cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The C terminus of p53 family proteins is a cell fate determinant.

The p53 tumor suppressor is the most commonly mutated gene in human cancers. The ability of p53 to induce cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, DNA repair, and other p53-dependent activities is well known; however, the mechanism by which p53 induces a specific activity over another is unclear. Here, we showed that stringent regulation of and by p53 family isoforms facilitates differential target gene expression and thus determines cell fate. Through the use of engineered deletion mutants, we found that activation domain 2 is required for induction of the proapoptotic target gene insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3 (IGFBP3) by p53 and that the basic domain inhibits induction of this gene by p53. Thus, for the first time we provide evidence that the basic domain of p53 is inhibitory in vivo as has been determined in vitro. We also showed that the in vivo inhibitory activity of the basic domain depends upon activation domain 1, such that combined deletion of activation domain 1 and the basic domain was required to alleviate the inhibition by the basic domain. Importantly, deletion of the inhibitory functional domains, namely N-terminal activation domain 1 and the C-terminal basic domain, is paralleled in nature. We found that the IGFBP3 promoter was activated by p53(ΔNΔBD), which mimics a naturally occurring N- and C-terminally truncated human p53 isoform, and by p53AS, a C-terminally truncated murine p53 isoform generated through alternative splicing, but not by full-length human or murine p53. In addition, we found that the C termini of p63 and p73 inhibit the induction of IGFBP3, such that C-terminally truncated p63 and p73 isoforms induce the expression of IGFBP3, whereas full-length ones cannot. We also demonstrated that IGFBP3 is an important effector of the apoptosis induced by N- and C-terminally truncated p53, such that knockdown of IGFBP3 by using an IGFBP3 neutralizing antibody or IGFBP3 small interfering RNA partially rescues the cell death induced by N- and C-terminally truncated p53. In addition, we identified that histone deacetylase activity, not p53 DNA binding ability, governs the regulation of IGFBP3 by full-length p53 family proteins, as inhibition of histone deacetylases restores the induction of IGFBP3 by exogenous full-length p53, p63, and p73 proteins. Furthermore, we found that activation of p53 or inhibition of histone deacetylases alone was not sufficient to induce IGFBP3; however, combined treatment endowed endogenous p53 with this activity. To better understand the significance of this regulation, we performed a microarray study and identified several target genes differentially regulated by full-length p53 and p53 lacking the N-terminal activation domain 1 and the C-terminal basic domain. Taken together, our data suggest a novel mechanism by which p53 family proteins differentially regulate gene expression and provide an insight for designing a combined therapy for cancer treatment.
BDMS Performance Evaluation: Practices, Pitfalls, and Possibilities

Much of the IT world today is buzzing about Big Data, and we are witnessing the emergence of a new generation of data-oriented platforms aimed at storing and processing all of the anticipated Big Data. The current generation of Big Data Management Systems (BDMSs) can largely be divided into two kinds of platforms: systems for Big Data analytics, which today tend to be batch-oriented and based on MapReduce (e.g., Hadoop), and systems for Big Data storage and front-end request-serving, which are usually based on key-value (a.k.a. NoSQL) stores. In this paper we ponder the problem of evaluating the performance of such systems. After taking a brief historical look at Big Data management and DBMS benchmarking, we begin our pondering of BDMS performance evaluation by reviewing several key recent efforts to measure and compare the performance of BDMSs. Next we discuss a series of potential pitfalls that such evaluation efforts should watch out for, pitfalls mostly based on the author’s own experiences with past benchmarking efforts. Finally, we close by discussing some of the unmet needs and future possibilities with regard to BDMS performance characterization and assessment efforts.
In situ study of deformation mechanisms in sputtered free-standing nanocrystalline nickel films

Nickel films of 1.5–10-μm thickness, produced by dc magnetron sputtering and with disperse grain size distributions peaking in the 30–60-nm range, were subject to in situ tensile straining in a transmission electron microscope. The deformation was stopped frequently, while keeping the load applied, for transmission electron microscopy observation of the internal structure. Contrast changes occurred in many of the grains between strain increments. Ample evidence was seen of dislocation activity, which appears to be the major mechanism for deformation of the samples. Dislocations were seen in grains as small as 20 nm. Parallel arrays of roughly equally spaced dislocations were observed, spaced about 5–10-nm apart. Intergranular nanovoids were found to form and grow with accompanying strain relief in neighboring grains. The results of the current study are generally consistent with previous in situ investigations and contribute to the understanding of deformation mechanisms in free-standing thin films, which may differ somewhat from those in bulk nanocrystalline materials or in films attached to a substrate.
Plants and Humans in the Near East and the Caucasus: Ancient and Traditional Uses of Plants as Food and Medicine, a Diachronic Ethnobotanical Review

Review of Plants and Humans in the Near East and the Caucasus: Ancient and Traditional Uses of Plants as Food and Medicine, a Diachronic Ethnobotanical Review (2 vols). Vol. 1: The Landscapes. The Plants: Ferns and Gymnosperms . Vol. 2: The Plants: Angiosperms . Diego Rivera Nunez, Gonzalo Matilla Seiquer, Concepcion Obon, Francisco Alcaraz Ariza. 2011. Ediciones de la Unverisdad de Murcia. Pp. 1056. EUR 23.76 (paperback). ISBN 978-84-15463-07-08 (2 vols.), 978-84-15463-05-4 (vol. 1), 978-84-15463-06-1 (vol. 2).
Internationalizing Popular Culture Studies

Une reflexion autour du concept de culture populaire, dans laquelle l'A. definit le concept avant de s'interroger sur les methodologies et les pratiques qui devraient etre idealement mises en oeuvre par les chercheurs travaillant sur une aire particuliere de ce domaine d'etude. Il plaide en particulier pour des approches comparatives qui n'hesiteraient pas a confronter des elements d'origines nationales et geographiques tres eloignees, et propose quelques voies de recherche encore inexplorees
Primary breast lymphoma: a consideration in an HIV patient when a mass is discovered by screening mammography: a case report

Primary Breast lymphoma is a rare lesion that has been reported in patients without HIV. However, Primary Breast lymphoma occurring in a patient with HIV has rarely been reported despite the fact that HIV infection is known to increase the propensity to develop certain types of lymphoma. We report a case of an HIV patient with breast lymphoma that was discovered by screening mammography while presenting our argument for more cautionary management in this patient population.
Evaluation of spoken language grammar learning in the ATIS domain

To facilitate the development of speech enabled applications and services, researchers have been working on a variety of smart tools. Recently we have introduced a schema-based context free grammar learning algorithm aiming at the development of real applications. In that paper we have described the algorithm and given some experimental results on the data of our in-house project. To study the general applicability of the algorithm as well as to provide the research community with more informative results, we have applied the algorithm to the well studied ATIS task and compared the performance of the learned grammar with one of the best performers in ATIS evaluations. The results show that the semi-automatically learned grammar achieves comparable performance to the manually authored grammar.
ISQ Turns Fifty

This issue marks the beginning of the second half-century of publication of International Studies Quarterly . The idea to create a journal to inform international studies educators arose at a meeting of scholars, convened at the University of Iowa by Vernon Van Dyke in the summer of 1955. 1 First published in 1957 at Wayne State University under the name Background , in its first incarnation it was a digest, consisting mainly of summaries of recent scholarly research. A key moment in the history of the journal occurred five years later, when Background was brought into the fold of the then recently formed International Studies Association (ISA). The ISA has been its organizational sponsor ever since. The name of the journal was changed to International Studies Quarterly in 1967, when it also assumed its current form as an outlet for the best original scholarship of interest to the international studies discipline. Vernon Van Dyke was the president of ISA at that time, and editorship of the journal moved from Charles McClelland, then of the University of Southern California, to Fred A. Sondermann of The Colorado College. Among the authors in the first issue of the new International Studies Quarterly were Irving Louis Horowitz, William R. Caspary, and Bruce M. Russett. Clearly much has changed in world politics and in the international studies community since the birth …
Loss of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) antibodies with evidence of viral infection in asymptomatic homosexual men: a report from the multicenter AIDS cohort study

Four asymptomatic homosexual men reverted from positive to negative serologic results for the human immunodeficiency virus, type 1 (HIV-1) over 2.5 years, as shown by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and Western blot. Antibody bands in the Western blot from three men were undetectable 6 to 12 months after being positive; gradual fading of the number and intensity of bands was seen in the other man. No HIV-1-p24 antigenemia was detected; cryopreserved peripheral blood mononuclear cells were negative for HIV-1 by standard culture assay. Polymerase chain reaction (gene amplification) assays were done on peripheral blood mononuclear cells and showed the HIV-1 provirus in all subjects 6 to 18 months after the last positive antibody test. Serum specimens from each participant were genetically identical. Polymerase chain reaction showed that peripheral blood mononuclear cells from one subject at different times matched by HLA DNA typing. Clinical and laboratory features of these four men were similar to those of other seronegative subjects. Rare, asymptomatic persons seropositive for HIV-1 may not remain seropositive, but may remain latently infected with HIV-1.
Factors Influencing Same-day Hospital Discharge and Risk Factors for Readmission After Robotic Surgery in the Gynecologic Oncology Patient Population

Study Objective To determine the factors that allow for a safe outpatient robotic-assisted minimally invasive gynecologic oncology surgery procedure.
Decay of Rn 220 and Rn 222

A gamma ray of energy 510\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}2 kev and approximate intensity 7\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}4}$ quanta per decay is emitted in the alpha decay of ${\mathrm{Rn}}^{222}$. A gamma ray of energy 542\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}2 kev and approximate intensity 2.5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}4}$ quanta per decay is emitted in the alpha decay of ${\mathrm{Rn}}^{220}$. The intensities are considered accurate only to within a factor of two.
Epigenetic control of podocyte differentiation: A new target of the renin-angiotensin system in kidney disease

Glomerular podocyte integrity is essential to limit protein filtration in the urine. Hayashi et al. report that epigenetic mechanisms control podocyte differentiation and that activation of the renin–angiotensin system in kidney disease affects podocyte differentiation and proteinuria by resetting the podocyte epigenome. These findings suggest that modulation of DNA methylation could be a promising target for the control of proteinuric kidney disease.
Application of Motivational Interviewing to Neuropsychology Practice: A New Frontier for Evaluations and Rehabilitation

A mounting number of persons live with a form of cognitive disability (20 million) (US Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Federal developmental disabilities programs, US Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Washington, 2000), with approximately 4.1% of the population aged 6 and over (10.7 million) requiring personal assistance to complete one or more activities of daily living. Although specific types of cognitive impairments result from multiple etiologies and vary throughout the life span, these populations share a core commonality: increased risk for difficulty in treatment compliance (HCH Clinicians’ Network, Dealing with disability: Cognitive impairments and homelessness, HCH Clinicians’ Network, Nashville, 2003). Furthermore, as a consequence of their disability, these patients may inadvertently sabotage their own progress in treatment by the refusal of necessary services due to an inability to understand the goals and benefits of participating in recommended treatments (Backer and Howard, J Primary Prevent 28:375–388, 2007).
LAMPF Polarized 13C Targets

Ethylene glycol, 1-butanol, and toluene highly enriched in 13C have been used at LAMPF to produce dynamically polarized 13C targets for scattering experiments with protons and pions. Preparation of the materials and characteristic properties of these, targets are described.
An Unusual Cytoplasmic Ribosomal Structure in Pathologic Lymphocytes

Blood slides of a 70-yr-old woman branes around a central “core.” The with lymphosarcoma cell leukemia ribosomal nature of this structure is showed 10#{176}/o-40#{176}/o notched-split nu- evidenced by: (1) similarity of the parcleated lymphocytes. A few round, tides ot ribosomes, (2) the structure’s nucleated lymphocytes contained a connections with endoplasmic reticuround or oval body close to the nu- lum, and (3) the ribonuclease effect on cleus. The electron microscopic coun- the corresponding paranuclear bodies terpart 9f this body was a complex in the blood slides. As an Incidental tubular structure described previously finding, a very few round nucleated by D. Zucker-Franklin. The walls of lymphocytes showed nuclear blebs this structure are composed of gran- only. ules on concentric layers of memA LIGHT MICROSCOPIC STUDY of the blood films from a leukemic 1-I patient with lymphosarcoma cell leukemia showed nuclear and cytoplasmic abnormalities in the lymphocytes. The nuclear abnormality was notchirig and splitting of the nuclei, which occurred in a large number of these cells. The cytoplasmic anomaly usually consisted of one round or elongated body in the cytoplasm that was present in a smaller number of the leukemic lymphocytes. An electron microscopic examination of the blood cells revealed that these cytoplasmic bodies were complex structures, identical with those described by Zucker-Franklin in 1963k in the circulating lymphocytes of a patient who had chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) for about 20 yr. This report is a brief description of the patient’s clinical course and of the light and electron microscopic findings.
The role of nuclear medicine procedures in clinical nephrology: current clinical status and future directions.

This review discusses the use of radionuclides in nephrology. Radioactive materials may be used for measurements of renal function (glomerular filtration rate, renal plasma flow) and for renal imaging. The compounds of choice for GFR and RPF measurements are125I iothalamate and131I orthoiodohippurate, respectively. Neither is the ideal agent since the radiolabel yields a high radiation dose. No single agent has emerged as the best for renal imaging, however, a great many have been introduced in the last few years and their relative merits are reviewed here. Therationale for use of radionuclides in nephrology is based on an awareness of the pathophysiology of the disease process and of the physiologic handling of the radiopharmaceutical used in the diagnostic study.
Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells improve neural behavior of newborn rats with hypoxic-ischemic brain damage

Objective To investigate the rule of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells( hUCMSCs) in neural recovery of neonatal rats with hypoxic-ischemic brain damage( HIBD) of brain.Methods Hypoxic-ischemic brain injuries were induced in 7 day old Sprague-Dawley( SD) rats through right carotid artery ligation followed by exposure to hypoxic environment. Rats were separated into 24 hr and 72 hr post HIBD interventional groups. Dil labeled HUCMSCs were introduced to each group of rats through intravenous( i. v.) injection,intra-abdominal injection or i. v. HUCMSCs + intra-abdominal ganglioside injection routes. Two control groups were established: HIBD rats without treatment and with normal saline injections. Learning and memory abilities of rats were evaluated by Morris Water Maze Test. Stem cells distribution and differentiation in brain tissue were determined by immunohistochemistry.Results( 1) Morris Water Maze Test showed that animals implanted with the hUCMSCs had a significantly shorter mean latency to escape time than those in the saline control group( P 0. 05);Comparing the latency time between different transplantation time points indicated that animals receiving cell grafts at 24 hour post HIBD showed a more significant improvement than those implanted at 72 hour( 56. 0 ± 6. 9 s vs. 76. 4 ± 6. 7 s,P 0. 05; P 0. 05). hUCMSC transplantation combined with ganglioside( GM1) treatment greatly improved the animal behavior by further decrease the latency time in both 24 hour post HIBD( 38. 3 ± 7. 5 s with GM1 vs. 56. 0 ± 6. 9 s with hUCMSC alone,P 0. 05),and72 hour post HIBD groups( 50. 0 ± 7. 2 s with GM1 vs. 76. 4 ± 6. 7 s with hUCMSC alone( P 0. 05).( 2) Under laser confocal microscope,some of the Dil positive cells were also found immune-reactive to Hoechst( stains nuclei of neural cells) and DCX stains( stains neuron precursor cells),which revealed that hUCMSCs grafts have been migrated to brain and differentiated into neuronal precursors.( 3)Furthermore,hUCMSCs grafts through jugular vein injection was found a more efficient route when compared to grafts through abdominal injection,because lower expression level of GFAP,a pathological marker with increasing activity in HIBD,was observed in rat brains with hUCMSC injection through jugular vein( P 0. 01). Conclusions Early transplantation of hUCMSCs via jugular vein is a promising way to improve the behavior of hypoxic-ischemic rats and decrease the gliosis. The transplanted cells could differentiate into neurons. Ganglioside treatment further enhances the recovery of neurological functions on the base of hUCMSCs transplantation.
Outcome analysis of 206 preinatals with severe preeclampsia

Objective:To explore the effects of termination time on perinatals with severe preeclampsia(PE). Methods:The clinical data,complications and clinical monitoring index of 206 perinatals with evere PE were retrospectively analysed. Results:The incidences of complications of early-onset PE were 93.02%,which were higher than that of late-onset PE(83.33%)(P0.05).The early-onset PE with Apgar score greater than 7 and weight larger than 1500g were lower than that of late-onset PE(P0.05 and P0.01).The perinatal mortality rates of two types of were 18.60% and 3.33% respectively,which difference was statistically significant(P0.01). Conclusions:Conservative treatment to extend gestational age for 32 weeks can improve perinatal outcome.Various monitoring methods are the premise of conservative treatment and the termination time can affect the perinatal outcome.
Effects of Electrical and Optogenetic Deep Brain Stimulation on Synchronized Oscillatory Activity in Parkinsonian Basal Ganglia

Conventional deep brain stimulation of basal ganglia uses high-frequency regular electrical pulses to treat Parkinsonian motor symptoms but has a series of limitations. Relatively new and not yet clinically tested, optogenetic stimulation is an effective experimental stimulation technique to affect pathological network dynamics. We compared the effects of electrical and optogenetic stimulation of the basal gangliaon the pathologicalParkinsonian rhythmic neural activity. We studied the network response to electrical stimulation and excitatory and inhibitory optogenetic stimulations. Different stimulations exhibit different interactions with pathological activity in the network. We studied these interactions for different network and stimulation parameter values. Optogenetic stimulation was found to be more efficient than electrical stimulation in suppressing pathological rhythmicity. Our findings indicate that optogenetic control of neural synchrony may be more efficacious than electrical control because of the different ways of how stimulations interact with network dynamics.
Economic analysis of novel synergistic biofuel (H 2 Bioil) processes

Fast-pyrolysis based processes can be built on small-scale and have higher process carbon and energy efficiency as compared to other options. H2Bioil is a novel process based on biomass fast-hydropyrolysis and subsequent hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) and can potentially provide high yields of high energy density liquid fuel at relatively low hydrogen consumption. This paper contains a comprehensive financial analysis of the H2Bioil process with hydrogen derived from different sources. Three different carbon tax scenarios are analyzed: no carbon tax, $55/metric ton carbon tax and $110/metric ton carbon tax. The break-even crude oil price for a delivered biomass cost of $94/metric ton when hydrogen is derived from coal, natural gas or nuclear energy ranges from $103 to $116/bbl for no carbon tax and even lower ($99–$111/bbl) for the carbon tax scenarios. This break-even crude oil price compares favorably with the literature estimated prices of fuels from alternate biochemical and thermochemical routes. The impact of the chosen carbon tax is found to be limited relative to the impact of the H2 source on the H2Bioil break-even price. The economic robustness of the processes for hydrogen derived from coal, natural gas, or nuclear energy is seen by an estimated break-even crude oil price of $114–$126/bbl when biomass cost is increased to $121/metric ton.
Psychophysiologic aspects of backache.

A study of 65 patients revealed that the backache syndrome most often appeared in situations evolving from difficulties in personal and social adjustment. In addition to emotional factors, a variety of illnesses and injuries also may precipitate backache, or psychiatric and orthopedic disease may combine to produce the clinical picture. The authors suggest that management should include psychotherapy, physical therapy and measures to reduce pain, induce muscular relaxation. and improve blood flow.
Dynamic Classification Ontologies

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the problem of building a common ontology for the purpose of information sharing in the cooperative federated database system (CFDBS) context. Ontology is a collection of concepts and interconnections used to describe information units. A CFDBS is an information-sharing environment in which units of information to be shared are substantially structured, and participants are actively involved in information sharing activities. A CFDBS consists of a number of autonomous information frameworks, information repositories, and one or more dynamic classificational ontologies (DCO). A DCO consists of a base ontology and a derived ontology. The base ontology contains ontology to describe and classify concepts exported by information frameworks (IFs), and the derived ontology contains an additional ontology to help in the classification of exported concepts in finer grains. A DCO contains top-level knowledge about exported information units, along with the knowledge of classification. Information providers contribute to the DCO when information units are exported, and the current knowledge in the DCO is in turn utilized to assist information sharing activities. The key aspect of CFDBS is heterogeneity of information at two levels of abstraction, such as data model heterogeneity and semantic heterogeneity.
The Free Exercise Clause and Hans Kelsen’s Modernist Secularism

In 2012, the Hans Kelsen Institute in Vienna published Hans Kelsen’s Secular Religion, a book he completed in the 1960s and then withdrew from publication for reasons that are by no means certain. The book is Kelsen’s passionate defense of scientific reasoning as distinct from religious modes of reasoning. As noted in the book’s subtitle, the work is Kelsen’s polemic against those who would tame modern science and modern politics by treating both phenomena as engaging in modes of reasoning that are either the same as or analogous to religious modes of reasoning. The book’s publication is especially timely because it comes in the midst of a vigorous debate in the U.S. legal academy, the courts and the public sphere about the extent to which religious belief is distinct from other forms of sincerely-held beliefs. The scope of protections for liberties protected under the U.S. Constitution’s Free Exercise Clause could turn on our ability to understand religious beliefs as distinct from other systemic sets of belief.
NIST Mini-Kolsky Bar: Historical Review

The Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM) has sponsored a series of technical paper sessions titled “Novel Testing Techniques” at their annual meetings. These sessions were organized by the Dynamic Behavior of Materials Technical Division of SEM and started in 2008. One of the novel techniques that we first learned about by attending SEM was the use of a small-size Kolsky bar system especially designed for the testing of polymer-single fibers. The Mini-Kolsky Bar was added to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Kolsky Bar Laboratory based, in part, on the work presented at SEM conferences. A number of informal discussions at the annual SEM conferences added to the understanding and design details as we constructed our first small tension Kolsky bar. Subsequent developments of the NIST Mini-Kolsky bar, including improved gripping techniques were presented and discussed at SEM conferences. This paper reviews some of the work presented in the SEM’s Novel Testing Techniques sessions and discusses the history of additional follow-on work precipitated by the original papers.
Comparative analysis of F18-NaF PET/CT and Tc99m-MDP nuclear bone scans for detecting osseous metastases.

2724 Objectives The utilization of sodium fluoride (NaF) in PET/CT bone scans is an example of continuing advancements in nuclear imaging to produce greater accuracy in patient diagnosis. 99mTc-Methylene diphosphonate (MDP) planar or SPECT nuclear bone scans are traditionally performed for evaluating osseous metastases in patients with known cancer. 18F-NaF PET/CT bone scans however, have proven to demonstrate superior accuracy in detecting lesions. This study evaluates the methods for detecting osseous metastases in nuclear bone imaging by comparing the sensitivity and specificity of planar and SPECT images with PET/CT scans. Methods Forty-four patients with cancer underwent whole body bone planar scintigraphy and SPECT imaging of the axial skeleton as well as a PET/CT scan. Administration of 99mTc-MDP requires several hours of delay in order for soft tissue clearance and quality skeletal images to be obtained. In this study, after a 2-3 hours delay, planar bone scintigraphy and SPECT were performed. Due to high target-to-background ratio with rapid uptake and clearance of sodium fluoride, the PET/CT bone scan was performed 60-90 minutes after administration. Results The standard dose for a 99mTc-MDP whole body bone scan produces an effective dose grater than 18F-NaF; however in correlation with CT, the effective dose is increased. After performing all three studies, the planar bone scintigraphy was 70% sensitive and 57% specific for identifying metastatic lesions. The multi-FOV SPECT images produced increased sensitivity and specificity values of 92% and 82% respectively. The PET/CT scans were 100% sensitive and 100% specific to metastatic lesion interpretations. Conclusions This study demonstrates that PET/CT bone scans are highly sensitive and specific for identifying bone lesions in patients with known cancer. Although 99mTc-MDP whole body bone scintigraphy has proven to produce sufficient results with limited radiation to the patient, the evidence suggests that SPECT and more prominently PET/CT imaging are more diagnostically accurate.
Wettability of kaolinite basal planes based on surface force measurements using atomic force microscopy

Surface force measurements based on atomic force microscopy (AFM) are used to describe the wettability of surfaces, specifically kaolinite basal plane surfaces at a high resolution. The kaolinite particles (∼500 nm) were ordered with either the silica tetrahedral face exposed or the alumina octahedral face exposed, and surface force measurements were made between a hydrophobic diamond-like-carbon (DLC) tip and the kaolinite faces at pH 4, which is around the isoelectric point of the DLC tip. Under these conditions, the effect of electrostatic interaction should be eliminated and only van der Waals interactions and hydrophobic-hydrophobic interactions are expected to contribute to the surface force. The wettabilities of the surfaces were determined from the magnitude of the surface force. Wettabilities of the kaolinite basal planes thus determined were compared with the corresponding wettabilities of talc and mica surfaces, which are well-known to be naturally hydrophobic, and hydrophilic surfaces, respectively. The results reveal that the silica tetrahedral face of kaolinte has a modest level of hydrophobicity, which may be due to the lack of hydrogen bonding sites. In contrast, the alumina octahedral face showed no hydrophobicity, since a layer of surface hydroxyl groups is present at the alumina face, resulting in a relatively strong interaction between this surface and water molecules. It is expected that, with a better understanding of the surface properties of kaolinite, further improvements in flotation separations and dewatering may be achieved.
Machine centre productivity measurement under conditions of discrete production

Traditional definitions of productivity often fail to consider the factors of effectiveness and efficiency. In measuring the productivity of machine centres in manufacturing operations, it is important to take into account such factors as the interaction between the operator, the machine, raw materials and maintenance. The authors suggest an approach to productivity measurement which incorporates factors directly associated with machine performance as a means of identifying and reducing downtime.
Gastric Motor Dysfunction in Patients With Functional Gastroduodenal Symptoms

Objectives:The pathophysiology of dyspeptic symptoms is complex. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association of gastric emptying (GE), gastric accommodation (GA), and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA, to assess vagal dysfunction) in a large cohort with functional gastroduodenal symptoms.M
Multiple Myeloma and Its Precursor Disease Among Firefighters Exposed to the World Trade Center Disaster.

Importance The World Trade Center (WTC) attacks on September 11, 2001, created an unprecedented environmental exposure to known and suspected carcinogens suggested to increase the risk of multiple myeloma. Multiple myeloma is consistently preceded by the precursor states of monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) and light-chain MGUS, detectable in peripheral blood. Objective To characterize WTC-exposed firefighters with a diagnosis of multiple myeloma and to conduct a screening study for MGUS and light-chain MGUS. Design, Setting, and Participants Case series of multiple myeloma in firefighters diagnosed between September 11, 2001, and July 1, 2017, together with a seroprevalence study of MGUS in serum samples collected from Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) firefighters between December 2013 and October 2015. Participants included all WTC-exposed FDNY white, male firefighters with a confirmed physician diagnosis of multiple myeloma (n = 16) and WTC-exposed FDNY white male firefighters older than 50 years with available serum samples (n = 781). Exposures WTC exposure defined as rescue and/or recovery work at the WTC site between September 11, 2001, and July 25, 2002. Main Outcomes and Measures Multiple myeloma case information, and age-adjusted and age-specific prevalence rates for overall MGUS (ie, MGUS and light-chain MGUS), MGUS, and light-chain MGUS. Results Sixteen WTC-exposed white male firefighters received a diagnosis of multiple myeloma after September 11, 2001; median age at diagnosis was 57 years (interquartile range, 50-68 years). Serum/urine monoclonal protein isotype/free light-chain data were available for 14 cases; 7 (50%) had light-chain multiple myeloma. In a subset of 7 patients, myeloma cells were assessed for CD20 expression; 5 (71%) were CD20 positive. In the screening study, we assayed peripheral blood from 781 WTC-exposed firefighters. The age-standardized prevalence rate of MGUS and light-chain MGUS combined was 7.63 per 100 persons (95% CI, 5.45-9.81), 1.8-fold higher than rates from the Olmsted County, Minnesota, white male reference population (relative rate, 1.76; 95% CI, 1.34-2.29). The age-standardized prevalence rate of light-chain MGUS was more than 3-fold higher than in the same reference population (relative rate, 3.13; 95% CI, 1.99-4.93). Conclusions and Relevance Environmental exposure to the WTC disaster site is associated with myeloma precursor disease (MGUS and light-chain MGUS) and may be a risk factor for the development of multiple myeloma at an earlier age, particularly the light-chain subtype.
The effect of solar photovoltaic plant participation on different market structures in the Saudi electricity grid

Saudi Arabia is in the process of deregulating the electricity by introducing an electricity market, as the single Saudi Electricity Company will be divided into several competitive companies. The Saudi government is also investing heavily in renewable energy, especially after the adopting the country's 2030 vision, which is commitment of installing 9.5 GW of renewable energy by 2030. Currently in most of the world most renewable resources are subsidized or paid a feed-in tariff. As renewable resource construction increases, subsidies will become unsustainable. Some European countries have already cut these subsidies. Hence renewables will eventually participate in energy markets the same way as conventional generators. Electricity market structures differ in details but can generally fit in two major electricity market pricing schemes: the Marginal Pricing (MP) scheme and the Pay-as-Bid (PAB) scheme. And each scheme can be divided in to two schemes depending on the phase it deals with transmission line congestion (total of 4 schemes). Also the participation strategy for generators and Solar Power Plants (SPP) differs depending on the market scheme. This paper will evaluate the effect of SPP bidding in the Saudi grid on the SPP's profit, generators' profit, consumers' surplus, and the system social welfare. This evaluation will assume one SPP is added at different proposed locations on the Saudi grid. This simulation will compare all four-market schemes and will evaluate the effect of using international fuel prices. The best scheme will be recommend. Finally, the effect increasing SPP penetration will be evaluated.
Percutaneous Transluminal Coronary Angioplasty: Comparison of Brachial and Femoral Artery Methods

In 1977, Gruntzig [2] achieved the first successful coronary angioplasty with the guiding catheter introduced into the femoral artery via the Seldinger technique. In 1978 three centers, New York, Milwaukee, and Frankfurt, began developing coronary angioplasty guiding catheters which were introduced into the brachial artery. The major difference between the techniques was that the femoral method utilized preshaped guiding catheters, while the brachial method utilized a multipurpose guiding catheter which could intubate either coronary ostium. The present brachial and femoral guiding catheter systems are capable of consistently intubating either coronary ostium.
Familial resemblance for specific cognitive abilities

Measures of familial resemblance (spouse correlations, regressions of offspring on midparent, single-parent/single-child correlations, and sibling correlations) are presented for members of the two largest ethnic groups tested in the Hawaii Family Study of Cognition. Median spouse correlations (corrected for differences in test reliability) for 15 individual tests of specific cognitive abilities are 0.15 and 0.12 for Americans of European and of Japanese ancestry, respectively. With regard to the regressions of offspring on midparent value, corresponding median values are 0.50 and 0.35. Results of hierarchical multiple regression analyses, as well as the ordering of single-parent/single-child and sibling correlations, provide no evidence to support the hypothesis that spatial ability is influenced by a sex-linked, recessive gene.
Thermoradiotherapy for Genitourinary and Gynecological Tumors

Advances in the clinical application of thermoradiotherapy in the treatment of genitourinary and gynecological malignancies have been hampered by the same limitations as in most other sites: (a) methods are inadequate for sufficiently heating the entire tumor without exceeding normal tissue or patient tolerance; (b) documentation of tumor heating with adequate invasive thermometry is difficult, hazardous, and uncomfortable; (c) tumor responses in an individual patient may be attributable to the conventional treatment modality alone rather than the adjunctive hyperthermia
Psychological aspects of fibromyalgia: research vs. clinician impressions.

Abstract Objective: This study was designed to compare the psychological features of patients with fibromyalgia, as described in the research literature, with physicians' clinical impressions. Method: Using a survey method, physicians ( n =44) and physicians-in-training ( n =54) were polled regarding their clinical impressions of 18 psychological features, culled from the research literature, which are attributed to fibromyalgia patients. Results: Over 90% of respondents reported that fatigue, muscle tension, pain proneness, depression and anxiety were clinically associated with fibromyalgia patients “frequently” or “very frequently.” The majority of respondents (52%) endorsed 10 of 18 items as occurring “frequently” or “very frequently.” Conclusions: Physicians and physicians-in-training appear to observe in fibromyalgia patients over half of the psychological features identified in the research literature. For the remainder of items, we discuss possible explanations for the disparity.
Homoclinic dynamics in a restricted four body problem

We describe a method for computing an atlas for the stable or unstable manifold attached to an equilibrium point, and implement the method for the saddle-focus libration points of the planar equilateral restricted four body problem. We employ the method at the maximally symmetric case of equal masses, where we compute atlases for both the stable and unstable manifolds. The resulting atlases are comprised of thousands of individual chart maps, with each chart represented by a two variable Taylor polynomial. Post-processing the atlas data yields approximate intersections of the invariant manifolds, which we refine via a shooting method for an appropriate two point boundary value problem. Finally we apply numerical continuation to the BVPs. This breaks the symmetries and leads to connecting orbits for some non-equal values of the primary masses.
Comprehensive before-closure model and analysis for fracture calibration injection falloff test

Abstract The fracture calibration injection falloff test, also known as mini-frac and diagnostic fracture injection test (DFIT), is widely used to quantify essential input parameters for the following main fracture treatment design. Over time, data presentations used to facilitate the analysis have revealed trends in the before-closure falloff transient data that have been labeled as abnormal closure. This paper provides new models for all known before-closure leakoff behaviors and a comprehensive model that enables a match with the entire before-closure transient response. The before-closure leakoff behaviors in the comprehensive model include wellbore storage (WBS), friction dissipation, tip extension, pressure dependent leakoff area (PDLA), multiple apparent closures, transferred storage (also known as transverse storage), height recession and variable fracture compliance. Besides the parameters such as closure pressure, leakoff coefficient, and the hydraulic fracture geometry that can be quantified by commonly known analysis techniques, the new model enables quantification of several new parameters. Two diagnostic plots are used to facilitate identification and quantification of the standard and newly modeled parameters: the Bourdet log-log plot of pressure change and derivative and the composite G-function plot. Tip extension is more easily identified on the G-function plot, and the model match with this behavior quantifies the tip extension distance after shut-in and the fracture minimum propagation pressure. So-called pressure dependent leakoff and transferred storage may be related to opening of secondary fractures, and may be seen as multiple closure events easily identified on either diagnostic plot. Such effects enable quantification of closure stress and surface areas for the secondary fracture sets. Alternatively, when the behavior that looks like transferred storage is explained as fracture height recession, the closure stress of overlying or underlying layers can be estimated along with the recessed fracture area. Variable fracture compliance has similar appearance with transferred storage as well in the diagnostic plots. When it occurs, the way to determine fracture closure stress and other parameters are provided. Matches with field data reflect highly enhanced understanding of the nature of hydraulic fracturing and natural fracture flow mechanisms that have not been possible with other models and that greatly refine well design strategies.
CABLE THEORY AND PASSIVE CONDUCTION

This chapter discusses cable theory and passive conduction. It presents the distinction between active and passive membranes in the propagation of signals along a fiber. In the latter, currents spread passively or electrotonically and can be studied with the aid of the core conductor model in which the fiber is considered as a leaky cable surrounded by a conducting extracellular fluid. The same model can be used as an approximation for active fibers, provided the signals are below the threshold at which they become amplified into a spike by the active membrane mechanism. The chapter describes the membrane that has been modeled in terms of electric circuitry.
Diffusion weighted imaging evidence of extra-callosal pathways for interhemispheric communication after complete commissurotomy.

The integrity of white matter architecture in the human brain is related to cognitive processing abilities. The corpus callosum is the largest white matter bundle interconnecting the two cerebral hemispheres. “Split-brain” patients in whom all cortical commissures have been severed to alleviate intractable epilepsy demonstrate remarkably intact cognitive abilities despite the lack of this important interhemispheric pathway. While it has often been speculated that there are compensatory alterations in the remaining interhemispheric fibers in split-brain patients several years post-commissurotomy, this has never been directly shown. Here we examined extra-callosal pathways for interhemispheric communication in the brain of a patient who underwent complete cerebral commissurotomy using diffusion weighted imaging tractography. We found that compared with a healthy age-matched comparison group, the split-brain patient exhibited increased fractional anisotropy (FA) of the dorsal and ventral pontine decussations of the cortico-cerebellar interhemispheric pathways. Few differences were observed between the patient and the comparison group with respect to FA of other long-range intrahemispheric fibers. These results point to specific cerebellar anatomical substrates that may account for the spared interhemispheric coordination and intact cognitive abilities that have been extensively documented in this unique patient.
Activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway is involved in and sufficient for megakaryocytic differentiation of CMK cells

Activation of the mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase pathway has been associated with both cell proliferation and differentiation. Constitutively activated forms of Mek (MAP kinase/Erk kinase) and Erk (MAP kinase) have been previously shown capable of inducing differentiation or proliferation in nonhematopoietic cells. To specifically examine the role of Erk activation in megakaryocytic growth and development, we activated the MAP kinase pathway by the transfection of constitutively activated Mek or Erk cDNA into a human megakaryoblastic cell line, CMK, by electroporation. The CMK transfectant clones that expressed constitutively activated Mek or Erk showed morphologic changes of differentiation. Transfected cells also showed expression of mature megakaryocytic cell surface markers. The MAP kinase pathway was also activated by treatment of the hematopoietic cells with a cytokine that activates Erk. The treatment of CMK cells with stem cell factor (SCF ) caused MAP kinase activation and induced differentiation by the expression of mature megakaryocytic cell surface markers. The effects of the SCF treatment were inhibited by pretreatment with a specific inhibitor of the MAP kinase pathway, PD98059. In this report, we conclude that activation of the MAP kinase pathway was both necessary and sufficient to induce differentiation in this megakaryoblastic cell line.
Sieving Very Thin Sets of Primes, and Pratt Trees with Missing Primes

Suppose P is a set of primes, such that for every p ∈ P , every prime factor of p − 1 is also in P . We apply a new sieve method to show that either P contains all of the primes or the counting function of P is O(x) for some c > 0, where c depends only on the smallest prime not in P . Our proof makes use of results connected with Artin’s primitive root conjecture.
Strong light-matter coupling in atomically-thin excitonic semiconductors (Conference Presentation)

I will present our recent works on confining visible frequency photons in heterostructures for plasmonic metals and excitonic transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) of Mo and W. Evidence of strongly coupling between excitonic modes and Fabry-Perot like resonances will be presented in unpatterned case. When the TMDC layer is patterned, plasmonic and dielectric grating modes emerge which lead to further coupling with excitonic modes resulting in tunable strong coupling and light confiementment. Finally, I will extend this notion to monolayer TMDCs and show evidence of near-unity absorption in metamaterials of the same for applications ranging from optical modulators to photodetectors and photovoltaics.