of the 15th European symposium on computer-aided process engineering; Bagajewicz, M., & Nguyen, D. (2008). Stochastic-based accuracy of data reconciliation estimators for linear systems. Computers and Chemical Engineering, 32(6), 1257–1269]. This paper discusses the effect of preventive maintenance policies in chemical plants on stochastic-based accuracy. We show and evaluate a few practical solutions to the problem. The extent to which an effective maintenance policy helps to improve accuracy is shown and the economic justification is provided. Two examples are provided.
Inflammation and Thrombosis The Clot Thickens

Textbooks often portray thrombosis as a bland protective mechanism critical for stanching blood loss after injury: the prick of a lancet, the wound of a scalpel, or the predator’s fangs neatly trigger a proteolytic cascade culminating in fibrin formation and cross-linking. However, in diseases such as atherosclerosis, the picture differs substantially from this simplistic model. In the natural history of atherosclerosis, thrombosis involves an inciting injury more subtle than a wound. In such pathological states, the importance of an intricate interface between inflammation and thrombosis becomes apparent. Consider the case of septic shock, a dramatic example of the link between inflammation and thrombosis. When Gram-negative bacteria release their endotoxin into the bloodstream, the lipopolysaccharide can change endothelial lining of blood vessels from an anticoagulant, profibrinolytic surface into one that promotes thrombosis. Bacterial endotoxin potently stimulates expression of the gene encoding tissue factor, a procoagulant molecule that multiplies manyfold the activity of coagulation factors VIIa and Xa. Endotoxin also can augment endothelial cell production of fibrinolytic inhibitor plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1). These alterations in endothelial function lead to the frequent clinical scenario of disseminated intravascular coagulation, a common concomitant of Gram-negative sepsis. Less-global endothelial activation may contribute to thrombosis in situ in more-chronic diseases such as atherosclerosis. Many inflammatory mediators found in human atherosclerotic plaques can augment tissue factor gene expression by endothelial cells. For example, interleukin-1 (IL-1) or tumor necrosis factor not only augment tissue factor gene expression but also PAI-1 production by human endothelial cells. Bacterial endotoxins within atheroma conceivably could derive from local …
Max Weber on Value Rationality and Value Spheres Critical Remarks

This essay considers a question that Weber scholarship seems to have left untouched: is Weber’s concept of value rationality coherent? In making the case that it is not, I begin with the premise that value rationality is a product of processes of value rationalization that operate in value spheres. Because of self-destructive defects that undermine Weber’s analysis of these processes, his account of value rationality is invalidated as well. I conclude with some skeptical observations on his distinction between value rationality and instrumental rationality.
Quantitative Aspects of Synergism and Inhibition of Gastric Acid Secretion

Summary In 2 normal subjects, dose-response curves for the effect on acid secretion of single intravenous injections of gastrin II showed a good fit to a previously proposed model of secretion. The En5o's in micrograms per kilogram were similar in the 2 subjects, but were some 3 times lower than for subcutaneous gastrin. In 1 subject, dose-response curves for combinations of histamine, mechothane, or atropine with intravenous gastrin showed an equally good fit to the model. The maximal responses calculated for the synergistic or inhibitory combination were similar to the maximal response calculated for gastrin alone. It was concluded that in man the limit of secretion was determined by the functional size of the stomach and not by the nature of the stimulant (s). Analysis of published data on man suggests that similar conclusions as for gastrin apply to histamine.
Classification of Plane Isometries

We have classified all the even isometries as translations or rotations. An odd isometry is a reflection or a product of three reflections. Only those odd isometries σc σb σa where a, b, c are neither concurrent nor have a common perpendicular remain to be considered. Although it seems there might be many cases, depending on which of a, b, c intersect or are parallel to which, we shall see this turns out not to be the case. However, we begin with the special case where a and b are perpendicular to c. Then σb σa is a translation or glide and σc is, of course, a reflection. If a and b are distinct lines perpendicular to line c, then σc σb σa is called a glide reflection with axis c. We might as well call line m the axis of σm as the reflection and the glide reflection then share the property that the midpoint of any point P and its image under the isometry lies on the axis. To show this holds for the glide reflection, suppose P is any point. See Figure 8.1. Let line l be the perpendicular from P to c. Then there is a line m perpendicular to c such that σb σa = σm σl. If M is the intersection of m and c, then P and M are distinct points such that σcσbσa(P)=σcσmσl(P)=σcσm(P)= σM(P)≠P.
General and Specific Perceptions of Social Support

This chapter is intended to serve several purposes. We begin by reviewing the concept of social support and its implications for assessment, an activity that has preoccupied social support researchers for over a decade and a half. One conclusion we draw from this review is that research on social support, if it is to make significant advances, must focus its attention on the mechanisms by which the various constructs of social support lead to positive, and sometimes negative, psychological and physical health outcomes. We then briefly describe several recent lines of research on social support. Our aim is not to be exhaustive, but rather to draw attention to what we believe are some intriguing pathways for empirical inquiry. One of our major themes is that research on social support needs to take more fully into account not only the role of social support as a stress buffer, but also the complexity of social support processes. The chapter ends with a theoretical perspective that builds on available information and draws attention to several important variables in the social support equation, including (a) the personality characteristics of the recipient, especially the recipient’s general and specific expectations for social support; (b) the nature of the relationship between the recipient and the support provider, as well as other key members in the recipient’s network; and (c) the situational context in which supportive efforts take place.
Dealing with Salt Potentially Abusive Tax Shelters and Legislative Trends

The author examines California's tax shelter legislation and says that other states might follow California's example. The author suggests that businesses should review their tax planning strategies.
The Intersectionality of African American Mothers in Counselor Education: A Phenomenological Examination.

Using phenomenological inquiry, this study explored the lived experiences and intersecting identities of 8 African American counselor educators who are mothers. Six themes were identified: race, professional strain, work–life balance, support, internalized success, and mothering pedagogy.
NI-74DYNAMIC CONTRAST ENHANCED (DCE) T1 MRI PERFUSION DIFFERENTIATES PSEUDOPROGRESSION FROM RECURRENT GLIOBLASTOMA

PURPOSE: Pseudoprogression may present as transient new or increasing enhancing lesion(s) that mimics recurrent tumor in patients treated for glioblastoma. The purpose of this study was to examine the utility of DCE-MRI in differentiating between pseudoprogression (PsP) and tumor progression (POD). METHODS: We retrospectively examined consecutive patients with glioblastoma, who developed new and/or increasing enhancing lesion(s) after chemoradiation. Axial contrast T1-weighted images and DCE MRI data were analyzed using Nordic Ice (NordicNeuroLabs, Milwaukee, WI) in a blinded fashion. After semiautomated arterial input function selection, plasma volume (Vp) and time-dependent leakage constant (Ktrans) maps were calculated. A volume of interest was drawn around the enhancing lesion on the contrast T1-weighted images and transferred onto the Vp and Ktrans maps. The measurements were binned, and histogram analysis was performed. Pseudoprogression was defined as stable disease not requiring new treatment for a minimum of 3 months, or by surgical pathology if available. Wilcoxon rank-sum tests were performed on normalized ratios and p set to 0.05. RESULTS: Fifty patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma treated with standard chemoradiation were included. The mean age was 64 years (66 PsP, 64 POD), and median KPS was 82 (90 PsP, 80 POD). Patients with PsP (n = 13, 26%) had Vp(mean) = 2.64, Vp(75%tile) = 2.80; and Ktrans(mean) = 3.29 and Ktrans(75%tile) = 3.40. Patients with POD (n = 37, 74%) had Vp(mean) = 6.47, Vp(75%tile) = 6.79; and Ktrans(mean) = 7.77 and Ktrans(75%tile) = 8.55. PsP demonstrated significantly lower Vp (p <0.0005), as well as significantly lower Ktrans (p <0.005). MGMT promoter hypermethylation was present in 7 of 12 patients with PsP (58.3%). Median overall survival was 13.8 months (PsP 17.7 months, 11 patients alive; POD 12.6 months, 13 alive). CONCLUSION: DCE MRI shows lower perfusion in pseudoprogression than in tumor progression. This suggests that DCE MRI has a role in triaging glioblastoma patients with indeterminate enhancing lesions following treatment to help make better informed therapeutic decisions.
A first step in developing a DSS for responding to the detonation of an IND

AbstractTerrorist attacks cause immediate devastation that is further compounded by the confusion following the event. The physical and social loss resulting from the detonation of an improvised nuclear device (IND) would be extreme. The lack of a coordinated and informed response to such an event would be catastrophic. However, through the use of informed planning and preparedness, impacts to an IND could be mitigated. Planning for such events has been limited due to an inability to quantify impacts to the human and built environment. This research develops a model that can be used to estimate the social impacts associated with the detonation of an IND. Using these estimates, it is possible to begin to estimate the required response capability and capacity. This study also identifies the information requirements necessary to develop a decision support system that could be used in planning for the explosion of an IND.
"Foundations of Orthodox Culture" in Russia: Confessional or Nonconfessional Religious Education?

In April 2010 a new school subject group called "Foundations of Religious Cultures and Secular Ethics" (FRCSE) was introduced as an experiment in selected regions of Russia. It consists of six subjects, or "modules." One module is "Foundations of Orthodox Culture" (FOC). This article examines FOC within the context of religious education in Europe to assess how much it has traits of a confessional or a nonconfessional course and shows that the differentiation of confessional and nonconfessional religious education courses cannot cover the complexity of how religion is taught in Russia.
Be, a new private blood factor.

A new "private" blood factor, designated as Berrens, was demonstrated with the aid of an immune isoantibody which was found in a woman sensitized by previous transfusion of her husband9s blood and by pregnancy. The antibody had a relatively high titer and produced hemolytic disease of the newborn in the second child, manifested as jaundice and anemia. The factor was present in four out of seven members of three generations: grandmother, husband, his sister, and second child. It was absent in the father of the husband, his wife, the first child, and in four hundred and forty-eight random bloods. Husbands should not be used as donors of blood for their wives. Tests for immune isoantibodies developing in pregnant women are incomplete unless red cells of the child and/or father are included as tests cells.
Sociodemographic characteristics associated with alcohol use among low-income Mexican older adults

Despite increasing concern about the quality of life of older adults, little is known about characteristics associated with health risk behaviors among older adults in middle-income countries. This study relied on unique longitudinal data to examine the relationship between sociodemographic characteristics and alcohol use among low-income older adults, one of the fastest-growing populations worldwide. This multilevel longitudinal analysis involved three waves of data (2008–2010) from 2,351 adults aged 70 or older in Yucatan, Mexico. Multilevel regressions models were used to test interactions among gender, speaking Mayan (indigenous language), and socioeconomic status to understand conditions associated with the odds of current alcohol use and the frequency and amount of alcohol use. Half of the participants in this study report consuming alcohol in their lifetime, 21.58 % of whom were current alcohol users. Older adults reported consuming alcohol 1.15 days a week and 1.60 drinks per day. Speaking Mayan was associated with lower odds of current alcohol use. However, men who spoke Mayan reported higher odds of drinking alcohol compared to women and non-Mayan (Spanish) speakers. The positive relationship between socioeconomic status and alcohol use was also moderated by gender (male). Findings show that older and Mayan populations had lower odds of drinking in Yucatan, Mexico, whereas men were at highest risk of drinking alcohol, after adjusting for ethnic culture and socioeconomic status. Implications for health policy and epidemiological studies on substance use among older adults residing in low-income settings are discussed.
Study on measles infection of 439 less than 8-month-old infants in Minhang District in Shanghai

Objective:To understand the measles happened in the infants that less then 8 months old from Jan.2005 to Dec.2009 in Minhang district,Shanghai,and to provide a scientific basis for the research the immunization strategy of few months old infant measles,and to control such epidemic.Methods:Blood specimens were collected and tested for anti-measles IgM.Results:There were 439 cases to be included in this study.Those with anti-measles IgM positive were found in 400 measles cases who accounted for 91.1%,especially in infants with 7 months old.The cases dispersed all the year round,and the incidence peaked during March to May.The difference of measles infection rate among age groups was significant(B=2.33,P0.01).Conclusion:In order to reduce incidence of measles among few months old infants,the pertinent measure and project of measles should be constitutde,which aim at infants without initial immunization measure strategy of few month old infant measles and to control such epidemic.
Investigation and analysis on hypertension status and related knowledge among community residents

Objective This study was designed to understand the present control situation and related knowledge of hypertension disease among community residents in Liuzhou, in order to provide scientific basis for prevention and control of hypertension. Methods Eight hundred and sixty-eight residents(at least 15 years old) were selected as research objects from a random street using KISH table. Results Hypertension prevalence was 26.1% in the whole population, 64.0% among the patients who knew they had high blood pressure, 57.3% among patients who were treated with drugs, 35.1% among patients whose blood pressure were under control, 69.3% among patients who followed the doctor's advice to take medicine for a considerable time. The majority of patients had taken drug-free measures such as reducing salt consumption to try to control blood pressure. The degree of familiarity regarding hypertension related knowledge among population with high blood pressure was significantly higher than that among population without high blood pressure. Conclusion The hypertension awareness and treatment control rates for the community residents in this city was higher than the average national level. But the situation is not optimistic. Health education must be vigorously developed to improve health literacy and self-managing ability for the residents, in order to prevent and control the occurrence and development of chronic disease.
Quantitative Thin Layer Chromatographic Multi-Sulf onamide Screening Procedure

In-situ optical scanning of fluorescamine derivatives on thin layer silica gel plates provides a rapid method for the determination of multiple sulfonamides at levels below 0.1 ppm. Sample preparation is minimal. Homogenized liver or muscle is extracted with ethyl acetate and then back-extracted into 0.2M glycine buffer. After pH adjustment, the extract is washed with hexane and extracted with methylene chloride. The organic phase is evaporated to dryness and reconstituted in methanol. Pre-adsorbent layer silica gel plates are used for chromatography. The method has been applied to residues of sulfamethazine, sulfadimethoxine, sulfathiazole, sulfaquinoxaline, and sulfabromomethazine in cattle, swine, turkey, and duck tissues.
Mary Taylor, [Letters from New Zealand to Charlotte Brontë] (1848–1855), in Mary Taylor, Friend of Charlotte Brontë: Letters from New Zealand and Elsewhere, edited by Joan Stevens (Auckland: Auckland University Press; and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1972), pp. 74–5, 85, 93–4, 104, 120, 132–3, 176–81

… Your novel [Jane Eyre] surprised me by being so perfect as a work of art. I expected something more changeable and unfinished. You have polished to some purpose. If I were to do so I should get tired and weary every one else in about two pages. No sign of this weariness is in your book — you must have had abundance, having kept it all to yourself!
Statistical Considerations in the Creation of Realistic Synthetic Power Grids for Geomagnetic Disturbance Studies

Studies to evaluate the power system impacts of geomagnetic disturbances (GMDs) can benefit from geographically realistic public test cases to validate methodologies and analysis tools. Presently very few GMD test cases exist that are not restricted by data confidentiality. In this paper, we outline a method to generate completely synthetic transmission system networks suitable for GMD studies. Public energy and census data form the basis for generation, load, and geographic substation placement. The transmission line topology of the synthetic network is designed to match statistical characteristics observed on the Eastern Interconnect in North America: average nodal degree, average shortest path length, and average clustering coefficient. We apply the Delaunay triangulation to transmission network synthesis, showing it provides an excellent starting place for generating realistic topologies. A 150-bus case is developed and released with benchmark GMD results, for using in testing GMD models and methods.