cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Blood methanol concentrations in normal adult subjects administered abuse doses of aspartame.

Blood methanol concentrations were measured in 30 normal adult subjects administered aspartame, a dipeptide methyl ester. The doses studied included the 99th percentile of projected daily ingestion (34 mg/kg body weight) and three doses considered to be in the abuse range (100, 150, and 200 mg/kg body weight). Methanol concentrations were below the level of detection (0.4 mg/dl) in the blood of the 12 normal subjects who ingested aspartame at 34 mg/kg. They were significantly elevated (p less than or equal to 0 .001) after ingestion of each abuse dose, with the mean peak blood methanol concentrations and the areas under the blood methanol concentration-time curve increasing in proportion to dose. Mean (+/- SD) peak blood methanol concentrations were 1.27 +/- 0.48 mg/dl at the 100 mg/kg dose, 2.14 +/- 0.35 mg/dl at the 150 mg/kg dose, and 2.58 +/- 0.78 mg/dl at the 200 mg/kg dose. Blood methanol concentrations returned to predosing levels by 8 h after administration of the 100 mg/kg dose. Methanol was still detected in the blood 8 h after the subjects had ingested aspartame at 150 or 200 mg/kg. Blood formate analyses were carried out in the 6 subjects who ingested aspartame at 200 mg/kg, since recent studies indicate that the toxic effects of methanol are due to formate accumulation. No significant increase in blood formate concentrations over predosing concentrations was noted. No changes were noted in any of the blood chemistry profile parameters measured 24 h after aspartame ingestion, compared to values noted before administration. Similarly, no differences were noted in ophthalmologic examinations carried out before and after aspartame loading.
Site-directed mutagenesis of conserved cysteine residues in Escherichia coli fumarate reductase: modification of the spectroscopic and electrochemical properties of the [2Fe-2S] cluster.

Abstract Site-directed mutants of Escherichia coli fumarate reductase in which each of the four N-terminal cysteine residues in the FrdB subunit, residues 57, 62, 65, and 77, was mutated individually to serine have been constructed, overexpressed, and investigated in terms of enzymatic activity as well as the EPR and redox properties of the iron-sulfur centers. In each case, the mutant contains a functional fumarate reductase in which all three of the constituent iron-sulfur clusters (i.e., center 1, [2Fe-2S]; center 2, [4Fe-4S]; center 3, [3Fe-4S]) have been assembled. The mutations affect the properties of center 1 only and demonstrate that the anomalously high redox potential of this [2Fe-2S] center is essential for optimal enzymatic activity. The results are consistent with cysteines 57, 62, 65, and 77 providing the ligands to center 1 but leave open the possibility of noncysteinyl coordination for the localized valence Fe(III) site of the reduced cluster. The implications of the results for the role of center 1 in the electron-transfer pathway and the valence localization of reduced center 1 are discussed.
HCN formation on Jupiter: The coupled photochemistry of ammonia and acetylene

HCN formation in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere of Jupiter is presently modeled in terms of UV pyrolysis of the C2H5N isomer aziridine, which is a product of the NH2 and C2H3 radicals that originate from ammonia photolysis and the addition of H atoms to acetylene, respectively. The sensitivity of the HCN column density to the individual rate constants and the eddy diffusion coefficient profile is considered, along with the possibility that additional HCN-yielding pathways may exist. Both ammonia and phosphine are strongly depleted by photolysis.
A proteolytic activity in a human breast cancer cell line which is inhibited by the anticarcinogenic Bowman-Birk protease inhibitor

Epidemiological studies suggest that human populations consuming diets rich in protease inhibitors have a reduced incidence of cancer at several sites including the breast. Protease inhibitors, such as the Bowman-Birk inhibitor (BBI) have been shown to be highly effective at suppressing carcinogenesis in a variety of experimental model systems. In this study, we have identified a protease activity in human breast epithelial cells which is inhibited by BBI. This enzyme has a molecular mass of 43 kDa, cleaves gelatin and is primarily localized in the cytosol. Protease activity is maximal at pH 8 and is inhibited by DFP, but unaffected by EDTA, indicating that this enzyme is a serine protease. The protease identified in MCF7 cells has characteristics which are similar to a protease present in human fibroblasts. Hence, our results suggest that BBI targets a common enzyme in human epithelial cells and fibroblasts.
A New Synchronous Generator Out-of Step Relay Scheme Part I Abbreviated Version

In the abbreviated version of the proposed generator out-of-step relay scheme, the equations solved by the powerplant computer are based on a two-machine system model in which the classical representation is used for each machine (the protected machine, or powerplant, and the interconnected system equivalent machine) and resistance is neglected. Tripping is initiated when the iteratively computed value of the Lyapunov V-function during a system disturbance exceeds the V-function's maximum value b, on the system stability boundary, computed prior to initiation of the scheme's disturbed-system high-speed computing mode, from preprogrammed and measured predisturbed system data and from preprogrammed postdisturbed system data. Nondelayed tripping prior to the time system torque angle reaches 180°is permitted provided the angle is favorable for breaker operation. If the angle is not favorable at the time instability is detected, tripping is delayed until the angle becomes favorable.
Optical properties of RuO2 films deposited by reactive sputtering

Abstract Ruthenium dioxide, RuO 2 , belongs to the family of transition metal compounds of the platinum group and has unique environmental stability. Owing to its combination of extreme physical and chemical properties, RuO 2 films are of great academic and practical interest. RuO 2 films were deposited by d.c. reactive sputtering in an in-line sputtering system on a dynamic substrate. The resistivity and optical properties of the films were investigated. The optical and dielectric constants of RuO 2 films were determined using spectroscopic ellipsometry and spectrophotometry.
Commentary: advances in the laboratory diagnosis of celiac disease.

Anti-endomysial autoantibodies are very useful in the diagnosis and monitoring of celiac disease (gluten-sensitive enteropathy) due to their high sensitivity and specificity for that disorder. The recent discovery that the autoantigen responsible for the endomysial pattern is tissue transglutaminase (tTG) has led to the commercial development of automated enzyme immunoassays for quantitation of that autoantibody. These assays are standardized to provide highly accurate and comparable testing between laboratories for anti-tTG autoantibodies. Celiac disease is a common genetic disease in populations of Europe and the United States. It has a spectrum of expression ranging from silent or mild to severe, with resulting malabsorption that produces multiple-organ system effects due to malnutrition. Many cases miss the diagnosis because the symptoms are not classic or the clinical syndrome is not severe. Because the treatment of celiac disease (avoidance of wheat products) is so effective and inexpensive and because celiac disease is so common in selective populations, a highly reliable test for its detection such as anti-tTG should find wide application in clinical practice. J. Clin. Lab. Anal. 15:105–107, 2001. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Atomic Force Microscopy Study of an Ideally Hard Contact: The Diamond(111)/Tungsten Carbide Interface

A comprehensive nanotribological study of a hydrogen-terminated diamond(111)/tungsten carbide interface has been performed using ultrahigh vacuum atomic force microscopy. Both contact conductance, which is proportional to contact area, and friction have been measured as a function of applied load. We demonstrate for the first time that the load dependence of the contact area in UHV for this extremely hard single asperity contact is described by the Derjaguin-M{umlt u}ller-Toporov continuum mechanics model. Furthermore, the frictional force is found to be directly proportional to the contact area. {copyright} {ital 1998} {ital The American Physical Society}
Wave propagation in a nonlinear periodic medium

The propagation of electronic and electromagnetic waves in a periodic, nonlinear medium is described in terms of a discrete dynamical system represented by a universal, area-preserving map of a plane onto itself. The map is characterized by two control parameters: the wave vector k and the current density j. The dynamics of this Hamiltonian map is very complex admitting periodic, quasiperiodic, and chaotic orbits bifurcating and resonating at various points of the two-dimensional parameter space (k,j). The analysis of this dynamical system is based on the pattern of strong resonances and then applied to the problems of electromagnetic-wave propagation through a superlattice characterized by a strong excitonic nonlinearity and the ballistic transport of electrons in spatially periodic media.
Experimental Endoretinal Biopsy

We performed transvitreal endoretinal biopsy in rabbit eyes to develop a reliable and safe technique to obtain retinal specimens from attached retina. Pars plana vitrectomy without lensectomy was followed by injection of Ringer's solution into the subretinal space to produce a focal retinal detachment. The apex of the focal detachment was excised by intraocular scissors and removed from the eye by pneumohydraulic expulsion. A fluid-air exchange reattached the retina. The biopsy sites were evaluated clinically and by light and electron microscopy at regular intervals up to 20 weeks postoperatively. The initial five procedures were performed without heparin in the infusion fluid, and they were complicated by severe fibrin reaction and early retinal detachment. Of the remaining 17 eyes, 15 were without intraoperative complication and maintained attached retinas. The biopsy site developed an early ring of hyperpigmentation along the border, and the biopsy bed became increasingly hyperpigmented because of cytoplasmic hyperplasia and hypertrophy of the pigment epithelium. Epiretinal membranes and subretinal neovascularization were observed histologically. Retinal biopsy specimens were reproducible and suitable for diagnostic studies.
Experimental study of the fine-scale structure of conserved scalar mixing in turbulent shear flows. Part 2. Sc 1

We present results from an experimental investigation into the fine-scale structure associated with the mixing of a dynamically passive conserved scalar quantity on the inner scales of turbulent shear flows. The present study was based on highly resolved two- and three-dimensional spatio-temporal imaging measurements. For the conditions studied, the Schmidt number (Sc ≡ v/D) was approximately 2000 and the local outerscale Reynolds number (Reσ ≡ uσ/v) ranged from 2000 to 10000. The resolution and signal quality allow direct differentiation of the measured scalar field ζ(x, t) to give the instantaneous scalar energy dissipation rate field (Re Sc)−1 ∇ζċ∇ζ(x, t). The results show that the fine-scale structure of the scalar dissipation field, when viewed on the inner-flow scales for Sc ≡ 1, consists entirely of thin strained laminar sheet-like diffusion layers. The internal structure of these scalar dissipation sheets agrees with the one-dimensional self-similar solution for the local strain–diffusion competition in the presence of a spatially uniform but time-varying strain rate field. This similarity solution also shows that line-like structures in the scalar dissipation field decay exponentially in time, while in the vorticity field both line-like and sheet-like structures can be sustained. This sheet-like structure produces a high level of intermittency in the scalar dissipation field – at these conditions approximately 4% of the flow volume accounts for nearly 25% of the total mixing achieved. The scalar gradient vector field ∇ζ(x, t) for large Sc is found to be nearly isotropic, with a weak tendency for the dissipation sheets to align with the principal axes of the mean flow strain rate tensor. Joint probability densities of the conserved scalar and scalar dissipation rate have a shape consistent with this canonical layer-like fine-scale structure. Statistics of the conserved scalar and scalar dissipation rate fields are found to demonstrate similarity on inner-scale variables even at the relatively low Reynolds numbers investigated.
Nonparametric maximum penalized likelihood estimation of a density from arbitrarily right-censored observations

Based on arbitrarily right-censored observations from a probability density function fothe existence and uniqueness of the maximum penalized likelihood estimator (MPLE) of fo is proven In particular, the “first MPLE of Good and Gaskins” of a density defined on [O, ∞) is shown to exist and to be unique under arbitrary right-censorship. Furthermore, the MPLE is shown to be in the form of the solution to a linear integral equation whose forcing function is an exponential spline with knots at the observ-ed censored and uncensored data points.
Threateners' reactions to prior announcement of behavioral compliance or defiance

Fifty subjects, 25 males and 25 females, played a Prisoner's Dilemma game which was modified to permit them to send threats to a simulated player which stated that the latter would be penalized if he did not cooperate on the next trial. The simulated target employed one of four patterns of responding to the threat: open defiance, in which the target both verbally and behaviorally defied the threats; concealed defiance, in which the target either refused to reveal his intentions or lied to the source, but was behaviorally defiant; and open and concealed compliance conditions similarly defined. The results indicated that prior announcement of intentions by the target deterred the source from using the threat in the open defiance condition and “converted” him to a mutual cooperator in the open compliance condition. The concealed conditions, however, encouraged exploitative play by the subjects; this finding was interpreted by a cost analysis. It was concluded that the findings supported Osgood's Grit proposal.
Comprehension of reversible sentences in “agrammatism”: a meta-analysis

The functional source(s) of agrammatic aphasic patients' difficulty comprehending semantically reversible active and passive sentences was investigated in a meta-analysis of published sentence/picture matching data from patients with agrammatic production. The analysis revealed approximately equal distributions of three distinct patterns of performance on active and passive voice sentences relative to what would be expected by chance: both structures comprehended better than chance; both structures comprehended no better than chance; active voice sentences comprehended better than chance, while passive voice sentences were comprehended at levels no better than (or worse than) chance. These results are in conflict with explanations of aphasic sentence comprehension failure in which a single pattern of relative performance on active and passive voice structures is asserted to be characteristic of the comprehension of all agrammatic speakers. They also highlight the difficulty of identifying any single causal factor to account for sentence comprehension failure in patients with "agrammatic" sentence production. Results are interpreted with regard to the role of data from aphasic patients in the testing of hypotheses about the organization of normal language processes.
Infarction of Papillary Muscles and Mitral Insufficiency Associated with Congenital Aortic Stenosis

Study of the papillary muscles in 11 infants dying in the first year of life with congenital aortic stenosis and normal coronary arteries demonstrated infarction of the left ventricular papillary muscles in each. Lesions were more extensive in the posteromedial than in the anterolateral papillary muscle. Infarction of papillary muscles is considered the basis for the common occurrence of mitral insufficiency in symptomatic infants with congenital aortic stenosis. Congenital aortic stenosis, infarction of left ventricular papillary muscles, and mitral insufficiency are so interrelated as to constitute a syndrome.
The search for neural mechanisms that define the sensitive period for song learning in birds

Vocal learning is the modification of vocal output by reference to auditory information. We do not know how auditory information is acquired and we do not know how it modifies vocal output. But we know that there are special times during development and in adulthood when vocal learning occurs, and other times when it does not occur. This is a review of what we know about those times. The review highlights behavioural, hormonal, anatomical, physiological and molecular information. I pay particular attention to what is known about the brain pathways used by songbirds for the acquisition and production of learned song, and their relation to auditory pathways. Factors that enable or block vocal learning must act on those auditory and motor pathways, or on pathways that control the motivation for vocal learning. Stages in the development of the song system probably determine the timing of stages in vocal development and learning-and thus influence the first occurrence of food begging calls, subsong, plastic song and stable song. Vocal learning occurs primarily at times when the pathways for vocal learning are growing and forming connections and plasma testosterone levels are low. Parts of this process can recur in adulthood, possibly as a result of neurogenesis and neuronal replacement in some key song nuclei. All the material reviewed here comes from oscine songbirds, mostly zebra finches and canaries.
Computer-Managed Laboratory for Space Applications

This paper discusses the control and management of experiments and instruments that are typical of those planned for future space missions by the use of a spaceborne computer utilizing the computer managed laboratory (CML) approach. The CML approach permits a larger and more complex variety of experiments to be performed with the same complement of instruments and chemicals. Taking advantage of the reprogramming capability, instructions can be transmitted from Earth to change the planned course of experimental approach, depending upon the results obtained from the earlier experiments. A laboratory demonstration program intended for space applications is under way, tied on-line to an IBM computer. A life-detection simulation experiment has been constructed and operated in the CML mode, controlled by an IBM 1800 computer. Other facets of the laboratory program are described.
Temporal Population Genetic Structure of Yellow Perch Spawning Groups in the Lower Great Lakes

AbstractThis study tested the hypothesis that the genetic composition of Yellow Perch Perca flavescens spawning groups at specific sites remained consistent among years or age-cohorts; this likely would influence spatial population structure and be important for delineating management units. Previous studies identified that spawning groups genetically differed among locations across fine geographic scales, but it was unknown whether these patterns persisted from year to year. We analyzed 15 nuclear DNA microsatellite loci from Yellow Perch spawning at six Lake Erie locations in 2009 in reference to two out-groups spawning in Lakes St. Clair and Ontario. Results were compared with a prior study of samples from the same locations that had been collected in various years, ranging from 2001 to 2005. We evaluated consistency for two of the spawning groups across multiple birth-year-cohorts. Results indicated that the levels of genetic diversity were similar across all spawning groups and years. All eight spawn...
ASAS Centennial Paper: Developments and future outlook for preharvest food safety

The last century of food animal agri- culture is a remarkable triumph of scientific research. Knowledge derived through research has resulted in the development and use of new technologies that have in- creased the efficiency of food production and created a huge animal production and food manufacturing in- dustry capable of feeding the US population while also providing significant quantities of high-quality food for export to other countries. Although the US food sup- ply is among the safest in the world, the US Center for Disease Prevention and Control estimates that 76 million people get sick, more than 300,000 are hospital- ized, and 5,000 die each year from foodborne illness. Consequently, preventing foodborne illness and death remains a major public health concern. Challenges to providing a safe, abundant, and nutritious food sup- ply are complex because all aspects of food produc- tion, from farm to fork, must be considered. Given the national and international demand and expectations for food safety as well as the formidable challenges of producing and maintaining a safe food supply, food safety research and educational programs have taken on a new urgency. Remarkable progress has been made during the last century. Wisdom from a century of ani- mal agriculture research now includes the realization that on-farm pathogens are intricately associated with animal health and well-being, the production of high- quality food, and profitability. In this review, some of the developments that have occurred over the last few decades are summarized, including types, sources, and concentrations of disease-causing pathogens encoun- tered in food-producing animal environments and their association with food safety; current and future meth- ods to control or reduce foodborne pathogens on the farm; and present and future preharvest food safety research directions. Future scientific breakthroughs will no doubt have a profound impact on animal agriculture and the production of high-quality food, but we will also be faced with moral, ethical, and societal dilemmas that must be reconciled. A strong, science-based ap- proach that addresses all the complex issues involved in continuing to improve food safety and public health is necessary to prevent foodborne illnesses. Not only must research be conducted to solve complex food safety is- sues, but results of that research must also be commu- nicated effectively to producers and consumers.
Union wage differentials and the effects of industry and local union density: Evidence from the 1980s

This study finds that the real union-nonunion wage differential has declined only slightly since 1985, a period of falling unionism. The study also finds that, in contrast to earlier research, local (geographic) union density positively affects union and nonunion wages.
Using intranets to make virtual teams effective

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to improve the chances of success of a virtual team.Design/methodology/approach – The paper is a review of the formation, problems, and opportunities in setting up a virtual team.Findings – The paper finds that the biggest problem concerns that of getting people to work together using a common language and having common goals. There are also issues with keeping a team on track. Key to solving many of these problems is the appropriate use of the new information and communication technologies.Practical implications – In this paper, it is shown that installing groupware supplies some of the answers. Alongside this, there is a need for benchmarks, measures, and clear visions of what is expected. Continuous feedback is required, to update and keep all members within the loop.Originality/value – The paper shows a fresh roundup of making the most of the intranet for successful teams who are in different locations
Biomedical imaging with hyperpolarized noble gases

Hyperpolarized noble gases (HNGs), polarized to approximately 50% or higher, have led to major advances in magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of porous structures and air-filled cavities in human subjects, particularly the lung. By boosting the available signal to a level about 100 000 times higher than that at thermal equilibrium, air spaces that would otherwise appear as signal voids in an MR image can be revealed for structural and functional assessments. This review discusses how HNG MR imaging differs from conventional proton MR imaging, how MR pulse sequence design is affected and how the properties of gas imaging can be exploited to obtain hitherto inaccessible information in humans and animals. Current and possible future imaging techniques, and their application in the assessment of normal lung function as well as certain lung diseases, are described.
The mean value of the area of polygons circumscribed about a plane convex body

Inner parallel bodies are used to prove that the mean area of polygons circumscribed about a convex bodyK of given area is minimum whenK is a circle.
Discouraged older workers: an exploratory study.

The research literature has documented the social and psychological consequences of unemployment for individuals in our country. Unfortunately, few studies have examined the impact of unemployment on the older worker. This exploratory study examined the characteristics and experiences of seventy-three older unemployed workers, age fifty and above, who were discouraged and had stopped searching for a full-time job. The findings portray the discouraged older worker as potentially at risk of both economic and psychological difficulties. Participants reported feeling mildly depressed about their current unemployment situation, socially isolated and embarrassed, and were experiencing low life satisfaction generally. They also tended to use a low number of social and employment-related community services. Younger participants in the sample under age sixty, those with higher levels of education, and those suffering longer periods of unemployment tended to report having the greatest adjustment difficulties. These...
Self-force on a static scalar test charge outside a Schwarzschild black hole

The finite part of the self-force on a static scalar test charge outside a Schwarzschild black hole is zero. By direct construction of Hadamard's elementary solution, we obtain a closed-form expression for the minimally coupled scalar field produced by a test-charge held fixed in Schwarzschild spacetime. Using the closed-form expression, we compute the necessary external force required to hold the charge stationary. Although the energy associated with the scalar field contributes to the renormalized mass of the particle (and thereby its weight), we find there is no additional self-force acting on the charge. This result is unlike the analogous electrostatic result, where, after a similar mass renormalization, there remains a finite repulsive self-force acting on a static electric test-charge outside a Schwarzschild black hole. We confirm our force calculation using Carter's mass-variation theorem for black holes. The primary motivation for this calculation is to develop techniques and formalism for computing all forces---dissipative and non-dissipative---acting on charges and masses moving in a black-hole spacetime. In the Appendix we recap the derivation of the closed-form electrostatic potential. We also show how the closed-form expressions for the fields are related to the infinite series solutions.
THE EFFECTS OF COMPOSITION INSTRUCTION ON INTERMEDIATE LEVEL FRENCH STUDENTS’ WRITING PERFORMANCE: SOME PRELIMINARY FINDINGS

unsatisfactory by students and faculty alike.1 On the one hand, students coming into their first literature class often feel overwhelmed by the high level of expectations placed upon them, even though they may have been quite successful in their lower-division language courses. On the other hand, upper-division faculty often question the adequacy of their new students' prior preparation when they see them struggle with new, challenging writing tasks appropriate to the discussion of texts at an advanced level. Consequently, foreign language departments across the country are attempting to bridge the gap between basic language skill acquisition and the development of higherorder analytical skills needed for the study of literature or culture at the upper-division level (e.g., 54: pp. 1-3). One important aspect of building such a bridge is to teach students how to write effectively in the foreign language (10; 32). In the fall of 1986 the French Department at the University of California, Berkeley (UCB) restructured its second-year language curriculum in an effort to improve students' preparation for upper-division study. All four skill areas of listening, speaking, reading, and writing were addressed, with particular attention devoted to the improvement of students' prose composition in French. This emphasis was due to the fact that, among the four skills, students' writing ability had drawn the greatest criticism from the faculty. Within two years after the implementation of the new curriculum, faculty in the UCB French Department reported considerable improvement in students' writing ability as well as in their speaking, reading, and critical thinking abilities. In light of this perceived improvement in students' performance, we undertook a formal assessment of the second-year French program. This paper reports the results of the quantitative phase of the assessment; a descriptive account of the development of students' writing skills over the course of the second year French program is in preparation.
High risk lymphoblastic leukemia in children: prognostic factors and management.

Abstract Most of the presenting clinical and biological features that have prognostic significance in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia are closely related, although they are not equally important. The predictive value of these factors can vary with the efficacy of the therapy delivered. Although there are no uniform criteria to define a high-risk group, an initially high leukocyte count and an age 10 years at diagnosis are universally accepted as the most powerful indicators of a poor outcome. With advances in immunology and genetics, blast cell immunophenotypes and karyotypic abnormalities have emerged as independently significant prognostic factors. With this information, therapy can be tailored for patients at various risks of treatment failure. Using early aggressive therapy, more than 60% of patients are expected to be long-term survivors, but better therapy is still needed for those at high risk of relapse. Innovative approaches, such as bone marrow transplantation, phenotype-specific treatment, or pharmacokinetic-directed therapy, are being tested.
Quality Assurance in School Health.

School nurses need to become more influential administrators, managers, and entrepreneurs. They must learn to lead and collaborate effectively in designing, implementing, and evaluating coordinated school health programs. Quality assurance is an essential ingredient in this process that requires accurate, timely, and confidential incident reporting and data analysis structures. These structures, in turn, can serve as the foundation of evidence-based practice and overall system improvement. School nurses can and should assume a key role in the process and thereby continue to meet the challenges of the more sophisticated school health services that today's student population requires. In this way, school nurses will continue to protect and advance the health and safety of the students who are entrusted to their care.
The multics virtual memory

As experience with use of on-line operating systems has grown, the need to share information among system users has become increasingly apparent. Many contemporary systems permit some degree of sharing. Usually, sharing is accomplished by allowing several users to share data via input and output of information stored in files kept in secondary storage. Through the use of segmentation, however, Multics provides direct hardware addressing by user and system programs of all information, independent of its physical storage location. Information is stored in segments each of which is potentially sharable and carries its own independent attributes of size and access privilege.Here, the design and implementation considerations of segmentation and sharing in Multics are first discussed under the assumption that all information resides in a large, segmented main memory. Since the size of main memory on contemporary systems is rather limited, it is then shown how the Multics software achieves the effect of a large segmented main memory through the use of the GE 645 segmentation and paging hardware.
The association between calcium channel blocker use and prostate cancer outcome

BACKGROUND Epidemiological studies indicate that calcium channel blocker (CCB) use is inversely related to prostate cancer (PCa) incidence. The association between CCB use and PCa aggressiveness at the time of radical prostatectomy (RP) and outcome after RP was examined. METHODS Medication use, PCa aggressiveness and post-RP outcome were retrieved from a prospectively populated database that contains clinical and outcome for RP patients at Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) from 1993 to 2010. The database was queried for anti-hypertensive medication use at diagnosis for patients with ≥1 year follow-up. Recurrence was defined using NCCN guidelines. Chi-Square tests assessed the relationship between CCB use and PCa aggressiveness. Cox regression models compared the distribution of progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) with adjustment for covariates. Results for association between CCB usage and PCa aggressiveness were validated using data from the population-based North Carolina-Louisiana Prostate Cancer Project (PCaP). RESULTS 48%, 37%, and 15% of RPCI's RP patients (n = 875) had low, intermediate, and high aggressive PCa, respectively. 104 (11%) had a history of CCB use. Patients taking CCBs were more likely to be older, have a higher BMI and use additional anti-hypertensive medications. Diagnostic PSA levels, PCa aggressiveness, and margin status were similar for CCB users and non-users. PFS and OS did not differ between the two groups. Tumor aggressiveness was associated with PFS. CCB use in the PCaP study population was not associated with PCa aggressiveness. CONCLUSIONS CCB use is not associated with PCa aggressiveness at diagnosis, PFS or OS. Prostate 73: 865–872, 2013. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Outside the Garden of Eden: rural values and healthcare reform.

It should surprise no one familiar with the problems in rural healthcare that 87% of a randomly selected sample of Nebraskans recently called for either fundamental or complete change of the healthcare system. Rural communities in the United, States have been hard hit by the rising cost of healthcare at a time of economic and demographic decline. Unable to sustain operating costs and personnel needs, rural hospitals and medical, practices have been forced to close their doors at an, alarming rate. Furthermore, rural patients are decreasingly able to afford what services are available to them. Most must purchase insurance privately because they are unlikely to be insured through employment. Therefore, they pay dearly because they are not eligible for corporate rates and because insurance companies use experience instead of community rating to assess risk.
A preliminary comparative study of radiographic results using mineralized collagen and bone marrow aspirate versus autologous bone in the same patients undergoing posterior lumbar interbody fusion with instrumented posterolateral lumbar fusion.

Abstract Background context Multiple bone graft substitutes for spinal fusion have been studied with varying results. Purpose The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of a mineralized collagen matrix combined with bone marrow, versus autologous bone, in the same patients undergoing a posterior lumbar interbody fusion and an instrumented posterolateral lumbar fusion. Study design/setting A prospective, comparative study. Patient sample Patients indicated for one-level posterior lumbar interbody fusion and instrumented posterolateral lumbar fusion, serving as self-controls. Outcome measures Thin-cut computed tomographic scans with sagittal reconstruction and plain radiographs, including lateral flexion/extension views were performed and assessed at 12 and 24 months after surgery. Oswestry Disability Index and Visual Analog Scale questionnaires were completed by all patients preoperatively and at 12 and 24 months after surgery. Methods After informed consent and failure of nonoperative treatment, 25 consecutive patients requiring one-level instrumented posterolateral fusion combined with posterior interbody fusion were enrolled in the study. Mineralized collagen bone graft substitute combined with bone marrow aspirate was used on one side of the posterolateral fusion, with iliac crest autograft on the contralateral side. Results A fusion rate of 84% (21/25) was achieved for the autologous bone grafts and 80% (20/25) for the bone graft substitute. The interbody fusion rate was 92% (23/25). Mean Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) scores decreased 57.2% at 12 months and 55.6% at 24 months, compared with baseline. Conclusions Mineralized collagen bone graft substitute exhibited similar radiographic results compared with autograft in this model. Further trials incorporating bilateral fusion, as well as posterolateral fusion alone without interbody fusion are warranted to confirm the results of this study.
An objective method for estimating wind‐speed fields from wind‐direction fields

An objective method is described for obtaining an estimate of the wind-speed values within the interior of a region when only the streamline field for the region and the wind-speed values along the boundary are given. The method has been developed and tested for possible use in data-scarce areas where conventional wind analyses can not be made, but where wind-direction fields might be derived with reasonable accuracy and detail from satellite cloud photographs. The basic approach consists of computing the wind speeds within the interior of the region by stepping downwind along the streamlines from the known wind-speed values at the inflow boundary. Divergence is assumed to be constant along each streamline and is determined in a manner such that successive computational cycles minimize the differences between the computed and known wind speeds at the outflow boundary. The testing was conducted using known wind-velocity fields over the United States and also ATS-3 cloud-motion data over the Caribbean. The computed wind-speed fields were found to be in reasonably good agreement with the actual wind-speed fields.
IT Predictions for 2008

This year we'll likely encounter everything from cyberattacks to robots to the decline of business intelligence and the rise of open source.
Mentors and Muses: New Strategies for Academic Success

Mentoring programs in higher education institutions have met with mixed success. In response to the limitations inherent in the dominant approaches to mentoring, we present an example of a unusual mentoring program, the New Scholars Network (NSN). The NSN is a variant of traditional mentoring approaches, having evolved from mentoring into musing. Framed within a radical humanist philosophy, musing is a process of creating peer communities that facilitates connections between naturally developing relationships, shared power, and collective action. Through mentoring as musing new faculty have the potential to evolve as change agents in the institution, instead of assimilating into the existing system.
The Need for Precompetitive Integrative Bionetwork Disease Model Building

If you doubt that there are enormous gaps in the current drug discovery process, you should probably skip to the next article. Yet even while critiques rightly highlight inefficiencies or operational issues, they often miss a fundamental reality: until we better understand diseases as altered bionetworks and view diseases at an individual patient level, efforts to develop effective biomarkers and therapies will be inefficient at best. Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics (2010) 87 5, 536–539. doi: 10.1038/clpt.2010.40
An integrated hydrological, ecological, and economical (HEE) modeling system for assessing water resources and ecosystem production: calibration and validation in the upper and middle parts of the Yellow River Basin, China

Effective management of water resources in arid and semi-arid areas demands studies that cross over the disciplinaries of natural and social sciences. An integrated Hydrological, Ecological and Economical (HEE) modeling system at regional scale has been developed to assess water resources use and ecosystem production in arid and semi-arid areas. As a physically-based distributed modeling system, the HEE modeling system requires various input parameters including those for soil, vegetation, topography, groundwater, and water and agricultural management at different spatial levels. A successful implementation of the modeling system highly depends on how well it is calibrated. This paper presented an automatic calibration procedure for the HEE modeling system and its test in the upper and middle parts of the Yellow River basin. Previous to calibration, comprehensive literature investigation and sensitivity analysis were performed to identify important parameters for calibration. The automatic calibration procedure was base on conventional Monte Carlo sampling method together with a multi-objective criterion for calibration over multi-site and multi-output. The multi-objective function consisted of optimizing statistics of mean absolute relative error (MARE), Nash-Sutcliffe model efficiency coefficient (ENS), and coefficient of determination (R 2 ). The modeling system was calibrated against streamflow and harvest yield data from multiple sites/provinces within the basin over 2001 by using the proposed automatic procedure, and validated over 1993-1995. Over the calibration period, the mean absolute relative error of simulated daily streamflow was within 7% while the statistics R 2 and ENS of daily streamflow were 0.61 and 0.49 respectively. Average simulated harvest yield over the calibration period was about 9.2% less than that of observations. Overall calibration results have indicated that the calibration procedures developed in this study can efficiently calibrate the modeling system in the study area. Annual validation results for average streamflow and harvest yield showed relative large errors which were associated with irrigation water use and reservoir impact. The validation results of streamflow for sites in upper reaches have shown close relationship with observations which indicated the liability of calibrated parameter values in predicting watershed responses. The information and results provided by the study will be helpful to watershed modelers and model users in calibrating complex watershed models and contribute knowledge to interdisciplinary modeling for water resources management in the study area.
Identification of a specific telomere terminal transferase activity in tetrahymena extracts

We have found a novel activity in Tetrahymena cell free extracts that adds tandem TTGGGG repeats onto synthetic telomere primers. The single-stranded DNA oligonucleotides (TTGGGG)4 and TGTGTGGGTGTGTGGGTGTGTGGG, consisting of the Tetrahymena and yeast telomeric sequences respectively, each functioned as primers for elongation, while (CCCCAA)4 and two nontelomeric sequence DNA oligomers did not. Efficient synthesis of the TTGGGG repeats depended only on addition of micromolar concentrations of oligomer primer, dGTP, and dTTP to the extract. The activity was sensitive to heat and proteinase K treatment. The repeat addition was independent of both endogenous Tetrahymena DNA and the endogenous alpha-type DNA polymerase; and a greater elongation activity was present during macronuclear development, when a large number of telomeres are formed and replicated, than during vegetative cell growth. We propose that the novel telomere terminal transferase is involved in the addition of telomeric repeats necessary for the replication of chromosome ends in eukaryotes.
Sterility of plastic tubing welds in components stored at room temperature

BACKGROUND: The ability of a sterile connecting device to maintain sterility when being used to weld tubing of a blood component to be stored at room temperature, such as a platelet unit, has not been adequately documented, nor has it been determined when the tubing to be welded is filled with liquid. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: The sterility of sterile connecting device welds of polyvinylchloride tubing were challenged after intentional contamination of the exterior of the tubing with both gram-positive and gram-negative organisms (4 × 10(4) to 3 × 10(6) colony-forming units/mL). Welding (n = 244) was performed with the contaminated area either being wet or having been allowed to dry. At the time of the welding, the tubing segments were either empty or filled with liquid (either aliquots of white cell-reduced apheresis platelets or bacteriologic growth medium). After the welding, the liquid was passed across the weld and held in the attached transfer pack for 5 to 7 days at room temperature. RESULTS: Two welds were found to be incomplete and leaky, and both of the units involved had positive cultures. One transfer pack had inadvertently been contaminated at the time of its initial, postweld culture by a bacterium other than the one used in the experiment. Aside from these three nonevaluable units, all of the welds were sterile when cultured after the packs were held for 5 to 7 days. CONCLUSION: This study documents the ability of the sterile connecting device to maintain a closed system in the welding of blood component units to be maintained at room temperature. All welds should be closely inspected at the time of completion to detect leaks that may lead to contamination.
Patch closure of the aortic anulus in a recipient of a ventricular assist device.

Management of the prosthetic aortic valve continues to be a challenge in those patients who require left ventricular mechanical assistance. If left in situ, the indwelling mechanical prosthesis may increase the risk of cerebral thromboembolism. A frequent solution has been valve re-replacement with a bioprosthesis, which may reduce the thromboembolic risk but may not obviate the need for anticoagulation. We describe in this report our experience with such a patient and a novel approach to avoid valve re-replacement with patch closure of the aortic anulus. Clinical summary. A 55-year-old man who had received a Starr-Edwards aortic valve (Baxter Healthcare Corp, Edwards Division, Santa Ana, Calif) some 25 years earlier had a massive anterolateral myocardial infarction. This resulted in severe mitral regurgitation, pulmonary edema, and cardiogenic shock. An angioplasty of the occluded left anterior descending coronary artery was performed successfully but did not restore ventricular function. He was transferred to our center intubated with an intra-aortic balloon pump in place and supported with multiple inotropic agents. After clinical stabilization and rapid work-up for transplantation had been completed, it became apparent that mechanical ventricular assistance was his only chance for survival until a donor heart became available. The patient underwent successful placement of a TCI HeartMate 1000 IP left ventricular assist device (LVAD; Thermo Cardiosystems Inc, Woburn, Mass). At the time of surgery, we thought that the existing prosthetic aortic valve should be removed to prevent the risk of perivalvular thromboembolism and the need for anticoagulation. A vertical aortotomy was performed anteriorly, which was later used for the outflow graft anastomosis. Attempts at permanent closure of the ball valve were unsuccessful because the ball could not be pierced with a needle. Through this exposure the struts of the valve were transected at their junction with the sewing ring and removed together with the ball valve, leaving the original and well-incorporated sewing ring in place. The aortic anulus