cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effects of oxalate and persulfate addition to Electrofenton and Electrofenton-Fenton processes for oxidation of Ketoprofen: Determination of reactive species and mass balance analysis

Abstract Electrofenton (EF) has been widely used to remove contaminants from aqueous solution, while Electrofenton-fenton (EFF), is a two stage process that employs partial electrolysis, needs further study. In addition, a combination of oxalate and persulfate with these systems (EF-Oxalate, EFF-Oxalate, EF-Persulfate, and EFF-Persulfate) could improve the oxidation capacity. This study assessed the applicability of these systems for degradation of Ketoprofen as an emerging contaminant. Under batch experiments, results showed that the order of oxidation capacity and mineralization is EF-Persulfate > EFF-Persulfate > EF-Oxalate > EFF-Oxalate > EFF > EF. Radical scavenger experiments indicated that OH is the dominant radical species in EF, EFF, EF-Oxalate, and EFF-Oxalate systems. However, both OH and 1O2 participated in oxidation of Ketoprofen in both EF-Persulfate and EFF-Persulfate processes. Fe(II)/Total Fe ratios in both solution and sludge samples decreased as oxidation capacity enhanced. Solution and sludge analyses revealed that the amount of Ketoprofen and oxidation byproducts increased in sludge over time. Carbon mass balance calculations showed that EF-Persulfate leaves the lowest amount of oxidation by-products in the system. BOD5/COD ratio analyses demonstrated that all studied systems improved biodegradability of the raw wastewater. EFF and EF-Persulfate systems had the lowest and highest operational costs, respectively. Competitive maps were developed to compare all six processes by Ketoprofen removal efficiency, mineralization capacity, and operational costs. Results confirmed that addition of oxalate and persulfate to EF and EFF systems provide good solutions to decrease the load and risk posed by Ketoprofen to water systems.
Public Service Education: Adding Value in the Public Interest

AbstractThe goal of public service education is to prepare students to serve in the public interest. Educational outcome measurement is an important method in determining whether public service pro...
ELECTROHYDRODYNAMIC SURFACE WAVES

Publisher Summary Fundamental to interactions, regardless of the configuration, is the dynamics “in the small,” on a scale where the interface at least starts out essentially planar. This chapter focuses on the dynamics of planar interfaces subjected to piece-wise uniform perpendicular fields. It reviews interfacial interactions in the absence of electrical shear stresses. The chapter describes the research that is aimed at understanding waves and instabilities with shear stresses. It discusses the identification of surface-dilatation modes that account for the tendency of highly insulating interfaces supporting trapped charge to behave as equipotentials. The chapter exemplifies the “imposed ω-k” technique of studying the sinusoidal steady state electrical response with the wave-number imposed. Instabilities are the result of applying fields to planar interfaces and recent developments have shown that these can be used to print. The chapter describes a related “imposed ω-k” technique in which steady streaming results from the imposition of a traveling wave. Shear-stress interactions have been reviewed and new experimental results for traveling-wave, interactions with trapped-charge modes on insulating interfaces and gravity-capillary field coupled modes on equipotential interfaces have been compared to predictions.
Failure rates and survival analysis of maxillary expansion appliances: a 24-year retrospective analysis.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to describe the failure rates of maxillary expansion appliances (MEAs) and assess risk variables associated with failures and treatment time. METHODS Retrospective chart reviews were performed on 436 primary or mixed dentition patients presenting with crossbite to a private practice between 1981-2005. Survival analysis was used to analyze and compare the types of MEAs with respect to the treatment time. The effect of demographic and clinical characteristics on appliance failure and treatment time was assessed using linear and logistic regression models. RESULTS The average age at insertion of a MEA was 8 years, 4 months (+/-1.72 SD). Nineteen percent (n=84) of the MEAs failed, with a median treatment time for all appliances of 216 days (interquartile range=126 days). Cement loss (69%) was the most common type of failure. The likelihood of an appliance failing increased in children with a malocclusion other than Class I (adjusted odds ratio=1.91; 95% CI=1.16-3.14) and was nearly 4 times greater when a quad helix was used compare to the Haas appliance (adjusted odds ratio=3.60; 95% CI=1.92-6.75). The treatment time was significantly affected by the type of crossbite present and the occurrence of an appliance failure (P=.001). CONCLUSIONS The use of a quad helix appliance and the presence of malocclusion other than Class I was significantly predictive of appliance failure. Treatment time was increased when MEAs failed and bilateral crossbite was present.
Measurement, Sampling and Interpretation

Petrogenesis of detrital sediments is a somewhat elusive exercise. Some of the difficulties which arise are concerned with the nature and kind of measurements performed; whereas others are inherent in the genetic processes which generate detrital sedimentary rocks. It is concluded that to elucidate the genesis of a typical detrial sediment it is necessary to obtain a sample set of events (including the tectonic background) which gave rise to the rock.
How does disability influence child care arrangements for young children? An examination using the NHES ECPP

Abstract Affordable child care is an essential support for families with young children, and quality of care impacts a range of child development outcomes. Still, many families face a number of barriers to accessing high-quality care. Given the necessary resources for raising a child with a disability, high-quality child care may be particularly salient for families with a child with a disability. Yet, these families face additional challenges to accessing appropriate care, and children with disabilities may be less likely to be receiving quality care than their nondisabled peers. Despite these challenges, little empirical work has been done to examine differences in child care arrangements between families who have a child with a disability and those who do not. Using data from the National Household Education Surveys (NHES) Early Childhood Program Participation (ECPP) surveys, this paper seeks to understand if there are differences in the types of arrangements used. Results suggest young children with disabilities are 50% more likely to be enrolled in formal, center-based care compared to no enrollment in child care and 25% less likely to be enrolled in informal care compared to center-based care than their nondisabled peers, with additional differences by household income and child's age. Findings offer a crucial first step in understanding child care arrangements for young children with disaiblities and indicate that center-based care may be particularly important for families.
Possible Prognostic Role of Magnetic Resonance Imaging Findings in Patients with Trigeminal Neuralgia and Multiple Sclerosis Who Underwent Percutaneous Balloon Compression: Report of Our Series and Literature Review

Objective We studied the correlation of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings with the prognosis of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS)-related trigeminal neuralgia (TN) who had undergone percutaneous balloon compression (PBC). To the best of our knowledge, no studies have previously reported on this topic. We also performed a review of pertinent studies. Methods From a surgical series of 82 patients with TN who had undergone PBC from January 2013 to June 2017, we identified 16 patients with MS (mean age, 54.81 ± 8.51 years; mean follow-up, 38.12 ± 19.86 months). Using brain MRI, we evaluated the presence of a lesion in the trigeminal nerve root entry zone and trigeminal nuclei. With other clinical and procedure-related factors, we studied its effect on acute pain relief (pain free at hospital discharge) and pain-free survival (PFS). Results Of the 16 patients, 15 (93.75%) reported acute pain relief; 8 patients (50.00%) experienced a recurrence of pain. At the latest follow-up visit, an excellent outcome (Barrow Neurological Institute grade 1–2) was obtained for 75% of patients and a good outcome (Barrow Neurological Institute grade 3) for 25%. No patient experienced uncontrolled pain. The presence of a pear-like balloon shape during surgery (P = 0.0053) and a MRI detectable lesion in the trigeminal pathway (P = 0.049) were associated with greater PFS. Conclusions PBC can be efficient in treating MS-related TN. Some factors, such as a pear-like balloon shape during surgery and evidence of a MRI-detectable lesion in the trigeminal pathway were associated with longer PFS.
A MultiScale Framework for Nonintrusive Load Identification

Nonintrusive load monitoring, i.e., the process of identifying individual load information from aggregate electrical measurements, is useful for a variety of smart grid applications including energy scorekeeping, condition monitoring, and activity tracking. Numerous load disaggregation algorithms have been used for nonintrusive monitoring. Many of these perform well only on certain datasets or load types, because transient electrical events can occur on vastly different time-scales and operating schedules with significantly different regularities. This paper presents a nonintrusive load monitoring framework that allows multiple algorithms to be used across multiple time-scales, with their outputs combined to enhance load recognition. Results are demonstrated with power system data from a United States Coast Guard Cutter (USCGC), demonstrating the utility of the framework for developing applications for condition-based maintenance, among other applications.
Universal Transforming Geometric Network.

The recurrent geometric network (RGN), the first end-to-end differentiable neural architecture for protein structure prediction, is a competitive alternative to existing models. However, the RGN's use of recurrent neural networks (RNNs) as internal representations results in long training time and unstable gradients. And because of its sequential nature, it is less effective at learning global dependencies among amino acids than existing transformer architectures. We propose the Universal Transforming Geometric Network (UTGN), an end-to-end differentiable model that uses the encoder portion of the Universal Transformer architecture as an alternative for internal representations. Our experiments show that compared to RGN, UTGN achieve a $1.7$ \si{\angstrom} improvement on the free modeling portion and a $0.7$ \si{\angstrom} improvement on the template based modeling of the CASP12 competition.
Understanding Rents in the Real Economy

George understood “progress”—economic growth—to be disruptive and innovative, taking place through developments that changed the proportions and relative prosperity of different sectors. He began his analysis with the movement of settlers to the “unbounded savannah,” where they cultivated fertile land, cooperated and established the division of labor, increasing productivity, and, as a result, they became a complex society with differential advantages and disadvantages to certain locations and parcels of land. Rents thus emerged (modeled using Sraffa’s equations). This picture is a good basis on which to build an approach to inequality and instability, but it is not consistent with the factor markets of conventional marginal productivity theory. George’s approach is superior.
Role of Rac1 GTPase hyperactivity in suppressing p21Cip1 levels and stimulating prostate cancer cell proliferation and tumor formation

Proc Amer Assoc Cancer Res, Volume 45, 2004 820 Abnormally suppressed levels of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors (CKIs) are associated with aggressive, androgen-independent prostate cancer and contribute to deregulated cell proliferation. The androgen-independent human prostate cancer cell lines, LNCaP-104R1, ALVA31, and PC-3, express low levels of the CKI, p21Cip1, compared to the less malignant, androgen-dependent LNCaP cells. We investigated the mechanism underlying p21 suppression by examining the role of Rho GTPases, signaling proteins that play important roles in cell cycle progression, at least in part through regulation of CKIs. In particular, we tested the hypothesis that increased activity of Rho GTPases in highly malignant, androgen-independent prostate cancer cells represses p21, thereby permitting uncontrolled cell cycle progression. Inhibition of the Rho family member, Rac1, using a dominant negative Rac1 mutant or by introduction of exogenous binding domain from the Rac1 effector, PAK-1, induced p21 expression in androgen-independent lines. Rac1 inhibition had no effect on the higher p21 levels characteristic of LNCaP cells; however, overexpression of constitutively active Rac1 suppressed p21 levels in LNCaP. Thus, Rac1 activity is both necessary and sufficient for suppression of p21 in prostate cancer cells. The induction of p21 in the androgen-independent cell lines was functionally significant as demonstrated by inhibition of cyclin-dependent kinase 2 activity and decreased cell proliferation. Furthermore, Rac1 activity, but not Rac1 protein levels, was significantly higher in all three androgen-independent cell lines compared to LNCaP cells. To assess the role of Rac1 in tumorigenesis, we stably expressed constitutively active Rac1 in LNCaP cells (LNCaP/CA-Rac1) and assessed tumor formation in nude mice. LNCaP/CA-Rac1 xenografts exhibited a higher tumor take rate and grew more rapidly than LNCaP controls expressing the vector alone (LNCaP/neo). These results are unique in describing a role for Rac1 in p21 regulation and implicate the Rac1 signaling pathway as a potential therapeutic target for controlling prostate cancer cell growth following progression to androgen independence. Supported by U.S. Department of Defense DAMD17-02-1-0094.
Unique Patient-Reported Hospital Safety Concerns With Online Tool: MySafeCare.

Background Hospitalized patients and their care partners have valuable and unique perspectives of the medical care they receive. Direct and real-time reporting of patients' safety concerns, though limited in the acute care setting, could provide opportunities to improve patient care. Methods We implemented the MySafeCare (MSC) application on six acute care units for 18 months as part of a patient-centered health information technology intervention to promote engagement and safety in the acute care setting. The web-based application allowed hospitalized patients to submit safety concerns anonymously and in real time. We describe characteristics of patient submissions including their categorizations. We evaluated rates of submissions to MSC and compared them with rates of submissions to the Patient Family Relations department at the hospital. In addition, we performed thematic analysis of narrative concerns submitted to the application. Results We received 46 submissions to MSC and 33% of concerns received were anonymous. The overall rate of submissions was 0.6 submissions per 1000 patient-days and was considerably lower than the rate of submissions to the Patient Family Relations during the same period (4.1 per 1000 patient-days). Identified themes of narrative concerns included unmet care needs and preferences, inadequate communication, and concerns about safety of care. Conclusions Although the submission rate to the application was low, MSC captured important content directly from hospitalized patients or their care partners. A web-based patient safety reporting tool for patients should be studied further to understand patient and care partner use and willingness to engage, as well as potential effects on patient safety outcomes.
A 10-MHz Closed-Loop EMI-Regulated GaN Switching Power Converter Using Emulated Miller Plateau Tracking and Adaptive Strength Gate Driving

There has been a classic design trade-off between electromagnetic interference (EMI) and power efficiency in switching power circuits historically. This work explores the technical strategies that well balance this trade-off. In particular, an emulated Miller plateau tracking scheme is proposed to identify critical di / dt and dv / dt instants, which are susceptible to load current and power input voltage conditions. An adaptive strength gate driving scheme facilitates low di / dt and high dv / dt switching operation, which leads to the targeted EMI and switching loss optimization. A switching power converter IC prototype was implemented in a 0.35- $\mu \text{m}$ high-voltage (HV) Bipolar-CMOS-DMOS (BCD) process. Operating at 10 MHz, the converter regulates an output at 5 V with 6-W power range, accommodating a wide input supply voltage ranging from 5 to 40 V. It achieves above 70% efficiency over 95.8% of the full power range, with a peak efficiency of 81.4% at 1.25 W. With the proposed strategies, the peak EMI of the converter is reduced by 19.23 dB $\mu \text{V}$ in Band B ( $\mu \text{V}$ in Band C/D (>30 MHz), with only 2.44% efficiency penalty.
Bugs in Bile: A Fly in the Ointment?

Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is the archetypal disease of the gut-liver axis in which colonic inflammation, through as yet undefined mechanisms, leads to biliary inflammation, fibrosis, and chronic cholestasis. A role for gut and biliary microbes in PSC has long been postulated. Several animal models in which bacteria or their products are administered into the gut lead to biliary disease.
Phonon Dispersion Relation of Bulk Boron-Doped Graphitic Carbon

Bulk turbostratic graphitic carbon of varying levels of disorder and chemical compositions has been synthesized by a direct synthesis method in the temperature range of 750–1100 °C, with a focus on...
Genicular Artery Embolization for Osteoarthritis Related Knee Pain: A Systematic Review and Qualitative Analysis of Clinical Outcomes

Objective To systematically review the published literature on genicular artery embolization (GAE) for osteoarthritis (OA) related knee pain. Materials and Methods Using three databases, a systematic review was performed following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Outcome measures included the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC). Results Three single-arm studies were included from an initial search yielding 305 results. One hundred and eighty-six knees in 133 patients with either mild-to-moderate (174/186, 94%) or severe (12/186, 6%) OA underwent embolization with either imipenem/cilastatin sodium (159/186, 85%) or embozene (27/186, 15%). Technical success was 100%. Average VAS improved from baseline at 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, 4 months, 6 months, 1 year and 2 years (66.5 at baseline vs 33.5, 32.7, 33.8, 28.9, 29.0, 22.3, 14.8 and 14.0, respectively). Average WOMAC scores improved from baseline at 1, 3, 4, 6, 12 and 24 months (45.7 at baseline vs 24.0, 31.0, 14.8, 14.6, 8.2 and 6.2). Severe OA in 12 cases showed initially improved VAS, but was not sustained. Minor adverse events such as erythema in the region of embolization (21/186, 11%), puncture-site hematoma (18/186, 10%), paresthesia (2/186, 1%) and fever (1/186, 0.5%) were reported. Conclusion Limited single-arm studies report GAE is promising for treating OA-related pain. Most treatments performed for mild-to-moderate OA demonstrated durable clinical responses from 6 months to 4 years. Limited data for severe OA suggest a non-durable response. Future studies should be standardized to facilitate comparison and control for placebo effect.
Analysis of Early Job Market Experiences and Perceptions Among Bariatric Surgery Fellowship Graduates and Bariatric Surgery Program Directors

Over the past decade, an increasing number of bariatric surgeons are trained in fellowships annually despite only a modest increase in nationwide bariatric surgery volume. The study surveys the bariatric surgery job market trend in order to inform better career-choice decisions for trainees interested in this field. A national retrospective cohort survey over an 11-year period was conducted. Bariatric surgery fellowship graduates from 2008 to 2019 and program directors (PDs) were surveyed electronically. Univariate analysis was performed comparing responses between earlier (2008–2016) and recent graduates (2017–2019). We identified a total of 996 graduates and 143 PDs. Response rates were 9% and 20% respectively (n = 88, 29). Sixty-eight percent of graduates felt there are not enough bariatric jobs for new graduates. Seventy-nine percent of PDs felt that it is more difficult to find a bariatric job for their fellows now than 5–10 years ago. Forty-eight percent of PDs felt that we are training too many bariatric fellows. Seventy-seven percent of all graduates want the majority of their practice to be comprised bariatric cases; however, only 42% of them reported achieving this. In the univariate analysis, recent graduates were less likely to be currently employed as a bariatric surgeon (64% vs. 86%, p = 0.02) and were less satisfied with their current case volume (42% vs. 66%, p = 0.01). The temporal increase in bariatric fellowship graduates over the past decade has resulted in a significant decline in the likelihood of employment in a full-time bariatric surgical practice and a decline in surgeons’ bariatric case volumes.
Secondary magnesite formation from forsterite under CO2 sequestration conditions via coupled heterogeneous nucleation and crystal growth

Abstract Flow-only and coupled flow-diffusion experiments at 95 °C and 100 bars pCO2 carried out in micro-capillary tubes packed with forsterite mineral grains were used to constrain a coupled classical heterogeneous nucleation and crystal growth reactive transport model describing the formation of secondary magnesite. The study made use of a novel experimental setup in which one capillary tube for flow is connected via a three-way tee to a perpendicular capillary tube sealed at the distal end in which only molecular diffusion is allowed to occur—an experimental analogue of a single fracture-rock matrix system. While the high flux of CO2 bearing fluids and their low pH did not result in the formation of secondary carbonates in the flow-dominated channels, as much as 2.7% magnesite formed in a diffusion-controlled capillary tube sample after 300 hours of reaction. The precipitation of secondary magnesite was not uniformly distributed, however, but showed a distinctive peak shaped pattern along the sample reacted as quantified by RAMAN spectroscopic analysis. About 50% of the total magnesite precipitation formed within a narrow interval of a few millimeters close to the middle of the 3 cm diffusion sample. To simulate the behavior of the diffusion–reaction column, and in particular the pronounced mm scale peak at approximately 1.8 cm, an interfacial free energy of approximately 70 mJ·m−2 combined with a relatively high crystal growth rate for secondary magnesite was required. In agreement with the observations based on RAMAN spectroscopy, the simulations suggest that more than 50% of Mg2+ dissolved from the primary forsterite precipitated as secondary magnesite. The magnesite precipitation at the central peak position in the diffusion sample showed such rapid growth that it created a local minimum in pore fluids Mg2+ concentration close to the peak, creating a “nucleation shadow” that focused continued growth there as nearby regions had no nucleation seeds available for crystal growth. Continued crystal growth on the initial magnesite band acted to further increase the reactive surface area at this point, thus enhancing the spatially focused crystal growth rate and creating a positive feedback leading to pattern formation. This highlights the potentially critical role of an initial nucleation event in controlling mineral precipitation patterns in subsurface porous media, patterns that may determine how the pore structure subsequently evolves physically and chemically over time due to reactive flow and transport.
Form and Function in a Legal System: A General Study

This book addresses three major questions about law and legal systems: (1) What are the defining and organising forms of legal institutions, legal rules, interpretative methodologies, and other legal phenomena? (2) How does frontal and systematic focus on these forms advance understanding of such phenomena? (3) What credit should the functions of forms have when such phenomena serve policy and related purposes, rule of law values, and fundamental political values such as democracy, liberty, and justice? This book seeks to offer general answers to these questions and thus gives form in the law its due. The answers not only provide articulate conversancy with the subject but also reveal insights into the nature of law itself, the oldest and foremost problem in legal theory and allied subjects.
Progress on the Deictically Controlled Wheelchair

We aim to develop a robot which can be commanded simply and accurately, especially by users with reduced mobility. Our shared control approach divides task responsibilities between the user (high level) and the robot (low level). A video interface shared between the user and robot enables the use of a deictic interface. The paper describes our progress toward this goal in several areas. A complete command set has been developed which uses minimal environmental features. Our video tracking algorithms have proven robust on the types of targets used by the commands. Specialized hardware and new tactile and acoustic sensors have been developed. These and other advances are discussed, as well as planned work.
Effects of aging on gene specific repair

Publisher Summary DNA in cells is constantly exposed to insults from both endogenous and exogenous factors that may cause breaks in the phosphodiester backbone, cleavage of N -glycosylic bonds, alteration of structure of the purine or pyrimidine bases, intrastrand or interstrand crosslinks, and distortion of helix by intercalation. The age-related decrease in the ability of the cells to repair non-transcribed, silent regions of the DNA could play a role in the age-related accumulation of DNA damage and mutations, which occur with increasing age. The results from several studies suggest that chromatin becomes more condensed with age because of an increase in protein-DNA cross-links and internucleosome interaction. The chromatin template activity for α and β-DNA polymerases declines with age. This age-related change is due to an increased chromosomal condensation. Increased chromosomal condensation could also reduce the access of DNA repair proteins to the DNA and thereby decrease the repair of the lesions. The potential importance of the age-related decrease in preferential repair in aging is also illustrated by a genetic disease, Cockayne's syndrome. This disease is associated with a loss of preferential repair of the transcribed strand of transcriptionally active genes.
Overview of Hardware Description Languages

This chapter contains sections titled: Hardware description languages Basic VHDL concept via an example VHDL in development flow Bibliographic notes ]]>
Regulation of L-arginine synthesis from L-citrulline by L-glutamine in endothelial cells

L-Arginine synthesis from L-citrulline was studied in cultured bovine venular, bovine aortic, human microvascular, and cloned human microvascular endothelial cells (EC). L-Citrulline was actively recycled into L-arginine in all four EC lines, with similar rates between venular and aortic EC. L-Arginine synthesis from L-citrulline was very sensitive to extracellular L-citrulline concentrations in the range normally found in plasma (50-100 microM). L-Glutamine (0.5mM) decreased L-arginine synthesis from L-citrulline, whereas 0.5 mM L-arginine, L-alanine, L-glutamate, or L-lysine had no effect. In contrast to the findings in intact cells, 1 mM L-glutamine had no effect on L-arginine synthesis from L-citrulline in EC lysates. Similarly, L-glutamine (1 mM) had no effect on the conversion of argininosuccinate to arginine in EC lysates. L-Glutamine (0.5 and 1 mM), but not 0.5 mM L-arginine, L-alanine, L-glutamate, or L-lysine, inhibited L-citrulline transport by EC. The inhibition of L-citrulline transport by L-glutamine was dose dependent and competitive in nature. These results suggest that L-glutamine decreased L-arginine synthesis from extracellular L-citrulline by interfering with its transport. Inasmuch as nitric oxide (NO) and L-citrulline are constantly generated from L-arginine, with L-citrulline being actively converted into L-arginine in venular, microvascular, and aortic EC, our data indicate a functioning intracellular arginine-citrulline cycle in these cells. This cycle may function to efficiently scavenge the carbon and alpha-amino group of L-arginine and to maintain a sufficient cellular concentration of L-arginine during prolonged synthesis of NO in EC. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Sweat chloride testing in infants identified as heterozygote carriers by newborn screening.

The reference ranges for sweat [C1 − ] were reevaluated in 300 infants referred to our Center as carriers of at least 1 cystic fibrosis mutation identified through newborn screening. The recommended borderline range of 30 to 59 mmol/L failed to identify all individuals who were compound heterozygotes. Our data support using a borderline range of 24 to 59 mmol/L.
Nonlinear oscillations in chemical and biological systems

Abstract The past decade has seen enormous progress in the study of nonlinear oscillations in chemical systems. In 1980, there were only two chemical oscillators, both accidentally discovered. Today, there are over two dozen, most designed using a systematic search procedure, and many understood at a mechanistic level. More complex phenomena such as spatial pattern formation, chaos and the behavior of coupled oscillators are the focus of current study. Certain aspects of biological systems, particularly in neurobiology, can be understood in terms of the behavior of coupled chemical oscillators. After giving a brief history of nonlinear chemical dynamics, we discuss the recent discovery and modeling of the stationary reaction-diffusion patterns predicted by Turing. We then look at a “very small neural network”, the crustacean stomatogastric ganglion. We conclude with some speculations on future directions in this area.
Transplantations of small intestines

Abstract Small-bowel transplants were carried out in 60 young minipigs by subcutaneous as well as by intraperitoneal techniques. The latter piglets were treated with and without immunosuppressives. The fate of the transplants was checked by sequential mucosal biopsies. The main complication encountered in the early phase after transplantation was hemorrhagic infarction (five cases) and impaired arterial circulation (five cases). The transplants with intact vascular pedicles survived 7–18 days, with a mean of 10 days. The transplants were rejected in a typical histologic pattern as seen in other organs. No differences in this pattern were found between those animals that had received cytostatics and those that had not.
Drying shrinkage of ternary blend concrete in transportation structures

Shrinkage can be a major problem in transportation structures; shrinkage-associated cracking often leads the way to further durability problems such as corrosion and increases maintenance costs. Ternary cementitious blends are used in today’s transportation structures in order to obtain high-performance concrete mixes. Drying shrinkage behavior of ternary blend concretes used in the transportation infrastructure was studied and the findings are presented. Four bridge deck and one pavement mixes, in which supplementary cementitious material constitutes up to 50% of the total cementitious amount, were tested for both restrained and unrestrained shrinkages. The results indicate that shrinkage strain rate linearly increases with cementitious material content, paste-to-void ratio (by volume), and clay content of fine aggregate. Chemical admixtures (e.g. water reducer quantity) also appear to be another aggravating factor.
Identification and initial characterization of high-affinity [3H]dextrorphan binding sites in rat brain

Abstract We have identified specific high-affinity [ 3 H]dextrorphan binding sites in rat forebrain. [ 3 H]Dextrorphan binds saturably and reversibly to an apparently homogeneous class of sites characterized by a B max of 2.62±0.06 pmol/mg protein and K D of 60±4 nM. Glycine and glutamate independently increase [ 3 H]dextrorphan binding in a concentration-dependent manner. The pharmacological profile of [ 3 H]dextrorphan binding characterized by equilibrium competition experiments, together with these data suggest that [ 3 H]dextrorphan labels a site at or near the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor.
Hydrogen ion equilibria of the genetic variants of bovine β-lactoglobulin

Abstract The hydrogen ion equilibria of β-lactoglobulins A, B, and C have been examined. The resulting titration curves can be accounted for in terms of the normal ionization of all groups, with the exception of two histidines in the C variant and two carboxyls in all three of the variants. Conformational changes at pH 4.5–6 and 6.5–9 release these abnormal groups to ionization.
EFFICACY OF BAIT DISTRIBUTIONAL STRATEGIES TO DELIVER CANINE RABIES VACCINES TO COYOTES IN SOUTHERN TEXAS

This study sought to develop a baiting strategy to deliver an oral rabies vaccine to free-ranging coyotes (Canis latrans) in southern Texas. To determine bait longevity, dog foodlard baits were placed (n = 50) on- and off-roads during July 1994 and January 1995. Coyote visitation and uptake rates did not differ between on-road and off-road placement of baits. To evaluate bait stations as possible visual cues, baits were placed out both with (n = 50) arid without (n = 50) bait stations. A visual cue of a bait station did not affect coyote response to baits. Bait longevity was shorter during July (≤4 days) than January because of consumption of baits by imported fire ants (Solenopsis invicta). The effect of two different bait densities on coyote acceptance rates was determined on six 93.5 km2 study areas in southern Texas. Three study areas received a bait density of 19 baits/km2 (50 baits/mi2) and the remaining three study areas received 58 baits/km2 (150 baits/mi2). Coyote bait uptake rates, based upon th...
Body mass index is weakly associated with, and not a helpful predictor of, disease progression in men with clinically localized prostate carcinoma treated with radical prostatectomy

BACKGROUND Several studies have recently suggested an association between body mass index (BMI) and disease progression after radical prostatectomy. In the current study, the authors examined this association and that between the reciprocal of BMI (INVBMI, 1/BMI) and progression-free probability in men treated with radical retropubic prostatectomy (RRP) for clinically localized prostate carcinoma. METHODS The authors retrospectively studied 2210 patients who underwent RRP at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center between September 1986 and May 2003. Clinicopathologic variables analyzed included BMI (kg/m2), preoperative serum prostate-specific antigen level (ng/mL), clinical T classification, year of surgery, race, biopsy-derived primary and secondary Gleason grades, and INVBMI, known to better correlate with percent body fat than BMI. Cox regression analysis was used to examine the possible association between BMI or its reciprocal with disease progression after controlling for the effects of common prognostic factors. The areas under the receiver operating curve (AUC) for models with and without INVBMI were calculated RESULTS Of the 2210 patients analyzed, 251 experienced disease progression in a median follow-up time of 25.9 months (range, 0–143 months). After adjusting for all clinical variables, both BMI (P = 0.071; hazards ratio [HR] = 1.027) and INVBMI (P = 0.041; HR < 0.001) were associated with disease progression. However, the areas under AUC for models with and without INVBMI were similar (range, 0.794–0.798). CONCLUSIONS Although conflicting evidence has been reported regarding the link between obesity and an increased risk of developing prostate carcinoma, as well as an increased risk of developing aggressive disease and prostate carcinoma-related mortality, the authors found weak associations with disease progression for both BMI and INVBMI. These variables were of negligible prognostic value in men who received surgery. Studies with longer follow-up, that examine alternative end points, and that follow treatment(s) besides surgery are needed. Cancer 2005. © 2005 American Cancer Society.
Effects of Surface Active Properties on the Cavitational Degradation of Surfactant Contaminants

The influence of surfactant properties on the sonochemical degradation of organic compounds was investigated in a 20-kHz probe reactor and a dual-frequency 16- and 20-kHz near-field acoustical processor (NAP). The initial sonochemical degradation rates of 4-octylbenzene sulfonic acid (OBS) and t-octylphenoxy polyethoxyethanol (OPE) in the NAP as a function of concentration resulted in complicated but similar trends to catalysis. At concentrations above the critical micelle concentration, the formation of micelles created additional weak spots in solution that acted as additional nucleation sites for the formation of cavitation bubbles. In comparing the degradation of surfactants to that of nonsurfactants, enhanced degradation of surfactants in the NAP was attributed to the accumulation of surfactants on cavitation bubble surfaces, resulting in localization of contaminants at the site of highest temperature and hydroxyl radical concentration, [•OH]. The lack of enhanced degradation of surfactants in the pr...
Following the organ supply: Assessing the benefit of inteR-Dsa travel in liver transplantation

BACKGROUND Disparity in access to liver transplantation (LT) in the United States persists despite directives from the federal government to reduce geographic variation. We assessed the impact of socioeconomic status (SES) and traveling to alternative donation service areas (DSAs) on patient survival. METHODS A prospective cohort study integrating transplant registry and U.S. Census data was analyzed using multivariate linear Cox proportional hazards models. A separate matched-pairs analysis was used to assess the benefit of traveling on patient survival and transplantation rate. RESULTS High SES is associated with increased access to LT (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 1.05; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 1.01-1.08) and reduced mortality after waitlisting (aHR [95% CI], 0.88 [0.85-0.93]). Increased access is mediated, in part, through inter-DSA travel. Travel was associated with high SES, white race, blood group O, private insurance, and residence in regions 1, 5, and 11. Transplant candidates in the highest SES quartile were approximately 70% more likely to travel (aHR [95% CI], 1.67 [1.43-1.97]) than those in the lowest SES quartile. Compared with matched control patients, travelers were 74% more likely to be transplanted (aHR [95% CI], 1.74 [1.56-1.94]) and 20% less likely to die after listing (aHR [95% CI], 0.79 [0.69-0.92]). CONCLUSION High SES and inter-DSA travel are strongly associated with increased LT access and reduced mortality. Travelers are more likely to be sociodemographically advantaged and privately insured and to live in regions with reduced access to deceased-donor organs.
Bilingualism reduces native-language interference during novel-word learning.

The goal of the present work was to examine the effects of bilingualism on adults' ability to resolve cross-linguistic inconsistencies in orthography-to-phonology mappings during novel-word learning. English monolinguals and English-Spanish bilinguals learned artificially constructed novel words that overlapped with English orthographically but diverged from English phonologically. Native-language orthographic information presented during learning interfered with encoding of novel words in mono- linguals but not in bilinguals. In general, bilinguals outperformed monolinguals on the word-learning task. These findings indicate that knowledge of 2 languages facilitates word learning and shields English-Spanish bilinguals from interference associated with cross-linguistic inconsistencies in letter- to-phoneme mappings.
Space weathering and the low sulfur abundance of Eros

Abstract The surprisingly low S/Si ratio of Asteroid 433 Eros measured by the NEAR Shoemaker spacecraft probably reflects a surface depletion rather than a bulk property of the asteroid. The sulfur X-ray signal originates at a depth 10 μm in the regolith. The most efficient process for vaporizing minerals at the heliocentric distance of Eros are sputtering by solar wind ions and hypervelocity impacts. These are the same processes that account for the changes in optical properties of asteroids attributed to “space weathering” of lunar surface materials, although the relative importance of sputtering and impacts need not be the same for the Moon and asteroids. Troilite, FeS, which is the most important sulfide mineral in meteorites, and presumably on S-type asteroids like Eros, can be vaporized by much less energy than other major minerals, and will therefore be preferentially lost. Within 10 6 years either process can remove sulfide from the top 10–100 μm of regolith. Sulfur will be lost into space and some sulfur will migrate to deeper regolith layers. We also consider other possible mechanisms of surficial sulfur depletion, such as mineral segregation in the regolith and perhaps even incipient melting. Although we consider solar wind sputtering the most likely cause of the sulfur depletion on Eros, we cannot entirely rule out other processes as causes of the sulfur deficiency. Laboratory simulations of the relevant processes can address some of the open questions. Simulations will have to be carried out in such a way that potential sulfur loss processes as well as resurfacing can be studied simultaneously, requiring a large and complex environmental chamber.
Analyzing the Role of Social Norms in Tax Compliance Behavior

The purpose of this study is to explore with more rigor and detail the role of social norms in tax compliance. This study draws on Cialdini and Trost’s (The Handbook of Social Psychology: Oxford University Press, Boston, MA, 1998) taxonomy of social norms to investigate with more specificity this potentially decisive (Alm and McKee, Managerial and Decision Economics, 19:259–275, 1998) influence on tax compliance. We test our research hypotheses regarding the direct and indirect influences of social norms using a hypothetical compliance scenario with 174 experienced taxpayers as participants. Factor analysis of the social norm questions successfully identified four distinct social norm constructs, in line with Cialdini and Trost (1998). Results of the path analysis show that individuals’ standards for behavior/ethical beliefs (personal norms) as well as the expectations of close others (subjective norms) directly influence tax compliance decisions, whereas general societal expectations (injunctive norms) and other individuals’ actual behavior (descriptive norms) have an indirect influence. This shows that social norms have important direct as well as indirect influences on tax compliance behavior. We also investigate a number of attitudinal variables that may be related to social norms and taxpayer compliance. The results of this study further clarify the important role that social norms have with regard to taxpayers’ compliance behavior.
Diffusion of hydrogen and deuterium in stack systems of SixNyHz/ SixNyDz and crystalline Si

H/D-, N-H/D- and Si-H/D-bond density changes were investigated in stacks consisting of a Cz-Si substrate, a thin layer of SiO2, amorphous deuterated silicon nitride as well as amorphous hydrogenated silicon nitride in order to see if the post deposition anneal of a-SixNyHz layers on crystalline silicon wafers can actually lead to a migration of H atoms into the Si-bulk, which is an important question in regard to emitter passivation of Si-solar cells. The stacks were grown with remote plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (RPECVD). A low temperature (≈200°C) process of down stream injected ammonia (NH3) and silane (SiH4) activated by an upstream injected He-plasma, prod]ced through RF-radiation (13.65MHz) was used. Thermal treatment was executed by ex situ rapid thermal anneal in Ar ambient. For the measurements of H and D bond densities, FTIR was employed while SIMS determined atomic densities of H, D and O in the c-Si/nitride interface region. The experiments showed that H transport in silicon nitride is determined by several mechanisms including diffusion and dissociation processes and that silicon nitride deposited with high ammonia to silane ratios can prod]ce molecular species like ammonia and H2. The study of the reaction dynamics showed that the prod]ction of molecular hydrogen is the most dominant process as long as Si-H-bonds are present in the system. After their exhaustion, an ammonia prod]cing reaction prevails that leads with increasing temperatures to lower densities in the nitride films.
Securing cloud storage systems through a virtual machine monitor

Cloud storage solutions have increasingly gained in popularity as they offer a convenient method of maintaining one's data all in one place, with the ability to access it from anywhere at any time. In this paper, we leverage a virtualization-based intrusion detection infrastructure to build secure cloud storage systems. The intrusion detection system uses machine learning techniques applied to data available at the virtual machine monitor layer to identify the presence of malicious activity during a workload's execution. Our results show that by running a cloud storage server in a virtual execution setting, we can detect real-world malware attacks at a high detection rate of over 98%, with fewer than 3% false alarms.
China's Indigenous Innovation Policy: Impact on Multi-national R&#x26;D

Multinational corporations seeking access to China's burgeoning consumer markets and human resources are establishing R&D centers in the country and developing ways to thread a path through its complex innovation policies.
Sex and myocardial infarction: an epidemiologic perspective

The relation between sexual activity and acute myocardial infarction (MI) risk is one of great interest to people at risk for MI and their physicians. However, understanding this relation requires an appreciation of the complex interplay among relative, attributable, and absolute risk. Because there is an underlying risk of MI in the population, the risk of MI after sexual activity must be compared with this underlying baseline risk. The estimated relative risk of MI after sexual activity is approximately 2.5 during the 2-hour period after sex, indicating a 2.5-fold increase in risk over baseline. However, because the baseline risk during any 2-hour period is very low, the absolute increase in risk (the risk from sexual activity minus the baseline risk), is extremely small (e.g., 0.01% over a year for low-risk individuals engaging in weekly sexual activity and 0.1% for higher-risk individuals). In addition, the attributable risk (the percentage of MIs due to sexual activity) is <1%. Thus, any individual's risk of MI during sexual activity is low. Nonetheless, factors that may decrease the risk of MI after sexual activity are important to explore, and include regular exercise and perhaps medication use, such as aspirin and beta blockers. Although there may be a long-term cardiovascular and mortality benefit to regular sexual activity, current data supporting this theory are limited. This article describes the relation between sexual activity and acute MI with respect to the complex interplay among relative, attributable, and absolute risk. Limitations of studies examining the potential long-term benefits of regular sexual activity are also discussed.