cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Substantial Evidence Review in Social Security Cases as an Issue of Fact

-Morton Denlow TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION I. THE SOCIAL SECURITY DETERMINATION AND REVIEW PROCESS A. Administrative Process B. District Court Review C. Procedures Used for District Court Review D. Circuit Court Review II. SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE REVIEW IS A FACT-FINDING PROCESS A. Description of Substantial Evidence Review in Practice B. Comparison to a Trial on the Papers C. Comparison to Other Administrative Law Contexts III. COURTS OF APPEALS HAVE ERRONEOUSLY SUBJECTED DISTRICT COURT SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE DETERMINATIONS TO DE NOVO REVIEW A. Reasons for Appellate Court Treatment of Substantial Evidence Decisions as a Matter of Law B. Nickol and the Short-Lived Tenth Circuit Deferential Review C. Refuting the Summary Judgment/Sufficiency of Evidence Comparison D. Refuting the “No De Novo Fact Finding” Argument IV. PRACTICAL REASONS FOR CLEARLY ERRONEOUS REVIEW A. Trial Court vs. Appellate Court Roles B. Judicial Efficiency V. FINAL THOUGHTS ON PROCEDURES A. The Report and Recommendation Process is Inefficient and Should be Avoided B. Proper District Court Procedures CONCLUSION Appendix A Results of Social Security Survey Appendix B Suggested Standing Order in Social Security Cases
Policing Heteronormativity and Sexual Risk-Taking Among Young Adult Men Who Have Sex with Men in the Detroit Metro Area.

Policing gender and sexuality can have enduring health implications for the well-being of young men who have sex with men (YMSM). Using data from a community-based sample of YMSM in the Detroit Metro Area (N = 364), we examined the prevalence of lifetime heteronormative policing by gender (e.g., punished/restricted for femininity) and sexuality (e.g., attempts to alter same-sex attractions). We examined the associations of heteronormative policing attempts and the number of condomless insertive and receptive anal intercourse partners, respectively. We also tested whether internalized homophobia moderated the association between sexuality policing and sexual risk. Multivariable models demonstrated that policing sexuality, but not gender, was associated with a greater number of partners in which participants engaged in condomless intercourse as the receptive partner. We observed no interaction between policing sexuality and internalized homophobia. Multilevel efforts are needed to reduce the contribution of heteronormative policing on YMSM’s HIV risk.
Teach, listen, love: a personalised approach to supervising doctors in training.

Whitfield and colleagues in a recent letter in this journal used survey and focus group data from internal medicine trainees to get their input into how supervision could be most helpful; they highlight the value of supervisors being approachable, maintaining regular contact with trainees to develop a more rounded view of the trainee, knowing more than just their names and avoiding a ‘tick box’ approach to supervision.1 In another study among internal medicine and emergency medicine resident physicians, supportive factors within the domain of interaction with attending physicians accounted for half of the modifiable items in the work environment felt to be most important to reduce burn-out.2 A s a haematologist assuming a transfusion medicine position within the pathology department 17 years ago, I had barely interacted with pathology trainees in my training and working experience to date, let alone supervised any. Teaching the residents was mentioned as an afterthought by the pathology chairman during the interview, …
The Political Agency of Royal Women: A Comparative Analysis of Eight Premodern States According to Societal Rules and Roles

Comparative analysis of women rulers and main wives of kings in eight premodern states around the globe reveals similar patterns of political agency, or the opportunity and ability to take political action. Queen rulers, regents, and main wives substituting for their husbands in their absence made policy, but they had somewhat less political agency than male rulers. Main wives’ political agency took the forms of influencing policy and people’s behavior (sometimes through their role as patron to others), interceding between their kin and their husbands, advocating for one party or the other, spying, and conspiring. Therefore, women’s political agency ought to be part of any political study. This study builds on the anthropological/archaeological study of agency by drawing attention to royal women’s political agency and showing how the analysis of structural rules and the roles of kings, queen rulers, and main wives illuminates the societal structure in which agency is embedded. By analyzing premodern societies this way, we learn that there is remarkable similarity of agency behaviors among royal women in the eight sample societies, even though the societies emerged independently of one another.
Perspective: Talking About Mycotoxins

Talking about mycotoxins amongst scientists often is easy, as the potential consequences are viewed from a perspective that breeds familiarity with potentially serious health problems. Translating objective results into information that can be used profitably by non-scientists is a task for which scientists often are poorly equipped. Experts in communications also have a difficult time with the mycotoxin issue because they lack the technical background to understand the causes, consequences and potential remedies associated with mycotoxin contamination. Our objective is to provide a framework for both scientists and communicators as they think about how to convey potentially scary food safety information to the public without causing a panic in the process. The major concerns people have about mycotoxin contamination are health- and financial-related, which makes addressing these concerns critical. Stakeholders along the food chain have different backgrounds and interests and should be identified and grouped for effective communications, as “one size fits all” is not a good strategy. Similarly, distinguishing time-sensitive, e.g., crisis, communications from those that are time agnostic, e.g., background, education and public awareness information, are crucial for either to have the desired impact. We provide some general guidelines and thinking/talking points to enable scientists to work with their counterparts in communications as they develop plans to increase food safety through effective communications regarding potential health and financial threats that can result from mycotoxin contamination.
Continuous glucose monitoring reveals glycemic variability and hypoglycemia after vertical sleeve gastrectomy in rats.

Abstract Objective Post–bariatric surgery hypoglycemia (PBH) is defined as the presence of neuroglycopenic symptoms accompanied by postprandial hypoglycemia in bariatric surgery patients. Recent clinical studies using continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) technology revealed that PBH is more frequently observed in vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG) patients than previously recognized. PBH cannot be alleviated by current medication. Therefore, a model system to investigate the mechanism and treatment is required. Methods We used CGM in a rat model of VSG and monitored the occurrence of glycemic variability and hypoglycemia in various meal conditions for 4 weeks after surgery. Another cohort of VSG rats with CGM was used to investigate whether the blockade of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) signaling alleviates these symptoms. A mouse VSG model was used to investigate whether the impaired glucose counterregulatory system causes postprandial hypoglycemia. Results Like in humans, rats have increased glycemic variability and hypoglycemia after VSG. Postprandial hypoglycemia was specifically detected after liquid versus solid meals. Further, the blockade of GLP-1R signaling raises the glucose nadir but does not affect glycemic variability. Conclusions Rat bariatric surgery duplicates many features of human post–bariatric surgery hypoglycemia including postprandial hypoglycemia and glycemic variability, while blockade of GLP-1R signaling prevents hypoglycemia but not the variability.
Patterns of distributive environmental inequity under different PM2.5 air pollution scenarios for Salt Lake County public schools.

Abstract Previous studies have cataloged social disparities in air pollution exposure in US public schools with respect to race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status. These studies rely upon chronic, averaged measures of air pollution, which fosters a static conception of exposure disparities. This paper examines PM2.5 exposure disparities in Salt Lake County (SLC), Utah public schools under three different PM2.5 scenarios—relatively clean air, a moderate winter persistent cold air pool (PCAP), and a major winter PCAP—with respect to race/ethnicity, economic deprivation, student age, and school type. We pair demographic data for SLC schools (n = 174) with modelled PM2.5 values, obtained from a distributed network of sensors placed through a community-university partnership. Results from generalized estimating equations controlling for school district clustering and other covariates reveal that patterns of social inequality vary under different PM2.5 pollution scenarios. Charter schools and schools serving economically deprived students experienced disproportionate exposure during relatively clean air and moderate PM2.5 PCAP conditions, but those inequalities attenuated under major PCAP conditions. Schools with higher proportions of racial/ethnic minority students were unequally exposed under all PM2.5 pollution scenarios, reflecting the robustness of racial/ethnic disparities in exposure. The findings speak to the need for policy changes to protect school-aged children from environmental harm in SLC and elsewhere.
Locked-In Resources: Essential Ingredient for Coopetitive Relationship Stability

This paper describes an underexplored process in coopetition research and contributes to the understanding of coopetition and its relationship with innovation performance from a resource based pers...
Research on the HVDC Operation Mode with Defective On-Load Tap-Changer

The on-load tap changer(OLTC) is used in HVDC system to make sure the AC voltage or firing angle in an appropriate range. In recent years, after a number of onload tap-changer failures, many OLTCs of the same type were checked, and it was found that due to cracks and other conditions, the remaining action times of some still-operable OLTCs were far less than the theoretical action times. Due to production cycle and other reasons, defective components cannot be replaced in time. This requires that the DC system should be operated with a defective OLTCs. This article proposes several temporary operation measures: extend the interval between OLTC actions, adjust the OLTC control mode to Udi0, and avoid 70% voltage drop restart conditions. Using these temporary operation measures can effectively reduce the number of OLTC actions and extend its life, while ensuring the safe operation of the HVDC system. Simulation analysis proves the effectiveness of the scheme. This scheme has been implemented at the actual HVDC project site.
On Price Caps Under Uncertainty

This paper shows how standard arguments supporting the impo- sition of price caps break down in the presence of demand uncertainty. In particular, though in the deterministic case the introduction or lowering of a price cap (above marginal cost) results in increased production, increased total welfare, decreased prices, and increased consumer welfare, we show that all of the above comparative statics predictions fail for generic uncertain demand functions. For example, for price caps su-ciently close to marginal cost, a decrease in the price cap always leads to a decrease in production and total welfare under certain mild conditions. Under stronger regularity assumptions, all of the monotone comparative statics predictions from the deterministic case also do not hold for a generic uncertain demand if we restrict attention to price caps in an arbitrary flxed interval (as long as the price caps are binding for some values in that interval).
Multimodal intrinsic contrast imaging for nerve discrimination in vivo

Inadvertent nerve injury is a common complication during many surgical procedures. Intraoperative localization of nerves could reduce the risk of nerve injury and improve patients’ quality of life post-operation. To address this need, we combine diffuse reflectance and polarization imaging techniques into a single imaging system for in vivo nerve mapping. Both modalities successfully localize nerves within the field of view in an in vivo rat model and together provide enhanced contrast in relation to the surrounding tissues. The results of this study provide valuable insight into the future development of a real-time imaging system for clinical translation.
Once Bitten, Twice Shy: Learning From Corporate Fraud and Corporate Governance Spillovers

This paper finds that investors learn from their experience with corporate fraud and financial misconduct and modify their investment behavior to avoid suspicious firms and increase corporate governance efforts. More specifically, mutual funds that experienced corporate fraud at one of their portfolio firms subsequently chose firms with lower probabilities of fraud and financial misconduct, compared to otherwise similar funds that did not experience any corporate malfeasance incidents. Furthermore, mutual funds that experienced corporate fraud intensify their corporate governance activities and vote significantly more against management at other firms in their portfolios, compared to the voting behavior at the same firms by otherwise similar funds but that did not experience any fraud, especially on issues related to director election, audit, and financial statement. I find that fraud-experienced investors are significantly less likely to vote for problematic directors. Finally, I find that firms held by more fraud-experienced investors observe a significant drop in the propensity to get an accounting fraud sanction in subsequent years. Taken together, my results show that learning and experience play a critical role in corporate governance spillovers, fraud detection, and deterrence.
Feasibility of ablative stereotactic body radiation therapy of pancreas cancer patients on a 1.5 Tesla magnetic resonance-linac system using abdominal compression.

Abstract Background and Purpose Stereotactic body radiation therapy delivered using MR-guided radiotherapy (MRgRT) and automatic breathold gating has shown to improve overall survival for locally advanced pancreatic cancer (LAPC) patients. The goal of our study was to evaluate feasibility of treating LAPC patients using abdominal compression (AC) and impact of potential intrafraction motion on planned dose on a 1.5T MR-linac. Methods & Materials Ten LAPC patients were treated with MRgRT to 50 Gy in 5 fractions with daily online plan adaptation and AC. Three orthogonal plane cine MRI were acquired to assess stability of AC pressure in minimizing tumor motion. Three sets of T2w MR scans, pre-treatment (MRIpre), verification (MRIver) and post-treatment (MRIpost) MRI, were acquired for every fraction. A total of 150 MRIs and doses were evaluated. Impact of intrafraction organ motion was evaluated by propagating pre-treatment plan and structures to MRIver and MRIpost, editing contours and recalculating doses. Gross tumor volume (GTV) coverage and organs-at-risk (OARs) doses were evaluated on MRIver and MRIpost. Results Median total treatment time was 75.5 (49–132) minutes. Median tumor motion in AC for all fractions was 1.7 (0.7–7), 2.1 (0.6–6.3) and 4.1 (1.4–10.0) mm in anterior-posterior, left–right and superior-inferior direction. Median GTV V50Gy was 78.7%. Median D5cm3 stomach_duodenum was 24.2 (18.4–29.3) Gy on MRIver and 24.2 (18.3–30.5) Gy on MRIpost. Median D5cm3 small bowel was 24.3 (18.2–32.8) Gy on MRIver and 24.4 (16.0–33.6) Gy on MRIpost. Conclusion Dose-volume constraints for OARs were exceeded for some fractions on MRIver and MRIpost. Longer follow up is needed to see the dosimetric impact of intrafraction motion on gastrointestinal toxicity.
Dual lesion spinal cord injury in a polytrauma patient: a case report.

INTRODUCTION Dual lesion spinal cord injury (SCI) is the presence of two distinct regions of injury to the spinal cord, which can occur simultaneously or as a sequela of initial injury. Dual lesion SCI appears to be a rather rare occurrence with a paucity of cases described. As such, there is limited information available regarding presentation, evaluation, long-term rehabilitation management, and prognostication of these patients. CASE PRESENTATION Presented is a case of a 25-year-old woman with a gunshot wound injury to the T5 vertebra with associated cord damage, initially classified as T6 ASIA Impairment Scale (AIS) B. A subsequent cervical spinal stroke, in the setting of cord edema, resulted in a motor incomplete cervical SCI. As such, she underwent additional functional decline. DISCUSSION Patients with dual lesion SCI present with unique challenges in evaluation and management. This case highlights key factors for the acute care and rehabilitation teams to consider when addressing these challenges.
Mapping Invisible Surveillance on the North Avenue Smart Corridor, Atlanta

This paper presents a speculative mapping exercise as a feminist resistance method with the aim of rendering surveillance technologies and their fields of view visible. The focus is on the North Avenue Smart Corridor, located in Atlanta, Georgia, which is one of the world's top ten most surveilled cities. Through the design of these speculative maps, I question our relationship with surveillance. More specifically, I show that unnoticeable materiality and invisible processes of smart surveillance technologies prevent the public from forming an opinion on their intrusion into daily life. Acceptance of these technologies allows powerholders to protect and enhance their power over marginalized communities. Therefore, by mapping the intensity of surveillance, this study aims to raise awareness against the lure of technocracy in so-called smart cities. It situates the reader in the position of surveillance sensors and allows the reader to speculate on what they can see. In doing so, it seeks to highlight the oppressive agency of these technologies and question their appeal to objectivity with the potential to disrupt their patriarchal powers. Can we free ourselves from the oppressive gaze of smart surveillance by mapping, seeing, and understanding its remarkably limited fields of view?
X-ray Diffraction and Marine Natural Products

While natural products research has expanded into many new areas of inquiry, the traditional goal of describing the molecular structure of a naturally occurring substance has not diminished in importance. A secure molecular structure is still the common starting point for synthetic, biosynthetic, and even some biological endeavors. In this paper I will explain why x-ray diffraction is increasingly the method of choice for structure elucidation and illustrate its utility with some recent applications to marine natural products.
OPUS: online patches and updates for security

We present OPUS, a tool for dynamic software patching capable of applying fixes to a C program at run-time. OPUS's primary goal is to enable application of security patches to interactive applications that are a frequent target of security exploits. By restricting the type of patches admitted by our system, we are able to significantly reduce any additional burden on the programmer beyond what would normally be required in developing and testing a conventional stop-and-restart patch. We hand-tested 26 real CERT [1] vulnerabilities, of which 22 were dynamically patched with our current OPUS prototype, doing so with negligible runtime overhead and no prior knowledge of the tool's existence on the patch programmer's part.
CPP: a constraint logic programming based planner with preferences

We describe the development of a constraint logic programming based system, called CPP, which is capable of generating most preferred plans with respect to a user's preference and evaluate its performance.
Biosynthesis of glycosyl phosphatidylinositol membrane anchors.

One kind of lipid anchor, is a glycosyl phosphatidylinositol (GPI). The anchor of the Trypanosoma brucei variant surface glycoprotein exemplifies the GPI solution to membrane attachment. Its structure consists of phosphatidylinositol linked glycosidically to a linear tetrasaccharide composed of one glucosaminyl and three mannosyl residues. The terminal mannose, at the nonreducing end of the glycan, is linked to phosphoethanolamine, and the ethanolamine is in amide linkage to the α-carboxyl group of the protein's C-terminal amino acid residue
Light has opposite effects on sensitivity of maize protoplasts to T-toxin from Cochliobolus heterostrophus

Protoplasts isolated from etiolated T-cytoplasm corn leaves were insensitive to T-toxin, a host-specific toxin produced by Cochliobolus heterostrophus race T, whereas protoplasts from green leaves were highly sensitive. Mitochondria from both green and etiolated leaves were equally sensitive to low T-toxin concentrations. When etiolated leaves were exposed to light for 24h, protoplasts isolated from them developed full sensitivity to T-toxin. Conversely, protoplasts from green tissue became insensitive to T-toxin after 6h exposure to light. Thus, light had opposite effects on sensitivity to T-toxin; it increased sensitivity of etiolated intact tissue (as measured by protoplast assay) and decreased sensitivity of isolated green protoplasts. Although the mechanisms of these light effects are unknown, their existence indicates that handling procedures must be standardized for plant parts used in bioassays. Time elapsed between protoplast isolation and exposure to T-toxin, as well as light, was found to affect sensitivity to T-toxin.
Originalists, Politics, and Criminal Law on the Rehnquist Court

One of the most important legacies of the Rehnquist Court's criminal law jurisprudence is its reinvigoration of the Constitution's jury guarantee. The Court has made clear that legislators cannot pass laws mandating increases in punishment unless those laws are applied by juries, not judges. The Court has therefore rejected existing sentencing laws in numerous states and the federal system, and sentencing policy is under scrutiny as never before. The Court's sentencing cases are not only significant for their impact on day-to-day plea bargaining and trial practice in the criminal justice system; they also provide a concrete and important example of the power of law and legal methodology - and not simply politics - in Supreme Court decisionmaking. The sentencing decisions are out of step with what attitudinalist political scientists would have predicted from the right-leaning Court. The cases are the product of an alliance between Justices that the attitudinalists view as the extreme left and right of the Court; they are the product of a partnership between the Court's self-proclaimed originalists and those members of the Court who are most sensitive to the role of the judiciary in protecting criminal defendants' rights from majority politics. This area of criminal law is therefore an important reminder of the significance of legal methodology to case outcomes. In addition to documenting the importance of the jury cases, this Article uses those cases as a springboard for a larger analysis of the relationship between originalists, politics, and criminal law on the Rehnquist Court. By reviewing all of the Rehnquist Court's criminal opinions in argued cases during the ten-year period from the October 1994 Term through the 2003 Term, this Article shows that the Justices' votes in criminal cases do not fit neatly into the attitudinal model. While a review of those cases confirms the conventional view that the Court's liberal bloc voted for criminal defendants more frequently than the Court's conservatives in non-unanimous cases, the more interesting pattern is the variation among the Court's conservatives in non-capital criminal cases in which the five conservatives disagreed among themselves. In the fifty-five non-capital criminal cases in which the Court's conservatives did not vote as a bloc, Justices O'Connor, Scalia, and Kennedy each voted for the defendant twenty-four times, Justice Thomas voted for the defendant in eighteen cases, and Chief Justice Rehnquist in fourteen cases. In several of the most important constitutional decisions of that period, including but not limited to the jury cases, the conservative originalists voted for defendants while the pragmatist conservatives ruled for the government. The jury cases are therefore part of a larger pattern that reveals the relationship between originalism, politics, and criminal law to be far more complicated than is commonly believed.
Ethylene–Acrylic Elastomers

Ethylene-acrylate elastomers are a family of addition copolymers of ethylene and methyl acrylate that were commercialized under the trademark VAMAC by Du Pont Co. in 1975. Traditional grades of ethylene-acrylic elastomers also have small amounts of a carboxylic monomer polymerized into the polymer backbone to provide cure sites for cross-linking with amines. A line of copolymers of only ethlyene and methyl acrylate has been added to the ethylene-acrylic family. In this article cure properties, aging characteristics, mechanical properties, and low temperature properties of ethylene-acrylic elastomers are reviewed. Special compounded attributes such as uniquely temperature-stable vibrational damping properties and the ability to produce flame-resistant and smoke suppressive compounds are also discussed. Ethylene-acrylic elastomers are processed in the same manner as other elastomers. Because of this balance of properties, ethylene-acrylic elastomers have found ready acceptance in many high performance applications, especially in the automotive market.
ORIGINS OF DSM-I : A STUDY IN APPEARANCE AND REALITY

The author traces the history of psychiatric nosology in the United States from its origins in the early nineteenth century to the introduction of DSM-I in 1952. Until World War I, psychiatrists were not interested in systematic classification, although they were concerned with diagnosis. The first official nosology, adopted in 1918, reflected the need to collect mental hospital data. The federal Bureau of the Census had a role in the development of this nosology in that it required such data. The publication of DSM-I marked an internal transformation that mirrored the growing dominance of psychodynamic and psychoanalytic psychiatry and the relative weakness of the biological tradition. This transformation occurred largely as a result of the lessons learned by psychiatrists during World War II. The author's basic argument is that nosology reflected not only psychiatric ideology but also other, external determinants at any given point in time.
Modeling, Simulation and Optimization of Electrorheological Fluids

Publisher Summary This chapter describes the modeling, simulation, and optimization of electrorheological fluids. It is concerned with the balance equations and constitutive laws for isothermal and nonisothermal electrorheological fluid flows and with the existence and/or uniqueness of solutions. It also discusses numerical methods both for steady and time-dependent fluid flows. It presents numerical simulation results for some selected electrorheological devices and briefly addresses optimal design issues. Electrorheological fluids are the concentrated suspensions of the electrically polarizable particles of small size in the range of micrometers in nonconducting or semiconducting liquids such as silicone oils. Under the influence of an outer electric field, the particles form chains along the field lines followed by a coalescence of the chains into columns in the plane orthogonal to the field because of short-ranged potentials arising from charge–density fluctuations. The formation of the chains is a process that happens in milliseconds, whereas the aggregation to columns occurs on a timescale that is larger by an order of magnitude. On a macroscopic scale, the chainlike and columnar structures have a significant impact on the rheological properties of the suspensions. In particular, the viscosity increases rapidly with increasing electric field strength in the direction perpendicular to the field. The fluid experiences a phase transition to a viscoplastic state, and the flow shows a pronounced anisotropic behavior. Under the influence of large stresses, the columns break into continuously fragmenting and aggregating volatile structures, which tilt away from strict field alignment. As a result, the viscosity decreases and the fluid flow behave less anisotropically.
CHIMPANZEE KIDNEY TISSUE CULTURES FOR GROWTH AND ISOLATION OF VIRUSES

Dick, Elliot C. (University of Wisconsin, Madison). Chimpanzee kidney tissue cultures for growth and isolation of viruses. J. Bacteriol. 86:573–576. 1963.—Chimpanzee kidney tissue cultures were employed for propagation of several laboratory strains of viruses that commonly inhabit the respiratory and intestinal tracts, or both, and for isolation of viruses from throat washings of persons with common colds and tonsillitis-pharyngitis. This tissue culture host was found to support the growth of approximately the same viruses as do Rhesus monkey kidney tissue cultures, with two exceptions: (i) chimpanzee kidney tissue culture was much more susceptible to herpes simplex infection, and (ii) cytopathic effects were not produced by either “M” or “H” strains of muriviruses (common cold viruses). The presence of adventitious viruses in some uninoculated chimpanzee kidney tissue cultures is suspected.
Computer assisted treated for motor speech disorders

A software tool has been developed to help stuttering children and Parkinson disease clients improve their speech fluency. This tool is used by speech therapists in hospitals and by the patients themselves in their own homes. This personal computer based system is intuitive to use, cost effective, and easily integrated into current speech rehabilitation regimens. The software provides the visual and audio feedback required for clients to be aware of their speech patterns. The program plays a goal phrase and displays an amplitude plot of the signal. The client repeats the phrase, the magnitude of which is superimposed over the goal phrase in real-time. The software compares the speech patterns and documents the progress of the patient in detail. The supervising speech pathologist specified which displayed signals and measured parameters would be useful for improving the speech rehabilitation process. These features enable the client to continue practice at home for delays and months before returning to the clinic. The results of the patients' trials are stored in a disk, which the patients bring to the therapist at each clinical visit. This feature contributes to lowering the costs of speech therapy. This paper describes the software tool and its main features. Preliminary results are also discussed.
Differential growth factor-induced modulation of proteoglycans synthesized by normal human renal versus cyst-derived cells.

In polycystic kidney disease (PKD), there is an insiduous enlargement of the kidneys and dilation of the renal tubules associated with extracellular matrix (ECM) alterations. The latter include thickening of tubular basement membrane and decreased synthesis of sulfated proteoglycan (PG). Because PKD is believed to be a disorder of cell growth and deranged ECM metabolism, it is conceivable that the formation of cystic tubules may be modulated by certain growth factors (GF) that influence the synthesis of ECM glycoproteins. In this study, the effect of various GF, i.e., epidermal, hepatocyte (HGF) and transforming (TGF), and triiodothyronine on the PG synthesized by normal human kidney (NK) epithelial cells and cells derived from cysts of patients with autosomal dominant PKD (ADPKD) was assessed. (35S) sulfate incorporation studies revealed that, among various GF, HGF and TGF-beta 1 had the maximal stimulatory effect on the synthesis of PG extracted from ADPKD cells. A minimal increase in the PG synthesis was observed in NK cells; however, PG synthesized under the influence of HGF or TGF-beta 1 were of relatively higher molecular weight, with a shift of K(av) from 0.28 to 0.12, as ascertained by Sepharose-6B chromatography. PG synthesized by ADPKD cells had a K(av) = 0.18, and it did not change with the GF treatment. The charge-density characteristics of PG of ADPKD cells were relatively lower than those of NK cells, and they were unaffected by HGF or TGF-beta 1 treatment. Interestingly, both the HGF and TGF-beta 1 significantly affected posttranslational modifications of PG.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
RSL: A parallel Runtime System Library for regional atmospheric models with nesting

RSL is a parallel runtime system library developed at Argonne National Laboratory that is tailored to regular-grid atmospheric models with mesh refinement in the form of two-way interacting nested grids. RSL provides high-level stencil and interdomain communication, irregular domain decomposition, automatic local/global index translation, distributed I/O, and dynamic load balancing. RSL was used with Fortran90 to parallelize a well-known and widely used regional weather model, the Perm State/NCAR Mesoscale Model.
Deposited thin-film wear sensors: materials and design

Abstract Vacuum deposited thin-film sensors have been developed for monitoring wear and temperature in a variety of bearing applications. The sensor typically consists of one or more metallic or insulator films. This lamination sputtered thin-film resistance elements and thermoelectric elements with appropriate insulators is deposited directly on the bearing surface. The thin-film package can be designed to have wear behavior similar to that of the bearing materials, and to have a small surface area that conforms to the bearing contour. The wear sensor monitors the regression of the surface, i.e. the loss of material due to wear, in the range 0.1–10 μm (or more) over the small area that the sensor occupies. The thermoelectric sensor monitors local temperature. The effect of the materials and fabrication on the properties of the sensors are described as they effect the electrical response and the wear characteristics. Desired properties needed by the conducting film component include adequate electrical conductivity, adhesion to the insulating layers, low ductility, adequate toughness, and hardness. The critical properties of the insulating film component were found to be adhesion, low conductivity, strength, and hardness. Test results were obtained for sliding ring and block tests in both air and oil-lubricated environments. For conducting films, aluminum, platinum, tantalum, and type K + and K − thermoelectric alloys were studied and are reported here. Copper and two metal silicides were also evaluated. For insulating films, results on aluminum oxide, tantalum oxide, and borosilicate glass are reported. The substrate block material was 304 stainless steel. It was found that the electrical performance of the conducting films in the sensor package can be described using a simple electrical resistance model.
Event-related potential correlates of two stages of information processing in physical and semantic discrimination tasks.

Event-related potentials were studied while subjects performed physical and semantic discrimination tasks. Two negative components, NA and N2, were observed in both kinds of discriminations. The earlier component, NA, had a constant onset latency, but its peak latency varied as a function of stimulus complexity. N2 latency varied in relation to changes in the peak of NA. RT and P3 followed N2 by similar amounts of time across tasks. The NA and N2 components were interpreted as reflecting partially overlapping sequential stages of processing associated with pattern recognition and stimulus classification, respectively.
Overfeeding in a patient with Kwashiorkor syndrome.

The patient was a 56-y-old white female admitted on October 21, 1995, for acute abdominal pain with an ultimate diagnosis of mesenteric ischemia and gangrenous cholecystitis. She subsequently underwent a cholecystectomy and small and large bowel resection with a jejunocolostomy. On admission she was 5 ‘5” ( 165 cm), 102 pounds (46.3 kg), with an ideal body weight of 125 pounds. An albumin level done postoperatively was 2.6 g/dL. Postoperatively she was ventilator-dependent and had an ileus. She was started on 1000 kcaYd of total parenteral nutrition (TPN) which included 19% of calories as protein (47.5 g/d). On October 24 and 25, she became febrile and was re-explored to rule out ischemic small bowel. Upon re-exploration, no necrotic small bowel was found. On October 26, she extubated herself and was ultimately transferred to the ward. Her TPN was increased to 1600 kcal/d, 19% of calories as protein (76 g/d). She did well until October 31, when she developed two fistulas through her abdominal wound. She was kept NPO, the TPN was continued, and somatostatin was begun. Because she was felt to be hypermetabolic, her TPN was increased to 1800 kcaYd with 24% of calories as protein (108 g/d). Laboratory values revealed a total protein level of 5.3 g/dL and a serum albumin level of 1.8 g/dL. She was continued on 1800 kcalld of TPN with 24% of calories as protein through November 21, with intermittent spiking fevers (no source was identified). Hypomagnesemia developed ( 1.5 g/dL), but the remainder of the electrolytes and Ca, PO4 were all normal. The patient’s serum albumin level on November 22 was 2.0 g/dL. Her TPN was subsequently increased to 2200 kcal/d with 24% of that amount provided as protein ( 132 g/d), under the housestaff impression that her energy needs had not been met. On November 27 she became hypercapneic and tachycardic and was transferred to the SICU with ventilatory failure and atria1 fibrillation with a rapid ventricular response rate. Laboratory values at the time of transfer revealed: Na = 140 n-Q/L, K = 4.1 mEq/L, Cl = 105 mEq/L, HCOs = 25 mEq/L, blood urea nitrogen (BUN) = 29 mg/dL, Crt = 0.9 mg/dL, Glucose = 292 mg/dL, Ca = 7.9 mg/dL, PO, = 4.1, Mg = 2.1 mg/ dL, and Albumin = 2.6 g/dL. She subsequently underwent Swan-Ganz catheter placement with cardiac output = 4.5 L/ min, C.I. = 3.2 L * min-’ * m2 -I, SVR = 1400 dyne-set/cm-5, PA = 44126 mmHg, CVP = 21 mmHg, and PCWP = 22 mmHg. Arterial blood gases on 80% FI02 assist control ventilation (A/C) were pH 7.49, Paco2 = 35 mmHg, and Pa02 = 98 mmHg. She was started on broad-spectrum antibiotic coverage. Her subsequent hospital course was complicated by sepsis, congestive heart failure, and rapid ventricular-response atria1 fibrillation, which did not respond to a diltiazem drip (rate = 135 beats/mm). An echocardiogram revealed a normal left ventricular size, left ventricular hypokinesis, a mildly dilated left atrium, and moderate mitral and tricuspid regurgitation. She was started on digoxin without apparent response.
Designing Point Mutants to Detect Structural Coupling in a Heterotrimeric G Protein α-subunit by NMR Spectroscopy†

To better understand the mechanism by which the activating signal is transmitted from the receptor-interacting regions on the G protein alpha-subunit (G(alpha)) to the guanine nucleotide-binding pocket, we generated and characterized mutant forms of G(alpha) with alterations in switch II (Trp-207-->Phe) and the carboxyl-terminus (Phe-350-->Ala). Previously reported bacterial expression methods for the high-level production of a uniformly isotope-labeled G(talpha)/G(i1alpha) chimera, ChiT, were successfully used to isolate milligram quantities of (15)N-labeled mutant protein. NMR analysis showed that while the GDP/Mg(2+)-bound state of both mutants shared an overall conformation similar to that of the GDP/Mg(2+)-bound state of ChiT, formation of the "transition/activated" state in the presence of aluminum fluoride (AlF(4) (-)) revealed distinct differences between the wild-type and mutant G(alpha) subunits, particularly in the response of the (1)HN, (15)N cross-peak for the Trp-254 indole in the Trp-207-->Phe mutant and the (1)HN, (15)N cross-peak for Ala-350 in the Phe-350-->Ala mutant. Consistent with the NMR data, the F350-->Ala mutant showed an increase in intrinsic fluorescence that was similar to G(talpha) and ChiT upon formation of the "transition/activated" state in the presence of AlF(4) (-), whereas the intrinsic fluorescence of the Trp-207-->Phe mutant decreased. These results show that the substitution of key amino acid positions in G(alpha) can effect structural changes that may compromise receptor interactions and GDP/GTP exchange.
Crop management and input optimization with GLYCIM: differing cultivars

Abstract The soybean simulation model GLYCIM is mechanistic and operates at the physical and physiological process level. The model is organized in modules along disciplinary lines using a generic modular structure. The model was initially validated with data sets collected at the Plant Science Farm at Mississippi State University and calibrated to the cultivar “Forest”. In 1991 GLYCIM was released to soybean farmers and scientists at state experimental stations for crop management and input optimization. The soybean growers have claimed a 14–29% increase in yields and over a 400% increase in irrigation efficiency from using CLYCIM to manage irrigation. During the past two years, significant changes to GLYCIM have improved its predictions. Model improvements pertain to the effect of water stress on several physiological processes in the soybean plant and the method of accounting for numbers and weights of individual pods and seeds. In addition, cultivar parameter files have been developed for several cultivars. As a result of these changes, improved simulations have been obtained and grower usage of the model has been enhanced. The development of cultivar parameter files and the resulting simulations are discussed.
Observations on Serial Plasma Citrulline Concentrations in a Patient with Intestinal Ischemia and Full-Thickness Necrosis After Severe Thermal Injury

Abstract : Recent critical car literature by Piton et al has demonstrated that plasma citrulline may be a helpful adjunct in determining prognosis as well as determining intestinal dysfunction and failure. Citrulline is an amino acid produced by mitochondria within small bowel enterocytes. Citrulline is not incorporated into any protein, its plasma concentration is entirely derived from enterocyte production, and it is metabolized by the kidneys to arginine. Decreased plasma citrulline levels correlate with loss of enterocyte mass in short bowel syndrome and are associated with poor outcomes in radiation enteritis, sepsis, and critical illness. We compared their findings with our own recent observations of serial plasma citrulline levels in a severely burned adult who ultimately died from nonocclusive mescenteric ischemia leading to full-thickness small bowel necrosis.
DNA interaction and topoisomerase II inhibition by the antitumor agent 3'-(9-acridinylamino)-5'-hydroxymethylaniline and derivatives

Abstract Cleavage and cytotoxicity assays have been used to show that 3′-(9-acridinylamino)-5′-hydroxymethylaniline (AHMA) is a potent antileukemic agent that inhibits topoisomerase II-mediated relaxation of supercoiled DNA and promotes the topoisomerase II-mediated cleavage of DNA at a subset of the cleavage sites of 4′-(9-acridinylamino)-methanesulfon- m -anisidide ( m -AMSA). Equilibrium binding data show a larger binding constant for the more cytotoxic derivatives for binding to poly(dA-dT) 2 as compared to poly(dG-dC) 2 , but greater cooperativity for binding to poly(dG-dC) 2 and a steric barrier to binding caused by the size of the 5′-hydroxymethyl substituent. Circular dichroism shows a more intercalated binding geometry on poly(dG-dC) 2 for 1′-substituted derivatives when compared to AHMA and derivatives with a free 1′-amino group, which is absent with poly(dA-dT) 2 and calf thymus DNA and is indicative of specific interactions with GC-rich areas in natural DNA for AHMA and derivatives with free 1′-amino groups which may stabilize the drug–DNA complex.
ATF4-dependent transcription mediates signaling of amino acid limitation.

Mammals respond to dietary nutrient fluctuations; for example, deficiency of dietary protein or an imbalance of essential amino acids activates an amino acid response (AAR) signal transduction pathway, consisting of detection of uncharged tRNA by the GCN2 kinase, eIF2α phosphorylation and ATF4 expression. In concert with heterodimerization partners, ATF4 activates specific genes via a CCAAT-enhancer binding protein-activating transcription factor response element (CARE). This review outlines the ATF4-dependent transcriptional mechanisms associated with the AAR, focusing on progress during the past 5 years. Recent evidence suggests that maternal nutrient deprivation not only has immediate metabolic effects on the fetus, but also triggers gene expression changes in adulthood, possibly through epigenetic mechanisms. Therefore, understanding the transcriptional programs initiated by amino acid limitation is crucial and timely.
Disease Associated with Clostridium difficile Infection

Excerpt Not only is it difficult to diagnose gastrointestinal illness caused byClostridium difficileorganisms, it is even difficult to reconcile all the terms that have historically evolved to desc...
The relative Picard functor on schemes over a symmetric monoidal category

Abstract We consider schemes ( X , O X ) over an abelian closed symmetric monoidal category ( C , ⊗ , 1 ) . Our aim is to extend a theorem of Kleiman on the relative Picard functor to schemes over ( C , ⊗ , 1 ) . For this purpose, we also develop some basic theory on quasi-coherent modules on schemes ( X , O X ) over C .
Neural circuitry in the regulation of adrenal corticosterone rhythmicity

Adrenal cortical secretion of glucocorticoids is an essential adaptive response of an organism to stress. Although the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis regulates the adrenal cortex via release of ACTH, there is strong evidence supporting a role for sympathetic innervation in modulating adrenal glucocorticoid secretion. The dissociation between changes in ACTH and glucocorticoids under non-stress and stress conditions has reinforced the concept that neural control of the adrenal cortex acts to modulate steroidogenic responses to circulating ACTH. A dual control of the adrenal cortex has been implicated in the prominent circadian rhythm in glucocorticoids. However, the central neural substrate for circadian changes in glucocorticoids that are mediated by peripheral neural innervation of the adrenal cortex has not been conclusively delineated. The hypothesis to be addressed is that neurons in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus receive input from the suprachiasmatic nucleus and project to sympathetic preganglionic neurons in the spinal cord to provide inhibitory and excitatory input to the adrenal cortex that drives the circadian rhythm. This review examines anatomical and physiological evidence that forms the basis for this putative neural circuit.
Design of integrated IPMC/PVDF sensory actuator and its application to feedback control

Compact sensing schemes are desirable for feedback control of ionic polymer-metal composite (IPMC) actuators in their targeted bio, micro, and nano applications. In this paper, a novel integrated sensory actuator with both position and force feedback is designed by combining IPMC with polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) films. The design adopts differential configurations for both the sensor-actuator structure and the sensing circuit, and thus eliminates capacitive coupling between IPMC and PVDF, minimizes the internal stress at bonding interfaces, and enables excellent immunity to thermal and electromagnetic noises. Closed-loop position control of the IPMC output is demonstrated together with simultaneous tip force measurement, based upon the integrated PVDF position and force sensors.