cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Efficient analysis of periodic dielectric waveguides using Dirichlet-to-Neumann maps.

We present a numerical scheme for the analysis of periodic dielectric waveguides using Floquet–Bloch theory. The problem of finding the fundamental propagation modes is reduced to a nonlinear eigenvalue problem involving Dirichlet-to-Neumann maps. This approach leads to much smaller matrix problems than the ones that have appeared previously. By an increase of the discretization fineness, any desired precision of the method can be achieved. We discuss an eigensolver and extend the conventional rule to choose the branches of the transverse wave numbers. This ensures analytic dependence on the Floquet multiplier and convergence of the nonlinear solver. We demonstrate that even for a complicated multilayer waveguide structure the propagation factors can be calculated within seconds to several digits of accuracy.
Moments expansion study of the Rabi Hamiltonian

Abstract The interaction of a single bosonic mode with a two-level fermion system is investigated. For the condensed-matter physicist the boson in question is typically a phonon whereas the fermion system is represented by a two-level electron structure. In this work we shall use both the connected moments expansion (CMX) and the alternate moments expansion (AMX) as well as the non-perturbative Lanczos tridiagonal scheme to study the ground-state spectrum of this system. Comparisons will be made with other approximation schemes as well as “exact” methods.
Automated Rule-Based Constructability Checking: Case Study of Formwork

AbstractConstructability has been raised to optimize construction knowledge and experience in the design phase to improve project performance. However, the traditional constructability review is often conducted manually and considered inefficient for constructability implementation. In order to minimize the inefficiencies of the process, the current work presents an approach of an automated, rule-based constructability checking with the help from building information modeling (BIM). Focusing on cast-in-place concrete construction methods rule-sets for horizontal formwork, decisions are developed based on previous constructability research and tested on a case study project. The new procedure for testing the formwork constructability issues with corresponding BIM contents is further explained. The findings demonstrate not only the model contents can be checked for the optimal formwork selection, but also for the design variance from requirements for all of the formwork options— enabling future analysis to ...
Ginzburg-Landau theory for the solid-liquid interface of bcc elements. II. Application to the classical one-component plasma, the Wigner crystal, and 4He.

The previously developed Ginzburg-Landau theory for calculating the crystal-melt interfacial tension of bcc elements to treat the classical one-component plasma (OCP), the charged fermion system, and the Bose crystal. For the OCP, a direct application of the theory of Shih et al. (1987) yields for the surface tension 0.0012(Z-squared e-squared/a-cubed), where Ze is the ionic charge and a is the radius of the ionic sphere. Bose crystal-melt interface is treated by a quantum extension of the classical density-functional theory, using the Feynman formalism to estimate the relevant correlation functions. The theory is applied to the metastable He-4 solid-superfluid interface at T = 0, with a resulting surface tension of 0.085 erg/sq cm, in reasonable agreement with the value extrapolated from the measured surface tension of the bcc solid in the range 1.46-1.76 K. These results suggest that the density-functional approach is a satisfactory mean-field theory for estimating the equilibrium properties of liquid-solid interfaces, given knowledge of the uniform phases.
Does cyclophosphamide induce bladder cancer

Abstract An increasing incidence of bladder neoplasms temporally associated with chemotherapy, usually cyclophosphamide, is being reported. These secondary primary bladder malignancies are characteristically found in two groups of patients: those with lymphoproliferative or myeloproliferative tumors, and those with immunosuppression after organ transplantation. A case of adenocarcinoma of the bladder associated with malignant lymphoma is reported, and the known cases of second primary bladder malignancies after cyclophosphamide therapy as reported in the literature are reviewed. Studies relating to the enhanced occurrence of second primary cancers in lymphoproliferative disorders are presented. The recognized urologic toxicities of cyclophosphamide, including cytopathologic changes in animals and humans, are discussed. The observed association between immunosuppression and second primary malignancies is explored, as supported by studies on congenital immunodeficiency in humans, viral oncogenesis in experimental animals, and neoplasia after organ transplantation. Possible mechanisms of carcinogenesis associated with cyclophosphamide are reviewed, including suppression of humoral and cell-mediated immune defense mechanisms, direct carcinogenesis, or cocarcinogenesis. A plea is made for the orderly reporting and careful documentation of bladder tumors in patients receiving cyclophosphamide. It is suggested that prospective studies in these patients and in patients receiving cyclophosphamide for nonmalignant disorders would be of value in assessing the culpability of cyclaphosphamide as a carcinogen.
The solution of linear constant-coefficient evolution PDEs with periodic boundary conditions

We implement the new transform method for solving boundary-value problems developed by Fokas for periodic boundary conditions. The approach presented here is neither a replacement for classical methods nor is it necessarily an improvement. However, in addition to establishing that periodic problems can indeed be solved by the new transform method (which enhances further its scope and applicability), our implementation also has the advantage that it yields a new simpler approach to computing the limit from the periodic Cauchy problem to the Cauchy problem on the line.
Determination of remifentanil in human and dog blood by HPLC with UV detection

Abstract Remifentanil (G187084) is a phenylaminopiperidine derivative of the fentanyl type with a potent analgesic activity and ultra-short half-life. The N-substituted labile methyl propanoate ester group is highly susceptible to cleavage by endogenous esterases and by chemical hydrolysis. The hydrolysis is stopped by addition of 20 μl of 50% citric acid per 1 ml of blood. The method involves a liquid extraction of chilled blood at pH 7.4 with butyl chloride and back-extraction into 0.01 M HCI. The chromatographic conditions are: column — Zorbax SB-CN 4.6 x 250 mm; mobile phase — 7% acetonitrile-14% methanol in phosphate buffer (0.03 M; pH 3.0); detection — UV at 210 nm. The internal standard used was G197559 — an ethyl analogue of the drug. The method has been validated in human blood over the range of 1–200 ng ml−1 and in dog over the range 10–60, 135 ng ml−1 with the latter assay being used in a toxicological support study. Additionally, it was used to characterize the hydrolysis of the drug, the enzymes involved in the process, and ex vivo drug interactions.
A short-term look at potential changes in Lake Michigan slimy sculpin diets

Diporeia hoyi and Mysis relicta are the most important prey items of slimy sculpins (Cottus cognatus) in the Great Lakes. Slimy sculpins were collected from dreissenid-infested bottoms off seven Lake Michigan ports at depths of 27–73 m in fall 2003 to study their lake-wide diets. Relatively large dreissenid biomass occurred at depths of 37- and 46-m. Quagga mussels (Dreissena bugnesis) composed at least 50% of dreissenid biomass at Manistique, Saugatuck, and Sturgeon Bay. Mysis accounted for 82% of the sculpin diet by dry weight at eastern Lake Michigan while Diporeia composed 54–69% of the diet at western Lake Michigan and dominated the diets of slimy sculpins at all sites deeper than 46 m. In northern Lake Michigan, this diet study in new sites showed that slimy sculpin consumed more prey with low energy contents, especially chironomids, than Mysis and Diporeia in shallow sites (depth <55 m). We recommend diet studies on sedentary benthic fishes to be conducted along perimeters of the Great Lakes to observe changes in their diets that may be impacted by changing benthic macroinvertebrate communities.
CHAPTER 195 – Phosphodiesterase-5

Studies of PDES have provided major insights into molecular characteristics of that enzyme and have advanced understanding of general properties shared by all members of the PDE superfamily. PDE5 has been successfully targeted for a widely marketed treatment for male erectile dysfunction. The success of sildenafil (Viagra TM ) in this regard has renewed interest in PDEs as potential pharmacological targets. The relatively restricted expression of PDES along with its well-defined biochemical properties enhances its attraction as a target for future pharmacological interventions.
RhoA/Rho-kinase in erectile tissue : mechanisms of disease and therapeutic insights

Penile erection is a complicated event involving the regulation of corpus cavernosal smooth muscle tone. Recently, the small monomeric G-protein RhoA and its downstream effector Rho-kinase have been proposed to be important players for mediating vasoconstriction in the penis. RhoA/Rho-kinase increases MLC (myosin light chain) phosphorylation through inhibition of MLCP (MLC phosphatase) thereby increasing Ca 2+ sensitivity. This review will outline the RhoA/Rho-kinase signalling pathway, including the upstream regulators, guanine nucleotide exchange factors, GDP dissociation inhibitors and GTPase-activating proteins. We also summarize the current knowledge about the physiological roles of RhoA/Rho-kinase in both male and female erectile tissues and its aberrations contributing to erectile dysfunction in several disease states. Understanding the RhoA/Rho-kinase signalling pathway in the regulation of erection is important for the development of therapeutic interventions for erectile dysfunction.
A sociological perspective on parent-adolescent disagreements

The chapters in this volume advance our understanding of the correlates and consequences of parent-adolescent disagreement. As research in this area progresses, it is essential that investigators broaden their conceptualization of parent-adolescent relationships to capture more fully the larger social context in which these relationships are embedded.
Galileo: A Framework for Distributed Storage of High-Throughput Data Streams

We describe the design of a high-throughput storage system, Galileo, for data streams generated in observational settings. The shared-nothing architecture in Galileo supports incremental assimilation of nodes, while accounting for heterogeneity in their capabilities, to cope with data volumes. To achieve efficient storage and retrievals of data, Galileo accounts for the geospatial and chronological characteristics of such time-series observational data streams. Our benchmarks demonstrate that Galileo supports high-throughput storage and efficient retrievals of specific portions of large datasets while supporting different types of queries.
Intermittent hypoxia exacerbates metabolic effects of diet-induced obesity.

Obesity causes insulin resistance (IR) and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), but the relative contribution of sleep apnea is debatable. The main aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH), a hallmark of sleep apnea, on IR and NAFLD in lean mice and mice with diet-induced obesity (DIO). Mice (C57BL/6J), 6–8 weeks of age were fed a high fat (n = 18) or regular (n = 16) diet for 12 weeks and then exposed to CIH or control conditions (room air) for 4 weeks. At the end of the exposure, fasting (5 h) blood glucose, insulin, homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) index, liver enzymes, and intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test (1 g/kg) were measured. In DIO mice, body weight remained stable during CIH and did not differ from control conditions. Lean mice under CIH were significantly lighter than control mice by day 28 (P = 0.002). Compared to lean mice, DIO mice had higher fasting levels of blood glucose, plasma insulin, the HOMA index, and had glucose intolerance and hepatic steatosis at baseline. In lean mice, CIH slightly increased HOMA index (from 1.79 ± 0.13 in control to 2.41 ± 0.26 in CIH; P = 0.05), whereas glucose tolerance was not affected. In contrast, in DIO mice, CIH doubled HOMA index (from 10.1 ± 2.1 in control to 22.5 ± 3.6 in CIH; P < 0.01), and induced severe glucose intolerance. In DIO mice, CIH induced NAFLD, inflammation, and oxidative stress, which was not observed in lean mice. In conclusion, CIH exacerbates IR and induces steatohepatitis in DIO mice, suggesting that CIH may account for metabolic dysfunction in obesity.
Radical prostatectomy in men less than 50 years old.

Abstract We studied the effect of age on tumor progression (defined as postoperative prostate specific antigen elevation) in 543 men who underwent radical prostatectomy for clinically localized prostate cancer. Patients were divided into two age groups: patients under 50 years (N = 85) and patients older than 50 years (N = 458). The mean follow-up for both groups was S.3 years. Clinical stage was similar in both groups, with only 3% in each group detected by screening techniques. By Kaplan-Meier analysis, men under 50 years showed slightly less progression than men older than 50 years (p = 0.04), especially during the first 5 years following surgery. The key differentiating feature was a lower incidence of positive margins in the younger age group (18.8%) than the older age group (42.6%; p We found that, despite the tendency in younger men to preserve the neurovascular bundles and cut closer to the prostate, this age group still has a lower incidence of positive surgical margins possibly due to greater ease of surgical removal of small glands. Young men who are candidates for radical prostatectomy do not have a worse prognosis following surgery than older men, and even fare better during the first five postoperative years.
The corrugator supercilii muscle revisited

Abstract Background: Few studies have examined the anatomy of the central forehead as it pertains to vertical glabellar furrows. Objective: This study sought to critically examine the corrugator supercilii muscle (CSM) in situ, in relation to surrounding bony and soft tissue landmarks. Methods: Anatomic dissection of 10 fresh cadaveric hemi-heads was performed, focusing on the CSM origin and insertion, with emphasis on regional fascial relations, neurovascular structures, and osseous topography. Results: The CSM originates along the supraciliary arch. The muscle is attached at its medial and superior margin, whereas the lateral and inferior margins are free. The muscle originates from a bony plateau on the supraciliary arch. The CSM travels laterally, with most of the muscle passing through the fibers of the orbicularis oculi and the frontalis. The dermal insertion of the muscle is under the central portion of the eyebrow. The nerve supply enters at the lateral aspect of the muscle approximately 5 mm cephalic to the lateral brow. The action of the CSM is to elevate the medial aspect of the brow and depress the lateral segment of the brow. Conclusion: The CSM does not appear to be the primary determinant of vertical glabellar frown lines. ( Aesthetic Surg J 2001;21:209-215.)
Neural correlates of category-specific knowledge

An intriguing and puzzling consequence of damage to the human brain is selective loss of knowledge about a specific category of objects. One patient may be unable to identify or name living things, whereas another may have selective difficulty identifying man-made objects. To investigate the neural correlates of this remarkable dissociation, we used positron emission tomography to map regions of the normal brain that are associated with naming animals and tools. We found that naming pictures of animals and tools was associated with bilateral activation of the ventral temporal lobes and Broca's area. In addition, naming animals selectively activated the left medial occipital lobe--a region involved in the earliest stages of visual processing. In contrast, naming tools selectively activated a left premotor area also activated by imagined hand movements, and an area in the left middle temporal gyrus also activated by the generation of action words. Thus the brain regions active during object identification are dependent, in part, on the intrinsic properties of the object presented.
The Impact of Reflux Composition on Mucosal Injury and Esophageal Function

The components of refluxed gastric juice are known to cause mucosal injury, but their effect on esophageal function is less appreciated. Our aim was to determine the effect of acid and/or bile on mucosal injury and esophageal function. From 1993–2004, 402 patients with reflux symptoms had 24-hour pH and Bilitec monitoring, manometry, and endoscopy with biopsies. Mucosal injury (esophagitis or Barrett’s esophagus) and esophageal function (lower esophageal sphincter [LES] characteristics and body contractility) in patients with acid reflux, bile reflux, or both were compared with patients without reflux. Reflux was present in 273/402 patients; of these, 37 (13.5%) had increased exposure to bile, 82 (30.0%) had increased exposure to acid, and 154 (56.4%) had increased exposure to both. Mucosal injury was most common with increased mixed acid and bile exposure, followed by acid alone, and was uncommon with bile alone (P<0.0001). Functional deterioration paralleled mucosal injury (P<0.0001). Mixed acid and bile exposure was present in more than half of patients with reflux and was associated with the most severe mucosal injury and the greatest deterioration of esophageal function. This suggests that composition of gastric juice is the primary determinant of inflammatory mucosal injury and subsequent loss of esophageal function.
Listeners Can Discriminate among Major Chord Positions

5urntnary.-Listeners judged whether two sequentially presented major chords were the same. \When both chords were based on [he same root, listeners discriminated between different chord positions, e.g., root position, first inversion, second inversion. The ability of listeners to discriminate between chord positions suggests that harmonic equivalence of different chord positions does not depend on perceptual equivalence and instead arises from a more cognitive representation. The harmonic structure of Western tonal music is based on chords, and one of the most common types of chords in Western tonal music is the major chord. A major chord may be constructed upon any note of the scale by choosing a tone to function as the base or root and then addtng tones a major third and a perfect fifth above that root. For example, if the root is a C, then adding an E (a major third above C) and a G (a ~erfect fifth above C) produces a C major chord. However, it is not necessary to hit major chords to the third and fifth immediately above the root. As long as tone chroma are maintained, i.e., the pitches have the same letter names, the individual tones of the chord may be drawn from any octave. When the root is the lowest pitch, then the chord is said to be in root position. When the third is the lowest itch, then the chord is said to be in first inversion, and when the fifth is the lowest pitch, the chord is said to be in second inversion (reviews of chord structure and inversion may be found in introductory music theory texts, e.g., Aldwell & Schachter, 1978; Kostka & Payne, 1995). These different chord positions are illustrated in Fig. 1. The process of changing a root position chord into a first or second inversion chord involves an octave transformation of one or more of the individual tones that comprise that root position chord, e.g., a first inversion chord may be created from a root position chord by raising the root one octave in pitch. The harmonic equivalence of different chord positions assumes that a component tone drawn from one octave is equivalent to a tone of the same chroma drawn from a different octave. In other words, har
Two aspects of productivity in Taiwanese Double Reduplication

Monosyllabic adjectives can undergo double reduplication in Taiwanese to mark intensification. We argue in this paper that the phonological analysis for the tonal patterns of Taiwanese double reduplication relies on three elements: a floating High tone that prefers to dock onto the left edge of the output, tonal correspondence between the two reduplicants, and the lexical listing of the sandhi tones as part of the non-XP-final allomorphs of existing syllables. We support the analysis with an acoustic experiment and a psycholinguistic “wug”-test experiment in Taiwanese, which showed that (a) the floating High tone appears as early as possible in real doubly reduplicated forms; (b) the tonal allomorphy is not productive in non-existing words; and (c) the floating High docking is productive in non-existing words. The analysis echoes the “allomorph selection” hypothesis of Taiwanese tone sandhi by Tsay and Myers (1996) and the “twostage” hypothesis of Taiwanese double reduplication by Myers and Tsay (2001).
LONG-TERM OUTCOME OF PATIENTS TRANSPLANTED WITH LIVERS FROM HEPATITIS C-POSITIVE DONORS

Background The use of hepatitis C serology-positive donors has become an option in patients affected by hepatitis C (Hep C) end-stage liver disease. Previous studies with less than 1 year of follow-up have suggested that there is no difference in early patient and graft survival. The aim of our review is to confirm with a longer follow-up (a minimum of 1 year) that the use of these organs is safe and that patient and graft survival are comparable to those of patients with Hep C who received Hep C-negative grafts. Methods Between 1985 and 1995, 213 patients were transplanted with a diagnosis of Hep C. Seventy-six patients were excluded from the study, 47 for insufficient follow-up and 29 because the diagnosis of recurrence was not certain. Twenty-two patients received Hep C+ donor grafts and 115 patients received Hep C-donor grafts. These two groups were evaluated to assess the rate and severity of recurrence by serial biopsies and to assess patient and graft survival. Results Recurrent Hep C was documented by biopsy in 12 of 22 patients who received Hep C+ donor grafts. Of these 12 patients, 9 had mild chronic hepatitis, 2 had fibrosis, and 1 had cirrhosis. Ten of the 22 patients had normal biopsies. Of the patients who received Hep C- grafts, 48 of 115 had recurrent disease. Of these 48 patients, 23 had mild chronic hepatitis, 15 had fibrosis, and 10 had cirrhosis. Sixty-seven of 115 had normal biopsies. The recurrence rate was 54.55% in the Hep C+ donor grafts and 41.74% in the Hep C- donor grafts (P=NS). Patient and graft survival at 4 years after transplant were 83.9% and 71.9% in the Hep C+ donor grafts and 79.1% and 76.2% in the Hep C- donor grafts, respectively (P=NS). Conclusions Our study suggests that Hep C+ donors can be used with excellent long-term results and that the progression of the recurrent disease does not seem to be affected by the pre-existence of the Hep C virus in the donor.
Studies of flows through N-sequential orifices

Critical mass flux and axial pressure profile data for fluid nitrogen are presented for N = 20, 15, 10, and 7 N-sequential orifice inlet configurations uniformly spaced at 15.5 cm. These data correlate well over a wide range in reduced temperature (0.7 T sub r,o ambient) and reduced pressure (to P sub r = 2) and are in general agreement with studies of one to four inlets and labyrinth seal gas data for 33 tooth equivalent sequential inlets. Experimental and theoretical agreement is good for liquid and gas critical mass flux.
Relations between control chart design variables and production control

This paper develops analytic relationships between the design variables of an quality control chart and the production variables for a single-item, stochastic demand production system. Practical applications of the models developed are presented. These include, among others, finding an chart design to achieve certain inventory service level for a given production policy, or finding a production policy that maximizes the service level given an chart design. The models presented also permit studying the effect of improving the production and quality control systems through a continuous improvement program.
Preliminary biochemical investigations of the intermediate filaments.

Preliminary biochemical investigations of differentiating cardiac muscle first revealed the occurrence of a third class of filaments, differing in appearance and reactivities from the thick and thin filaments of the sarcomere. These intermediate filaments were more resistant to extraction with neutral salts, β-mer-captoethanol, and urea than were the thick filaments, thin filaments, or Z material. Combined with the data from the accompanying report, sufficient evidence is presented to discount virtually all previous models of myofibrillogenesis.
Prediction by grammatical match

We present prediction by grammatical match (PGM), a new general purpose adaptive text compression framework successfully blending finite-context and general context-free models. A PGM compressor operates incrementally by parsing a prefix of the input text, generating a set of analyses; these analyses are scored according to encoding cost, the cheapest is selected, and sent through an order k PPM encoder. PGM's primary innovations include the use of a generalized PPM in selection and coding; the simultaneous use of multiple context-free grammars; the use of lexical left-corner derivations (LLCD); and an aggressive algorithm for constructing an LR(O) parsable metalanguage for LLCD. LLCD are a hybrid of bottom-up and top-down descriptions that represent grammatical information implicitly with each lexeme. The constructed metalanguage extends this to include explicit top-down steps to resolve local ambiguities in at most one strictly grammatical symbol. These properties combine to deliver excellent compression. On a test corpus of about 1 MB of Scheme program text, PGM with a generic Scheme grammar required about 26% fewer bits than PPM to represent the entire corpus, with reductions on individual files reaching as high as 55%. In addition, PGM enriches the time-compression-memory tradeoff options, since a low order PGM can achieve bpc rates comparable to high order PPM at considerable savings in space. PGM compression operates in expected linear time and space for many kinds of grammars. PGM decompression operates in guaranteed linear time and space.
The Ulp1 SUMO isopeptidase distinct domains required for viability, nuclear envelope localization, and substrate specificity

Protein modification by the ubiquitin-like SUMO protein contributes to many cellular regulatory mechanisms. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, both sumoylating and desumoylating activities are essential for viability. Of its two known desumoylating enzymes, Ubl-specific protease (Ulp)1 and Ulp2/Smt4, Ulp1 is specifically required for cell cycle progression. A ∼200-residue segment, the Ulp domain (UD), is conserved among Ulps and includes a core cysteine protease domain that is even more widespread. Here we demonstrate that the Ulp1 UD by itself can support wild-type growth rates and in vitro can cleave SUMO from substrates. However, in cells expressing only the UD of Ulp1, many SUMO conjugates accumulate to high levels, indicating that the nonessential Ulp1 NH2-terminal domain is important for activity against a substantial fraction of sumoylated targets. The NH2-terminal domain also includes sequences necessary and sufficient to concentrate Ulp1 at nuclear envelope sites. Remarkably, NH2-terminally deleted Ulp1 variants are able, unlike full-length Ulp1, to suppress defects of cells lacking the divergent Ulp2 isopeptidase. Thus, the NH2-terminal regulatory domain of Ulp1 restricts Ulp1 activity toward certain sumoylated proteins while enabling the cleavage of others. These data define key functional elements of Ulp1 and strongly suggest that subcellular localization is a physiologically significant constraint on SUMO isopeptidase specificity.
Valvular and coronary heart disease in systemic inflammatory diseases: Systemic Disorders in heart disease.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), primary antiphospholipid syndrome (PAPS), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), ankylosing spondylitis (AKS), and scleroderma are immune mediated inflammatory diseases that manifest predominantly with symptoms and signs of musculoskeletal and mucocutaneous inflammation. However, they frequently cause cardiovascular disease, which is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality, and the clinical detection of cardiovascular disease is significantly lower than that of cardiac imaging or post-mortem series. Therefore, an increased awareness and understanding of these diseases may lead to an increase in recognition, treatment, and prevention of the associated cardiovascular involvement. This article will review valvular and coronary heart diseases as the most clinically relevant conditions associated with systemic inflammatory diseases. ### Valvular heart disease Valvular heart disease (VHD) is the most frequent type of heart disease associated with SLE; is associated with significant morbidity; and is a leading cause of death in SLE patients.1 2 #### Pathology In post-mortem series the frequency of VHD ranges from 13–100%. Libman–Sacks vegetations are cauliflower-like or flat, red, spreading masses of >2 mm in diameter, more commonly located on leaflets closure lines.1 Active vegetations have central fibrinoid degeneration with fibroblastic proliferation and fibrosis, surrounded by mononuclear and polymorphonuclear cellular infiltration, small haemorrhages and peripherally by thrombus. Healed vegetations have central fibrosis, minimal or no inflammation, and none or endothelialised thrombus. Active, healed and mixed vegetations can occur in a valve. Most vegetations have associated leaflet thickening. #### Pathophysiology Subendothelial deposition of immunoglobulins and complement lead to an increased expression of α3β1 integrin on endothelial cells, increased amounts of collagen IV, laminin and fibronectin, proliferation of blood vessels, inflammation, thrombosis and finally fibrosis. Antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) may cause valve injury by activation of endothelial cells and upregulation of expression of adhesion molecules, secretion of cytokines, and decreased production of prostacyclins; increased uptake of oxidised low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol by macrophages leading …
Shareholder‐ Versus Stakeholder‐Focused Japanese Companies: Firm Characteristics and Accounting Valuation*

Recent research has found that the value-relevance of accounting variables depends not only on whether a country's accounting rules are code-law oriented or common-law oriented, but also on the reporting incentives created by the legal and business environment in which a firm operates. Therefore, for example, the earnings of firms in some countries with common-law oriented rules but with code-law incentives have more code-law-type characteristics. We further this research by examining whether this is true for firms facing the same accounting regime and institutional environment but different stakeholder-related incentives. We find significant stakeholder-related incentives across 23 Japanese firms listed in the United States and 23 Japanese firms not listed in the United States that are matched by industry and size. Although these firms face the same institutional environment and the same accounting regime, consistent with the differences in stakeholder-related incentives, the earnings and book values of the firms listed in the more shareholder-oriented U.S. markets have significantly more explanatory power for market value than those for firms not cross-listed in the United States. These findings are unaffected by whether the reports are based on consolidated or parent-only accounting or whether they are based on U.S. or Japanese GAAP, emphasizing the potential influence of reporting incentives at all levels on the effect of standardization, conversion, or harmonization of accounting methods globally.
A method for constructing attractors

A procedure is developed for constructing C1 diffeomorphisms of the two sphere having inverse limits of certain interval maps as attractors. The method is carried out for a particular interval map yielding a diffeomorphism with a transitive non-hyperbolic attractor.
Guerrilleras in Latin America: Domestic and International Roles

This analysis identifies two different categories of guerrilla organizations and the roles of women within each. Guerrilla movements with international' agendas typically oppose US imperialism, capitalist expansion, or Western culture in general. Domestic' guerrilla organizations usually take action against perceived forces of oppression within their own nation. These different agendas have a direct impact on the role of women within them. Internationally oriented guerrilla groups assign traditional, limited gender roles to their female members, while domestic guerrilla organizations challenge domestic prohibitions, including those imposed on women, and encourage full and active participation of female members at all levels of guerrilla activity. This hypothesis is supported by comparative case studies of the groups in question. The study of women's roles within guerrilla movements provides insight into modern political issues, such as insurgencies and other non-traditional methods of warfare. The support of half a population can enable a guerrilla organization to further its objectives considerably, and as female participation increases, the group itself gains power. Thus, an in-depth understanding of women and their relationship to guerrilla movements contributes substantially to peace and conflict studies as well as studies of non-traditional warfare.
Covered Stents and Coil Embolization for Treatment of Postpancreatectomy Arterial Hemorrhage

Abstract Purpose To evaluate the efficacy and clinical outcomes associated with stent-graft placement and coil embolization for postpancreatectomy arterial hemorrhage (PPAH). Materials and Methods Retrospective review of 38 stent-graft and/or embolization procedures in 28 patients (23 men; mean age, 65.1 y) for PPAH between 2007 and 2014 was performed. Time of bleeding, source of hemorrhage, intervention and devices used, repeat intervention rate, time to recurrent bleeding, complications, and 30-day mortality were assessed. Independent risk factors for recurrent bleeding and 30-day mortality were identified. Results Median onset of hemorrhage was at 39 days (mean, 27.9 d; range, 5–182 d). Covered stents were used in 65.7% of interventions, coil embolization in 23.6%, stent-assisted embolization in 5.2%, and stent-graft angioplasty in 2.6%. A total of 28 stent-grafts were placed, of which 19 were self-expandable and nine were balloon-mounted. Mean stent-graft diameter was 6.6 mm (range, 5–10 mm). Recurrent bleeding occurred following 26.3% of interventions in seven patients at a mean interval of 22 days. The site of recurrent bleeding was new in 80% of cases. There was no significant difference in recurrent bleeding rate in early-onset ( 30 d; n=6; P > .05). No ischemic hepatic or bowel complications were identified. The 30-day mortality rate was 7.1% (n = 2) and was significantly higher in patients with initial PPAH at ≥ 39 days (n = 5; P = .007). Conclusions Covered stents and coil embolization are effective for managing PPAH and maintaining distal organ perfusion to minimize morbidity and mortality. Recurrent bleeding is common and most often occurs from new sites of vascular injury rather than previously treated ones.
Indian Professional and Skilled Migration to Australia and Singapore: A Comparative Study

Following the negotiation of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), the movement of individuals or service providers across countries have attained unprecedented recognition. Professional and skilled labour migration forms an important study due to swift economic impact and technological transfer. To the host country, skilled labour means minimal cross-subsidisation of migrant's labour market adjustment by the receiving countries. This preliminary paper has a few objectives. The first is to provide comparative data on Indian professional and skilled migration to Australia and Singapore, secondly the governance of migration in these countries and how far they are adhering to the liberal egalitarian principle of granting people equal opportunities to prove their capabilities and a holistic view of the importance of Indian professional and skilled migration to the economies of Australia and Singapore. BACKGROUND The study of professional and skilled migra- tion is important as it is about people realising their potential, increasing their choices and en- joying freedom to lead lives they value. Investi- gation into the free movement of people reveals access to freedom of movement reflects unequal rights. Although the majority of the world's popu- lation are free to leave their country, only na- tionals of developed countries and highly quali- fied people have the right to enter whichever country they choose. Australia and Singapore have been selected as economic giants facing falling birth rates and the inability to replace themselves naturally. Foreign talent is required to check emigration of local talent. The re- searcher will look at how the barriers and blocked pathways that have prompted emigration can be avoided with the new talent. The issues that may arise due to the research on the Indian ethnic community is just as relevant for other commu- nities. It is hoped that through the findings, both the countries can learn something from each other. Migration and development has become a
Development of Internal-Mixer Technology for the Rubber Industry

Abstract The early rubber industry was largely based on mixing with two-roll mills. The coming of the pneumatic-tire industry associated with the rise in popularity of the automobile brought increasing production and large quantities of fine particles and poisonous vulcanization accelerators. This made necessary the introduction of internal mixers into the rubber industry by the second decade of the 20th century. This paper treats the development of internal mixer technology from its origins in the 19th century to the late 1980's, largely through critically following the patent literature. There seems to be no other critical review of the development of internal mixer technology, and this manuscript is unique. Briefly, the technology development we will describe is as follows: There were two conflicting design approaches, one based upon a single-rotor masticator devised by Thomas Hancock in the early 19th century and a second based upon two nonintermeshing counterrotating rotors which were championed by P...
Texture-Based Image Similarity

Although the notion of visual texture seems, at first, to be familiar and intuitive, there is no definition of texture that is universally accepted. Texture usually refers to a repetition of a perceptually similar pattern over an image region, such that the region is perceived as homogeneous by a human observer. Often, for structural textures (in contrast to statistical ones) such a pattern is referred to as the “texton”. A pattern and its repetition can often be represented well by a spectral decomposition of the texture which captures the amount of repetition in different scales and in different orientations. In this chapter we use Gabor filters to represent texture. We develop two classes of dissimilarity measures: for homogeneous textures and for images that contain many textures, such as natural images. Finally, we present a preprocessing method to enhance the description of the texture content of images.
Forgiveness and Physical Health in Healthy Populations

Significant research has assessed associations of forgiveness and related constructs to health. Whereas forgiveness is letting go of negative and embracing of positive thoughts and behaviors, unforgivingness has been conceptualized as a response toward a transgressor consisting of multiple negative emotions. Research has shown that various measures of health including self-rated physical health, physical health symptoms and somatic symptoms, and cumulative health outcomes are associated with forgivingness and unforgivingness. Evidence suggests that among healthy adults, forgivingness of others and the self is associated with better physical health and unforgivingness of others is associated with poorer health. Theoretical foundations, limitations, and implications of this research are discussed.
Micro- and nanoparticulates for DNA vaccine delivery

DNA vaccination has emerged as a promising alternative to traditional protein-based vaccines for the induction of protective immune responses. DNA vaccines offer several advantages over traditional vaccines, including increased stability, rapid and inexpensive production, and flexibility to produce vaccines for a wide variety of infectious diseases. However, the immunogenicity of DNA vaccines delivered as naked plasmid DNA is often weak due to degradation of the DNA by nucleases and inefficient delivery to immune cells. Therefore, biomaterial-based delivery systems based on micro- and nanoparticles that encapsulate plasmid DNA represent the most promising strategy for DNA vaccine delivery. Microparticulate delivery systems allow for passive targeting to antigen presenting cells through size exclusion and can allow for sustained presentation of DNA to cells through degradation and release of encapsulated vaccines. In contrast, nanoparticle encapsulation leads to increased internalization, overall greater transfection efficiency, and the ability to increase uptake across mucosal surfaces. Moreover, selection of the appropriate biomaterial can lead to increased immune stimulation and activation through triggering innate immune response receptors and target DNA to professional antigen presenting cells. Finally, the selection of materials with the appropriate properties to achieve efficient delivery through administration routes conducive to high patient compliance and capable of generating systemic and local (i.e. mucosal) immunity can lead to more effective humoral and cellular protective immune responses. In this review, we discuss the development of novel biomaterial-based delivery systems to enhance the delivery of DNA vaccines through various routes of administration and their implications for generating immune responses.
Teacher Perspectives on Implementing and Sustaining a Handwashing Promotion Intervention in Western Kenyan Primary Schools

School-based handwashing programs are challenging to establish and sustain, especially in low-resource settings. This qualitative study described teacher perspectives associated with implementing and sustaining a handwashing program in primary schools participating in the Nyando Integrated Child Health and Education (NICHE) project. Structured key informant interviews were conducted with teachers. Prevalent concepts and themes were grouped into themes and topic areas using an iterative, open coding approach. Forty-one teacher respondents reported favorable expectations and benefits of handwashing programs. The importance of available resources (e.g., reliable water) was cited as a primary concern. Other challenges included time and personal or institutional financial commitment necessary to ensure program sustainability. Handwashing programs in low-income, rural schools, where infrastructure is lacking and “student ambassadors” extend the intervention to the surrounding community, hold great promise to im...
Progress of Research on Antibiotic Contamination

Recent research has showed the presence of antibiotics in municipal wastewater,surface water,soils and foods,and there has been a growing interest in the presence of antibiotic residues in the environment.This paper reviews present researches on the use,fate,exposure and ecological effects of antibiotics,and discusses the possible future studies.
Study on survival and reproduction ability of imported oncomelania snail in non-snail area in Guangdong province

Objective To examine viability of imported oncomelania snail in non-snail brooky areas,salty and limnetic water adjacent alluvial deposits at the mouth of Pearl River,and provide evidence to monitor schistosomiasis.Methods Two non-affected places at Dashi town,Panyu district and Wanqingsha,Nansha district,the adjacent region of limnetic and salty water at the mouth of Pearl River,were chosen as observational sites to install 5 snail cages in each place,according to original physiognomy of snail area in Guangdong.Imported oncomelania snails were collected from beaches of Dongting Lake,Yueyang city,Hunan province,in January or August 2006.After identified their life,male or female and infectivity,live snails were putted into two sites,10-50 per cage,and then recorded their life,mating and air temperature in each month.Results The survival rate of the first imported oncomelania snails at Dashi observation site in brooky water dense area was 26.67%(48/180) after 3 months,10.56%(19/180) after 7 months,and 2.22%(4/180) after the longest two survival years.While at Nansha observation site in the salty and limnetic water adjacent region at mouth of Pearl River,the first group showed only 6 months survival time with survival rate of 1.67%(3/180) after 3 months and the second group were 31.20%(78/250),25.60%(64/250) and 1.48%(37/250) after 3 months,6 months and one year respectively.The mating rate of oncomelania snails in two sites were 15.61%(216/1 384) and 14.18 %(134/945) and occurred from January to December,without significant difference(P0.05).On May 10 and June 14,2007,3 second generation snails in Nansha and 4 in Dashi were captured respectively.Conclusion Imported oncomelania snails from Dongting Lake could survive,mate and reproduce under the environment of brooky water dense areas and the salty and limnetic water adjacent alluvial region at mouth of Pearl River in Guangdong province.
Infinite sumsets with many representations

Let A be an infinite set of nonnegative integers. For h ≥ 2, let hA be the set of all sums of h not necessarily distinct elements of A. Suppose that l ≥ 2, and that every sufficiently large integer in the sumset hA has at least l representations. If l = 2, then \(A(x) \geq (\log x/\log h) - w_{0}\), where A(x) counts the number of integers a ∈ A such that 1 ≤ a ≤ x. Lower bounds for A(x) are also obtained for l ≥ 3.