cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Fibronectin-mimetic peptide-amphiphile nanofiber gels support increased cell adhesion and promote ECM production

The design of nanofiber scaffolds has been a key objective in tissue engineering as they structurally mimic the natural extracellular matrix (ECM) found in tissues. The continuous cross talk between cells and the surrounding matrix ligands plays a crucial role during development and wound healing which leads to tissue regeneration and repair. In an attempt to provide a nanofiber scaffold with a ligand that can promote cell adhesion and ECM production, we propose the use of our peptide-amphiphile nanofibers as a potential scaffold for tissue engineering. A fibronectin-mimetic peptide sequence containing both the cell-binding GRGDSP domain and the synergistic PHSRN domain has been recently developed in our group. It has been shown to be a specific ligand for the α5β1 integrin, and has been synthesized to a C16 single-tailed peptide-amphiphile, PR_g (with a peptide headgroup of GGGSSPHSRN(SG)5RGDSP). The PR_g peptide-amphiphiles self-assemble into nanofibers in an aqueous environment and form hydrogels. In this study, the PR_g hydrogels were characterized with cryo-scanning electron microscopy (cryo-SEM) and rheology measurements, and their surfaces were evaluated in terms of sustaining long term human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) adhesion and proliferation, cytoskeleton formation, and secretion of extracellular fibronectin. PR_g gels were compared to polyethylene glycol (PEG) gels, PEG gels functionalized with fibronectin as well as commercially available peptide hydrogels (PuraMatrix). Our results show that the PR_g hydrogels outperform the other gels evaluated in this study and therefore hold promise as scaffolds for tissue engineering.
Pregnancy Alters the Proliferation and Apoptosis of Mouse Splenic Erythroid Lineage Cells and Leukocytes

Pregnancy induces dynamic changes in the maternal environment that include reversible modifications in response to systemic mediators and local signals. The spleen can be used to determine the effects of pregnancy on multiple cellular populations, including those of the erythroid lineage and the immune system. Current evidence suggests that the transient increase in the size of the spleen during pregnancy is due to the expansion of erythroid precursors. However, it is unclear what factors contribute to this increase. Moreover, the additional erythroid cells may compete with neighboring leukocytes for growth factors or space, and this may in turn alter the function of these populations. Therefore, we assessed proliferation and apoptosis throughout gestation using in vivo bromodeoxyuridine incorporation and the TUNEL assay, respectively. Here, we show that erythroid-lineage TER-119+ cells expanded significantly in midgestation because of enhanced proliferation and diminished apoptosis. This correlated with ...
On the choice of random directions for stochastic approximation algorithms

Stochastic approximation provides a simple and effective approach for finding roots and minima of functions whose evaluations are contaminated with noise. We investigate variants of the random direction stochastic approximation (RDSA) algorithm for optimizing noisy loss functions in high-dimensional spaces. The most popular variant is random selection from a Bernoulli distribution, which also goes by the name simultaneous perturbation stochastic approximation (SPSA). Viable alternatives include an axis-aligned distribution, normal distribution, and uniform distribution on a spherical shell. Although there are special cases where the Bernoulli distribution is optimal, we identify other cases where it performs worse than the alternatives. We show that performance depends on the orientation of the loss function with respect to its coordinate axes, and consider averages over all orientations. We find that the average asymptotic performance depends only on the radial fourth moment of the distribution of random directions, and is identical for the Bernoulli, axis-aligned, and spherical shell distributions. Of these variants, the spherical shell is optimal in the sense of minimum variance over random orientations of the loss function with respect to the coordinate axes. We also show that for unaligned loss functions, the performance of the Kiefer-Wolfowitz-Blum finite difference stochastic approximation (FDSA) is asymptotically equivalent to the RDSA algorithms, and we observe numerically that the pre-asymptotic performance of FDSA is often superior.
Noise analysis of a delay discriminator

This report is a part of the results of a research project in a one-semester seminar class given to the MS degree graduate students here at Loyola Marymount University. In this research project, the analysis of the noise at the output of a delay discriminator used in FM communication system was performed. It was found that the nonlinear noise output could be approximated by a wide-sense-stationary Gaussian random process, and its statistical properties such as the probability density and spectral density were investigated and obtained. The simulation of the BER behavior of the digital communications was also performed.
Analytical studies of enamel fluorosis: methodological considerations.

The epidemiology of enamel fluorosis has a rich history, going back to the 1902 clinical observations of a US Public Health Service physician stationed in Naples, Italy (1). The early investigation of enamel fluorosis led directly to significant progress in the area of dental public health (2-5). It serves as an illustration of the power of epidemiology to uncover important health relations and to establish the safety and efficacy of specific interventions well in advance of a complete understanding of the underlying mechanisms of action (6-8). Enamel fluorosis is a condition in which both exposure to suspected risk factors and host susceptibility may continually change during a temporally finite period of vulnerability limited to the early years of life. Recent epidemiologic investigations of enamel fluorosis highlight important methodological issues related to the identification of cases and controls, as well as to the analysis of risk factors for this condition. This paper focuses on these methodological issues, with special emphasis on the measurement of dependent variables.
Adding outcome as the 10th step in the brain-to-brain laboratory test loop.

Some things never change; sometimes a pity. Appropriate (and inappropriate) laboratory utilization was a recurring theme in the Journal of the American Medical Association ( JAMA ), of which I was privileged to serve as the editor-in-chief from 1982 to 1999. Some things do change; also sometimes a pity. My successor JAMA editors had other compelling interests, so JAMA ’s leadership in the field waned. Unfortunately, other leading journal voices seemed less enamored of the topic, so its coverage also lagged. The newly reintroduced concepts of “less is more” and “choosing wisely” in medicine have inevitably brought new attention to this age-old, always “appropriate” topic. Laboratory tests that matter are those that produce actionable results that bring a positive outcome benefit for the patient. Thus, to assess the appropriateness of laboratory test use, assessing the benefit (perhaps vs cost, risk, and potential harm) as an outcome would seem to be a central component, even a “no brainer.”1 In the most modern parlance of advanced laboratory testing, molecular oncology stands as a potential model for doing it right from the get-go. Until recently, there have been no truly beneficial therapeutic options for metastatic malignant melanoma. Then came the process of genomic study of individual solid tumors for cancer mutations. A BRAF mutation has been found in around 50% of metastatic melanomas of cutaneous origin.2 Successful clinical trials of targeted therapy demonstrated a substantial positive effect on tumor size, progression-free survival, and total survival.3 Not cure, but major benefit, at high monetary cost but low cost of therapy-induced collateral damage to quality of life. So, testing for BRAF mutations in metastatic melanoma with following therapy has become a “poster child” for outcomes-based appropriate laboratory utilization.4 Meanwhile, back in the nonmolecular world, past and present, Misbah et al5 have recently …
Cytokinesis: an emerging unified theory for eukaryotes?

Abstract In animal and fungal cells, cytokinesis involves an actomyosin ring that forms and contracts at the division plane. Important new details have emerged concerning the composition, assembly, and dynamics of these contractile rings. In addition, recent advances suggest that targeted membrane addition is a central feature of cytokinesis in animal cells — as it is in fungi and plants — and the coordination of actomyosin ring function with targeted exocytosis at the cleavage plane is being explored. Important new information has also emerged about the spatial and temporal regulation of cytokinesis, especially in relation to the function of the spindle midzone in animal cells and the control of cytokinesis by GTPase systems.
Using harmonic simulation to evaluate facility-wide harmonic mitigation

Harmonic simulation programs have been used in the power quality field for many years, however, rarely does a user of a program get the opportunity to verify simulation results with actual field measurements. This paper documents a power quality inquiry completed for an industrial customer. The customer had their own 24 kV distribution system which was serving a large harmonic producing load. The resulting harmonic distortion was severe enough to create problems for their production equipment. This distortion was also exacerbated by four switched capacitors on their 24 kV substation bus. A harmonic simulation tool was used to model the industrial facility, analyze the effects of the capacitors, and identify the most effective and economical solution. Field measurements verified the model as well as the effectiveness of the applied solution.
Symptomatic Intracranial Atherosclerotic Disease What Is the Best Treatment Option

See related article, pages 1766–1769. Symptomatic intracranial atherosclerotic disease carries a significant risk for future ipsilateral ischemic events regardless of the use of warfarin or aspirin.1 Patients presenting with a lesion that is >70% appear to be most vulnerable with a 1-year risk of 23% for a subsequent ipsilateral event.2 Moreover, poor control of blood pressure and cholesterol appear to be associated with a higher risk of a subsequent stroke. At 1-year follow-up in the WASID study, 58% of patients were still found to have a LDL cholesterol of >100 mg/dL despite 91% of patients being on lipid-lowering therapy, and 50% of patients were found to have a systolic blood pressure >140 mm Hg.3 Recent guidelines suggest that patients at high risk for vascular disease may benefit from LDL cholesterol levels below 70 mg/dL,4 which was achieved in only 12% of patients in the WASID study at 1-year follow-up.3 This has highlighted the importance of vascular neurologists being more aggressive with risk factor modification as stroke victims are at a high risk …
(In)juries, (In)justice & (Il)legal Blame: Tort Law as Melodrama - Or Is It Farce?

A 1999 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, To Err is Human: Building a Safer Health Care System, calls for shifting attention away from the faults of individual care providers to the overall system. The current tort system's "blame culture" is itself blamed by the IOM for impeding improvements to patient safety because it deters physicians from reporting their errors in the first place. But the manner in which personal injury cases are prepared and litigated is totally at odds with the IOM report's emphasis on systemic causes of avoidable medical failures, according to law professor Neil Feigenson, who describes the dichotomy in his book, Legal Blame, published by the American Psychological Association in 2000. Instead of uncovering the systemic origins of accidents, personal injury litigation distorts accidents as not only having a single cause but also paints them melodramatically by finding a histrionically reprehensible flaw on the part of some single individual. Thus complex institutional factors are not just ignored, they're repressed. The IOM report and, especially Legal Blame are analyzed in the article by O'Connell.
Wavelength selective coupler on silicon for applications in wavelength division multiplexing

A wavelength selective add/drop filter based on coupled vertical gratings is proposed for applications in wavelength division multiplexing on silicon. We demonstrate tailoring of device bandwidth and channel location.
The ownership and reuse of visual media

This paper presents the results of a study of the ownership and reuse of visual media. A survey was administered to 250 social media-savvy respondents to investigate their attitudes about saving, sharing, publishing, and removing online photos; the survey also explored participants' current photo-sharing and reuse practices, and their general expectations of photo reuse. Our probe of respondent attitudes revealed that respondents felt: (1) people should be able to save visual media, regardless of its source; (2) people have slightly less right to reuse photos than they do to save them; (3) a photo's subject has a slightly greater right than the photographer to reuse the photo in non-commercial situations; (4) removal is controversial, but trends more positive when it involves only metadata (e.g. tags); and (5) access to institutional archives of personal photos is better deferred for 50 years. Participants explained their own reuse of online photos in pragmatic terms that included the nature of the content, the aim and circumstances of reuse, their sense of the photo's original use, and their understanding of existing laws and restrictions. In the abstract, the same general question revealed a 'reuse paradox'; while respondents trust themselves to make this judgment, they do not trust the reciprocal judgment of unknown others.
The Association of Pediatric Program Directors' strategic plan: an opportunity for transformational change.

I n late February 2010, the leadership of the Association of Pediatric Program Directors (APPD) assembled key representatives of the pediatric undergraduate medical education and graduate medical education community to develop a new APPD strategic plan, a road map that could potentially transform pediatric medical education. This collaborative process included past and present leaders of APPD and current leaders of the Academic Pediatric Association (APA); the dialogue served to inform our understanding of history, where we are now, and consider what we might want to explore. It is unusual for strategic planning to take place in the presence of others outside an organization, but within the same field. However, the APPD board felt that the inclusion of all key stakeholders was critical to our deliberations and would allow us to learn and grow from the valuable contributions of many current and past leaders in pediatric medical education. In addition to the APPD leaders and representatives, others present for the 2-day proceedings were Gail McGuinness, APPD member and executive vice president of the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP); Janet Serwint, president elect of the APA and an associate program director; Ted Sectish, a past president of the APPD and director of the Federation of Pediatric Organizations; Jerry Woodhead, president elect of the Council on Medical Student Education in Pediatrics; Jim Bale, incoming chair of the Council of Pediatric Subspecialties; Carol Carraccio, director of the Initiative for Innovation in Pediatric Education (IIPE) and the Milestones Project; and Hilary Haftel, director of the Longitudinal Educational Assessment Research Network
Measurement of the optical properties of graphene from THz to near-IR

We present experimental results on the optical absorption spectrum of graphene from near-IR to THz frequencies for the first time. At near-IR and mid-IR wavelengths the interband optical absorption is found to have a flat spectrum consistent with the relativistic massless Dirac-Fermion energy dispersion relation of electrons and holes in graphene. At THz frequencies intraband absorption dominates and is well described by a plasmon model. We relate the measured optical features to the dispersion of electrons, holes, and plasmons in graphene.
Individual differences in facial expression: stability over time, relation to self-reported emotion, and ability to inform person identification

The face can communicate varied personal information including subjective emotion, communicative intent, and cognitive appraisal. Accurate interpretation by observer or computer interface depends on attention to dynamic properties of the expression, context, and knowledge of what is normative for a given individual. In two separate studies, we investigated individual differences in the base rate of positive facial expression and in specific facial action units over intervals from 4- to 12 months. Facial expression was measured using convergent measures, including facial EMG, automatic feature-point tracking, and manual FACS coding. Individual differences in facial expression were stable over time, comparable in magnitude to stability of self-reported emotion, and sufficiently strong that individuals were recognized on the basis of their facial behavior alone at rates comparable to that for a commercial face recognition system (FaceIt from Identix). Facial action units convey unique information about person identity that can inform interpretation of psychological states, person recognition, and design of individuated avatars.
Identification of a Hamster Epididymal Region-Specific Secretory Glycoprotein That Binds Nonviable Spermatozoa

Even though the epididymis produces an environment promoting sperm maturation and viability, some sperm do not survive transit through the epididymal tubule. Mechanisms that segregate the epididymal epithelium and/or the viable sperm population from degenerating spermatozoa are poorly understood. We report here the identification and characterization of HEP64, a 64-kDa glycoprotein secreted by principal cells of the corpus and proximal cauda epididymidis of the hamster that specifically binds to and coats dead/dying spermatozoa. The HEP64 monomer contains ∼12 kDa carbohydrate and, following chemical deglycosylation, migrates as a ∼52-kDa polypeptide. Both soluble (luminal fluid) and sperm-associated HEP64 are assembled into disulfide-linked high molecular weight oligomers that migrate as a doublet band of 260/280 kDa by nonreducing SDS-PAGE. In the epididymal lumen, HEP64 is concentrated into focal accumulations containing aggregates of structurally abnormal or degenerating spermatozoa, and examination of sperm suspensions reveals that HEP64 forms a shroudlike coating surrounding abnormal spermatozoa. The HEP64 glycoprotein firmly binds degenerating spermatozoa and is not released by either nonionic detergent or high salt extraction. Electron microscopic immunocytochemistry demonstrates that HEP64 localized to an amorphous coating surrounding the abnormal spermatozoa. The potential mechanisms by which this epididymal secretory protein binds dead spermatozoa as well as its possible functions in the sperm storage function of the cauda epididymidis are discussed.
The role of nurses in improving hospital quality and efficiency: real-world results

Discussions of hospital quality, efficiency, and nursing care often taken place independent of one another. Activities to assure the adequacy and performance of hospital nursing, improve quality, and achieve effective control of hospital costs need to be harmonized. Nurses are critical to the delivery of high-quality, efficient care. Lessons from Magnet program hospitals and hospitals implementing front-line staff–driven performance improvement programs such as Transforming Care at the Bedside illustrate how nurses and staff, supported by leadership, can be actively involved in improving both the quality and the efficiency of hospital care.
Symposium: The 2010 Horizontal Merger Guidelines: Editor’s Introduction

The 1992 Horizontal Merger Guidelines got a much needed facelift, if not an outright overhaul, in 2010. As an expression of the enforcement philosophy and practice of the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission, the old Guidelines were out of date and demanded revision. This is just what they got in 2010. And this is the subject of the present Symposium. The point of Section 7 of the Clayton Act is to prevent harm to competition that may occur as a consequence of a horizontal merger. Section 7 accomplishes this (some what imperfectly) by prohibiting mergers that substantially increase concentration in a market and thereby might substantially lessen competition or tend to create a monopoly. Hovenkamp leads off the Symposium with an assessment of how the 2010 Guide lines address competitive concerns in four areas: exclusion, restraints on innovation, unilateral effects, and coordinated effects. In this regard, Willig specifically addresses unilateral effects in some detail. He develops some interesting results on the upward price pressure that is associated with mergers and some other extensions. As for coor dinated effects, Gayle, Marshall, Marx, and Richard examine this competitive concern in the 2010 Guidelines.
A Si/Glass Bulk-Micromachined Cryogenic Heat Exchanger for High Heat Loads: Fabrication, Test, and Application Results

This paper reports on a micromachined Si/glass stack recuperative heat exchanger with in situ temperature sensors. Numerous high-conductivity silicon plates with integrated platinum resistance temperature detectors (Pt RTDs) are stacked, alternating with low-conductivity Pyrex spacers. The device has a 1 × 1-cm2 footprint and a length of up to 3.5 cm. It is intended for use in Joule-Thomson (J-T) coolers and can sustain pressure exceeding 1 MPa. Tests at cold-end inlet temperatures of 237 K-252 K show that the heat exchanger effectiveness is 0.9 with 0.039-g/s helium mass flow rate. The integrated Pt RTDs present a linear response of 0.26%-0.30%/K over an operational range of 205 K-296 K but remain usable at lower temperatures. In self-cooling tests with ethane as the working fluid, a J-T system with the heat exchanger drops 76.1 K below the inlet temperature, achieving 218.7 K for a pressure of 835.8 kPa. The system reaches 200 K in transient state; further cooling is limited by impurities that freeze within the flow stream. In J-T self-cooling tests with an external heat load, the system reaches 239 K while providing 1 W of cooling. In all cases, there is an additional parasitic heat load estimated at 300-500 mW.
Association between Roads and the Distribution of Microstegium vimineum in Appalachian Forests of North Carolina

Abstract Microstegium vimineum (Japanese Stiltgrass) is an invasive, annual C4 grass that frequently forms dense populations along roads in the eastern US. We examined data from a survey that included 768 forested sites in western North Carolina, and carried out a transplant experiment to test (1) if the distribution of Japanese Stiltgrass is associated with roads and (2) if roadsides differ from forest interiors in terms of the frequency, abundance, and individual vigor of the species. Japanese Stiltgrass abundance was positively associated with total road length within watersheds. The species was much more common and abundant on roadsides than in forest interiors. Greenhouse-established individuals of Japanese Stiltgrass that we transplanted onto roadsides grew larger than those we transplanted in forest interiors. The 2 groups had similar survival rates. Our results suggest that roads promote the spread of Japanese Stiltgrass and that individuals and populations are more robust on roadsides than in for...
“Multiplication Is for White People”: Raising Expectations for Other People's Children. Lisa Delpit. New York: New Press, 2012. 224 pp. $26.95 (hardcopy).

What knowledge is most worth knowing and who determines what knowledge is most worth knowing (Schubert, 1986)? These questions are significantly important in the context of contemporary education. ...
Misadventures: Myths, Misinformation, Blunders, and Wrongdoing

The spectrum of medical misadventures is wide and multi-faceted. At the benign end of the continuum are the medical myths, often charming stories that cause no serious harm, such as the legend—dating to early Roman times—that oysters hold aphrodisiac properties. Next comes medical misinformation, bringing somewhat more potential for mischief, such as our long-held belief that estrogen/progestin therapy was quite safe for widespread use to treat menopausal symptoms, a notion that was soberly tempered by a series of articles published as early as 2002 (1). Medical blunders, a classic example being amputation of the wrong leg, are misadventures that cause serious harm, generally only to the single patient involved, although (as we will see) there are times in which larger groups suffer consequences. At the far end of the spectrum comes wrongdoing, instances of egregious misconduct such as when doctors use their skills against humanity and as a result damage society and the public’s confidence in the medical profession.
Automated Quantification of Capillary Nonperfusion Using Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography in Diabetic Retinopathy.

Importance Macular ischemia is a key feature of diabetic retinopathy (DR). Quantification of macular ischemia has potential as a biomarker for DR. Objective To assess the feasibility of automated quantification of capillary nonperfusion as a potential sign of macular ischemia using optical coherence tomography (OCT) angiography. Design, Setting, and Participants An observational study conducted in a tertiary, subspecialty, academic practice evaluated macular nonperfusion with 6 × 6-mm OCT angiography obtained with commercially available 70-kHz OCT and fluorescein angiography (FA). The study was conducted from January 22 to September 18, 2014. Data analysis was performed from October 1, 2014, to April 7, 2015. Participants included 12 individuals with normal vision serving as controls and 12 patients with various levels of DR. Main Outcomes and Measures Preplanned primary measures were parafoveal and perifoveal vessel density, total avascular area, and foveal avascular zone as detected with 6 × 6-mm OCT angiography and analyzed using an automated algorithm. Secondary measures included the agreement of the avascular area between the OCT angiogram and FA. Results Compared with the 12 healthy controls (11 women; mean [SD] age, 54.2 [14.2] years), the 12 participants with DR (4 women; mean [SD] age, 55.1 [12.1] years) had reduced parafoveal and perifoveal vessel density by 12.6% (95% CI, 7.7%-17.5%; P P 2 (95% CI, 0.65-0.99 mm 2 ; P = .02) and 0.16 mm 2 (95% CI, 0.05-0.28 mm 2 ; P P Conclusions and Relevance Avascular area analysis with an automated algorithm using OCT angiography, although not equivalent to FA, detected DR reliably in this small pilot study. Further study is necessary to determine the usefulness of the automated quantification in clinical practice.
ACUTE SUPPURATIVE ARTHRITIS IN INFANCY AND CHILDHOOD

1. A regime of treatment for acute suppurative arthritis in childhood has been proposed. This consists of: urgent arthrotomy of the affected joint, if possible within five days; skin closure without drainage; antibiotics; and immobilisation of the joint for six weeks. 2. Fifty hips have been treated by this regime: all are clinically and radiologically normal The failure to achieve these results with other forms of treatment is due to delay in diagnosis, inadequate drainage together with lack of immobilisation of tile affected joint, and inadequate treatmellt with antibiotics. 3. Early diagnosis determines the ultimate prognosis. It is suggested that in doubtful cases exploratory arthrotomy is indicated. Eleven hips were found to Ilave some other cause for the signs and symptoms, but the children have suffered no ill effects from the arthrotomy. 4. Diagnostic aspiration is an unsatisfactory method, especially ill the case of tile hip, and should be avoided. Incision is preferable. 5. Acute suppurative arthritis of infancy is a serious condition. Diagnosis is difficult and is often delayed, so that the affected joint may be destroyed. In this small series of nine, seven affected joints were destroyed.
The Adrenergic System and the Cardiovascular Effects of Platelet Activating Factor (1-0-Hexadecyl-2-Acetyl-SN-Glycero-3-Phosphocholine) in SHR and WKY Rats

1-0-Hexadecyl-2-acetyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (1-hexadecyl-2-acetyl-GPC, platelet activating factor, PAF) was previously shown to produce profound hypotension and sympathetic activation in conscious rats. To determine the role of the sympatho-adrenomedullary system in the cardiovascular responses elicited by 1-hexadecyl-2-acetyl-GPC, the vasoactive phospholipid was administered (1 nmol per 300 g) to a) intact, b) bilaterally demedullated, and c) propranolol- (a beta-adrenoceptor blocker) treated SHR and WKY rats. The hypotensive response to 1-hexadecyl-2-acetyl-GPC was prolonged in demedullated or propranolol-pretreated WKY rats and in propranolol-treated SHR rats. The extreme tachycardia produced by 1-hexadecyl-2-acetyl-GPC in both the WKY and SHR rats was abolished by propranolol pretreatment. Pressor responses to norepinephrine during the 1-hexadecyl-2-acetyl-GPC-induced hypotension in propranolol-pretreated rats were suppressed in both the normotensive and SHR rats. Plasma acetylhydrolase activity, which inactivates PAF, was higher in hypertensive (SHR) rats or demedullated WKY rats than in the normotensive (WKY) rats. These results show that the tachycardia evoked by 1-hexadecyl-2-acetyl-GPC is mediated solely by sympathetic activation and the beta-adrenergic receptors and further indicate the major role of the sympathetic system and beta-adrenoceptors in recuperation from 1-hexadecyl-2-acetyl-GPC-induced shock. The data also suggest that acetylhydrolase in serum is an important regulatory enzyme for controlling PAF levels in the vascular compartment.
Analysis of non-methane hydrocarbon data from a monitoring station affected by oil and gas development in the Eagle Ford shale, Texas

Within the last decade, unconventional oil and gas exploration in the US has become a new source of atmospheric hydrocarbons. Although a geographically dispersed source, field measurements in and downwind of a number of shale basins demonstrate the impact exploration activities have on ambient levels of hydrocarbons. Due to concerns related to ozone production, regulatory agencies are adding monitoring stations to better understand the potential influence of emissions from areas with increased oil and gas related activities. The Eagle Ford shale in south Texas is a rapidly developing shale play producing both oil and natural gas, providing 10% and 5% of US domestic oil and gas production, respectively, in 2013. We analyzed the first year of measurements from a newly established monitoring site at its central north edge. The data reveal median ethane mixing ratios—used as a marker for oil and gas exploration related emissions—at five times its typical clean air background. Ethane mixing ratios above ten times the background occurred regularly. Saturated hydrocarbons with likely origin in oil and gas exploration explain half of the data set’s variability. They dominate OH radical reactivity at levels both similar to other shale areas and similar to Houston’s ship channel area a decade ago. Air advecting slowly across the shale area from east-southeast and southwest directions shows the most elevated hydrocarbon concentrations, and evidence is presented linking elevated alkene abundances to flaring in the shale area. A case study is presented linking high emissions from an upwind facility to hydrocarbon plumes observed at the monitor.
Tubercle bacillary extracts immunogenic for mice: 1. Factors affecting demonstration of their activity

Summary Improved methods have been developed for studying tuberculo-immunity in mice, particularly in connection with using the lung density technique to measure tuberculosis. The unique value of this method for assessing and distinguishing two phases in the pathogenesis of mouse tuberculosis is illustrated by some of the findings reported in this paper. Several effects on mouse tuberculo-immunity of killed tubercle bacilli and of extracts obtained from them as immunizing antigens, of infection doses, of delayed hypersensitivity, of fatty acid ester-supplemented diets, of brief treatment with cortisone acetate, of different vaccination routes, and of adjuvants have been examined and discussed. Acetone-killed tubercle bacilli of virulent, attenuated, avirulent, human or bovine strains, and a water-soluble extract of trypsin-treated tubercle bacilli were found to be immunogenic whether injected subcutaneously or intraperitoneally, in buffer suspensions, oil suspensions, or water-oil emulsions. A bacillary protein obtained from culture medium proved to be somewhat less protective, not often showing its effect unless injected in a water-oil emulsion. Delayed hypersensitivity may account for the progression of tuberculous lung destruction in mice which cannot be accounted for at present as due solely to multiplication of invading tubercle bacilli. To a limited extent, but important to interpretation of mouse immunity experiments, the delayed hypersensitivity aspects of mouse tuberculosis could be controlled with cortisone acetate or corn oil.
Surveillance results of chemical contaminant and pathogenic bacterial of food in Haizhu district of Guangzhou.

[Objective]To investigate the condition of chemical contaminant and pathogenic bacterial contamination of 12 kinds of foods in Haizhu District Guangzhou,and provide scientific evidence for government to develop food safety management policy. [Methods]The samples of 12 kinds of foods sold in the market were collected and tested for chemical contaminant and pathogenic bacteria in accordance with national criteria.[Results]Cadmium was detected over the standard in the samples of foodstuff,pig entrails,vegetables,fruits and aquatic products; SO2 residues exceeded the standard in the samples of rice flour,wheat flour? and their products; excessive food additives were detected in acetarious vegetables; coliform exceeded the standard in the samples of cooked-meat,non-fermented bean products and acetarious vegetables; vibrio parahaemolyticus exceeded the standard in samples of aquatic products; pesticide was not detected over standard in samples.[Conclusion]Relevant functional departments should attach great importance to supervision of food contaminant,enact preventive measures against food contaminant and ensure food safety for citizens.
Single Ventricle Repair for Conotruncal Anomalies

Conotruncal heart defects are characterized by a defect in the conotruncal septum. Associated cardiac malformations are diverse and contribute to the complexity of treatment. Biventricular repair remains challenging, and as a result surgical management is controversial. Biventricular repair has advantages by establishing normal anatomy and physiology, however, it seems a high operative risk in certain more complex forms, and a univentricular heart repair is preferred in certain complex conotruncal anomalies.
The Liver: Structure and Function

This chapter discusses the structure and function of liver. Liver in shape somewhat looks like Gibraltar and its color varies from tannish brown to deep red. The liver has a singular feature among abdominal viscera of a dual blood supply receiving its major proportion of blood poorly oxygenated from the stomach and intestines by way of the portal vein, and its fully oxygenated blood from the aorta by way of the celiac axis and the hepatic artery. The liver is divided into four lobes, the large right and left lobes lying anteriorly while the small caudate and underlying quadrate lobes are posterior. The right and left lobes are separated from one another by the dense falciform ligament, and the right lobe is two to three times larger than the left. The liver subserves a myriad of important functions in humans. The chapter discusses those functions that when altered by disease can provide measurements of the cause and severity of the underlying pathophysiology. Among these functions are the elaboration of plasma proteins, the production of cholesterol, bile acids, and phospholipids, the transport of bilirubin, the formation and secretion of bile, and the release of enzymes synthesized at hepatocytic canalicular borders and in the hepatocyte. Some of these activities are subserved solely by the liver while others are shared with other organs in the body.
Case-control study of cumulative cigarette tar exposure and lung and upper aerodigestive tract cancers.

The development of comprehensive measures for tobacco exposure is crucial to specify effects on disease and inform public health policy. In this population-based case-control study, we evaluated the associations between cumulative lifetime cigarette tar exposure and cancers of the lung and upper aerodigestive tract (UADT). The study included 611 incident cases of lung cancer; 601 cases of UADT cancers (oropharyngeal, laryngeal and esophageal cancers); and 1,040 cancer-free controls. We estimated lifetime exposure to cigarette tar based on tar concentrations abstracted from government cigarette records and self-reported smoking histories derived from a standardized questionnaire. We analyzed the associations for cumulative tar exposure with lung and UADT cancer, overall and according to histological subtype. Cumulative tar exposure was highly correlated with pack-years among ever smoking controls (Pearson coefficient = 0.90). The adjusted odds ratio (95% confidence limits) for the estimated effect of about 1 kg increase in tar exposure (approximately the interquartile range in all controls) was 1.61 (1.50, 1.73) for lung cancer and 1.21 (1.13, 1.29) for UADT cancers. In general, tar exposure was more highly associated with small, squamous and large cell lung cancer than adenocarcinoma. With additional adjustment for pack-years, positive associations between tar and lung cancer were evident, particularly for small cell and large cell subtypes. Therefore, incorporating the composition of tobacco carcinogens in lifetime smoking exposure may improve lung cancer risk estimation. This study does not support the claim of a null or inverse association between "low exposure" to tobacco smoke and risk of these cancer types.
Theorizing in Sociological Research: A New Perspective, a New Departure?

During the last few years a number of articles and books have appeared that signal the emergence of a novel approach to the role of theory in sociology. Instead of equating theory with important studies, the main focus of this approach is how to use theory in ongoing empirical research and especially what happens before the presentation of the results. The key task is to empower the individual researcher to do better research. A word that keeps recurring, and that can also be said to summarize this approach, is theorizing. Three core ideas of this approach are discussed: Theorizing is of a practical nature, it draws on a number of basic theorizing tools (such as abduction, abstraction, and analogy), and the area covered by theorizing is considerably larger than that of conventional theory. If successful, the approach of theorizing would demand a much more active and central role for the theoretician in sociology.
The Cognitive Validity of Child English Language Tests: What Young Language Learners and Their Native-Speaking Peers Can Reveal.

This study investigated the cognitive validity of two child English language tests. Some teachers maintain that these types of tests may be cognitively invalid because native-English-speaking children would not do well on them (Winke, 2011). So the researchers had native speakers and learners of English aged 7 to 9 take sample versions of two standardized English reading and writing tests: the Young Learners Tests of English, Bronze and Silver, administered by Cambridge Michigan Language Assessments. They videotaped the children taking the tests, had them draw pictures of how they felt during testing, and interviewed them. The tests reliably discriminated learners from native speakers. However, 3 of 25 items on the Bronze test and 5 of 40 on the Silver test proved more difficult for native speakers than for language learners. The researchers interviewed the children to uncover why; incorrect responses stemmed from lack of assessment literacy or age-related cognitive limitations, not deficits in English. The researchers discuss whether this is a problem and conclude that standardized language tests for children, even those already psychometrically reliable and valid, can be improved upon by interviewing child test takers. They stress that parallel information from same-age, native-English-speaking peers is informative in revealing construct-irrelevant variance.
Clinical significance of failure to lose weight 10 years after roux-en-y gastric bypass

Abstract Background Although Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) induces short-term weight loss and co-morbidity amelioration, long-term data suggest that a subset of patients return to their preoperative body mass index (BMI). Objectives To identify the clinical implications of 10-year weight loss failure after RYGB. Setting An academic teaching hospital. Methods Adults undergoing RYGB (1985–2004) were included in this study (n = 1087). Absolute weight loss failure was defined as ≤0% reduction in excess BMI 10 years after surgery. Univariate analyses compared co-morbidity rates and resolution by weight loss classification. Multivariable regression modeling analyzed preoperative predictors of 10-year percent reduction in excess BMI and weight loss failure. Results Complete follow-up was available for 617 (57%) patients with a 10-year median percent reduction in excess BMI of 57.1%; 10.2% of patients had weight loss failure. Prevalence of all co-morbidities decreased, even in patients with weight loss failure (all P P P = .036) conferred the highest adjusted odds of weight loss failure. Conclusions The vast majority of patients experience dramatic health improvement 10 years after RYGB, even though some patients fail to maintain their weight loss. Renewed focus should be placed on prevention and treatment of chronic disease, with further investigation of weight loss independent mechanisms of health improvement.
Delinquency prevention for individual change: Richard Clarke Cabot and the making of the Cambridge-Somerville Youth Study

Abstract Purpose Richard Clarke Cabot (1868–1939) designed and directed one of criminology's most well-known delinquency prevention programs and the field's first randomized controlled experiment: the Cambridge-Somerville Youth Study (CSYS). This paper aims to develop an historical understanding of the making of the CSYS through a focus on Cabot. Methods The present study is guided by the socio-historical approach and informed by past historical research in criminology. It draws upon a wide array of archival records and published works from the late 19th century to present day. Results The CSYS came to fruition through a culmination of personal, professional, and institutional influences on Cabot, including: his ideals and sense of pragmatism, refined by his transition from medicine to social ethics and social work; criminological luminaries in the 1920s and 1930s, who focused on the individual over the environment—most notably, William Healy and Augusta Bronner and Sheldon and Eleanor Glueck; and Cabot's concern with the failures of treatment of offenders. Conclusions The study's early history and its lineage to Joan McCord's research on the study allows us to discern some of its legacies for delinquency prevention today, including application of the experimental design and a holistic view of delinquency prevention. The CSYS continues to have an influence on criminological thinking and research.
O2 Activation by Metal Surfaces: Implications for Bonding and Reactivity on Heterogeneous Catalysts

The activation of O2 on metal surfaces is a critical process for heterogeneous catalysis and materials oxidation. Fundamental studies of well-defined metal surfaces using a variety of techniques have given crucial insight into the mechanisms, energetics, and dynamics of O2 adsorption and dissociation. Here, trends in the activation of O2 on transition metal surfaces are discussed, and various O2 adsorption states are described in terms of both electronic structure and geometry. The mechanism and dynamics of O2 dissociation are also reviewed, including the importance of the spin transition. The reactivity of O2 and O toward reactant molecules is also briefly discussed in the context of catalysis. The reactivity of a surface toward O2 generally correlates with the adsorption strength of O, the tendency to oxidize, and the heat of formation of the oxide. Periodic trends can be rationalized in terms of attractive and repulsive interactions with the d-band, such that inert metals tend to feature a full d band ...
Making the Cut in Gifted Selection: Score Combination Rules and Their Impact on Program Diversity:

The recommendation of using “multiple measures” is common in policy guidelines for gifted and talented assessment systems. However, the integration of multiple test scores in a system that uses cut-scores requires choosing between different methods of combining quantitative scores. Past research has indicated that OR combination rules (where any one score must meet the cutoff) have been shown to identify the largest number of students compared with AND (where all scores must meet cutoff) and AVERAGE (where the numerical average is used) rules. We extended this work to a real data set (Grades K to 5 from the CogAT 7 national standardization data) and found that the different combination rules led to differences in the number and diversity of students identified. However, we found these diversity differences were due mainly to the identified pool size and not to the effects of the particular combination rule. This has important implications for practice.
An extensible, regular-expression-based tool for multi-language mutant generation

Mutation testing is widely used in research (even if not in practice). Mutation testing tools usually target only one programming language and rely on parsing a program to generate mutants, or operate not at the source level but on compiled bytecode. Unfortunately, developing a robust mutation testing tool for a new language in this paradigm is a difficult and time-consuming undertaking. Moreover, bytecode/intermediate language mutants are difficult for programmers to read and understand. This paper presents a simple tool, called universalmutator, based on regular-expression-defined transformations of source code. The primary drawback of such an approach is that our tool can generate invalid mutants that do not compile, and sometimes fails to generate mutants that a parser-based tool would have produced. Additionally, it is incompatible with some approaches to improving the efficiency of mutation testing. However, the regexp-based approach provides multiple compensating advantages. First, our tool is easy to adapt to new languages; e.g., we present here the first mutation tool for Apple's Swift programming language. Second, the method makes handling multi-language programs and systems simple, because the same tool can support every language. Finally, our approach makes it easy for users to add custom, project-specific mutations.