cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor γ Ligands Increase Release of Nitric Oxide From Endothelial Cells

Objective— Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) ligands reduce lesion formation in animal models of atherosclerosis by mechanisms that have not been defined completely. We hypothesized that PPARγ ligands stimulate endothelial-derived nitric oxide release (·NO) to protect the vascular wall. Methods and Results— The PPARγ ligands, 15-deoxy-Δ12,14-prostaglandin J2 (15d-PGJ2) or ciglitazone, stimulated a PPAR response element-luciferase reporter construct in transfected porcine pulmonary artery endothelial cells (PAECs), demonstrating that PPARγ was transcriptionally functional. Treatment with 15d-PGJ2 or ciglitazone significantly increased release of ·NO from PAECs or human aortic endothelial cells and augmented calcium ionophore–induced ·NO release from human umbilical vein endothelial cells measured by chemiluminescence analysis of culture media. Increases in ·NO release caused by treatment with 15d-PGJ2 occurred at 24 hours, but not after 1 to 16 hours, and were abrogated by treatment with the transcriptional inhibitor α-amanitin. Overexpression of PPARγ or treatment with 9-cis retinoic acid also enhanced PAEC ·NO release. Neither 15d-PGJ2 nor ciglitazone altered eNOS mRNA, whereas 15d-PGJ2, but not ciglitazone, decreased eNOS protein. Conclusions— Taken together, these findings demonstrate that PPARγ ligands stimulate ·NO release from endothelial cells derived from multiple vascular sites, through a transcriptional mechanism unrelated to eNOS expression.
Glucodynamic Hormones Modify the Recovery Period after Lateral Hypothalamic Lesions

The period of recovery after bilateral electrolytic lesions of the lateral hypothalamus in rats is shortened if insulin is given for 5 days before surgery, and is lengthened if glucagon is given during the preoperative period.
Modeling and synthesis of images of 3D textured surfaces

Abstract This paper presents a novel and computationally efficient approach to modeling and synthesizing images that result from the projective distortions of textures laid on illuminated 3D surfaces, as they are seen by a camera (texture rendering). The texture model is a 2D random field described by a probability distribution function parametrized by the surface texture characteristics, the surface shape, and the camera model (orthographic or perspective). Because the model depends on the above-mentioned factors, and the surface shape appears as a parameter in the probability distribution function, this model is denoted as a “3D texture” model. We use a Gaussian Markov Random Field (GMRF) for modeling the texture. The GMRF has been shown to reproduce faithfully a vast class of micro- and macroplanar homogeneous image textures. The 3D texture model is synthesizable, and hence one can visually judge its goodness in capturing the projective distortions of a texture laid on an illuminated surface, as it is seen by a camera. The synthesis algorithm is computationally simple, efficient, and fast. For an image size of N × N, it has a computational complexity of O(N2 log N). It uses just a Gaussian random number generator and FFT computations. The CPU time taken to generate a distorted texture for a 256 × 256 image on a SUN4/260 was in the order of 56 s. Unlike other methods of texture rendering which are either iterative or subdivisional in nature, the method presented here to render a 3D texture needs no data interpolation. The rendering algorithm applies for any 3D analytic surface, or for more complex nonanalytic surfaces which are specified by an array of surface normal directions at different points on the surface.
Intraocular lens use in challenging pediatric cases.

Purpose of review The technological advancement of intraocular lenses (IOLs) in recent years has increased their use in the pediatric population. This has led to the use of IOLs in children in whom they would not have been considered in the past. Yet, the majority of the literature looking at the use of specialty IOLs is in the adult literature. This review will look at the use of IOLs in special circumstances as reported in the pediatric population. Recent findings A Medline search of the use of IOLs in children reveals 27 articles published in the past year. The data available on the use of IOLs in special circumstances in children are significantly less. This paper will review the safety and efficacy of the use of IOLs in children with uveitis. Options available to treat aphakia in children with inadequate support for posterior chamber IOLs are explored. Finally, the role of using multifocal and other specialty IOLs is reviewed. Summary The use of IOL implantation in the pediatric population is evolving. There is much promise in using IOLs in specialty circumstances, but caution should be applied when using these new technologies in the pediatric population. Efforts must be made to study these areas within the pediatric population.
640 CLEARANCE OF INTRALIPIDR AND LIPOSYNR IN LOW BIRTH-WEIGHT INFANTS

IntralipidR(IL), a soybean oil emulsion, and LiposynR(LS), a safflower oil emulsion are both used in the nutritional support of parenterally fed low birthweight(LBW) infants. As the source of lipid is different in the two emulsions, the clearance from the circulation of IL and LS was investigated in seven LBW infants (GA 26-33 wks, BW 590-1870g). Serum triglyceride (TG) levels were determined during intravenous infusion at a week of postnatal age. A cross-over random study was designed utilizing either IL or LS, 0.5g/kg I.V., for a 4 hour period and followed 48 hours later by the other emulsion. Blood samples were collected at 0, 2, 4, 6, and 8 hours after the start of infusion. Serum TG levels were measured by enzymatic method on aca IV Du Pont discrete clinical analyzer. The results (mean±SD) were analyzed by paired t-test. Conclusion: LBW infants achieve significantly higher serum TG levels during LS infusion than IL infusion and the higher levels persist even after four hours following the end of infusion. (Supported by a grant from Abbott Laboratories.)
Discourse strategies for foreign business students: Preliminary research findings

Abstract This study reports preliminary research findings on discourse strategies used by native speaker (NS) participants in a case discussion at a graduate business school and compares them to non-native speakers (NNS) strategies in a similar setting. Differences were found in length and allocation of turns, synchrony of turn exchange, bidding and nomination techniques, and cooperative moves. These findings serve as an empirical base for the design of a special component in an ESP course for foreign business students.
Distributed path integral feedback control based on Kalman smoothing for unicycle formations

We consider the problem of a team of non-holonomic agents that must independently compute a discounted, infinite-horizon optimal feedback control from a Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation in order to drive the team into a distance-based formation, without explicit communication. In this work, the uncertainty in a neighboring agent's control input is modeled by Brownian motion, which allows the solution to the Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation to be written as a path integral over the agents' future trajectories. We show how this representation allows the formation control problem to be transformed into independent Kalman smoothing problems, avoiding the computational issues that are typically associated with computing an optimal feedback control for high-dimensional systems. A numerical example in which five agents form a regular pentagon is provided.
Tubular systems in Purkinje cells of the cat heart

Serial section electron micrographs of cat cardiac Purkinje cells show that diads, defined as structurally specialized associations of the plasma membrane with sarcotubules, are not confined to the “transverse tubular system.” Diads occur in four locations: at the plasma membrane facing the interstices between cell bundles; at the plasma membrane lining intercellular clefts; at the intercalated disk; and at transverse invaginations of the external plasma membrane. Diads in all locations show a narrowing of the sarcotubular lumen; staining properties of the sarcotubule and of the space between the sarcotubule and the plasma membrane change in the region of diad formation. If diads are responsible for excitation-contraction coupling, their remarkable distribution in Purkinje cells indicates that excitation-contraction coupling in mammalian heart muscle may differ significantly from that in frog skeletal muscle.
Concurrent assessment of acoustic startle and auditory P50 evoked potential measures of sensory inhibition

The acoustic startle response (ASR) and midlatency auditory evoked potentials (AEP) have been utilized in the measurement of sensory inhibition. Using these different paradigms, abnormalities suggesting a lack of normal inhibition have been noted in a number of psychiatric syndromes. To date, the most commonly used sensory inhibition paradigms have not been studied in the same individuals, making generalizations across studies tenuous. In this report, reduction of ASR over multiple trials (habituation), prepulse inhibition (PPI) of ASR (decrease in ASR caused by low intensity prepulses) and P50 suppression (P50 AEP amplitude reduction in a paired-click paradigm) were measured in the same individuals. Relationships between these measures of acoustic startle and AEP inhibition were then assessed. Twenty subjects with no personal history of psychiatric disorder were tested and exhibited significant habituation and PPI of ASR as well as P50 suppression. Habituation of ASR was significantly and positively correlated with P50 suppression early, but not late, in AEP testing. Only a modest trend for a positive association between PPI and P50 suppression was noted. Habituation and PPI of startle were both highly correlated (positively) with P50 AEP amplitude. Habituation of startle remained significantly predictive of P50 suppression after controlling for P50 amplitude, whereas the modest association between PPI and P50 suppression was removed when P50 amplitude was factored out. Results indicate that habituation of acoustic startle, but not PPI, is highly associated with P50 suppression in control subjects. An unexpected finding was a robust positive correlation between P50 amplitude and both measures of startle inhibition. These findings and methodologic issues are discussed in terms of possible neural substrates involved in different measures of sensory inhibition.
Service-Oriented Network Sockets

This paper presents the design and implementation of service-oriented network sockets (SoNS) for accessing services in a dynamically changing networked environment. A service-oriented network socket takes a high-level description of a service and opportunistically connects to the best provider of that service in the changing characteristics of a mobile system. An application states its high-level service requirements as a set of constraints on the properties required in a suitable resource and SoNS continuously monitors, evaluates and compares the available resources and (re-)connects to the resource that best satisfies the specified constraints. Unlike content-based routing systems, SoNS is an end-host system, interposed at the session-binding layer, and offers connection-oriented semantics. SoNS’ interface allows an application to tailor the planning policy used to establish and rebind a network session. SoNS is based on an extensible architecture to leverage the wide-range of emerging technologies for discovering and locating resources in a mobile system. SoNS integrates a service-oriented abstraction with the traditional operating system interface for accessing network services, making it simpler to develop pervasive, mobile applications. We present an implementation for a mobile handheld device, analyze the performance of our system and describe an application to demonstrate the utility of our system.
Convenient synthesis of aluminum and gallium phosphonate cages.

The reactions of AlCl3·6H2O and GaCl3 with 2-pyridylphosphonic acid (2PypoH2) and 4-pyridylphosphonic acid (4PypoH2) afford cyclic aluminum and gallium phosphonate structures of [(2PypoH)4Al4(OH2)12]Cl8·6H2O (1), [(4PypoH)4Al4(OH2)12]Cl8·11H2O (2), [(2PypoH)4Al4(OH2)12](NO3)8·7H2O (3), [(2PypoH)2(2Pypo)4Ga8Cl12(OH2)4(thf)2](GaCl4)2··8thf (4), and [(2PypoH)2(2Pypo)4Ga8Cl12(OH2)4(thf)2](NO3)2·9thf (5). Structures 1−3 feature four aluminum atoms bridged by oxygen atoms from the phosphonate moiety and show structural resemblance to the secondary building units found in zeolites and aluminum phosphates. The gallium complexes, 4 and 5, have eight gallium atoms bridged by phosphonate moieties with two GaCl4− counterions present in 4 and nitrate ions in 5. The cage structures 1−3 are interlinked by strong hydrogen bonds, forming polymeric chains that, for aluminum, are thermally robust. Exchange of the phosphonic acid for the more flexible 4PyCH2PO3H2 afforded a coordination polymer with a 1:1 Ga:P ratio, {[(4PyC...
Human intelligence and Turing Test

The Turing Test (TT) is criticised for various reasons, one being that it is limited to testing only human-like intelligence. We can read, for example, that ‘TT is testing humanity, not intelligence,’ (Fostel, 1993), that TT is ‘a test for human intelligence, not intelligence in general,’ (French, 1990), or that a perspective assumed by TT is parochial, arrogant and, generally, ‘massively anthropocentric’ (Hayes and Ford, 1996). This limitation presumably causes a basic inadequacy of TT, namely that it misses a wide range of intelligence by focusing on one possibility only, namely on human intelligence. The spirit of TT enforces making explanations of possible machine intelligence in terms of what is known about intelligence in humans, thus possible specificity of the computer intelligence is ruled out from the oaelset. This approach causes ire in some interpreters of the test and leads them to desire to create a theory of intelligence in general, thereby overcoming the limitations imposed by merely human intelligence. At times it is an emotion-laden discussion that does not hesitate to impute chauvinism in those limiting themselves to human-type intelligence.1 This discussion is, by the way, not unlike the rhetoric used by some defenders of animal rights, who insist that an expression of superiority of men over animals is a token of speciesism, and ‘speciesism is just a moral mistake of the same sort as racism and sexism’.
A Comparison of Matrix Questionnaires with Standard Questionnaires

Two studies were conducted to compare responses to matrix questionnaires with those to standard questionnaires. In the first study, the matrix format was used to reduce questionnaire size, and therefore mailing costs. However, this format also produced significantly fewer returns. A second study comparing matrix and standard questionnaires of equal size found similar response rates but more incomplete returns for the matrix form.
Stable isotope indicators of movement and residency for brown shrimp ( Farfantepenaeus aztecus ) in coastal Louisiana marshscapes

Brown shrimp (Farfantepenaeus aztecus) are an important commercial aquatic species experiencing loss of inshore marsh nursery habitat in coastal Louisiana. To study inshore brown shrimp movements and identify aspects of essential habitat important for sustaining brown shrimp populations, we collected juvenile brown shrimp in April and May 2000, the time of annual maximum brown shrimp abundance, in a small 1-km2 marsh area on the central Louisiana coast. Drop sampling showed average shrimp densities of 1.6–2.4 m−2 in shallow marsh ponds and seining indicated lower densities of 0.5–0.9 m−2 in nearby shallow channel and open bay sites. Smaller shrimp (< 50 mm) fed disproportionately on benthic diatoms and small harpacticoid copepods, while large shrimp fed more frequently on larger-bodied amphipods and tanaids. We developed novel chemical approaches to estimate patterns of shrimp residency and movement using carbon and nitrogen stable isotopic determinations. Resident shrimp had isotopic values similar to average foods and showed consistent isotopic spacings between fast and slow turnover tissues. Residency was highest (47–55%) in ponds and shallow channel habitats and much less in open bays and deep channels (4–27%). There was sparse evidence for dietary specialization among individull shrimp. The results support the view that small 10–20 mm postlarval and juvenile brown shrimp arriving in estuaries from offshore waters continue movement through sub-optimal habitats (deep channels and open bays), but exhibit much less movement once an optimal habitat (marsh ponds or shallow channel margins) is reached. This study also indicated that combining estimates of shrimp densities, residency, growth rate, and mortality allows evaluation of the importance of different habitat types for shrimp production. Shallow ponds that in many ways resemble fertile aquaculture ponds appear to be hot spots for brown shrimp production, and coastal preservation and restoration efforts should focus on these areas as important for sustaining shrimp fisheries.
Adaptive hybrid optimization strategy for calibration and parameter estimation of physical process models

A new adaptive hybrid optimization strategy, entitled squads, is proposed for complex inverse analysis of computationally intensive physics-based models. Typically, models are calibrated and model parameters are estimated by minimization of the discrepancy between model simulations characterizing the system and existing observations requiring a substantial number of model evaluations. Squads is designed to be computationally efficient and robust in identification of the global optimum (i.e. maximum or minimum value of an objective function). It integrates global and local optimization using Adaptive Particle Swarm Optimization (APSO) and Levenberg-Marquardt (LM) optimization using adaptive rules based on runtime performance. The global strategy (APSO) optimizes the location of a set of solutions (particles) in the parameter space. The local strategy (LM) is applied only to a subset of the particles at different stages of the optimization based on the adaptive rules. After the LM adjustment of the subset of particle positions, the updated particles are returned to APSO. Therefore, squads is a global strategy that utilizes a local optimization speedup. The advantages of coupling APSO and LM in the manner implemented in squads is demonstrated by comparisons of squads performance against Levenberg-Marquardt (LM), Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), Adaptive Particle Swarm Optimization (APSO; i.e. TRIBES), and an existing hybrid optimization strategy (hPSO). All the strategies are tested on 2D, 5D and 10D Rosenbrock and Griewank polynomial test functions and a synthetic hydrogeologic application to identify the source of a contaminant plume in an aquifer. Tests are performed using a series of runs with random initial guesses for the estimated parameters. The performance of the strategies are compared based on their robustness, defined as the percentage of runs that identify the global optimum, and their efficiency, quantified by a statistical representation of the number of function evaluations performed prior to identification of the global optimum. Squads is observed to have better performance than the other strategies for the test functions and the hydrogeologic application when both robustness and efficiency are taken into consideration.
Issues in the dissemination of cognitive–behavior therapy

In the past 40 years, cognitive–behavior therapy (CBT) has emerged as the initial treatment of choice for patients with mild to moderate depression, anxiety disorders and other problems. In this paper, we discuss issues related to the dissemination and implementation of CBT in various practice settings as well as the use of manuals, computers, the telephone, and the Internet to aid dissemination and implementation. We review key aspects of CBT dissemination, such as the reach of CBT, models of dissemination, and obstacles and barriers to dissemination including patient interest, therapist training and research priorities. The effectiveness of manualized programs is considered, as well as the increasing sophistication of computer-assisted therapy. Stepped-care approaches are discussed as a viable solution to some of these barriers. We provide two examples of successful CBT dissemination, the Staying Free program, a smoking cessation program for inpatients, and the Improving Access to Psychological Therapie...
Segregation 2.0 The New Generation of School Segregation in the 21st Century

Students are more racially segregated in schools today than they were in the late 1960s and prior to the enforcement of court-ordered desegregation in school districts across the country. This spec...
Monitoring costs as a basis for the dispersion of firm ownership

This paper proposes a model of endogenous shareholder dispersion. We find ownership structure causes variance in firm value, not vice versa, and contra to Demsetz and Lehn (1985). Conditions are also identified where increases in ownership dispersion maximize firm value, contra to Shleifer and Vishny (1986). The model suggests that ownership dispersion is a dynamic phenomenon that may change with interest rates or the set of alternative uses of firm resources. The conclusion is that there is not likely to be one ‘best’ structure of firm ownership, either for an individual firm over time or for all firms at a single point in time.
How To Establish General Administrative Priorities Within a School

Principals and teachers sometimes disagree about the general administrative priorities in a school. Are the priorities instruc tion ? Student discipline? Curriculum development? The author describes a process that allows administrators and teachers to work together to establish administrative priorities.
Fluoromycobacteriophages for rapid, specific, and sensitive antibiotic susceptibility testing of Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Rapid antibiotic susceptibility testing of Mycobacterium tuberculosis is of paramount importance as multiple- and extensively- drug resistant strains of M. tuberculosis emerge and spread. We describe here a virus-based assay in which fluoromycobacteriophages are used to deliver a GFP or ZsYellow fluorescent marker gene to M. tuberculosis, which can then be monitored by fluorescent detection approaches including fluorescent microscopy and flow cytometry. Pre-clinical evaluations show that addition of either Rifampicin or Streptomycin at the time of phage addition obliterates fluorescence in susceptible cells but not in isogenic resistant bacteria enabling drug sensitivity determination in less than 24 hours. Detection requires no substrate addition, fewer than 100 cells can be identified, and resistant bacteria can be detected within mixed populations. Fluorescence withstands fixation by paraformaldehyde providing enhanced biosafety for testing MDR-TB and XDR-TB infections.
Increased ventricular lactate in chronic fatigue syndrome. III. Relationships to cortical glutathione and clinical symptoms implicate oxidative stress in disorder pathophysiology

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a complex illness, which is often misdiagnosed as a psychiatric illness. In two previous reports, using (1)H MRSI, we found significantly higher levels of ventricular cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) lactate in patients with CFS relative to those with generalized anxiety disorder and healthy volunteers (HV), but not relative to those with major depressive disorder (MDD). In this third independent cross-sectional neuroimaging study, we investigated a pathophysiological model which postulated that elevations of CSF lactate in patients with CFS might be caused by increased oxidative stress, cerebral hypoperfusion and/or secondary mitochondrial dysfunction. Fifteen patients with CFS, 15 with MDD and 13 HVs were studied using the following modalities: (i) (1)H MRSI to measure CSF lactate; (ii) single-voxel (1)H MRS to measure levels of cortical glutathione (GSH) as a marker of antioxidant capacity; (iii) arterial spin labeling (ASL) MRI to measure regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF); and (iv) (31)P MRSI to measure brain high-energy phosphates as objective indices of mitochondrial dysfunction. We found elevated ventricular lactate and decreased GSH in patients with CFS and MDD relative to HVs. GSH did not differ significantly between the two patient groups. In addition, we found lower rCBF in the left anterior cingulate cortex and the right lingual gyrus in patients with CFS relative to HVs, but rCBF did not differ between those with CFS and MDD. We found no differences between the three groups in terms of any high-energy phosphate metabolites. In exploratory correlation analyses, we found that levels of ventricular lactate and cortical GSH were inversely correlated, and significantly associated with several key indices of physical health and disability. Collectively, the results of this third independent study support a pathophysiological model of CFS in which increased oxidative stress may play a key role in CFS etiopathophysiology.
Intercontinental divergence in the Populus-associated ectomycorrhizal fungus, Tricholoma populinum.

Summary • The ectomycorrhizal fungus Tricholoma populinum is host-specific with Populus species. T. populinum has wind-dispersed progagules and may be capable of long-distance dispersal. In this study, we tested the hypothesis of a panmictic population between Scandinavia and North America. • DNA sequences from five nuclear loci were used to assess phylogeographic structure and nucleotide divergence between continents. • Tricholoma populinum was composed of Scandinavian and North American lineages with complete absence of shared haplotypes and only one shared nucleotide mutation. Divergence of these lineages was estimated at approx. 1.7–1.0 million yr ago (Ma), which occurred after the estimated divergence of host species Populus tremula and Populus balsamifera ⁄ Populus trichocarpa at 5 Ma. Phylogeographic structure was not observed within Scandinavian or North American lineages of T. populinum. • Intercontinental divergence appears to have resulted from either allopatric isolation; a recent, rare long-distance dispersal founding event followed by genetic drift; or the response in an obligate mycorrhizal fungus with a narrow host range to contractions and expansion of host distribution during glacial and interglacial episodes within continents. Understanding present genetic variation in populations is important for predicting how obligate symbiotic fungi will adapt to present and future changing climatic conditions.
Using Non-linear Regression to Predict Bioresponse in a Combinatorial Library of Biodegradable Polymers

We have developed an empirical method to model bioresponse to the surfaces of biodegradable polymers in a combinatorial library using Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) in conjunction with molecular modeling and machine learning methodology. We validated the procedure by modeling human fibrinogen adsorption to 22 structurally distinct polymers. Subsequently, the method was used to model the more complicated phenomena of rat lung fibroblast and normal human fetal foreskin fibroblast proliferation in the presence of 24 and 44 different polymers, respectively. In each case, the root mean square (rms) percent error of the prediction was substantially less than the experimental variation, showing that the models can distinguish high and low performing polymers based on structure/property information. Using this method to screen candidate materials in terms of specific bioresponse prior to extensive experimental testing will greatly facilitate materials development for biomedical applications.
Evaporite diapirs in the La Popa basin, Nuevo León, Mexico

Reconnaissance mapping and stratigraphic work in the La Popa basin of Nuevo Leon, northern Mexico, has revealed two large structural features with cores of gypsum and anhydrite at the surface. These features are interpreted to be the surface expression of evaporite diapirs. They are exposed in folded sedimentary rocks belonging to the Potrerillos Formation of the Difunta Group of Maastrichtian age (Late Cretaceous). Sandstone units within the Potrerillos Formation pinch out toward the piercement features. Carbonate lentils composed of rudistid reefs and associated carbonate clastics flank the features and pinch out away from the features into marine shale members of the Potrerillos Formation. Most carbonate lentils occur in the immediate vicinity of the evaporite features and are interpreted to be genetically related to the diapirs. Syndiapiric sedimentary-facies patterns can be documented over 4,000 vertical feet (1,200 m) of section within the Potrerillos Formation. The large vertical extent of facies peculiarities near the piercement features indicates that the features were active for an extended period corresponding to at least two regressive-transgressive cycles during Maastrichtian time. A radial drainage pattern away from the northern feature indicates that the features are probably active today. A limestone inclusion from within one of the features has been dated as Kimmeridgian in age (Zuloaga or Smackover equivalent) and suggests that the evaporites are probably derived from the Jurassic Minas Viejas Formation. It is not known at present whether salt underlies the surface crust of gypsum and anhydrite. At the time that the first syndiapiric sediments of the Potrerillos Formation were deposited, the Minas Viejas Formation was buried at an estimated depth of 17,000 ft (5,200 m). The thick pre-Laramide cover, the pre-Laramide age of at least some of the syndiapiric sedimentary features, and the location of stocks away from major anticlines indicate that the emplacement of the diapirs is not related to Laramide compression. Geostatic loading is considered to be the most important mechanism for emplacement of the domes.
Bacterial Vaginosis and Chlamydia Trachomatis Among Pregnant Abused and Nonabused Hispanic Women

Objective To compare the prevalence of bacterial vaginosis (BV) and Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) among abused and nonabused pregnant Hispanic women. Design Retrospective audit of charts of 233 pregnant, abused Hispanic women and 468 pregnant, nonabused Hispanic women. Setting Three urban prenatal clinics of a public health department in the southwestern United States. Sample The medical records of 701 pregnant Hispanic women. Main Outcome Measure Diagnosis of BV and/or CT among abused and nonabused pregnant women. Results Combined prevalence of BV and CT was significantly higher for abused women (z score=2.55; df =138; p df =33; p df =104; p Conclusion In this sample of pregnant Hispanic women prevalence of BV was significantly higher in those who had been abused, indicating the need for targeted screening of all abused pregnant women for BV.
Introducing the International Spinal Cord Injury Pain (ISCIP) Classification

311 ISSN 1758-1869 10.2217/PMT.12.35 © 2012 Future Medicine Ltd Pain Manage. (2012) 2(4), 311–314 The Edwin Smith papyrus, a 3500‐year‐ old Egyptian treatise for physicians, essen‐ tially has this to say about spinal cord injury: “an ailment not to be treated”. Medicine and surgery had no instruments to intervene after spinal cord injury (SCI), and most patients died sooner rather than later. It was not until the beginning of the 20th century that enough people with (incomplete, low‐level) SCI survived long enough for their unique pains to become a problem, and with it the quandary of characterizing SCI pain. In 1919, Gordon Holmes distinguished two types: pain due to nerve root injury; and peripher‐ ally referred pain of central origin. With the development of antibiotics and other drugs, and of surgical techniques during and after the Second World War, sur‐ vival became common enough and long enough for new types of SCI pains to be recognized: visceral pains and nocicep‐ tive pains resulting from years of using the arms for doing what they were not destined for – propelling a wheelchair and transferring the body from wheelchair to bed and back. Chronic pain is common among indi‐ viduals with SCI, and for many of them the pain is severe enough to interfere with functioning, sleep and overall quality of life [1,2]. The efforts of clinicians and researchers to understand and treat SCI pains have resulted in an array of clas‐ sifications published in the literature. In 2002, Hicken counted no less than 29 such schemes, often ad hoc and using vari‐ ous terms in confusing ways [3]. However, by 2008 there were only three classifica‐ tions that were comprehensive, supported by some data for reliability and utility, and used in ongoing research: the Cardenas classification [4], the taxonomy of the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) [5] and the Bryce–Ragnarsson classification [6]. Even though they dealt with the same clinical material and used a similar axial system to divide pains into groups and subgroups that (presumably) shared their etiology, the systems had enough differences that one could not ‘translate’ an entity found in one into the corresponding pain in another – a clearly undesirable situation. In 2008 Bryce obtained funding from the Paralyzed Veterans of America to bring together the principals of the three systems, as well as other experts in human
A Comparative Analysis of the Psychological Consequences of Change

Both social scientists and laymen have defined the present age as one of anxiety, and many have linked that anxiety with rapid change. The present study investigates the relationships between change in individual life circumstances, perceived rate of social change, and anxiety level. These relationships are examined in two samples-one from England and one from the United States. In both societies, there is a positive correlation between both kinds of change and anxiety level, with the perceived rate of social change being more significant as a predictor of anxiety level than change in life circumstances. In both societies, the effects of rate were moderated when the change is defined as desirable. A few differences between the two societies are noted and discussed. In general, however, the data support the notion that a high rate of change generates psychological reactions which require adjustment on the part of individuals, with the reaction moderated when the changes are perceived as desirable.
Dynamical Constraints on Computing with Spike Timing in the Cortex

If the cortex uses spike timing to compute, the timing of the spikes must be robust to perturbations. Based on a recent framework that provides a simple criterion to determine whether a spike sequence produced by a generic network is sensitive to initial conditions, and numerical simulations of a variety of network architectures, we argue within the limits set by our model of the neuron, that it is unlikely that precise sequences of spike timings are used for computation under conditions typically found in the cortex.
A class of linear programming problems requiring a large number of iterations

Abstract : A coordinate-free description of the simplex algorithm (for nondegenerate linear programming problems) is supplied, and is used to show that the number of iterations can be larger than was previously known. For 0 m n, there is constructed a nondegenerate linear programming problem whose bounded (n - m)-dimensional feasible region is defined by means of m linear equality constraints in n nonnegative variables, and in which, after starting from the worst choice of an initial feasible vertex, m(n - m - l) + 1 simplex iterations are required in order to reach the optimal vertex. It is conjectured that this is the maximum possible number of iterations (for arbitrary 0 m n), but the conjecture is proved only for n m + 4. (Author)
A review of applications of microwave radiometry to oceanography

The emissivity of sea ice and atmospheric precipitation was investigated. Using the above physics, the data from the Electrically Scanning Microwave Radiometers (ESMR's) on the Nimbus-5 and Nimbus-6 satellites operating at wavelengths of 1.55 cm and 8mm, respectively, can be interpreted in terms of rain rate, ice coverage, and first year versus multi-year ice determination. The rain rate data is being used to establish a climatology of rainfall over the oceans. Both ice and rain data sets have been generated for the Global Atmospheric Research Project Data Systems Test.
Performance of a fast, highly segmented electromagnetic calorimeter

Abstract We describe the energy, position, and angular resolutions of an electromagnetic calorimeter consisting of 56 layers of proportional wire and lead-filled tubes. The calorimeter was tested with two different electronic readout systems in a beam of electrons with energies ranging from 10 to 200 GeV.
Towards Pooled-Speaker Concatenative Text-to-Speech

In this paper we explore the merging of data from various speakers in building a concatenative text-to-speech system. First, we investigate the pooling of data from multiple speakers for building statistical models to predict pitch and duration, and present listening test results which show that the expressiveness of our TTS system is improved using these techniques. Additionally, we describe an experiment in which we merged databases from several speakers to form an enlarged database from which our concatenative text-to-speech system draws segments. We present listening test results which show that pooling data from several speakers yields higher quality synthetic speech in general domains than restricting ourselves to the data from just one speaker in our repertoire.
Chronic stressors and daily hassles: Unique and interactive relationships with psychological distress.

Using daily telephone interviews of a U.S. national sample of adults, aged 25-74 (N = 1,031), the present analyses draw from theories of the stress process and recent research to examine how chronic role-related stressors and daily hassles affect psychological distress. Four separate hypotheses are examined. The first explores the association between chronic stressors and daily hassles. The second tests whether daily hassles function as an intervening variable between chronic stressors and psychological distress. The third tests whether a chronic stressor moderates the relationship between daily hassles and psychological distress. The fourth hypothesis tests for cross-domain effects of chronic stressors and daily hassles. Findings indicate that chronic stressors and daily hassles are distinct types of stressors with unique contributions to psychological distress. The study provides support for chronic home stressors functioning as a moderating factor on the relationship between daily hassles and psychological distress both within and across domains.
Improving Index Compression Using Cluster Information

The clustering property of document collections in Web search engines provides valuable information for improving index compression. By clustering d-gaps of an inverted list and then encoding clustered and nonclustered d-gaps using different codes, we can tailor to the specific properties of different d-gaps and achieve better compression ratio. Further improvement on index compression can be achieved by adaptively adjusting the cluster threshold for inverted lists. Based on these ideas, in this paper we propose adaptive cluster based mixed codes for inverted file index compression. Experiment results show that codes using adaptive cluster based mixed approach have better performance in terms of compression ratio and lower complexity comparing to interpolative code which is considered as one of the most efficient bitwise codes at present.
Linking obsessional beliefs to OCD symptoms in older and younger adults

Abstract There are many open questions about the phenomenology of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in the elderly, and theories about the development of OCD have rarely been applied to older populations. The current study uses structural equation models to evaluate the relationship between obsessional beliefs and OCD symptoms across young and older adult age groups in a large community sample (aged 18–93; N = 335 ), and to examine whether subjective concerns about cognitive decline partially mediate this relationship. Results support partial mediation, and follow-up analyses suggest that the pattern of relationships among subjective cognitive concerns, obsessional beliefs and OCD symptoms is invariant for younger and older adults, but older adults report relatively greater levels of subjective cognitive concerns.
Post-democracy: From the depoliticisation of citizens to the political automata of perpetual war

Eduardo Mendieta argues that ‘post-democracy’ has been misapplied to diagnose a failure of democracy, where democracy instead remains unfinished. We are not living in an age of post-democracy, he argues, but in an age of ‘not enough democracy’, or ‘democracy to come’.
The Venues of Influence: A New Theory of Political Control of the Bureaucracy

In this article we examine how federal and state-level bureaucrats perceive the influence of a variety of political principals from both inside and outside of government. Using survey data, we demonstrate that bureaucratic agents identify commonalities or shared characteristics in the influence exerted by different political principals or what we call the venues of influence. At both the national and state level, bureaucratic agents draw a clear distinction between the sponsors and clients with which they interact. To a somewhat lesser extent, they also see distinctions between whether principals exert direct or diffuse influence over how their office enforces the law. Finally, both federal and state bureaucrats perceive similarities in the influence exerted by Congress and the president, the EPA and regional administrators, material interest groups, the courts, and linkage mechanisms. The principal-agent model is currently the dominant theory of the political control of the bureaucracy literature. Empirical studies, based on the model's assumptions, have demonstrated convincingly that principals do indeed influence the behavior of their bureaucratic agents. Unfortunately, studies that employ this theory have focused most commonly on an examination of the influence of just one, two, or three principals (usually the president, Congress, and the courts), while they have largely ignored the potential influence of other principals such as the regulated industry, interest groups, the public, the media, and state-level actors (e.g., governors, state legislatures, and state courts). Even when principal-agent studies have examined multiple principals, Earlier versions of this article were prepared for the University of New Mexico's Institute for Public Policy (IPP), where it received the IPP's best paper award, and for the 1997 American Political Science Association's annual meeting. We thank the Institute for Public Policy for its financial support and Joe Stewart for his helpful comments and suggestions regarding the manuscript. J-PART 8(1998): 1:13-38 13/Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory This content downloaded from 207.46.13.80 on Thu, 11 Aug 2016 06:18:47 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms
Growth Pouches for Studies of Host Plant Resistance to Larvae of Corn Rootworms

Larvae of western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera LeConte, are a serious economic pest of corn and difficult to study due to their subterranean habitat. Plant growth pouches can be used to rapidly and efficiently evaluate plants for resistance to rootworms with a minimum space requirement. This method has potential for studies with other root-feeding insects.
Administration of a creatine analogue induces isomyosin transitions in muscle

A creatine analogue, beta-guanidinopropionic acid (beta-GPA), was administered in the food (2% wt/wt) and the water (0.5% wt/vol) of male CD-1 mice. Uptake of the phosphorylated analogue and depletion of phosphocreatine in hindlimb muscle was monitored by 31P nuclear magnetic resonance and was found to be complete within 7 wk. After this time, the isomyosin composition of soleus, extensor digitorum longus (EDL), and ventricle was analyzed by pyrophosphate gel electrophoresis. The analogue was found to induce significant alterations in the type of myosin expressed in soleus and EDL. Normal soleus contains both intermediate (IM) and slow (SM) myosins, and treatment reduced the relative content of IM by approximately 50%. In EDL, treatment decreased fast isomyosin FM3 by 60% compared with controls. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-gel electrophoresis also showed a decrease of parvalbumin in EDL by approximately 50%. Treatment had no significant effect on the isomyosin composition of heart ventricle. Levels of physical activity and concentrations of serum glucose and thyroxine of treated mice were not significantly different from controls. These results indicate a role for intracellular energetics in mediating adaptive changes in the phenotype of muscle in mature animals.
Use of Chemical Probes to Detect Mitochondrial ROS by Flow Cytometry and Spectrofluorometry

Aerobic respiration is a major source of energy in eukaryotic cells. In this setting, ATP production by the mitochondrial respiratory chain relies on the availability of NADH and FADH2 to donate protons and electrons. The flux of electrons down the electron transport chain, based on a series of oxidation-reduction reactions, releases energy that allow for the transport of H(+) ions across the inner mitochondrial membrane. The resulting proton-motive force is employed to drive ATP synthesis, while the final acceptor of the electrons flowing through the respiratory chain if molecular oxygen. A side effect of this process is the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). While mitochondrial ROS (mtROS) production has been linked to many pathological conditions (i.e., aging and tumorigenesis), recent evidence suggests that multiple cells, including malignant cells, employ these by-products of energy production as signals to control various cellular processes. Here, we describe protocols to use chemical probes for measuring mtROS production in intact cells by flow cytometry and spectrofluorometry.
Survey of Classification and Organization of Videorecordings

Libraries have long struggled with the question of how to best classify and enable access to videorecordings. While giving a presentation at a state library conference, the authors observed from comments during the question and answer portion of the presentation that the libraries represented in the audience use a variety of video classification and organization practices. To better understand how local practices and librarians� attitudes regarding the efficacy of these practices vary, we conducted a survey soliciting responses from librarians representing a broad array of library types.
Optical dispersion models for graphene: Integration-free formulations

Kubo's formalism for graphene surface conductivity is so far the most popular technique to model graphene in optics. However, its original integral form makes it inefficient for numerical evaluation and coupling to electromagnetic solvers since numerical integration shall be employed. In this paper we propose a Kubo-equivalent integration-free formulation for the computationally efficient modeling of the surface conductivity of graphene in time and frequency domains.