cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Energy conservation: a third constraint on the turbulent point spread function

Energy conservation is an essential feature of optical waves propagating through refractive turbulence. It has been known for almost a quarter of a century that energy conservation has an important implication for the fluctuations in the images of the incoherent objects observed through turbulence, namely the image of the uniformly radiating area of an object does not scintillate. As a consequence, the low-contrast parts of an image exhibit weak fluctuation even for very strong turbulence, but scintillations near the sharp edges can be strong even for weak turbulence. The energy conservation property of the turbulent point spread function is essential for modeling turbulent image distortions, both for the development of the image processing techniques and for simulations of turbulent imaging. However, it is regularly overlooked in discussions of turbulent imaging theory and modeling in the current literature. We discuss the relations between energy conservation and anisoplanatism for the most common turbulence imaging models. Our analysis reveals that the only isoplanatic turbulent point spread function (PSF) that is compliant with energy conservation is the thin aperture plane phase screen. This implies that for near-the-ground imaging, and even for astronomical-type imaging under strong turbulence conditions, the turbulent PSF has to be modeled as a random function of four arguments with three functional constraints: non-negative values, finite bandwidth, and energy conservation.
Disclosure of date/acquaintance rape: who reports and when.

Abstract Objective To estimates rates and correlates of disclosure of date/acquaintance rape or attempted rape and verbally coercive sex among a diverse sample of adolescent and young adult females. Design Secondary data analysis of cross sectional data. Setting Urban adolescent healthcare facility. Participants Adolescents who were identified as having experienced rape/attempted rape (n = 86) or verbally coerced sex (n = 68) in the last 12 months from study examining sexual violence. Main outcome measures Disclosure of forced sex (logistic regression) and the timing of disclosure (survival analysis). Interventions None. Results Almost 60% of victims who experienced rape/attempted rape disclosed this information to one or more individuals, whereas only 47% of those who experienced verbally coerced sex told another person. Multivariate analyses found that drinking by the partner (AOR = 4.6) and shorter dating history (AOR = 6.3) were associated with disclosure of rape/attempted rape; timing of this disclosure was facilitated by Caucasian ethnicity (RR = 3.5), having a dating partner who drank ≥ 1 drinks (RR = 2.5), and the perpetrator being someone other than the victim's boyfriend or partner (RR = 2.5). With regards to verbally coerced sex, reporting no pressure to use alcohol (AOR = 10.7) was the only factor associated with disclosure. No significant predictors of timing to disclosure were detected for this type of victimization. Conclusions Perpetrator's alcohol use and a shorter dating history are important variables associated with disclosure of rape/attempted rape as well as timing to disclosure. Factors affecting the disclosure of verbally coerced sex and the latency associated with disclosure are less well defined.
Thermal diffusivity imaging with a moving line source

The thermal line scan technique has been shown to be an effective technique for rapid inspection of aerospace specimens. Past efforts have focused on thermal measurements far behind the line source where the heat flow normal to the surface is negligible. This paper focuses on measurements closer to the line source to enable the measurement of the thermal diffusivity in the surface normal direction. This measurement also enables an independent characterization of the thermal diffusivity in the direction of motion of the thermal line source. An analytical solution is given for a line source moving with constant velocity across an anisotropic plane. A nonlinear least squares fitting routine is used to reduce the temporal response of a specimen to images of the thermal diffusivity in both the directions normal to the surface and parallel to the motion of the line source. Measurements are presented on specimens with known variations in effective diffusivity. Measurements on these specimens allow a comparison of this technique to more conventional techniques for diffusivity measurement.
Attitudes Toward Self-Determined Death: A Survey of Primary Care Physicians

OBJECTIVE: To survey physicians to determine whether sociodemographic and practice-related variables are predictive of their attitudes toward suicide. DESIGN: Mailed questionnaire survey. SETTING: Monroe County, New York. PARTICIPANTS: A 50 percent random sample of practicing primary care physicians. Of 186 potential respondents, 114 (61.3%) physicians returned questionnaires. MEASUREMENT: In addition to age and gender, independent variables included medical specialty, practice composition defined in terms of patient age, and textbook knowledge of depression and suicide. The dependent variable, attitude toward suicide, was measured using four standard opinion survey questions and six items based on a case vignette. Dependent variables were rated on a Likert-type scale and subsequently dichotomized for use in logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: Approximately 61 percent of the respondents believe that suicide can be rational under certain circumstances, 51 percent believe that physicians should not assist suicides under any circumstances, and 31 percent support legalization of assisted suicide under certain circumstances. Regression analyses revealed that gender was a significant predictor for three of the ten attitude items. Medical specialty, clinical and epidemiological knowledge of depression and suicide, and physician age significantly predicted one attitude item. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that physicians' attitudes toward suicide are multidetermined. Although gender, age, medical specialty, and knowledge of depression and suicide predict certain attitudes, the logistic regression analyses were not highly successful in predicting respondents' attitudes. Given the power of physicians to command public attention and to influence public and legal opinion, it is vital that future research continue to explore the determinants of physicians' attitudes toward self-determined death.
Proliferative verrucous leukoplakia: A long-term study of thirty patients

Up to 6% of oral leukoplakia, a relatively common mucosal disease, can be expected to become malignant. This report describes a long-term study of 30 patients in whom a particular form of leukoplakia was identified and labeled proliferative verrucous leukoplakia (PVL), a disease of unknown origin, which exhibits a strong tendency to develop areas of carcinoma. PVL begins as a simple hyperkeratosis but tends to spread and become multifocal. PVL is slow-growing, persistent, and irreversible, and in time areas become exophytic, wartlike, and apparently resistant to all forms of therapy as recurrence is the rule. The disease was most commonly seen in elderly women and had been present for many years. Patients were followed for 1 to 20 years. Thirteen died of or with their disease, 14 were alive with PVL, and 3 were alive without PVL at last contact. PVL rarely regressed despite therapy. All patients who died had persistent or recurrent disease. PVL appears to constitute a continuum of hyperkeratotic disease, ranging from a simple hyperkeratosis at one end to invasive squamous cell carcinoma at the other. Microscopic findings are dependent upon the stage of the disease's development and the location and adequacy of the biopsy.
Customizing palatal contours of a denture to improve speech intelligibility.

Accurate approximation of palatal contours of a maxillary complete denture to a patient's tongue can improve speech intelligibility, if other factors such as tooth position, occlusal plane, and occlusal vertical dimension are satisfactory. Customizing palatal contours of a maxillary complete denture can be accomplished by using tissue-conditioning material, which provides sufficient working time for a patient to pronounce a series of sibilant sounds while recording dynamic impression of the tongue. This article describes a technique for customizing palatal contours of a maxillary complete denture with autopolymerizing acrylic resin to improve speech intelligibility. (J Prosthet Dent 2008;99:243–248)
Deficient brightness discrimination acquisition produced by daily intracranial injections of penicillin in rats

Rats with unilateral epileptiform foci produced by daily injections of penicillin into either occipital cortex or hippocampus were trained on an operant visual discrimination. Both of the experimental groups were retarded in the acquisition of the discrimination, but the rats with foci in the occipital cortex demonstrated a more severe impairment, despite the fact that secondary epileptiform discharges appeared in hippocampus and visual cortex under both conditions. As a control for the nonepileptiform properties of the penicillin, other groups of rats received intracranial injections of sodium sulfadiazine. Rats injected with this drug were not significantly different from normal controls in the percentage of correct responses emitted, despite reduced response rates. After 5–7 days of treatment this drug produced some slight seizure activity which was unrelated to performance. On Day 11 of discrimination training the rats receiving penicillin were injected with sodium sulfadiazine and the rats receiving sodium sulfadiazine were given penicillin. The rats changed from penicillin to sodium sulfadiazine showed an immediate increase in the percentage of correct responses. Rats switched from sodium sulfadiazine to penicillin demonstrated a transitory impairment in performance. These data were interpreted to indicate that epileptiform activity produced by penicillin results in a deficit in retrieval of recently formed memories.
Non-Néel ordering in the presence of strong anisotropy

Abstract The concept of non-Neel order parameter (double, triple, etc. spin correlators as in the exchange approximation) is generalized to the strongly anisotropic magnets. As the coherent wave functions of the spins we consider various degenerate representations for the multiplets. We consider then the coherent wave function from the symmetry point of view. For the atomic wave functions of local moments split by the crystal field multiplets with integer and half-integer spins have different properties. We also address the issue of small staggered moments in URu 2 Si 2 and UPt 3 at low temperatures.
Three-dimensional discrete-time lossless bounded real functions: minimal state-space realization

A simple technique for state-space realization of 3-dimensional discrete-time lossless bounded real functions is presented. The state-space matrices are of minimal dimension and are derived from the corresponding circuit implementation. The efficiency of the technique is due to the fact that in order to determine the 3D state-space model the circuit implementation is no longer needed because the solution is given in closed form.
Haematological assessment of the effects of the anaesthetic MS 222 in natural and neutralized form in three fresh water fish species: haemoglobin electrophoresis, ATP levels and corpuscular fragility curves

The effects of MS 222 and neutralized MS 222 anaesthesia on haemoglobin electrophoresis, erythrocyte adenosine triphosphate (ATP) levels and corpuscular fragility curves were studied in Cyprinus carpio, Sarotherodon mossambicus and Salmo gairdneri. Haemoglobin electrophoresis showed no significant intra-species differences in the percentage composition of the various fractions for any concentration of MS 222 and neutralized MS 222 used. Significant interspecies differences were, however, still observed. ATP levels showed intra and interspecies differences ascribed to the response of the fish species to MS 222-induced stress and not to actual changes in erythrocyte ATP concentrations. Differences were also observed in corpuscular fragility curves for all three species when using MS 222 or neutralized MS 222 compared to curves obtained without the use of the anaesthetic, but the mechanisms involved are not clear.
Field programmable gate arrays implementation of automated sensor self-validation system for cupola furnaces

The paper presents the use of an field-programmable gate array (FPGA) system in the hardware implementation of the algorithm. The self-validation (SV) algorithm is based on fuzzy logic and is used to estimate a confidence measure of a sensor's readings using the sensor's historic data. The hardware system consists of a data acquisition and conditioning system, a general-purpose CPU, and an FPGA system. The general-purpose CPU is used in the setup phase of the algorithm and in the preprocessing of the sensors' readings. The FPGA system is used in the on-line calculations of the confidence measures of the sensors' readings. The system is designed using data from an iron-melting cupola furnace.The paper presents the details of the developed SV software algorithm, the modifications of the algorithm to suit the FPGA implementation, the overall design of the hardware system, and the FPGA implementation of the algorithm. The results of the implementation are also discussed.
Optimizing computed radiography processing parameters for different examinations, display types, and local preferences

Both computed radiography systems at our institution offer control over the tonal and spatial frequency characteristics of the images. Our radiologists considered the default processing parameters to be suboptimal for many examinations, but the range of possible combination is tremendous. Our purpose was to develop an efficient methodology for determining the optimal processing parameters to achieve the desired image appearance for specific examinations and display types.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Thyroid-Specific T Cells in the Wistar Rat: 3. Induction of Anergy by a Syngeneic Thyroid Cell Line

Using a syngeneic Wistar rat model we have shown that the Wistar rat thyroid (WRT) cell line causes significant and specific proliferation of lymph node T cells from normal Wistar rats, and of splenic T cells from a thyroiditis prone line of BB/W rats, when cultured in the presence of irradiated feeder cells. These T cell responses were associated with a marked increase in the number of CD8+ T cells. However, using normal Wistar rat T cells which had been previously exposed to WRT cells, rested and then re-exposed to WRT cells as antigen, we consistently found that the T cell population had been rendered unreactive, or anergic, to further thyroid cell stimulation. However, if recombinant rat IL-2 was added to the cultures, then T cell responsivity was seen on re-exposure to WRT cells. The lymphopenic BB/W rat also had T cells which showed a primary T cell response to the WRT cell line accompanied by a marked increase in CD8+ T cells. In contrast to the Wistar rat T cells, the BB/W T cells retained a proliferative responsiveness to WRT cells on re-exposure although such responsiveness could also be markedly enhanced with IL-2. These data suggested that antigen-mediated inhibitory signals were induced in normal Wistar rat T cells by the syngeneic WRT cell line, independent of the presence of co-stimulatory molecules. Furthermore, the thyroiditis prone BB/W rat T cells appeared to be less responsive to such anergy induction, perhaps contributing to their susceptibility to autoimmune thyroid disease.
Matrix element determinations for hindered beta transitions in 124Sb and 160Tb

Abstract Beta-gamma directional correlation measurements as a function of beta-energy have been made on the cascades β(1.590)-γ(0.722) and β(1.667)-γ(0.645) in the decay of 124Sb and on the cascades β(1.750)-γ(0.087) and β(1.540)-γ(0.197) in the decay of 160Tb. A high-resolution Ge(Li) gamma detector was used, providing a significant improvement in the accuracy of the measurements. The data and the ft values are used to determine the nuclear matrix elements for the 1.590 MeV beta transition and for the 1.750 MeV beta transition. In each case, two sets of matrix elements were found to fit the data well, and arguments based on the CVC theory and nuclear models are used to select the best set. The matrix elements are compared with those measured for hindered beta transitions in other nuclei. The matrix element analyses of the 1.667 MeV transition in 124Sb and the 1.540 MeV transition in 160Tb both met with difficulties.
Objectives to direct the training of emergency medicine residents on off-service rotations: Critical care medicine, Part 2

This article is the second of two parts outlining the objectives for resident rotations in intensive care units. It is part of a larger continuing series on the goals and objectives to direct the training of emergency medicine residents on off-service rotations. The critical care unit allows the resident an opportunity to provide continuing care for critically ill patients, many of whom enter the health care system through the emergency department. Critical care medicine is a natural continuum of emergency medicine, and provides the resident with the ability to follow the natural progression of seriously ill patients, as well as build confidence and experience in caring for the critically ill and injured. These objectives are designed to help focus the resident's reading and study during the rotation.
Rac1 Disrupts p67phox/p40phox Binding: A Novel Role for Rac in NADPH Oxidase Activation

Abstract Phagocytic cells possess a tightly regulated multicomponent enzyme complex, the NADPH oxidase, which produces superoxide, a reactive oxygen molecule that is an essential component of host defense against infection. Upon stimulation, a functional NADPH oxidase is assembled when the cytosolic proteins, Rac, p67 phox, p47 phox, and possibly p40 phox, associate with the gp91 phox and p22 phox transmembrane proteins. Rac is a GTPase that in the GTP-bound state binds p67 phox to activate NADPH oxidase. The function of p40 phox is not known; it is believed to have a regulatory function in sequestering p67 phox and p47 phox in a cytosolic complex. We investigated binding interactions between p40 phox, p67 phox, and Rac and found that Rac1-GTP displaced p67 phox bound to p40 phox. In contrast, Cdc42, a GTPase homologous to Rac, did not displace p67 phox from p40 phox. A synthetic peptide corresponding to p67 phox amino acids 170–199, a region identified previously as a Rac binding domain, significantly reduced the ability of Rac1-GTP to disrupt p67 phox /p40 phox binding. We hypothesize that Rac-GTP binds the p67 phox N-terminal domain encompassing amino acids 170–199 that transmits a conformational change which causes p40 phox to dissociate from its binding site in the p67 phox C-terminus.
Analysis of cancer mutation signatures in blood by a novel ultra-sensitive assay: monitoring of therapy or recurrence in non-metastatic breast cancer.

Background Tumor DNA has been shown to be present both in circulating tumor cells in blood and as fragments in the plasma of metastatic cancer patients. The identification of ultra-rare tumor-specific mutations in blood would be the ultimate marker to measure efficacy of cancer therapy and/ or early recurrence. Herein we present a method for detecting microinsertions/deletions/indels (MIDIs) at ultra-high analytical selectivity. MIDIs comprise about 15% of mutations.
Sulci density map to aid in use of apparent diffusion coefficient for therapy evaluation.

Abstract In order to more accurately asses variations in the apparent diffusion coefficient used for therapy evaluation, we have studied the variation in sulci density in the human brain. Sagittal, axial and coronal magnetic resonance imaging scans have been analyzed to determine the change of the coefficient of variance of pixel intensity as a function of position. In the sagittal direction, relative to the 50% most medial slices, we find an 11.0%±4.8% (S.D.) decrease in the next 25% (12.5% on each side) of the slices. The most lateral 25% of the slices had less of a decrease and more variation: 7.0%±12.2%. Similar variations were observed in axial and coronal scans.
Simulation eines Mehr-Produkt-Lagers

Fur ein stationares Zwei-Produkt/Ein-Lager Modell wird ausgehend von Approximationen, die im Rahmen der stochastischen Lagerhaltungstheorie entwickelt wurden, in einer Simulationsstudie gezeigt, das sich diese Verfahren fur praktische Lagerhaltungsfalle eignen. Die Bestimmung der relevanten Politikparameter last sich dabei ohne grosere numerische Probleme bewaltigen. Hierdurch lassen sich vielfach Kostenvorteile der Sammelbesteilpolitik gegenuber der in der Praxis praktizierten Einzelbestellpolitik realisieren.
The impact of confidence in expectations on consumer satisfaction

Research into the construct relationships that form consumer satisfaction has advanced to a stage in which moderator variables need to be examined. The present research proposes and tests confidence in expectations as a potential moderator of these relationships. A laboratory study tests these hypotheses and finds support for them. Specifically, high-confidence subjects use both disconfirmation and perceived performance to form feelings of satisfaction, whereas low-confidence subjects use only perceived performance. Implications for both research and managerial practice are discussed. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Numerical methods for computing interfacial mean curvature

A procedure is described for computing the mean curvature along condensed phase interfaces in two or three dimensions, without knowledge of the spatial derivatives of the interface. For any point P on the interface, the method consists of computing the portion of volume enclosed by a small template sphere, centered on P, that lies on one side of the interface. That portion of the template volume is shown to be linear in the mean curvature of the surface, relative to the phase lying on the opposite side of the interface, to within terms that can usually be made negligible. An analogous procedure is described in two dimensions. Application of the procedure to compute the mean curvature along a digitized surface is demonstrated. A burning algorithm can be included to improve computational accuracy for interfaces having sharp curvature fluctuations. A minor extension of the method allows computation of the orientation of an interfacial element relative to a fixed reference frame.
CNS Injury: IL-33 Sounds the Alarm

Central nervous system trauma induces marked inflammation that has beneficial and deleterious consequences. In a recent issue of Neuron, Gadani et al. (2015) show that injured spinal cord releases the alarmin IL-33 to drive chemokines that recruit monocytes and promote recovery.
Attitude, Anxiety, and Social Readjustment toward Learning Disabilities by Student Teachers

Summary.-84 student teaches from undergraduate classes at a western university in Kansas completed a 9-question checklist of learning disabilities before interacting with a behavioral disordered/learning disabilities teacher, a paraprofessional, and a high school learning-disabled smdent. After the dialog, the student teachers completed a Social Readjustment Rating Scale, Breskin Rigidity Test, the Self-evaluation Questionnaire: State and Trait Anxiety, and the same 9-question checklist with one additional question ("Now that you have seen a learning-disabled student has it affected your opinion of learning disabilities?"). The dialog affected 63% of the students' opinions while 31% stated the presentation did not affect their opinion (6% were missing or not completed). Persons who experienced more life-changes and problems tended to rate or view learning disabilities more negatively. The more trait anxiety experienced by the smdents, the lower they rated learning disabilities after the presentation. Algozzine (1979) reviewed many studies on the perceptions of learning-disabled chddren by teachers, parents, and peers. Teachers viewed the learning-disabled children as less able to cope with new situations than peers, more angry and hostile, and less accepting of responsibility than peers. The teachers also rated the learning-dlsabled children as less socially acceptable to others than peers, hyperactive, and having more problems with parents than peers. The teachers' perceptions of the learning-disabled children were generally negative as were the ratings of parents and peers. People experience stress and anxiety which affects their outlook on life and interactions with other people. There can be positive or constructive stress or negative and destructive stress. Holmes and Rahe (1967) stated that individuals experience life changes or stressful events. The more a person experiences life change, the more likely that person will experience disease. Spielberger (1983) reports that individuals experience stateltrait anxiety which can affect how they will respond to stressful situations. What makes people rate learning-disabled students negatively and could interaction with such a student and teacher change a negative rating? Could simple adjustments of allowing the student teachers to interact with these students and teachers change potential teachers' attitudes? The present study examined whether student teachers' interactions or dialogs with a learning-disabled student and teacher wodd change their views toward learning disabilities.
Domain Identification by Clustering Sequence Alignments

A sequence databases are growing rapidly, results from sequence comparison searches using fast search methods such as BLAST and FASTA tend to be long and difficult to digest. In this paper, we present a new method to extract domain information from sequence comparison searches by clustering the resulting alignments according to their similarity to the query sequence. Efficient tree structures and algorithms are used to organize the alignment data such that structurally conserved elements can be easily identified. The hierarchical nature of the data structures used and the flexible X-Window based interface provide an efficient and intuitive means to explore the alignment data at different levels so the main domains as well as distantly related features can be explored.
Fiber-based polarization-sensitive Mueller-matrix optical coherence tomography with continuous source polarization modulation

A novel fiber-based Mueller-matrix optical coherence tomography system is demonstrated for acquiring polarization images of biological tissues in vivo. The system features a single broadband source, a rapid scanning optical delay line, and an electro-optical polarization modulator that modulates the polarization states of the source light continuously. A frame of a 200 by 1515 pixel 2D image can be acquired in half a second. The Jones matrix of a sample is calculated from two frequency components--the A-scan carrier frequency component and the beat frequency component between the modulation frequency and the carrier frequency. For samples having negligible diattenuation, the Jones matrix can be calculated from a single measurement of either the horizontal or the vertical interference signal. The system was first validated by imaging standard polarization elements and then applied to imaging biological samples.
How Oncology Fellows Discuss Transitions in Goals of Care: A Snapshot of Approaches Used Prior to Training

Abstract Introduction: The moment when a physician raises the possibility of discontinuing palliative chemotherapy at the end of life is a critical moment in the illness, and a difficult conversation. Expert recommendations cite the importance of giving bad news in these situations but there is limited research addressing how physicians should discuss transitions in goals of care from disease-modifying therapy to end-of-life care. While existing research includes survey data and observational studies of oncologist outpatient visits with patient who have advanced cancer, there are no studies that characterize actual physician communication behaviors when the physician tried to initiate a transitions conversation with a patient who has advanced cancer. Method: In this study, we examined the communication approaches used by oncology fellows discussing transitions with a standardized patient using audiorecordings collected prior to an intensive communication skills workshop. In this preworkshop encounter, eac...
Cutaneous manifestation of internal malignancies (II): the sign of Leser-Trélat.

: Leser-Trelat Sign refers to a sudden showering of seborrheic keratoses and its possible relationship to internal malignancy.
Directional spectrum analysis and statistics obtained from ERS-1 SAR wave images

Abstract This work examines ERS-1 (the first European Remote Sensing Satellite) SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) water surface wave images over Hualien of Taiwan, indicating that the variation of SAR signals in space domain is similar to in situ wave data's in time domain. Some statistical properties of SAR data are investigated. The Rayleigh distribution function closely corresponds with the histogram of wave heights, but the Gaussian one cannot for water surface displacements. Evidence reveals that SAR wave signals do not respond well to actual ocean waves effectively. As wave spectral analysis of available SAR data reveals, the appropriate sample size of SAR wave image, sampling average, and moving average should be taken carefully to accurately confirm directional power spectra. Moreover, SAR spectra are compared with in situ ones, confirming that peak frequencies correlate well and wave directions approximately agree with each other. Some differences between both spectral shapes remain somewhat unclear and require further study. Nevertheless, in this study, ERS-1 SAR power spectra verified the feasibility of deriving an appropriate dominant wave direction and peak frequency.
Reductive dechlorination of aroclor 1242 in anaerobic sediments: Pattern, rate and concentration dependence

Anaerobic biotransformation of polychlorinated biphenyls of Hudson River sediment microorganisms was investigated using the commercial mixture Aroclor 1242 in the laboratory at six different concentrations: 120, 300, 500, 800, 1,000, and 1,500 μg/g (on a sediment dry-weight basis). Dechlorination was concentration dependent. No change in congener composition was found at 1,000 and 1,500 μg/g during seven months of incubation, but significant shifts were observed in sediments with concentrations below 800 μg/g. A mass balance of the transformation indicated that, despite the shifts, the total molar concentration remained the same. An optimum concentration, based on the decrease of Cl per biphenyl, was 500 μg/g, but based on Cl removed per gram sediment it had a range from 500 to 800 μg/g. Dechlorination (total Cl removed per biphenyl) at 300 and 500 μg/g appeared to be first order, with rate constants of —0.039 and —0.059 per month, respectively. The rate also varied with the substitution position; it was faster for m-Cl, followed by p-Cl, but no o-Cl was removed. However, the faster rate of m-dechlorination in Aroclor 1242 was probably due to a high concentration of congeners in the Aroclor with Cl substitution patterns favoring its removal, rather than the meta-position itself.
Schizophrenia as a Human Process

The patient with schizophrenia often appears to be living in an alien world, one of strange voices, bizarre beliefs, and disorganized speech and behavior. It is difficult to empathize with someone suffering from symptoms so remote from one's ordinary experience. However, examination of the disorder reveals not only symptoms of the psychosis itself but also an intensely human struggle against the disintegration of personality it can produce. Furthermore, examination of the individual's attempts to cope with a devastating psychotic process reveals familiar psychodynamic processes and defense mechanisms, however unsuccessful they may be. Knowing that behind the seemingly alien diagnostic features of schizophrenia is a person attempting to preserve his or her self-identity puts a human face on the illness. This article utilizes clinical material to describe some of the psychodynamic processes of schizophrenia. Its purpose is to facilitate understanding of an illness that requires comprehensive biopsychosocial treatment in which a therapeutic doctor-patient relationship is as necessary as antipsychotic medication.
Nuclear localization signal and cell synchrony enhance gene targeting efficiency in primary fetal fibroblasts

The use of primary somatic cells in nuclear transfer procedure has opened a new opportunity to manipulate domestic animal genomes via homologous recombination. To date, while a few loci have been targeted in somatic cells using similar enrichment strategies as those used in mouse ES cells, there have been problems of low efficiency, mixed targeted and non-targeted cells within a colony and difficulties in cloning the cell after targeting. Utilizing the hypoxanthine guanine phosphoribosyl transferase (HPRT) as a test locus, it was determined that while no targeted colonies were identified using a conventional targeting construct, an average of 1 per million targeted cells were identified when a nuclear localization signal (nls) was added to the construct. When the nls was combined with cell synchronization using a thymidine block, targeting efficiency increased 7-fold. Moreover, the number of random integrants decreased by over 54-fold resulting in a 1:3 targeted to random integration ratio. This method should facilitate the application of homologous recombination to primary somatic cells.
Damage mechanics of electronics on metal-backed substrates in harsh environments

In this study, the effect of metal-backed boards on the interconnect reliability has been evaluated. Previous studies on electronic reliability for automotive environments have addressed the damage mechanics of solder joints in plastic ball-grid arrays on non-metal backed substrates (Lall et al., 2003, Syed et al., 1996, Evans et al., 1997, Mawer et al., 1999) and ceramic BGAs on non-metal backed substrates (Darveaux et al., 1992, 1995, 2000). Other failure mechanisms investigated include delamination of PCB from metal backing. Increased use of sensors and controls in automotive applications has resulted in significant emphasis on the deployment of electronics directly mounted on the engine and transmission. Increased shock, vibration, and higher temperatures necessitate the fundamental understanding of damage mechanisms which are active in these environments. Electronics typical of benign office environments uses FR-4 printed circuit boards. Automotive application typically use high glass-transition temperature laminates such as FR4-06 glass/epoxy laminate material (T/sub g/=164.9/spl deg/C). In application environments, metal-backing of printed circuits boards is being targeted for thermal dissipation, mechanical stability and interconnections reliability. The test vehicle is a metal backed FR4-06 laminate. The printed circuit board has an aluminum metal backing, attached with pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA). Component architectures tested include plastic ball grid array devices, C2BGA devices, QFN, and discrete resistors. Reliability of the component architectures has been evaluated for HASL. Crack propagation and intermetallic thickness data has been acquired as a function of cycle count. Reliability data has been acquired on all these architectures. Material constitutive behavior of PSA has been measured using uniaxial test samples. The measured constitutive behavior has been incorporated into non-linear finite element simulations. Predictive models have been developed for the dominant failure mechanisms for all the component architectures tested.
The New Leibniz's Law Arguments for Pluralism

For years philosophers argued for the existence of distinct yet materially coincident things by appealing to modal and temporal properties. For instance, the statue was made on Monday and could not survive being flattened; the lump of clay was made months before and can survive flattening. Such arguments have been thoroughly examined. Kit Fine has proposed a new set of arguments using the same template. I offer a critical evaluation of what I take to be his central lines of reasoning.
Common misapplications of the IEEE 519 harmonic standard: Voltage or current limits

The IEEE 519 engineering recommendations is possibly one of the most well known and widely used documents in the power quality area. The objective of the recommendation is, however, many times misunderstood and consequently erroneously interpreted and applied. This panel reviews and discusses common misinterpretations and distortions in the application of harmonic distortion recommendations with particular reference to IEEE 519. The panelists will attempt to clarify several different issues and misconceptions related to parameters, point of application, and nature of the recommendations. The issues will be presented and discussed in a contrasting / dichotomy approach (A versus B) of the alternatives practices. Suggestions will then be made for improving the implementation engineering recommendations and the communication process. This paper deals with the issue of current versus voltage limitation.
Genomic organization and amplification of the human epidermal type II keratin genes K1 and K5

Abstract Keratins are a family of structurally related proteins that form the intermediate filament cytoskeleton in epithelial cells. Mutations in K1 and K5 result in the autosomal dominant disorders epidermolytic hyperkeratosis/bullous congenital ichthyosiform erythroderma and epidermolysis bullosa simplex, respectively. Most disease-associated mutations are within exons encoding protein domains involved in keratin filament assembly. However, some mutations occur outside the mutation hot-spots and may perturb intermolecular interactions between keratins and other proteins, usually with milder clinical consequences. To screen the entire keratin 1 and keratin 5 genes we have characterized their intron–exon organization. The keratin 1 gene comprises 9 exons spanning approximately 5.6 kb on 12q, and the keratin 5 gene comprises 9 exons spanning approximately 6.1 kb on 12q. We have also developed a comprehensive PCR-based mutation detection strategy using primers placed on flanking introns followed by direct sequencing of the PCR products.
Laparoscopy for adnexal masses in the second trimester of pregnancy.

Abstract Study Objective To assess the safety of laparoscopic treatment of adnexal masses in the second trimester of pregnancy. Design Retrospective chart review (Canadian Task Force classification II-3. Setting Large tertiary care medical center. Patients Eleven women. Interventions Laparoscopic surgery. Measurements and Main Results All masses were identified by ultrasound. The average gestational age at the time of surgery was 17 weeks, 4 days. In seven women the primary cannula was inserted in the left upper quadrant of the abdomen. Procedures were eight ovarian cystectomies, two oophorectomies, and one exploratory laparoscopy. Average operating time was 135 minutes (range 95–195 min). Average time exposed to carbon dioxide was 78 minutes (range 59–135 min). None of the masses was malignant. There were no fetal complications or malformations. No patients had preterm labor and all delivered at term. Conclusion The increasing number of reported cases and our experience suggest that laparoscopic treatment of adnexal masses in the second trimester is safe and effective, but the surgeon must be skilled in advanced techniques of laparoscopic surgery.
The nephrologist's role in the management of calcium-phosphorus metabolism in patients with chronic kidney disease

The nephrologist's role in the management of calcium-phosphorus metabolism in patients with chronic kidney disease. Background In patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), timely referral to a nephrologist has been shown to improve outcomes, but the specific care measures mediating these superior outcomes have not been sufficiently described. Methods In a cohort of 3014 patients with CKD, we evaluated whether they had any indicators of calcium-phosphorus metabolism management prior to renal replacement therapy (RRT). These included measurement of parathyroid hormone (PTH) or vitamin D metabolites, or receipt of calcitriol or calcium-containing phosphate binders (CCPB) prior to RRT. Control patients without such care were selected by risk-set matching. We used multivariate conditional logistic regression analysis to test whether use of these interventions was associated with prior nephrologist consultation. We then used Cox proportional hazards models to assess whether implementation of such care was associated with differences in 1-year mortality once RRT was instituted. Results Only 3.4% of CKD patients had their PTH assessed prior to RRT, and 0.3% had vitamin D status measured. Use of calcitriol (12.2%) and CCPBs (16%) was slightly more prevalent. Seeing a nephrologist was highly associated with use of the tests and drugs studied (odds ratio, 1.28 to 6.46; all P values Conclusion Improvements in management of calcium-phosphorus metabolism in patients with CKD are attributable to nephrologist care and appear to mediate the survival benefit seen in patients who see a nephrologist relatively early in the course of their CKD.
A dynamic foundational architecture for semantic web services

The combination of Web services and ontologies is gaining momentum as the potential silver bullets for tomorrow's Web, i.e., the Semantic Web. We propose an architectural foundation for managing semantic Web services in dynamic environments. We introduce the concept of community to cater for an ontological organization of Web services. We develop an ontology called community ontology that serves as a "template" for describing communities of Web services. We also propose a peer-to-peer approach for managing communities in dynamic environments.
System justification: A motivational process with implications for social conflict

According to system justification theory, people are motivated to defend and legitimize the social systems that affect them. In this chapter, we review 15 years of theory and empirical research demonstrating the motivational underpinnings of system justification processes. We begin by explaining why people are motivated to system justify (i.e., it serves social and psychological needs). We then describe five lines of evidence that corroborate the motivational postulate of system justification theory: (1) Individual differences in self-deception and ideological motivation are linked to system justification; (2) System threat elicits defensive responses on behalf of the system; (3) People engage in biased information-processing in favor of system-serving conclusions; (4) System justification processes exhibit properties of goal pursuit; and (5) The desire to legitimize the system inspires greater behavioral effort. We consider the implications of this motivational approach for understanding situations—including situations involving social conflict—that facilitate resistance to vs. support for social change.
Distribution of agents in heterogeneous multiagent systems

Heterogeneous multiagent systems are useful for performing various complex distributed tasks. The effectiveness and scope of service such systems provide, can be attributed to the distribution of agents of different types through the network. This paper deals with the development of methods and techniques to analyse heterogeneity distributions in such networks, both qualitatively and quantitatively. These developed tools are used to establish information pertaining to the roles and significance of individual agents. Moreover, the notion of heterogeneity is formalized in terms of the underlying network topology.
Correlation between oxalic acid production and copper tolerance in Wolfiporia cocos

The increased interest in copper-based wood preservatives has hastened the need for understanding why some fungi are able to attack copper-treated wood. Due in part to accumulation of oxalic acid by brown-rot fungi and visualization of copper oxalate crystals in wood decayed by known copper-tolerant decay fungi, oxalic acid has been implicated in copper tolerance by the formation of copper oxalate crystals. Nineteen isolates of the brown-rot fungus Wolfiporia cocos were evaluated for oxalic acid production and weight loss on wood treated with 1.2% copper citrate. Twelve of 19 isolates that caused moderate to high weight losses in copper citrate-treated wood produced low oxalic acid in liquid culture, whereas isolates with high oxalic acid production had low weight losses in treated wood. Seven W. cocos isolates demonstrated enhanced weight loss in Cu-treated wood. Wood weight loss was unaffected by the presence of copper citrate for two W. cocos isolates and weight loss was lower for 10 isolates compared to weight losses in untreated wood. Citrate did not significantly influence oxalic acid production in liquid culture. Previous hypotheses linking oxalic acid and copper tolerance were based upon observations of single isolates of Postia and Tyromyces. Although most isolates produced more oxalic acid in copper citrate-treated wood than in untreated wood, we found no statistical relationship between the amount of oxalic acid production in liquid culture or wood and copper tolerance in W. cocos. Production of oxalic acid does not seem to be the factor controlling copper tolerance in W. cocos. The diversity seen within W. cocos demonstrates that caution should be used when reporting results, so that generalizations are not based on the behavior of a single isolate.
Inheritance of an extended diapause trait in the Northern corn rootworm, Diabrotica barberi (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)

Diapause is an adaptive trait that delays development or reproduction under unfavourable circumstances. The northern corn rootworm, Diabrotica barberi Smith & Lawrence, an important maize, Zea mays L., pest in the Diabroticite species complex, overwinters in diapause during the egg stage. Some NCR populations are adapted to crop rotation by expressing an extended diapause (ED) trait that delays embryonic development for 2 years. This ED trait has increased in frequency and geographic distribution since first reported in Illinois in 1932. Reciprocal single pair crosses among beetles from a laboratory colony with the ancestral 1-year diapause trait and field collected beetles with the 2-year ED trait indicated that ED females laid significantly more ED eggs than did females with the 1-year diapause trait regardless of male genotype. The ED trait was highly heritable [realized heritability (h 2 ) = 0.698 ± 0.314], with genetic dominance (D) of the trait strongly influenced by female genotype. Selection of the ED trait and maintenance of polymorphic diapause phenotypes within maize-soybean cropping systems is discussed in relation to response to a fluctuating environment and as a potentially advantageous life history adaptation.