cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Mythic Stone in Honglou meng and an Intertext of Ming-Qing Fiction Criticism

Partant de l'utilisation, par Cao Xueqin, de la metaphore de la pierre dans son roman Honglou meng (Reve de la chambre rouge ou Histoire de la pierre), l'A. tire quelques conclusions sur la nature de la construction de la fiction dans ce recit, et il montre de quelles manieres ce roman est fondamentalement nouveau. Il se propose de replacer Honglou meng dans le contexte litteraire de sa creation. Il examine les relations intertextuelles du cadre narratif mythique de Honglou meng avec plusieurs ecrits de la critique de la fiction au 17 eme et au debut du 18 eme siecle. Ce cadre peut etre lu comme un traite des relations romanesques entre la fiction et la realite, entre l'oeuvre et le lecteur, entre le texte et la transmission textuelle. Selon l'A., ce traite ne peut etre apprecie sans prendre en compte le contexte de la critique de la fiction de l'epoque. Il discute notamment l'histoire de la pierre surnaturelle dans le roman en terme de parodie litteraire, qui opere en meme temps comme force d'appropriation et de transformation par rapport a des ecrits anterieurs de critique de la fiction, particulierement ceux utilisant l'imagerie de la pierre comme trope litteraire.
Back to the Future: Doxiadis's Plans for Baghdad

This article examines the 1955 to 1958 restructuring of Baghdad proposed by the architect and planner Constantinos Doxiadis. Analyzing the overall master plan and the design and construction of housing units and public squares, the article demonstrates how Doxiadis's social and formal experiments, which drew on larger mid-twentieth-century debates on modernism, urbanism, regionalism, and development, also became intertwined with the Iraqi regime's agenda for nation building. As the Iraqi capital has again become the site for new visions of reconstruction and development, it is important to critically revisit this recent history of the city.
Categorizing information objects from user access patterns

Many web sites have dynamic information objects whose topics change over time. Classifying these objects automatically and promptly is a challenging and important problem for site masters. Traditional content-based and link structure based classification techniques have intrinsic limitations for this task. This paper proposes a framework to classify an object into an existing category structure by analyzing the users' traversals in the category structure. The key idea is to infer an object's topic from the predicted preferences of users when they access the object. We compare two approaches using this idea. One analyzes collective user behavior and the other each user's accesses. We present experimental results on actual data that demonstrate a much higher prediction accuracy and applicability with the latter approach. We also analyze the correlation between classification quality and various factors such as the number of users accessing the object. To our knowledge, this work is the first effort in combining object classification with user access prediction.
An integrated analysis of nurse staffing and scheduling policies

In this paper we present an integrated nurse staffing and scheduling system for analyzing nurse workforce management policies. A mixed-integer linear programming nurse staffing model is used to determine aggregate labor requirements for a 6-month planning horizon. Subsequently, a mixed-integer linear programming model is used to disaggregate the nurse staffing plan into 2-week labor schedules. The integrative system permits recursion between the staffing and scheduling models and thus enables nurse workforce management to rapidly evaluate the impact of both staffing and scheduling policies. We use the new system to study the effects of staffing and scheduling policies on labor costs. The results suggest that there are indeed important interactions between staffing and scheduling policies.
Word segmentation of off-line handwritten documents

Word segmentation is the most critical pre-processing step for any handwritten document recognition and/or retrieval system. When the writing style is unconstrained (written in a natural manner), recognition of individual components may be unreliable, so they must be grouped together into word hypotheses before recognition algorithms can be used. This paper describes a gap metrics based machine learning approach to separate a line of unconstrained handwritten text into words. Our approach uses a set of both local and global features, which is motivated by the ways in which human beings perform this kind of task. In addition, in order to overcome the disadvantage of different distance computation methods, we propose a combined distance measure computed using three different methods. The classification is done by using a three-layer neural network. The algorithm is evaluated using an unconstrained handwriting database that contains 50 pages (1026 line, 7562 words images) handwritten documents. The overall accuracy is 90.8%, which shows a better performance than a previous method.
Artificial ionospheric wave number 4 structure below the F2 region due to the Abel retrieval of radio occultation measurements

We analyzed the effect of the Abel inversion on the wave number 4 (WN4) structure from the GPS radio occultation (RO)---measured electron densities by using the FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC (F-3/C) observations under the equinox condition. The Abel-retrieved electron density from both the F-3/C observations and the simulated results by an empirical model with an imposed WN4 structure in the F layer are investigated. It is found that the Abel inversion can reproduce the real WN4 structure well in the F2 layer. However, it will result in pseudo and reversed-phase WN4 structure in the lower altitude (F1 and E layers). Quantitatively, relative ±15% WN4 signature in the F2 layer can produce ±40% artificial WN4 in the E and F1 layers. Analysis on the F-3/C data shows about ±15% WN4 signature in the F2 layer and ±50% WN4 with reversed-phase in the E and F1 layers. The F-3/C-observed WN4 structure in the E and F1 layers might be the combinations of the real WN4 signature and the artificial effects of Abel retrieval.
Durable partial reinforcement effect and social dominance in two inbred mouse strains.

The partial reinforcement effect (PRE) was investigated in C57BL/10J (C57) and DBA/2J (DBA) inbred mice in a straight runway. The PRE was obtained in both strains and was sustained through extended extinction and continuously reinforced (CRF) reacquisition. Two weeks after the completion of the second runway extinction test, PRF and CRF Ss of each strain were pitched against each other in a tube dominance test. PRF Ss won a significantly greater number of the contests.
Optical Properties of Nanoshells for Diagnostic Imaging

Extinction and backscattering properties of gold nanoshells were investigated using spectrophotometry and optical coherence tomography (OCT). While trends were largely consistent between these measurements and Mie theory, quantitative agreement varied with wavelength and nanoshell geometry.
Heart-A-Chat: A Rhyming Script for Integrating Heart Health Education in the Elementary Grades

(1996). Heart-A-Chat: A Rhyming Script for Integrating Heart Health Education in the Elementary Grades. Journal of Health Education: Vol. 27, No. sup1, pp. S54-S57.
Three Women at Johns Hopkins: Private Perspectives on Medical Coeducation in the 1890s

Excerpt Much has been written about the entry of women into American medicine. Most of this work, however, has focused on Elizabeth Blackwell's precedent-setting efforts at the Geneva Medical Colle...
Reallocating Water from Agriculture to the Environment under a Voluntary Purchase Program

Pressure is increasing to reallocate water from agriculture to the environment. This article examines the performance of a federal program in Nevada's Lahontan Valley under which water rights are purchased from willing sellers for environmental restoration. Based on a data set combining information on growers' personal and financial characteristics with physical characteristics of their farms, a model is estimated that explains who sells their water rights to the government. Results indicate that personal characteristics, especially short-term financial constraints, have a powerful influence on the sales decision. This finding suggests that the environmental agencies may wish to more actively target growers operating on poor quality soils or on the periphery of irrigation projects to attain a more efficient outcome.
Streamlining electronic access with Windows Terminal Server

Libraries face increasing challenges as well as opportunities, when they add electronic information resources to their services. Examples of such challenges are client/server (C/S) databases, for which libraries must assume significant and ongoing local administrative/maintenance responsibilities, and CD‐ROM‐based resources, which can impose severe access limitations. In the Purdue University Libraries, the implementation of a Windows Terminal Server (WTS) thin client system has dramatically reduced the administrative load associated with access to C/S resources. At the same time, it has increased the potential availability of its other electronic resources, while also providing enhanced security and more meaningful usage statistics.
Infants' ability to use object kind information for object individuation

The present studies investigate infants reliance on object kind information in solving the problem of object individuation. Two experiments explored whether adults, 10- and 12-month-old infants could use their knowledge of ducks and cars to individuate an ambiguous array consisting of a toy duck perched on a toy car into two objects. A third experiment investigated whether 10-month-old infants could use their knowledge of cups and shoes to individuate an array consisting of a cup perched on a shoe into two objects. Ten-month-old infants failed to use object kind information alone to resolve the ambiguity with both pairs of objects. In contrast, infants this age succeeded in using spatiotemporal information to segment the array into two objects, i.e. they succeeded if shown that the duck moved independently relative to the car, or the cup relative to the shoe. Twelve-month-old infants, as well as adults, succeeded at object individuation on the basis of object kind information alone. These findings shed light on the developmental course of object individuation and provide converging evidence for the Object-first Hypothesis [Xu, F., Carey, S., 1996; Xu, F., 1997b]. Early on, infants may represent only one concept that provides criteria for individuation, namely physical object; kind concepts such as duck, car, cup, and shoe may be acquired later in the first year of life.
Relapsing polychondritis, chronic hepatitis C virus infection, and mixed cryoglobulemia

Abstract Objective Review of relapsing polychondritis (RP) and its association to chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and mixed cryoglobulinemia. Methods A case of RP associated with HCV infection is reported. The English language medical and scientific literature was reviewed for RP, hepatitis C, and its relation to other connective tissue diseases from February 1966 to January 2003 using MEDLINE. Results RP is an uncommon, multisystem disease of unknown etiology characterized by recurrent inflammation of cartilaginous and related tissues, being associated with other diseases in 30% to 35% of cases. HCV infection is a systemic illness with a propensity to trigger or exacerbate autoimmune disorders: eg, essential mixed cryoglobulinemia, membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis, and leukocytoclastic and systemic vasculitis. We could find no previous report of an association between RP with HCV and mixed cryoglobulinemia. Treatment with interferon gamma and ribavirin (IR) not only induced an undetectable viral load, but also resolved symptoms of RP. Conclusions We report a patient with RP, HCV, and mixed cryoglobulinemia. It is unknown if there is a cause-effect or chance relationship. Treatment with IR improved the symptoms of RP. It is not known whether the effects of IR were directly on the RP or suppressed RP indirectly through the actions on the viral load or active hepatitis.
Sequence analysis of the Vibrio cholerae acfD gene reveals the presence of an overlapping reading frame, orfZ, which encodes a protein that shares sequence similarity to the FliA and FliC products of Salmonella.

Abstract The nucleotide (nt) sequence of the Vibrio cholerae acfD gene (encoding an accessory colonization factor) has been determined. The acfD gene encompasses 254 nt that are predicted to encode an 88-amino-acid (aa) protein. Additionally, an open reading frame of 184 aa, designated orfZ , was detected that overlaps the 3' end of acfD by 45 nt. Computer-assisted homology searches revealed that OrfZ possesses aa sequence similarity to the C terminus of the fliC product of Salmonella muenchen and S. rubislaw . Additionally, OrfZ shares limited aa sequence similarity to a region of the S. typhimurium fliA product. Interestingly, a V. cholerae acfD :: TnphoA mutant demonstrates reduced motility and an altered swarming phenotype in semi-solid media when compared to wild-type V. cholerae . The possibility that the reduced motility and altered morphology result from polar effects on orfZ expression is currently being investigated.
Effect of Tissue Ultrafiltration on Skin Flap Survival

Abstract Objective Tissue ultrafiltration (TUF) is a method of reducing tissue edema by removal of interstitial fluid. Considering the deleterious effects of edema on microcirculation and tissue viability, the effect of TUF on skin flap survival was tested. Study design and setting Survival of modified McFarlane skin flaps was determined in 40 Sprague-Dawley rats. In 20 treated animals, four 5-cm ultrafiltration catheters were placed in the subdermal plane of the distal flap 24 hours after flap elevation and connected to a down-regulated vacuum manifold for 8 hours. No catheters were placed in the control group. Results Skin flap survival was improved in the experimental group (87.2 ±1.6) over the control group (76.7±2.2). Discussion TUF effectively improved skin flap survival. These results provide evidence of the causal effect of edema on tissue viability. The relative ease of use of TUF would allow cost-effective clinical application of this technique.
Video-assisted cardioscopy for intraventricular repair in congenital heart disease.

Abstract Background . Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgical techniques have been widely adopted as a means to reduce surgical trauma. By adapting pediatric thoracoscopic instrumentation, we have developed a technique for video-assisted cardioscopy (VAC). We report our experience and describe the technical feasibility of VAC. Methods . Since June 1995, 409 consecutive patients underwent 431 intracardiac procedures (ventricular septal defect, 150; tetralogy of Fallot or double outlet right ventricle, 101; atrioventricular canal, 52; subaortic stenosis, 43; valve repair, 50; Rastelli procedure, 12; Konno or Ross Konno operation, 11; and miscellaneous, 12) using VAC at Miami Children's Hospital. Using a prospective database, we tracked outcomes and operative events to delineate the usefulness and efficacy of this technique. Results . VAC provided clear and precise imaging of small or remote intracardiac structures during repair of congenital heart defects without technical complications. Procedure times and aortic cross-clamp times using VAC were not prolonged. Intraoperative images were collected for every operation, documenting each patient's cardiac anatomy before and after repair. Surgery through small incisions was facilitated. Operative mortality was 1.2% (5 of 409), and no patient required reoperation before discharge. At a mean follow-up interval of 22 months, the incidence of reoperation for residual or recurrent lesions was 1.2% (5 of 404). Conclusions . Our experience demonstrates the technical feasibility and clinical utility of routine endoscopic imaging during open heart surgery for congenital heart repair.
Glutamate dehydrogenase from yeast and from animal tissues

Abstract The purification of glutamate dehydrogenase from yeast, beef intestinal mucosa and from beef brain is presented. A comparative study of stability of glutamate dehydrogenase from the indicated sources and from beef liver is presented. In all cases reduced NADP markedly decreases enzyme stability. The possible significance of these findings in relation to protein turnover are briefly discussed. Some of the kinetic and molecular parameters of yeast glutamate dehydrogenase are presented.
Simultaneous and similar ideas with John Caulfield

Early in our careers, John Caulfield and I simultaneously had similar ideas in the field of holography and optics. I’ll discuss two. The first was that, unknown to each other, he published a paper and I filed a patent on the same topic at about the same time. The other topic was one that he and I worked on together to apply for a patent on a topic that we then knew was of mutual interest.
752 ENZYME REPLACEMENT IN FELINE GM 2 GANGLIOSIDOSIS: CATABOLIC EFFECTS OF HUMAN β-HEXOSAMINIDASE A (HEX A)

752 ENZYME REPLACEMENT IN FELINE GM 2 GANGLIOSIDOSIS: CATABOLIC EFFECTS OF HUMAN β-HEXOSAMINIDASE A (HEX A)
A new reconstruction algorithm based on ordered projection subset and divided pixel subset

Abstract Statistical iterative methods for image reconstruction like maximum likelihood expectation maximization are more vigorous and feasible than analytical inversion methods and allow for accurately modelling the counting statistics and the photon transport during acquisition. The maximum likelihood approach provides images with superior noise characteristics compared to conventional algorithms, but it has huge computation burden. The objection of this paper is to develop a new algorithm, which modifies the number of projections and the step size for each iteration in order to recover various frequency components. In the present method, the number of projections in a subset increases and the step size decreases when all the subsets have been processed. In addition, the pixel data are divided into subsets to accelerate image reconstruction. The experimental results demonstrate that this algorithm converge faster than any other reconstruction algorithms and can provide high quality of reconstructed images.
Meningio-angiomatosis: A Report of Six Cases with Special Reference to the Occurrence of Neurofibrillary Tangles

We report six cases of meningio-angiomatosis, a disorder of the cerebral cortex of probable malformative origin frequently associated with neurofibromatosis and either asymptomatic or associated with a seizure disorder. The patients, three males and three females, ranged from 10 to 70 years of age at diagnosis. The lesion was an incidental autopsy finding in two patients; four subjects had a seizure disorder which improved following surgical resection of the cortical lesion. In five instances the process was unifocal; one patient with neurofibromatosis had multifocal involvement. Grossly, the lesions were firm, sharply demarcated, transcortical plaques with leptomeningeal calcifications in five cases. The cortical plaques showed characteristic features of meningio-angiomatosis, i.e. a circumscribed, proliferating microvasculature with perivascular meningothelial cell proliferation and fibrosis. In five cases Alzheimer's neurofibrillary change in neurons was present both within the plaques and in the surrounding cortex. Neither senile plaques nor granulovacuolar degeneration were noted. Electron microscopy in one case demonstrated typical intraneuronal accumulations of neurofilaments with regular constrictions. Intracortical vessels lined by endothelial cells with tight junctions were surrounded by pericytes and meningothelial cells. The significance of neurofibrillary tangles described in a variety of disorders, and the factors stimulating their production in the present cases are unknown.
EFFECTS OF AGENCY AND TRANSACTION COSTS ON DIVIDEND PAYOUT RATIOS: FURTHER EVIDENCE OF THE AGENCY-TRANSACTION COST HYPOTHESIS

In this study we replicate and extend an agency-transaction cost model of dividend payout previously hypothesized and supported in the literature. We find no statistical difference between the estimated regression model obtained for the original seven-year sample period, 1974–80, and that obtained for our seven-year period, 1981–87. The latter period is characterized by significantly lower inflation, stronger economic growth, and lower taxes. The intertemporal stability of the model suggests that it is useful for predicting dividend payout at the individual firm level.
Practical beamforming based on RSSI measurements using off-the-shelf wireless clients

WLANs have become an important last-mile technology for providing internet access within homes and enterprises. In such indoor deployments, the wireless channel suffers from significant multipath scattering and fading that degrades performance. Beamforming is a smart antenna technology that adjusts the transmissions at the transmitter to reenforce the signals received through multiple paths at the receiver.However, doing this requires the accurate estimation of the channel coefficients at the receiver and its knowledge at the transmitter which off-the-shelf WiFi clients are incapable of doing. In this work, we develop a novel procedure that uses Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) measurements at the receiver along with an intelligent estimation methodology at the transmitter to achieve beamforming benefits. Using experiments in an indoor office scenario with commercial WiFi clients, we show that the scheme achieves significant performance improvements across diverse scenarios.
Conséquences à long terme de l’anesthésie

Resume Les consequences a long terme de l’anesthesie n’ont pas ete envisagees jusqu’a recemment. Cependant, il existe de plus en plus de preuves que les decisions concernant la conduite de l’anesthesie affectent le devenir a long terme des patients ou sont susceptibles de le faire. Ainsi, le risque septique est affecte par des facteurs tels que la pression tissulaire partielle en oxygene, le bloc sympathique et le controle de la douleur postoperatoire. Un autre theme de recherche est le cancer. L’anesthesie locoregionale previent la reponse neuroendocrine de stress a la chirurgie, diminue la liberation d’opioides endogenes et preserve la fonction des cellules NK. De plus, l’anesthesie locoregionale evite le recours aux opioides et leurs consequences nefastes sur la fonction immunitaire et la croissance tumorale. Elle diminue la charge metastatique sur des modeles animaux. Le bloc paravertebral au cours de la chirurgie du sein et l’anesthesie peridurale au cours de la chirurgie du cancer colique sont associes avec une reduction du risque de recidive et de metastases. Les autres facteurs qui ont fait l’objet d’etude sur leur impact a long terme sont le risque lie a la transfusion, le risque et les benefices du controle strict de la glycemie, les consequences des perfusions peri-operatoires, les troubles cognitifs a distance, la toxicite anesthesique chez les nouveau-nes et l’utilisation des betabloquants.
Interference and noise adjusted principal components analysis for hyperspectral remote sensing image compression

Hyperspectral remote sensing images have high spectral resolution that enables accurate object detection, classification, and identification. But its vast data volume brings about problems in data transmission, data storage, and data analysis. How to reduce the data volume while keeping the important information for the following data exploitation is a challenging task. Principal Components Analysis (PCA) is a typical method for data compression, which re-arranges image information into the first several principal component images in terms of variance maximization. But variance is not a good criterion to rank images. Instead, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is a more reasonable criterion, and the resulting PCA is called Noise Adjusted Principal Components analysis (NAPCA). It is also known that interference is a very serious problem in hyperspectral remote sensing images, induced by many unknown and unwanted signal sources extracted by hyperspectral sensors. Signal-to-interference-plus-noise (SINR) was proposed as a more appropriate ranking criterion. The resulting PCA is referred to as Interference and Noise Adjusted PCA (INAPCA). In this paper, we will investigate the application of INAPCA to hyperspectral image compression, and compare it with the PCA and NAPCA-based compression. The focus is the analysis of their impacts on the following data exploitation (such as detection and classification). It is expected that using NAPCA and INAPCA higher detection and classification rates can be achieved with a comparable or even higher compression ratio. The results will be compared with popular wavelet-based compression methods, such as JPEG 2000, SPIHT, and SPECK.
Predicting Operative Mortality After Surgery for Ischemic Cardiomyopathy

Background Ischemic cardiomyopathy accounts for as many as 70% of cases of heart failure with no clear algorithm for the treatment. We assessed the operative risks and mortality of various surgical options: coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), CABG and mitral valve repair (CABG/MVR), and left ventricular remodeling (LVR) with or without CABG. We hypothesized that additional procedures increased the operative risk. We determined whether preoperative variables (eg, urgency of operation) impacted the surgical outcome. Methods A retrospective analysis of University of Virginia patients from January 2000 until September 2006 was undertaken. Patients with CABG and an ejection fraction less than 35%, ischemic mitral regurgitation by operative characterization, and patients with LVR were identified. The Society of Thoracic Surgeons database risks, complications, and outcomes as well as degree of revascularization, quality of targets, and type of additional procedures were analyzed. Incomplete revascularization was defined as a planned bypass not performed. Poor targets were defined as per the operative note. Results In all, 382 patients were identified (220 CABG, 97 CABG/MVR, and 65 LVR). The overall operative mortality was 7.9%. Mortality was 9.1% for CABG, 8.2% for CABG/MVR, and 3.1% for LVR. Preoperative risk factors for mortality included diabetes mellitus (p = 0.05), previous cerebrovascular disease (p = 0.05), and chronic renal dysfunction (p = 0.03). Patients with emergency operations had a significantly increased mortality (p Conclusions Additional procedures such as MVR or LVR did not add to the operative risk of CABG for ischemic cardiomyopathy. Only preoperative comorbidities and emergency operations increased operative mortality.
A priori estimates and the representation formula for all positive solutions to a semilinear parabolic problem

We establish some a priori estimates and a representation formula for all classical positive solutions to a semilinear parabolic problem. Up to now some uncertainties about the formula have been circulating.
Quenching behaviour for nonlinear degenerate parabolic problems

In this paper, we investigate the nonlinear degenerate parabolic initial-boundary value problems. We study the quenching rate and quenching set of the solution.
Propagation of strophanthus

Seeds and softwood cuttings have been found to offer rapid and reliable means of propagating this genus of tropical lianas, the seeds of which are a source of sarmentogenin that is convertible into the drug cortisone.
Effect of 5- and 6-Propylthiouracil on the Metabolism of L-Thyroxine in Man

The effect of 5-propylthiouracil (5-PTU) and 6-propylthiouracil (6-PTU) on the metabolism of thyroxine was studied in 10 euthyroid patients. After a single dose of I131-labeled L-thyroxine given intravenously, radioactivity in the serum, urine and stool was measured daily. Potassium perchlorate was given throughout the study to block recycling of iodide by the thyroid. After an 8- to 9-day control period, either 5-PTU (400 mg daily) or 6-PTU (400–800 mg daily) was given for 8 days. 5-PTU reduced urinary I131 30–44 % and increased fecal I131 in all patients. 6-PTU reduced urinary I131 only 0–11 % and increased fecal I131 in only 1 patient. Decay in serum was slowed significantly in 2 patients given 5-PTU. In 5 patients the serum decay curve during treatment was slightly elevated above the extrapolated control decay curve, but the slope was unchanged. Serum protein-bound iodine (PBI) was increased 1.2±0.4 μg/100 ml in 7 patients. In 2 of 3 patients, counting over the liver indicated increased concentration ...
Effect of phencyclidine and two monohydroxy metabolites on 3H QNB binding in vivo in rats

The purpose of these investigations was to determine if phencyclidine (PCP) and/or two of its major monohydroxy metabolites [1-(1-phenylcyclohexyl)4-hydroxy piperidine (4-OH-pip PCP) and 1-(1-phenyl-4-hydroxycyclohexyl) piperidine (4-OH-cyclo PCP)] influence 3H quinuclidinyl benzilate (QNB) binding in rat brain after in vivo administration. PCP and 4-OH-pip PCP but not 4-OH-cyclo PCP enhanced QNB binding. The effect was blocked by atropine. Since the dose of 4-OH-pip PCP necessary to alter QNB binding in rat brain is substantially higher than that required for PCP, this metabolite probably does not play a major role in the PCP effect on QNB binding in rat brain.
Nitric oxide-releasing fabrics and other acrylonitrile-based diazeniumdiolates.

Attachment of the diazeniumdiolate [−N(O)N−O−] functional group to polymers is of increasing interest pharmacologically for their ability to generate up to two molar equivalents of bioactive nitric oxide (NO) spontaneously on exposure to aqueous environments and yet limit physiological effects to sites in close physical proximity. Carbon-bound diazeniumdiolated polymers formed by reaction of NO with the enediamine tautomer of amidines generated on treatment of acrylonitrile-based polymers containing 1,3-dicyano groups are shown to be long lasting NO-releasing materials which may be stored for months at room temperature. NO-releasing derivatives of poly(acrylonitrile) (PAN) powder and fabrics have been prepared and shown to release NO for more than 80 d when exposed to pH 7.4 phosphate buffer at 37 °C. PAN/NO powder has been shown to inhibit the formation of neointimal hyperplasia in injured rat carotid arteries. NO-releasing (>7 d) diazeniumdiolates have also been prepared from poly(styrene-co-acrylonitri...
Water supply operations during drought: A discrete hedging rule

Abstract A mixed integer programming model is constructed for the operation of a single water supply reservoir during drought and impending drought. Operating on a critical sequence of low flows, the model determines trigger volumes of storage plus anticipated inflow which signal the need for each of the several phases of rationing. The trigger volumes are examined as the allowed frequency of the various phases of rationing are varied.
Morphologic analysis of the neuromuscular development of the anorectal unit in fetal rats with retinoic acid induced myelomeningocele.

Abstract To investigate whether myelomeningocele (MMC) is associated with a global neuromuscular maldevelopment of the lower gastrointestinal (GI) tract and anorectum, the distribution and staining intensity of non-neuronal (α-smooth-muscle-actin), neural crest cell (NCC, [Hoxb5]), and neuronal markers (PGP-9.5, synaptophysin, neurotubulin-β-III) within the distal colon, rectum, and anal sphincters were analyzed by immunohistochemistry and Western blot in rat fetuses with retinoic acid (RA) induced MMC. At term (E22), no gross-morphological differences of the anorectal unit of OIL ( n = 21) MMC ( n = 31), and RA-exposed-non MMC (RA, n = 19) fetuses were found. Smooth muscle cells were evenly distributed within the muscle layers of the rectum and the internal anal sphincter in OIL, MMC, and RA fetuses. Density and staining intensity of NCC and mature enteric neurons within the myenteric plexus of the distal colon and rectum and innervation pattern within anal sphincters in MMC fetuses were analogous to RA and OIL controls. Normal smooth muscle and myenteric plexus development of the rectum and normal innervation of the anal sphincters and pelvic floor suggests that MMC is not associated with a global neuromuscular maldevelopment of lower GI structures in this short-gestational model.
Exploration of Holland's theory of vocational choice in graduate school environments

Abstract Using students and faculty in six graduate departments, the study attempted to: (1) assess the utility of various operational definitions of constructs used in Holland's theory of vocational choice; and (2) predict satisfaction and achievement in graduate school using Holland's variables of congruence, consistency, and homogeneity. It was found, generally, that parts of the theory may not be particularly applicable to graduate school environments and, specifically, that (1) regardless of their theorized orientation, most all departments constituted primarily an intellectual environment; (2) satisfaction and achievement were unrelated; and (3) while neither congruence and consistency, nor homogeneity were predictive of graduate school outcomes, the three variables combined were indicative of satisfaction and achievement in graduate school.
CO hydrogenation on Ru Al2O3: Selectivity under transient conditions

Abstract Transient response and isotopic tracer techniques were used to investigate the surface coverages of the reactants and the selectivity of ruthenium/alumina catalysts in CO hydrogenation. Two forms of carbon—active carbidic carbon, Cα, and hydrogen-containing alkylic carbon, Cβ—are found to be present on the catalyst surface. Approximately 0.1 monolayer of Cα is deposited on the catalyst through the dissociative chemisorption of CO. Cβ is formed only in the presence of hydrogen. Unlike Cα, the amount of Cβ on the catalyst surface is found to increase continuously. Under varying partial pressures of CO and H2 the surface coverage of Cα changes much less than the overall rate of reaction. In addition to Cα and Cβ, the catalyst surface also contained approximately 0.7 monolayer of CO and 0.1 to 0.2 monolayer of inactive carbon. Measurements of product distributions of Cα and Cβ during the hydrogen titration transients show that for Cα the Schultz-Flory distribution is obeyed. In contrast, Cβ products do not follow the same distribution. The relative selectivities of the two species of carbon during hydrogen titration transients were very different. Cβ titration produced normal and branched alkanes in comparable amounts. No alkene is produced from Cβ. Cα titration produced primarily normal alkenes and alkanes. Our results also show that the chain propagation step is much faster than the other steps in hydrocarbon synthesis (Fischer-Tropsch synthesis) and that CO dissociation is not the rate-limiting step.
Organ donation after circulatory determination of death: lessons and unresolved controversies

This article responds to the four pieces in this special symposium of the Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics on uncontrolled organ donation following circulatory death (uDCD). The response will focus on lessons and debates about the kinds of consent necessary and sufficient for temporary organ preservation in the context of DCD and for organ donation itself; on conflicts of obligation, loyalty, and interest in DCD and ways to address those conflicts; and on benefit, cost, risk assessments of uDCD programs, including measures to achieve a more favorable balance of benefits, costs, and risks.
Beliefs about Teaching Science: The relationship between elementary teachers’ participation in professional development and student achievement

Because of increasing calls for school accountability, an increased emphasis placed on the role of the teacher, and theoretical connections between teacher beliefs and classroom action, a critical need exists to examine teacher professional development programs to determine their impact on teacher belief systems, teaching practices, and student learning. The primary goal of this study was to assess elementary teachers’ science teaching efficacy as they participated in a large-scale professional development program and to determine the relationship of these beliefs with student learning. It was found that elementary teachers who participated in a long-term, intense (over 100 contact hours annually) science professional development program displayed significant gains in their science teaching self-efficacy. Several background variables were found to be predictive of teacher beliefs including how often teachers spend teaching science. Males tended to display more positive beliefs than their female counterpar...
Rassenstudien an der roten Waldameise Formica rufa L. auf systematischer, ökologischer, physiologischer und biologischer Grundlage

Zusammenfassung Jeder Nadelwaldbiotop, zum Teil auch Laubwaldbiotop, hat eine Waldameisenart. Soweit okologische Faktoren in Frage kommen, Konnten also alle von Schadlingen bedrohten Nadelwaldbestande, sowohl Alt-wie Jungholz, mit der nutzlichen roten Waldameise besiedelt werden. Die Verbreitungsgrenzen der roten Waldameise sind innerhalb des moglichen nord- und mitteleuropaischen Areals nicht geographische, sondern mikroklimatische bedingt. So, wie sich die nadelwaldbiotope uberschneiden, so uberschneiden sich hier auch die Verbreitungsgrenzen der drei Waldameisenarten. Fast jeder groosere Nadelwald last sich in okologisch so verschiedenartige Einzelbiotope aufteilen, das sich Voraussetzungen Fur das Vorkommen aller Waldameisenarten finden. Entsprechend der Vorgeschichte des Waldes. vorwiegend ist das Fahlen von Ameisen durch nicht okologische Faktoren verursacht, z. B. Ausrottung durch den Menschen.
An epitaxial emitter-cap SiGe-base bipolar technology optimized for liquid-nitrogen temperature operation

We give the first demonstration that a properly designed silicon bipolar technology can achieve faster unloaded circuit speed at liquid-nitrogen temperature than at room temperature. Transistors were fabricated using a reduced-temperature process employing an in situ arsenic-doped polysilicon emitter contact, a lightly phosphorus-doped epitaxial emitter-cap layer, and a graded SiGe base. At 84 K, transistors have a current gain of 500, with a cutoff frequency of 61 GHz, and a maximum oscillation frequency of 50 GHz. ECL circuits switch at a record 21.9 ps at 84 K, 3.5-ps faster than at room temperature. Circuits which were optimized for low-power operation achieve a minimum power-delay product of 61 fJ (41.3 ps at 1.47 mW), nearly a factor of two smaller than the best achieved to date at 84 K. The unprecedented performance of these transistors suggests that SiGe-base bipolar technology is a promising candidate for cryogenic applications requiring the fastest possible devices together with the processing maturity and integration level achievable with silicon fabrication. >
Variability of measurement of retinal vessel diameters.

AbstractPurpose: To examine the effects of various cardiovascular, ocular, and lifestyle factors on retinal vessel diameters over short periods of time.Methods: Subjects were invited to have photographs of their retina taken at each of three study visits. The same eye was photographed each time. The photographs were digitized and retinal vessel diameters were measured. Measurements from the retinal photographs taken consecutively (at visit 2 and visit 3), and 1, 3, and 4 weeks apart (between visits 1 and 2, 2 and 3, and 1 and 3, respectively) were compared.Results: There were 63 persons who participated in all study visits and had gradable vessel measurements from all five images used in the analysis. Correlations for pairs of study visits were high, and decreased slightly with increasing length of the time interval. For consecutive photographs taken, and 1 week, 3 weeks, and 4 weeks apart, correlations were 0.95, 0.90, 0.91, and 0.86, respectively, for central retinal arteriolar equivalent (CRAE) and 0.9...
Lithospheric and upper mantle structure of central Chile and Argentina

SUMMARY The tectonics of central Chile and Argentina have been greatly affected by the shallow dips of the subducting Nazca plate, which controlled patterns of magmatism and deformation nearly 1000 km away from the plate boundary. We calculate receiver functions from data recorded by the CHARGE array, which transected the Andes and Sierras Pampeanas in central Chile and Argentina, to better constrain the crustal structure of this region. Beneath the northern transect of the CHARGE array, where the Nazca slab flattens near 100 km, we find the crust is over 60 km thick beneath the Andes and thin to the east. The thick crust, however, extends ∼200 km to the east of the high elevations. Estimates of VP/VS obtained from receiver functions vary along ancient terrane boundaries exhibiting higher values to the west. Interestingly, we observe that the amplitude of the phase corresponding to the Moho on receiver functions diminishes to the west, complicating our images of crustal structure. We proposed that the observations presented here of thickened crust within a region of low elevations, diminished receiver function arrivals, and reports of high shear-wave speeds atop of the mantle wedge overlying the shallowly subducted Nazca slab, can be explained by partial eclogitization of the lower crust. The Moho appears simpler across the southern transect where it can be identified near 50 km depth at its deepest point beneath the Andes and shallows eastwards. Volcanism remains active near the latitudes of our southern transect and we observe multiple crustal lowvelocity zones indicative of regions of partial melt near the centres of volcanism. Signals related to the Nazca slab remain more elusive, suggestive of a small impedance contrast between the slab and overlying mantle.
Betulinic acid decreases ER-Negative breast cancer cell growth in vitro and in vivo : role of Sp transcription factors and MicroRNA-27a:ZBTB10.

Betulinic acid (BA), a pentacyclic triterpenoid isolated from tree bark is cytotoxic to cancer cells. There is evidence that specificity proteins (Sps), such as Sp1, Sp3, and Sp4, are overexpressed in tumors and contribute to the proliferative and angiogenic phenotype associated with cancer cells. The objective of this study was to determine the efficacy of BA in decreasing the Sps expression and underlying mechanisms. Results show that BA decreased proliferation and induced apoptosis of estrogen-receptor-negative breast cancer MDA-MB-231 cells. The BA-induced Sp1, Sp3, and Sp4 downregulation was accompanied by increased zinc finger ZBTB10 expression, a putative Sp-repressor and decreased microRNA-27a levels, a microRNA involved in the regulation of ZBTB10. Similar results were observed in MDA-MB-231 cells transfected with ZBTB10 expression plasmid. BA induced cell cycle arrest in the G2/M phase and increased Myt-1 mRNA (a microRNA-27a target gene), which causes inhibition in G2/M by phosphorylation of cdc2. The effects of BA were reversed by transient transfection with a mimic of microRNA-27a. In nude mice with xenografted MDA-MB-231 cells, tumor size and weight were significantly decreased by BA treatment. In tumor tissue, ZBTB10 mRNA was increased while mRNA and protein of Sp1, Sp3 and Sp4, as well as mRNA of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR), survivin and microRNA-27a were decreased by BA. In lungs of xenografted mice, human β2-microglobulin mRNA was decreased in BA-treated animals. These results show that the anticancer effects of BA are at least in part based on interactions with the microRNA-27a-ZBTB10-Sp-axis causing increased cell death.
SOI-based HF and VHF single-crystal silicon resonators with SUB-100 nanometer vertical capacitive gaps

This paper reports on the fabrication and characterization of single-crystal silicon (SCS) capacitive resonators with operating frequencies in the HF (3-30 MHz) and VHF (30-300 MHz) range. In-plane ultra-stiff SCS resonators with polysilicon electrodes and self-aligned 90 nm vertical capacitive gaps have been fabricated on SOI substrates using a HARPSS-like fabrication process. High frequency side-supported flexural disk resonators and clamped-clamped beam resonators have been implemented and tested. A 3 /spl mu/m thick, 30/spl mu/m in diameter SCS disk resonator exhibited a quality factor of 40,000 in vacuum at 148 MHz. When operated in atmosphere, the same device demonstrated a Q of 8,000.
Demonstration of widely tunable single-chip 10-Gb/s laser-modulators using multiple-bandgap InGaAsP quantum-well intermixing

High-speed wavelength-agile laser-modulators were fabricated for the first time using a quantum-well intermixing processing platform for monolithic integration. Over 19-GHz 3-dB modulator bandwidth was achieved and 10-Gb/s error-free transmission was demonstrated through 75 km of standard fiber.
When more is less.

Landmark studies on the dynamics of HIV-1 infection, conducted nearly a decade ago, provided the theoretical framework on which the modern approach to combination antiretroviral therapy is based [1]. It is now accepted dogma that the high turnover rate of the virus, coupled with a high mutation rate—a consequence of the low fidelity of reverse transcriptase—leads to the accumulation of mutations in the viral quasispecies over time. According to this model, individual drug-resistance mutations are represented many times in the quasispecies; doublemutants are less common, and specific triple mutants are relatively rare [2]. Antiretroviral regimens consisting of several drugs with nonoverlapping resistance patterns erect a genetic barrier to resistance, because multiple mutations—which are unlikely to be preexisting in any single viral genome—are needed to reduce activity of the regimen. Because the level of plasma HIV-1 RNA at steady state is a function of the replication rate and because the replication rate is a determinant of the mutation rate, it is reasonable to assume that patients with high plasma HIV-1 RNA levels are more likely to harbor preexisting drug-resistant variants than are patients with lower virus loads. Likewise, patients with advanced HIV-1 disease may be at greater risk for the development of drug-resistant virus. In such patients, the genetic barrier of triple combination therapy might not suffice to prevent emergence of resistance and ensure durable suppression of virus replication. Indeed, for certain 3-drug combination regimens, high virus load and low CD4 cell count are associated with a greater risk of treatment failure [3].