cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
PaKman: A Scalable Algorithm for Generating Genomic Contigs on Distributed Memory Machines

De novo genome assembly is a fundamental problem in the field of bioinformatics, that aims to assemble the DNA sequence of an unknown genome from numerous short DNA fragments (aka reads) obtained from it. With the advent of high-throughput sequencing technologies, billions of reads can be generated in a matter of hours, necessitating efficient parallelization of the assembly process. While multiple parallel solutions have been proposed in the past, conducting a large-scale assembly at scale remains a challenging problem because of the inherent complexities associated with data movement, and irregular access footprints of memory and I/O operations. In this article, we present a novel algorithm, called PaKman , to address the problem of performing large-scale genome assemblies on a distributed memory parallel computer. Our approach focuses on improving performance through a combination of novel data structures and algorithmic strategies for reducing the communication and I/O footprint during the assembly process. PaKman presents a solution for the two most time-consuming phases in the full genome assembly pipeline, namely, k-mer counting and contig generation . A key aspect of our algorithm is its graph data structure (PaK-Graph), which comprises fat nodes (or what we call “macro-nodes”) that reduce the communication burden during contig generation. We present an extensive performance and qualitative evaluation of our algorithm across a wide range of genomes (varying in both size and species group), including comparisons to other state-of-the-art parallel assemblers. Our results demonstrate the ability to achieve near-linear speedups on up to 16K cores (tested) on the NERSC Cori supercomputer; perform better than or comparable to other state-of-the-art distributed memory and shared memory tools in terms of performance while delivering comparable (if not better) quality; and reduce time to solution significantly. For instance, PaKman is able to generate a high-quality set of assembled contigs for complex genomes such as the human and bread wheat genomes in under a minute on 16K cores. In addition, PaKman was able to successfully process a 3.1 TB simulated dataset of one of the largest known genomes (to date)- Ambystoma mexicanum (the axolotl), in just over 200 seconds on 16K cores.
Gadolinium Deposition: A Study Review.

Purpose To analyze literature specific to gadolinium deposition and inform medical imaging professionals about potential risks of contrast retention related to magnetic resonance (MR) imaging examinations as well as alternative imaging techniques that reduce or eliminate the need for gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs). Methods Peer-reviewed journal articles were collected using PubMed, Academic Search Complete, and Science Direct electronic databases. Information from an MR textbook and reports from various organizations complemented the scholarly sources. Results The literature focused on classifications of GBCAs, associated risks, deposition rates, current recommendations, and alternative imaging techniques. Discussion Less stable nonionic linear agents accumulate in tissues at a higher rate than do ionic macrocyclic agents. Deposition still occurs with more stable macrocyclic agents but at lower levels. MR technologists are responsible for checking their patients' renal function and choosing the most appropriate GBCA while adhering to current recommendations regarding contrast administration. The clinical significance of retained gadolinium in the brain is unknown. Long-term studies are necessary to determine whether gadolinium deposition in the brain causes neurological deficits. Until those clinical implications are understood fully, discussions will continue about the use of alternative imaging techniques that reduce or eliminate the need for GBCAs. Conclusion Decisions regarding patients at risk for gadolinium retention should be made on a case-by-case basis, with the risks and benefits weighed. Every effort should be made to minimize residual gadolinium, especially in patients who have renal insufficiency and in patients who require repeated contrast examinations. When contrast is necessary, MR technologists should use the most stable type in the lowest possible dose.
Movimentos migratórios e internacionalização da educação superior

The article establishes a dialogue between the internationalization of higher education and the role of the university based on migratory movements. It aims to make a critical reflection on the role of the Brazilian university and the current phenomenon of immigration from the internationalization actions of higher education within the scope of social responsibility. The study is based on a qualitative and quantitative approach based on bibliographic readings and document analysis using scientific journals, books and legal documents. The results show the reflection of the role of the university as an institution with transformative power of people through the bias of international cooperation through integrative social actions.
A Biopython-based method for comprehensively searching for eponyms in Pubmed

Abstract Eponyms are common in medicine; however, their usage has varied between specialties and over time. A search of specific eponyms will reveal the frequency of usage within a medical specialty. While usage of eponyms can be studied by searching PubMed, manual searching can be time-consuming. As an alternative, we modified an existing Biopython method for searching PubMed. In this method, a list of disease eponyms is first manually collected in an Excel file. A Python script then creates permutations of the eponyms that might exist in the cited literature. These permutations include possessives (e.g., ‘s) as well as various forms of combining multiple surnames. PubMed is then automatically searched for this permutated library of eponyms, and duplicate citations are removed. The final output file may then be sorted and enumerated by all the data fields which exist in PubMed. This method will enable rapid searching and characterization of eponyms for any specialty of medicine. This method is agnostic to the type of terms searched and can be generally applied to the medical literature including non-eponymous terms such as gene names and chemical compounds. • Custom Python scripts using Biopython's Bio.Entrez module automate the search for medical eponyms. • This method can be more broadly used to search for any set of terms existing in PubMed.
Addressing Linguistic Barriers to Care: Evaluation of Breast Cancer Online Patient Educational Materials for Spanish-Speaking Patients.

Abstract Purpose The purpose of this study was to evaluate the readability of breast cancer online patient educational materials (OPEM) written in Spanish and to compare to equivalent English-language OPEM. Methods The breast cancer–related terms cancer de seno (breast cancer), deteccion de cancer de seno (breast cancer screening), and biopsia de seno (breast biopsy) were queried using an online search engine. After each query, educational information related to the queried term was downloaded from each website appearing on the first five search engine result pages. Readability of Spanish-language OPEM was evaluated using the Crawford reading grade score. When available, equivalent English-language OPEM from the same website was then evaluated using the mean of five validated readability indices. Differences in readability, word count, and reading time between Spanish- and English-language OPEM were compared using an unpaired t test. The Fisher exact test was used to compare the proportion of websites meeting AMA recommendations for patient educational resources. Results Queries for cancer de seno, deteccion de cancer de seno, and biopsia de seno yielded 27, 31, and 30 results of term-specific OPEM. Equivalent English-language versions were available for 19 (70.4%), 18 (58.1%), and 20 (66.7%) websites, respectively. Spanish-language OPEM were written at a lower grade reading level than equivalent English-language versions overall (5.49 ± 0.50 versus 7.77 ± 1.95, P Conclusions Breast cancer–related Spanish-language OPEM were written at a significantly lower grade reading level compared with equivalent information written in English.
Benchmarking 50 classification algorithms on 50 gene-expression datasets

Abstract By classifying patients into subgroups, clinicians can provide more effective care than using a uniform approach for all patients. Such subgroups might include patients with a particular disease subtype, patients with a good (or poor) prognosis, or patients most (or least) likely to respond to a particular therapy. Diverse types of biomarkers have been proposed for assigning patients to subgroups. For example, DNA variants in tumors show promise as biomarkers; however, tumors exhibit considerable genomic heterogeneity. As an alternative, transcriptomic measurements reflect the downstream effects of genomic and epigenomic variations. However, high-throughput technologies generate thousands of measurements per patient, and complex dependencies exist among genes, so it may be infeasible to classify patients using traditional statistical models. Machine-learning classification algorithms can help with this problem. However, hundreds of classification algorithms exist—and most support diverse hyperparameters—so it is difficult for researchers to know which are optimal for gene-expression biomarkers. We performed a benchmark comparison, applying 50 classification algorithms to 50 gene-expression datasets (143 class variables). We evaluated algorithms that represent diverse machine-learning methodologies and have been implemented in general-purpose, open-source, machine-learning libraries. When available, we combined clinical predictors with gene-expression data. Additionally, we evaluated the effects of performing hyperparameter optimization and feature selection in nested cross-validation folds. Kernel- and ensemble-based algorithms consistently outperformed other types of classification algorithms; however, even the top-performing algorithms performed poorly in some cases. Hyperparameter optimization and feature selection typically improved predictive performance, and univariate feature-selection algorithms outperformed more sophisticated methods. Together, our findings illustrate that algorithm performance varies considerably when other factors are held constant and thus that algorithm selection is a critical step in biomarker studies. Author Summary
Sino-U.S. Decoupling: The Roles of U.S. Congress

The Sino-U.S. relations tumbled during the Trump Administration. The talk of decoupling permeated the decision-making circle in Washington D.C. Many factors have contributed to the free fall. The roles Congress has played are undoubtedly one of them. Based on the new institutionalist approach, this study provides three analyses of recent China-related legislative activities. First, the historical analysis of legislative data illustrates a surge in congressional activism on China-related legislative activities. Second, the content analysis reveals some of the triggers in the deterioration of bilateral relations in recent years. Third, the political analysis of the critical congressional players and the structures and procedures Congress created provides some insight into the domestic and political logic of the congressional crusade against China. Finally, the paper ends with assessing the impact of the surge in Congressional activism on the new Biden Administration.
Association of turn-taking functions with joint attention in toddlers with autism.

Nonverbal turn taking, defined as back-and-forth exchanges, may be used to convey instrumental or social intent. It has been theorized that social turn taking is foundational to joint attention and...
Biology and Current Treatment of Myeloproliferative Neoplasms

The classical myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN) are characterized by clonal expansion of one or more hematopoietic cell lineages and are driven by mutations that activate constitutive signaling via JAK2 pathway. The criteria for diagnosis have now been defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the term MPN as is currently used encompasses the entities of primary myelofibrosis, polycythemia vera, and essential thrombocytosis. There is imperfect correlation between the genotype and disease phenotype in MPN and the latter is determined by a variety of patient factors that are independent of the driver mutation. The disease course in MPN can span decades and accurate risk assessment is critical in the choice of therapy and treatment is largely geared toward prevention of complications and providing symptomatic relief. Although new agents have been approved in recent years, no therapy has been convincingly shown to alter disease progression and allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HCT) remains the only curative therapy known to date.
Saving and Improving Lives in the Information Age: Presidential Address at the American Heart Association 2014 Scientific Sessions.

Good afternoon, and welcome to the Scientific Sessions. On behalf of all of the American Heart Association’s (AHA) clinicians, scientists, lay volunteers, and staff, I extend a warm welcome and offer my thanks for your efforts to understand, prevent, and treat cardiovascular diseases. We are inspired by your dedication to saving and improving lives. The burden of these diseases is something we all share, no matter where we live or work. So let us make the most of our opportunities to learn from one another throughout the Scientific Sessions. For these next 4 days, Chicago is home to the latest in cardiovascular and stroke research. Chicago is also home to significant cardiovascular history. Ninety years ago, Chicago resident Dr James B. Herrick joined Dr Paul Dudley White and 4 other pioneering physicians at Chicago’s Drake Hotel to create the AHA.1 They started this lifesaving organization just 4 miles away from where we are sitting right now. Yet, it was worlds away when we consider what we can offer patients today. We now have tools at our disposal that we could barely imagine only a few years ago. New diagnostic and therapeutic options are being discovered at a pace unseen in human history. We have an unprecedented opportunity to harness these advances to save and improve lives, and that is what I would like to talk to you about. But first, I would like to share a quick illustration of just how much our tools have changed. This 28-pound box is the actual ECG machine Paul Dudley White used in his office decades ago.2 It was considered state of the art back then. With the patient lying supine and connected to the device, a paper recording of the ECG could be obtained, a single lead at a time. Now, …
Intravenous IgG Replacement in PIDD: Dose and Clinical Expectations

Immunology and Allergy Clinics of North America - In Press.Proof corrected by the author Available online since samedi 21 juillet 2012
Near Infrared Imaging of Cooling Flow Galaxies

In this paper, we present H band observations of cD galaxies with cooling flows. We imaged these galaxies with the Near Infrared Grism Spectrometer and Imager (GRIM) on the Astrophysical Research Consortium (ARC) Apache Point observatory 1.8 meter telescope. These images are part of a program to use near infrared and optical colors to investigate the stellar populations of cD galaxies.
Fractional calculus and fractional paradigm in electromagnetic theory

The paper begins by discussing fractional derivatives and integrals; leading on to the fractional paradigm in electromagnetic theory. A brief review of some applications is given, including EM propagation, electrostatics and antennas.
Internet phone — changing the telephony paradigm?

This paper provides an overview of the history, current status, and underlying technology of ‘Internet telephony‘ — the transport of speech information over a packet-switched connectionless network. The economics of Internet telephony and a number of possible system architectures for interconnection with the switched telephone network are examined. The paper concludes with a look at the quality of service issues raised by Internet telephony.
Urbanization without Growth : A Not-So-Uncommon Phenomenon

To find out why African countries' experience with urbanization and sustained growth appeared to differ from that of other countries, the authors investigated the determinants of urbanization across countries over 40 years. Rather than studying individuals' decisions to migrate, they relied on macroeconomic data and cross-country comparisons. A central hypothesis of their study: that individuals move (with varying degrees of ease) in response to economic incentives and opportunities. If location incentives are distorted, so is growth. The authors find that urbanization levels are closely correlated with levels of income. But urbanization continues even during periods of negative growth, carried by its own momentum, largely a function of the level of urbanization. From that viewpoint, Africa's urbanization without growth is not a puzzle. Factors other than income that help predict differences in levels of urbanization across countries include: a) income structure; b) education; c) rural-urban wage differentials; d) ethnic tensions; and e) civil disturbances. In addition, the relationship between economic incentives and urbanization is weaker in countries with fewer civil or political liberties. Factors other than initial urbanization level that help explain the speed of urbanization include: 1) The sector from which income growth is derived; 2) ethnic tensions; 3) civil disturbances and democracy (these two slow the pace of urbanization if all else is constant); 4) rural-urban wage differentials, whether they represent an urban bias or simply lower productivity in agriculture relative to other sectors. The weak relationship that this study shows between urbanization and traditionally accepted migration factors suggests that in Africa economists are overlooking part of the urbanization story. The fact that the informal sector appears to provide a significant source of income for urban migrants, coupled with the overlap between rural and urban activities, may shed light on the nature of urbanization in Africa.
Anomalous transport properties of a linear-chain metal: Nb Se 3

The transport properties of the linear-chain metal Nb${\mathrm{Se}}_{3}$ are anomalous. Giant increases in the dc resistivity appear at 145 and 59 K, suggestive of charge-density-wave (CDW) formation. These anomalies show breakdown effects with applied electric fields as low as 0.1 V ${\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$. The temperature dependence of the resistivity also shows strong variation at microwave frequencies. We report measurements on the temperature dependence of the non-Ohmic effect together with microwave results and review the evidence for CDW formation. On the basis of the CDW model we have extracted a parameter $\ensuremath{\alpha}$ from the data which gives the fraction of the Fermi surface destroyed by the CDW gap. Other models are discussed and compared with the CDW model. We consider the possibility that the anomalous conductivity may arise from nonlinear excitations of a pinned CDW.
Soybean Response to Plant Population at Early and Late Planting Dates in the Mid-South

The widespread adoption of glyphosate [N-(phosphonylmethyl)-glycine]-resistant soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] and the increased cost of soybean seed have generated interest in determining the minimum plant population needed for maximum yield. The objective of this study was to determine yield and economic return responses to plant population for normal and late planting dates. Cultivars with relative maturities of 2.8 to 4.9 were planted at five seeding rates (43,000 to 560,000 seeds ha -1 ) in May and/or June in 38-cm rows during 2003 to 2005. The effect of plant population on both yield and economic return was explained with a variation of a Mitscherlich equation. Optimum plant population (OPP) and economically optimum plant population (EOPP) were defined as those resulting in 95% of the estimated yield or estimated economic return, respectively, at the maximum plant population. Optimum plant population ranged from 108,000 to 232,000 plants ha -1 for May planting dates and 238,000 to 282,000 plants ha -1 for June planting dates. Economically optimum plant populations were 7 to 33% less than OPPs. Complete canopy cover at R1 produced maximum yield in 8 of 10 comparisons. These results suggest that seeding rates below those that are currently recommended could lower seed costs without reducing yield.
Replication and Transcription: Silence of the ORCs

The origin recognition complex, a multi-protein complex known to bind to replication origins, has now been implicated in transcriptional silencing, providing another link between DNA replication and transcription.
Derivation of Several SDE Systems in One- and Two-Locus Population Genetics

A direct approach is described for deriving stochastic differential equations (SDEs) for the dynamics of evolving populations. Ito SDEs are presented and compared for populations of haploid and diploid individuals with one or more alleles at one locus undergoing pure genetic drift. The results agree with previous investigations in mathematical genetics using diffusion approximations. Furthermore, a stochastic differential equation model is derived for diploid populations with two alleles at two loci. The derived SDE systems provide unifying, consistent models.
Review of techniques for diagnosis of catheter-related Candida biofilm infections

Recent evidence shows that many hospital-acquired infections, including most device-associated infections, involve the persistence of sessile organisms in the form of biofilms that are attached to a device surface and encased in an extracellular matrix. The cells in this environment exhibit an altered phenotype with respect to antimicrobial resistance and thus are extraordinarily difficult to eradicate without device removal. Although a number of implantable and topical devices are at risk for Candida biofilm formation, this review focuses on the diagnosis of the most common of these infections, biofilm growth on the surface of central venous catheters and urinary catheters.
Nuclear-magnetic-resonance studies of ferroelectricity in normal and irradiated Rochelle salt.

Quadrupole splitting of Na 23 nuclear magnetic resonance /NMR/ to investigate spontaneous polarization, coercive field and domain characteristics in Rochelle salt ferroelectric phase
The efficacy of an educational intervention in promoting self-regulation among high-risk older drivers.

Visual processing impairment increases crash risk among older drivers. Many older drivers meet the legal requirements for licensing despite having vision impairments that elevate crash risk. In this study, 365 older drivers who were licensed, visually-impaired, and crash-involved in the prior year were randomly assigned to an intervention group or usual-eye-care control group to evaluate the efficacy of an educational intervention that promoted the performance of self-regulatory practices. The educational curriculum was designed to change self-perceptions about vision impairment and how it can impact driver safety and to promote the avoidance of challenging driving situations through self-regulation, leading to reductions in driving exposure. Analyses compared the intervention and control groups at pre-test and 6 months post-test with respect to self-reported perceptions about vision and driving practices. At post-test, drivers who had received the educational intervention were more likely to acknowledge that the quality of their eyesight was less than excellent, report a higher frequency of avoiding challenging driving situations (e.g. left-turns) and report performing more self-regulatory practices (e.g. three right-turns) as compared to controls. Additionally, drivers in the educational intervention group reported significantly fewer days, fewer places and fewer trips made per week as compared to those not receiving the educational intervention. These findings imply that visually-impaired older drivers at higher risk for crash involvement may benefit from educational interventions by reducing their driving exposure and increasing their avoidance of visually challenging driving situations. A critical future step in this research program will be to examine whether this educational intervention has an impact on the safety of these high-risk older drivers by reducing their crash involvement in the years following the educational intervention.
Ultrafast auger dynamics of quantum well excitons in strong magnetic field

We study the Coulomb correlations in the ultrafast dynamics of quantum well magnetoexcitons and find that, in strong magnetic field, the four-wave mixing polarization is dominated by the Auger scattering of excitons between Landau levels
PHOSPHODIESTERASE IN PSORIASIS

SUMMARY. . Phosphodiesterase activity was determined by a fluorometric method using thymidine-5′-3–0-methoxy fluorescein phosphate as a substrate, in blood serum, finger-blood, normal skin, foreskin and psoriatic skin. Higher enzyme activity was found in psoriasis both in blood-serum and finger-blood in comparison with normal controls. Higher enzyme activity was found in involved psoriatic skin in comparison with uninvolved skin and normal skin. The paper supports the theory that in psoriasis there are specific defects in the enzyme systems concerned with protein metabolism.
Form identification in peripheral vision

Outlined and solid-surfaced metric histoforms and polygons we;e employed in an identification task where choice forms were fixed at 0 deg and target forms at six points along the temporal horizontal meridian in the periphery (nasal retina). Accuracy in the identification of solid-surfaced polygons in the far periphery (80 deg from the fovea) was much higher than has been previously reported. Polygons were identified more quickly than histaforms, but a significant difference was not obtained between the speed of identification of outlined and solid shapes. Combined speed and error data indicated that shape (histoform or polygon) is the most salient dimension of a form less than 50 deg from the fovea. whereas beyond 50 deg from the fovea the surface (outlined or solid) of a form is its most salient dimension. Finally. comparisons of the functional relations provided by these performance data with anatomical and physiological data produced the following hypothesis: Spatial summation of rod receptors beyond 20 deg of angular eccentricity in the nasal retina is directly proportional to the density of rod receptors.
Expression of naphthalene oxidation genes in Escherichia coli results in the biosynthesis of indigo

A fragment of plasmid NAH7 from Pseudomonas putida PpG7 has been cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli HB101. Growth of the recombinant Escherichia coli in nutrient medium results in the formation of indigo. The production of this dye is increased in the presence of tryptophan or indole. Several bacteria that oxidize aromatic hydrocarbons to cis-dihydrodiols also oxidize indole to indigo. The results suggest that indigo formation is due to the combined activities of tryptophanase and naphthalene dioxygenase.
A plausible inference prototype for the Semantic Web

This paper presents a prototype that is capable of drawing plausible inferences from Resource Description Framework (RDF) assertions that are constituents of a distributed, Semantic Web knowledge system. The approach taken to build the prototype can be viewed as the extension and adaptation of a classical approach to plausible inference to exploit the evolving infrastructure being developed to represent declarative knowledge on the Semantic Web. The approach includes a knowledge representation formalism that supports meta properties, which define precise semantics, enabling subsequent plausible inferences via extended composition of RDF properties. Most research and development in the context of the Semantic Web has been devoted to representational infrastructure and accompanying query and logical deduction formalisms to evolve the Web from a document repository to a set of distributed knowledge bases. The work presented in this paper provides a functioning Semantic Web application in which the generation of new inferences is not contained within the deductive closure of the knowledge and data expressed by a collection of information sources represented using RDF. Moreover, the paper provides a concrete example of an RDF schema and a working system built around it which demonstrates one potential use of meta data on the Web.
High performance simulation techniques using parallel processing FDTD method

We use a 3-D parallel processing software based on the FDTD method to efficiently simulate the EM problem with an ill-conditioned computational domain. Advanced PML boundary condition allows us to use several cells of white space between the object and domain boundary and can generate the accurate results. A network card and a PEC sheet with a special slot are used to verified the proposed technique for the ECC (envelope Correlation Coefficient) and the transmitted power calculation. The simulation results match well with the other methods and measurement data.
The role of silica redistribution in the evolution of slip instabilities along subduction interfaces: Constraints from the Kodiak accretionary complex, Alaska

Abstract Quartz veins from a subhorizontal shear zone in the Kodiak accretionary complex in southwest Alaska record cycles of cracking and sealing contemporaneous with simple shear, and analysis of the vein array in the context of silica dissolution, diffusion, and precipitation leads to the conclusion that the time needed to seal after a fracture event overlaps with the time scales associated with the recurrence of slip instabilities along active megathrusts. The central belt of the Kodiak accretionary complex is interpreted as a shear zone developed adjacent to a paleo-decollement that was active in the Late Cretaceous based on large strain magnitudes, recumbent isoclinal folds, and regional cleavage patterns that depict rotation of the steep cleavage that characterizes most of the Kodiak Formation into the horizontal fabrics of the central belt. Within this regional shear zone, crack-seal veins composed of quartz with phyllosilicate inclusion bands are spaced at less than a cm but en echelon vein arrays are spaced at 500 cm. These arrays indicate top-to-the southeast shear on southeast dipping brittle-ductile shear zones. Vein textures indicate cracking and sealing of thin veins in the matrix, but thicker veins in en echelon sets record initial cracking and sealing followed by periodic collapse of fracture porosity at a frequency that is lower than the frequency of crack-seal cycles. Silica depletion zones in the wall rock adjacent to veins indicate local transport of silica by diffusion. By combining the maximum time in which diffusion could dominate over advection with the time needed to precipitate the quartz associated with one crack-seal band, we show that a reasonable range of ΔP, or pressure difference between matrix and crack, can produce crack seal bands in less than 10 days. This time frame is less than the recurrence of earthquakes, and similar to the duration of some slow earthquakes in nature. Therefore, silica redistribution could play a role in modulating the frequency of plate boundary slip instabilities along convergent plate boundaries.
Plastic surgery in the new millennium

The end of centuries, and especially millennia, have always been a time for soothsayers. Such times offer rich pickings, especially for the prophets of doom! The last 50 years have seen a meteoric development in the specialty of Plastic Surgery. However, as the end of the century and millennium approaches, the voice of disquiet can be increasingly heard amongst Plastic Surgeons. The cause of this anxiety is the increasing number of Plastic Surgery techniques that are being performed by non Plastic Surgeons. Some even speak of the demise of Plastic Surgery as a specialty, or at least its marginalisation to cosmetic surgery. Has the specialty of Plastic Surgery really been a star which has burned too brightly? Is it really in danger of burning out? My central thesis is that the specialty of Plastic Surgery is unique and has an important contribution to make into the future. Plastic Surgery differs around the world such that some of what I say is specific to conditions in Britain. I will start by considering what is meant by the term 'Plastic Surgery'. After a brief look at the past I will review the likely future changes in the techniques of Plastic Surgery. Then I will move on to explore the future of the specialty and the factors that will determine its future. Finally I will offer some immediate priorities.
On the hierarchical modeling analysis and simulation of flexible manufacturing systems with extended Petri nets

A class of Petri nets, called extended Petri nets, with multiple types of places, multiple classes of tokens and multiple arcs is proposed. It is utilized for the hierarchical modeling of flexible manufacturing systems, ensuring a priori that the extended Petri net system model obtained is live, bounded, consistent and error free. The proposed method views the operation of the flexible manufacturing system as a process that is decomposed into operations with specified precedence relations. For each operation the required resources are identified, and on the basis of these requirements the overall system is decomposed into a set of finite subsystems. The operation of each subsystem is modeled as an event graph representing a single resource activity cycle. The extended Petri net system model is synthesized from these component nets using certain synthesis rules. A software package has been developed to simulate the execution of the model obtained. >
Electron-hole diffusion lengths > 175 μm in solution-grown CH3NH3PbI3 single crystals

Long, balanced electron and hole diffusion lengths greater than 100 nanometers in the polycrystalline organolead trihalide compound CH3NH3PbI3 are critical for highly efficient perovskite solar cells. We found that the diffusion lengths in CH3NH3PbI3 single crystals grown by a solution-growth method can exceed 175 micrometers under 1 sun (100 mW cm(-2)) illumination and exceed 3 millimeters under weak light for both electrons and holes. The internal quantum efficiencies approach 100% in 3-millimeter-thick single-crystal perovskite solar cells under weak light. These long diffusion lengths result from greater carrier mobility, longer lifetime, and much smaller trap densities in the single crystals than in polycrystalline thin films. The long carrier diffusion lengths enabled the use of CH3NH3PbI3 in radiation sensing and energy harvesting through the gammavoltaic effect, with an efficiency of 3.9% measured with an intense cesium-137 source.
Navier–Stokes equations, stability and minimal perturbations of global solutions

Abstract In a recent paper, we proved that assuming some initial data ϕ ∈ H ˙ 1 / 2 ( R 3 ) lead to a singularity for the 3D Navier–Stokes equations, there are also initial data with the minimal H ˙ 1 / 2 -norm which produce a singularity and the set of such data is compact up to translations and the natural scaling of the equation. The purpose of this paper is to analyze a more general case where the set of initial data potentially leading to a singularity is on a sphere centered at non-zero initial data leading to a global solution.
Malignant melanoma of the oral cavity: Review of 10 cases†‡

Oral malignant melanoma is uncommon, comprising less than 1% of all malignant melanomas. Consequently, few cases have been reported from any one institution. We report 10 cases of malignant melanoma of the oral cavity seen at the Mayo Clinic between 1905 and 1979. The site of the primary tumor was the hard palate in 4 patients, the soft palate in 2 patients, the lower alveolus in 2 patients, and the upper alveolus and the retromolar trigone in 1 patient each. Eight of these tumors occurred in men, and 8 patients were older than 60 years of age. Presenting symptoms were a pigmented mass in 9 patients, pain in 5 patients, and bleeding in 3 patients. In 4 patients, the tumor occurred in an area of preexisting hyperpigmentation. The treatment of choice in this disease is surgery; it is the only form of therapy with curative potential. Radiation therapy produced tumor regression in one patient in whom the tumor was considered inoperable, although there was no effect on eventual survival. Chemotherapy was ineffective in producing tumor regression. The prognosis of patients who have malignant melanoma of the oral cavity is dismal; the median survival time in this series was 16 months after diagnosis. Early diagnosis of pigmented lesions in the mouth and adequate tumor resection may improve the prognosis in this disease; however, once the tumor recurs, there is essentially no possibility of prolonged survival.
Arsenic speciation and transport in Pteris vittata L. and the effects on phosphorus in the xylem sap

The mechanism of arsenic (As) transport in Pteris vittata L. (Chinese brake fern), the first known arsenic-hyperaccumulating plant, is important to understand how arsenic is detoxified in the fern. The effects of arsenic concentration and form on arsenic and phosphorus in xylem sap were investigated using hydroponics systems. Ferns were subjected to 0, 10 or 50 mg As l −1 as As(III), As(V), DMA or MMA. Xylem sap was collected and analyzed for arsenic concentration and speciation and inorganic phosphorus concentrations. When arsenic was supplied as an inorganic form, As(V), was the predominant form transported in the sap. This may be due to its resemblance to phosphorus. However, when arsenic was supplied in the methylated form, the fern transported the arsenic mainly in the form supplied. The presence of arsenic in the xylem sap did not significantly affect the inorganic phosphorus concentration in the sap. Regardless of the species supplied, arsenic may be transported in the form(s) which are least harmful to the plant. The fact that arsenic was stored mostly as As(III) in the pinnae of the frond but transported as As(V) or methylated forms indicates the majority of the arsenic reduction takes place in the frond pinnae. © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Kinetic Monte Carlo simulation of heterometal epitaxial deposition

Abstract Vapor deposited multilayers consisting of alternating ferromagnetic and nonferrous metals are being used for magnetic sensing and data storage devices. Their performance is dependent upon interface morphology which is a sensitive function of deposition condition such as the deposition rate, deposition temperature, and flux angle of incidence. A two-dimensional kinetic Monte Carlo method has been developed and used to explore these effects during the growth of model Ni/Cu/Ni multilayers under low adatom impact energy conditions where thermal diffusion is the only mechanism of atomic assembly. An embedded atom method potential with a two-body cross-potential was used for calculation of the activation energies. It takes into account both the atomic configuration of neighboring atoms and their species. Using an extended set of activation barriers the simulations demonstrate that the interface roughness increases almost linearly with increasing layer thickness during the growth, and is more pronounced when depositing a nickel layer than when depositing a copper layer. The deposition of copper is found to help smooth nickel layers. The simulations demonstrate the existence of an optimal growth window in deposition rate–temperature space where the interfacial roughness of a Ni/Cu/Ni multilayer could be minimized. By analyzing the details of individual atomic jumps, the cause of the surface instability is revealed to be the activation and rapid increase of reverse Schwoebel jumps above a temperature threshold.
Micromechanisms of compressive failure in a glass fibre-reinforced amorphous thermoplastic

Compressive failure of a 0°/90° glass fibre-reinforced amorphous thermoplastic has been characterized. It was found that the critical event is the nucleation within 90° laminates of multiple shear crazes, which become shear microcracks, transition to axial cracks, and permit the specimen to fail by the flexure of 0° elements. It is shown that the apparent kinetics of this process provide a rationale for the dramatic strain-rate strengthening of these composites at high loading rate.
What Drives Referral from Primary Care Physicians to Mental Health Specialists? A Randomized Trial Using Actors Portraying Depressive Symptoms.

BACKGROUND: Referral from primary care to the mental health specialty sector is important but poorly understood. OBJECTIVE: Identify physician characteristics influencing mental health referral. DESIGN: Randomized controlled trial using Standardized Patients (SPs). SETTING: Offices of primary care physicians in 3 cities. PARTICIPANTS: One hundred fifty-two family physicians and general internists recruited from 4 broad practice settings; 18 middle aged Caucasian female actors. INTERVENTION: Two hundred and ninety-eight unannounced SP visits, with assignments constrained so physicians saw 1 SP with major depression and 1 with adjustment disorder. MEASUREMENTS: Mental health referrals via SP written reports; physician and system characteristics through a self-administered physician questionnaire. RESULTS: Among 298 SP visits, 107 (36%) resulted in mental health referral. Referrals were less likely among physicians with greater self-confidence in their ability to manage antidepressant therapy (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 0.39, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.17 to 0.86) and were more likely if physicians typically spent ≥10% of professional time on nonclinical activities (AOR 3.42, 95% CI 1.45 to 8.07), had personal life experience with psychotherapy for depression (AOR 2.74, 95% CI 1.15 to 6.52), or usually had access to mental health consultation within 2 weeks (AOR 2.94, 95% CI 1.26 to 6.92). LIMITATION: The roles portrayed by SPs may not reflect the experience of a typical panel of primary care patients. CONCLUSIONS: Controlling for patient and health system factors, physicians’ therapeutic confidence and personal experience were important influences on mental health referral. Research is needed to determine if addressing these factors can facilitate more appropriate care.
Triplet-state photophysics of naphthalene and .alpha.,.omega.-diphenylpolyenes included in heavy-cation-exchanged zeolites

Heavy-cation-exchanged zeolites offer a powerful new medium for observing external heavy-atom perturbation of organic triplet states. In this Letter the authors report the use of optically detected magnetic resonance measurements to determine the geometric mode of interaction between the perturbing heavy atom and naphthalene within the X- and Y-type faujasites exchanged with K{sup +}, Rb{sup +}, and Cs{sup +}. Building upon these results, the authors demonstrate the use of the heavy-cation-exchanged zeolites as spectroscopic matrices enabling the detection of triplet phosphorescence from a series of all-trans-{alpha},{omega}-diphenylpolyenes for which phosphorescence has not been previously observed.
The evolution of documents and its impacts

This article examines the evolution of documents and its impacts from the following aspects: information density, longevity, uniqueness, duplicability, mobility, connectivity, and integration. It focuses on the consequences of the shift from printed media to digital media. By looking back on their evolution, we are able to see how the notions and functions of documents change over time, and the resulting impacts on individuals, organizations, and society.
Mean Squared Error Properties of Empirical Bayes Estimators in a Multivariate Random Effects General Linear Model

Abstract Estimation of an individual's regression coefficients is considered in a multivariate general linear model, where it is assumed that the individual's coefficients β k are subject to both fixed effects and random effects over different individuals. The mean squared error matrix of a natural estimator of β k is derived for any individual k, in the general situation where all parameters of the model must be estimated, and is shown to be smaller than the mean squared error matrix of the individual least squares estimator for every individual. Extension of this result to more general multiparameter estimation situations is also considered.
Frequency and Correlates of Adjustment Disorder Related to Cardiac Surgery in Older Patients

The diagnosis of adjustment disorder is a dilemma in older medically ill patients. The authors conducted a prospective study of older cardiac surgery patients. Semistructured interview techniques were used to distinguish emotional impairment from physical impairment to diagnose an adjustment disorder. Among 71 patients interviewed at three points in time, 50.7% had an adjustment disorder. At 6 months after surgery, 30.6% were still showing evidence of emotional functional impairment. Continued impairment was related to initial severity of depressive and anxiety symptoms. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.
Understanding user engagement with barcoded signs in the ‘Coast’ location-based experience

This article describes experiences with an application in which users read barcoded signs with camera phones to obtain content about their surroundings at seaside locations. The application was made available to the general public in support of ‘Coast’, a BBC television series about the UK coastline. The article highlights lessons from that trial in terms of what worked well and what was subject to deployment constraints. In particular, it describes how several factors affected the users’ engagement with the signs, the places, and other users: the barcode and mobile phone technologies; semantic issues such as signs’ relationships to landmarks; and practical issues such as local regulations.
The structure of the Ca2+ ATPase as revealed by electron microscopy and image processing of ordered arrays

Two-dimensional ordered arrays of the membrane-bound Ca2+ ATPase, were formed over a wide range of conditions (i.e., pH, ionic strength, temperature) in the presence of vanadate, and studied by electron microscopy and image processing. These ordered tubular and spherical membrane vesicles of Ca2+ ATPase could also be formed with approximately one bound ATP and between one and two nonchelatable Ca2+ bound. The tubular arrays ranged between 1 and 10 μm in length and had an average flattened diameter of 90 nm, as observed in negatively stained preparations. The basic building blocks of these ordered arrays appear to be linear ribbons of Ca2+ ATPase dimers. Fourier analysis of electron micrographs of these flattened tubes revealed a near-rectangular lattice (lattice angle 73.3 ± 4.6° with average lattice constants of a = 6.2 ± 0.25 nm, and b = 11.5 ± 0.30 nm). The double-stranded ribbons (i.e., parallel to a) are inclined by 56 ±3.7° relative to the tube axis in a right-handed sense, as determined from freeze-dried metal-shadowed specimens. Computer averaging of negatively stained arrays reveals a crystallographic dimer of stain-excluding matter. The dimensions of each monomer within this dimer are consistent with established structural parameters, leading us to believe a form of the Ca2+ ATPase, capable of binding at least one ATP and of binding Ca2+ ions, may exist as a dimer in the sarcoplasmic reticulum.
THE CYCLAMATE BAM AND CONTINUING ISSUES IN FOOD ADDITIVE REGULATION

The 1969 Food and Drug Administration ban on the calorie‐free chemical sweetener cyclamate has received widespread comment from scientists, consumers, and politicians. This attention has focused on product safety, not on industry losses and regulatory costs. In contrast, the following analysis centers on the financial costs of the cyclamate ban, the incidence of these costs, and the broader economic questions of food additive regulation.