cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Patient-Derived Xenograft Models of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer and Their Potential Utility in Personalized Medicine.

Traditional preclinical studies of cancer therapeutics have relied on the use of established human cell lines that have been adapted to grow in the laboratory and, therefore, may deviate from the cancer they were meant to represent. With the emphasis of cancer drug development shifting from nonspecific cytotoxic agents to rationally designed molecularly targeted therapies or immunotherapy comes the need for better models with predictive value regarding therapeutic activity and response in clinical trials. Recently, the diversity and accessibility of immunodeficient mouse strains has greatly enhanced the production and utility of patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models for many tumor types, including non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Combined with next generation sequencing, NSCLC PDX mouse models offer an exciting tool for drug development and for studying targeted therapies while utilizing patient samples with the hope of eventually aiding in clinical decision making. Here we describe NSCLC PDX mouse models generated by us as well as others, their ability to reflect the parental tumors’ histomorphological characteristics, as well as the effect of clonal selection and evolution on maintaining genomic integrity in low passage PDXs compared to the donor tissue. We also raise vital questions regarding the practical utility of PDX and humanized PDX models in predicting patient response to therapy, and make recommendations for addressing those questions. Once collaborations and standardized xenotransplantation and data management methods are established, NSCLC PDX mouse models have the potential to be universal and invaluable as a preclinical tool that guides clinical trials and standard therapeutic decisions.
Racial Subjugation by Another Name? Using the Links in the School-to-Prison Pipeline to Reassess State Takeover District Performance

The state takeover of locally governed schools in predominately black communities has not disrupted the racial subjugation of black people in the United States. Using proportional analyses and the cities of Detroit, Memphis, and New Orleans as sites, the researcher finds that state takeover districts have not consistently disrupted the school-to-prison pipeline for black students in urban settings. Furthermore, the researcher found little evidence that would support broader and more intentional efforts to combat the over disciplining of black students in the United States Department of Education’s proposed rules for implementing the Every Student Succeeds Act, the most recent reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. In fact, the legislation perpetuates strategies that have aided the creation of the school-to-prison pipeline and supplies only strong recommendations to replace strategies that have compounded the harm of the school-to-prison pipeline. This finding is important in the context of education reform, particularly as researchers begin to question the motives and results of contemporary education reform. Moreover, this work is important to the current scholarly discussions that consider the many civil rights that black communities are required to exchange for the prospect of better schools.
A multilevel Stochastic Management Model for Optimal Conjunctive Use of Ground and Surface Water

Abstract When water is a limiting factor in alternatives of regional development, it is necessary to allocate that water for the maximum benefit to the region. When one portion of the water resources is surface flow and the other is ground water, optimal management requires the conjunctive use of both resources. Water resources administrative is often implemented by both regional and local authorities which are related in some hierarchical manner. Water resources management is a probabilistic endeavor in that hydrologic processes are stochastic in nature. Water in New Mexico's Rio Grande River basin is used conjunctively for most purposes; demands are satisfied by pumping from groundwater and releases from over ten reservoirs. The state allocates water rights to subregions and subregional agencies control the distribution of those allocations. A multilevel stochastic management model is developed for Rio Grande basin. Mass-balance ground and surface water stochastic models are developed for four hydrologically linked sub-basins. A multilevel management model is formulated such that the subbasins' local agencies operate their allocated water to their own best interest, while the regional authority modifies allocations to satisfy physical feasibility and legal constraints and improve upon overall regional benefits.
Photonic Energy Harvesting: Boosting Energy Yield of Commodity Solar Photovoltaic Systems via Software Defined IoT Controls

Solar photovoltaic (PV) systems have a utilization (or capacity) factor of 15-20% worldwide. We propose to enhance the energy yield in a software-defined manner by complementing commodity solar PV systems with cloud-based IoT-controlled reflectors. We also propose designs for brownfield and greenfield settings in solar farms. We study a number of practical engineering issues including effect of solar azimuth, shadowing effects, ground coverage ratio (GCR) tradeoff, constraints on angular control etc. Our designs can raise solar PV energy yield between 50-100% with modest tradeoffs on operational complexity, land requirements (ground coverage ratio) etc. The software-defined IoT control allows a variety of current and future operational or business constraints to be flexibly factored in to tradeoff these factors versus economic gain (eg: levelized cost of energy, LCOE). The paper presents both simulation and experimental evidence for our system. We are actively piloting this technology with solar PV developers and engineering, procurement, construction (EPC) companies in emerging markets.
Undermining the ‘Pastoral Idyll’: The Trumpet-Major and Under the Greenwood Tree

This chapter will expand on the examples in Chap. 2 by examining how a sub-textual narrative of food references in The Trumpet-Major and Under the Greenwood Tree captures the instability of the pre-industrial era. Set within the context of the Napoleonic Wars, Hardy undermines the nostalgia of a lost idyll. As such, The Trumpet-Major is concerned with the role of ‘idealism,’ which is both promoted and disrupted through the availability and production of food items that serve as a micro-analogy for wider ideological concepts: national identity and patriotism. Under the Greenwood Tree has its context in the ‘Poaching Wars’ of the 1830s and 1840s, inviting the reader to consider the social unrest that was bound up in food taxes, game laws and educational reform.
Calculation of Dipole-Forbidden 5f Absorption Spectra of Uranium(V) Hexa-Halide Complexes.

Restricted-active-space wave function calculations including spin–orbit coupling, in combination with Kohn–Sham density functional calculations of vibrational modes, were used to determine the vibronic and electronic absorption intensities of the near-infrared electric dipole-forbidden 5f–5f transitions of representative uranium(V) hexa-halide complex ions. The agreement with experimentally assigned vibronic and electronic transitions measured for powder or solution samples of salts of the complex ions is reasonable overall and excellent for the experimentally best-resolved E5/2u → E5/2u′ bands. The intensity of the vibronic transitions may be borrowed from ligand-to-metal charge-transfer excitations as well as 5f-to-6d metal-centered transitions. Magnetically allowed electronic transitions contribute to the two lower-frequency bands of the ligand-field spectrum.
Correlates of Adolescent and Young Adult Male Criminal Behavior

Social and environmental factors have long been recognized as having etiological importance in the explanation of criminal behavior. In this chapter we will first define criminal behavior and review the literature to provide a comprehensive, but not exhaustive, description of progress to date in this field. Subsequently, we present the results of a series of analyses designed to ferret out the direct or independent, as well as indirect, relationships of selected social and familial variables with the criminal behavior of the male subgroup of the Danish sample.
The Neural Network Approach to Inverse Problems in Differential Equations

We proposed a framework for solving inverse problems in differential equations based on neural networks and automatic differentiation. Neural networks are used to approximate hidden fields. We analyze the source of errors in the framework and derive an error estimate for a model diffusion equation problem. Besides, we propose a way for sensitivity analysis, utilizing the automatic differentiation mechanism embedded in the framework. It frees people from the tedious and error-prone process of deriving the gradients. Numerical examples exhibit consistency with the convergence analysis and error saturation is noteworthily predicted. We also demonstrate the unique benefits neural networks offer at the same time: universal approximation ability, regularizing the solution, bypassing the curse of dimensionality and leveraging efficient computing frameworks.
Clarifying Effects of Environmental Protections on Freshwater Flows to—and Water Exports from—the San Francisco Bay Estuary

Author(s): Reis, Gregory J.; Howard, Jeanette K.; Rosenfield, Jonathan A. | Abstract: Understanding and resolving conflicts over management of scarce natural resources requires access to information that helps characterize the problem. Where information is lacking, perceived differently by stakeholders, or provided without relevant context, these conflicts can become intractable. We studied water management practices and constraints that affect the flow of water into and through the San Francisco Bay estuary — home to six endangered fish species and two water export facilities owned by the state and federal governments that serve millions of people and large expanses of agricultural land in California. Media reports reflect widely held beliefs that environmental regulations, and particularly protections for endangered fish species, frequently limit water diversions and substantially increase freshwater flow to San Francisco Bay. We analyzed long-term trends in freshwater flow to San Francisco Bay relative to annual runoff from its Central Valley watershed, and the frequency and magnitude of specific regulatory and physical constraints that govern operations of the water export facilities. We found that the percentage of Central Valley runoff that reached San Francisco Bay during the ecologically sensitive winter-spring period declined over the past several decades, such that the estuary experienced drought conditions in most years. During a 9-year period that included a severe natural drought, exports were constrained to maintain salinity control as often as to protect endangered fish populations. Salinity-control and system-capacity constraints were responsible for Delta outflow volumes that dwarfed those related to protection of fish and wildlife populations, endangered or otherwise. These results run counter to common media narratives. We recommend rapid synthesis and easily accessible presentation of data on Central Valley water diversions and constraints on them; such data should be contextualized via comparison to regional hydrology and water management system capacity.
Silicon Micromachined Modulated Metasurface Antennas in the Terahertz Range

This paper explores the capabilities of a class of metasurface (MTS), which consists of metalized cylinders on a ground plane, for the realization of modulated MTS antennas at terahertz (THz) frequencies. The proposed structure is particularly appropriate for being micromachined out of a silicon wafer by means of deep reactive ion etching (DRIE). The constraints that DRIE imposes in the design of the MTS unit cell are discussed, along with the advantages of silicon micromachined modulated MTSs with respect to other fabrication approaches in the THz range.
Optimized Renal Transporter Quantification by Using Aquaporin 1 and Aquaporin 2 as Anatomical Markers: Application in Characterizing the Ontogeny of Renal Transporters and Its Correlation with Hepatic Transporters in Paired Human Samples.

Renal transporters, which are primarily located in the proximal tubules, play an important role in secretion and nephrotoxicity of drugs. The goal of this study was to characterize the age-dependent protein abundance of human renal transporters. A total of 43 human kidneys, 26 of which were paired with livers from the same donors, were obtained and classified into three age groups: children ( 18 years). Protein abundance of kidney-specific anatomical markers, aquaporins 1 and 2 (markers of proximal and distal/collecting tubules, respectively), and 17 transporters was quantified by LC-MS/MS proteomics. Six out of 43 kidney samples were identified as outliers (Grubbs’ test) that were significantly different from the others with relatively higher aquaporin 2 to aquaporin 1 ratio, indicating that these cortex samples were likely contaminated by medulla (representing distal/collecting tubules). No significant age-related changes (age > 1 year) were observed for renal transporter abundance, albeit OCT2 abundance was modestly higher (< 50%) in adolescents than that in adults. Higher protein-protein correlation between transporters was observed in the kidney but abundance of transporters between tissues was not correlated. The use of aquaporins 1 and 2 provides a method for identifying kidney cortex with significant contamination from medulla containing distal and collecting tubules. The abundance and protein-protein correlation data can be used in physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modeling and simulation of renal drug disposition and clearance in pediatric populations.
Exploring the Emotional Labor of Medical Trainees in the Setting of Ethics Education

Julie Childers and Bob Arnold’s (2019) article, “The Inner Lives of Doctors: Physician Emotion in the Care of the Seriously Ill,” uses Kubler-Ross’s influential work on death and dying to remind us...
Manturuk, Lindblad, and Quercia: A Place Called Home: The Social Dimensions of Homeownership

The word homeownership has an acrid aftertaste for many young housing scholars who entered the planning field in the wake of the mid-2000s to early 2010s foreclosure crisis. The crisis hit lower in...
Prompt diagnosis of biliary atresia: education has not succeeded, time to move to universal screening.

Biliary atresia (BA) is an important public health issue because of its severity, remaining the the most common indication for paediatric liver transplantation, and the time-sensitive nature of its management. The aetiology of BA remains elusive, but it develops prenatally and progresses rapidly after birth. It presents with neonatal jaundice, often as prolongation of physiological jaundice. Affected infants often appear superficially well with normal early growth, although hepatomegaly is common if actively sought. Pale stools are usually present by 2 weeks and are the rule by 1 month of age. Treatment is with a timely Kasai portoenterostomy which, if successful in clearing jaundice, transforms the outlook and postpones the need for urgent liver transplantation, often for many years. The traditional target was to ensure the Kasai was carried out before 60 days old, but it is now evident that it should be done as early as possible to maximise chances of success.1 Unfortunately, despite campaigns to raise professional and community awareness of the importance of investigating prolonged neonatal jaundice, the age at surgery for BA has not fallen in the USA over the last 20 years, or in the UK until very recently. Currently, more than half require urgent liver transplant in their first 2 years. The major cause for delay continues to be failure to recognise and/or appreciate the significance of prolonged jaundice. Some delay may reflect health infrastructure as infants are not routinely examined between the …
Making something out of nothing: Enhanced flaw tolerance and rupture resistance in elastomer–void “negative” composites

Abstract Elastomers often exhibit large stretchability but are not typically designed with robust energy dissipating mechanisms. As such, many elastomers are sensitive to the presence of flaws: cracks, notches, or any other features that cause inhomogeneous deformation significantly decrease the effective stretchability. To address this issue, we have dispersed voids into a silicone elastomer matrix, thereby creating a “negative” composite that provides increased fracture resistance and stretchability in pre-cut specimens while simultaneously decreasing the weight. Experiments and simulations show that the voids locally weaken the specimen, guiding the crack along a tortuous path that ultimately dissipates more energy. We investigate two geometries in pre-cut specimens (interconnected patterns of voids and randomly distributed discrete voids), each of which more than double the energy dissipated prior to complete rupture, as compared to that of the pristine elastomer. We also demonstrate that the energy dissipated during fracture increases with the volume fraction of the voids. Overall, this work demonstrates that voids can impart increased resistance to rupture in elastomers with flaws. Since additive manufacturing processes can readily introduce/pattern voids, we expect that applications of these elastomer–void​ “composites” will only increase going forward, as will the need to understand their mechanics.
Machine learning approaches to the unit commitment problem: Current trends, emerging challenges, and new strategies

Abstract Traditional power system operation and control decision-making processes, such as the unit commitment (UC) problem, primarily rely on the physical models and numerical calculations. With the growing scale and complexity of modern power grids, it becomes more complicated to accurately formulate the physical power system and more difficult to efficiently solve the corresponding UC problems. As a matter of fact, plenty of historical power system operation records as well as real-time data could provide useful information and insights of the underlying power grid. To this end, machine learning methods could be valuable to help understand the relationship of UC performance to power system parameters, reveal the rationality behind such relationship, and finally address UC problems in a more efficient and accurate way. This article discusses the current practices of using machine learning approaches to solve the mixed-integer linear programming based UC problems. The associated challenges are analyzed, and several promising strategies for adopting machine learning approaches to effectively solve UC problems are discussed in this article. In addition, we will also explore machine learning approaches to promptly solve steady-state nonlinear AC power flow and dynamics differential equations, so that they can be integrated into the UC problems to guarantee AC power flow security and dynamic stability of system operations, as compared to the current DC power flow constrained UC practice. Our studies show that machine learning, as model-free methods, is a valuable alternative or addition to the existing model-based methods. As a result, the effective combination of machine learning based approaches and physical model based methods are expected to derive more efficient UC solutions that can improve the secure and economic operation of power systems.
Collaborative Inquiry or Teacher Talk? Parent Guidance during a Science-Related Activity in Mexican-Heritage Families from Two Schooling Groups

Parents who vary in their experience with formal schooling are likely to use different types of informal guidance with their children. However, rather than assuming a deficit approach we need evide...
Decrease in prevalence but increase in frequency of non-marijuana drug use following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in a large cohort of young men who have sex with men and young transgender women.

Abstract Background Substantial concern exists regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on substance use behaviors. This is especially true for subpopulations like young men who have sex with men and young transgender women (YMSM-YTW) who report higher rates of substance use. This study examines changes in prevalence and frequency of marijuana and non-marijuana drug use among YMSM-YTW following the onset of the pandemic. Method Data for this analysis (n = 458 participants, 1356 observations) come from an ongoing longitudinal cohort study of YMSM-YTW. A series of Bayesian multilevel models were used to examine change in prevalence and frequency of use for marijuana and non-marijuana drugs. Results Results indicated no systematic change in prevalence or frequency of marijuana use. However, a decrease in non-marijuana drug use was observed (OR = 0.60, 95 % CrI: [0.37, 0.94]) following the onset of the pandemic. Furthermore, a small increase in the frequency of non-marijuana drug use was observed (OR = 1.79, 95 % CrI: [1.02, 3.21]) among individuals who used these substances. Conclusions These findings concur with a small number of studies identifying a decrease in drug use prevalence but increase in frequency among those who continue to use drugs. Despite the protective effect of lower drug use prevalence, higher frequency of use may lead to additional negative health outcomes of drug use, particularly among groups facing multiple health challenges such as YMSM-YTW. However, the pandemic likely has a unique impact on substance use behaviors across subpopulations.
Health Disparities among Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Adults in Nashville, Tennessee.

Objectives Health disparities for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) adults are well documented, but LGBT health data at the municipal and county levels are lacking, especially in the southern United States. The objective of this study was to compare access to care, health outcomes, and behavioral risk factors between LGBT and non-LGBT adults in Nashville and Davidson County, Tennessee. Methods Data for this study came from a randomly selected, population-based sample of LGBT (n = 128) and non-LGBT (n = 1583) adults in Nashville. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to compare health outcomes between LGBT and non-LGBT Nashvillians while adjusting for demographic characteristics and socioeconomic status. Results LGBT Nashvillians were more likely to be uninsured (odds ratio [OR] 3.96, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.72-9.10), report unmet medical care needs because of cost (OR 2.20, 95% CI 1.14-4.25), exhibit worse mental health outcomes (eg, frequent mental distress; OR 4.53, 95% CI 2.33-8.80), and report high-risk behaviors for human immunodeficiency virus (OR 9.47, 95% CI 3.96-22.62) compared with non-LGBT Nashvillians. Conclusions To achieve health equity for LGBT individuals at the municipal level, Nashville and Tennessee should consider multifaceted approaches to expanding health insurance coverage and nondiscrimination protections and address mental health and human immunodeficiency virus risks among vulnerable populations.
Understanding Heart Rhythm Disorders: The Birth of the ECG and Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology

For most of human history, the heart was the essence of life, and yet, it would take centuries before its electrical signals were recorded. In this chapter, the author discusses the recording of the electrocardiogram (ECG), and nearly 60 years later, the birth of clinical cardiac electrophysiology ushered by the development of programmed electrical stimulation (PES) in 1967 followed a catheter technique to record electrical activity from discrete sections of the heart. These two pioneering studies would usher a new specialty in cardiovascular medicine, that of clinical cardiac electrophysiology.
The Flat-Earth Society: Tracing Networks in the Contemporary World

Turning to the contemporary period, loosely coinciding with the fall of the Berlin Wall, I examine recent philosophical attempts to reckon with the globalized, networked world we inhabit. Using Gilles Lipovetsky’s concept of hypermodernism as a starting point and discussing theoretical frameworks from object-oriented ontology to actor-network Theory, I “flatten” the world to trace relationships that examine the possibilities of truth and closure in a networked world. I examine Mark Z. Danielewski’s House of Leaves as a paradigmatic case of the networked novel. While House of Leaves makes the networked world seem hopelessly complex, I offer a counterexample. In applying Donald Davidson’s theory of triangulation to the television series The Wire, I argue networks can, in fact, be traced if only we take the proper stance toward the world and the other.
College education as a modulator of the aging brain

What makes some human brains more resilient to aging than others? In an Article in Nature Aging, Chan et al. provide evidence that brain connectomes in older adults are altered by a college education — an environmental factor that might be an advantageous modulator of brain reserve during aging.
Long-term Rooftop Plant Communities

Most plant studies of green roof taxa have only been conducted for a duration of 1 or 2 years. The problem with this scenario is that it can result in premature conclusions and misleading recommendations because green roofs are dynamic systems. Plants that initially survive may eventually experience reduced coverage or disappear completely due to competition, variability in climate, and other factors. Setting up long-term studies similar to the National Science Foundation (NSF) Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) model would provide the opportunity to follow changes to green roof habitats over time and also examine impacts and ecosystem service outputs on similarly designed roofs across geographic locations. Without consciously considering the effects and changes over time mistakes are not only made, but also repeated. We review several important longitudinal studies and discuss factors that impact long-term plant communities such as substrate composition and fertility, substrate depth, substrate moisture, microclimates, roof slope, orientation, and irradiance levels; as well as initial plant choices, functional diversity and complexity, and maintenance practices. In addition, we discuss the potential of applying the LTER model to green roofs and close with future research needs and questions.
SU-E-T-71: A Radiochromic Film Based Quantitative Assessment of Thermoplastic Mask Bolus Effect in Head and Neck IMRT/VMAT

Purpose: To quantify the factors leading to thermoplastic mask bolus-associated-increased skin dose in head and neck IMRT/VMAT using EBT2 film. Methods: EBT2 film placed beneath a dual layer 3-point ORFIT head, neck and shoulder mask was used to test the effect of mask thickness, beam modulation, air gap, and beam obliquity on bolus effect. Mask thickness was varied based on the distribution of 1.6mm Orfilight layer on top of 2 mm Efficast layer. Beam modulation was varied by irradiating the film with an open field (no beam modulation) and a step and shoot field (beam modulation). Air gap between mask and film was varied from 0 to 5mm. Beam obliquity was varied by irradiating the film at gantry angles of 0°, 35°, and 70°.Finally, film strips placed on a Rando phantom under an Orfit mask, in regions of expected high dose, were irradiated using 5 IMRT and 5 VMAT plans with various modulation levels (modulation factor 2 to 5) and the results were compared with those obtained placing OSLDs at the same locations. Results: An 18–34% increase in mask bolus effect was observed for three factors where the effect of beam obliquity ≥ beam modulation > mask thickness. No increase in mask bolus effect was observed for change in air gap. A 6–13% increase in dose due to mask bolus effect was observed on film strips. Conclusion: This work underlines the role of beam obliquity and beam modulation combined with thermoplastic mask thickness in increasing mask bolus-associated skin dose in head and neck IMRT/VMAT. One possible method of dose reduction, based on knowledge gained from this work, is inclusion of skin as an avoidance structure in treatment planning. Another approach is to design a mask with the least amount of thermoplastic material necessary for immobilization.
Double-layer dynamics in the adsorption of tetrabutyl ammonium ions at the mercury water interface.: III. The admittance of the needle peak

Abstract The interfacial admittance at the needle peak contains a new element, dominant at low frequencies, owing to the growth and dissolution of patches of condensed film in the narrow region of potentials in which they coexist with areas not so covered. At sufficiently high adsorbate concentrations, the additional admittance can be represented by a series RC circuit in parallel to the usual desad admittance. Experimental results for tetrabutyl ammonium bromide in aqueous 0.5 M NaBr are reported; these can be represented well in terms of this model.
Food Dyes Produce Minimal Effects on Locomotor Activity and Vitamin B-6 Levels in Postweanling Rats

We investigated the effects of food dye consumption on locomotor activity, brain neurotransmitters, tissue vitamin B-6 levels, and hepatic cytochrome P-450 concentrations in postweanling rats. Animals were individually housed in stabilimeter-type activity cages for 4 1/2 weeks, and fed ad libitum a semipurified basal diet containing graded levels (4, 2, 1, 0.5 or 0%) of a blend of all seven Food, Drug and Cosmetic (FD & C) food dyes. Rats in the 4% dye group were significantly (P less than 0.001) less active during the first 3 weeks of dietary treatment, but no significant differences existed among groups during the final 10 days. Similarly, although dye ingestion depressed food intake (P less than 0.0025) and body weight (P less than 0.05) when averaged for all animals, the differences among groups disappeared by the last week of the experiment. Postmortem tissue analyses revealed no significant effect of dyes on brain tissue levels of serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid or homovanillic acid. Moreover, no significant differences were detected in either plasma and brain tissue levels of pyridoxal phosphate or in hepatic cytochrome P-450 concentrations. These results demonstrate that animals may adapt to the chronic consumption of food dyes and do so with minimal evidence of toxicity. Our data also suggest that previously reported behavioural abnormalities attributed to food dyes are probably unrelated to altered vitamin B-6 metabolism.
A DWT-based encoder architecture for symmetrically extended images

In this paper we present an architecture for a 2-D Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT)-based encoder that handles computations along the border efficiently by using the method of symmetric extension. We choose symmetric extension (SA) as opposed to zero padding or periodic extension since (i) the coefficients generated by SA can be used to obtain perfect reconstruction and (ii) it is better suited for low bit rate coders. The proposed architecture is similar to the existing 2-D DWT architectures for zero padded images with the notable exception that additional router units are now required to reorder the data. Reordering is essential to sustain the computation of successive problem instances in symmetrically extended images. We show that the router can be implemented using simple combinational logic, resulting in minimal area overhead.
RASSF1A Promoter Methylation and Kras2 Mutations in Non Small Cell Lung Cancer

In the present studies, we investigated the correlation between RASSF1A promoter methylation status and Kras2 mutations in 65 primary non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) including 33 adenocarcinomas, 12 large cell carcinomas, and 20 squamous cell carcinomas. Mutational analysis of Kras2 showed: 30% (10 of 33) of adenocarcinomas, 25% (3 of 12) of large cell carcinomas, and only 5% (1 of 20) of squamous cell carcinomas contained activated Kras2 mutation at codon 12 or 13. RASSF1A promoter region CpG island methylation was detected in adenocarcinomas (55%), large cell carcinomas (25%), and squamous cell carcinomas (25%). Interestingly, combined RASSF1A methylation and Kras2 mutation data show that only - 7% adenocarcinomas/large cell carcinomas exhibited both KRASSF1A promoter methylation and Kras2 mutation, whereas 24% adenocarcinomas, 50% large cell carcinomas, and 70% squamous cell carcinomas showed neither Kras2 mutation nor RASSF1A promoter methylation. These results showed that the majority of the primary NSCLCs with Kras2 mutations lack RASSF1A inactivation, and both RASSF1A inactivation and Kras2 mutation events occur frequently in adenocarcinomas and large cell carcinomas. Our results indicate a trend of inverse relationship between Kras2 activation and RASSF1A promoter methylation in the majority of human lung adenocarcinomas and large cell carcinomas.
Clickable fluorescent dyes for multimodal bioorthogonal imaging

Bioorthogonal ligation with functionalized fluorescent dyes enables visualization of nuclei acids, proteins and metabolites in biological systems. Bright and modular azide- and alkyne-functionalized dyes are therefore needed to expand the fluorescence imaging capabilities of bioorthogonal ligation methods. We describe the concise synthesis of clickable fluorescent dyes based on 2-dicyanomethylene-3-cyano-2,5-dihydrofuran fluorophores and demonstrate their utility for multicolor imaging of azide- and alkyne-modified proteins as well as FRET studies.
Effects of Short-Term Counseling on Career Maturity of Tenth-Grade Students.

Abstract The effectiveness of short-term counseling on Career Maturity of tenth-grade students as measured by the Career Maturity Inventory was studied. The Career Maturity Attitude Scale and the Self Appraisal subscale of the Competence Test were administered to a random sample (87 subjects) of tenth-grade students. The subjects whose scores fell below the mean were assigned randomly to experimental and control groups. The experimental group (17 subjects) received special counseling during a short term of 6 wk. Using repeated measures of analysis of variance, a statistically significant interaction was found with both the Self Appraisal subscale scores and the Total scale scores. Results indicate that career maturity as a developmental process can be measured and facilitated through counseling.
Magnesium, Electrolyte Transport and Coronary Vascular Tone

Coronary heart diseases (CHD) have high indices of mortality and morbidity. A number of CHD and myocardial ischaemic syndromes such as unstable angina pectoris, sudden death ischaemic heart disease, acute myocardial infarction and ventricular arrhythmias have been associated with losses of myocardial magnesium and potassium. Mg++ ions are essential for regulation of Na+ and K+ transport across cell membranes, including those found in cardiac and vascular smooth muscle cells. Mg++ activates an Na+-K+-ATPase pump which in turn plays a major role in regulating Na+-K+ transport. Loss of cellular Mg++ results in loss of critically important phosphagens: MgATP and creatine phosphate. Thus, under conditions where cellular Mg++ is depleted (e.g. hypoxia, ischaemia, anoxia), the Na+-K+ pump and phosphagen stores will be compromised, leading to alterations in resting membrane potentials. Cellular Mg++ depletion has been found to result in concomitant depletion of K+ in a number of cells, including cardiac and vascular muscles. The consequences of these events are often production of cardiac arrhythmias. Myocardial and vascular injury lead to disturbances in electrolyte transport across cell membranes, whereby Na+ and Ca++ uptakes are enhanced and, just prior or concomitantly, Mg++ and K+ are lost. Such electrolyte disturbances often lead to necrotic foci. Considerable evidence has accumulated to indicate that the extracellular concentration of Mg++ is important in control of arterial tone and blood pressure via pressure via regulation of vascular membrane Mg++-Ca++ exchange sites. A reduction in the extracellular Mg++ concentration can produce hypertension, coronary vasospasm and potentiation of vasoconstrictor agents by allowing excess entry of Ca++; concomitantly, the potency of vasodilator agents is reduced. Alterations in vascular membrane Mg++ results in arterial and arteriolar membranes which are 'leaky', thus contributing to the cellular reduction in K+ and gain of Na+ and Ca+. Alterations in extracellular K+ or Na+ concentrations over physiological ranges, in the face of a Mg++ deficit, can exacerbate the coronary vasospasm noted with reduction in only extracellular Mg++. Since free Mg++ ions are necessary for maintaining Ca+ ions (both plasma membrane-bound and sarcoplasmic reticulum membrane-bound via Ca++ ATPases), intracellular free Mg++ would rise in conditions which result in cellular loss of Mg++, thereby exacerbating and contributing to elevation of blood pressure and coronary vasospasm.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Mass spectrometric characterization and thermostability of turkey myoglobin

Abstract Pink color defect (PCD) is a major quality problem in the turkey industry leading to pink appearance of pre-cooked, uncured turkey. The present study determined the molecular mass of turkey myoglobin (Mb) using mass spectrometry and characterized the thermostability of turkey Mb, in comparison with beef Mb, to elucidate the molecular basis of PCD. Purified turkey and beef myoglobins were analyzed using Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry. The thermostability of turkey and beef oxymyoglobins was examined at pH and Mb concentrations (pH 6.2 and 0.04 mmol/L for turkey; pH 5.6 and 0.15 mmol/L for beef) reflecting inherent conditions in these meats. Turkey and beef oxymyoglobins were incubated at 71, 75, and 80 °C and percentage myoglobin denaturation (PMD) was determined. Molecular mass of turkey Mb (17,295 Da) was 346 Da greater than beef Mb (16,949 Da) and was approximately 300–350 Da greater than those of other red meat myoglobins, suggesting its unique primary structure. PMD was lower (P
User-centered location awareness

Mobile computing and communication devices now provide access to information from nearly anywhere, and many of these devices know where they are. Much current research focuses on using location awareness to provide information about a user's surroundings. We believe that geographic information can be personalized based on its relevance to the user, with appropriate descriptions or granularity to deliver valuable location-aware services. A location-aware memory aid, comMotion tracks a user's path via the Global Positioning System (GPS) and maintains "to do" lists for select locations consisting of text and voice recordings.
A Short Rejoinder to Rejoinder

Given a history, what matters for predictions is the nature of the ao-field and the probability measure defined on it. Thus making predictions about the weather when the barometer is squeezed would entail a probability measure space that is different from the one that would be appropriate when the barometer is observed to drop. We are talking here about two different random experiments. By way of a closing comment, I would like to think that Singpurwalla is not reluctant to accepting "new ideas in statistics". However two conditions need to be satisfied: the idea must be genuinely new; it must be statistics (or probability). Interacting with Judea is challenging and calls for persistence. He makes one think hard about issues. Indeed, it was he who invited me to join the debate, and my hope is that he does not regret this invitation.
Peanut storage studies: Effect of storage moisture on three varieties of runner peanuts

Unshelled Dixie Runner, Early Runner, and Virginia Runner G-26 peanuts were stored 31/2 months at moisture contents ranging from 4.8 to 11.2% kernel dry weight. Seed were analyzed quantitatively for various components. Initial composition was determined for each variety. Changes during storage were qualitatively the same for the three varieties but quantitatively different for some components. Oil content iodine value, tocopherols, total and protein nitrogen, and total sugar content were not influenced by storage moisture. Carbonyl compounds, free fatty acids, and peroxide values varied directly as storage moisture. Early Runner and Virginia Runner G-26 appeared less susceptible to the development of oxidative and hydrolytic rancidity than Dixie Runner. However, the degree of difference was slight and occurred only at higher storage moistures. Initial composition of the three varieties differed slightly. Early Runner had a slightly greater initial oil percentage and lower total sugar content than either Dixie or Virginia G-26. Virginia Runner G-26 had a slightly lower total nitrogen percentage than either of the other two varieties.
DOGMATISM AND ATTAINED EDUCATIONAL LEVEL: A FIELD STUDY

Summary.-A short form of Rokeach's Dogmatism Scale was administered to 445 managers in an agri-product industry. The managers represented four levels of education. Controlling for the possible effects of age, organizational level, function, years in present position, years with present company, years as a manager, years of full-time work experience, staff-line role, span of control, order of birth, and family size, a significant inverse relationship was found between educational attainment and dogmatism. The results point to the desirability of considering the relationship between education and personality structure (dogmatism) in future research.
Specialized, Ecclesial Ideography: The in the Catholic Church

ABSTRACT This article suggests that analysis of ideographs is useful within specialized contexts. The authors analyze the emergence of the as an ideograph in the Roman Catholic Church at international, national, and local levels – metropolitan Detroit in particular. With its remarkable plasticity and power, rhetoric has come to galvanize the leadership of the Catholic Church even as varying or conflicting ideas are advanced under that rhetoric. The operates as a specialized ideograph that remains primarily internal to the Catholic Church but has implications beyond it. The authors suggest a continued and extensive application for analyzing ideographs in culture.
Oral contraceptive use and glucose metabolism in a national sample of women in the united states.

Abstract Objective: This study was undertaken to determine whether users of oral contraceptives in a nationally representative population of US women had elevated levels of measures of glucose metabolism. Study Design: Cross-sectional data from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1988-1994) included hemoglobin A 1c levels and fasting glucose, insulin, and C-peptide levels. Means were compared among those who had never used oral contraceptives, current users of oral contraceptives, and former users of oral contraceptives, with and without adjustment for potential confounders. Results: The vast majority of current users of oral contraceptives were using low-dose estrogen formulations. The two most common preparations were a triphasic formulation containing 0.035 mg ethinyl estradiol and 0.5, 0.75, and 1 mg norethindrone (23.9%) and a monophasic formulation containing 0.035 ethinyl estradiol and 1 mg norethindrone (20.7%). Current users of oral contraceptives did not have elevated values for any of the four measures of glucose metabolism. Hemoglobin A 1c level and fasting glucose, insulin, and C-peptide levels were not related to duration of current use, age at which use began, or major formulation type. Among women who were former users of oral contraceptives there was no evidence of higher values among those who had recently ceased use. Conclusion: Oral contraceptive formulations currently available in the United States are not associated with an adverse glucose metabolic profile. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 2000;183:389-95.)
GPIIb/IIIa Integrin Antagonists with the New Conformational Restriction Unit, Trisubstituted β-Amino Acid Derivatives, and a Substituted Benzamidine Structure

Ethyl N-[3-(2-fluoro-4-(thiazolidin-3-yl(imino)methyl)benzoyl)amino-2, 2-dimethylpentanoyl]piperidine-4-acetate 40 (NSL-96184) is a highly potent and orally active fibrinogen receptor antagonist, which is characterized by the presence of the trisubstituted beta-amino acid residue, 3-ethyl-2,2-dimethyl-beta-alanine. This compound was developed on the basis of the SAR study of N-[3-(N-4-amidinobenzoyl)amino-2, 2-dimethyl-3-phenylpropionyl]piperidine-4-acetic acid 1(NSL-95301) with the derivatization focused on the central trisubstituted beta-amino acid unit as well as the basic amidinobenzoyl unit, and the esterification of the carboxyl group for prodrug composition. Compound 1, which was reported in our previous study, was discovered by the application of combinatorial chemistry. The molecular modeling study suggests that the trisubstituted beta-amino acid unit is responsible for fixing the molecule to its active conformation. Compound 40 showed an excellent profile in the in vitro and in vivo studies for its human platelet aggregation inhibitory activity and oral availability in guinea pigs. This oral availability largely depends on the modification of the amidino group with a cyclic secondary amine, i.e., thiazolidine in 40. In in vivo studies, the onset of the antiplatelet action of 40 is very fast after oral administration, whereas its duration of action is relatively short. These results suggest that 40 has an excellent therapeutic potential, especially for antithrombotic treatment in the acute phase. 3-Substituted-2,2-dimethyl-beta-amino acid residues would serve as new and useful linear templates to restrict the conformational flexibility of peptidomimetics.
Evidence that the photoelectric response of bacteriorhodopsin occurs in less than 5 picoseconds

The initial photoinduced charge separation in bacteriorhodopsin is shown to occur in <5 ps. This result is obtained by measuring the photovoltage rise time in an oriented film of bacteriorhodopsin (BR). A dye laser syncronously pumped by an Argon ion cw mode locked laser is used to produce 3-ps light pulses which, after passing through a dye amplifier chain, photoexcite the BR sample. The photovoltage transient is detected by an ultra-fast Josephson junction digital sampling oscilloscope with liquid-helium-cooled input circuitry.
An antibiotic-free medium for the xenic cultivation of Entamoeba gingivalis

Diamond's TYI-S-33 (Trypticase-Yeast Extract-Iron-Serum) medium was used as the basis for a new antibiotic-free medium for xenic growth of Entamoeba gingivalis. Nutritional requirements of the oral protozoan were determined in an effort to optimize growth. TYI-S-33 medium did not support E. gingivalis growth prior to modification. The changes included: (a) deletion of L-cysteine.HCl and thioctic acid, (b) substitution of glucose for dextran I (mol. wt 185,000) or rice starch, (c) reduction of concentrations of tryptone (2.5 g l-1), yeast extract (1.25 g l-1) and dextran I (1 g l-1), (d) increased concentration of ferric ammonium citrate (0.2 g l-1), and (e) addition of gastric mucin (2.4 g l-1). Dextran I was chosen as the major carbon source; its use in the medium limited growth of accompanying bacteria. This new antibiotic-free medium significantly increased E. gingivalis growth (16-20 E. gingivalis trophozoites observed per field) as compared to growth in Diamond's TYSGM-9 (Trypticase-Yeast Extract-Serum-Gastric Mucin) medium (six to 10 E. gingivalis trophozoites observed per field).