cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Abstract 19389: Hematopoietic mir-21 Deficiency Promotes Apoptosis and Plaque Necrosis in Advanced Atherosclerotic Lesions

Objective: To address the role of miR-21 during the progression of atherosclerosis. Introduction: Micro-RNAs (miRNAs) are a class of short non-coding RNAs known to be involved in many different biological processes, including vascular physiology, lipid metabolism and inflammation. Specifically, our group has made important contributions to this field, showing a key role for several miRNAs during the progression of atherosclerosis and lipoprotein metabolism. In the present work, we studied the role of miR-21 in the development of atherosclerosis. miR-21 is the most abundant miRNA in macrophages and its expression has been associated with the resolution of inflammation and the negative regulation of pro-inflammatory responses in macrophages. These observations strongly suggest that macrophage miR-21 expression may influence atherogenesis. Methods and results: To assess the role of miR-21 in macrophages during the progression of atherosclerosis, 8 week-old Ldlr -/- mice were transplanted with bone marrow from wild-type or miR-21 -/- mice and fed a Western diet for 12 weeks. Analysis of atherosclerotic plaques revealed that Ldlr -/- mice transplanted with miR-21 -/- bone marrow developed more advanced plaques compared to Ldlr - /- mice transplanted with wild-type bone marrow. Specifically, we observed that mice transplanted with miR-21 -/- bone marrow cells developed significantly larger lesions, with more apoptotic cells and more necrotic area, and the lesions exhibited less fibrous cap thickness. Macrophage apoptosis and defective phagocytic clearance of dead cells (efferocytosis) promotes plaque necrosis and inflammation. In our in vitro studies we found that lack of miR-21 enhanced ER stress-induced macrophage apoptosis and impaired the process of efferocytosis. Conclusions: Taken together, our results demonstrate that miR-21 plays a key role in the progression of atherosclerosis by influencing ER-stress-induced apoptosis and advanced lesion macrophage apoptosis. Key Words: miR-21, macrophages, atherosclerosis.
The wrong stuff? [computer viruses]

Antivirus observers are hard pressed to argue that we are winning the war against malicious mobile code (MMC). In fact, viruses are so common that the term is now embedded in popular culture - there are even advertising campaigns that use the idea to sell products. When average users know the latest widespread worm or virus by name, we know computer viruses are firmly established and here to stay. While researchers and industry developers have done much hard work, virus-detection technology is based on fairly simple rules, and numerous pitfalls remain. The author examines virus detection's current technology and highlights some of its shortcomings. As a community, we need an honest reassessment of our defenses. Are we pursuing a failed solution or focusing on the wrong stuff?.
Use of Blood Components

After studying this chapter, you should be able to: Describe the composition of the different components extracted from whole blood. Assess the impact of anemia, particularly in critical care patients and patients with cardiovascular disease. Recognize clinical indications, clinical thresholds, and contraindications for the use of specific blood components. Recognize various aspects of platelet refractoriness. Recognize the risk associated with transfusion. Describe the modifications to blood components and recognize the indications for the use of modified blood components. Identify alternatives and adjuncts to allogeneic blood component transfusion.
Low-Dose Molecular Breast Imaging - Diagnostic and Screening Applications in Women with Dense Breasts

Approaches to imaging the breast with nuclear medicine and/or molecular imaging methods have been under investigation since the early 1990s. Nuclear medicine procedures, which detect the preferential uptake of a radiotracer in breast lesions, have the potential to offer valuable functional information that complements conventional anatomical imaging techniques such as mammography and ultrasound.
High acetylsalicylic acid dosing in infants after modified Blalock-Taussig shunt

Objective Shunt-related adverse events are frequent in infants after modified Blalock-Taussig despite use of acetylsalicylic acid prophylaxis. A higher incidence of acetylsalicylic acid-resistance and sub-therapeutic acetylsalicylic acid levels has been reported in infants. We evaluated whether using high-dose acetylsalicylic acid can decrease shunt-related adverse events in infants after modified Blalock-Taussig. Methods In this single-centre retrospective cohort study, we included infants ⩽1-year-old who underwent modified Blalock-Taussig placement and received acetylsalicylic acid in the ICU. We defined acetylsalicylic acid treatment groups as standard dose (⩽7 mg/kg/day) and high dose (⩾8 mg/kg/day) based on the initiating dose. Results There were 34 infants in each group. Both groups were similar in age, gender, cardiac defect type, ICU length of stay, and time interval to second stage or definitive repair. Shunt interventions (18 versus 32%, p=0.16), shunt thrombosis (14 versus 17%, p=0.74), and mortality (9 versus 12%, p=0.65) were not significantly different between groups. On multiple logistic regression analysis, single-ventricle morphology (odds ratio 5.2, 95% confidence interval of 1.2-23, p=0.03) and post-operative red blood cells transfusion ⩾24 hours [odds ratio 15, confidence interval of (3-71), pl0.01] were associated with shunt-related adverse events. High-dose acetylsalicylic acid treatment [odds ratio 2.6, confidence interval of (0.7-10), p=0.16] was not associated with decrease in these events. Conclusions High-dose acetylsalicylic acid may not be sufficient in reducing shunt-related adverse events in infants after modified Blalock-Taussig. Post-operative red blood cells transfusion may be a modifiable risk factor for these events. A randomised trial is needed to determine appropriate acetylsalicylic acid dosing in infants with modified Blalock-Taussig.
Relationship between Hemoglobin Type and Reproduction, Lamb, Wool and Milk Production and Health-Related Traits in Crossbred Ewes

Summary Relationships among hemoglobin (Hb) types and production traits were examined in 294 crossbred ewes from North Country Cheviot, Dorset, Finnsheep and Romney rams, and Suffolk and Columbia-type ewes. Hb BB ewe lambs were youngest at first estrus, while Hb AA ewe lambs were oldest. Ewe lamb fertility was similar for Hb AB and Hb BB ewes, and both were superior to Hb AA ewes. When Finnsheep crossbreds were excluded, frown which Hb BB was absent, Hb BB ewes had higher ewe lamb fertility than did Hb AB ewes. There was a minor advantage of the A over the B allele in ewe lamb prolificacy. Hb BB ewes were highest, Hb AB ewes were intermediate and Hb AA ewes were lowest for average fertility, prolificacy per ewe lambing, lambs born per ewe exposed to mating, total number of lambs weaned and total kilograms of lamb weaned. Grease wool production, staple length, fiber diameter grade, incidence of medullated fibers and incidence of cotted fleeces all were similar across Hb types. Likewise, Hb type did not affect milk production or composition. Ewes with Hb AB had the lowest incidence of footrot; Hb AA and Hb BB ewes were similar. Ewes with Hb AA had the lowest fecal parasite egg counts, while ewes with Hb AB or Hb BB were similar. Ewes with Hb AA also had the lowest incidence of mastitis, Hb BB ewes were intermediate and Hb AB ewes were highest. The combination of overdominance (as for footrot resistance), beneficial effects of the A allele on health-related traits (as for mastitis and parasite resistance) and the beneficial effect of the B allele on reproductive traits, if real, could partly explain the genetic polymorphism commonly reported at the Hb locus in sheep.
The Ante-Psoas Approach for Lumbar Interbody Fusion

Several different techniques have evolved to manage degenerative conditions in the lumbar spine. In situations where lumbar arthrodesis is indicated, interbody fusion can be implemented to indirectly decompress the neural elements, restore alignment, and improve fusion rates as well. The ante-psoas approach to the lumbar spine is a useful addition to the armamentarium of approaches for the spinal surgeon.
Sociology Applied to Planning: Robert K. Merton and the Columbia–Lavanburg Housing Study:

In 1944, the Fred L. Lavanburg Foundation resolved to fund sociological research of value to planners of housing projects and communities for low-income families. Columbia University sociologist Ro...
Simplified approach to characterize anisotropic strength of granular soils

Experimental evidence shows that the strength of granular soils is significantly influenced by inherent cross anisotropy which cannot be properly described by isotropic failure criteria. This paper reviewed laboratory test results of various sands at different fabric directions. Based on the observations, this paper formulates the hypothesis that deposit plane creates a plane of weakness and the anisotropic strength of sands depends on orientations of deposit plane and failure plane. The strength decreases when orientations of deposit plane and failure plane are close to each other, and the strength increase when they diverge from each other. Then, an anisotropic failure criterion is developed based on this hypothesis and validated by available experimental data from literature. Remarkable agreements between predictions and measurements have been observed, which demonstrate validity, effectiveness, and robustness of new criterion in characterizing anisotropic strength of sands with variations of loading directions and intermediate principal stresses.
Multimodal Smart Eyewear for Longitudinal Eye Movement Tracking

Summary Contextual measurements of multiple physiological signals using familiar garments or accessories can provide insights into health and behavior. Recording these signals on or near the face is challenging because most subjects are sensitive to implements placed on the face or head. Here, fabric electrodes and garment design strategies are used synergistically to afford an unobtrusive platform, Chesma, for longitudinal acquisition of physiological signals from a user's face. Chesma contains two novel fabric-based electrodes: a hydrogel electrode (tAgTrode) that retains its ionic character after multiple uses/washes, does not cause skin irritation, and can be continuously operated for upward of 8 h without losing signal integrity. Second is an ion-conductive fabric pressure sensor (Press-ION) that captures pulse waveforms. When sewn onto a lightweight eye mask, these electrodes simultaneously gather complementary electro-oculography and cardiac data, which can enable sleep quality and psychological studies and improve the accuracy and usability of virtual reality headsets.
Equivalence of ML decoding to a continuous optimization problem

Maximum likelihood (ML) and symbolwise maximum aposteriori (MAP) estimation for discrete input sequences play a central role in a number of applications that arise in communications, information and coding theory. Many instances of these problems are proven to be intractable, for example through reduction to NP-complete integer optimization problems. In this work, we prove that the ML estimation of a discrete input sequence (with no assumptions on the encoder/channel used) is equivalent to the solution of a continuous non-convex optimization problem, and that this formulation is closely related to the computation of symbolwise MAP estimates. This equivalence is particularly useful in situations where a function we term the expected likelihood is efficiently computable. In such situations, we give a ML heuristic and show numerics for sequence estimation over the deletion channel.
Phenotyping stress exposures related to perinatal health disparities

Black American women living in low-resource environments are exposed to multiple stressors and are at high risk for perinatal complications. Stress exposure likely impacts pregnancy and birth complications via alterations in health systems that are engaged in regulating the stress response. Stressors may vary in terms of magnitude and pattern of effect on such health systems. In the present study, we test associations between three types of stress exposure: perceived stress, negative life events, and discrimination stress on neuroendocrine and cardiac response to a controlled laboratory stressor during the first trimester of pregnancy. In all, 100 pregnant Black women with Medicaid insurance completed a laboratory assessment during which salivary cortisol and heart rate variability (HRV) were used to measure stress response to the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). Results revealed that only discrimination stress was significantly associated with cortisol and HRV in response to the TSST. High levels of discrimination stress were associated with lower levels of cortisol reactivity and higher levels of HRV across the visit. These results highlight the differential impact of domains of stress exposure on stress regulation during pregnancy and provide further evidence of the impact of discrimination stress on Black American women's health.
Heat therapy improves body composition and muscle function, but does not affect capillary or collateral growth in a model of obesity and hindlimb ischemia.

The epidemic of obesity-related dyslipidemia and diabetes is a central cause of the increasing burden of peripheral artery disease (PAD), but few accessible therapies exist to mitigate the metaboli...
Prevalence of traumatic brain injury among the guests at a low-barrier homeless shelter

This study aimed at determining the prevalence of traumatic brain injuries (TBI) among guests staying at a low-barrier homeless shelter who represent an especially vulnerable subset of individuals experiencing homelessness. A total of 21 out of 35 shelter guests participated in the survey. We found that 17 (81.0%) had experienced at least one traumatic brain injury in their lifetime and 15 (71.3%) had TBI associated with loss of consciousness. In addition, 7 (33.3%) of the participants had experienced TBIs rated as moderate to severe. Of the participants with head trauma history, 16 (94.1%) experienced their injury before their first onset of homelessness. Compared to both the general population and the broader population of individuals experiencing homelessness, those in this sample were significantly more likely to experience TBI (95% CI 0.0000:0.2857; p < 0.001 and 95% CI 0.3333:0.7619; p < 0.015, respectively) and significantly more likely to experience severe TBI (95% CI 0.0000:0.09524; p < 0.001).
Service Productivity, Satisfaction, and the Impact on Service Firm Performance

The role of service productivity in influencing the relationships among employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction, and firm performance through the theoretical lens of service-profit chain is ex...
Evolutionarily divergent mTOR remodels the translatome to drive rapid wound closure and regeneration

An outstanding mystery in biology is why some species, such as the axolotl, can scarlessly heal and regenerate tissues while most mammals cannot. Here, we demonstrate that rapid activation of protein synthesis is a unique, and previously uncharacterized, feature of the injury response critical for limb regeneration in the axolotl (A. mexicanum). By applying polysome sequencing, we identify hundreds of transcripts, including antioxidants and ribosome components, which do not change in their overall mRNA abundance but are selectively activated at the level of translation from pre-existing mRNAs in response to injury. In contrast, we show that protein synthesis is not activated in response to digit amputation in the non-regenerative mouse. We further identify the mTORC1 pathway as a key upstream signal that mediates this regenerative translation response in the axolotl. Inhibition of this pathway is sufficient to suppress translation and axolotl regeneration. Surprisingly, although mTOR is highly evolutionarily conserved, we discover unappreciated expansions in mTOR protein sequence among urodele amphibians. By engineering an axolotl mTOR in human cells, we demonstrate that this change creates a hypersensitive kinase that may allow axolotls to maintain this pathway in a highly labile state primed for rapid activation. This may underlie metabolic differences and nutrient sensing between regenerative and non-regenerative species that are key to regeneration. Together, these findings highlight the unanticipated impact of the translatome on orchestrating the early steps of wound healing in highly regenerative species and provide a missing link in our understanding of vertebrate regenerative potential.
Bayesian spatial models for voxel-wise prostate cancer classification using multi-parametric magnetic resonance imaging data.

Multi-parametric magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI) has been playing an increasingly important role in the detection of prostate cancer (PCa). Various computer-aided detection algorithms were proposed for automated PCa detection by combining information in multiple mpMRI parameters. However, there are specific features of mpMRI, including between-voxel correlation within each prostate and heterogeneity across patients, that have not been fully explored but could potentially improve PCa detection if leveraged appropriately. This article proposes novel Bayesian approaches for voxel-wise PCa classification that accounts for spatial correlation and between-patient heterogeneity in the mpMRI data. Modeling the spatial correlation is challenging due to the extreme high dimensionality of the data, and we propose three scalable approaches based on Nearest Neighbor Gaussian Process (NNGP), reduced-rank approximation, and a conditional autoregressive (CAR) model that approximates a Gaussian Process with the Matern covariance, respectively. Our simulation study shows that properly modeling the spatial correlation and between-patient heterogeneity can substantially improve PCa classification. Application to in vivo data illustrates that classification is improved by all three spatial modeling approaches considered, while modeling the between-patient heterogeneity does not further improve our classifiers. Among the proposed models, the NNGP-based model is recommended given its high classification accuracy and computational efficiency.
Deaf Mental Health Care

Glickman, Lessons Learned from 23 Years of a Deaf Psychiatric Inpatient Unit. Gournaris, Aubrecht, Deaf/Hearing Cross-Cultural Conflicts and the Creation of Culturally Competent Treatment Programs. Glickman, Crump, Sign Language Dysfluency in some Deaf Persons: Implications for Interpreters and Clinicians Working in Mental Health Settings. Gournaris, Hamerdinger, Williams, Creating a Culturally Affirmative Continuum of Mental Health Services: The Experiences of Three States. Glickman, Heines, Creating Culturally and Clinically Competent Deaf Residential Treatment Programs. Guthmann, Sternfeld, Substance Abuse Treatment and Recovery: Adaptations to Best Practices when Working with Culturally Deaf Persons. Bishop, Culturally Affirmative Adaptations to Trauma Treatment with Deaf Children in Residential Settings. Bryce, Leigh, Sheridan, Smith, Training of Mental Health Professionals: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow. O'Rourke, Austen, Glickman, Deaf People in the Criminal Justice System: Is a Culturally Affirmative Response Possible or Desirable? Glickman, Pollard, Deaf Mental Health Research: Where We've been and Where We Hope to Go.
An analysis of search techniques for a totally-ordered nonlinear planner

Abstract In this paper we present several domain-independent search optimizations and heuristics that have been developed in a totally-ordered nonlinear planner in PRODIGY. We also describe the extension of the system into a full hierarchical planner with the ability to search among the different levels of abstraction. We analyze and illustrate the performance of the system with its different search capabilities in a few domains.
Problems in building an instruct able production system

Abstract : The Instructable Production System project is exploring the incremental growth properties of production systems (PSs) by constructing a generally intelligent problem solving system by gradual (external) instruction. The present task domain is an abstract job shop, in which finished goods are made from raw materials. We start with a Kernel (a small PS of about 200 productions) which has the basic capabilities to grow by instruction: (1) process a restricted natural language; (2) form productions from its input; (3) impose PS control conventions on them; and (4) perform basic manipulations in its environment. (We take the basic computational and representational adequacy of PSs for AI programs as established.) This note presents some immediate difficulties that are expected. These derive from the instructional situation: (1) The instructor can observe the system in the environment and can communicate with it freely, but cannot examine its internal structure directly; (2) Interaction with system is in an external language, analogous to natural language; (3) The initiative for interaction is mixed; (4) Instruction may be on any topic--specific tasks, general properties of tasks, the language of communication, possible errors, how to plan and explore, etc; and (5) Knowledge and system structure gained through instruction accumulates over the life of the system. The current approach uses means-ends analysis as the basic philosophy of both problem-solving and instruction.
From Ars to Scientia: the revolution of anatomic illustration.

Art and anatomy have been closely related since the Renaissance, when artists studied the human body to gain more perfect perspectives, and anatomists began illustrating their texts. As the two fields became increasingly intertwined, the distinctions between artistic drawings and scientific illustrations of the human body's form and function became increasingly blurred. Early Renaissance anatomists were more artistic than scientific with their images, but Hieronymus Fabricius ab Acquapendente (1533–1619) provided a crucial turning point in the evolution of anatomic illustration. His new and strict focus upon scientific illustration developed in the context of previous anatomists' work and theories, but his is a critical and previously untold story in the history of medicine. Clin. Anat. 19:382–388, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Stationary Electrostatic Solitary Waves in the Auroral Plasma

Time-stationary fluid equations are used to describe electrostatic solitons in an auroral plasma of cold ionospheric and hot plasma sheet particles. A one-dimensional fluid analysis of the four component model auroral plasma indicates that at least two different, weakly damped, small amplitude electrostatic solitons can propagate along the geomagnetic field. The slower of the two is a generalization of an ion-acoustic solitary wave in a multi-component plasma, and ion inertia is negligible for the faster mode which is supported by the two electron components and resembles a clump of shielded negative space charge convected by the drifting plasma sheet electrons. Some expected features of the large amplitude properties are indicated qualitatively, and an analogy is considered between the theory of ion-acoustic shocks and a theory of double layers.
The African Transformation of Western Medicine and the Dynamics of Global Cultural Exchange (review)

ANTHROPOLOGY AND SOCIOLOGY David Baronov. The African Transformation of Western Medicine and the Dynamics of Global Cultural Exchange. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2008. ix + 248 pp. References. Index. $54.50. Cloth. David Baronov has published a book whose subject matter should appeal to Africanists in a number of different ways. He examines Western medicine in Africa - and also, purportedly, the African transformation thereof - and he does so through the lens of world-systems theory, a perspective with many adherents, including this reviewer. Unfortunately, the promising subject matter is lost in the implementation, and the result is a work likely to be of litde use to Africanists. The book begins with an assertion that signals the problems. Baronov writes that his analysis will rely on many "disparate and overlapping professional fields," including "medical anthropology, medical sociology, medical history, African studies, political economy, and colonial/postcolonial studies," melding them through a "unidisciplinary" approach. He contrasts this approach with "interdisciplinary" research, which he defines as taking place among individuals from different fields working together, but not overcoming the "traditional apartheid structure of academia" (10). This notion of interdisciplinary work is at best a straw man. Baronov seems unaware of the decades of scholarly work in African studies, most often termed "interdisciplinary," in which scholars have drawn productively from a number of different fields. Instead of convincing the reader that he is offering a new analytical approach, he leaves the impression that he is unfamiliar with the fields in which he intends to work. That impression is confirmed as the book progresses. Rather than demonstrating any sort of mastery of these various fields, he picks and chooses among a number of works without showing any grounding in their theoretical or methodological contexts. Another problem is that he provides essentially no data; no primary sources are indicated and there is no evidence of research in Africa, with the sections on African medical practices based on a small number of dated secondary sources. These accounts (154-78) consist of a section on the Azande based on Evans-Pritchard's 1937 book, Janzen's work on Lower Zaire from the 1960s, information about the Zaramo in Dar es Salaam by Swantz published in 1990, and Good's work from the late 1970s and published in 1987 focusing on the Kamba. …
A greenhouse warming connection

Researchers employing a general circulation model have forged a previously unappreciated connection between greenhouse-gas warming and ozone in the lower stratosphere. Their conclusion is tentative but worrisome — that despite reductions in the emissions of ozone-depleting chlorofluorocarbons, levels of ozone over the Arctic will continue to decline until well into the next century. These findings will however be subject to rigorous further testing by both observation and theory.
SPECIFIC-HEAT JUMP AT TC FOR ND1.85CE0.15CUO4-Y

The superconducting free-energy surface of grain-aligned Nd{sub 1.85}Ce{sub 0.15}CuO{sub 4{minus}{ital y}} was measured to determine whether these electron-carrier materials have thermodynamic variables similar to the other high-temperature superconductors. There is a wide area in the {ital H}-{ital T} plane near {ital T}{sub {ital c}}, where the magnetization is reversible, just as was found for the Y, Bi, and Tl cuprates. The magnetic-field dependence of the specific heat derived from these data, {ital C}{sub 0}{minus}{ital C}{sub {ital H}}, shows a peak in the fluctuation region near {Tc} of about 1.2 mJ/cm{sup 3} K for {ital H}=2 T and {bold H}{parallel}{bold c}. At lower temperatures, below 16 K, the magnetically derived specific heat is nearly independent of field just as was found for the other high-{Tc} materials. A study of the transformation from the reversible to the irreversible regime using flux-creep and critical-current studies shows that the pinning potential to thermal energy ratio, {ital U}{sub eff}/{ital kT}, gradually rises from 2 to 20 at roughly the same value of reduced temperature, {ital T}/{ital T}{sub {ital c}}, as the Bi and Tl compounds.
Boundaries in blood

Drawing Blood Technology and Disease Identity in Twentieth-Century America. Keith Wailoo. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1997. 304 pp. $39.95. ISBN 0-8018-5474-1.
Imager-to-radiometer in-flight cross calibration: RSP radiometric comparison with airborne and satellite sensors

This work develops a method to compare the radiometric calibration between a radiometer and imagers hosted on aircraft and satellites. The radiometer is the airborne Research Scanning Polarimeter (RSP), which takes multi-angle, photo-polarimetric measurements in several spectral channels. The RSP measurements used in this work were coincident with measurements made by the Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS), which was on the same aircraft. These airborne measurements were also coincident with an overpass of the Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI). First we compare the RSP and OLI radiance measurements to AVIRIS since the spectral response of the multispectral instruments can be used to synthesize a spectrally equivalent signal from the imaging spectrometer data. We then explore a method that uses AVIRIS as a transfer between RSP and OLI to show that radiometric traceability of a satellite-based imager can be used to calibrate a radiometer despite differences in spectral channel sensitivities. This calibration transfer shows agreement within the uncertainty of both the various instruments for most spectral channels.
Nonlinear Seismic Correlation Analysis of the JNES/NUPEC Large-Scale Piping System Tests.

The Japan Nuclear Energy Safety Organization/Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (JNES/NUPEC) large-scale piping test program has provided valuable new test data on high level seismic elasto-plastic behavior and failure modes for typical nuclear power plant piping systems. The component and piping system tests demonstrated the strain ratcheting behavior that is expected to occur when a pressurized pipe is subjected to cyclic seismic loading. Under a collaboration agreement between the US and Japan on seismic issues, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)/Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) performed a correlation analysis of the large-scale piping system tests using derailed state-of-the-art nonlinear finite element models. Techniques are introduced to develop material models that can closely match the test data. The shaking table motions are examined. The analytical results are assessed in terms of the overall system responses and the strain ratcheting behavior at an elbow. The paper concludes with the insights about the accuracy of the analytical methods for use in performance assessments of highly nonlinear piping systems under large seismic motions.
Effects of race and marginally elevated blood pressure on responses to stress

A total of 228 men, aged 18 to 22 years (109 black and 119 white), underwent monitoring of heart rate (HR) and systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) responses during several stressor conditions and a 30-minute posttask rest period. Stressors included the cold pressor test and three reaction-time tasks: noncompetitive, competitive, and competitive plus money incentive. Substantial within-subject variations in blood pressure and heart rate were induced, varying from 119/70 to 148/94 mm Hg and from 63 to 91 beats/min on the average. Men (25 black and 39 white) with marginal SBP elevations during initial casual determinations had higher SBP under all conditions compared with men whose casual SBP levels were normal, and they also showed greater elevations over baseline levels in heart rate, SBP, and DBP during the stressors and the initial casual determination. Black and white subjects did not differ in their blood pressures at baseline or during the initial casual determinations, although blacks had slightly lower heart rates. Blacks did show greater SBP elevations over baseline levels than whites during the stressors, primarily because the blacks with marginally elevated SBP showed substantially greater stress-induced increases than whites with marginally elevated SBP. This enhanced pressor response to stress in blacks with marginal blood pressure elevations may be due to higher vascular resistance during enhanced sympathetic activity and could contribute to the higher incidence of hypertension among blacks.
Improving the Thermal Resistance of Brick Masonry Systems

Finite element modeling was used to relate the coring or cell configuration of brick to the heat flow through brick masonry wall systems. Core or cell configurations that minimize thermal bridging through the brick thickness substantially reduced the heat flow through the masonry. The effect of bed depth on heat flow was also investigated. Larger units with optimized coring designs resulted in substantial reductions in heat flow. Heat flow through the mortar joint was also compared to heat flow through the brick. Wall designs that minimize the mortar joint thickness also reduce the heat flow. From these simulations, it is clear that a masonry system can be optimized to reduce heat flow. The effect of core or cell filling with various materials was also studied. Insulating materials reduce heat flow primarily by displacing mortar in the cores or cells.
Virginia Woolf's Ethical Subjectivity: Deleuze and Guattari's Worlding and Bernard's ‘Becoming-Savage’

In Virginia Woolf's 1931 novel The Waves, one of Bernard's many becomings – his ‘becoming-savage’ – reveals a point of intersection between Woolfian aesthetics and Deleuze and Guattari's philosophy. Moreover, a triangulation of Woolf's ‘moments of being’, Deleuze and Guattari's ‘worlding’, and (post)coloniality provides a new and productive node for examining the debates surrounding imperialism in these thinkers’ works, and an insistence that Woolf, read alongside Deleuze and Guattari, offers an alternate and precisely ethical way of being in the world.
Sizing analysis of a combined cooling, heating, and power system for a small office building using a wood waste biomass‐fired Stirling engine

SUMMARY When wood chips are available and used to fuel a combined cooling, heating, and power (CCHP) waste heat recovery system, they can represent an economically viable source of biomass energy that can meet a facility's electric and thermal demands. Using a Stirling engine as the CCHP prime mover provides several important advantages over conventional internal combustion engines including no additional processing of the waste wood chips, a potentially higher thermal efficiency, flexibility of fuel sources, and low maintenance. This study shows how the operational characteristics of a constant output, biomass-fired, Stirling engine-based CCHP system are affected by the performance of the individual components, including the prime mover, heat recovery system, auxiliary boiler, absorption chiller, and heating coil unit The results are assessed by examining the primary energy consumption and operational cost compared with a reference case. The analysis provides insight on the prime mover sizing and selection of each component to properly implement the system. In addition to examining the effects of each component, the effect of excess electricity production and buyback are considered. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Some transient coupled thermoelastic crack problems

Abstract This paper is concerned with determining the elastodynamic response of a plane strain medium containing a central crack deformed by the action of suddenly applied thermal and/or mechanical disturbances when the assumptions of the general theory of coupled thermoelasticity are assumed. Integral transform solution is employed to reduce the governing equations into integral equations of Fredholm type. A numerical inversion technique is used to compute the dynamic stress-intensity factors when the faces of the crack are subjected to constant heat flux and/or mechanical loading. Attention is focused on the overshoot in the stress-intensity factor and its time interval for non-stationary temperature fields, and to what degree it is influenced by the mutual dependence of the temperature and displacement fields inherent in the coupled theory of thermoelasticity.
Facile Syntheses of (2R,3R)-(−)- and (2S,3S)-(+)-Chicoric Acids

Abstract Practical and efficient syntheses of (2R, 3R)-(−)- and (2S, 3S)-(+)-chicoric acids are reported, which may be amenable to analogue preparation.
Application of the Rice Algorithm into a vector quantizationbasedhybrid compression algorithm

Research at the Space Dynamics Laboratory(SDL) / Utah State University in image compression has resulted in the development of a hybrid compression algorithm for space related images. The basic algorithm is a hybrid of lossy and lossless compression techniques that have been implemented in hardware [I]. The lossy encoder uses Mean Removed Vector Quantization(MRVQ). The Lossless compressor is an entropy encoder used to encode the errors introduced by the lossy MRVQ. A constant bit rate is maintained by thresholding the MRVQ errors based on the number of previously encoded bits. This paper compares Huffman and Rice Compression techniques to be used in the lossless stage of the hybrid compressor. These method have been selected because hardware to implement them already exist. A single chip implementation of the Rice algorithm is available that processes at the rates required[2].
The Effects of Abnormal Blood Pressure on Arterial Sampler Filling Times

BACKGROUND: Sampler filling time begins with the initial flash of blood in the needle hub until the preset sampler volume is obtained. Previous studies have shown statistically significant differences between arterial and venous sampler filling times, but included only a few subjects with abnormal blood pressures. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the time required to fill a vented arterial sampler is an accurate indication of a successful arterial blood sample in adults with abnormal blood pressure. We hypothesized that mean arterial pressure and arterial sampler filling time would have a negative correlation, and that venous sampler filling time would be significantly longer than arterial filling time. METHODS: We studied 40 subjects: 25 arterial subjects, and 15 venous subjects. The arterial subjects included 3 groups: hypertensive, hypotensive, or normal. During the arterial and venipuncture procedures, we measured sampler filling time and recorded blood volume. The PO2 of the samples was measured. Additionally, blood pressure and SpO2 were measured in the arterial group. RESULTS: The mean sampler filling time was 220.4 s/mL for the venous group, and 18.1 s/mL for all 3 arterial groups combined. There were significant differences between each mean arterial sampler filling rate and mean venous filling rate ( P .99). The correlation between mean arterial pressure and filling rates was 0.06 ( P = .38). CONCLUSIONS: There is a significant difference between arterial and venous filling rates. There was no relationship between filling time and abnormal mean arterial pressure. Regardless of the arterial pressure, the arterial sampler filling time can be used as an indicator of a successful arterial puncture at the bedside.
Synthesis and characterization of mixed-morphology CePO4 nanoparticles

Cerium phosphate nanoparticles with diameters of 10-180 nm were synthesized by a variety of solution techniques. X-ray diffraction (XRD) determined the crystalline phase(s) present in each sample. Population, shift, and spin-lattice relaxation {sup 31}P solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) measurements accounted for all the {sup 31}P nuclei expected in each sample, and were able to distinguish between phosphorous nuclei in different environments and phases. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) characterized the morphology and crystallinity of the powder samples as well as of the sintered compacts of the powders. In conjunction with TEM, energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) provided a measure of the composition of the bulk intergranular regions within each CePO{sub 4} sample. The presence of an amorphous, phosphate-rich intergranular phase was found in those samples prepared by dissolution of ceria in H{sub 3}PO{sub 4} under various conditions. - Graphical abstract: High resolution electron microscopy image of amorphous intergranular phase (a) in polycrystalline monazite CePO{sub 4}.
Strain specific alterations in hippocampal cholinergic function following acute footshock.

Abstract Previous studies have shown that differences between Z-M and F-344 rats in active avoidance acquisition are due to variation in stress-induced motor response, rather than to differences in general learning ability. Thus F-344 rats, which become active when exposed to shock, are more likely to make avoidance responses and learn to associate an active response with ommision of shock than are Z-M rats, which reduce their activity in response to shock. The hypothesis that cholinergic neurons in the hippocampus contribute to the stress-induced motor suppression seen in Z-M rats derives from pharmacologic studies employing micro-injection of cholinergic antagonists. The present studies further investigate this hypothesis through assessment of acetylcholine turnover and high affinity choline uptake in discrete brain regions of Z-M and F-344 rats. Increases in cholinergic function in the dorsal hippocampus were observed in Z-M, but not F-344 rats following acute footshock. Cholinergic alterations were not seen in the ventral hippocampus or striatum of Z-M rats. The strain specific alterations in dorsal hippocampal cholinergic function correlate with documented motor suppression in Z-M rats and motor activation in F-344 rats during acute shock, and suggest that this cholinergic system mediates a suppressive behavioral response to environmental stress.
Biometric authentication in Smart Grid

The Smart Grid being developed nationwide aims at bringing modern IT network into the industrial control system (ICS) network to more effectively generate, transmission, and distribute electricity. These networks have their unique vulnerabilities and face all types of threats. Interconnecting them will undoubtedly increase complexity, introduce new vulnerabilities and the combined network will become more attractive to hackers. How successful the Smart Grid project can be largely depends on how well it defends against remote network-based attacks. User authentication for accessing the Smart Grid is the first and strongest line of defense against these types of attacks. Modern password based authentication mechanism has been proven inadequate. It is believed that biometric authentication will significantly improve the security of the Smart Grid network. In this paper we propose using biometrics to authenticate users accessing the Smart Grid. Firstly we look at a few biometric traits that have been proposed for user authentication in modern IT network and physical access control. Then we propose privacy-enhanced methods of applying fingerprint for user authentication. The proposed approaches can help relieve user's privacy concern for their fingerprint data, mainly due to its traditional usage for crime and background investigation. Since our methods improve the secrecy of biometric data, they make it possible to include biometrics as a factor in the desired multifactor user authentication for the Smart Grid.
Effects of growth hormone administration on vitamin D metabolism and vitamin D receptors in the pig

Abstract Twelve 36-kg pigs were given either 100 μg/kg porcine pituitary growth hormone (pGH) or placebo injections daily for 33 days. Serum was obtained weekly for analysis of minerals and vitamin D metabolites. On day 34, the pigs were sacrificed and renal and duodenal tissue were obtained for analysis of vitamin D receptor content (VDR). Animals treated with pGH grew faster and had a higher rate of bone accretion than did control animals. Serum concentrations of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25-(OH)2D) were significantly higher in pGH-treated pigs than in control pigs at all time points following initiation of treatment, with the greatest difference observed at day 28 (42.4 ± 4.9 pg/ml in controls vs. 65.4 ± 4.7 pg/ml in pGH-treated pigs). Serum 24,25-dihydroxy-vitamin D tended to be lower in pGH-treated pigs than in control pigs, being significantly lower on day 21 of the experiment (3.22 ± .52 vs. 6.73 ± 1.22 ng/ml, respectively). Serum concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D and calcium were unaffected by pGH treatment. Kidneys of control pigs contained significantly more unoccupied vitamin D receptors than did kidneys from pGH-treated pigs (73.3 ± 4.3 vs. 58.3 ± 4.1 fmoles/mg protein). Duodenal tissue unoccupied vitamin D receptor content was similar in both pGH-treated (245 ± 17.9 fmoles/mg protein) and control (263 ± 21.8 fmoles/mg protein) pigs. Duodenal occupied vitamin D receptor concentration was similar in both pGH-treated (6.8 ± .75 fmoles/mg protein) and control pigs (5.32 ± .77 fmoles/mg protein). These data indicate that pGH treatment increases circulating levels of 1,25-(OH)2D and increases small intestinal mass; thereby increasing intestinal calcium absorption capabilities necessary to support a higher rate of bone accretion.
Short echo time proton magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging of macromolecule and metabolite signal intensities in the human brain.

A novel approach is presented for imaging macromolecule and metabolite signals in brain by proton magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging. The method differentiates between metabolites and macromolecules by T 1 weighting using an inversion pulse followed by a variable inversion recovery time before localization and spectroscopic imaging. In healthy subjects, the major macromolecule resonances at 2.05 and 0.9 ppm were mapped at a nominal spatial resolution of 1 x 1 x 1.5 cm 3 and were demonstrated to be highly reproducible between subjects. In subacute stroke patients, a highly elevated macromolecule resonance at 1.3 ppm was mapped to infarcted brain regions, suggesting potential applications for studying pathological conditions.
Enhancing DNA vaccine potency by modifying the properties of antigen-presenting cells

DNA vaccines represent a potentially promising approach for antigen-specific immunotherapy. Advances in our knowledge of the adaptive immune system have indicated that professional antigen-presenting cells, especially dendritic cells (DCs), play a key role in the generation of antigen-specific immune responses. Thus, the modification of the properties of DCs represents an important strategy for enhancing the potency of DNA vaccines. This review discusses strategies to increase the number of antigen-expressing DCs, enhance antigen expression, processing and presentation in DCs, promote the activation and function of DCs, and improve DC and T-cell interaction, in order to optimize DNA vaccine-elicited immune responses. Continuing progress in our understanding of DC and T-cell biology serves as a foundation for further improvement of DNA vaccine potency, which may lead to future clinical applications of DNA vaccines for the control of infectious diseases and malignancies.
The role of endothelin-1 in strain-related susceptibility to develop hypoxic pulmonary hypertension in rats.

Abstract The Hilltop (H) strain compared to the Madison (M) strain of Sprague–Dawley rats develops severe pulmonary hypertension in response to chronic hypoxia. We tested the hypothesis that endothelin-1 (ET-1) contributes to these strain-related differences. Plasma ET-1 content was not modified by chronic hypoxia in either strain. The lung ET-1 peptide and preproET-1 mRNA content were significantly increased to the same magnitude in both strains at 2 and 3 weeks of hypoxia. The ETA receptor mRNA increased more at 3 weeks of hypoxia in the lungs of H rats than in M rats, but not at other time points. The ETB receptor mRNA was not modified by hypoxia in either strain. After 3 days of normoxic recovery following 2 weeks of hypoxia, ET-1 protein and mRNA levels decreased to baseline levels in both rat strains. We conclude that ET-1 does not contribute to the development of cardiopulmonary differences between the H and M strains in response to hypoxia.