cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Subject Realization in Japanese Conversation by Native and Non-native Speakers: Exemplifying a New Paradigm for Learner Corpus Research

In the field of Learner Corpus Research, Gries and Deshors (Corpora 9(1):109–136, 2014) developed a two-step regression procedure (MuPDAR) to determine how and why choices made by non-native speakers differ from those made by native speakers more comprehensively than traditional learner corpus research allows for. In this chapter, we will extend and test their proposal to determine whether it can also be applied to pragmatic and grammatical phenomena (subject realization/omission in Japanese), and whether it can help study categorical differences between learner and native-speaker choices; we do so by also showing that the more advanced method of mixed-effects modeling can be very fruitfully integrated into the proposed MuPDAR method. The results of our study show that Japanese native speakers’ choices of subject realization are affected by discourse-functional factors such as givenness and contrast of referents and that, while learners are able to handle extreme values of givenness and marked cases of contrast, they still struggle (more) with intermediate degrees of givenness and unmarked/non-contrastive referents. We conclude by discussing the role of MuPDAR in Learner Corpus Research in general and its advantages over traditional corpus analysis in that field and error analysis in particular.
Clinical Principles and Applications of Chemoirradiation

The preceding discussion has been a brief overview of the varied ways in which chemotherapy and radiotherapy can be combined in treating patients with cancer. The practice of chemoirradiation is truly multidisciplinary and, as knowledge in the field expands, should play an increasing role in the control of neoplasms. As molecular biology brings us new targeted therapies, it is hoped that existing treatment regimens can be improved, in terms of both survival and ameliorating acute and late toxicity of therapy.
A solid-state refrigeration based on electrocaloric effect: Device and its analytical model

A device concept of an electrocaloric solid-state refrigeration is presented in this paper. The core component of the device is flexural mode composite actuators, each of which is comprised of an electrocaloric layer and an elastic substrate layer bonded together. The composite actuators have an electric field induced temperature change due to the electrocaloric effect and also have large electric field induced flexural deformation due to the converse piezoelectric effect, which enables the device to bend to contact with the heat source (or heat sink) for transferring heat. An analytical model is derived by considering multi-physical couplings for an edge-clamped circular composite device, which can accurately predict the temperature change of the device as compared with the indirect approach derived from the Maxwell relation. The model shows that the temperature change is a combinatorial result from the couplings of thermal, electric, and mechanical field in the device. Moreover, the model sheds light on exploring the optimization of the solid-state refrigeration device and indicates that different thickness ratios and radius ratios of the composite actuators have a large influence on the cooling performance of the refrigerator.
Assessing object-recognition memory in rats: Pitfalls of the existent tasks and the advantages of a new test

Studies of object-recognition memory in lab rats began in the late 1980s, using variants of the trial-unique delayed nonmatching-to-sample (DNMS) task. By the end of the 20th century, most investigators who wanted to study object-recognition in rodents had abandoned the DNMS task in favor of the novel-object-preference (NOP) test, mainly because the latter test is relatively easy to employ, whereas conventional DNMS tasks are not. Some concerns have been raised, however, about the internal validity of the NOP test as a method of measuring object-recognition abilities. We describe two experiments using a new DNMS procedure which requires considerably less training than the DNMS tasks of the 1980s and 1990s, and which cannot be subject to the same criticisms that have been leveled at the NOP test. In Experiment 1, rats were trained on the new modified-DNMS (mDNMS) task using short delays. Rats successfully learned the nonmatching rule in fewer than 25 trials, and they made accurate choices with retention intervals of up to 10 min. Experiment 2 examined a different group of rats' performance on the mDNMS task following long retention intervals (72 h, 3 weeks, and ~45 weeks). Rats made accurate choices on all retention intervals, even the longest retention interval of ~45 weeks. Overall, the findings demonstrate some benefits of an alternative approach to assess object-recognition memory in rats.
Parallel propagation and damping of electromagnetic waves in a partially ionized plasma with multiple species

We study the propagation of electromagnetic waves (or incompressible waves with negligible thermal pressure) along the magnetic field in a partially ionized plasma with multiple species. Because of differences in mass and density, each species responds to and hence affects the perturbations of electromagnetic fields differently. Collisions among all the species further complicate the process. With a linear analysis, the dispersion relation of parallel propagation covering a large range of frequencies, from magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) waves to light waves, with an arbitrary combination of multiple positively charged species, negatively charged species, and neutral species is derived based on a multi-fluid treatment, in combination with Faraday's law and Ampere's law including the displacement current. In a collisional plasma, when the collision frequency is lower than the gyrofrequencies of charged species, the resonances are at the gyrofrequencies of each charged species and the cutoff frequencies are related to the densities of the charged species. Stopbands in which waves propagate with extremely high phase velocity but are strongly damped form between some of these characteristic frequencies. In the MHD wave frequency range, the coupling with neutral species slows the propagation speed compared with the Alfven speed. The collisions between plasma and neutrons efficiently contribute to the wave damping, which is significantly reduced when the neutral species are completely driven with plasma by collisions. When the collisions become stronger, the resonances and cutoffs become weaker and may disappear. The species could couple tightly and act as a single fluid if the collisions among them are strong enough.
Accuracy and precision of protein structures determined by magic angle spinning NMR spectroscopy: for some 'with a little help from a friend'.

We present a systematic investigation into the attainable accuracy and precision of protein structures determined by heteronuclear magic angle spinning solid-state NMR for a set of four proteins of varied size and secondary structure content. Structures were calculated using synthetically generated random sets of C-C distances up to 7 A at different degrees of completeness. For single-domain proteins, 9–15 restraints per residue are sufficient to derive an accurate model structure, while maximum accuracy and precision are reached with over 15 restraints per residue. For multi-domain proteins and protein assemblies, additional information on domain orientations, quaternary structure and/or protein shape is needed. As demonstrated for the HIV-1 capsid protein assembly, this can be accomplished by integrating MAS NMR with cryoEM data. In all cases, inclusion of TALOS-derived backbone torsion angles improves the accuracy for small number of restraints, while no further increases are noted for restraint completeness above 40%. In contrast, inclusion of TALOS-derived torsion angle restraints consistently increases the precision of the structural ensemble at all degrees of distance restraint completeness.
The effect of noncollinearity of 15N-1H dipolar and 15N CSA tensors and rotational anisotropy on 15N relaxation, CSA/dipolar cross correlation, and TROSY.

Current approaches to 15N relaxation in proteins assume that the 15N-1H dipolar and 15N CSA tensors are collinear. We show theoretically that, when there is significant anisotropy of molecular rotation, different orientations of the two tensors, experimentally observed in proteins, nucleic acids, and small peptides, will result in differences in site- specific correlation functions and spectral densities. The standard treatments of the rates of longitudinal and transverse relaxation of amide 15N nuclei, of the 15N CSA/15N-1H dipolar cross correlation, and of the TROSY experiment are extended to account for the effect of noncollinearity of the 15N-1H dipolar and 15N CSA (chemical shift anisotropy) tensors. This effect, proportional to the degree of anisotropy of the overall motion, (D‖/D⊥−1), is sensitive to the relative orientation of the two tensors and to the orientation of the peptide plane with respect to the diffusion coordinate frame. The effect is negligible at small degrees of anisotropy, but is predicted to become significant for D‖/D⊥≥1.5, and at high magnetic fields. The effect of noncollinearity of 15N CSA and 15N-1H dipolar interaction is sensitive to both gross (hydrodynamic) properties and atomic-level details of protein structure. Incorporation of this effect into relaxation data analysis is likely to improve both precision and accuracy of the derived characteristics of protein dynamics, especially at high magnetic fields and for molecules with a high degree of anisotropy of the overall motion. The effect will also make TROSY efficiency dependent on local orientation in moderately anisotropic systems.
Synaptotagmin-7 endows a population of chromaffin cell vesicles with enhanced calcium sensing and delayed content release properties

Synaptotagmin-7 (Syt-7) is one of two major calcium sensors for exocytosis in adrenal chromaffin cells, the other being synaptotagmin-1 (Syt-1). Despite its undoubted importance, questions remain as to the functional and physiological role of Syt-7 in secretion. We examined this issue using two distinct preparations - mouse chromaffin cells lacking endogenous Syt-7 (KO cells) and a reconstituted system employing cell-derived vesicles expressing either Syt-7 or Syt-1. First, we report using immunofluorescence that Syt-7 exhibits a punctate intracellular distribution consistent with its sorting to organelles, including dense core vesicles. We also find that the likelihood of vesicle fusion in KO cells is markedly lower than in WT cells. When fusion does occur, cargoes are discharged more rapidly when only Syt-1 is available to facilitate release. A distinctive characteristic of KO cells is that secretion runs down after prolonged cholinergic stimulation. In contrast, exocytosis persists in WT cells even with extended exposure to acetylcholine, suggesting a key role for Syt-7 in sustaining the secretory response. To determine the extent to which the aforementioned results are attributable purely to Syt-7, vesicles expressing only Syt-7 or Syt-1 were triggered to fuse on planar supported bilayers bearing plasma membrane SNARE proteins. Here, as in cells, Syt-7 confers substantially greater calcium sensitivity to vesicle fusion than Syt-1 and slows the rate at which cargos are released. Overall, this study demonstrates that by virtue of its high affinity for calcium, Syt-7 plays a central role in regulating secretory output from adrenal chromaffin cells.
A non-cooperative meta-modeling game for automated third-party calibrating, validating, and falsifying constitutive laws with parallelized adversarial attacks

Abstract The evaluation of constitutive models, especially for high-risk and high-regret engineering applications, requires efficient and rigorous third-party calibration, validation and falsification. While there are numerous efforts to develop paradigms and standard procedures to validate models, difficulties may arise due to the sequential, manual, and often biased nature of the commonly adopted calibration and validation processes, thus slowing down data collections, hampering the progress towards discovering new physics, increasing expenses and possibly leading to misinterpretations of the credibility and application ranges of proposed models. This work attempts to introduce concepts from game theory and machine learning techniques to overcome many of these existing difficulties. We introduce an automated meta-modeling game where two competing AI agents systematically generate experimental data to calibrate a given constitutive model and to explore its weakness such that the experiment design and model robustness can be improved through competitions. The two agents automatically search for the Nash equilibrium of the meta-modeling game in an adversarial reinforcement learning framework without human intervention. In particular, a protagonist agent seeks to find the more effective ways to generate data for model calibrations, while an adversary agent tries to find the most devastating test scenarios that expose the weaknesses of the constitutive model calibrated by the protagonist. By capturing all possible design options of the laboratory experiments into a single decision tree, we recast the design of experiments as a game of combinatorial moves that can be resolved through deep reinforcement learning by the two competing players. Our adversarial framework emulates idealized scientific collaborations and competitions among researchers to achieve a better understanding of the application range of the learned material laws and prevent misinterpretations caused by conventional AI-based third-party validation. Numerical examples are given to demonstrate the wide applicability of the proposed meta-modeling game with adversarial attacks on both human-crafted constitutive models and machine learning models.
Role of simulation in COVID-19 management

Simulation is a method of teaching which uses simple and/or sophisticated technology to educate the target audience through guided experience and interactions that evoke real-world scenarios, which is being increasingly used in the field of medicine. Specifically, in situ simulation that is designed using specific scenarios within environments that replicate real-world clinical issues, to train multidisciplinary teams to test systems, and improve outcomes. Although it is routinely used for supplementing medical education, the current COVID-19 pandemic gives us a perfect opportunity to use simulation to test the preparedness of health-care facilities for managing COVID-19 patients and also to train health-care workers (HCWs) in the skills necessary to protect themselves from the infection while taking care of the infected patients. The HCWs can be trained in various aspects of personal safety, as well as modifications to their existing protocols needed to take care of COVID-19 patients. Here, we present how the health facilities can adopt simulation to prepare for the current pandemic and identify gaps in the systems and processes that can be corrected. We also share our experience of using this methodology for COVID-19 preparedness in a tertiary care pediatric facility.
Resection vs. SBRT for Stage I NSCLC in Patients with Good Pulmonary Function

Lobectomy has long been standard of care for stage I non-small cell lung cancer. In non-surgical candidates, however, the only treatment option historically was conventional radiation therapy, which was associated with poor outcomes. Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) has since proven to be a good alternative in these patients, and now the debate rages regarding SBRT versus surgical resection for operable patients. In patients with good cardiopulmonary function and few comorbidities, lobectomy remains the treatment of choice based on superior long-term survival. For borderline patients who cannot tolerate lobectomy, segmental resection appears to be superior to SBRT, although the evidence is weak. In patients with a limited life expectancy due to frailty or comorbidities, both wedge resections and SBRT can be considered, especially for peripheral tumors less than 2 cm in diameter.
Can a Domain-General Spatial Intervention Facilitate Children's Science Learning? A Lesson From Astronomy.

Correlational studies link spatial‐test scores and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics achievement. Here we asked whether children's understanding of astronomical phenomena would benefit from a prior intervention targeting a core component of children's projective spatial concepts—understanding that viewers' visual experiences are affected by vantage point. Children (8–9 years; N = 66) received outdoor and indoor experiences that did (Experimental) or did not (Control) focus on how scene appearance is affected by viewers' positions and movements. All then received an astronomy lesson about celestial motions (e.g., Sun apparent motion). Experimental‐group children scored higher on immediate and 1‐week perspective‐taking tests and explained celestial phenomena more accurately than did control‐group children. Data demonstrate that general spatial training—divorced from specific science content—can aid children's subsequent learning of scientific phenomena. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Quantifying the vertical diversification development stage of old-growth Douglas-fir to derive stage-specific targets for restoration silviculture

Structural variability in natural Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirbel) Franco) forests hinders restoration targets for the full old-growth developmental sequence. To guide stage-specific res...
Trait-based filtering mediates the effects of realistic biodiversity losses on ecosystem functioning

Biodiversity losses are a major driver of global changes in ecosystem functioning. While most studies of the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning have examined randomized species losses, trait-based filtering associated with species-specific vulnerability to drivers of diversity loss can strongly influence how ecosystem functioning responds to declining biodiversity. Moreover, the responses of ecosystem functioning to diversity loss may be mediated by environmental variability interacting with the suite of traits remaining in depauperate communities. We do not yet understand how communities resulting from realistic diversity losses (filtered by response traits) influence ecosystem functioning (via effect traits of the remaining community), especially under variable environmental conditions. Here, we directly test how realistic and randomized plant diversity losses influence productivity and invasion resistance across multiple years in a California grassland. Compared with communities based on randomized diversity losses, communities resulting from realistic (drought-driven) species losses had higher invasion resistance under climatic conditions that matched the trait-based filtering they experienced. However, productivity declined more with realistic than with randomized species losses across all years, regardless of climatic conditions. Functional response traits aligned with effect traits for productivity but not for invasion resistance. Our findings illustrate that the effects of biodiversity losses depend not only on the identities of lost species but also on how the traits of remaining species interact with varying environmental conditions. Understanding the consequences of biodiversity change requires studies that evaluate trait-mediated effects of species losses and incorporate the increasingly variable climatic conditions that future communities are expected to experience.
Managerial tenure and earnings management

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to understand the impact of tenure on earnings management. Design/methodology/approach – Analytical model; multivariate regression analysis. Findings – The paper predicts that managers are conservative in managing earnings when they first start to take top managerial positions, and then become aggressive in the next few years. Once they reach the maximum level of earnings management, they will become conservative again and report earnings less aggressively. This inverted U-shaped relationship between tenure and earnings management is confirmed by the data from the Chinese stock market. Research limitations/implications – It is based on China stock market data. Generalization of the research results to other countries is limited. Practical implications – With the knowledge of when earnings management is more likely to occur, regulators can set up policies targeting firms and managers with certain characteristics, instead of requiring observances from all firms and man...
Searching for Utopia

Summary A recurrent theme throughout the history of modern social welfare is dissatisfaction with how services are provided and by whom. This article, using media reports, traces the cycles of public sentiment, as expressed through the media, about the capabilities of public, nonprofit, and for-profit human service providers. An enhanced role for each sector is associated with periods of disillusionment with other sectors, stemming from such factors as poor quality performance, management and accountability failures, and outright wrong doing. Raised expectations, grounded on wishes rather than evidence, it is argued, are likely to result in a cyclical “fall from grace” of each type of service provider. Some of these sector failures in recent years are discussed and their common themes identified. An analysis of thematic patterns reveals that all sectors have been found wanting. Media portrayals reflect perceptions about sector performance “in the moment” and are susceptible to change at the next hint of p...
The hybrid doctor–patient relationship in the age of technology – Telepsychiatry consultations and the use of virtual space

The doctor-patient relationship is evolving and changing through the impact of many technological, social and environmental factors. These factors will be examined, especially the impact of changing attitudes among younger generations of physicians and patients who live in an information-driven networked world. Telepsychiatry is already over 50 years old and has a strong evidence base which suggests that it is a better form of practice compared with the traditional in-person consultation for certain patient groups. In particular, telepsychiatry encourages intimacy in relationships through the use of the 'virtual space' in the consultation, better collaboration between psychiatrists and primary care physicians, and improved patient satisfaction. The practice of psychiatry will change through the use of mobile devices, asynchronous consultations, and the opportunities that automated interpretation and translation bring to work across cultures. The future will likely bring many psychiatrists working increasingly in a hybrid model, both in-person, and online, using the strengths of both approaches to improve patient care.
Making the Move: A Mixed Research Integrative Review

The purpose of this mixed research integrative review is to determine factors that influence relocation transitions for older adults who are considering a move from independent living to supervised housing, such as assisted living, using the Theory of Planned Behavior as a conceptual guide. PubMED, CINAHL, and PsychInfo databases were queried using key words: relocation, transition, older adults, and, elderly and time limited from 1992 to 2014. Sixteen articles were retained for review. The majority of articles, qualitative in design, reveal that older adults who comprehend the need to move and participate in the decision-making process of a relocation adjust to new living environments with fewer negative outcomes than older adults who experience a forced relocation. The few quantitative articles examined the elements of impending relocation using a variety of instruments but support the necessity for older adults to recognize the possibility of a future move and contribute to the relocation process. Additionally, the influence of family, friends, and health care providers provides the older adult with support and guidance throughout the process.
Spinal Cord Stimulation for the Treatment of Neuropathic Pain Associated With Leprosy: A Case Report.

Background Leprosy is a major source of nerve damage and may lead to neuropathic pain as well as complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS). Spinal cord stimulation is an effective treatment for CRPS, but there are no reports of this treatment in a patient with leprosy. Case Presentation The patient is a 55-year-old man who presented with CRPS in the arms and legs secondary to leprosy that persisted despite multidrug therapy, steroid treatment, and intravenous immunoglobulin. His pain and opioid use were both decreased with insertion of cervical and thoracic spinal cord stimulators. Conclusion Spinal cord stimulation may be a valuable intervention for patients with leprosy-induced CRPS.
The stability analysis of an inflexion-free velocity profile and its application to the night-time boundary layer in the atmosphere

The characteristics of waves excited in a stratified shear flow with a velocity profile monotonically increasing above the ground are calculated numerically. It is shown that unstable modes exist when the Brunt-Vaisala frequency of the ambient atmosphere decreases sufficiently fast with height. Their growth rates as a function of the horizontal wavelength and the local Richardson number are given, and a comparison between them and experimental data obtained for the night-time-boundary layer of the Earth's atmosphere is carried out. Finally, the characteristics of the singular neutral modes that the system can support are presented.
Comparison of transient protein expression in tobacco leaves and plant suspension culture.

Transient gene expression is being developed to provide a more rapid means of assessing plant tissues as a protein production platform without the labor-intensive and time-consuming process of generating stably transformed transgenic plants. Transient expression of the gus-intron reporter gene was facilitated in three different tobacco species. Two different approaches to T-DNA delivery were compared: (1) infiltration of a prototrophic strain of Agrobacterium into leaves and (2) coculture of plant cell suspension cultures with an Agrobacterium auxotroph. Wounding of plant tissues with a wire brush prior to infiltration had a large positive impact on Nicotiana benthamiana leaves but not for Nicotiana tabacum or Nicotiana glutinosa. The best expression level achieved by leaf infiltration was in N. benthamiana (0.025% total soluble protein). A cell suspension culture line of N. glutinosa achieved an expression level greater than 0.04% TSP. The tissue culture-based technique therefore provides improved levels of transient expression under aseptic conditions to facilitate improvements in expression by control of the plant cell culture and Agrobacterium coculture environments.
The Diet Quality Index-Revised: A Tool to Promote and Evaluate Dietary Change among Older Cancer Survivors Enrolled in a Home-Based Intervention Trial

Abstract Objective To utilize the Diet Quality Index-Revised (DQI-R) as a framework for delivering and evaluating an intervention to improve overall diet quality among older cancer survivors. Design As part of a randomized controlled trial to improve lifestyle behaviors among older cancer survivors, we sought a dietary measure that could serve as both an intervention framework and a means to evaluate global dietary quality. The DQI-R measures overall diet quality by summing 10 subscales that relate to national guidelines. At baseline, DQI-R scores were generated from three multi-pass 24-hour dietary recalls. The 6-month intervention delivered tailored feedback on individual DQI-R subscales. Dietary recalls were repeated at 6 and 12 months. Subjects Elderly (aged ≥65 years) individuals within 18 months of diagnosis of breast or prostate cancer (n=182) were randomized postbaseline measures to intervention vs attention control arms. Results Significant differences in overall diet quality were observed between arms at 6 months, with the intervention arm improving (67.6±12.2 to 69.8±13.9), and controls declining (67.5±12.5 to 64.6±14.7) ( P =0.003). Significant differences were observed between arms over time in dietary diversity subscale scores: baseline and 6-month follow-up means among intervention and control arms were 4.8±1.3 to 4.8±1.4, and 4.7±1.2 to 4.1±1.1, respectively ( P =0.001). Conclusions The DQI-R served as an effective guide and evaluation tool for this diet-related randomized controlled trial. Like many interventions, our effect diminished after the intervention was complete. Future research should consider testing interventions that use the DQI-R, or other global diet-related indexes, as guides and evaluation tools over longer study periods, as well as in other populations.
AML1 haploinsufficiency, gene dosage, and the predisposition to acute leukemia.

Hematopoiesis is the complex developmental process through which undifferentiated, pluripotent, hematopoietic stem cells come to generate mature, functional blood cells. This process is regulated in large part by specific transcription factors that control expression of genes necessary for the developmental sequence. Leukemias represent one form of disruption of this normal developmental process, and studies over the past few years have shown that many of the genes that underlay leukemogenesis are also essential for normal hematopoiesis. In an interesting recent example, Song et al.(1) demonstrate that haploinsufficiency of the AML1 gene is the genetic basis of a form of familial thrombocytopenia which predisposes the affected individuals to the development of acute myeloid leukemia. Here we summarize Song's paper and current information describing the interesting dosage effects of this gene and other members of its gene family. BioEssays 22:214–218, 2000. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
The evolution of endoscopic ultrasound: improved imaging, higher accuracy for fine needle aspiration and the reality of endoscopic ultrasound-guided interventions.

Purpose of review Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) is one of the fastest growing areas within gastrointestinal endoscopy. Although the growth in the United States has been steady, EUS is exploding in areas of Asia and Eastern Europe. As utilization of EUS is increasing, so is the evolution of the discipline itself. As a result, it is critically important to periodically review the current state of the art. From its inception, EUS has been primarily utilized for staging cancer, assessment of pancreatic disease and evaluation of submucosal lesions. Recent findings EUS has evolved and is now dominated by the application of EUS-guided fine needle aspiration cytology (EUS-FNA), and the newest emerging application is EUS-guided interventions. The recent literature is a reflection of these trends, with some articles devoted to the standard applications for EUS, but most of the emphasis is on EUS-FNA and EUS-guided interventions. Summary This current review has important clinical implications, as it contains new information on standard applications for endoscopic ultrasound that should be adopted into clinical practice and also provides a glimpse into the future through EUS-guided interventions.
Effects of an Acid Catalyst on the Inorganic Domain of Inorganic−Organic Hybrid Materials

New inorganic−organic hybrid coatings have been developed using linseed oil and sunflower oil with the sol−gel precursor tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS). Hydrochloric acid (HCl) was used to catalyze the sol−gel reactions. The effects of HCl concentration on the morphology and distribution of the inorganic phase were investigated. Tensile properties, fracture toughness, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA) of the ceramer coatings were evaluated as a function of acid catalyst concentration. In addition, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersion X-ray analysis (EDAX) were used to investigate the morphology. The tensile properties showed an optimum acid concentration of 1.0 wt %. The fracture properties indicated that the greatest resistance to crack propagation was obtained with an acid concentration of 0.25 wt %. Thermogravimetric data showed that the thermal stability of the ceramer films increased with increasing acid catalyst. For TEOS/linseed ce...
Isolation and morphologic differentiation in vitro of villous cytotrophoblast cells from rhesus monkey placenta

Trophoblast is the major functional cell type of the placenta. The purpose of this study was to devise a means to isolate trophoblast cells from the monkey placenta and to examine their capacity to differentiate in vitro. Methods originally devised for the isolation of human cytotrophoblast cells produced poor yields and a low degree of purity when applied to the near-term rhesus monkey placenta. However, a procedure has been developed which allows the isolation of a cell population consisting of more than 95% cytotrophoblast based on intermediate filament immunocytochemistry. The cells sedimented between densities of 1.040 and 1.053 g/ml on continuous Percoll density gradient centrifugation. When maintained in culture the cells adhered and formed aggregates of mononuclear cells by 24 h. By 5 d in culture, immunofluorescent staining using antidesmoplakin and antinuclear antibodies revealed that most colonies consisted of large multinucleated masses similar to syncytiotrophoblast. These results demonstrate trophoblast cells from monkey placental villi can be isolated with a high degree of purity and undergo morphologic, differentiation in vitro. This preparation should enable investigators to study many functional characteristics of these cells throughout gestation.
Recombinant Human Thyroid Peroxidase Generated in Eukaryotic Cells: A Source of Specific Antigen for the Immunological Assay of Antimicrosomal Antibodies in the Sera of Patients with Autoimmune Thyroid Disease

Recombinant, enzymatically active human thyroid peroxidase (hTPO) generated in nonthyroidal eukaryotic cells was compared with Graveso' thyroid microsomes as a source of antigen for the immunological detection of antimicrosomal/anti-hTPO antibodies. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay of 51 sera, selected to produce a balanced distribution of antimicrosomal antibody (anti-MSA) levels, revealed (at 1:100 serum dilution) a moderately good correlation between anti-MSA and anti-hTPO antibody levels (r = 0.668; P < 0.001). However, a number of sera with high anti-MSA levels yielded markedly discordant values between the two assays. A much lower correlation was observed between antithyroglobulin and anti-hTPO antibody levels (r = 0.315; P < 0.05). At higher serum dilutions (1:1,000 and 1:10,000), at which low affinity, high capacity binding reactions will be reduced, the correlation between anti-MSA and anti-hTPO antibody values was greatly improved (r = 0.906 and 0.902, respectively; P < 0.001), and there were n...
Anatomically Corrected Malposition of the Great Arteries

We present cardiac magnetic resonance images of a 6-year-old with a suspected great artery abnormality in the setting of mesocardia, atrial situs solitus, D-looping of the ventricles, and anatomically corrected malposition of the great arteries with subaortic and subpulmonary conus.
A NEW, ARTIFICIAL SEA WATER THAT FACILITATES GROWTH OF LARGE NUMBERS OF CELLS OF ACETABULARIA ACETABULUM (CHLOROPHYTA) AND REDUCES THE LABOR INHERENT IN CELL CULTURE1

We designed a new, artificial seawater (Ace 25) in order to grow bulk cultures of Acetabularia acetabulum (L.) Silva with a minimum of labor. To this end, we modified the traditional recipe for cell growth (Muller's medium as modified by Schweiger et al.) We eliminated five of the inorganic chemicals and determined the optimum concentration for 16 of the remaining 18 inorganic chemicals from modified Muller's seawater. Ace 25 enables growth of A. acetabulum from the beginning of the juvenile phase through gametangial formation in 11 weeks at high cell densities without medium replenishment. This represents a 98% reduction in the seawater volume required to mature each cell, a 30–40% reduction of the duration of the life cycle, an estimated 80% reduction in labor, and a 50–95% reduction in the space required for culturing A. acetabulum as compared with traditional procedures. These improvements may facilitate studies that require large numbers of cells such as population studies, genetics, and biochemistry, contribute to understanding the nutritional requirements of marine algae, and extend the use of this cell to those who lack the space or manpower to grow the cells in the traditional manner.
Generalized predictive TCQ of speech

Trellis coded quantization (TCQ) is incorporated into a noise feedback coding structure for encoding sampled speech. The effects of varying the encoding delay and the number of symbols released per trace-back on system performance and complexity are investigated.
A Real-Time Fortran Implementation of a Sensor Failure Detection, Isolation and Accommodation Algorithm

In recent years, advanced aircraft turbine engine controls have been implemented using digital electronic control mechanisms rather than the hydromechanical control mechanisms used in the past. Studies have shown, however, that digital electronic controls cannot attain sufficient reliability without some level of control component redundancy. There are three areas in which redundancy can be incorporated to improve the reliability of a digital electronic control system. They are the sensors, the actuators and the controls computer itself. The algorithm described herein addresses redundancy in the sensor set. An Advanced, Sensor Failure Detection, Isolation, and Accommodation (ADIA) algorithm for the F100 turbofan engine has been developed for NASA Lewis Research Center under contract. This algorithm uses software or analytical redundancy of the sensors to improve the reliability of the sensor set. The method used requires the controls computer, through software, to determine when a sensor failure has occured without the aid of redundant hardware sensors in the control system. The controls computer then provides an estimate of the correct value of the failed sensor's output to the control system. This algorithm has been programmed at NASA Lewis on a real-time, microprocessor-based controls computer. A detailed description of the algorithm and its microprocessor implementation can be found in reference 9. Previous to the ADIA algorithm implementation, advanced control algorithms at NASA Lewis were programmed using fixed point assembly language.
Corrigendum: New insights into Rho signaling from plant ROP/Rac GTPases: [Trends in Cell Biology 22 (2012), 492–501]

In the Acknowledgments, the authors wrote that this work was supported by funding from the Department of Education (DE-FG02-04ER15555) to Z.Y. The text should have read Department of Energy. We apologize to the readers of this article for this error.
Mate selection in the fly Scatophaga stercoraria: female choice in a male-controlled system

Sexual pairing in the fly Scatophaga stercoraria involves ‘capture’ of females by males. Sizerelated choice by males and females is considered, because these flies are highly variable in size, and size strongly affects reproductive success. Results show that males do not discriminate among females on the basis of size. Females choose large males when free to select mates. They move toward larger males when contronted by more than one possible mate, and their movement on the oviposition site takes them to areas where large males are more common. Females paired with large males gain from (1) reduced harm in struggles; (2) more rapid copulation and oviposition, with lower risk to the female and her progeny; and (3) greater ability to escape danger during copulation. These benefits may account for female preference for large males.
Misconceptions about posterior approach for renoureteral surgery

Misconceptions about the posterior approach for renal and ureteral surgery are dispelled. A review of the pertinent lumbar anatomy and a few fine points of technique are emphasized. The advantages of easy access to the kidney, minimal postoperative pain, and absence of the occurrence of postoperative hernia warrant more frequent use of this procedure.
Changing Woman: Postcolonial Reflections On Acts 16.6-40

Most contemporary interpreters of Acts 16.6-40 describe Paul's journey in Mace donia as a 'missionary journey to Europe'. This essay challenges that designation, arguing that it is a colonialist geographic identification with no actual textual basis, and one that has helped foster the ideology of modern colonialist missionary movements. Nevertheless, the essay goes on to note that there is solid textual evi dence for arguing Acts 16.6-40 does indeed mark a change in Paul's missionary activity, one that is now more explicitly in conflict with Roman colonial power. After identifying the evidence for this, the essay takes a cue from Musa Dube Shomanah's 1997 Vanderbilt dissertation and argues that Lydia and the pythonic slave girl function as 'border women' whose presence evokes a colonialist 'land- possession type-scene' similar to those related with Rahab (Josh. 2), the Syro Phoenician woman (Mk 7), and the Samaritan woman (Jn 4).The struggle for the ideological possession of the land and women reminds the...
Existence and uniqueness of solutions to a stationary finite element model of the biharmonic equation

Abstract This paper describes the finite element approximations based on a stationary variational principle of the biharmonic equation. Independent approximations for the solution and its second derivatives are used in the element: the normal derivatives of the solution and its second derivatives are approximated independently on the element boundary. Thus, the present model is a ‘mixed-hybrid’ model. Existence and uniqueness of solutions to the exact weak (or variational) problem are established and the associated finite element approximations are described. Existence and uniqueness of the finite element solutions are proved and a priori error estimates are given.
Active matching networks for wideband terahertz receivers

Output impedance matching of zero-bias millimeter-wave detector diodes is investigated in the context of THz communications sensors. More specifically, an active matching network, targeted to improve power reception in THz range incoherent AM demodulators, is developed. The active network is, then, combined with a practical THz envelope detector to illustrate the enhancement in baseband power reception and impedance bandwidth expansion, brought about by the proposed matching configuration. Numerical examples are presented to demonstrate that performance of the active matching network is superior to that of conventional passive matching networks in terms of bandwidth and reception quality.
Growth hormone secretion in starvation: a reassessment.

ABSTRACT HGH secretion was assessed in 7 men during a control period and during starvation. Plasma samples were collected hourly for 24 hr in each period. Starvation for 72 hr increased growth hormone secretion in each individual. Overall, fasting resulted in a 2½ to 3-fold increase of growth hormone secretion. Secretion of hGH was greater in premenopausal women than in men during a control period, but no significant increase of hGH secretion occurred in women after 72 hr of fasting.
A geometrical product specification language based on a classification of symmetry groups

Abstract A relatively old and deeply entrenched engineering “language” universally used by draughtsmen for specifying product geometry is undergoing renovation for the modern information age. Part of the renovation process is to find a set of firm mathematical principles that can support much of the edifice that has served industry well thus far. This search has turned up a set of surprisingly powerful results based on an elegant classification of continuous subgroups of rigid motion. Among them is a compact classification of surface features and lower order kinematic pairs, their reduction to simpler geometric elements that preserve the classification and serve as datums, and a rationale for parameterizing the relative positioning of geometric objects. These results are now being enthusiastically embraced by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as part of the basic principles to define the next generation of a product geometry specification language. The paper tells this story.
Osteoporosis action: design of the healthy bones project trial.

Abstract Although osteoporosis is common in older adults, it is often under-diagnosed and under-treated. We developed community-based patient- and physician-directed interventions for fracture prevention and compared them in a 2×2 factorial randomized controlled trial. The study population included older adults who were enrolled in a state-run pharmacy benefits program (The Pharmaceutical Assistance Contract for the Elderly in Pennsylvania) for Medicare beneficiaries. We randomly assigned 826 primary care physicians and their 31,715 patients to one of four trial arms—no patient and no physician intervention, patient but no physician intervention, physician but no patient intervention, both patient and physician interventions. The patient intervention consisted of targeted communication about fall and fracture prevention and osteoporosis diagnosis and treatment. It was delivered through several mailings. The physician intervention entailed one-on-one academic detailing encounters covering the same topics. The composite primary endpoint consisted of use of osteoporosis medication or a bone mineral density test. Other endpoints included patient's knowledge and attitudes towards fractures and osteoporosis, use of lower extremity strengthening to prevent falls, and the occurrence of fractures. All outcomes will be analyzed using random effects models accounting for clustering of subjects within physicians' practices.
Fast retinal potential luminosity functions.

Abstract The adaptation dependence of high frequency signals (fast retinal potentials or FRP's) was analyzed from measures taken from the human cornea. Narrow band chromatic stimuli were presented to two normal S's under photopic, mesopic, and scotopic adaption conditions. Signals were recorded in two pass bands, broad band (0.2 Hz–2 kHz) and highpass (50 Hz–2 kHz). Results support two primary conclusions: (1) Fast components (above 50 Hz) recorded from the human cornea were related primarily to photopic mechanisms; (2) Fast components educted by analog filtering techniques gave no indication of being differentially related to any single spectral mechanisms. The relationship between conventional and FRP components are discussed with the mechanisms which may initiate the FRP signal.
The Relational Self and the Right to Give Care1

A public ethic of care is a powerful tool for understanding and developing ethical and effective social policies. After sketching care theory and its central values and claims, this article identifies hospice programs as embodying a public ethic of care. Then, it scrutinizes the care needs and practices of terminally ill patients and families who are served by hospices. Building on this analysis, I argue that in the United States caregivers are made unduly vulnerable, and that impediments and strains to caregiving can be detrimental to the development and exercise of basic human capabilities. Accordingly, the article makes the case for a right to give care. It also concludes that public efforts to mitigate the burdens of informal caregiving are necessary to make such a right meaningful.