cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Laparoscopic seromyotomy (auto-augmentation) for non-neurogenic neurogenic bladder in a child: Initial case report

An eight-year-old boy with lifelong urinary incontinence secondary to non-neurogenic neurogenic bladder underwent successful laparoscopic seromyotomy (auto-augmentation) with resultant cure of his incontinence. The ability to perform this laparoscopically with its seventy-minute operating time, decreased hospital stay, and improved cosmesis militates for its consideration before a standard augmentation is performed.
In-plane orientation effects on the electronic structure stability and Raman scattering of monolayer graphene on Ir(111).

We employ angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) to investigate the electronic structures of two rotational variants of epitaxial, single-layer graphene on Ir(111). As grown, the more-abundant $R$0 variant is nearly charge neutral, with strong hybridization between graphene and Ir bands near the Fermi level. The graphene Fermi surface and its replicas exactly coincide with Van Hove singularities in the Ir Fermi surface. Sublattice symmetry breaking introduces a small gap-inducing potential at the Dirac crossing, which is revealed by $n$ doping the graphene using K atoms. The energy gaps between main and replica bands (originating from the moir\'e interference pattern between graphene and Ir lattices) is shown to be nonuniform along the minizone boundary owing to hybridization with Ir bands. An electronically mediated interaction is proposed to account for the stability of the $R$0 variant. The variant rotated 30\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{} in plane, $R$30, is $p$ doped as grown, and K doping reveals no band gap at the Dirac crossing. No replica bands are found in ARPES measurements. Raman spectra from the $R$30 variant exhibit the characteristic phonon modes of graphene, while $R$0 spectra are featureless. These results show that the film and substrate interaction changes from chemisorption ($R$0) to physisorption ($R$30) with in-plane orientation. Finally, graphene-covered Ir has a work function lower than the clean substrate but higher than graphite.
A New Perspective on the Geometry of the San Andreas Fault in Southern California and Its Relationship to Lithospheric Structure

The widely held perception that the San Andreas fault (SAF) is vertical or steeply dipping in most places in southern California may not be correct. From studies of potential-field data, active-source imaging, and seismicity, the dip of the SAF is significantly nonvertical in many locations. The direction of dip appears to change in a systematic way through the Transverse Ranges: moderately southwest (55°–75°) in the western bend of the SAF in the Transverse Ranges (Big Bend); vertical to steep in the Mojave Desert; and moderately northeast (37°–65°) in a region extending from San Bernardino to the Salton Sea, spanning the eastern bend of the SAF in the Transverse Ranges. The shape of the modeled SAF is crudely that of a propeller. If confirmed by further studies, the geometry of the modeled SAF would have important implications for tectonics and strong ground motions from SAF earthquakes. The SAF can be traced or projected through the crust to the north side of a well documented high-velocity body (HVB) in the upper mantle beneath the Transverse Ranges. The north side of this HVB may be an extension of the plate boundary into the mantle, and the HVB would appear to be part of the Pacific plate.
Fermentative production of self-toxic fungal secondary metabolites

Fungi are well known for their vast diversity of secondary metabolites that include many life-saving drugs and highly toxic mycotoxins. In general, fungal cultures producing such metabolites are immune to their toxic effects. However, some are known to produce self-toxic compounds that can pose production optimization challenges if the metabolites are needed in large amounts for chemical modification. One such culture, LV-2841, was identified as the lead for one of our exploratory projects. This culture was found to be a slow grower that produced trace amounts of a known metabolite, cercosporamide, under the standard flask fermentation conditions, and extensive medium optimization studies failed to yield higher titers. Poor growth of the culture in liquid media was attributed to the self-toxicity of cercosporamide to the producing organism, and the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of cercosporamide was estimated to be in the range of 8–16 μg/ml. Fermentations carried out in media containing Diaion® HP20 resin afforded significantly higher titers of the desired compound. While several examples of resin-based fermentations of soil streptomyces have been published, this approach has rarely been used for fungal fermentations. Over a 100-fold increase in the production titer of cercosporamide, a self-toxic secondary metabolite, was achieved by supplementing the production medium with a commercially available neutral adsorbent resin.
Robust Estimators of Scale: Finite-Sample Performance in Long-Tailed Symmetric Distributions

Abstract This article presents the results of a Monte Carlo study of the robustness of scale estimates in the presence of long-tailed, symmetric distributions. The article examines the performance of several families of estimates in samples of size 20 from several distributions. The family of A-estimators, finite sample approximations to the asymptotic variance of M-estimators of location, appears to be more robust than the sample standard deviation, the median absolute deviation from the median (MAD), trimmed standard deviations, and M-estimators of scale. The most successful A estimator uses the biweight weighting function, which is also the basis for high-performance robust location estimates.
Experimental method to detect chiral asymmetry in specular light scattering from a naturally optically active medium

Abstract An experimental method is described for measuring chiral asymmetries in specular light scattering from a naturally optically active medium with a sensitivity on the order of one part in 106. The chiral asymmetries of interest are the differential reflection of left and right circularly polarised light (circular differential reflection) and the deviation from mutual orthogonality of reflected transverse electric and transverse magnetic polarised light (skewness). The measurement of these chiral asymmetries would permit one to test the recently predicted Fresnel amplitudes for reflection from isotropic optically active transparent and absorving media and thereby to resolved controversial fundamental issues concerning the electrodynamics of chiral media.
Migrant smuggling and the violence question: evolving illicit migration markets for Cuban and Haitian refugees

Comparing Cuban and Haitian migrant smuggling schemes, this article explores the relationship between violence and the social organization of migrant smuggling, including the smuggling of refugees. Levels of violence, political repression, and ethnic persecution in sending states provide an important context for understanding the origins and organization of this illicit market. Examining the violent threats and acts directed at migrants en route, we argue that violence is not a necessary part of the illicit market for unauthorized migration, attenuated by the social networks, cultural norms, and contractual relationships in which it is embedded.
Immune development in young-adult C.RF-hyt mice is affected by congenital and maternal hypothyroidism.

C.RF-hyt mice carry a mutation (hyt) that results in the phenotypic expression of congenital hypothyroidism in hyt/hyt mice due to a nonresponsiveness of the thyroid gland to thyroid-stimulating hormone. Heterozygotes of this strain are euthyroid. To further define thyroid-immune interactions, the effect of congenital hypothyroidism and maternal hypothyroidism on immune development were examined in 3- to 4-month-old hyt/+ and hyt/hyt progeny from hyt/+ and hyt/hyt dams. The state of immune development in these mice was compared on the basis of immune organ weights and the proliferation response of splenocytes stimulated with the T cell mitogens concanavalin A (Con A) and phytohemagglutinin and the B cell mitogen lipopolysaccharide. In addition, analysis of T cell subpopulations in thymus and spleen was conducted using direct and indirect immunofluorescence and flow cytometry. Data analyses for the main effects of congenital hypothyroidism on immune development revealed a significantly lower absolute thymus weight (P < 0.001), a lower (P = 0.022) percentage of thymocytes expressing CD8 (CD8+), a higher (P = 0.010) ratio between CD4+ and CD8+ thymocytes, a lower (P < 0.001) absolute and adjusted spleen weight, a lower (P = 0.001) Con A to phytohemagglutinin response ratio, a higher (P = 0.003) percentage of CD4+ splenocytes, and a marginally significant (P = 0.055) increase in the ratio between CD4+ and CD8+ splenocytes in hypothyroid compared with euthyroid mice. Data analyses for the main effects of maternal hypothyroidism revealed a significantly higher absolute (P = 0.025) and adjusted (P = 0.001) thymus weight, a higher (P = 0.006) ratio between CD4+ and CD8+ thymocytes, a lower Con A (P = 0.018) and lipopolysaccharides (P < 0.001) response, a marginally (P = 0.069) lower Con A to phytohemagglutinin response ratio, a lower (P = 0.001) percentage of CD4+ splenocytes, and a lower (P = 0.003) ratio between CD4+ and CD8+ splenocytes in progeny of hypothyroid compared with progeny of euthyroid mothers. These data provide further evidence for the importance of normal thyroid function in the development, maintenance, and function of the immune system. It was concluded that not only congenital hypothyroidism results in altered immune development in young-adult mice, but also long-term effects on immune development occur in progeny of hypothyroid mothers.
Striatal dopaminergic modulation of lateral hypothalamic self-stimulation☆

Abstract The bilateral application of crystalline 6-hydroxydopamine to the ventral anterior head of the corpus striatum of rats severeley suppressed responding for electrical stimulation of the lateral hypothalamus. This suppression lasted for days or weeks, after other behavioral deficits in food and water intake and activity had recovered. Application of crystalline dopamine through the same cannuals temporarily reversed the impairment. Applications of crystalline dopamine to the same striatal region of untreated rats were more effective in enhancing self-stimulation than similar applications of norepinephrine.
Therapeutic Opportunities for Self-Control Repair in Addiction and Related Disorders: Change and the Limits of Change in Trans-Disease Processes.

Contemporary neuroeconomic approaches hypothesize that self-control failure results from drugs annexing normal learning mechanisms that produce pathological reward processing and distort decision making as a result from the dysregulation of two valuation systems. An emphasis on processes shared across different diseases and disorders is at odds with the contemporary approach that assumes unique disease etiologies and treatments. Studying trans- disease processes can identify mechanisms that operate in multiple disease states and ascertain if factors that influence processes in one disease state may be applicable to all disease states. In this article we review the dual model of self- control failure, the Competing Neurobehavioral Decision System approach, the relationship of delay discounting to the relative control of these two systems, and evidence that the executive system can be strengthened. Future research that could result in more potent interventions for executive system improvement and potential constraints on the repair of self-control failure are discussed.
Occurrence of nicotianamine in higher plants

Abstract Nicotianamine is present in highest concentration in growing leaf tissue and has been found not only in the Solanaceae but also in the Liliaceae and Gramineae.
Assessing Drug Target Association Using Semantic Linked Data

The rapidly increasing amount of public data in chemistry and biology provides new opportunities for large-scale data mining for drug discovery. Systematic integration of these heterogeneous sets and provision of algorithms to data mine the integrated sets would permit investigation of complex mechanisms of action of drugs. In this work we integrated and annotated data from public datasets relating to drugs, chemical compounds, protein targets, diseases, side effects and pathways, building a semantic linked network consisting of over 290,000 nodes and 720,000 edges. We developed a statistical model to assess the association of drug target pairs based on their relation with other linked objects. Validation experiments demonstrate the model can correctly identify known direct drug target pairs with high precision. Indirect drug target pairs (for example drugs which change gene expression level) are also identified but not as strongly as direct pairs. We further calculated the association scores for 157 drugs from 10 disease areas against 1683 human targets, and measured their similarity using a score matrix. The similarity network indicates that drugs from the same disease area tend to cluster together in ways that are not captured by structural similarity, with several potential new drug pairings being identified. This work thus provides a novel, validated alternative to existing drug target prediction algorithms. The web service is freely available at: http://chem2bio2rdf.org/slap.
Onset of Shear Instability in Rotating Red Giants

We incorporate into an evolutionary code a unified treatment of turbulent transport due to convective and shear instabilities in a rotating star. The effects of composition gradients are included in a consistent way. We use the code to follow the evolution of rotating stars from the pre-main sequence to near the tip of the red giant branch. We find that at a certain stage in the red giant evolution of a 1 M? star, when the convectively unstable region occupies an extensive outer envelope, shear instability sets in in a zone just below the H-burning shell. However, at a later time, shear instability also develops in a second (outer) region that lies between the H-burning shell and the convective envelope. The onset of the outer region of shear instability coincides closely in time with a well-defined feature of red giant evolution: the bump (so-called because of its effect on the luminosity function of clusters). This evolutionary bump has recently been identified as a significant empirical marker among red giants: cool massive winds have been found to set in abruptly after the star evolves through the bump. The results we report in the present paper suggest that the onset of mass loss in red giants may be correlated with the onset of an outer region of shear instability inside the star. We offer some speculations concerning the possible physics of such a correlation.
The inhibition of amphibian ovulation in vitro by cytochalasin B

Cytochalasin B (5 μg/ml) verhindert in vitro vollstandig die inRana pipiens undHyla regilla durch Gonadotropinbehandlung stimulierte Ovulation, wahrend die Meiose weiter ablauft. Diese Resultate werden mit fruheren Beobachtungen einer ahnlichen Empfindlichkeit der Follikelzellenbewegung bei Seesternen verglichen. Ein fur Echinodermen und niedere Wirbeltiere gemeinsamer Follikelmechanismus fur die Austreibung des Ovarialeies aus dem Ovar wird vorgeschlagen.
Thermochemical evolution of young rhyolites at Yellowstone: Evidence for a cooling but periodically replenished postcaldera magma reservoir

Abstract Between circa 170 ka and 75 ka, more than 600 km3 of high-silica rhyolite composing the Central Plateau Member (CPM) lavas of the Plateau Rhyolite erupted within the margins of Yellowstone caldera. The compositions of CPM ferromagnesian phenocrysts and groundmass glasses provide important constraints on the thermochemical evolution of the youngest postcaldera rhyolites erupted within the Yellowstone caldera. Phenocryst and groundmass glass compositions are generally correlated with eruption age, with increasing Fe/Mg in ferromagnesian silicates, decreasing Ti in quartz, and increasing concentrations of incompatible elements erupted in melts over time. Crystallization and eruption temperatures from Fe–Ti oxide, QUILF, and TitaniQ geothermometry reveal that CPM rhyolites evolved between approximately 750 °C and 900 °C, with a general trend to cooler magma compositions over time. Titanium zoning within single quartz phenocrysts suggests that magma temperature fluctuated over tens of degrees during crystallization. The Pb–Nd isotope composition of CPM glasses indicates that as the rhyolites evolved to lower temperatures, they became more-juvenile in isotopic composition. These age-correlated compositional characteristics and the results from geothermometry suggest open-system evolution of a cooling magma reservoir that was periodically replenished with new rhyolite. Petrographic and isotopic differences between CPM rhyolites and older postcaldera rhyolites suggest that wallrock remelting was most important during the early postcaldera history of Yellowstone.
Prediction of thermoplastic flammability by thermogravimetry

Abstract The novel aspect of this work is that it examines relationship between the amount of thermogravimetry (TG) char measured at various sample degradation temperatures and the limiting oxygen index (LOI) at elevated sample temperatures. Analysis of experimental results indicates the amount of TG char is directly proportional to the LOI value of most thermoplastics evaluated. The higher the amount of TG char of a thermoplastic material, the higher will be its LOI value, i.e. lower flammability. The LOI value decreases, however, with higher sample temperatures. Statistical relationships for predicting LOI values of thermoplastics at various temperatures are provided.
Water quality impacts from mining in the Black Hills, South Dakota, USA

The focus of this research was to determine if abandoned mines constitute a major environmental hazard in the Black Hills. Many abandoned gold mines in the Black Hills contribute acid and heavy metals to streams. In some areas of sulfide mineralization local impacts are severe, but in most areas the impacts are small because most ore deposits consist of small quartz veins with few sulfides. Pegmatite mines appear to have negligible effects on water due to the insoluble nature of pegmatite minerals. Uranium mines in the southern Black Hills contribute some radioactivity to surface water, but the impact is limited because of the dry climate and lack of runoff in that area.
Uranium to Electricity: The Chemistry of the Nuclear Fuel Cycle

The nuclear fuel cycle consists of a series of industrial processes that produce fuel for the production of electricity in nuclear reactors, use the fuel to generate electricity, and subsequently manage the spent reactor fuel. While the physics and engineering of controlled fission are central to the generation of nuclear power, chemistry dominates all other aspects of the nuclear fuel cycle. An understanding of this chemistry is necessary to address the economic, environmental, safety, and proliferation issues that are essential to any substantive evaluation of nuclear power's contribution to the global energy portfolio. This article describes the role of chemistry in each component of the cycle from the metallurgy of uranium to the disposition of spent reactor fuel. It also addresses the economics of the components of the cycle and the costs of nuclear power relative to other sources of energy.
Investigation on Operating Temperature in Laser Assisted Milling of Silicon Nitride Ceramics

This paper discusses the operating temperature in laser assisted milling (LAMill) of silicon nitride ceramics. Experimental investigation shows that the laser parameters including laser power, laser beam diameter, laser translating speed and preheat time affect the temperatures at the cutting zone. Especially, laser intensity plays an important role in the heat absorption of silicon nitride ceramics. In LAM, high laser intensity is desired. In addition, laser interaction mechanism with silicon nitride shows that high operating temperature may cause the material at the thin top layer of the workpiece to oxidize and thereby forming silica bubbles. With high operating temperature the machined surface of the workpiece has good finish and less edge chipping.Copyright © 2008 by ASME
New synthetic methods via free radicals. Free-radical generation via photolytic homolysis of alkylcobaloxime carbon-cobalt bonds. Efficient radical trapping with useful functional groups

Etude effectuee avec R: divers alkyls primaires et secondaires; CH 2 (CH 2 ) 8 CH 3 ; CH 2 CH 2 Ph; CH(CH 3 )(CH 2 ) 8 CH 3 ; CH(CH 2 ) 4 CH 2 avec PRSSPh; PhSeSePhou BrCCl 3
Comparative evaluation of native RDF stores

The semantic web popularity is basis for the development of RDF stores. Benchmarks are being used to validate the performance claim of RDF stores. The existing studies measure the stores' performance only in terms of time and do not cover resource utilization, particularly the main memory, for data manipulation operations of RDF stores. Therefore, their provided information on semantic stores is limited. To cope with the deficiencies of the existing benchmarks, we have proposed an evaluation metric that considers both time and main memory to judge the performance of semantic stores on CRUD operations. The evaluation methodology has been applied on the existing semantic stores using the Barton Library dataset. We deduce that time and memory required for any operation, are interdependent. The evaluation results show that the proposed evaluation metric provides better cost estimation than the existing benchmarks.
Pueblo street fighting to national martial art: Nation building and the nationalization of a Venezuelan civilian combative practice

In this article, I examine how local groups are often instrumental in the establishment of nation-states whose legitimacy is later threatened through acts of resistance or subversion by these same groups or their heirs. In Venezuela, groups who maintain a tradition of stick fighting provide a case in point. Developed among the rural civilian population in the postcolonial era for defensive purposes and sometimes deployed in the service of the nascent Venezuelan state, stick fighting has recently been promoted as a national martial art. As one group of stick fighters helped link the popularization of this art with Venezuelan nationalism, it simultaneously drew on strategies of misdirection and secrecy associated with the art to restrict its dissemination. In doing so, it maintained local forms of sociality against the cultural domination of state and global forces.
Computational Studies on the Behavior of an Interface Separating Two Fluids Under Uniform Electric Field

Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS) are carried out to study the dynamics of a horizontal interface separating two fluids, having different electrical properties, under the influence of a uniform electric field. A front tracking/finite difference scheme is used, in conjunction with Taylor’s leaky dielectric model, to solve the governing electrohydrodynamics equations in both fluids at finite Reynolds numbers. The methodology and the code is validated by comparing the results with those of the analytical studies developed at the linear stability limit and it is shown that a very good agreement exists between the two. The results of this study show interesting interface behavior depending on the parameters of the problem. In all the cases considered, the interface becomes unstable beyond a critical voltage and starts to oscillate as it moves toward its steady-state shape which is a vertical column pointing from the liquid of higher electric conductivity to the one with a lower conductivity. The shape of the column, however, will vary depending on the individual governing parameters.Copyright © 2008 by ASME
Recruitment for an Internet-Based Diabetes Self-Management Program: Scientific and Ethical Implications

Little is known about the reach of Internet self-management interventions. The aim of this study was to evaluate different definitions of participation rate and compare characteristics among subcategories of participants and nonparticipants on demographic and clinical factors using de-identified electronic medical record data. Data are presented on recruitment results and characteristics of 2,603 health maintenance organization members having type 2 diabetes invited to participate in an Internet self-management program. There was a 37% participation rate among all members attempted to contact and presumed eligible. There were several significant differences between participants and nonparticipants and among subgroups of participants (e.g., proactive volunteers vs. telephone respondents) on factors including age, income, ethnicity, smoking rate, education, blood pressure, and hemoglobin A1c. These results have important implications for the impact of different recruitment methods on health disparities and generalization of results. We provide recommendations for reporting of eligibility rate, participation rate, and representativeness analyses.
Monte Carlo simulation of grain boundary segregation and decohesion in NiAl

Abstract Grand canonical Monte Carlo simulations are performed to study grain boundary segregation in the ordered intermetallic compound NiAl. The embedded atom method is applied to model atomic interactions in NiAl. The structure and chemical composition of Σ=5 (210) [001] and Σ=5 (310) [001] symmetrical tilt grain boundaries are studied as functions of the bulk composition at 1200 K. The grain boundaries tend to be enriched in Ni. Deviations of the bulk composition from the stoichiometry towards Ni-rich compositions increase local disorder and enhance Ni segregation at the grain boundaries. In one of the boundaries, the Ni segregation induces a structural transformation to a new metastable grain boundary structure. The effect of grain boundary disorder and segregation on grain boundary decohesion is evaluated by simulated tensile tests.
EARNINGS INEQUALITY IN USA, 1969–99: COMPARING INEQUALITY USING EARNINGS EQUATIONS

A simple decomposition method using an earnings equation is proposed by synthesizing two decomposition methodologies, those of Juhn, Murphy, and Pierce (1993) and Fields (2003), in order to study changes in earnings inequality in America during the last three decades in the 20th century. The proposed method enables us to compute both aggregate and detailed decompositions of changes in earnings inequality. The decomposition of earnings inequality change during the last three decades in 20th century shows that the increase in earnings inequality in America was caused by changes in the wage structure and the distribution of unobservables. The premium to education contributes substantially to the widening of earnings inequality during the 1980s and 1990s. A decreasing male wage premium contributes to leveling earnings inequality.
SENSORY ANALYSIS OF PEANUT-BASED IMITATION CHEESE SPREAD

The purpose of this study was to develop an imitation cheese spread from peanut paste. Sensory scores for flavor, color, overall acceptability and purchase intention by laboratory and consumer-type panels using magnitude estimation scaling were determined. Color measurements (L, a, b) were obtained using a Hunterlab Color Difference Meter. Results indicate that the preferred level of cheese flavor was 1%. No preference for color was indicated by the consumer panel, however, the laboratory panel liked the sample containing 0.6% Annato concentrate. Flavor preference scores correlated with acceptability and purchase intention for both panels. Contour maps prepared from response surface analysis data shows the samples with high levels of color were perceived as having a stronger flavor.
Automatic sex identification from short segments of speech

The performance of a sex identification system working on 16 ms segments of speech is discussed. Consideration is given to: the effectiveness of individual cepstral coefficients and frame-to-frame differences of those coefficients for sex identification; performance of the Gaussian classifier as a function of the amount of training data; the results of simplifications to the Gaussian classifier; performance when training and testing are done by phoneme, by phoneme-class, and on all speech; effects of training on one phoneme and testing on speech from different phonemes; and distribution of sex identification errors by speaker. It is concluded that, if the speech signal is of high quality, it should not be difficult to build a practical system which uses successive outputs from the single-frame Gaussian classifier to accurately classify a speaker as being male or female. Additional testing needs to be done on data which are not of such high quality. >
Preparation and characterization of lithium- and tetraalkylammonium tetrabutylaluminates

Abstract Lithium tetra-n-butylaluminate (LiAlBu 4 ) has been prepared by reacting n-hexane solutions of n-butyllithium and tri-n-butylaluminum. The tetraalkylammonium tetra-n-butylaluminates (R 4 NAlBu 4 ; R = Me, Et, n-Pr, n-Bu) have been prepared in benzene by the addition of sodium tetra-n-butylaluminate (NaAlBu 4 ) to solutions of R 4 NBr. The significance of the syntheses of these salts for the study of ion-ion and ion-solvent interactions has been discussed. The tetra-n-butylaluminate salts have been characterized by aluminum analyses, NMR spectroscopy, solubility data, melting points, and conductance data. The similarity between the physical and chemical properties of the R 4 NAlBu 4 salts and NaAlBu 4 , which has been extensively used for ion-solvent studies, indicates the potential value of these quaternary ammonium salts in analogous investigations.
A power quality perspective to system operational diagnosis using fuzzy logic and adaptive techniques

This paper presents the concepts and application details of a new adaptive neuro-fuzzy intelligent tool for power quality analysis and diagnosis. The various conceptual details are stated and the application of such concepts to two test systems is illustrated. The work introduces a novel approach to power quality from a single system's perspective. For a given system, classification of normal from abnormal operation, as well as full abnormality diagnosis are performed. Adaptive fuzzy-based self-learning techniques are a key ingredient of the new approach. The validation of the new technique is accomplished by diagnosing the operational conditions of a three-phase induction motor and a three-phase rectifier bridge. The work paves the way toward an ultimate objective of developing an intelligent power quality diagnosis tool capable of predicting abnormal operation of individual power systems.
Accuracy of Estimated Creatinine Clearance in Obese Patients With Stable Renal Function in the Intensive Care Unit

We compared agreement between creatinine clearance values in obese, critically ill patients calculated using three common empirically derived formulas and modifications thereof, with creatinine clearance obtained by conventional 24-hour urine collection. We selected the charts of 22 patients in intensive care units (86% medical, 14% surgical) according to the following criteria: actual body weight greater than 150% of ideal body weight; serum creatinine variation of less than 15% from the day of starting 24-hour urine collection to the day before or after the collection; presence of a urinary bladder catheter; no history of renal dialysis; and clinical indication for renal function assessment. Mean measured 24-hour urinary creatinine clearance for all patients was 72 +/- 64 ml/minute (range 8-248 ml/min). The method of estimating creatinine clearance that showed the least mean bias was the equation of Salazar and Corcoran using a corrected serum creatinine concentration (mean bias -2 ml/min); however, the corresponding 95% confidence intervals were wide (-133-129 ml/min). The narrowest range of 95% confidence intervals were seen with Jelliffe's equation (mean bias 25 ml/min, 95% confidence intervals -41-90 ml/min). In this sample, estimated creatinine clearances did not agree acceptably with measured values. Despite low mean bias values, none of the empirically derived equations that we studied had clinically acceptable 95% confidence intervals. We recommend using the 24-hour urine collection method when assessing creatinine clearance in obese, critically ill patients.
Stimulation of the paraventricular nucleus modulates the activity of gut-sensitive neurons in the vagal complex

There is good evidence that stimulation of the lateral hypothalamus excites neurons in the dorsal vagal complex (DVC), but the data regarding the role of the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) in vagal function are less clear. The purpose of this study was to clarify the effect of PVN stimulation on the activity of neurons in the DVC. We utilized extracellular and intracellular neuronal recordings with intracellular injections of a neuronal tracer to label individual, physiologically characterized neurons in the DVC of rats anesthetized with pentobarbital sodium. Most (80%) of the gut-sensitive dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus (DMNV) neurons characterized in this study exhibited a change in activity during electrical stimulation of the PVN. Stimulation of the PVN caused an increase in the spontaneous activity of 59% of the PVN-sensitive DMNV neurons, and the PVN was capable of modulating the response of a small subset of DMNV neurons to gastrointestinal stimuli. This study also demonstrated that the PVN was capable of influencing the activity of neurons in the nucleus of the solitary tract (NST). Electrical stimulation of the PVN decreased the basal activity of 66% of the NST cells that we characterized and altered the gastrointestinal response of a very small subset of NST neurons. It is likely that these interactions play a role in the modulation of a number of gut-related homeostatic processes. Increased or decreased activity in the descending pathway from the PVN to the DVC has the potential to alter ascending satiety signals, modulate vago-vagal reflexes and the cephalic phase of feeding, and affect the absorption of nutrients from the gastrointestinal tract.
Characterization of Mars' seasonal caps using neutron spectroscopy

[1] Mars' seasonal caps are characterized during Mars years 26 and 27 (April 2002 to January 2006) using data acquired by the 2001 Mars Odyssey Neutron Spectrometer. Time-dependent maps of the column abundance of seasonal CO2 surface ice poleward of 60° latitude in both hemispheres are determined from spatially deconvolved, epithermal neutron counting data. Sources of systematic error are analyzed, including spatial blurring by the spectrometer's broad footprint and the seasonal variations in the abundance of noncondensable gas at high southern latitudes, which are found to be consistent with results reported by Sprague et al. (2004, 2007). Corrections for spatial blurring are found to be important during the recession, when the column abundance of seasonal CO2 ice has the largest latitude gradient. The measured distribution and inventory of seasonal CO2 ice is compared to simulations by a general circulation model (GCM) calibrated using Viking lander pressure data, cap edge functions determined by thermal emission spectroscopy, and other nuclear spectroscopy data sets. On the basis of the amount of CO2 cycled through the caps during years 26 and 27, the gross polar energy balance has not changed significantly since Viking. The distribution of seasonal CO2 ice is longitudinally asymmetric: in the north, deposition rates of CO2 ice are elevated in Acidalia, which is exposed to katabatic winds from Chasma Borealis; in the south, CO2 deposition is highest near the residual cap. During southern recession, CO2 ice is present longer than calculated by the GCM, which has implications for the local polar energy balance.
Structure-function of the tumor suppressor BRCA1

BRCA1, a multi-domain protein, is mutated in a large percentage of hereditary breast and ovarian cancers. BRCA1 is most often mutated in three domains or regions: the N-terminal RING domain, exons 11-13, and the BRCT domain. The BRCA1 RING domain is responsible for the E3 ubiquitin ligase activity of BRCA1 and mediates interactions between BRCA1 and other proteins. BRCA1 ubiquitinates several proteins with various functions. The BRCA1 BRCT domain binds to phosphoproteins with specific sequences recognized by both BRCA1 and ATM/ATR kinases. Structural studies of the RING and BRCT domains have revealed the molecular basis by which cancer causing mutations impact the functions of BRCA1. While no structural data is available for the amino acids encoded by exons 11-13, multiple binding sites and functional domains exist in this region. Many mutations in exons 11-13 have deleterious effects on the function of these domains. In this mini-review, we examine the structure-function relationships of the BRCA1 protein and the relevance to cancer progression.
Real-time cardiac MRI at 3 tesla

Real-time cardiac and coronary MRI at 1.5T is relatively "signal starved" and the 3T platform is attractive for its immediate factor of two increase in magnetization. Cardiac imaging at 3T, however, is both subtly and significantly different from imaging at 1.5T because of increased susceptibility artifacts, differences in tissue relaxation, and RF homogeneity issues. New RF excitation and pulse sequence designs are presented which deal with the fat-suppression requirements and off-resonance issues at 3T. Real-time cardiac imaging at 3T is demonstrated with high blood SNR, blood-myocardium CNR, resolution, and image quality, using new spectral-spatial RF pulses and fast spiral gradient echo pulse sequences. The proposed sequence achieves 1.5 mm in-plane resolution over a 20 cm FOV, with a 5.52 mm measured slice thickness and 32 dB of lipid suppression. Complete images are acquired every 120 ms and are reconstructed and displayed at 24 frames/sec using a sliding window. Results from healthy volunteers show improved image quality, a 53% improvement in blood SNR efficiency, and a 232% improvement in blood-myocardium CNR efficiency compared to 1.5T.
Distortion analysis for multiplierless sampling rate conversion using linear transfer functions

Approximation techniques simplify sampling rate conversion with a rational ratio. The multiplierless approach, also known as zero-order polynomial interpolation, drops or repeats selected samples of the input sequence. Previous distortion analyses are based either on the time domain sample error or the frequency transform of the output sequence. Our new approach shows that any approximate conversion is equivalent to the use of a multirate finite impulse response (FIR) filter where all nonzero coefficients are identical and leads to a simplified analysis in terms of the transfer function of the underlying filter. Applications include nonuniform sampling, bandpass sampling, and digital synthesis of sinusoids.
Polygenic score × intervention moderation: an application of discrete-time survival analysis to modeling the timing of first tobacco use among urban youth.

The present study examines the interaction between a polygenic score and an elementary school-based universal preventive intervention trial. The polygenic score reflects the contribution of multiple genes and has been shown in prior research to be predictive of smoking cessation and tobacco use (Uhl et al., 2014). Using data from a longitudinal preventive intervention study, we examined age of first tobacco use from sixth grade to age 18. Genetic data were collected during emerging adulthood and were genotyped using the Affymetrix 6.0 microarray. The polygenic score was computed using these data. Discrete-time survival analysis was employed to test for intervention main and interaction effects with the polygenic score. We found a main effect of the intervention, with the intervention participants reporting their first cigarette smoked at an age significantly later than controls. We also found an Intervention × Polygenic Score interaction, with participants at the higher end of the polygenic score benefitting the most from the intervention in terms of delayed age of first use. These results are consistent with Belsky and colleagues' (e.g., Belsky, Bakermans-Kranenburg, & van IJzendoorn, 2007; Belsky & Pleuss, 2009, 2013; Ellis, Boyce, Belsky, Bakermans-Kranenburg, & van IJzendoorn, 2011) differential susceptibility hypothesis and the concept of "for better or worse," wherein the expression of genetic variants are optimally realized in the context of an enriched environment, such as provided by a preventive intervention.
Keeping encountered information

Utility, serendipity, and the pleasure of encountering what we save relies on more than search alone when using PIM tools.
Evaluation of the local carcinogenic potential of mesh used in the treatment of female stress urinary incontinence.

To evaluate the carcinogenic potential of implanted synthetic mesh midurethral slings in the treatment of female stress urinary incontinence. We identified female patients undergoing implantation of mesh materials for stress urinary incontinence at our institution from 1 January 2002 to 31 December 2012. This was accomplished by querying the medical records for CPT code 57288 (“sling operation for stress incontinence”) and a subsequent chart review to identify patients who underwent synthetic mesh sling placement. Medical records were then evaluated for the documentation of bladder, urethral, vaginal, cervical, uterine or ovarian cancers via the International Classification of Disease (ninth edition) coding. A chart review of patients with a cancer diagnosis was performed for verification of the diagnosis and evaluation of the temporal relationship with sling placement. During the study period, 2,474 patients underwent polypropylene midurethral sling placement. The median age was 57 years (IQR 47, 69) and the median follow-up was 60 months (IQR 23.3, 94.9). Overall, 51 patients also had a cancer diagnosis (8 bladder cancers, 7 vaginal malignancies, 8 ovarian carcinomas, 26 endometrial cancers, 2 cervical malignancies); however, only 2 cancers (0.08 %, 2 out of 2,474) developed following sling placement (a vaginal melanoma 3 years after sling placement and an ovarian tumor 1 year after sling placement). No cases of sarcoma formation, bladder, urethral or squamous cell carcinomas were identified. With a median follow-up of 5 years after synthetic midurethral sling placement, development of pelvic malignancy was rare (0.08 %) and unlikely to be secondary to foreign body reaction from the implanted material.
A 0.77 mW 2.4 GHz RF Front-End With $-$ 4.5 dBm In-Band IIP3 Through Inherent Filtering

This letter describes low-power design techniques that are demonstrated with a 2.4 GHz RF front-end consuming 0.77 mW while having a $-$ 4.5 dBm in-band third-order intermodulation intercept point (IIP3), a noise figure (NF) of 6.3 dB, and a spurious-free dynamic range (SFDR) up to 62.8 dB. Cross-coupling capacitors in the active mixer alleviate the gain loss due to parasitic capacitances. They also provide paths from the common sources of the switching stage to the low-noise amplifier load, forming inductor-capacitor filters that improve linearity. The proposed RF front-end was fabricated in a 130 nm CMOS process to exemplify the design techniques with specifications for ZigBee applications.
Concurrent chemoradiotherapy versus radiotherapy alone for “biopsy-only” glioblastoma multiforme

BACKGROUND Combined temozolomide and radiotherapy (RT) is the standard postoperative therapy for glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). However, the clearest benefit of concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CRT) observed in clinical trials has been among patients who undergo surgical resection. Whether the improved survival with CRT extends to patients who undergo “biopsy only” is less certain. The authors compared overall survival (OS) in a national cohort of patients with GBM who underwent biopsy and received either RT alone or CRT during the temozolomide era. METHODS The US National Cancer Data Base was used to identify patients with histologically confirmed, biopsy-only GBM who received either RT alone or CRT from 2006 through 2011. Demographic and clinicopathologic predictors of treatment were analyzed using the chi-square test, the t test, and multivariable logistic regression. OS was evaluated using the log-rank test, multivariable Cox proportional hazard regression, and propensity score-matched analysis. RESULTS In total, 1479 patients with biopsy-only GBM were included, among whom 154 (10.4%) received RT alone and 1325 (89.6%) received CRT. The median age at diagnosis was 61 years. CRT was associated with a significant OS benefit compared with RT alone (median, 9.2 vs 5.6 months; hazard ratio [HR], 0.64; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.54-0.76; P < .001). CRT was independently associated with improved OS compared with RT alone on multivariable analysis (HR, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.60-0.85; P < .001). A significant OS benefit for CRT persisted in a propensity score-matched analysis (HR, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.56-0.93; P = .009). CONCLUSIONS The current data suggest that CRT significantly improves OS in patients with GBM who undergo biopsy only compared with RT alone and should remain the standard of care for patients who can tolerate therapy. Cancer 2016. © 2016 American Cancer Society.
Building Community and Capacity: Self-Study and the Development of Social Constructivist Online Teaching

Bank Street College was founded in 1916 with a commitment to constructivist practice. When the College began to move into the online venue, there was no question but that online practice would need to share this constructivist vision. The question was: How this could be done? This research describes the process and outcomes of a self-generated, self-directed faculty group working together across graduate programs of education to design, implement and engage in self study of constructivist practices in online learning. The goals of this work were to describe specific constructivist practices and the ways in which digital pedagogy has extended the learning of both faculty and students. We also sought to identify the ways in which collaborative self-study supports the development of online practice by encouraging faculty to take risks leading them to reframe understandings of teaching and learning.
CMOS micromechanical resonator oscillator

A completely monolithic high-Q oscillator, fabricated via a combined CMOS plus surface micromachining technology, is described, for which the oscillation frequency is controlled by a polysilicon micromechanical resonator to achieve stability and phase noise performance comparable to those of quartz crystal oscillators. It is shown that the closed-loop, steady-state oscillation amplitude of this oscillator can be controlled through the DC-bias voltage applied to the capacitively driven and sensed /spl mu/resonator. Measurements indicate a phase noise density level of -168 dBm/Hz at 5 kHz offset frequency for an oscillator carrier power of -14.5 dBm. >
Intelligent control of robot manipulators in hazardous environments

The characteristics of hazardous environments and the impact these have on robot manipulator system control are reviewed. In particular, computer-based reasoning must be integrated into the control of robot manipulators to allow successful application to such environments. Computing architectures and the concomitant software structures necessary to support both the high-level reasoning and low-level servo control requirements are discussed in the context of prototype robot systems. >