cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Impact of Parents’ Wartime Military Deployment and Injury on Young Children’s Safety and Mental Health

Objective Children are at risk for adverse outcomes during parental military deployments. We aim to determine the impact of parental deployment and combat injury on young children's postdeployment mental health, injuries, and maltreatment. Method This is a population-based, retrospective cohort study of young children of active duty military parents during fiscal years (FY) 2006 to 2007, a high deployment period. A total of 487,460 children, 3 to 8 years of age, who received Military Health System care, were included. The relative rates of mental health, injury, and child maltreatment visits of children whose parents deployed and children of combat-injured parents were compared to children unexposed to parental deployment. Results Of the included children, 58,479 (12%) had a parent deploy, and 5,405 (1%) had a parent injured during deployment. Relative to children whose parents did not deploy, children of deployed and combat-injured parents, respectively, had additional visits for mental health diagnoses (incidence rate ratio [IRR] = 1.09 [95% CI = 1.02–1.17], IRR = 1.67 [95% CI = 1.47–1.89]), injuries (IRR = 1.07 [95% CI = 1.04–1.09], IRR = 1.24 [95% CI = 1.17–1.32]), and child maltreatment (IRR = 1.21 [95% CI = 1.11–1.32], IRR 2.30 = [95% CI 2.02–2.61]) postdeployment. Conclusion Young children of deployed and combat-injured military parents have more postdeployment visits for mental health, injuries, and child maltreatment. Mental health problems, injuries, and maltreatment after a parent's return from deployment are amplified in children of combat-injured parents. Increased preventive and intervention services are needed for young children as parents return from deployments. Child health and mental health providers are crucial to effective identification of these at-risk children to ensure effective care provision.
Influence of Particle Size on Determination of Fibrous Feed Components

Abstract The response of assessment of cell wall and cell wall components to altered particle size of a diverse group of forage samples was investigated. Particle size of forages was altered by dry sieving and grinding through screens of varied sizes. Plant cell wall and cell wall components were measured on forages by the Van Soest detergent system. There was a general decline of cell wall concentration as particle size decreased. This decline could not be attributed to a consistent change of cell wall components or maturity of the forage. Additionally, loss of small particles through the pores of the crucible could not account for the decline of cell wall concentration with decreasing particle size. One should be aware of potential problems with comparisons involving fiber measured on samples of varied particle sizes.
Elephants in the Living Room.

The elephant experience involves too much stimulation or input for a person to integrate. School personnel may help each other and their students to cope more effectively with these experiences by understanding the symptoms, the common sources, and the process of using them constructively. The symptoms are preoccupation, avoidance, overreaction, and flight into activity. Common sources are grades, test scores, and athletic success. The process of using them constructively involves facilitative people, use of personal resources, review of progress toward assimilation, and personal integration of experiential meaning. The elephant experience is seen as a source of learning that may be either devastating or enriching, and the challenge to the facilitator is to help each individual make it constructive.
Aggregation of Colletotrichum acutatum in Response to Simulated Rain Episodes

The influence of rain splash dispersal on the aggregation and variability of spores of Colletotrichum acutatum, the causal agent of strawberry anthracnose, was studied with simulated rain over a soil surface. In the first experiment, rains with intensities of 15 and 30 mm/h were generated and sampling plates, with a selective medium for Colletotrichum, were positioned under rainshields at both 20 and 60 cm from an inoculum point source (five infected fruit) for 1-min exposure periods. Number of colonies growing in plates were used to measure spore density. For each distance, time, rain intensity, and replication, the mean (m), variance (v), and Lloyd's index of patchiness (LIP) were calculated. Estimated (LIP) exceeded 1, indicating the high variability and clustering of colonies, and hence spores, resulting from splash dispersal. LIP increased with distance from the source and with rain intensity at the greater distance. Aggregation was further quantified by Taylor's power law describing the linear relation between ln (v) and ln (m). The slope (b) of the relation for all data points was 1·67, which was significantly (P < 0·01) greater than 1, a further indication of clustering. Distance form the source had a slight positive effect on b. Colony means (Y) were transformed to Y*=Y1/5 based on an approximate b of 1·6. Analysis of Y* indicated an expected significant main effect of rain duration and a significant interaction of distance and rain intensity. In another experiment, six infected fruit and the sampling plates were uniformly placed over the surface. LIP again exceeded 1, and Taylor's b equaled 1·63. In a final study, the inoculum source and sampling plates were raised 46 cm above the soil surface. There was a drastic reduction in Y* compared to surface values, supporting the prior hypothesis that surface topography strongly affects splash dispersal. Results indicate that the physical process of splash dispersal produces a degree of aggregation similar to that produced by population dynamic and other ecological processes.
Tissue folylpolyglutamate chain-length characterization by electrophoresis as thymidylate synthetase-fluorodeoxyuridylate ternary complexes

Abstract Tissue folate polyglutamate chain lengths have been estimated by incorporation of the 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate polyglutamate form of the cofactor into ternary complexes with Lactobacillus casei thymidylate synthetase and [3H]fluorodeoxyuridylate. Complexes were separated electrophoretically on the basis of the charge associated with the free carboxyl function of each glutamate residue. The method is specific for methylenetetrahydrofolate and assures evaluation of chain length with minimal error introduced by pool equilibration or autooxidation. Introduction of formaldehyde into tissue extracts was used to convert tetrahydrofolate to the methylene derivative and show that the two pools have the same polyglutamate chain lengths. By this technique, mammalian liver tissue was shown to contain both pteroylpentaglutamate and pteroylhexaglutamate. Monkey, pig, and rabbit liver contain predominately hexaglutamate, mouse liver predominately pentaglutamate, and rat liver nearly equal proportions of each. Chicken liver contains mostly pentaglutamate and fish liver, hexaglutamate. The presence of penta-and hexaglutamates in L. casei and heptaglutamates in yeast confirms earlier observations by other methods and attests to the validity of this one.
Identification of linear fractional order systems using the relay feedback approach

The relay feedback approach has been used to identify integer order models. Fractional order systems are usually identified by many other approaches. Yet, using the relay feedback to identify a fractional order system has not been reported. This paper investigates this interesting and useful topic by means of extending the relay feedback identification method from integer order systems to a class of linear fractional order systems. Equations are derived for model parameter calculation. Simulation and experiments are presented to verify the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed approach. I. INTRODUCTION data or need much knowledge of the system to be identified; hence, they lack the vitality in industry. In this paper, the identification of a fractional order plus dead time (FOPDT) model in frequency domain using the relay feedback approach is proposed. The describing function method is utilized as a tool to obtain the system information at the self-sustained oscillation point. Compared with the integer order systems, the difference lies in the equations for computing the model parameters, especially the fractional order, α. Thus, the major contribution of this paper is to generalize the equations for integer order models to fractional order models, which further reveals that the equations for IO systems are particular cases of those for FO systems. Simulation and experiments based on relay feedback tests at multiple frequency points are presented to demonstrate the proposed method. The benefits and limitations of this method are commented and the identification error is briefly discussed. The rest of the paper is organized as follows. First, the proposed method is elaborated through math derivations; then the implementation procedure of the method is demon- strated in simulation and an experiment, respectively; finally, the advantages, limitation and potential improvement are commented.
Assessing Syndromic Surveillance of Cardiovascular Outcomes from Emergency Department Chief Complaint Data in New York City

Background Prospective syndromic surveillance of emergency department visits has been used for near-real time tracking of communicable diseases to detect outbreaks or other unexpected disease clusters. The utility of syndromic surveillance for tracking cardiovascular events, which may be influenced by environmental factors and influenza, has not been evaluated. We developed and evaluated a method for tracking cardiovascular events using emergency department free-text chief complaints.
Synthesis of the anomers of methyl 2-acetamido-2-deoxy-d-galacto-furanoside and -pyranoside

Abstract On treatment with methanol in the presence of Amberlite IR-120 (H + ) resin, 2-acetamido-2-deoxy- d -galactose yielded a mixture of four isomers, the methyl 2-acetamido-2-deoxy-α- and -β- d -galactofuranosides and their corresponding pyranosides. The isomers were separated preparatively on Dowex-1 ion-exchange resin, and analytically by high-pressure liquid chromatography, and identified by their m.p. and specific rotation and by assays of periodate uptake and formaldehyde liberated.
Peripheral opioids for functional GI disease: a reappraisal.

Opioids have been used medicinally and recreationally for thousands of years. The clinical use of opioids for gastrointestinal conditions has been limited by central nervous system side effects. A new
Growth history of Lower Mississippian Waulsortian mounds: Distribution, stratal patterns, and geometries, New Mexico

The factors controlling the localization and growth of Lower Mississippian Waulsortian mounds have been difficult to establish because of limited exposure of individual mounds and mound-bearing platforms in western Europe, where the Waulsortian facies have been studied most intensively. Mounds on the Lower Mississippian homoclinal ramp of the Lake Valley Formation in the Sacramento Mountains, however, are exposed exceptionally well at platform, outcrop, and mound scales in an area roughly 5 km by 20 km, and provide the opportunity to better understand these aspects of Waulsortian mounds.
Investigating the role of multi-spectral and near surface temperature and humidity data to improve precipitation detection at high latitudes

Abstract Accurate estimation of global precipitation is critical for the study of the earth in a changing climate. It is generally understood that instantaneous retrieval of precipitation using microwave sensors is more accurate in the tropics and mid latitudes, but the retrievals become difficult and uncertain at higher latitude and over frozen land. In the lack of reliable microwave-based precipitation estimates at high latitudes, retrievals from a single infrared band are commonly used as an alternative to fill the missing gaps. The present study shows that multi-spectral infrared, near-surface air temperature, and near-surface humidity data can add useful information to that obtained from a single infrared band and can significantly improve delineating precipitating from non-precipitating scenes, especially at higher latitudes over land. The role of surface air temperature and humidity is found to be more effective at higher latitudes, but multispectral data is effective across all latitudes. The study is performed using 4 years (2007–2010) of collocated multi-spectral data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), surface temperature and humidity data from the European Center for Medium Range Weather Forecast (ECMWF) analysis, and reference precipitation data from CloudSat, which can detect even very light precipitation within 80°S–80°N.
Uncertainty management issues in the object-oriented data model

This paper fully develops a previous approach by George et al. (1993) to modeling uncertainty in class hierarchies. The model utilizes fuzzy logic to generalize equality to similarity which permitted impreciseness in data to be represented by uncertainty in classification. In this paper, the data model is formally defined and a nonredundancy preserving primitive operator, the merge, is described. It is proven that nonredundancy is always preserved in the model. An object algebra is proposed, and transformations that preserve query equality are discussed.
Energy Production and Consumption Patterns and Planning: A Case of Northeast Minnesota

The Clean Energy Resource Teams (CERTs) is a project designed to give local citizens and other stakeholders a voice in planning and determining their energy future.In total, there are seven CERTs operating in seven regions across Minnesota, USA. CERTs connect citizens with technical expertise to facilitate planning and implementation of energy conservation and renewable energy projects. These technical resources are helping the teams identify and prioritize the most appropriate and cost-effective opportunities within their regions.This paper will describe one of these energy teams (the Northeast CERT) and its efforts in promoting clean energy production and conservation. A key product of the Northeast CERT is a strategic energy plan that highlights the region's top energy priorities. As part of its project priorities, the Northeast Minnesota CERT is working to set up demonstration projects at every school and community in the region. Toward this goal, the team is currently collaborating with two schools i...
Production of 37Ar in The University of Texas TRIGA reactor facility

The detection of 37 Ar is important for On-Site Inspections (OSI) for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test- Ban Treaty monitoring. In an underground nuclear explo- sion this radionuclide is produced by 40 Ca(n,a) 37 Ar reac- tion in surrounding soil and rock. With a half-life of 35 days, 37 Ar provides a signal useful for confirming the location of an underground nuclear event. An ultra-low- background proportional counter developed by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory is used to detect 37 Ar, which decays via electron capture. The irradiation of Ar gas at natural enrichment in the 3L facility within the Mark II TRIGA reactor facility at The University of Texas at Austin provides a source of 37 Ar for the calibration of the detector. The 41 Ar activity is measured by the gamma activity using an HPGe detector after the sample is removed from the core. Using the 41 Ar/ 37 Ar production ratio and the 41 Ar activity, the amount of 37 Ar created is calculated. The 41 Ar decays quickly (half-life of 109.34 min) leaving a radioactive sample of high purity 37 Ar and only trace levels of 39 Ar.
Success of Meniscal Repair at Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

BackgroundMeniscal repair is performed in an attempt to prevent posttraumatic arthritis resulting from meniscal dysfunction after meniscal tears. The socioeconomic implications of premature arthritis are significant in the young patient population. Investigations and techniques focusing on meniscus preservation and healing are now at the forefront of orthopaedic sports medicine.Hypothesis Concomitant meniscal repair with anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction is a durable and successful procedure at 2-year follow-up.Study Design Case series; Level of evidence, 4.MethodsAll unilateral primary anterior cruciate ligament reconstructions entered in 2002 in a cohort who had meniscal repair at the time of anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction were evaluated. Validated patient-oriented outcome instruments were completed preoperatively and then again at the 2-year postoperative time point. Reoperation after the index procedure was also documented and confirmed by operative reports.ResultsA total of 437 uni...
Clinical predictors of fulminant colitis in patients with Clostridium difficile infection.

Background/Aim: Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) can affect up to 8% of hospitalized patients. Twenty-five percent CDI patients may develop C. difficile associated diarrhea (CDAD) and 1-3% may progress to fulminant C. difficile colitis (FCDC). Once developed, FCDC has higher rates of complications and mortality. Patients and Methods: A 10-year retrospective review of FCDC patients who underwent colectomy was performed and compared with randomly selected age- and sex-matched non-fulminant CDAD patients at our institution. FCDC (n=18) and CDAD (n=49) groups were defined clinically, radiologically, and pathologically. Univariate analysis was performed using Chi-square and Student's t test followed by multivariate logistic regression to compute independent predictors. Results: FCDC patients were significantly older (77 ± 13 years), presented with triad of abdominal pain (89%), diarrhea (72%), and distention (39%); 28% had prior CDI and had greater hemodynamic instability. In contrast, CDAD patients were comparatively younger (65 ± 20 years), presented with only 1 or 2 of these 3 symptoms and only 5% had prior CDI. No significant difference was noted between the 2 groups in terms of comorbid conditions, use of antibiotics, or proton pump inhibitor. Leukocytosis was significantly higher in FCDC patients (18.6 ± 15.8/mm 3 vs 10.7 ± 5.2/mm 3 ; P=0.04) and further increased until the point of surgery. Use of antiperistaltic medications was higher in FCDC than CDAD group (56% vs 22%; P=0.01). Conclusions: Our data suggest several clinical and laboratory features in CDI patients, which may be indicative of FCDC. These include old age (>70 years), prior CDI, clinical triad of increasing abdominal pain, distention and diarrhea, profound leukocytosis (>18,000/mm 3 ), hemodynamic instability, and use of antiperistaltic medications.
Successful administration of carboplatin in patients with clinically documented carboplatin hypersensitivity.

Abstract Objective The goal of this study was to evaluate the tolerance and effectiveness of carboplatin rechallenge using a prolonged desensitizing carboplatin infusion regimen in patients with clinically documented moderate-severe carboplatin hypersensitivity. Methods Patients admitted for carboplatin infusion were identified by computerized pharmacy records and retrospectively analyzed. Results Thirty-three patients with recurrent ovarian ( N = 27), peritoneal ( N = 4), tubal (N = 1), and cervical ( N = 1) cancer treated with a prolonged desensitizing carboplatin infusion regimen were identified. The patients had received a median of 10 courses of carboplatin (range 3–33) before developing the moderate-severe hypersensitivity reaction. Two hundred and fifteen courses (median 5, range 1–52) were administered. Twenty-nine patients (88%) were successfully rechallenged while four had a recurrent moderate-severe carboplatin hypersensitivity precluding further administration. Despite initial tolerance of the infusion schedule moderate-severe carboplatin hypersensitivity recurred in 3 additional patients (9%) after two, three, and six subsequent courses. Objective responses to therapy were seen in 22 of 28 evaluable patients (79%). Conclusions A prolonged desensitizing carboplatin infusion regimen is tolerated in the majority of patients with clinically documented moderate-severe carboplatin hypersensitivity. Objective response rates seem acceptable with this schedule.
Legal Resistance: The “Breton Association” and the Press

The liberal opposition carefully avoided the “revolutionary” innuendoes of the militants and began instead to speak in terms of “legal resistance”. Communication with the provinces was possible through the well-organized Aide-toi electoral societies and also by the press, preponderantly critical of the Bourbon regime. Since the Chamber of Deputies was in recess, the first response to the August 8 challenge had to be in the press.
Acrylic compound characterization by oxidative pyrolysis, atmospheric pressure chemical ionization-tandem mass spectrometry

Oxidative pyrolysis, atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (Py-APCI) in conjunction with tandem quadrupole mass spectrometry (MS/MS) was investigated to characterize various acrylate and methacrylate compounds. The Py-APCI mass spectra of these compounds were dominated by the protonated molecular ion and depending on the acrylate, either methacrylic or acrylic acid was produced as the primary fragment ion. These observations from the headspace analysis of the monomers were similar to those of the mass spectra of their respective polymer/copolymer compounds under oxidative pyrolysis processing conditions. In particular, Py-APCI-MS/MS produced daughter ion mass spectra of the polymer and selected copolymer forms of the four butyl methacrylate isomers. These spectra could be differentiated by visual inspection. A commercially-available acrylic thermoplastic resin was investigated for its qualitative and quantitative composition. n-Butyl methacrylate, methyl methacrylate and ethyl acrylate, despite identical m/z 101 protonated molecular ions for the latter two compounds were identified in the resin by interpretation of the MS/MS mass spectra.
AN INITIAL INVESTIGATION OF A MODIFIED PROCEDURE FOR PARALLEL ANALYSIS

Parallel analysis has been well documented to be an effective and accurate method for determining the number of factors to retain in exploratory factor analysis. Despite its theoretical and empirical advantages, the popularity of parallel analysis has been thwarted by its limited access in statistical software such as SPSS and SAS, especially in software that analyzes ordinal data. Among the few commonly used procedures, the Hayton, Allen, and Scarpello (2004) procedure requires manually computing the mean of eigenvalues from at least 50 replications. The O'Connor (2000) procedure overcomes that limitation, yet it has difficulties dealing with random missing data. To address these technical issues of parallel analysis for ordinal variables, we adapted and modified the O'Connor procedure to provide an alternative that best approximates the ordinal data by factoring in the frequency distributions of the variables (e.g., the number of response categories and the frequency of each response category per variable). Our procedure has a slightly different theoretical rationale from O'Connor's as well as a practical advantage in dealing with missing data.
Population analysis of CD4+ T cell chemokine receptor transcript expression during in vivo type-1 (mycobacterial) and type-2 (schistosomal) immune responses.

Chemokine receptor transcripts were de- fined among CD4 T cells in lymph nodes of mice with type-1 and type-2 inflammation, respectively, elicited by mycobacterial and schistosomal Ag. CXCR3 and CCR6 transcripts were biased to type-1, and CCR4 transcripts increased in type-1 and type-2 populations. CCR3 and CCR5 signals were too weak to establish differences. CCR8 transcripts were not increased among unstimulated populations. Com- pared to naive, type-1 and type-2 populations had reduced CCR7 and enhanced CXCR5 transcripts, consistent with a shift to memory cells. Subset deple- tion revealed that transcript expression was induced among CD44 memory T cells. Surprisingly, CCR3 transcripts were enriched among CD44lo fractions. Ag stimulation augmented CXCR3, CCR4, and CCR8 but down-regulated CCR6 and CXCR5. CCR4 showed association with IFN-- and IL-4-producing cells, but other receptor transcripts were expressed among IFN-/IL-4 negative memory T cells. These studies provide several novel findings regarding Th cell chemokine receptor expression in vivo. J. Leu- koc. Biol. 72: 363-372; 2002. receptor expression among T cells in the in vivo environment is complex and subject to endogenous, tissue-derived, microen- vironmental and exogenous, pathogen-derived regulatory sig- nals. Therefore, efforts to exploit chemokine receptor dynamics for clinical benefit must involve detailed in vivo analyses. To this end, we measured transcript levels for multiple chemokine receptors among CD4 T cell populations isolated from draining lymph nodes in models of Th1 and Th2 cell- mediated, pulmonary, granulomatous inflammation, elicited, respectively, by antigens derived from Mycobacteria bovis and ova of the helminthic parasite, Schistosoma mansoni (11-13). These models provide a unique means to directly compare chemokine receptor expression under highly polarized in vivo conditions. A broad spectrum of reliable antibodies (Ab) with specificity for mouse chemokine receptors is not available, but the recent advent of real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technology has permitted highly sen- sitive and reproducible, quantitative detection of chemokine receptor transcripts. Using this approach, we herein demon- strate distinct shifts of receptor transcript expression among CD4 Th cell populations generated in vivo during type-1 mycobacterial and type-2 schistosomal granulomatous re- sponses. Our in vivo study provides a number of novel obser- vations, some of which challenge certain aspects of paradigms derived from in vitro T cell clone analyses. Overall, the find- ings support the concept of flexible chemokine receptor ex- pression by T cells and provide in vivo evidence, suggesting that sensitization with strongly polarizing antigens (Ag) leads to induction of common and restricted chemokine receptor ex- pression among broad, polyclonal T memory cell populations.
Highly Conserved Regions of Influenza A Virus Polymerase Gene Segments Are Critical for Efficient Viral RNA Packaging

The genome of the influenza A virus is composed of eight different segments of negative-sense RNA. These eight segments are incorporated into budding virions in an equimolar ratio through a mechanism that is not fully understood. Two different models have been proposed for packaging the viral ribonucleoproteins into newly assembling virus particles: the random-incorporation model and the selective-incorporation model. In the last few years, increasing evidence from many different laboratories that supports the selective-incorporation model has been accumulated. In particular, different groups have shown that some large viral RNA regions within the coding sequences at both the 5′ and 3′ ends of almost every segment are sufficient for packaging foreign RNA sequences. If the packaging regions are crucial for the viability of the virus, we would expect them to be conserved. Using large-scale analysis of influenza A virus sequences, we developed a method of identifying conserved RNA regions whose conservation cannot be explained by population structure or amino acid conservation. Interestingly, the conserved sequences are located within the regions identified as important for efficient packaging. By utilizing influenza virus reverse genetics, we have rescued mutant viruses containing synonymous mutations within these highly conserved regions. Packaging of viral RNAs in these viruses was analyzed by reverse transcription using a universal primer and quantitative PCR for individual segments. Employing this approach, we have identified regions in the polymerase gene segments that, if mutated, result in reductions of more than 90% in the packaging of that particular polymerase viral RNA. Reductions in the level of packaging of a polymerase viral RNA frequently resulted in reductions of other viral RNAs as well, and the results form a pattern of hierarchy of segment interactions. This work provides further evidence for a selective packaging mechanism for influenza A viruses, demonstrating that these highly conserved regions are important for efficient packaging.
Evaluation and management of stroke

In contrast to myocardial infarction, stroke is a heterogeneous disease with multiple different causes. Determination of stroke mechanism is critical to choosing optimal therapy to prevent recurrence. This article reviews the diagnostic approach to stroke and prognostic and treatment implications of specific stroke mechanisms. Data on the role of antiplatelet and anticoagulant therapy in secondary stroke prevention, as well as the role of these agents and thrombolytic therapy in acute stroke treatment are reviewed. Situations of particular relevance to the practicing hematologist-stroke in the young, patients with multiple recurrent strokes, patients with abnormal hypercoagulable laboratory testing, and treatment of intracerebral hemorrhage following thrombolytic therapy-are discussed.
Koselleck's Philosophy of Historical Time(s) and the Practice of History

Zeitschichten: Studien zur Historik (Mit Einem Beitrag von Hans-Georg Gadamer). By Reinhart Koselleck
Testing faults in SRAM memory of Virtex-4 FPGA

Various algorithms and testing schemes have been developed in the past for testing memories for the presence of faults. Due to the increasing popularity of FPGAs, some schemes have specifically been developed for testing memories in these devices. FPGAs, when used in airborne space applications, are exposed to radiations which can produce faults within their memory. Faults may also develop during the manufacturing process. In the past, testing embedded memories within Field Programmable Gate Arrays has been limited to the detection of stuck-at faults. Recent studies have shown that FPGA memories are also prone to address decoder, transient, and inversion coupling faults. To address these faults, the current research proposes to develop a Built-in Self Test (BIST) technique for testing embedded SRAM memories of Virtex-4 FPGAs for the presence of address decoder, inverse coupling, transient and also stuck-at faults. The technique is modeled using VHDL. Simulation results are presented to verify fault detection.
Performance study of RAID-5 disk arrays with data and parity cache

Disk array architectures such as RAID-5 have become an acceptable way far designing highly reliable and high-performance storage systems. However one major drawback of a RAID-5 disk array system is that an update to a data block may involve four disk accesses. Such a high overhead is especially undesirable for workloads with high update rate as in transaction processing. In this paper, we present a new scheme for improving the write performance of disk arrays using controller cache to store data as well as parity information. We have developed a trace-driven model to simulate cached disk arrays for transaction processing environment. We have studied the effect of caching parity information at the controller level along with caching data. The simulation results show a considerable improvement in response time of data and parity cached disk array over disk arrays with only data caching. The improvement in response time for disk array employing parity cache is about 10%-20% for the parameters used in our study.
The importance of limb preservation in the diabetic population

Abstract Objective Limb salvage in the diabetic population is complex, controversial, costly and variable throughout the world. Within the diabetic population, the indications and morbidity surrounding major leg amputation have not been well defined. Research design and methods A retrospective study of the Georgetown Limb Salvage Registry was conducted to determine outcomes in diabetic patients undergoing proximal forefoot/midfoot (PF/M) amputations and to help define the indications for major leg amputation in ambulatory diabetic patients. Results Of the 937 ambulatory diabetic patients identified during this time period, 808 who presented with superficial ulcers or distal forefoot disease and who did not go on to PF/M or higher amputation were eliminated. Records of 88 patients (92 limbs) in the PF/M amputation group and 25 patients in the below the knee amputation (BKA) group were reviewed (no above knee amputations were performed). At 2 years in the PF/M amputation group, 80% (70/88) of patients were still alive, 73% (68/92) of the limbs remained intact, and 64% of patients (56/88) were ambulatory. In contrast, in the BKA population at 2 years, 52% (13/25) of patients were deceased and 64% (16/25) were ambulating with a prosthetic limb (or had been ambulating at the time of death). The only statistically significant difference between these two groups was the presence of Charcot collapse and rear-foot disease in the BKA group. Conclusion Aggressive efforts at salvage with PF/M amputation procedures should be entertained prior to higher level amputations due to the increased morbidity and mortality evidenced.
A comparison of behavioural change in Drosophila during exposure to thermal stress

In order to understand how adaptive tolerance to stress has evolved, we compared related species and populations of Drosophila for a variety of fitness relevant traits while flies directly experienced the stress. Two main questions were addressed. First, how much variation exists in the frequency of both courtship and mating among D. melanogaster, D. simulans, and D. mojavensis when each are exposed to a range of temperatures? Second, how does variation in these same behaviours compare among four geographically isolated populations of D. mojavensis, a desert species with a well defined ecology? Our hierarchical study demonstrated that mating success under stress can vary as much between related species, such as D. melanogaster and D. simulans, as between the ecologically disparate pair, D. melanogaster and D. mojavensis. Strains of this latter desert species likewise varied in tolerance, with differences approaching the levels observed among species. The consequences of stress on male courtship differed markedly from those on female receptivity to courtship, as mating behaviours among species and among strains of D. mojavensis varied in subtle but significant ways. Finally, a comparison of variation in thermotolerance of F1 hybrids between the two most extreme D. mojavensis populations confirmed that genetic variation underlying traits such as survival or the ability to fly after heat stress is completely different. © 2004 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2004, 83, 197‐205.
Modular control of multiple pathways using engineered orthogonal T7 polymerases

Synthetic genetic sensors and circuits enable programmable control over the timing and conditions of gene expression. They are being increasingly incorporated into the control of complex, multigene pathways and cellular functions. Here, we propose a design strategy to genetically separate the sensing/circuitry functions from the pathway to be controlled. This separation is achieved by having the output of the circuit drive the expression of a polymerase, which then activates the pathway from polymerase-specific promoters. The sensors, circuits and polymerase are encoded together on a 'controller' plasmid. Variants of T7 RNA polymerase that reduce toxicity were constructed and used as scaffolds for the construction of four orthogonal polymerases identified via part mining that bind to unique promoter sequences. This set is highly orthogonal and induces cognate promoters by 8- to 75-fold more than off-target promoters. These orthogonal polymerases enable four independent channels linking the outputs of circuits to the control of different cellular functions. As a demonstration, we constructed a controller plasmid that integrates two inducible systems, implements an AND logic operation and toggles between metabolic pathways that change Escherichia coli green (deoxychromoviridans) and red (lycopene). The advantages of this organization are that (i) the regulation of the pathway can be changed simply by introducing a different controller plasmid, (ii) transcription is orthogonal to host machinery and (iii) the pathway genes are not transcribed in the absence of a controller and are thus more easily carried without invoking evolutionary pressure.
Neuroglobin, a novel member of the globin family, is expressed in focal regions of the brain.

Hemoproteins are widely distributed among unicellular eukaryotes, plants, and animals. In addition to myoglobin and hemoglobin, a third hemoprotein, neuroglobin, has recently been isolated from vertebrate brain. Although the functional role of this novel member of the globin family remains unclear, neuroglobin contains a heme-binding domain and may participate in diverse processes such as oxygen transport, oxygen storage, nitric oxide detoxification, or modulation of terminal oxidase activity. In this study we utilized in situ hybridization (ISH) and RT-PCR analyses to examine the expression of neuroglobin in the normoxic and hypoxic murine brain. In the normoxic adult mouse, neuroglobin expression was observed in focal regions of the brain, including the lateral tegmental nuclei, the preoptic nucleus, amygdala, locus coeruleus, and nucleus of the solitary tract. Using ISH and RT-PCR techniques, no significant changes in neuroglobin expression in the adult murine brain was observed in response to chronic ...
On Mitigating In-band Wormhole Attacks in Mobile Ad Hoc Networks

Colluding malicious insider nodes with no special hardware capability can use packet encapsulation and tunnelling to create bogus short-cuts (in-band wormholes) in routing paths and influence data traffic to flow through them. This is a particularly hard attack using which even a handful of malicious nodes can conduct traffic analysis of packets or disrupt connections by dropping packets when needed. Using simulations we show that a disproportionately large amount of traffic goes through routes with wormholes even when a secure routing protocol such as Ariadne is used. To mitigate this, we propose distributed techniques based on the propagation speeds of requests and statistical profiling; they do not require network-wide synchronized clocks, do not impose any additional control packet overhead, and need only simple computations by the sources or destinations of connections. We implemented our techniques in Ariadne and evaluated their effectiveness using the Glomosim simulator. Our results indicate that in-band wormhole creation and usage can be reduced by a factor of 2-10. Also, the false alarm rates of the proposed techniques are very low and have little impact on normal network operation, making them practical for MANETs.
Stereotactic Radiosurgery for Primary and Metastatic Brain Tumors

(1996). Stereotactic Radiosurgery for Primary and Metastatic Brain Tumors. Cancer Investigation: Vol. 14, No. 5, pp. 445-454.
Regulation of Histone Deacetylase 4 Expression by the SP Family of Transcription Factors

Histone deacetylases mediate critical cellular functions but relatively little is known about mechanisms controlling their expression, including expression of HDAC4, a class II HDAC implicated in the modulation of cellular differentiation and viability. Endogenous HDAC4 mRNA, protein levels and promoter activity were all readily repressed by mithramycin, suggesting regulation by GC-rich DNA sequences. We validated consensus binding sites for Sp1/Sp3 transcription factors in the HDAC4 promoter through truncation studies and targeted mutagenesis. Specific and functional binding by Sp1/Sp3 at these sites was confirmed with chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) and electromobility shift assays (EMSA). Cotransfection of either Sp1 or Sp3 with a reporter driven by the HDAC4 promoter led to high activities in SL2 insect cells (which lack endogenous Sp1/Sp3). In human cells, restored expression of Sp1 and Sp3 up-regulated HDAC4 protein levels, whereas levels were decreased by RNA-interference-mediated knockdown of either protein. Finally, variable levels of Sp1 were in concordance with that of HDAC4 in a number of human tissues and cancer cell lines. These studies together characterize for the first time the activity of the HDAC4 promoter, through which Sp1 and Sp3 modulates expression of HDAC4 and which may contribute to tissue or cell-line-specific expression of HDAC4.
Investigation of Potential Fuel Savings Due to Continuous-Descent Approach

The continuous-descent approach is among the key concepts of the Next Generation Air Transportation System. Although a considerable number of researchers have been devoted to the estimation of potential fuel savings of the continuous-descent approach, few have attempted to explain the fuel savings observed in field tests from an analytical point of view. This paper focuses on the evaluation of the continuous-descent approach as a fuel-reduction procedure. This research gives insights into the reasons why the continuous-descent approach saves fuel, and design guidelines for the continuous-descent-approach procedures are derived. The analytical relationship between speed, altitude, and fuel burn is derived based on the base of aircraft data total-energy model. A theoretical analysis implies that speed profile has an impact as substantial as, if not more than, vertical profile on the fuel consumption in the terminal area. In addition, the continuous-descent approach is not intrinsically a fuel-saving procedu...
Selective overexpression of Toll-like receptor-4 in skeletal muscle impairs metabolic adaptation to high-fat feeding

Toll-like receptor-4 (TLR-4) is elevated in skeletal muscle of obese humans, and data from our laboratory have shown that activation of TLR-4 in skeletal muscle via LPS results in decreased fatty a...
Social and Solidarity Economy in the Post-2015 Development Agenda

This article discusses the potential role of the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) in the Post-2015 Development Agenda to be finalized by the UN General Assembly in September 2015.
The effectiveness of licensing

Suggesting that licensing may not only fail to accomplish its intended purpose, but may be counterproductive, the author asserts that licensing may not improve the quality of professional services, that licensing boards fail to discipline unethical or incompetent practitioners, and that actions taken against the unlicensed are more often aimed at eliminating competition, not incompetence. In addition, licensing laws may have negative side effects, including an increase in the cost of professional services, the creation of shortages and maldistributions in supply, ineffective use of paraprofessionals, and impediments to needed reforms in education, training, and services. He concludes that equally effective alternatives may be available that are less expensive and have less negative impact, and advocates a system of registration for all practitioners, as well as making other suggestions to improve the overall functioning of licensing boards. Finally, because of political realities, the author proposes a compromise between his ideal model and the current system.
Strain Susceptibility and Resistance to 1,2-DimethyIhydrazine-Induced Enteric Tumors in Germfree Rats

SummaryThree strains of germfree rats (Sprague-Dawley, Lobund-Wistar, Buffalo) were tested for their susceptibility to DMH-induced enteric neoplasms; Sprague-Dawley rats were most susceptible, Lobund-Wistar rats were not susceptible, and Buffalo rats were intermediate in susceptibility.
Appropriateness of Preoperative Antimicrobial Therapy Does Not Impact Operative or 5-Year Mortality for Patients with Infective Endocarditis Requiring Surgical Therapy

Many factors may potentially affect postoperative outcomes of surgical therapy for infective endocarditis (IE). What effect appropriateness preoperative antimicrobial therapy, as judged by both duration and drug choice, is controversial in the current literature.
Emissions from oil and gas operations in the United States and their air quality implications

ABSTRACTThe energy supply infrastructure in the United States has been changing dramatically over the past decade. Increased production of oil and natural gas, particularly from shale resources using horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, made the United States the world’s largest producer of oil and natural gas in 2014. This review examines air quality impacts, specifically, changes in greenhouse gas, criteria air pollutant, and air toxics emissions from oil and gas production activities that are a result of these changes in energy supplies and use. National emission inventories indicate that volatile organic compound (VOC) and nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from oil and gas supply chains in the United States have been increasing significantly, whereas emission inventories for greenhouse gases have seen slight declines over the past decade. These emission inventories are based on counts of equipment and operational activities (activity factors), multiplied by average emission factors, and therefor...
Patchwork Approximation in Numerical Analysis

The numerical solution to a problem is often expressed in terms of an approximation \(\mathrm{U(\underline{x})}\) to the true solution \(\mathrm{u(\underline{x})\mbox{ for }\underline{x}}\) in some prescribed region D.
Control and Sensor Requirements and Issues in AHS

The current highway traffic system consists of the following basic elements and decision makers: the driver who controls the motion of the vehicle and makes decisions regarding the path of the vehicle, the route, destination, and so forth; the vehicle that obeys the commands of the driver whose on-board diagnostics often provide information to the driver about the health of the vehicle components; and the roadway or infrastructure that controls the flow of traffic using ramp metering, traffic lights, and roadway signs. These three basic elements interact and may influence each other considerably. For example, an inappropriate action by a driver of a single vehicle could have a dramatic effect on the performance of the overall traffic system. Similarly, a broken or low-performance vehicle could cause a large disturbance in the flow of traffic that may lead to heavy congestion. The roadway commands via road signs, ramp metering, and the like may equally have a negative effect on traffic flow if they are not the appropriate ones for the state of the traffic system the moment they are applied due to inaccurate sensing and/or incorrect control decision making. Inappropriate actions by any one of the three basic elements may not only lead to deterioration of performance and congestion but also to accidents and loss of human life.