cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Conditional quantile regression models of melanoma tumor growth curves for assessing treatment effect in small sample studies

Tumor growth curves provide a simple way to understand how tumors change over time. The traditional approach to fitting such curves to empirical data has been to estimate conditional mean regression functions, which describe the average effect of covariates on growth. However, this method ignores the possibility that tumor growth dynamics are different for different quantiles of the possible distribution of growth patterns. Furthermore, typical individual preclinical cancer drug study designs have very small sample sizes and can have lower power to detect a statistically significant difference in tumor volume between treatment groups. In our work, we begin to address these issues by combining several independent small sample studies of an experimental cancer treatment with differing study designs to construct quantile tumor growth curves. For modeling, we use a Penalized Fixed Effects Quantile Regression with added study effects to control for study differences. We demonstrate this approach using data from a series of small sample studies that investigated the effect of a naturally derived biological peptide, P28, on tumor volumes in mice grafted with human melanoma cells. We find a statistically significant quantile treatment effect on tumor volume trajectories and baseline values. In particular, the experimental treatment and a corresponding conventional chemotherapy had different effects on tumor growth by quantile. The conventional treatment, Dacarbazine (DTIC), tended to inhibit growth for smaller quantiles, while the experimental treatment P28 produced slower rates of growth in the upper quantiles, especially in the 95th quantile.
A pairing phase transition in the Yb isotopes

Abstract Excited L = 0 transitions are seen with considerable strength in the (p,t) reaction on 176 Yb, and with rapidly decreasing strength on the lighter Yb isotopes. The observations indicate a phase transition from a normal to a superconducting ground states as N decreases.
Changes in the presentation of nodular and superficial spreading melanomas over 35 years

BACKGROUND. Nodular melanoma (NM) may be biologically aggressive compared with the more common superficial spreading melanoma (SSM), with recent data suggesting underlying genetic differences between these 2 subtypes. To better define the clinical behavior of NMs, the authors compared their clinical and histopathologic features to those of SSMs at their institution, a tertiary referral center, over 3 decades. METHODS. A total of 1684 patients diagnosed with 1734 melanomas were prospectively enrolled. Of these, 1143 patients (69% SSM, 11% NM, 20% other) were diagnosed between 1972 and 1982; 541 patients (54% SSM, 23% NM, 23% other) were diagnosed between 2002 and the present. Differences between the features of NM and SSM within each time period as well as changes over time were analyzed. RESULTS. The authors found that SSMs are now diagnosed as thinner lesions (P < .0001) with a low incidence of histologic ulceration (P < .0001), whereas there was no significant change in the median tumor thickness or ulceration status of NMs over time (P = .10, P = .30, respectively). The median age at diagnosis of NM, however, did significantly increase over time (51 years to 63 years, P < .01). The median duration of NMs was reported to be only 5 months compared with 9 months in SSM patients. CONCLUSIONS. The authors' data suggest that improvements have been made in the early detection of SSM but not NM. Modifications of current screening practices, including increased surveillance of high-risk patients with an emphasis on the “E” for “evolution” criterion of the ABCDE acronym used for early detection of melanoma, are thus warranted. Cancer 2008. © 2008 American Cancer Society.
Economies of scale in the US airline industry

This study investigates economies of scale in the US airline industry using annual data, from 1987 to 2009, on the largest airlines. The paper estimates both a translog and Cobb–Douglas model of both an economic and transportation definition of economies of scale. The study shows that the results from models based on the two definitions are remarkably similar except during rapid growth in output and that the largest US airlines operate under modest scale economies.
The exact solution of N two level systems interacting with a single mode, quantized radiation field

Abstract The exact solution of N two level systems interacting with a single mode, quantized radiation field are given, and some numerical examples are included.
Capsule endoscopy for small-bowel evaluation in Crohn's disease.

y t h t p m s s a n v Capsule endoscopy (CE) is increasingly accepted as a technique for small-bowel evaluation with a high diagnostic yield. Although the role of CE in evaluation of GI bleeding is now well established, its proper place in the evaluation of other small-bowel disorders, particularly Crohn’s disease (CD), is less certain. The diagnosis of CD remains a clinical one and is based on the combination of clinical, radiologic, endoscopic, and histologic findings. Although there is no reference standard for the diagnosis of CD, endoscopic demonstration of mucosal lesions, with associated histologic findings of chronic intestinal inflammation, is often critical in reaching the diagnosis. Practice guidelines increasingly recognize that CE may play a role in the diagnosis and the evaluation of the extent and activity of small intestine CD. Recent comparative studies suggest that CE has a greater sensitivity for mucosal inflammatory changes than radiologic imaging modalities. However, the clinical significance of some of these mucosal lesions is unclear. The frequency of false-positive reporting of minor mucosal lesions and overdiagnosis of CD, in addition to an increased frequency of capsule retention in patients with known CD, may limit widespread application of CE in the workup of CD. This technical review examines published data on the utility of CE in CD to offer an evidence-based consensus framework for the safe and appropriate use of capsule examinations in patients with CD.
Involvement of tumor necrosis factor-α in natriuretic response to systemic infusion of nitric oxide synthase inhibitor in anesthetized mice

Systemic infusion of TNF-alpha exerts renal vasoconstriction but caused marked natriuresis in mice. Similar renal responses were also observed during systemic infusion of nitric oxide (NO) synthase inhibitors as opposed to their usual antinatriuretic responses when administered intrarenally. In the present study, we examined the hypothesis that acute NO blockade systemically induces TNF-alpha generation. which induces this natriuretic response. Renal responses to intravenous infusion of the NO synthase inhibitor nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME; 0.2 microg x min(-1) x g body wt(-1) for 85 min) and its impact on the plasma level of TNF-alpha were evaluated in anesthetized mice. Plasma TNF-alpha was undetected in untreated mice (n = 7) but was elevated in L-NAME-treated mice (109 +/- 22 pg/ml; P < 0.01 vs. untreated group; n = 7) along with an increase in TNF-alpha protein expression in kidney tissue. L-NAME infusion caused a usual increase in mean arterial pressure (MAP; 98 +/- 3 to 122 +/- 3 mmHg; P < 0.01) and decreases in renal blood flow (RBF; 8.6 +/- 0.3 to 4.4 +/- 0.2 ml x min(-1) x g(-1); P < 0.01) and glomerular filtration rate (GFR; 1.14 +/- 0.07 to 0.77 +/- 0.04 ml x min(-1) x g(-1); P < 0.01) with a marked increase in sodium excretion (U(Na)V; 0.48 +/- 0.10 to 3.52 +/- 0.85 micromol x min(-1) x g(-1); P < 0.01). Interestingly, in mice (n = 7) pretreated with the TNF-alpha blocker etanercept (5 mg/kg sc), the U(Na)V response to l-NAME infusion was markedly blunted (0.58 +/- 0.08 to 1.22 +/- 0.28 micromol x min(-1) x g(-1); P = NS) although responses for MAP, RBF, and GFR were mostly unchanged. However, pretreatment with the superoxide scavenger tempol in mice (n = 7) did not alter the U(Na)V response to L-NAME. These data demonstrate that L-NAME-induced natriuresis is mediated, at least in part, by concomitant generation of TNF-alpha during NO blockade.
Flow behavior of coarse solid-liquid food mixtures

Abstract The effects of increasing carrier viscosity, particle size, and particle concentration and variations in particle shape on the flow behavior of coarse solid-liquid food mixtures were investigated using a simulated coarse solid-liquid food mixture as the test material and parallel plate viscometry. Flow curves resulting from testing that was limited to a maximum test shear rate of 8·36 s −1 were represented by power law equations. Regardless of the carrier medium used, m increased both with particle size and particle concentration. The rate of increase in m with concentration was greater in mixtures formed with a more viscous carrier medium. The increase of m with concentration was also observed for different particle shapes with the rate of increase successively greater for discs, rods, then cubes. The result for shapes can be related to the surface area of each particle facing the flow direction. Values of n were mostly found to decrease with particle concentration. This increase in m values and decrease in n values with increasing particle concentration is consistent with what has been generally reported in the literature for foodstuffs. The deviating result of increasing n values with concentration obtained for mixtures with 0·64 cubes apparently resulted from an inability to test flow behavior at higher test shear rates because of instrument limitations.
Matrix compression by common subexpression elimination

In this report a method for common subexpression elimination in matrices isexplored. The method is applied to several types of matrices occurring in numericalsimulations. In all cases, the cost of ...
The density of infima in the recursively enumerable degrees

Abstract We show that every nontrivial interval in the recursively enumerable degrees contains an incomparable pair which have an infimum in the recursively enumerable degrees.
Cirrhosis and Trauma Are a Lethal Combination

Background The objective of this study was to evaluate the risk of mortality and complications associated with cirrhosis in trauma patients. Methods This is an IRB-approved retrospective trauma registry study of patients admitted to an academic level 1 trauma center from 1997 to 2006. The following parameters were abstracted for analysis: age, gender, mechanism of injury, Abbreviated Injury Score, Injury Severity Score, Glasgow Coma Scale, mortality, and complications (ARDS, acute renal failure, pneumonia, intra-abdominal abscess, trauma-associated coagulopathy). Multivariable analysis was utilized to compare the mortality and complication rates between cirrhotic and noncirrhotic trauma patients. The subgroup of patients who underwent laparotomy was also analyzed. Results During the 10-year study period there were 36,038 trauma registry patients, of which 468 (1.3%) had a diagnosis of cirrhosis. The mortality in the cirrhotic group was 12% vs. 6% in the noncirrhotic group [adjusted odds ratio = 5.65 (95% CI = 3.72 - 8.41, p \ 0.0001)]. ARDS, trauma-associated coagulopathy, and septic complications were significantly more common in the cirrhotic group. The overall severe complication rate in the two groups was 10 and 4%, respectively [adjusted odds ratio = 2.05 (95% CI = 1.45 - 2.84, p \ 0.0001)]. For the subgroup of patients who underwent emergent abdominal exploration, the mortality rate increased to 40% compared with that of noncirrhotics at 15% [adjusted odds ratio = 4.35 (95% CI = 2.00 - 9.18, p = 0.0002)]. Conclusion Cirrhosis is an independent risk factor for increased mortality and higher complication rate following trauma. Injured patients who undergo laparotomy are significantly more likely to die than noncirrhotic patients. Injured patients with cirrhosis warrant aggressive monitoring and treatment.
Effects of continental slope and variable Brunt-Väisälä frequency on the coastal generation of internal tides☆

Abstract Internal waves of significant amplitudes can be generated when long surface waves pass over a depth profile approximating the continental shelf. In addition to the shelf-generated beam with a vertical depth twice the shelf depth and its center along the characteristics emanating from the surface above the shelf, wave energy is generated from an inclined slope that interferes with the oceanic beam constructively sloping below and destructively above the center of the downwards propagating beam. After reflection from the oceanic bottom the additional energy adds to the oceanic beam's energy above its center and substracts below its center. The magnitude of this effect increases as the inclination of the slope approaches that to the internal wave characteristics. For a Brunt-Vaisala frequency decreasing with depth, the vertical extent of the oceanic beam increases as it propagates downward from the generating region. The spreading of the adjacent characteristics with the depth decreases the energy density; however, because of the simulataneous steepening of the characteristics, the vertical displacements are notso strongly affected.
A pragmatics for human relationship with the divine : An examination of the monastic blessing sequence

Abstract Based on observations of interaction among the members of a Russian Orthodox monastery in central Texas, this article explores a discourse practice which has fallen into nearly complete disuse in the surrounding culture: the blessing sequence. Employing ethnographic and discourse analysis, the article affords an understanding of how the members of this discourse community employ blessing to pursue relational connection with, and transformation by, the divine. This investigation of monastic blessing not only provides insight into the life world of a people who are in many ways living on the frontier of human experience but, more generally, discloses features of human interaction which advance the understanding of religious communication.
Correction: Amblyomma maculatum Feeding Augments Rickettsia parkeri Infection in a Rhesus Macaque Model: A Pilot Study.

Rickettsia parkeri is an emerging eschar-causing human pathogen in the spotted fever group of Rickettsia and is transmitted by the Gulf coast tick, Amblyomma maculatum. Tick saliva has been shown to alter both the cellular and humoral components of the innate and adaptive immune systems. However, the effect of this immunomodulation on Rickettsia transmission and pathology in an immunocompetent vertebrate host has not been fully examined. We hypothesize that, by modifying the host immune response, tick feeding enhances infection and pathology of pathogenic spotted fever group Rickettsia sp. In order to assess this interaction in vivo, a pilot study was conducted using five rhesus macaques that were divided into three groups. One group was intradermally inoculated with low passage R. parkeri (Portsmouth strain) alone (n = 2) and another group was inoculated during infestation by adult, R. parkeri-free A. maculatum (n = 2). The final macaque was infested with ticks alone (tick feeding control group). Blood, lymph node and skin biopsies were collected at several time points post-inoculation/infestation to assess pathology and quantify rickettsial DNA. As opposed to the tick-only animal, all Rickettsia-inoculated macaques developed inflammatory leukograms, elevated C-reactive protein concentrations, and elevated TH1 (interferon-γ, interleukin-15) and acute phase inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-6) post-inoculation, with greater neutrophilia and interleukin-6 concentrations in the tick plus R. parkeri group. While eschars formed at all R. parkeri inoculation sites, larger and slower healing eschars were observed in the tick feeding plus R. parkeri group. Furthermore, dissemination of R. parkeri to draining lymph nodes early in infection and increased persistence at the inoculation site were observed in the tick plus R. parkeri group. This study indicates that rhesus macaques can be used to model R. parkeri rickettsiosis, and suggests that immunomodulatory factors introduced during tick feeding may enhance the pathogenicity of spotted fever group Rickettsia.
Studies on recurrent aphthae: evidence that herpes simplex is not the etiological agent, with further observations on the immune responses in herpetic infections.

T HERE is still some uncertainty regardin, v the role of herpes simplex virus in the etiology of recurrent aphthae (canker sores). The general acceptance of the term “recurrent aphthous stomatitis ” as a synonym for recurrent aphthae has been interpreted by some as implying that an etiological relationship exists between this condition and aphthous or herpetic stomatitis. This implication has gained further support from the fact that herpetic infection is, indeed, frequently characterized by the appearance of recurrent lesions. In addition, recurrent aphthae may, at times during their course, superficially resemble the oral lesions of herpes or occur coincidentally with herpetic infection. It is, therefore, not surprising that a relationship between recurrent aphthae and herpes simplex is thought by many to exist. The few clinical and laboratory studies reported have both supported1-3 and rejected4-6 this hypothesis. In this paper are presented our cumulative clinical and laboratory experience with a series of subjects with histories of recurrent aphthae, herpetic infection, or both, along with further evidence indicating t,hat recurrent aphthae are not due to infection with the virus of herpes simplex.
Estimation of big sagebrush leaf area index with terrestrial laser scanning

Abstract Accurate monitoring and quantification of the structure and function of semiarid ecosystems is necessary to improve carbon and water flux models that help describe how these systems will respond in the future. The leaf area index (LAI, m2 m−2) is an important indicator of energy, water, and carbon exchange between vegetation and the atmosphere. Remote sensing techniques are frequently used to estimate LAI, and can provide users with scalable measurements of vegetation structure and function. We tested terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) techniques to estimate LAI using structural variables such as height, canopy cover, and volume for 42 Wyoming big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata subsp. wyomingensis Beetle & Young) shrubs across three study sites in the Snake River Plain, Idaho, USA. The TLS-derived variables were regressed against sagebrush LAI estimates calculated using specific leaf area measurements, and compared with point-intercept sampling, a field method of estimating LAI. Canopy cover estimated with the TLS data proved to be a good predictor of LAI (r2 = 0.73). Similarly, a convex hull approach to estimate volume of the shrubs from the TLS data also strongly predicted LAI (r2 = 0.76), and compared favorably to point-intercept sampling (r2 = 0.78), a field-based method used in rangelands. These results, coupled with the relative ease-of-use of TLS, suggest that TLS is a promising tool for measuring LAI at the shrub-level. Further work should examine the structural measures in other similar shrublands that are relevant for upscaling LAI to the plot-level (i.e., hectare) using data from TLS and/or airborne laser scanning and to regional levels using satellite-based remote sensing.
Executive Dysfunction Among Children With Reading Comprehension Deficits

Emerging research supports the contribution of executive function (EF) to reading comprehension; however, a unique pattern has not been established for children who demonstrate comprehension difficulties despite average word recognition ability (specific reading comprehension deficit; S-RCD). To identify particular EF components on which children with S-RCD struggle, a range of EF skills was compared among 86 children, ages 10 to 14, grouped by word reading and comprehension abilities: 24 average readers, 44 with word recognition deficits (WRD), and 18 S-RCD. An exploratory principal components analysis of EF tests identified three latent factors, used in subsequent group comparisons: Planning/ Spatial Working Memory, Verbal Working Memory, and Response Inhibition. The WRD group exhibited deficits (relative to controls) on Verbal Working Memory and Inhibition factors; S-RCD children performed more poorly than controls on the Planning factor. Further analyses suggested the WRD group's poor performance on EF factors was a by-product of core deficits linked to WRD (after controlling for phonological processing, this group no longer showed EF deficits). In contrast, the S-RCD group's poor performance on the planning component remained significant after controlling for phonological processing. Findings suggest reading comprehension difficulties are linked to executive dysfunction; in particular, poor strategic planning/organizing may lead to reading comprehension problems.
Optimizing probucol administration to preserve left ventricular compliance after reperfusion injury in the heterotopic rat heart isograft.

Abstract Background: We investigated the optimal method of administering probucol to attenuate reperfusion-induced diastolic abnormalities in the left ventricle of the heterotopically transplanted rat heart isograft. Methods: We assigned Lewis rats (n = 84) to 7 transplant groups. We arrested 42 hearts using coronary perfusion with hypothermic University of Wisconsin (UW) solution at 60 mm Hg and abdominally isografted the hearts. Neither donors nor recipients in the control group (C-C, n = 6) received probucol. Oral probucol (1% by weight in chow) was fed for 1 month before surgery to the donors only (OP-C, n = 6), the recipients only (C-OP, n = 6), or both (OP-OP, n = 6). We administered an intraperitoneal injection of probucol (300 mg/kg) in 3 ml oil 1 hour before surgery to the donors only (IP-C, n = 6), the recipients only (C-IP, n = 6), or both (IP-IP, n = 6). Transplanted hearts were reperfused for 15 minutes and re-arrested. We also arrested the control recipients’ native hearts (native, n = 6). We measured post-mortem left ventricular compliance curves and myocardial water content. Results: The most compliant grafts were in Groups IP-IP, OP-OP, and C-IP. All isograft groups had significantly less left ventricular compliance than did native hearts. Myocardial water content was significantly greater in controls than in natives, OP-OP, and OP-C. Conclusions: Pre-treatment with intraperitoneal probucol in cardiac isograft recipients combines optimal protection with simple administration when UW solution is used for both arrest and preservation. Further studies of the protective effect of probucol against reperfusion injury in large-animal models are warranted and should use intraperitoneal or intravenous injection in recipients.
The Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome A Cause of Shin Splints

The medial tibial stress syndrome is a symptom complex seen in athletes who complain of exercise-induced pain along the distal posterior-medial aspect of the tibia. Intramuscular pressures within the posterior compartments of the leg were measured in 12 patients with this disorder. These pressures were not elevated and therefore this syndrome is a not a compartment syndrome. Available information suggests that the medial tibial stress syndrome most likely represents a periostitis at this location of the leg.
THE GHISELLI STUDY OF ABILITIES AND TRAITS OF MORE AND LESS SUCCESSFUL MIDDLE MANAGERS: A REPLICATION

Summary.-A sample of 42 middle managers in the home office of an international manufacturing company completed the Self-description Inventory, designed by Ghiselli to measure the traits of more successful managers. Data generally support the Self-description Inventory as a measure of traits determined by Ghiselli to indicate success. The present study was an attempt to replicate the original Ghiselli study (1971) of the abilities and personality traits of middle managerial talent. Ghiselli's study represented some 20 years of research, culminating in a sample of 306 male middle managers. Previous studies present varying support and nonsupport for Ghiselli's conclusions (Fredericksen, Jensen, & Beaton, 1972; Brief, Aldag, & Chacko, 1977; Miner, 1978; Bowin & Leonard, 1981; Bowin, 1983). However, there appears to be limited research that replicates and compares Ghiselli's original findings. The present study was an attempt to replicate the original Ghiselli study. The 306 managers studied by GhiseUi represented wide geographical locations of employment, from Boston to Honolulu and from Seattle to Atlanta. There were 90 different business and industrial organizations. Ghiselli recognized that 306 middle managers were not a representative sample of American middle management and that 90 firms did not constitute a representative sample of American businesses. However, he did believe that the ". . . study should have a great deal of generalizability." Ghiselli used an empirically based instrument, the Self-description Inventory to identify the traits and talents of these middle managers. The inventory is a questionnaire of 64 word-pairs from which the respondent chooses one each of 32 pairs that least describe and one each of 32 pairs that most describe the individual. The 306 middle managers completed the inventory and GhiseUi selected 13 traits to be assessed. Of these, Ghiselli states that "It would seem arrogant to presume that so short a test could possibly measure as many as 13 different traits. And this would be quite true if we were assessing men. But we ate not; rather, we are assessing traits." To determine the relative importance of the traits, Ghiselli required that each satisfy three conditions: managers should
MicroRNA expression during demosponge dissociation, reaggregation, and differentiation and a evolutionarily conserved demosponge miRNA expression profile

Demosponges share eight orthologous microRNAs (miRNAs), with none in common with Bilateria. Biological functions of these demosponge miRNAs are unknown. Bilaterian miRNAs are key regulators of cellular processes including cell cycle, differentiation, and metabolism. Resolving if demosponge miRNAs participate in such biological functions will provide clues whether these functions are convergent, evidence on the mode of evolution of cellular developmental processes. Here, a quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay was developed and used to test for differential miRNA expression during dissociation and reaggregation in Spongosorites, compare expression profiles between choanosome and cortex in Spongosorites, and compare undifferentiated gemmules to differentiated juveniles in Ephydatia. During Spongosorites dissociation and reaggregation, miRNA expression showed a global decrease in expression across a range of reaggregating cell densities. miRNA differential response could be related to various general cellular responses, potentially related to nutrient-poor conditions of the minimal artificial seawater media, stress response from tissue dissociation, or loss of cell-cell or cell-matrix contact. In Ephydatia, overall increase in miRNA expression in gemmule-hatched stage 4/5 juveniles relative to gemmules is observed, indicating that increased miRNA expression may be related to increased cellular activity such as migration, cell cycle, and/or differentiation. Observed differential miRNA expression of miRNA during dissociation in Spongosorites (lowered global expression), and during activation, and differentiation of Ephydatia gemmules (increased global expression) could indicate that miRNA expression is associated with cell cycle, differentiation, or metabolism pathways. Interspecies comparison was performed, results indicating that orthologous miRNAs share similar relative expression pattern between the four species tested (Spongosorites, Cinachyrella, Haliclona, and Ephydatia), demonstrating and evolutionarily conserved miRNA expression profile across Demospongia. While these results do not elucidate specific molecular and cellular pathways, together they provide a broad survey of miRNA expression in demosponge systems.
Control and information with conditional quantum measurements

Summary form only given. Conditional quantum measurements allow the observation of quantum fluctuations which result from a measurement on a quantum system. These dynamics are characterized with time-ordered correlation functions. Control and observation of these dynamics presents a challenging new direction in cavity QED from both the technological and theoretical point of view. Wiseman has considered quantum limited feedback on a continuously monitored system to reduce the noise in the evolution of the system below the shot noise level. It is assumed that the flux of information out of the system is large. We study the opposite limit, where the amount of information available following the feedback is much less than one quantum.
Polymer microchip CE of proteins either off‐ or on‐chip labeled with chameleon dye for simplified analysis

Microchip capillary electrophoresis of proteins labeled either off- or on-chip with the “chameleon” CE dye 503 using poly(methyl methacrylate) microchips is presented. A simple dynamic coating using the cationic surfactant cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide prevented nonspecific adsorption of protein and dye to the channel walls. The labeling reactions for both off- and on-chip labeling proceeded at room temperature without requiring heating steps. In off-chip labeling, a 9 ng/mL concentration detection limit for bovine serum albumin (BSA), corresponding to a ~7 fg (100 zmol) mass detection limit, was obtained. In on-chip tagging, the free dye and protein were placed in different reservoirs of the microchip, and an extra incubation step was not needed. A 1 μg/mL concentration detection limit for BSA, corresponding to a ~700 fg (10 amol) mass detection limit, was obtained from this protocol. The earlier elution time of the BSA peak in on-chip labeling resulted from fewer total labels on each protein molecule. Our on-chip labeling method is an important part of automation in miniaturized devices.
Assessing Distress in Pediatric Intensive Care Environments: The COMFORT Scale

Managing psychological distress is a central treatment goal in Pediatric Intensive Care Units (PICUs), with medical and psychological implications. However, there is no objective measure for assessing efficacy of pharmacologic and psychological interventions used to reduce distress. Development of the COMFORT scale is described, a nonintrusive measure for assessing distress in PICU patients. Eight dimensions were selected based upon a literature review and survey of PICU nurses. Interrater agreement and internal consistency were high. Criterion validity, assessed by comparison with concurrent global ratings of PICU nurses, was also high. Principal components analysis revealed 2 correlated factors, behavioral and physiologic, accounting for 84% of variance. An ecological-developmental model is presented for further study of children's distress and coping in the PICU.
First, Second, and Third Order Finite-Volume Schemes for Navier-Stokes Equations

In this paper, we present first-, second-, and third-order implicit finite-volume schemes for solving the Navier-Stokes equations on unstructured grids based on a hyperbolic formulation of the viscous terms. These schemes are first-, second-, and third-order accurate on irregular grids for both the inviscid and viscous terms and for all Reynolds numbers, not only in the primitive variables but also in the first-derivative quantities such as the velocity gradients for the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations and the viscous stresses and heat fluxes for the compressible Navier-Stokes equations. Numerical results show that the developed schemes are capable of producing highly accurate derivatives on highly-skewed grids whereas a conventional scheme suffers from severe oscillations on such grids. Moreover, these first-, second-, and thirdorder schemes enable the construction of implicit solvers that converge intrinsically faster in CPU time than a conventional second-order implicit Navier-Stokes solver with the acceleration factor growing in the grid refinement.
Economic malaise in Japan: Changing economic order and the future of the U.S.–Japan economic relationship

B. Gao. 2001. Japan's Economic Dilemma: The Institutional Origins of Prosperity and Stagnation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 300 pages; ISBN 0-521-79025-5. F. Bergsten, T. Ito, & M. Noland. 2001. No More Bashing: Building a New Japan-United States Economic Relationship. Washington, DC: Institute for International Economics. 328 pages; ISBN 0-88132-286-5.
Effects of school-based point-of- testing counselling on health status variables among rural adolescents

Objective:Rural areas may suffer from a lack of access to health care and programmes to promote behaviours such as healthy eating and physical activity. Point-of-testing counselling is a method of ...
Core Buildup Repair Using a Clear Matrix: A Case Report and Clinical Technique

Clinical Relevance In some cases, cores fractured between the impression and delivery stage may be predictably restored to original contour, allowing for delivery of the crown.
Protection Made to Order: Domestic Industry's Capture and Reconfiguration of U.S. Antidumping Policy

The Obama administration has proposed changing several Commerce Department antidumping procedures. Those changes would expand the scope for findings of dumping and precipitate a surge in antidumping actions.The evolution of U.S. antidumping policy is marked by distinct inflection points corresponding to legal and administrative changes favorable to protection-seekers. In the decades following World War II, the U.S. antidumping apparatus was gradually captured by interested parties, and the law transformed from one predicated on protecting consumers and preserving competition into a tool that suppresses competition in the name of remedying "injury" done to domestic producers.The arcane mix of statutory rules and discretionary whimsy that emerged is a far cry from the first antidumping law — in both practice and intent. No longer are anti-competitive or predatory pricing practices the law's target. Instead, the target is foreign competition writ large, and, as such, antidumping practice routinely punishes normal, healthy competition at great cost to the broader economy.Honest debate about the law's purpose and consequences has been stifled by its complexity and by the persistence of highly inaccurate rhetoric about the propriety of strong antidumping rules to redress unfair foreign practices. Armed with the pretense of a noble purpose, representatives of labor unions and import-competing industries often cite the number of antidumping initiations as evidence of the need for an even more accessible and restrictive antidumping law to better protect "us" from "them". But the causation implicit in that logic is backward.This paper shows that the increase in antidumping activity reflects several developments that have nothing to do with foreign behavior, including a progressive expansion of the definition of dumping, relaxation of evidentiary standards, and a pro-domestic industry bias in the law's administration. Ultimately, the antidumping remedy is a much larger problem than the dumping it is presumed to address.
Shaft Alignment in Ship Repair: Three Case Studies

In ship repair, there are many times when the propulsion shaft has to be realigned after repairs have been completed. This paper looks at some of the theoretical approaches to shaft alignment and some of the techniques for alignment. Three different cases are examined to demonstrate how the principles work in the dock and some of the problems incurred. The three cases involve vastly different shaft systems with different repair and alignment problems
Contentious Politics and Social Change in Congo

This paper begins by tracing the disintegration of the Congolese state (Democratic Republic of Congo) over three decades under Mobutu Sese Seko. The failed democratic transition of the 1990s was a process that exposed deep cleavages among the Congolese political class that culminated in a power vacuum filled by the Kabila regime in 1997. Since the advent of the new Kabila government foreign elements have 'had their way,' so to speak, with Congo in ways reminiscent of the years of the Belgian King's fiefdom and subsequent colonial period. The war which began in 1998 - and has wrought the ravaging of Congo's human and material resources by foreign elements both African and non-African - stems largely from the Congolese state's inability to protect itself, the most essential function of a nation-state. Thus state-building and peace-building must go hand in hand in Congo. In this paper Charles Tilly's model of 'contentious politics' is applied to the current Congo conflict. The article concludes with an assessment of the 1999 Lusaka Peace Agreement, a document that aims to address peace-building and state-building simultaneously as complementary notions, indeed a challenge for many post-conflict nations. The article asks the question: do peace agreements by themselves represent viable paths forward for the political development of countries emerging from conflict or, in the case of Congo, is there a need for a broad and popular consensus and a comprehensive national security program to end the devastating war?
On the predictive power of web intelligence and social media the best way to predict the future is to tweet it

With more information becoming widely accessible and new content created every day on today's web, more are turning to harvesting such data and analyzing it to extract insights. But the relevance of such data to see beyond the present is not clear. We present efforts to predict future events based on web intelligence --- data harvested from the webi¾?--- with specific emphasis on social media data and on timed event mentions, thereby quantifying the predictive power of such data. We focus on predicting crowd actions such as large protests and coordinated acts of cyber activism --- predicting their occurrence, specific timeframe, and location. Using natural language processing, statements about events are extracted from content collected from hundred of thousands of open content web sources. Attributes extracted include event type, entities involved and their role, sentiment and tone, and --- most crucially --- the reported timeframe for the occurrence of the event discussed --- whether it be in the past, present, or future. Tweets Twitter posts that mention an event to occur reportedly in the future prove to be important predictors. These signals are enhanced by cross referencing with the fragility of the situation as inferred from more traditional media, allowing us to sift out the social media trends that fizzle out before materializing as crowds on the ground.
Bose Condensation in Superconductors and Liquid 4 He

Calculations on many-body systems containing both composite particles and their constituents are facilitated by the use of representations1–3 in which the composite particles are described in terms of their own dynamic variables. The method3 we shall employ here is based on the familiar idea of the introduction of initially redundant variables corresponding to the composite particles, followed by a canonical transformation which gives these extra modes physical content. This approach is similar to that employed, e.g., in the Bohm—Pines theory of plasma oscillations,4 in which extra plasmon variables were introduced.
Neural effects of DDT poisoning in cats.

ConclusionsProgressive neurological symptoms were produced in cats by the intramuscular injection of DDT, The signs evolved in the sequence of stiffness, tremor, clonic movements, and death.An animal with chronic neurological symptoms was not obtained, either because death supervened or because the animal returned toward normality.Nissl sections revealed diffuse damage to the ganglion cells of the brain, characterized by vacuolar degeneration or pyknosis. No alterations, other than capillary dilatation, were recognized in the liver.
Platelet aggregation studies for the diagnosis of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia.

Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) is a serious clinical disorder characterized by the sudden onset of thrombocytopenia and is often associated with paradoxic thrombosis in patients receiving heparin. The diagnosis of HIT has been hampered by problems with the laboratory methods used to establish the diagnosis. The authors evaluated the role of the source of heparin and donor platelets on the results of an ex vivo platelet aggregation assay for the diagnosis of HIT. Bovine lung and porcine mucosal heparins were equally effective at mediating ex vivo platelet aggregation induced by 17 of 17 known HIT-positive plasma samples
Serum copper and zinc levels in various pathologic conditions.

In order to explore their diagnostic significance, serum copper and zinc levels were measured in various pathologic conditions by means of atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Elevated copper levels were observed in most of the pathologic conditions studied, but the increases were significant in congestive cardiac failure, pneumonia, myoma of the uterus, rheumatic heart disease, bronchitis, cholelithiasis, asthma, pelvic inflammatory disease, cerebral arteriosclerosis, and arteriosclerotic heart disease. Zinc values in most diseases studied were normal or close to normal. However, decreased concentrations were found in alcoholism, Laennec's cirrhosis, bronchitis, and pneumonia. Although statistically significant elevations of copper and decreases of zinc have been found in various pathologic conditions, a large number of patients in each diagnostic category had values well within normal range. Owing to these inconsistencies it is obvious that these trace metal levels are of doubtful value for diagnostic purposes.
Turmeric,Turmeric,Rhizoma Zedoariae Identification and High Performance Liquid Chromatography Determination of Curcumin Content

Turmeric,turmeric,rhizoma zedoariae,from which all belong to the same plant,is the same plants of different medicinal part,form,character,composition and functions are similar and different.From the source,origin,character and the processing method can be compared and identified three kinds of medicinal materials.High performance liquid chromatography(HPLC)method was applied to turmeric,turmeric,determination of curcumin content in rhizoma zedoariae,turmeric,turmeric and rhizoma zedoariae medicinal materials in all contains a certain amount of curcumin,the highest content in turmeric.
Transsphenoidal surgery for tumors of the clivus.

Chordoma of the clivus is an uncommon lesion that can be difficult to manage. The transsphenoidal approach is useful in many cases and can provide the optimal means of exposure for lesions of the midclivus. In selected cases this route may be used for biopsy, for radical surgical removal, and for palliation of extensive or recurrent lesions.
Unilateral Carotid Body Resection in Resistant Hypertension: An Exciting First Step Toward a New Therapy?

Hypertension is a highly prevalent condition and, when untreated, has myriad devastating consequences including myocardial infarction, cardiomyopathy, renal failure, and stroke. Extensive clinical data support the treatment of hypertension and demonstrates the reduction in cardiovascular events,
Paroxysmal atrioventricular block after heart transplantation in children: an early sign of rejection?

In OHT recipients, pathologic evaluation of the heart during acute rejection can show involvement of both the conduction system and the myocardium. We here describe the cases of a 9-year-old male with DCM and a 13-year-old female with RCM, who developed third-degree PAVB associated with acute rejection 36 months and 24 months after OHT, respectively. We conclude that PAVB could be considered an early sign of acute rejection after OHT in children who exhibit post-transplantation presyncope or syncope.
User Experience in Social Justice Contexts

This paper draws on existing bodies of literature in technical and professional communication to ground these questions in the unique challenges of social justice centered UX work. First, this paper situates UX development work within the growing body of literature on social justice research within technical communication. Next, the author articulates points of tension and convergence between industry UX "best practices" and social justice UX centered projects in terms of both theory and application. Specifically, the author focuses on the differences of development cycles and user advocacy/representation in social justice UX contexts as opposed to more typical of UX development work. The author concludes the paper by articulating challenges and opportunities for UX developers interested in social justice communication design work.
The Study of a Catalytic Intermediate of Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase

The flavoprotein Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) is an essential enzyme in the methionine biosynthesis pathway. It catalyzes the reduction of 5,10 methylenetetrahydrofolate (CH2-H4folat...
#JoinTheConversation: The Evolving Legal Landscape of Using Hashtags in Sport

As sport properties and brands leverage the use of hashtags to expand their share of voice and audiences, they also face a host of emerging legal issues at the nexus of social media and intellectual property laws. This article examines the current potential conflict between the courts and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) regarding the legal status of hashtags as trademarks, which provides the backdrop discussion of sport properties’ approaches to potentially infringing use of hashtags in the context of ambush marketing. The Federal Trade Commission has also initiated regulatory efforts aimed at hashtag-based promotions. Analysis of significant cases and application of a typology of hashtags to sport industry examples provides guidance to sport organizations. While typically favoring strict enforcement in matters involving intellectual property, the risk in stifling conversations stimulated by hashtags may call for more innovative tactics to achieve brand protection and consumer protec...
Simulating forest management and its effect on landscape pattern

Landscapes are characterized by their structure (the spatial arrangement of landscape elements), their ecological function (how ecological processes operate within that structure), and the dynamics of change (disturbance and recovery). Thus, understanding the dynamic nature of landscapes and predicting their future dynamics of landscapes are of particular emphasis. Landscape change is difficult to study because controlled experiments at landscape scales often are not feasible for political, economic, social and logistical reasons. Opportunistic studies of change (e.g., after a large fire) are often confounded by uncontrolled factors. For these reasons, changes in landscape pattern are often studied using simulation models. This lab will.
Nonparametric Modeling and Prognosis of Condition Monitoring Signals Using Multivariate Gaussian Convolution Processes

Condition monitoring (CM) signals play a critical role in assessing the remaining useful life of in-service components. In this article, an alternative view on modeling CM signals is proposed. This...