cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Use of rectus fascia graft for corporeal reconstruction during placement of penile implant.

Abstract Objectives To report on the technique of using autologous rectus fascia graft for corporeal and tunica reconstruction during placement of an inflatable penile prosthesis. Reconstructing the corpora cavernosa and closing the tunica albuginea over an inflatable penile prosthesis can be challenging when severe fibrosis is encountered. Methods Fifteen patients with severe fibrosis of the corpora or tunica were included in this study. Eight patients had severe corporeal fibrosis secondary to an infected or malfunctioned penile prosthesis that had been previously removed, and seven had severe penile curvature secondary to tunical fibrosis with concomitant erectile dysfunction. All patients underwent corporeal or tunica reconstruction using autologous rectus fascia after placement of an inflatable penile prosthesis. Postoperatively, patients were evaluated at 1, 6, 12, and 24 months. Data on patient satisfaction, graft function, and complications were recorded. Results At a mean follow-up of 18 months (range 12 to 64), augmentation of the tunica or corporeal defect using autologous rectus fascia graft was successful in all patients. The penile prostheses were functioning properly with no evidence of graft infection, erosion, or abdominal wall hematoma. Patients demonstrated good results, with return to sexual intercourse at a mean of 9 weeks postoperatively (range 8 to 10). Conclusions Use of an autologous rectus fascia graft for coverage of a tunical or corporeal defect during penile prosthesis placement in patients with corporeal or tunica fibrosis is surgically feasible, safe, and efficacious. Long-term follow-up of this reconstructive technique has demonstrated excellent clinical results with no morbidity related to the rectus fascia graft harvesting.
Surface Chemistry Features in the Hot Water Processing of Utah Tar Sand

Abstract The hot water processing of Utah tar sand involves two important steps in the process sequence, phase disengagement (digestion) and phase separation (flotation). Inasmuch as phase separation is accomplished by flotation, the hydrophobic/hydrophilic balance at the surface of the bitumen droplets was studied in conjunction with the system's solution chemistry and the results correlated with the flotation response. Contact angle measurements of solvent extracted bitumen revealed a moderate hydrophobic character; however, air bubble attachment at the surface of bitumen obtained from a hot water concentrate was difficult and required long induction times. These results suggest that the phase separation by flotation is dependent on air bubble entrapment by bitumen droplets rather than attachment due to surface hydrophobicity. In addition, identification of surface functional groups and components solubilized during hot water digestion was attempted using IR and NMR spectra. Strong absorption peaks at 1...
Persistant effects of amphetamine on cerebellar Purkinje neurons following chronic administration

The spontaneous discharge of cerebellar Purkinje neurons was studied in rats after withdrawal from chronic treatment with amphetamine (2 mg/kg per day x 21 days). Discharge rates in withdrawn animals remained significantly lower than those of controls for up to 50 days. Disruption of the adrenergic input to these neurons from the locus coeruleus by treatment with propranolol, clonidine or reserpine, partially restored these discharge rates. Acute administration of amphetamine in amphetamine-withdrawn rats did not further depress Purkinje neurons discharge rate, whereas in a previous study in this lab, Purkinje neurons from naive animals were markedly slowed. Moreover, Purkinje neurons from amphetamine-withdrawn rats were also significantly less sensitive than controls to locally applied norepinephrine. These results demonstrate that chronic amphetamine can lead to very long-term changes in neuronal activity, and suggest that these changes may be mediated, in part, by the noradrenergic transmitter systems.
Fear and Anger Regulation in Infancy: Effects on the Temporal Dynamics of Affective Expression

Emotion regulation has been conceptualized as the extrinsic and intrinsic processes responsible for monitoring, facilitating, and inhibiting heightened levels of positive and negative affect. Regulation of distress is related to the use of certain behavioral strategies. Our study examined whether putative regulatory behaviors widely assumed to be conceptually associated with these strategies are actually empirically associated with the changes in fearful and angry distress in 6-, 12-, and 18-month-old infants. Our key finding was that the use of some putative regulatory behaviors (e.g., distraction and approach) reduced the observable intensity of anger but were less effective in reducing the intensity of fear. The results suggest (1) caution in assuming that postulated regulatory behaviors actually have general distress-reducing effects and (2) the likelihood that "distress" is too global a construct for research on emotion regulation.
Comparing Resource Adequacy Metrics and Their Influence on Capacity Value

Traditional probabilistic methods have been used to evaluate resource adequacy. The increasing presence of variable renewable generation in power systems presents a challenge to these methods because, unlike thermal units, variable renewable generation levels change over time because they are driven by meteorological events. Thus, capacity value calculations for these resources are often performed to simple rules of thumb. This paper follows the recommendations of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation's Integration of Variable Generation Task Force to include variable generation in the calculation of resource adequacy and compares different reliability metrics. Examples are provided using the Western Interconnection footprint under different variable generation penetrations.
A computational paradigm for multiresolution topology optimization (MTOP)

This paper presents a multiresolution topology optimization (MTOP) scheme to obtain high resolution designs with relatively low computational cost. We employ three distinct discretization levels for the topology optimization procedure: the displacement mesh (or finite element mesh) to perform the analysis, the design variable mesh to perform the optimization, and the density mesh (or density element mesh) to represent material distribution and compute the stiffness matrices. We employ a coarser discretization for finite elements and finer discretization for both density elements and design variables. A projection scheme is employed to compute the element densities from design variables and control the length scale of the material density. We demonstrate via various two- and three-dimensional numerical examples that the resolution of the design can be significantly improved without refining the finite element mesh.
Wavefront-Guided Versus Wavefront-Optimized Laser in situ Keratomileusis for Patients With Myopia: A Prospective Randomized Contralateral Eye Study

Purpose To compare the clinical outcomes of wavefront-guided and wavefront-optimized laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK). Design Prospective, randomized, fellow-eye–controlled study. Methods The setting was a single academic institution. The study population included 110 eyes of 55 patients with myopia with and without astigmatism. One eye of each patient was randomized to undergo wavefront-guided LASIK by the AMO Visx CustomVue S4 IR excimer laser system; the fellow eye received wavefront-optimized LASIK by the Alcon Allegretto Wave Eye-Q 400 Hz excimer laser system. Corneal flaps were constructed using the Intralase FS 60 Hz femtosecond laser. Patients were followed at postoperative months 1, 3, 6, and 12. The study's main outcome measures were uncorrected visual acuity, stability of refractive correction, contrast sensitivity, and wavefront aberrometry. Results After 12 months, LASIK eyes had achieved visual acuity of 20/12.5 or better (30 eyes, 56%) in the wavefront-guided group compared to those receiving wavefront-optimized treatment (22 eyes, 41%) ( P = 0.016). Average spherical equivalent refractions were −0.13 ± 0.46 diopters in wavefront-guided eyes whereas in wavefront-optimized eyes the refractions were −0.41 ± 0.38 diopters at 12 months. Wavefront-guided eyes also achieved better best-corrected visual acuity at both the 5% and 25% contrast levels ( P = 0.022 and P = 0.004, respectively). There were no differences in levels of residual astigmatism ( P = 0.798) or in higher order aberrations ( P = 0.869). Conclusions Both wavefront-guided and wavefront-optimized treatments are able to correct myopia safely and effectively in eyes with and without astigmatism. However, wavefront-guided treatment platforms appear to offer significant advantages in terms of residual refractive error, uncorrected distance acuity and contrast sensitivity.
On similarity relations in fuzzy relational databases

Abstract A characterization of a certain type of similarity relation is presented. This characterization is conceptually very easy and may be used to provide easier proofs of already established theorems. We use this characterization to show that if only a few similarity values of a similarity relation are known, then the others may be computed. This results in efficient storage of similarity relations associated with fuzzy relational databases. In addition, we use our characterization to show that there is only one type of similarity relation that provides a non-redundant decomposition of data in a fuzzy relational data base.
A plan quality classifier derived with overlap-wall-histogram of hollow organs for automatic IMRT plan quality control of prostate cancer cases

Purpose: We developed a plan quality classification model to assess IMRT plan quality of prostate cancer patients for automatic plan quality control. Methods : For hollow organs such as rectum and bladder, dose-wall-histogram (DWH) was used to evaluate OAR dose sparing in our institution. Correspondingly, we proposed a new descriptor called overlap-wall-histogram (OWH) to describe the complex spatial relationship between PTV and a hollow organ. Two metrics calculated from the OWH and DWH are introduced to quantitatively evaluate the difficulty of patient geometry for planning and plan quality in terms of OAR sparing, respectively. A linear correlation between these two metrics was observed after plotting plan quality metric as a function of geometry difficulty metric studied from a database of prostate cases treated in our institution with acceptable plan quality. Thus, a fitting line was built acting as the boundary of high quality and poor quality plans. A query plan falling above the boundary is assessed as high quality, vice versa poor quality. Results: 15 prostate IMRT plans were used to test our model. One was identified as poor quality and the others were common-level. After re-planning all plans, the dose constraints for bladder wall W75 (percentage of wall receiving more than 75Gy), W 70 , W 65 and W 60 can be reduced by 3.34%, 3%, 6.99%, 6.54% for that poor quality plan and 1.11%, 0.95%, 1.45% and 1.81% averagely for the common-level quality group, without sacrificing PTV coverage and rectum dose sparing. Conclusion : An effective model was built to provide automatic IMRT plan quality control by evaluating hollow OAR dose sparing for prostate cancer patients. Furthermore, for the query plan with poor quality, potential improvement of plan quality can be estimated and a good reference plan with similar or harder geometry can be automatically chosen from our database to help guide the re-planning if necessary. --------------------------- Cite this article as : Song T, Tian Z, Jia X, Zhou L, Jiang SB, Gu X. A plan quality classifier derived with overlap-wall-histogram of hollow organs for automatic IMRT plan quality control of prostate cancer cases. Int J Cancer Ther Oncol 2014; 2(2):020241. DOI: 10.14319/ijcto.0202.41
Structural and electronic relationships between conducting iron niobates and iron tungstates

Abstract Members of the system FeNbO and FeWO were compared, and their electronic properties were correlated with the structural parameters. The compounds crystallize as ordered variants of the basic α-PbO 2 structure, and the nature of the ordering of the [FeO 6 ] and [NbO 6 ] or [WO 6 ] octahedra determines the conductivity which may be observed for these phases.
Making the most of tutor time: a practical handbook

Making the Most of Tutor Time is a solid, well-researched and comprehensive guide for form tutors. Peter brings all her experience, humour and insight to bear on the tasks, attitude and skills need...
Urine Phenobarbital Drug Screening: Potential Use for Compliance Assessment in Neonates

This study was done to determine if urine phenobarbital measurements provide a reliable indicator of presence of the drug in neonates. Urine was collected from neonates treated with phenobarbital for clinical indications within 4 to 6 hours of clinically indicated collection of serum phenobarbital levels. Urine samples were also collected from control neonates not treated with phenobarbital. One aliquot was assayed fresh, another frozen at -30°C and assayed 1 to 3 months later. Phenobarbital was assayed using the ONLINE TDM Roche/Hitachi automated clinical chemistry analyzer. Serum and urine concentrations were compared as were fresh and frozen urine measurements. Serum phenobarbital ranged from 5.6 to 52.7 μg/mL. Matched urine samples were 56.6 ± 12.5% of the serum level. Frozen samples were 98.3 ± 8.0% of the fresh samples. Urine phenobarbital concentrations, either fresh or frozen, can be used in neonates as a noninvasive estimate of drug levels.
Salutary effects of moderate hypothermia on the circulatory and myocardial consequences of acute coronary occlusion in dogs.

Abstract The efficacy of moderate hypothermia with rewarming in attenuating the myocardial and circulatory consequences of acute coronary ligation was studied in open-chest, anesthetized dogs. Thirty minutes after ligation of the proximal left anterior descending coronary artery, 14 dogs were surface-cooled to 27 °C, maintained at this temperature for 2 hr, rewarmed to normothermic levels, and monitored for an additional hour. Fifteen dogs were maintained for a corresponding time period after coronary ligation at normothermic levels. Dogs maintained normothermic demonstrated significant depression (from preligation values) of dP dt , cardiac output (CO), stroke volume (SV), and left ventricular stroke work and power (LVSW, LVSP) at elevated levels of left ventricular end-diastolic pressure (LVEDP). Dogs subjected to the hypothermic procedure demonstrated decreased inotropic status during hypothermia, but with rewarming, exhibited significantly greater values of left ventricular pressure, dP dt , CO, SV, LVSW, and LVSP at lower values of LVEDP than observed in dogs maintained normothermic. Increased dysrhythmic activity was not observed during hypothermia. Hearts from dogs subjected to the hypothermic protocol demonstrated qualitatively greater dehydrogenase activity both at the periphery and in the center of the nonperfused region. The results suggest that moderate hypothermia during evolving myocardial infarction may preserve left ventricular cardio- and hemodynamics and thus may be useful in delaying morphological and functional deterioration until definitive treatment can be instituted.
Trusted Group Key Management for Real-Time Critical Infrastructure Protection

Most critical infrastructures can be modeled as cyber-physical systems whose cyber components control physical processes so as to optimize specific system objectives. Protecting such systems from malicious threats (including insider threats) is particularly challenging. One solution, based on Trusted Computing technologies such as the Trusted Platform Module (TPM), uses an infrastructure that ensures that only trusted programs are executed. Such technologies readily support secure unicast communication. However, many critical infrastructures employ multicast. Addressing multicast requires attention to (a) compatibility and (b) real-time compliance. In particular, sealed multicast storage for which access takes no longer than unicast. We present a trusted computing architecture for multicast communication based on an adaptation of the Kerberos authentication service along with TPM trust engines. This architecture is efficient and scalable (one session key per multicast channel). We show that, by integrating our framework with an open source IEC 61850-90-5 profile emulator for power utility automation, synchrophasor data feeds are protected in real-time (<; 4ms, the IEC61850-90-5 threshold) against strong adversaries.
Education for Developing Areas: A Proposal for a Global Approach

Planning education must rest on the premise that we live in one world, not three or four separate worlds (as such terms as Third World or Fourth World imply), and that this world is comprised of rich and poor nations that are interlinked through ownership, commodity trade, technological and financial relationships, and transnational movements of students. Contemporary capitalism, both a cause and an effect of these interlinkages, now poses a challenge to the rich as well as the poor nations which are faced with a ‘common crisis’. The central purpose of planning education should be to face this challenge boldly by facilitating global consensus-building about ways of transcending the crisis. This requires that North American and poor countries' students be brought together instead of being separated into ‘special programmes’, as is the current trend.
Image preprocessing for the infrared

The emergence of new infrared sensor technologies and the availability of powerful, inexpensive computers have made many new imaging applications possible. Researchers working in the area of traditional image processing are showing an increased interest in working with infrared imagery. However, because of the inherent differences between infrared and visible phenomenology, a number of fundamental problems arise when trying to apply traditional processing methods to the infrared. Furthermore, the technologies required to image in the infrared are currently much less mature than comparable camera technologies used in visible imaging. Also infrared sensors need to capture six to eight additional bits of additional dynamic range over the eight normally used for visible imaging. Over the past half-century, visible cameras have become highly developed and can deliver images that meet engineering standards compatible with image displays. Similar image standards are often not possible in the infrared for a number of technical and phenomenological reasons. The purpose of this paper is to describe some of these differences and discuss a related topic known as image preprocessing. This is an area of processing that roughly lies between traditional image processing and image generation; because the camera images are less than ideal, additional processing is needed to perform necessary functions such as dynamic range management, non-uniformity correction, resolution enhancement, or color processing. A long-range goal for the implementation of these algorithms is to move them on-chip as analog retina-like or cortical-like circuits, thus achieving extraordinary reductions in power dissipation, size, and cost. Because this area of research is relatively new and still evolving, the discussion in this paper is limited to only a partial overview of the topic.
Intracortical microstimulation of neurons in the visual cortex of the cat

Abstract The response of visual cortex neurons to local intracortical microstimulation was measured in the anesthetized cat. When the recording microelectrode was very close (about 20 μm) to the tip of the stimulating electrode, threshold currents as low as 10 μA were capable of firing neurons. Over a 20-fold range in distance from the site of stimulation, and 80-fold increase in threshold current was observed. The mean latency of activation for 30 neurons tested with intracortical stimulation was 2.88 ± 0.45 msec. The majority of these cells were probably synaptically activated. The mean threshold current for these neurons was 0.55 ± 0.12 MA (N = 30). These values were significantly smaller than the thresholds found previously when stimulating electrodes were located on the pia-arachnoid surface of the visual cortex.
Perturbation and stability theory for Markov control problems

A unified approach to the asymptotic analysis of a Markov decision process disturbed by an epsilon -additive perturbation is proposed. Irrespective of whether the perturbation is regular or singular, the underlying control problem that needs to be understood is the limit Markov control problem. The properties of this problem are studied. >
Transcatheter pulmonary embolectomy after fontan

Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality among hospitalized patients, and thrombolytics are the mainstay of treatment. However, for patients who fail or have contraindications to thrombolytic therapy, catheter-based therapies, such as the AngioVac aspiration system, have emerged as an alternative to surgical embolectomy. Here, we present the novel case of a 22 year-old woman with Fontan circulation who developed severe postpartum cardiomyopathy and a saddle PE. She failed thrombolytic therapy but underwent successful pulmonary embolectomy by AngioVac aspiration. Patients with Fontan circulation have an increased incidence of thromboembolic events, and AngioVac thrombectomy is a valuable treatment option in these complex patients.
Voltage optimization for state of the art RF-LDMOS for 2.1 GHz W-CDMA cellular infrastructure applications

The breakdown and operating voltage optimization of a RF-LDMOS power amplifier (PA) transistor for high power base station applications is presented. For a given device a local maximum in linear PAE is observed to be a function of the drain supply voltage. Best results were achieved for an optimized 10 mm device with a supply voltage of 32V. W-CDMA results (single carrier W-CDMA 3GPP signal at 2.14GHz, 8.5dB P/A) were 29% PAE with Pout=162mW/mm at -45dBc ACP, and 62% PAE with Pout=785mW/mm at P3dB with tuning for optimum back-off performance. To our knowledge these results represent the highest PAE's for this back-off level ever reported for transistors of any material that are appropriate for high power infrastructure applications, as well as state of the art peak power densities for silicon.
Effects of growth surface on differentiation of cultures of human tracheal epithelium.

Optical measurements from epithelial cells grown on clear solid surfaces (e.g., coverslips, petri dishes) are often compared with other measurements (e.g., short-circuit current; I(sc)) obtained from cells grown on opaque porous surfaces (inserts). However, the relative levels of differentiation of cells grown under the two conditions are usually unknown. To address this issue, we grew primary cultures of human tracheal epithelium on solid surfaces or on porous inserts and compared their total levels of protein and deoxyribonucleic acid, electrical properties in Ussing chambers, and ultrastructure. To measure ion transport across cells grown on solid supports, cells were grown on inserts placed on parafilm. Later, separation of insert from parafilm allowed the cells' I(sc) to be measured in Ussing chambers. Four different media were used. Cells grown in one medium showed very low levels of differentiation on all growth supports. In the other media, growth on inserts markedly enhanced differentiation as compared with solid supports. Baseline I(sc) of cells grown on either clear or opaque inserts was at least 30 times greater than that of cells grown on solid supports, though I(sc) with clear inserts averaged approximately 30% lower than that with opaque inserts. We conclude that though differentiation of cells may vary slightly depending on the insert used, cells on any type of insert are much better differentiated than cells grown on solid surfaces. Thus, it is both possible and desirable to make all functional measurements on cells grown on clear porous supports.
An experimental COBOL restructuring system

Although COBOL lacks many features required to support structured programming, it can be used to simulate reasonably well-structured programs. This simulation is particularly important for restructuring of poorly structured old programs. This paper describes the formulation of and experiments with a practical methodology for conversion of unstructured COBOL programs into reasonably well-structured equivalents. The discussion includes the overview of an automatic COBOL restructuring system, the results of an experiment with this system and an interpretation of these results.
A valveless micro impedance pump driven by electromagnetic actuation

Over the past two decades, a variety of micropumps have been explored for various applications in microfluidics such as control of pico- and nanoliter flows for drug delivery as well as chemical mixing and analysis. We present the fabrication and preliminary experimental studies of flow performance on the micro impedance pump, a previously unexplored method of pumping fluid on the microscale. The micro impedance pump was constructed of a simple thin-walled tube coupled at either end to glass capillary tubing and actuated electromagnetically. Through the cumulative effects of wave propagation and reflection originating from an excitation located asymmetrically along the length of the elastic tube, a pressure head can be established to drive flow. Flow rates were observed to be reversible and highly dependent on the profile of the excitation. Micro impedance pump flow studies were conducted in open and closed circuit flow configurations. Maximum flow rates of 16 ml min-1 have been achieved under closed loop flow conditions with an elastic tube diameter of 2 mm. Two size scales with channel diameters of 2 mm and 250 µm were also examined in open circuit flow, resulting in flow rates of 191 µl min-1 and 17 µl min-1, respectively.
Low-motional-impedance highly-tunable I/sup 2/ resonators for temperature-compensated reference oscillators

A new capacitive micromechanical resonator design optimized for high Q, low motional impedance, and large tuning range is presented. The I/sup 2/ resonator was fabricated using a conservative, by present standards, HARPSS-on-SOI process, and demonstrated quality factors up to 57000 in vacuum. From the designed resonators between 3MHz and 6MHz, the lowest measured impedance is 24k/spl Omega/ and the largest electrostatic tuning coefficient is -10ppm/V/sup 2/. An oscillator interface circuit comprising of a trans-impedance amplifier and an automatic tunable charge pump providing an automatic temperature-compensating bias voltage was also designed and fabricated in a standard 0.5/spl mu/m CMOS process. Preliminary tests show temperature drift reduction of a 4MHz resonator from 2400ppm to 240ppm over a 90/spl deg/C range.
Reviews: The Current State of Nonuremic Applications for Extracorporeal Blood Purification: NONUREMIC APPLICATIONS FOR EXTRACORPOREAL BLOOD PURIFICATION

Despite the commonly accepted indications for hemodialysis and extracorporeal depuritive techniques, some clinicians have come to rely on blood purification for clinical states where the targeted substance for removal differs from uremic waste products. Over the last decade, a number of studies have emerged to help define the application of extracorporeal blood purification (ECBP) to these "nonuremic" indications. This review describes the application of extracorporeal blood purification in clinical states including sepsis, rhabdomyolysis, congestive heart failure, hepatic failure, tumor lysis syndrome, adult respiratory distress syndrome, intravenous contrast exposure, and lactic acidosis. Additional comments are provided to review existing literature on thermoregulation and osmoregulation, including acute brain injury.
Marked Attenuation of Inflammatory Mediator-Induced C-Fiber Sensitization for Mechanical and Hypotonic Stimuli in TRPV4−/− Mice:

Inflammatory mediators can directly sensitize primary afferent nociceptors to mechanical and osmotic stimuli. Sensitized nociceptors have a lowered threshold of activation and increased spontaneous activity, which result in symptoms of hyperalgesia and pain, respectively. The transient receptor potential vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) ligand-gated ion channel has been implicated in the hyperalgesia for mechanical and osmotic stimuli associated with inflammatory states. To investigate whether TRPV4 directly contributes to the mechanisms of inflammatory mediator sensitization of C-fiber nociceptors, we compared the effect of the injection of simplified inflammatory soup (prostaglandin E2 and serotonin) into the mechanical receptive fields of C-fibers in TRPV4+/+ and TRPV4-/- mice in vivo. Following the injection of the soup, the percentage of C-fibers responding to a hypotonic stimulus and the magnitude of the response was significantly greater in TRPV4+/+ mice compared to TRPV4-/- mice. Moreover, in response to simplified inflammatory soup only C-fibers from TRPV4+/+ mice exhibited increased spontaneous activity and decreased mechanical threshold. These marked impairments in the response of C-fibers in TRPV4-/- mice demonstrate the importance of TRPV4 in nociceptor sensitization; we suggest that TRPV4, as TRPV1, underlies the nociceptive effects of multiple inflammatory mediators on primary afferent.
Use of the Biotic Ligand Model to predict metal toxicity to aquatic biota in areas of differing geology

This work evaluates the use of the biotic ligand model (BLM), an aquatic toxicity model, to predict toxic effects of metals on aquatic biota in areas underlain by different rock types. The chemical composition of water, soil, and sediment is largely derived from the composition of the underlying rock. Geologic source materials control key attributes of water chemistry that affect metal toxicity to aquatic biota, including: 1) potentially toxic elements, 2) alkalinity, 3) total dissolved solids, and 4) soluble major elements, such as Ca and Mg, which contribute to water hardness. Miller (2002) compiled chemical data for water samples collected in watersheds underlain by ten different rock types, and in a mineralized area in western Colorado. He found that each rock type has a unique range of water chemistry. In this study, the ten rock types were grouped into two general categories, igneous and sedimentary. Water collected in watersheds underlain by sedimentary rock has higher mean pH, alkalinity, and calcium concentrations than water collected in watersheds underlain by igneous rock. Water collected in the mineralized area had elevated concentrations of calcium and sulfate in addition to other chemical constituents. Miller's water- chemistry data were used in the BLM (computer program) to determine copper and zinc toxicity to Daphnia magna. Modeling results show that waters from watersheds underlain by different rock types have characteristic ranges of predicted LC50 values (a measurement of aquatic toxicity) for copper and zinc, with watersheds underlain by igneous rock having lower predicted LC50 values than watersheds underlain by sedimentary rock. Lower predicted LC50 values suggest that aquatic biota in watersheds underlain by igneous rock may be more vulnerable to copper and zinc inputs than aquatic biota in watersheds underlain by sedimentary rock. For both copper and zinc, there is a trend of increasing predicted LC50 values with increasing dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations. Predicted copper LC50 values are extremely sensitive to DOC concentrations, whereas alkalinity appears to have an influence on zinc toxicity at alkalinities in excess of about 100 mg/L CaCO3. These findings show promise for coupling the BLM (computer program) with measured water-chemistry data to predict metal toxicity to aquatic biota in different geologic settings and under different scenarios. This approach may ultimately be a useful tool for mine-site planning, mitigation and remediation strategies, and ecological risk assessment.
Characterization of a novel 99mTc-carbonyl complex as a functional probe of MDR1 P-glycoprotein transport activity.

Multidrug resistance (MDR) mediated by overexpression of MDR1 P-glycoprotein (Pgp) is one of the best characterized barriers to chemotherapy in cancer patients. Furthermore, the protective function of Pgp-mediated efflux of xenobiotics in various organs has a profound effect on the bioavailability of drugs in general. Thus, there is an expanding requirement to noninvasively interrogate Pgp transport activity in vivo. We herein report the Pgp recognition properties of a novel 99m Tc(I)tricarbonyl complex, [ 99m Tc(CO)3(MIBI)3] + (Tc-CO-MIBI). TcCO-MIBI showed 60-fold higher accumulation in drug-sensitive KB 3-1 cells compared to colchicine-selected drug-resistant KB 8-5 cells. In KB 8-5 cells, tracer enhancement was observed with the potent MDR modulator LY335979 (EC50 = 62 nM). Similar behavior was observed using drug-sensitive MCF-7 breast adenocarcinoma cells and MCF-7/MDR1 stable transfectants, confirming that Tc-CO-MIBI is specifically excluded by overexpression of MDR1 Pgp. By comparison, net accumulation in control H69 lung tumor cells was 9-fold higher than in MDRassociated protein (MRP1)-expressing H69AR cells, indicating only modest transport by MRP1. Biodistribution analysis following tail vein injection of Tc-CO-MIBI showed delayed liver clearance as well as enhanced brain uptake and retention in mdr1a/1b( � // � ) gene deleted mice versus wild-type mice, directly demonstrating that Tc-CO-MIBI is a functional probe of Pgp transport activity in vivo. Mol Imaging (2002) 1, 24 – 35.
High-Quality Proprietary Day Care: Predictors of Parents' Choices

The purpose of this study was to identify predictors of parents choosing quality day care programs for their children. Questionnaires were obtained from 152 parents whose children were enrolled in one of the 10 licensed day care centers in two neighboring Alabama communities, and from 105 parents whose children attended one of eight licensed centers in a Georgia community and a Maryland community. Information obtained from the parents included demographics on the family and the process the parents went through in selecting a center. The results from the Alabama sample yielded eleven significant correlates of day care quality choice, where quality was assessed independently and reliably by local day care experts. Five of these variables, when entered in a stepwise regression analysis, accounted for 39% of the variance in quality choices among centers in Alabama and 34% of the variance in quality in the Georgia/Maryland replication sample. Briefly, (a) the amount of husband's education, (b) dissatisfaction ...
Interlibrary Loan Requests for Locally Available Materials: WorldCat Local's Impact

Several studies have researched the reasons and patterns for academic library users’ interlibrary loan requests for materials already available at their college or university library. This study examines interlibrary loan statistics at the University of Delaware for four academic years to determine whether WorldCat Local impacts requests for locally available material. Data show that WorldCat Local does reduce this type of request, particularly when users are requesting returnable loans of materials such as books or audiovisual items rather than copies of articles.
Modified transport substrates as probes for intramembrane gradients.

Probes for measuring energetic gradients across biological membranes have generally been selected for their chemical inertness with respect to the membrane. For example, the distribution of the chloride ion or of the dibenzyldimethylammonium ion across the red blood cell membrane may serve to report the transmembrane potential gradient if their movements respond to that force and to no other; 5,5-dimethyl-2,4-oxazolidinedione (DMO) will report the cytoplasmic pH only if its movement responds only to the pH gradient and to no other gradient. The same requirements apply to ion-ionophore combinations that are used for similar purposes. If any of these test substances were to encounter specific uphill transport in traversing the membrane, an invalid measurement of the desired gradient would result. Probes of this type, of course, provide only a statistical measurement of the energetic gradient, measured all the way across the membrane and averaged for its total area. For the sake of clarity, we deliberately sidestep the possibility that we could obtain information on local gradients by avoiding any energytransferring reactivity between the probe and components of the membrane. We will develop here the possibility of using quite another type of probe, one whose crossing of the membrane occurs only through the chemical binding and release events implicit in active transport.'. 2 Such probes should be hydrophilic solutes, often zwitterions, sometimes with a net charge, so that their passage by diffusion through the lipoid membrane substance is negligible in relation to their passage by specific transport. Their molecular structure must combine two sets of features: (1) the structural features necessary to keep transport restricted to the given system, which may or may not supply a vectorial force in one or the other direction; and (2) a structural feature that causes a response to a membrane gradient. Control substrates that lack this feature will then provide the reference standard, by comparison with which the response is recognized. Such test substances we will call gradient-sensing substrates for transport. Application of a membrane probe that combines these features would invite only confusion if the membrane also permitted their passive permeation. But when migration is limited to the pathway described by the process of active transport, then we may achieve probes that sense gradients specific to the interval between successive topographic points on that pathway. Rather than obtaining another
Effects of Prior Experience on Judgments of Normative Word Frequency: Automatic Bias and Correction

Abstract Four experiments examined repetition priming effects on judgments of normative word frequency. Experiment 1a found reliable priming, but only when words were studied under conditions of full attention; divided attention eliminated the effect. Experiment 1b replicated the attention effects and found that frequency and recognition judgments could be dissociated as a function of study repetition. Experiment 2 showed that Levels of Processing could also dissociate the two judgments. Posthoc latency analyses of the data from Experiments 1 and 2 showed the biasing of frequency judgments to be limited to the subjects' fastest responses; slower responses showed no bias effects. Experiment 3 replicated the latency effects using an instructional manipulation of response speed. Posttest interviews in all of the experiments suggested that the bias correction seen in the slower responses occurred without awareness or intent. The results extend prior research on repetition priming to a semantic judgment about a well-known class of stimuli and are discussed in terms of processing fluency, source monitoring, and the correction of unconsciously influenced judgments.
Large deflections due to an arbitrary line load on an infinite elastic sheet on a liquid foundation

Cette fleche a une importance dans le calcul des voies ferrees, des fondations de bâtiments et des ponts flottants, elle peut se produire dans le cas de fondations tres flexibles telles qu'eau, boue, sable. Generalisation des conditions de chargement en se concentrant sur les aspects non lineaires du probleme
Adjuvant chemoradiotherapy for gastric adenocarcinoma: Kaiser institutional experience with INT 0116

14114 Background: The standard of care for resectable gastric or gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma is total or partial gastrectomy followed by adjuvant chemoradiotherapy as defined by the Intergroup ...
Resilience in developing systems: the promise of integrated approaches

AbstractThis article describes a contemporary systems approach to resilience in human development and its promise for integrating findings and applications across system levels. Resilience is defined as the capacity of a system for successful adaptation to disturbances that threaten system function, viability, or development. Advantages of this definition are delineated in regard to integrating sciences and disciplines across scales and levels of interaction in a bioecological systems framework. Central concepts of resilience, including pathways and cascades, are described in light of this approach, and advances that link system levels are highlighted. Given significant progress toward a more dynamic, integrated, multisystem approach, developmental resilience science stands at new frontier of possibilities that promises to inform science, practice, and policy focused on building human capacity for surviving and thriving in times of turbulence and change.
Bizarre Stromal Cells in an Endometrial Polyp

Bizarre stromal cells have been reported in vulvovaginal polyps, as well as in nongynecologic sites, with caution not to mistake them for malignancy. Similar atypical stromal cells have only rarely been reported in the endometrium. We present a case found incidentally in a postmenopausal woman, and review the literature.
Overview of Ground Station 1 of the NASA space communications and navigation program

Optical Ground Station 1 (OGS1) is the first of a new breed of dedicated ground terminals to support NASA’s developing space-based optical communications infrastructure. It is based at NASA’s Optical Communications Telescope Laboratory (OCTL) at the Table Mountain Observatory near Wrightwood, CA. The system will serve as the primary ground station for NASA’s Laser Communications Relay Demonstration (LCRD) experiment. This paper presents an overview of the OCTL telescope facility, the OGS1 ground-based optical communications systems, and the networking and control infrastructure currently under development. The OGS1 laser safety systems and atmospheric monitoring systems are also briefly described.
International Franchise Expansion: The Role of Institutions and Transaction Costs

Abstract In this study, we examine how a country's institutional environment affects the international expansion activities of U.S. franchise companies. We draw on institutional and transaction cost theories to develop a model and a set of hypotheses regarding the effect of political, regulatory and infrastructural institutions, as well as economic instability, on international franchise expansion. Using a sample of U.S. franchise firms and data from a combination of secondary sources, we test these hypotheses by estimating a panel regression model. Our results demonstrate for the first time that, in addition to favorable political governance, a country's business climate, including entry regulations, taxes, and communications infrastructure, is an important predictor of foreign franchise firms' expansion into that country. Implications for practice and future research also are discussed.
Optical Properties of Doped Cd1−xMnxTe

The introduction of phosphorus and arsenic dopants into bulk Cd1−xMnx Te crystals grown by the Bridgman-Stockbarger technique has been studieA-with respect to the resulting optical properties. Samples with a Mn composition in the range 0.10 < x < 0.30, both as-grown and annealed, were investigated. A combination of room temperature transmittance and reflectance measurements over the spectral range from the ultraviolet to the far infrared has been used to gain information concerning the structural quality of the samples. Low temperature photoluminescence measurements (1.6−5 K) were used to determine optical quality and excitonic energies.
Network and Hierarchic Multi-scaled Structures of Natural Rubber

Natural rubber is composed of rubber component (around 94 %) and non-rubber components (around 6 %) such as proteins, phospholipids, carbohydrates, metals and others. The functional groups of the ends of rubber chains react with non-rubber components and make naturally occurring networks. At the same time, non-rubber components make micelles, agglomerates and crystals. The superior mechanical properties in natural rubber to synthetic analogue are owed to hierarchical multi-scaled structures, that is, naturally occurring network and multi-scaled structures of non-rubber components. Synchrotron X-ray, atomic force microscopy, optical microscopy and simultaneous stress strain measurement revealed the role of hierarcic multi-scaled structures and naturally occurring network in natural rubber. Proteins in non-rubber components make multi-scaled (nano to micron) size of agglomerates and may not contribute to naturally occurring network since de-proteinized natural rubber show higher modulus and higher tensile strength and larger strain at break than original natural rubber in un-vulcanized state.
Early Postnatal Diagnosis of Costello Syndrome

Costello syndrome is a rare congenital disease with typical craniofacial and musculoskeletal features, cutaneous lesions, cardiac defects and cancer susceptibility. Affected patients show severe feeding difficulties for the first years of life and developmental delay. We present the case of a patient, in whom fetal tachycardia, polyhdramnios and physical characteristics led to an early diagnosis of Costello syndrome. Based on this patient we describe challenges and problems of therapeutic management of infants with Costello syndrome.
GENETIC COMPONENTS OF SIZE AND SHAPE. II. MULTIVARIATE COVARIANCE PATTERNS IN THE RAT AND MOUSE SKULL.

Quantitative studies on the integration of morphological structures into functional organ systems have always played a prominant role in biological research. These studies, together with the concomitant speculations about the evolutionary, morphogenetic, ecological and physiological implications of the observed relationships, have been very popular for well over 100 years. In fact, as noted above, Charles Darwin correctly perceived the central theme of present day morphometric covariation studies as early as 1859 but also noted that "the nature of the bond of correlation (between morphological structures) is very frequently quite obscure" (p. 144). The importance of correlated morphological characters in evolution was soon elaborated in more detail by the early quantitative studies of Galton, Weldon, Pearson, Huxley, Thompson, etc., but it was not until the universality of pleiotropy and the existence of linkage was described that the "nature of the bond" was elucidated. In spite of an ignorance of the genetic mechanisms underlying character correlation, these early workers provided an impetus for biometrical studies which continues unabated today.
A Biochemical Comparison of 6-Aminopenicillanic Acid, Benzylpenicillin, and 2,6-Dimethoxyphenylpenicillin.

SummaryBenzylpenicillin, 2,6-dimethoxyphenylpenicillin, and 6-aminopenicillanic acid were compared with respect to several biochemical activities. 2,6-Dimethoxy-phenylpenicillin and 6-aminopenicillanic acid were hydrolyzed at very low rates, compared to the rate for benzylpenicillin, by partially purified concentrated cell-free preparations of penicillinase derived from B. cereus, and at still lower rates by analogous preparations from S. aureus. For S. aureus, but not B. cereus, the growth-inhibitory concentrations of the two penicillinase-resistant compounds, particularly 2,6-dimethoxyphenylpenicillin, were much lower than that of benzylpenicillin. 2,6-Dimethoxyphenylpeni-cillin was a very effective inducer of penicillinase formation in B. cereus and in S. aureus. 6-Aminopenicillanic acid and benzylpenicillin were considerably less active as inducers of penicillinase in S. aureus than in B. cereus, as measured by effective inducing concentrations and by the amounts of enzyme formed. A mutant of a penici...