cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Association of anger attacks with suicidal ideation in adults with major depressive disorder: Findings from the EMBARC study

BACKGROUND This report evaluates whether anger attacks (sudden uncharacteristic bouts of anger that are associated with autonomic arousal and/or aggression) in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) are associated with elevated suicidal ideation (SI; active suicidal thoughts and plans). METHODS Participants of Establishing Moderators and Biosignatures of Antidepressant Response in Clinical Care (EMBARC) study who completed Massachusetts General Hospital Anger Attack Questionnaire (AAQ) at baseline were included (n = 293). Levels of SI (suicidal thoughts factor of Concise Health Risk Tracking) were compared at baseline with generalized linear models, and during Stage 1 (baseline-to-week-8) and Stage 2 (week-8-to-week-16) with repeated-measures mixed model analyses. Covariates included age, sex, race, ethnicity, site, and treatment arm. RESULTS At baseline, participants with (n = 109) versus without anger attacks (n = 184) had higher levels of SI (Cohen's d effect size [d] = 1.20). Those with ≥9 anger attacks in the past month had significantly higher SI than those with 1-2 (d = 1.21), 3-4 (d = 1.48), and 5-8 (d = 0.94) anger attacks in the past month. Furthermore, participants with anger attacks at baseline reported higher SI at each post-baseline visit (both Stages 1 and 2) of EMBARC study (d = 0.39-0.77; all p < .05). Associations between anger attacks and SI were significant even after controlling for irritability, hostility, anxious arousal, depression, suicide propensity, and self-reported pain at baseline and lifetime suicidal tendencies. Similar results were found in participants with aggressive behaviors. CONCLUSION Anger attacks in outpatients with MDD may be associated with chronically elevated SI. Clinical Trials Registration: Establishing Moderators and Biosignatures of Antidepressant Response for Clinical Care for Depression (EMBARC); NCT01407094; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01407094.
Simulating hadronic physics on noisy intermediate-scale quantum devices using basis light-front quantization

The analogy between quantum chemistry and light-front quantum field theory, first noted by Wilson, serves as motivation to develop light-front quantum simulation of quantum field theory. We demonstrate how calculations of hadron structure can be performed on noisy intermediate-scale quantum devices within the basis light-front quantization (BLFQ) framework. Within BLFQ, relativistic quantum field theories take a form that permits direct application of methods for digital quantum simulation of quantum chemistry, which can be readily scaled into the quantum advantage regime. We calculate the light-front wave functions of pions using an effective light-front Hamiltonian in a basis representation on a current quantum processor. We use the variational quantum eigensolver to find the ground-state energy and the corresponding wave function, which is subsequently used to calculate pion mass radius, decay constant, elastic form factor, and charge radius.
Continued preference for suboptimal habitat reduces bat survival with white-nose syndrome

Habitat alteration can influence suitability, creating ecological traps where habitat preference and fitness are mismatched. Despite their importance, ecological traps are notoriously difficult to identify and their impact on host-pathogen dynamics remains largely unexplored. Here we assess individual bat survival and habitat preferences in the midwestern United States before, during, and after the invasion of the fungal pathogen that causes white-nose syndrome. Despite strong selection pressures, most hosts continued to select habitats where disease severity was highest and survival was lowest, causing continued population declines. However, some individuals used refugia where survival was higher. Over time, a higher proportion of the total population used refugia than before pathogen arrival. Our results demonstrate that host preferences for habitats with high disease-induced mortality can create ecological traps that threaten populations, even in the presence of accessible refugia.
Perceptions of a comprehensive dental care teaching clinic among stakeholders in a dental teaching hospital in South India: A baseline assessment

Abstract Background When the dentist starts practicing independently, they need to plan and treat comprehensively and prioritise the procedures accordingly. This contrasts with dental students learning years where they deal with only a clinical subject during a fixed period. To improve this scenario a comprehensive dental care teaching clinic was introduced, and baseline assessment was performed. Methods The perceptions of patients, dental undergraduate students, clinical instructors, and clinic co-ordinators regarding Comprehensive Dental Care was evaluated by a cross sectional survey. The questionnaire was developed through a focus group discussion and content validation was performed by experts. Three domains including orientation to the clinics, clinical training of undergraduates and clinic management were assessed. Descriptive statistics were performed using SPSS. Results The results reveal, 53.5% of undergraduate students and 61.3% of clinic instructors agreeing that students trained under comprehensive system can confidently manage patients independently. Good collaboration (80%) among the dental team and regular monitoring of the clinic management (80%) were reported by clinic co-ordinators. The challenges ahead for this teaching clinic includes instrument and facilities availability, which has found to higher disagreement percentages by undergraduate students (43.7%), clinic instructors (38.7%) as well as clinic co-ordinators (50%). Patient satisfaction for all three domains were noted to be high. Conclusion With the introduction of the comprehensive dental care teaching clinic better patient management and improved clinical training of undergraduate students were reported by the stakeholders. This new system is a major shift in dental service delivery and can be adopted to similar settings to improve patient care and dental education.
Abstract S06-02: Disruption to care of patients with thoracic malignancies: A COVID-19 and cancer outcomes study

Introduction: Patients with thoracic malignancies are susceptible to severe outcomes from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The aim of this study was to evaluate the disruption to care of patients with thoracic malignancies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: The COVID-19 and Cancer Outcomes Study (CCOS) is a multicenter prospective cohort study comprised of adult patients with a current or past history of hematological malignancy or invasive solid tumor who had an outpatient medical oncology visit on the index week between March 2 and March 6, 2020 at the Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, NY (MSSM) or the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, MA (DFCI). An electronic data capture platform was used to collect patient-, cancer-, and treatment-related variables during the three months prior to the index week (the baseline period) and the following three months (the pandemic period). Two-by-three contingency tables with Fisher’s exact tests were computed. All tests were two-tailed and considered statistically significant for p Citation Format: Sheena Bhalla, Ziad Bakouny, Andrew L. Schmidt, John A. Steinharter, Douglas A. Tremblay, Mark M. Awad, Alaina J. Kessler, Robert I. Haddad, Michelle Evans, Fiona Busser, Michael Wotman, Catherine R. Curran, Brittney S. Zimmerman, Gabrielle Bouchard, Tomi Jun, Pier V. Nuzzo, Qian Qin, Laure Hirsch, Jonathan Feld, Kaitlin M Kelleher, Danielle Seidman, Hsin-Hui Huang, Chris Labaki, Heather M. Anderson-Keightly, Sarah Abou Alaiwi, Talia D. Rosenbloom, Penina S. Stewart, Matthew D. Galsky, Toni K. Choueiri, Deborah B. Doroshow. Disruption to care of patients with thoracic malignancies: A COVID-19 and cancer outcomes study [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Virtual Meeting: COVID-19 and Cancer; 2021 Feb 3-5. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2021;27(6_Suppl):Abstract nr S06-02.
An Economic Model Based on the System of National Accounts and Stock Flow Consistent Theory

We propose a model of a closed economy based upon the System of National Accounts (United Nations [11]) and Stock Flow Consistent theory (Godley and Lavoie [2]) to model observed complex dynamics in real economies. We find that our model displays cyclic behavior while approaching an equilibrium, and simulates the effects of various shocks. We also find that a more egalitarian economy appears to be both yield a higher rate of return and be more stable (Marx [5]-Piketty[9] thesis).
Cardiovascular health status of taxi/for-hire vehicle drivers in the United States: A systematic review.

Background Taxi/for-hire vehicle (FHV) drivers are a predominantly immigrant, male, and growing population in large, metropolitan cities in the U.S. at risk for cardiovascular conditions. Objective This review sought to systematically investigate the literature given mounting evidence of poor taxi/FHV driver health. Methods A systematic search of peer-reviewed journal articles that included a range of cardiovascular risks and conditions among taxi/FHV drivers in the U.S. was conducted. Results 8800 journal articles were initially found. 14 eligible articles were included: 3 mixed methods articles, 1 qualitative article, and 10 quantitative articles. Articles spanned 13 cardiovascular risks and conditions, including tobacco, nutrition, physical activity, stress, depression, body mass index/waist circumference, cholesterol, blood glucose/diabetes, air pollution, sleep, blood pressure/hypertension, heart disease, and stroke. The majority of studies were cross-sectional and utilized convenience samples. Conclusions Rigorous and high quality research is needed to further investigate rates of cardiovascular health in this population. The complexity of data collection in this group presents challenges to this endeavor. The high prevalence of poor nutrition, limited physical activity, diabetes, and blood pressure across studies indicates an urgent need to address low rates of health care access at a policy level and to design targeted workplace interventions.
Abstract 1284: P53-independent restoration of p53 pathway in tumors with mutated p53 through ATF4 transcriptional modulation

A long-term goal in the cancer-field has been to develop strategies for treating p53-mutated tumors. A novel small-molecule, PG3-Oc, restores p53 pathway-signaling in tumor cells with mutant-p53, independently of p53/p73. PG3-Oc partially upregulates the p53-transcriptome (13.7% of public p53 target-gene dataset; 15.2% of in-house dataset) and p53-proteome (18%, HT29; 16%, HCT116-p53-/-). Bioinformatic analysis indicates critical p53-effectors of growth-arrest (p21), apoptosis (PUMA, DR5, Noxa), autophagy (DRAM1), and metastasis-suppression (NDRG1) are induced by PG3-Oc. ERK1/2- and CDK9-kinases are required to upregulate ATF4 by PG3-Oc which restores p53 transcriptomic-targets in cells without functional-p53. PG3-Oc represses MYC (ATF4-independent), and upregulates PUMA (ATF4-dependent) in mediating cell death. With largely nonoverlapping transcriptomes, induced-ATF4 restores p53 transcriptomic targets in drug-treated cells including functionally important mediators such as PUMA and DR5. Our results demonstrate novel p53-independent drug-induced molecular reprogramming involving ERK1/2, CDK9, and ATF4 to restore upregulation of p53 effector genes required for cell death and tumor suppression. Citation Format: Xiaobing Tian, Nagib Ahsan, Wafik S. El-Deiry. P53-independent restoration of p53 pathway in tumors with mutated p53 through ATF4 transcriptional modulation [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2021; 2021 Apr 10-15 and May 17-21. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2021;81(13_Suppl):Abstract nr 1284.
Selection of optimal therapeutic modality for early-stage extranodal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma patients under the guidance of single-nucleotide polymorphism signature.

The therapeutic modalities of early-stage and advanced extranodal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma (NKTCL) patients are completely different. The former is mainly radiotherapy with or without chemotherapy, while the latter relies on chemotherapy-based systemic treatment. According to Ann Arbor staging system, approximately 70% of the NKTCL patients are classified as early-stage cases who are promising to be cured.Considering NKTCL is sensitive to radiation but may be resistant to chemotherapy, the radiotherapy is considered to be the most important treatment for some early-stage patients with a satisfactory local control rate and could be used alone. However, systemic recurrence after radiotherapy in a portion of NKTCL patients seriously affects their long-term survival, and the first-line treatment combined with radiotherapy and chemotherapy is considered necessary. Therefore, the use of radiotherapy alone in early-stage NKTCL is still a controversial issue. Read more in PDF.
A Big Data Approach to Analyzing Market Volatility

Understanding the microstructure of the financial market requires the processing of a vast amount of data related to individual trades, and sometimes even multiple levels of quotes. Analyzing such a large volume of data requires tremendous computing power that is not easily available to financial academics and regulators. Fortunately, public funded High Performance Computing (HPC) power is widely available at the National Laboratories in the US. In this paper we demonstrate that the HPC resource and the techniques for data-intensive sciences can be used to greatly accelerate the computation of an early warning indicator called Volume-synchronized Probability of Informed trading (VPIN). The test data used in this study contains five and a half year?s worth of trading data for about 100 most liquid futures contracts, includes about 3 billion trades, and takes 140GB as text files. By using (1) a more efficient file format for storing the trading records, (2) more effective data structures and algorithms, and (3) parallelizing the computations, we are able to explore 16,000 different ways of computing VPIN in less than 20 hours on a 32-core IBM DataPlex machine. Our test demonstrates that a modest computer is sufficient to monitor a vast number of trading activities in real-time ? an ability that could be valuable to regulators. Our test results also confirm that VPIN is a strong predictor of liquidity-induced volatility. With appropriate parameter choices, the false positive rates are about 7percent averaged over all the futures contracts in the test data set. More specifically, when VPIN values rise above a threshold (CDF > 0.99), the volatility in the subsequent time windows is higher than the average in 93percent of the cases.
Observation of a dipole-bound excited state in 4-ethynylphenoxide and comparison with the quadrupole-bound excited state in the isoelectronic 4-cyanophenoxide.

Negative ions do not possess Rydberg states but can have Rydberg-like nonvalence excited states near the electron detachment threshold, including dipole-bound states (DBSs) and quadrupole-bound states (QBSs). While DBSs have been studied extensively, quadrupole-bound excited states have been more rarely observed. 4-cyanophenoxide (4CP−) was the first anion observed to possess a quadrupole-bound exited state 20 cm−1 below its detachment threshold. Here, we report the observation of a DBS in the isoelectronic 4-ethynylphenoxide anion (4EP−), providing a rare opportunity to compare the behaviors of a dipole-bound and a quadrupole-bound excited state in a pair of very similar anions. Photodetachment spectroscopy (PDS) of cryogenically cooled 4EP− reveals a DBS 76 cm−1 below its detachment threshold. Photoelectron spectroscopy (PES) at 266 nm shows that the electronic structure of 4EP− and 4CP− is nearly identical. The observed vibrational features in both the PDS and PES, as well as autodetachment from the nonvalence excited states, are also found to be similar for both anions. However, resonant two-photon detachment (R2PD) from the bound vibrational ground state is observed to be very different for the DBS in 4EP− and the QBS in 4CP−. The R2PD spectra reveal that decays take place from both the DBS and QBS to the respective anion ground electronic states within the 5 ns detachment laser pulse due to internal conversion followed by intramolecular vibrational redistribution and relaxation, but the decay mechanisms appear to be very different. In the R2PD spectrum of 4EP−, we observe strong threshold electron signals, which are due to detachment, by the second photon, of highly rotationally excited anions resulted from the decay of the DBS. On the other hand, in the R2PD spectrum of 4CP−, we observe well-resolved vibrational peaks due to the three lowest-frequency vibrational modes of 4CP−, which are populated from the decay of the QBS. The different behaviors of the R2PD spectra suggest unexpected differences between the relaxation mechanisms of the dipole-bound and quadrupole-bound excited states.
On Double-Distortion Arguments, Distribution Policy, and the Optimal Choice of Tax Instruments

There are both administrative and political constraints on the extent to which real-world tax systems might plausibly be reformed. No one seriously suggests that tax avoidance and evasion could be completely eliminated in real-world contexts. To better cope with tax avoidance and evasion, and to complement attempts to reform existing tax systems, this research project argues that governments should also raise revenues and promote distribution through a number of supplementary policy instruments. Among other applications, this research project argues that governments should probably: (a) levy both personal labor-income taxes and value-added consumption taxes, (b) tax both capital income and wealth, and (c) make use of a number of other tax and non-tax legal rules for distributive purposes.This research project’s policy prescriptions thus run counter to an influential set of arguments drawn from modern public-finance theory — sometimes called "double-distortion" arguments within the legal literature. This research project analyzes how the models underlying double-distortion arguments can be generalized to account for taxpayers engaging in a diverse variety of tax-gaming responses. This research project argues that generalizing double-distortion models in this fashion implies that governments should make use of a number of policy instruments in order to raise revenues and to promote distribution, contrary to the prescriptions typically drawn from double-distortion models. Consequently, this research project’s analysis implies that governments may have much greater capacity to raise revenues and to promote distribution, at lower efficiency costs, than is generally recognized.
Incorporating cultural competency skills in emergency management education

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to incorporate a model of prejudice reduction and cultural identity development theory to assess: the implementation of a diversity case study in a disaster management course; and the cultural competency understanding among the students. Design/methodology/approach – A diversity case study was implemented in an undergraduate Disaster Response and Recovery course (Fall 2013 n=17; Spring 2014 n=21; Fall 2014 n=35). The discussion encouraged students to contemplate how their biases, preconceived notions, and stereotypes affect their future role in emergency management. Findings – Results from Likert scale pre/post tests showed a marked increase in knowledge and a positive change in attitudes (p < 0.05). Open-responses denoted linkages to the prejudice reduction model and cultural identity development theory. Research limitations/implications – Bias can be attributed to the instructor and facilitator, and contextual limitations including a lack of: previous conversations...
Fostering generative reasoning about complex phenomena in genetics

The notion of systems is an important idea in science and science education. Genetic phenomena, in particular the mechanisms that link genes to their observable effects, are examples of complicated multileveled systems that students find difficult to understand. Developing generative understanding of the mechanisms underlying genetic phenomena is a critical aspect of scientific literacy in this domain. Here, I describe the design and evaluation of a high school genetics unit aimed at fostering such understandings.
Current Economic Issues at the FTC

This paper provides a summary of recent economic issues ofparticular interest in the Bureau of Economics (``BE'') of the FTC. Further developmentof empirical analyses suitable for antitrust investigations is currently of particularinterest to BE. This paper outlines several areas where BE has focused in the past yearincluding: (1) Unilateral effects; (2) coordinated interaction; (3) mergerretrospectives; (4) natural experiments; (5) price discrimination; (6) intellectual property; (7) healthcare;and (8) energy. For each area, we discuss the issues under consideration, the work thatis being done, and what additional research would be useful.
Coherent Rake reception using noisy channel estimates [DS-CDMA cellular radio]

With traditional Rake reception, channel estimates are used to combine despread values. In this paper, a maximum-likelihood approach is used to reformulate the Rake combining weights, accounting for the channel estimation error. Specifically, Ling's formulation is extended to include fading, noise, and channel estimation error correlation between fingers. The resulting combining weights are similar to the generalized Rake receiver, except that the known channel response is replaced by a minimum mean-square error (MMSE) estimate, and the noise covariance matrix is augmented by a term related to channel estimation. The performance of this and other combining approaches are compared, showing how performance depends on the available energy for channel estimation and the Rake finger placement strategy.
Airborne lidar mapping of ozone concentrations during the lake Michigan ozone study

An airborne differential absorption lidar (DIAL) was used during the 1991 Lake Michigan Ozone Study (LMOS) to map the vertical distribution of ozone concentrations across Lake Michigan downwind of urban and industrial areas of the south lake region. The DIAL, which was designed as a compact instrument for installation on relatively small-sized twin-engine aircraft typically used on regional air quality studies, is based on an excimer laser and Raman cell to generate multiple-wavelength ultraviolet energy appropriate for remote measurement of tropospheric ozone. Collected DIAL data are displayed in terms of contour analyses of vertical ozone concentration distributions across Lake Michigan. During times of southwesterly winds, large-scale urban ozone plumes were observed (mostly over the lake and eastern shoreline) that increased in concentration during the day. Small-scale elevated ozone minima, caused by subsidence of clean air aloft and by chemical destruction of ozone by industrial reactive-gas plumes ...
Cold water application effects on responses to heat stress during exercise.

Abstract This study investigated the effect of partial body cooling (cold towels and showers) on the responses to heat stress during exercise. After a short acclimatization period, six subjects rode a Monark bicycle ergometer for 59 min. alternating 5 min. work with 1 min. rest in a hot environment (105 F [40.6 C] dry bulb, 83 F [28.3 C] wet bulb). Heart rate, rectal temperature, and sweat loss were measured and plotted for three experimental conditions — C—control; E1—cold towel application (1 C) to abdomen and head during the rest periods and E2—same as E1 except for a preexercise 10-min. cold shower at 14.8 C (58.6 F). Heart rates, rectal temperatures, and sweat losses were less under the two experimental conditions than under the control condition. The subjects responded most favorably to the heat stress under condition E2. Heart rate, rectal temperature, and sweat loss results were combined to compute the modified Craig Index of Physiological Strain, I8=terminal heart rate (beats/min)/100 + Δ Trectal...
Thick sol-gel derived YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub 7-/spl delta// films

YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub 7-/spl delta// films have been prepared by spin-coating solutions of metal acetates dissolved in trifluoroacetic acid/methanol and trifluoroacetic acid/isopropanol/1,3 propanediol onto LaAlO/sub 3/[100] substrates. By using a rapid, low pO/sub 2/ pyrolysis process, high-quality diol films (0.25 /spl mu/m thick) with J/sub c/ values as high as 14 MA/cm/sup 2/ and 2 MA/cm/sup 2/ at 7 K and 77 K, respectively, were fabricated in one tenth the time, compared to conventional processing schemes. The effect of multicoating, in order to reach YBCO film thicknesses of 1.5 /spl mu/m, on the J/sub c/ was also studied.
Comprehension aids for on-line reading of expository text

A chapter of expository text was presented on a CRT with optional "windowing" of definitions of selected words varying in relevance to each screen's main ideas. A test treatment was interposed to influence reading strategies. Dependent variables included text reading time, frequency of definition "calls," definition reading rates, and scores on a final comprehension test. Results indicate that a technical chapter can be read from a CRT with appreciable content retention. Subjects accessed 80% of available definitions, but those able to "call" content-relevant definitions increased their frequency of definition "calls." Definition reading rate diminished; comprehension and processing time increased only for subjects accessing the theoretically relevant definitions. The results suggest how the use of definitions enhances the comprehension of on-line training manuals, texts, and help screens. "Callable" definitions need not include all low-frequency technical concepts but only those relevant to reductive main ideas.
In vitro substrate specificities of 3'-5' polymerases correlate with biological outcomes of tRNA 5'-editing reactions

Protozoan mitochondrial tRNAs (mt-tRNAs) are repaired by a process known as 5'-editing. Mt-tRNA sequencing revealed organism-specific patterns of editing G-U base pairs, wherein some species remove G-U base pairs during 5'-editing, while others retain G-U pairs in the edited tRNA. We tested whether 3'-5' polymerases that catalyze the repair step of 5'-editing exhibit organism-specific preferences that explain the treatment of G-U base pairs. Biochemical and kinetic approaches revealed that a 3'-5' polymerase from Acanthamoeba castellanii tolerates G-U wobble pairs in editing substrates much more readily than several other enzymes, consistent with its biological pattern of editing.
Perspectives on the rhythm–grammar link and its implications for typical and atypical language development

This paper reviews the mounting evidence for shared cognitive mechanisms and neural resources for rhythm and grammar. Evidence for a role of rhythm skills in language development and language comprehension is reviewed here in three lines of research: (1) behavioral and brain data from adults and children, showing that prosody and other aspects of timing of sentences influence online morpho-syntactic processing; (2) comorbidity of impaired rhythm with grammatical deficits in children with language impairment; and (3) our recent work showing a strong positive association between rhythm perception skills and expressive grammatical skills in young school-age children with typical development. Our preliminary follow-up study presented here revealed that musical rhythm perception predicted variance in 6-year-old children's production of complex syntax, as well as online reorganization of grammatical information (transformation); these data provide an additional perspective on the hierarchical relations potentially shared by rhythm and grammar. A theoretical framework for shared cognitive resources for the role of rhythm in perceiving and learning grammatical structure is elaborated on in light of potential implications for using rhythm-emphasized musical training to improve language skills in children.
NOVEL LOW-COMPLEXITY ANT COLONY BASED MULTIUSER DETECTOR FOR DIRECT SEQUENCE CODE DIVISION MULTIPLE ACCESS

In this paper, we present a novel multiuser detection (MUD) technique based on ant colony optimisation (ACO), for synchronous direct sequence code division multiple access systems. ACO algorithms are based on the cooperative foraging strategy of real ants. While an optimal MUD design using an exhaustive search method is prohibitively complex, we show that the ACO-based MUD converges to the optimal bit-error-rate performance in relatively few iterations providing 95% savings in computational complexity. This reduction in complexity is retained even when considering users with unequal received powers.
Direct observation of effective ferromagnetic domains of cold atoms in a shaken optical lattice

Ultracold atoms in optical lattices are used to study various phenomena in condensed-matter physics, such as magnetism. A lattice-shaking technique can induce a strong effective spin-interaction, leading to the formation of ferromagnetic domains.
Putting motivational interviewing in perspective.

The enthusiasm of Possidente et al.[1][1] about motivational interviewing might lead readers to conclude that the technique is needed for all patients and that all pharmacists can easily master the interviewing skills. Neither of these conclusions would be accurate. To achieve optimal or acceptable
An assessment of thermal energy storage in conjunction with heat pumps for residential heating and cooling

Abstract The potential of thermal energy storage together with heat pumps to lower peak daytime residential electrical consumption and exploit off-peak rate reductions is examined. A computer simulation using New York City weather demonstrates that this approach, although technically successful, is economically infeasible for the foreseeable future.
The combined use of multivariate and clustering analyses in functional morphology.

Abstract A series of nine dimensions of 536 shoulder girdles in 41 genera of primates had previously been studied as reflecting function within locomotion in that anatomical region. Their combined examination by canonical analysis and neighborhood limited classification suggests that not only do the two methods give results which are consonant with one another but also that both have their separate parts to play in the description of relationships between biological objects. Both methods imply that underlying the many variations in shape of the shoulder girdle in primates are a small number of functional factors presumably related to phenomena of a genetic, developmental or evolutionary nature.
The cerebellum as comparator: Increases in cerebellar activity during motor learning may reflect its role as part of an error detection/correction mechanism

The role of the cerebellum as a comparator of desired motor output and actual performance may be most important during learning of a novel motor task, when movement errors are common and corrective movements are produced to compensate for them. It is suggested that PET and recent fMRI data are compatible with such an interpretation. Increased activity in motor cortical areas during motor learning indicates that these areas also contribute to the learning process, [THACH]
Misleading tests of health behavior theories

Most tests of cognitively oriented theories of health behavior are based on correlational data. Unfortunately, such tests are often biased, overestimating the accuracy of the theories they seek to evaluate. These biases are especially strong when studies examine health behaviors that need to be performed repeatedly, such as medication adherence, diet, exercise, and condom use. Several misleading data analysis procedures further exaggerate the theories’ predictive accuracy. Because correlational designs are not adequate for deciding whether a particular construct affects behavior or for testing one theory against another, most of the literature aiming to test these theories tells us little about their validity or completeness. Neither does the existing empirical literature support decisions to use these theories to design interventions. In addition to discussing problems with correlational data, this article offers ideas for alternative testing strategies.
An Evaluation of Recogniton Accuracy for Discrete and Run-On Writing

In an effort to reach markets in which a keyboard/mouse interface is difficult or inconvenient to use, manufacturers are now beginning to introduce light-weight portable computers which recognize hand-printed characters. The recognition accuracy that these new computers are able to achieve will be a critical factor in determining their acceptance by users. There are, however, few published studies of handwriting recognition accuracy and the variables which affect accuracy. The purpose of this study was to assess recognition accuracy as a function of a number of factors which might vary in the real-world use of handwriting recognition systems. These factors included style of writing, amount of training, interval of disuse, and alphabet. The findings suggested that recognition accuracy reached a steady-state level with a relatively small amount of training and remained at that level for as long as a month (the longest interval tested in this study). For an 82-character alphabet, character recognition accura...
Choline and Inositol in Laying Hen Nutrition

Abstract INTRODUCTION Lucas et al. (1946) and Ringrose and Davis (1946) reported that the laying hen could synthesize choline. Abbott and De-Masters (1940) fed diets low in choline and reported decreased egg production, increased mortality, aborted egg yolks and increased liver fat in hens fed these diets. In a report from the authors’ laboratory (Welch and Couch, 1955), it was reported that the addition of choline to a diet deficient in methionine increased egg production in the presence of vitamin B12. Daghir et al. (1960) reported an increase in egg production with additions of choline to the diet. Burns and Ackerman (1955) reported that the addition of choline to the diet of the laying hen increased egg size and increased the choline content of the egg. Balloun (1956) reported that the addition of choline to breeder diets improved hatchability. In contrast, Johnson (1954), Holmes and Kramer (1965) and Leach et al.…
FTO gene SNPs associated with extreme obesity in cases, controls and extremely discordant sister pairs

Background FTO is a gene located in chromosome region 16q12.2. Recently two studies have found associations of several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in FTO with body mass index (BMI) and obesity, particularly rs1421085, rs17817449, and rs9939609.
Immunoreactive gonadotropin-releasing hormone in porcine reproductive tissues.

Abstract Studies were aimed to identify and characterize IR-GnRH in the porcine endometrium, ovary, oviduct, and compare that with GnRH of hypothalamic and placental origin. RP-HPLC profiles revealed that all tissue extracts contained three peaks of IR-GnRH. Extraction with radioiodinated 125 I-GnRH also resulted in three similar peaks, indicating these two extra peaks as an extraction artifact. Radioreceptor assay showed endometrial and ovarian ultrafiltrates displaced binding of 125 I-GnRH analog to pituitary membrane. Secretion of uterine IR-GnRH was increased in ovariectomized, progesterone-treated gilts, as compared to the control. Treatment with estradiol + progesterone in ovariectomized gilts further increased uterine secretion of IR-GnRH. These results demonstrate that IR-GnRH identified in the porcine reproductive tissues possesses hydrophobicity similar to those in hypothalamus and placenta; endometrial IR-GnRH binds to pituitary GnRH receptors; and uterine secretion of IR-GnRH is modulated by ovarian steroids.
Hubble Space TelescopeStudies of the WLM Galaxy. I. The Age and Metallicity of the Globular Cluster

We have obtained V and I images of the lone globular cluster that belongs to the dwarf Local Group irregular galaxy known as WLM. The color-magnitude diagram of the cluster shows that it is a normal old globular cluster with a well-defined giant branch reaching to MV = -2.5, a horizontal branch at MV = +0.5, and a subgiant branch extending to our photometry limit of MV = +2.0. A best fit to theoretical isochrones indicates that this cluster has a metallicity of [Fe/H] = -1.52 ± 0.08 and an age of 14.8 ± 0.6 Gyr, thus indicating that it is similar to normal old halo globulars in our Galaxy. From the fit we also find that the distance modulus of the cluster is 24.73 ± 0.07 and the extinction is AV = 0.07 ± 0.06, both values that agree within the errors with data obtained for the galaxy itself by others. We conclude that this normal massive cluster was able to form during the formation of WLM, despite the parent galaxy's very small intrinsic mass and size.
Indexing tree and pruning concepts to support case-based reasoning

Abstract Case-based reasoning is thought to aid decision making because it mimics the way in which humans analyze problems. Effective recall of case situations that are similar to a current situation is a key component of this type of decision support. This paper shows how the concept of rank can be used to create compact indexing trees for recall of similar cases. We further consider how pruning can be applied to improving compactness and methods for measuring the reliability of the result.
Fabrication of porous carbon micropillars using a block copolymer as porogen

Abstract A technique to fabricate porous carbon micropillars using a block copolymer, F127, as porogen is described. In this process, negative tone photoresist (i.e. SU-8) mixed with F127 was photopatterned and carbonized under inert atmosphere. The thermal behavior of the photoresist precursor (F127 + SU-8) during carbonization process was characterized using differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis. Texture analysis on the carbon surface showed a mesoporous feature distribution. Electrochemical characterization based on the reaction of Fe ( CN ) 6 3 - / Fe ( CN ) 6 4 - redox couple was utilized to study the change in the effective surface area (Aeff) of the porous carbon electrodes with different weight percentages of F127 in SU-8. These results indicated that porous carbon thin film electrodes derived from 10% F127 mixed in SU-8 had an Aeff 185% compared to the conventional photoresist derived carbon electrode. This fabrication approach can be employed to produce reproducible high aspect ratio carbon microelectrodes with different shapes for various electrochemical devices.
Goodness-of-fit tests for autoregressive processes

Goodness-of-fit tests for autoregressive processes can be based on the difference betwe en the empirical standardized spectral distribution of an observed time series and the standardized spectral distribution of the autoregressive process with parameters estimated from the series. The asymptotic covariance function of this difference, considered as a stochastic process on [0, π], is found. Methods to compute the asymptotic distribution of the Cramer--von Mises statistic are given.
Shifting the paradigm: TQM and the ways we use word processors

Looks at ways to increase writing effectiveness through use of word processors. Considers aspects such as organization of material, methods to remove “writer’s block” and the use of visual facilities to uncover connections between ideas. Discusses aspects relating to prewriting, writing and rewriting.
Vehicle Speed Profiles to Minimize Work and Fuel Consumption

This paper addresses the question of what speed profile will minimize fuel consumption of a land transport vehicle (road or rail) in traversing a path or route. Numerous previous studies, using a control theory approach applied to specific profiles, have suggested that fuel consumption is approximately minimized by operation at constant speed. This result is derived much more directly here, along with boundaries on the conditions under which this result holds. The derivation relies on: (1) the approximate proportionality between fuel consumption and propulsive work; (2) the inherent resistance of a vehicle having the usual quadratic form (of road and rail vehicles); (3) the energy conversion characteristics of on-board gasoline or diesel (or diesel–electric) propulsion systems; and (4) relatively long distances between stops. Tests, using a train performance simulator, confirm the theoretical results. The results are discussed from the standpoint of basic principles in transportation engineering, and as g...
Comparison of diastolic filling models and their fit to transmitral Doppler contours

Abstract Anatomic/physiologic and kinematic mathematical models of diastolic filling which employ (lumped) parameters of diastolic function have been used to predict or characterize transmitral flow. The ability to determine model parameters from clinical transmitral flow, the Doppler velocity profile (DVP), is equivalent to solving the “inverse problem” of diastole. Systematic model-to-model and model-to-data comparison has never been carried out, in part due to the requirement that DVPs be digitized by hand. We developed, tested and verified a computerized method of DVP acquisition and reproduction, and carried out numerical determination of model-to-model and model-to-data goodness-of-fit. The transmitral flow velocity of two anatomic/physiologic models and one kinematic model were compared. Each model's ability to fit computer-acquired and reproduced transmitral DVPs was assessed. Results indicate that transmitral flow velocities generated by the three models are graphically indistinguishable and are able to fit the E-wave of clinical DVPs with comparable mean-square errors. Nonunique invertibility of the anatomic/physiologic models was verified, i.e. , multiple sets of model parameters could be found that fit a single DVP with comparable mean-square error. The kinematic formulation permitted automated, unique, model-parameter determination, solving the “inverse problem” for the Doppler E-wave. We conclude that automated, quantitative characterization of clinical Doppler E-wave contours using this method is feasible. The relation of kinematic parameters to physiologic variables is a subject of current investigation.
Gendering Municipal Government : Female Descriptive Representation and Feelings of Political Trust

Objectives. Voter participation, political knowledge and efficacy, and feelings of political estrangement or alienation have all been linked to varying levels of racial/ethnic descriptive representation. The goal of this study is to investigate similar effects on feelings of political trust with regard to the descriptive representation of women in municipal government. Methods. Using original survey data collected in 70 different U.S. municipalities, this study investigates the linkage between the descriptive representation of women on municipal legislative bodies and attitudes of political trust among the public, while controlling for other important factors. Results. The findings indicate that female descriptive representation has slightly positive effects on women's political trust, and much stronger negative effects on men's feelings of trust in government. Importantly, this effect is present only among those citizens exhibiting a moderate awareness of politics and government. Conclusions. These findings suggest that our investigations into the impact of female descriptive representation need to include more fine-grained analyses to uncover other potential group differences, and that descriptive representation may enhance feelings of governmental trust among some segments of society but may not cure ailing political trust levels in the aggregate.
Public Preferences for Wolf Management Processes in Michigan

Citizens often have preferences about the role of science and public opinion in wildlife management (Skogen, 2003). Understanding public attitudes about each approach could aid planning efforts and...
Distinguishing Between Dark Matter and Pulsar Origins of the ATIC Electron Spectrum With Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes

Abstract Recent results from the Advanced Thin Ionization Calorimeter (ATIC) balloon experiment have identified the presence of a spectral feature between approximately 300 and 800 GeV in the cosmic ray electron spectrum. This spectral feature appears to imply the existence of a local ( ≲ 1 kpc ) source of high energy electrons. Emission from a local pulsar and dark matter annihilations have each been put forth as possible origins of this signal. In this Letter, we consider the sensitivity of ground based atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes to electrons and show that observatories such as HESS and VERITAS should be able to resolve this feature with sufficient precision to discriminate between the dark matter and pulsar hypotheses with considerably greater than 5σ significance, even for conservative assumptions regarding their performance. In addition, this feature provides an opportunity to perform an absolute calibration of the energy scale of ground based, gamma ray telescopes.
Temperature-sensitive membranes prepared by UV photopolymerization of N-isopropylacrylamide on a surface of porous hydrophilic polypropylene membranes

Abstract Novel multifunctional membranes were prepared by ultraviolet photopolymerization of N -isopropylacrylamide (NIPAAm) on the surface of porous hydrophilic polypropylene microfiltration membranes. The poly N -isopropylacrylamide PNIPAAm gels were generated on the surface of the membrane through a covalent bond in the presence of a crosslinking agent, N , N ′-methylenebisacrylamide. The crosslinked PNIPAAm gels are temperature-responsive hydrogels that can swell and deswell reversibly in aqueous solution around the vicinity of the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of PNIPAAm. With a change of temperature, the effective pore size of the membrane surface can be enlarged or shrunk as the PNIPAAm gels swell or deswell. Above the LCST of PNIPAAm, the fluxes of water and solution containing 500 ppm of dextran (molecular weight: 1.67×10 5 g/mol) through the temperature-sensitive membranes are about 6 and 85 times higher than those below the LCST of PNIPAAm, respectively. The changeable flux makes it possible to employ the temperature-sensitive membranes as a sensor or valve that regulates filtration properties by responding to temperature. Solutions of dextran with a molecular weight from 6300 to 2,000,000 were used to evaluate the separation performance of the temperature-sensitive membranes as the ultrafiltration membrane. The ranges of rejection of dextran and the flux of solution are from 0 to 90 and 8 to 32 l/m 2 h, respectively, depending on the temperature, pressure, and molecular weight of dextran. It is clear that the temperature-sensitive membrane exhibits multifunctional characteristics; that is, the microfiltration membrane is above the LCST of PNIPAAm, and the ultrafiltration membrane is below the LCST of PNIPAAm.
Colorimetric assay for chloramphenicol using 1-Naphthol.

Chloramphenicol heated in 6 N sodium hydroxide with 1-naphthol gives a blue color that is the basis for a quantitative assay method.