cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Low oxygen environment facilitates embryo availability for older ovarian responders (PORs).

We aimed to investigate the different effects of low oxygen (5% O2) and atmospheric oxygen (20% O2) on in vitro fertilization for older poor ovarian responders (PORs). We selected 1080 older PORs who met two criteria: (i) advanced maternal age (≥40) and (ii) an abnormal ovarian reserve test. All the patients used the ultra-short term protocols with GnRH agonist and recombinant FSH for controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH). About 506 cycles were performed in the incubators with 5% O2 and 574 cycles were performed in the incubators with 20% O2. No significant differences were observed in normal fertilization rates (59.68 versus 60.25%; p = .691) and cancelation rates (18.97 versus 19.34%; p = .879) between two groups. The number of available embryos (1.77 ± 0.57 versus 1.52 ± 0.50; p = .041) and mean number of cells on Day 3 (7.49 ± 1.82 versus 7.16 ± 1.70; p = .032) were significantly higher in 5% O2 group compared to that in 20% O2 group. It showed no significant differences in the implantation rates (27.43 versus 24.11%; p = .803) and clinical pregnancy rates (36.34 versus 30.05%; p = .307) between two groups. The employ of low oxygen culture did not improve clinical pregnancy rate for older PORs. However, it benefited early embryonic development for older PORs.
Tapping and listening: a new approach to bolt looseness monitoring

Bolted joints are among the most common building blocks used across different types of structures, and are often the key components that sew all other structural parts together. Monitoring and assessment of looseness in bolted structures is one of the most attractive topics in mechanical, aerospace, and civil engineering. This paper presents a new percussion-based non-destructive approach to determine the health condition of bolted joints with the help of machine learning. The proposed method is very similar to the percussive diagnostic techniques used in clinical examinations to diagnose the health of patients. Due to the different interfacial properties among the bolts, nuts and the host structure, bolted joints can generate unique sounds when it is excited by impacts, such as from tapping. Power spectrum density, as a signal feature, was used to recognize and classify recorded tapping data. A machine learning model using the decision tree method was employed to identify the bolt looseness level. Experiments demonstrated that the newly proposed method for bolt looseness detection is very easy to implement by 'listening to tapping' and the monitoring accuracy is very high. With the rapid in robotics, the proposed approach has great potential to be implemented with intimately weaving robotics and machine learning to produce a cyber-physical system that can automatically inspect and determine the health of a structure.
Sensitization of Resistant Human Tumor Cells to Cisplatin or Carboplatin by Inhibitors of DNA Excision Repair

Cis-diamminedichloroplatinum(II) (cis-DDP) is one of the most effective drugs currently available for the treatment of human neoplasms. There is compelling evidence that DNA is the drug’s principal biological target.1,2 While the nature and relative frequency of cis-DDP induced DNA adducts have been elucidated3,4 the relative contribution to cytotoxicity and the mechanisms responsible for the repair of each of these lesions remain poorly defined. Understanding the repair systems involved in the removal of cis-DDP induced DNA adducts may well be of fundamental importance in developing strategies for modulating tumor resistance to this drug.
Bile salt-membrane interactions and the physico-chemical mechanisms of bile salt toxicity

We present evidence that ursodeoxycholate prevents toxicity of more hydrophobic bile salts by inhibiting micellar solubilization of membrane lipids. Using both centrifugal ultrafiltration and gel filtration methods we studied leakage of inulin from vesicles composed of egg phosphatidylcholine and cholesterol. We observed that the addition of tauroursodeoxycholate to taurodeoxycholate reduced leakage of inulin from large unilamelar vesicles compared to that seen with taurodeoxycholate alone. This protective effect was observed only at high membrane cholesterol:phospholipid ratios (> or = 0.5). By gel filtration we found that fractional leakage of inulin from vesicles was identical to fractional phospholipid solubilization, indicating that release of inulin from vesicles results from membrane dissolution rather than from increased permeability of otherwise intact membranes. Addition of tauroursodeoxycholate to taurodeoxycholate was found to suppress the dissolution of phospholipid from cholesterol-rich vesicles. Bile salts were found to absorb to vesicles with an affinity proportional to their relative hydrophobicity, as estimated by reverse phase HPLC. Adsorption affinity decreased progressively with increasing membrane cholesterol content. Different bile salts displaced each other from membranes in proportion to their respective binding, affinities. Tauroursodeoxycholate, which absorbed to membranes with low affinity, displaced taurodeoxycholate from vesicles only weakly. Based on these findings we postulate that bile salts may damage the liver through solubilization of canalicular membrane lipids. Ursodeoxycholate may protect the liver by inhibiting dissolution of the cholesterol-rich canalicular membrane by more hydrophobic endogenous bile salts. Biliary secretion of vesicles rich in phosphatidylcholine may buffer the intermicellar concentration of bile acids at levels below those required to disrupt the cholesterol-rich canalicular membrane; thus biliary vesicle secretion may have evolved as a mechanism to protect the biliary epithelium from injury by luminal bile salts.
Glial Glutamate Transporters: Electrophysiology

An intuitively obvious requirement for chemical neurotransmission is prompt removal of neurotransmitter following synaptic release. This is necessary for terminating the actions of the transmitter on the postsynaptic cell, and it is also important for controlling heterosynaptic spillover in order to maintain synapse specificity. In the case of glutamate, the principal excitatory neurotransmitter in the nervous system of vertebrates, it is also important to tightly control ambient extracellular transmitter levels in order to prevent excitotoxic damage from excessive receptor activity. This task is chiefly accomplished through reuptake mediated by excitatory amino acid transporters found on the plasma membranes of glia and neurons in the central nervous system (CNS). This article focuses on the electrophysiology of glial glutamate transporters and highlights some of the key aspects of the structure, mechanisms, and roles in synaptic transmission of these molecules. While the vast majority of glutamate transport activity in mammalian CNS is associated with glial cells, many of the glial transporter properties discussed here are shared with glutamate transporters found on neurons.
Developing Early Detectors of Student Attrition and Wheel Spinning Using Deep Learning

The increased usage of computer-based learning platforms and online tools in classrooms presents new opportunities to not only study the underlying constructs involved in the learning process, but also use this information to identify and aid struggling students. Many learning platforms, particularly those driving or supplementing instruction, are only able to provide aid to students who interact with the system. With this in mind, student persistence emerges as a prominent learning construct contributing to students success when learning new material. Conversely, high persistence is not always productive for students, where additional practice does not help the student move toward a state of mastery of the material. In this paper, we apply a transfer learning methodology using deep learning and traditional modeling techniques to study high and low representations of unproductive persistence. We focus on two prominent problems in the fields of educational data mining and learner analytics representing low persistence, characterized as student “stopout,” and unproductive high persistence, operationalized through student “wheel spinning,” in an effort to better understand the relationship between these measures of unproductive persistence (i.e., stopout and wheel spinning) and develop early detectors of these behaviors. We find that models developed to detect each within and across-assignment stopout and wheel spinning are able to learn sets of features that generalize to predict the other. We further observe how these models perform at each learning opportunity within student assignments to identify when interventions may be deployed to best aid students who are likely to exhibit unproductive persistence.
1-(((5-(Substituted Phenyl)-2-oxazolyl)methylene)amino)-2,4-imidazolidinediones, a New Class of Skeletal Muscle Relaxants.

The title compounds (VI) are synthesized from the N-aminoimidazolidinedione hydrochloride (I) or the oxazolecarboxylate (VII) as shown in the reaction scheme.
Authority and Language in the Encomium Emmae Reginae

ABSTRACTThis article resuscitates the agency of Queen Emma through examining signs of her influence in the creation of the Encomium Emmae Reginae. While she was not the author of the text, she was ...
Circular Economy Business Models—Supply Chain Perspectives

Modern manufacturing generates waste and causes shortages in natural resources due to a “take-make-waste” production system. The circular economy (CE) has been a policy initiative for supply chain looping strategies to reuse, refurbish, recycle, minimize, eliminate, share, and optimize material and energy use while maintaining firm profitability. Circular economy business models (CEBM) are recommended for achieving competitiveness for firms and their supply chains while reducing manufacturing waste and natural resource shortages present in the “take-make-waste” production system of traditional manufacturing. Despite the benefits of implementing CEBMs, there is a struggle to visualize the implications of CEBMs in organizational supply chains and beyond. This article presents the benefits of supply chain collaboration and infrastructure components based on practices of CEBM from several case study examples. Organizational, managerial, and technology development implications based on economic, environmental, and social dimensions are discussed from an administrative perspective. The paper ends with actionable steps for further advancement of CEBM in practice, along with areas for future research.
Social Media and Digital Storytelling for Social Good

This case study examines the Blue Roots Project, a graduate studies collaboration between Michigan-based, online water journalism organization Circle of Blue and the Center for Emerging Media Design and Development at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. The Blue Roots Project is a community arts and digital storytelling project that uses social media channels to elicit user-generated content focused on the effects of the world’s fresh water crisis. The project uses social media as a tool for the following goals: accessing and connecting with already established communities, meeting the audience where they already gather, creating a dialogue about issues, eliciting user-generated content, creating access points for the project, and creating a relationship with the audience.
Epidemia de Chikungunya nas Américas: Análise bibliométrica das publicações

The Chikungunya virus is a mosquito-borne alpha virus that causes debilitating fever and arthralgia in humans. Joint pains can last for months or years. It is mainly vectored by Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus. In recent years, the virus has gone from relative obscurity to becoming a global threat to public health, affecting millions of people throughout the tropical and subtropical world. The Chikungunya outbreak in the Americas and especially in Brazil changed the epidemiological paradigms of the disease. In this bibliometric analysis, the impact of this epidemic on the scientific production of Chikungunya-related content was evaluated, and how even after the reduction in incidence in the Americas, the scientific production continued to increase , probably because it is a new and emerging disease, it does not have specific therapy or vaccines, and has great chance of chronisation and incapacitate for periods of years.
Assessment of Free-Living Cadence Using ActiGraph Accelerometers Between Individuals With and Without Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction.

Context Anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) and gait speed are risk factors for developing knee osteoarthritis (OA). Measuring minute-level cadence during free-living activities may aid in identifying individuals at elevated risk of developing slow habitual gait speed and, in the long term, OA. Objective To assess differences in peak 1-minute cadence and weekly time in different cadence intensities between individuals with and without ACLR. Design Cross-sectional study. Setting Short-term, free-living conditions. Patients or other participants A total of 57 participants with ACLR (34 women, 23 men; age = 20.9 ± 3.2 years, time since surgery = 28.7 ± 17.7 months) and 42 healthy control participants (22 women, 20 men; age = 20.7 ± 1.7 years). Main outcome measure(s) Each participant wore a physical activity monitor for 7 days. Data were collected at 30 Hz, processed in 60-second epochs, and included in the analyses if the activity monitor was worn for at least 10 hours per day over 4 days. Mean daily steps, peak 1-minute cadence, and weekly minutes spent at 60 to 79 (slow walking), 80 to 99 (medium walking), 100 to 119 (brisk walking), ≥100 (moderate- to vigorous-intensity ambulation), and ≥130 (vigorous-intensity ambulation) steps per minute were calculated. One-way analyses of covariance were conducted to determine differences between groups, controlling for height and activity-monitor wear time. Results Those with ACLR took fewer daily steps (8422 ± 2663 versus 10 033 ± 3046 steps; P = .005) and spent fewer weekly minutes in moderate- to vigorous-intensity cadence (175.8 ± 116.5 minutes versus 218.5 ± 137.1 minutes; P = .048) than participants without ACLR. We observed no differences in minutes spent at slow (ACLR = 77.4 ± 40.5 minutes versus control = 83.9 ± 34.3 minutes; P = .88), medium (ACLR = 71.6 ± 40.2 minutes versus control = 82.9 ± 46.8 minutes; P = .56), brisk (ACLR = 115.3 ± 70.3 minutes versus control = 138.3 ± 73.3 minutes; P = .18), or vigorous-intensity (ACLR = 24.3 ± 36.5 minutes versus control = 38.1 ± 60.9 minutes; P = .10) cadences per week. Conclusions Participants with ACLR walked approximately 40 fewer minutes per week in moderate- to vigorous-intensity cadence than participants without ACLR. Increasing the time spent at cadence ≥100 steps per minute and overall volume of physical activity may be useful as interventional targets to help reduce the risk of early development of OA after ACLR.
How a Canon Is Formed: Censorship, Modernism, and the US Reception of Irish and South African Literature

Any scholarly project that purports to trace connections between two countries names a field that is to some degree already there – lying buried in archives, of course, but also contained in habitu...
Toward a Theory of Orbiton Dispersion in LaMnO3

At 750 K, LaMnO3 has a cooperative Jahn-Teller (JT) distortion, with Mn atoms in distorted oxygen octahedra. This lifts the degeneracy of the singly-occupied eg orbitals of the Mn3+ ions, which then become orbitally ordered. We use a minimal model to describe the ordered phase at T = 0. The on-site Coulomb repulsion U is set to infinity. The degrees of freedom are oxygen vibrations and electronic excitations consisting of misoriented orbitals on Mn ions. Neglecting coupling to the oxygen displacements, the gap to such excitations is 2Δ = 16 g2/K, where g is the electron–phonon coupling and K is the oxygen spring constant. When static oxygen displacements are coupled, this excitation becomes a self-trapped exciton with energy Δ, half the JT gap. Adding dynamic oxygen displacements in one-phonon approximation introduces dispersion to both the (previously Einstein-like) phonons and the orbital excitons (“orbitons”). One of the phonon branches has zero frequency at k = (0, 0, π). This is the Goldstone mode of the JT broken symmetry.
Mind over matter

As an invited speaker at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, Manfred Eigen once stood by as his host ran through an impressive list of accolades: his work as a young researcher measuring the rates of ultrafast chemical reactions, for which he shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1967; his directorship of the Max Planck Institute for Biological Chemistry in Gottingen; his contributions to understanding of the self-organization of prebiotic systems and the ‘RNA world’; and his formulation of the quasi-species and hypercycle theories (together with Peter Schuster).
Evaluation of genomic sequence-based growth rate methods for synchronized Synechococcus cultures.

Standard methods for calculating microbial growth rates (μ) through the use of proxies, such as in situ fluorescence, cell cycle, or cell counts, are critical for determining the magnitude of the role bacteria play in marine carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycles. Taxon-specific growth rates in mixed assemblages would be useful for attributing biogeochemical processes to individual species and understanding niche differentiation among related clades, such as found in Synechococcus and Prochlorococcus. We tested three novel DNA sequencing-based methods (iRep, bPTR, and GRiD) for evaluating growth of light synchronized Synechococcus cultures under different light intensities and temperatures. In vivo fluorescence and cell cycle analysis were used to obtain standard estimates of growth rate for comparison with the sequence-based methods (SBM). None of the SBM values were correlated with growth rates calculated by standard techniques despite the fact that all three SBM were correlated with percentage of cells in S phase (DNA replication) over the diel cycle. Inaccuracy in determining the time of maximum DNA replication is unlikely to account entirely for the absence of relationship between SBM and growth rate, but the fact that most microbes in the surface ocean exhibit some degree of diel cyclicity is a caution for application of these methods. SBM correlate with DNA replication but cannot be interpreted quantitatively in terms of growth rate. Importance Small but abundant, cyanobacterial strains such as the photosynthetic Synechococcus spp. are essential because they contribute significantly to primary productivity in the ocean. These bacteria generate oxygen and provide biologically-available carbon, which is essential for organisms at higher trophic levels. The small size and diversity of natural microbial assemblages means that taxon-specific activities (e.g., growth rate) are difficult to obtain in the field. It has been suggested that sequence-based methods (SBM) may be able to solve this problem. We find, however, that SBM can detect DNA replication and are correlated with phases of the cell cycle but cannot be interpreted in terms of absolute growth rate for Synechococcus cultures growing under a day-night cycle, like that experienced in the ocean.
Treatment of simultaneous common femoral and profunda femoris artery aneurysms

We report the case of a 67-year-old man with separate simultaneous aneurysms of the common femoral and profunda femoris arteries. Treatment consisted of complete en bloc excision of both aneurysms, including the intervening segment of nonaneurysmal profunda femoris artery (PFA). Arterial reconstruction included the placement of a Dacron graft (DuPont, Wilmington, Del) from the external iliac artery to the superficial femoral artery and revascularization of the PFA with a segment of great saphenous vein. A review of the literature on presentation and treatment of PFA aneurysms is included.
Speaking Out: An Evaluation of the Aims and Curriculum Proposals in Sizer's Horace's Compromise

(1987). Speaking Out: An Evaluation of the Aims and Curriculum Proposals in Sizer's Horace's Compromise. The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues and Ideas: Vol. 60, No. 5, pp. 219-222.
The mechanism of inhibition of horse liver alcohol dehydrogenase by thyroxine and related compounds.

Abstract Thyroxine and related compounds have been found to be excellent inhibitors of horse liver alcohol dehydrogenase. The thyroid hormones appear to act by interfering with the normal coenzyme-binding mechanism. Triiodothyronine and thyroxine are uncompetitive inhibitors with regard to the coenzyme. In addition to inhibiting the enzyme activity, the thyroid hormone also quenches the enhanced fluorescence of the bound NADH and greatly reduces the magnitude of a Cotton effect in the optical rotatory dispersion spectrum which is attributed to bound coenzyme. Little effect on the over-all binding of the coenzymes was observed. However, the current findings are consistent with an inhibition scheme in which the thyroid hormones interfere with the binding of the nicotinamide portion of the coenzyme.
Resisting Institutionalization: Religious Professionals in the Emerging Church*

This article discusses how organizations can resist normative institutional pressures associated with the use of formally trained and credentialed professionals. This research draws on neoinstitutional theories of isomorphism and utilizes a framework of religious training developed by Finke and Dougherty (2002), which emphasizes both the social and religious capital gained during professionalization, to show that resistance to normative institutional pressures is possible. The data demonstrate that organizations which act to reformulate the role of religious professionals in a way which limits both the opportunities and ability of clergy to implement and maintain organizational routines and processes can successfully avoid normative institutional forces. This research draws on over 50 interviews and 100 hours of fieldwork with people in the Emerging Church, a religious movement that has arisen in the last 25 years as a response to increasing distrust of institutional authority. This study helps to close the gap between institutional studies of organizations and the sociology of religion by suggesting that some, currently overlooked, organizational activities can be more accurately understood as deliberate attempts to resist institutionalizing forces.
Genetic Manipulation of Neisseria gonorrhoeae

The sexually-transmitted pathogen, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, undergoes natural transformation at high frequency. This property has led to the rapid dissemination of antibiotic resistance markers and to the panmictic structure of the gonococcal population. However, high frequency transformation also makes N. gonorrhoeae one of the easiest bacterial species to manipulate genetically in the laboratory. Techniques have been developed that result in transformation frequencies >50%, allowing the identification of mutants by screening and without selection. Constructs have been created to take advantage of this high frequency transformation, facilitating genetic mutation, complementation, and heterologous gene expression. Techniques are described for genetic manipulation of N. gonorrhoeae, as well as for growth of this fastidious organism.
Using Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization To Amplify Monolayers of Initiators Patterned by Microcontact Printing into Polymer Brushes for Pattern Transfer

We report the use of atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) to amplify initiators patterned on films of gold into polymer brushes of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMMA), poly(tert-butyl methacrylate) (PTBA), poly(isobornyl methacrylate) (PIBMA), and poly((dimethylamino)ethylmethyl acrylate) (PDMAEMA). Pattern transfer into gold substrates underlying polymer brushes was achieved by using the patterned brushes as barriers to wet chemical etchants of gold. The surface-confined initiators for ATRP were prepared by the self-assembly of (BrC(CH3)2COO(CH2) 10S)2 (I) on films of gold. These monolayers were assembled from solutions of hexadecane at 60 °C so as to prevent their thermal desorption during ATRP (also performed at 60 °C). By measuring the resistance offered by these brushes to etching of underlying films of gold by aqueous solutions of KI/I2, KCN/K3Fe(CN)6, and 50 vol % aqua regia (70 vol % HNO3 and 30 vol % HCl), we conclude that both the thickness and chemi...
Scalable video browsing and searching via Q -metric

Abstract This paper proposes a scalable video segmentation and parsing scheme that can work directly on compressed video databases. A new metric, Q-metric is utilized to achieve real time accessibility and scalability. The system allows user to perform video browsing and searching over different scales for different application needs and different user preferences. Experiment results show that Q-metric is robust against variation and fast to execute. It is thus suitable for large Internet video database browsing and retrieval.
The effects of calcium channel blockers on random skin flap survival in the pig model

This study was designed to evaluate the influence of two calcium channel blockers, verapamil and nifedipine, on skin flap survival. These agents were selected because they inhibit the passage of calcium through calcium selective channels in the plasma membrane, thereby blocking calcium mediated electromechanical coupling in contractile tissue and resulting in peripheral arterial vasodilation. Three groups of pigs were used in this study. All skin flaps in this study were 3 cm wide and 12 cm long. The first group (10 flaps) served as controls with no pharmacologic manipulations. Pigs in group II (15 flaps) received verapamil (80 mg orally, three times a day) for 7 days postoperatively. Pigs in group III (15 flaps) received nifedipine (10 mg orally, three times a day) for 7 days postoperatively. Statistical analysis of the results demonstrated that both verapamil and nifedipine resulted in significant enhancement of skin flap survival. The increased survival of the skin flaps produced by nifedipine as compared to verapamil was statistically significant.
Application of a Method of Inspection Testing to Assurance Reliability

This paper describes the use of a sampling method of inspection testing for the purpose of controlling reliability in a system. The acceptable quality level (AQL) and mean failure free time can be estimated by the maximum likelihood method, assuming that errors are distributed by the Poisson Law. Hence, a choice of quality levels or reliability levels can be made. Single or multiple sampling plans may be used depending on the cost factors, the sample size, and the available information on reliability. The sample size, acceptance number, and cost due to Type I and Type II errors are each considered. One aim of inspection testing is to determine when preventable failures occur. An inspection lot in this case is a test run of a system for a given time. The system is accepted or rejected on the basis of the number of failures found in the sample tests. The object of the inspection system is (1) to accept the reliability of the system at least 100 (1-A) per cent of the time when the true life is more than T 1 and (2) to accept the reliability of the system not more than a small proportion, B, of the time when the true mean life is less than T 2 , T 2 ≪ T 1 .
A Direct Extraction H- Ion Source

A direct extraction H- ion source of the Penning design described by Dudnikovl has been built and tested. To date a beam of 108 mA has been extracted from a 10 × 0.5 mm2 slit and transported through a 90° bending magnet into a Faraday cup at a duty factor of ~7 Hz × 700 ?s (0.5%). The duty factor limitation is imposed by operating temperature requirements so that at reduced arc current a dc beam of 4 mA has been reached.
Liarozole acts synergistically with 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 to inhibit growth of DU 145 human prostate cancer cells by blocking 24-hydroxylase activity.

1α,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3[ 1,25-(OH)2D3] inhibits the proliferation of many cancer cells in culture, but not the aggressive human prostate cancer cell line DU 145. We postulated that the 1,25-(OH)2D3-resistant phenotype in DU 145 cells might result from the high levels of expression of 25-hydroxyvitamin D-24-hydroxylase (24-hydroxylase) induced by treatment with 1,25-(OH)2D3. As this P450 enzyme initiates 1,25-(OH)2D3 catabolism, we presumed that a high level of enzyme induction could limit the effectiveness of the 1,25-(OH)2D3 antiproliferative action. To examine this hypothesis we explored combination therapy with liarozole fumarate (R85,246), an imidazole derivative currently in trials for prostate cancer therapy. As imidizole derivatives are known to inhibit P450 enzymes, we postulated that this drug would inhibit 24-hydroxylase activity, increasing the 1,25-(OH)2D3 half-life, thereby enhancing 1,25-(OH)2D3 antiproliferative effects on DU 145 cells. Cell growth was assessed by measurement of viable ce...
Rapid Effects of Oestrogen on Synaptic Plasticity: Interactions with Actin and Its Signalling Proteins

Oestrogen rapidly enhances fast excitatory postsynaptic potentials, facilitates long-term potentiation (LTP) and increases spine numbers. Each effect likely contributes to the influence of the steroid on cognition and memory. In the present review, we first describe a model for the substrates of LTP that includes an outline of the synaptic events occurring during induction, expression and consolidation. Briefly, critical signalling pathways involving the small GTPases RhoA and Rac/Cdc42 are activated by theta burst-induced calcium influx and initiate actin filament assembly via phosphorylation (inactivation) of cofilin. Reorganisation of the actin cytoskeleton changes spine and synapse morphology, resulting in increased concentrations of AMPA receptors at stimulated contacts. We then use the synaptic model to develop a specific hypothesis about how oestrogen affects both baseline transmission and plasticity. Brief infusions of 17β-oestradiol (E2 ) reversibly stimulate the RhoA, cofilin phosphorylation and actin polymerisation cascade of the LTP machinery; blocking this eliminates the effects of the steroid on transmission. We accordingly propose that E2 induces a weak form of LTP and thereby increases synaptic responses, a hypothesis that also accounts for how it markedly enhances theta burst induced potentiation. Although the effects of E2 on the cytoskeleton could be a result of the direct activation of small GTPases by oestrogen receptors on the synaptic membrane, the hormone also activates tropomyosin-related kinase B receptors for brain-derived neurotrophic factor, a neurotrophin that engages the RhoA-cofilin sequence and promotes LTP. The latter observations raise the possibility that E2 produces its effects on synaptic physiology via transactivation of neighbouring receptors that have prominent roles in the management of spine actin, synaptic physiology and plasticity.
Associations Between Primary Care-Oriented Practices in Medical School Admission and the Practice Intentions of Matriculants.

PURPOSE: To assess associations of primary-care-oriented medical school admission practices with matriculants practice intentions. METHOD: The authors performed cross-sectional, secondary analyses of databases from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). The independent variables were f
Autonomic and behavioral effects of dextroamphetamine and placebo in normal and hyperactive prepubertal boys.

The hypothesis is tested that the response to dextroamphetamine in terms of activity, attention, impulsivity, and autonomic activity is similar in normal (N) and hyperactive (H) children. Fourteen N and 15 H boys had skin conductance (SC), heart rate (HR), and finger temperature (ST) recorded during rest, presentation of eight 75-dB tones, and a reaction time (RT) procedure on three occasions: off drug (Day 1) and after ingestion (double-blind) of placebo and of .5 mg/kg dextroamphetamine. Both N and H groups showed drug effects, compared to placebo, of reduced motor activity and impulsivity, improved attention (RT), increased HR and HR slowing during RT foreperiods, and decreased ST. Both groups also had decreases in SC responsivity but in different parts of the test. Placebo compared to Day 1 produced increased activity and autonomic "arousal" but no change in Rt. Stimulant drugs thus have similar behavioral and autonomic effects in both N and H boys, but the beneficial effects on behavior do not depend critically on increases in arousal.
The Truth about Philosophical Investigations I §§134–1371

A broad, though not unanimous, consensus among commentators is that the later Wittgenstein subscribes to a redundancy conception of truth. I reject that interpretation. No doubt much depends on what is meant by a redundancy theory. But once even mildly plausible versions of that view are isolated a review of the relevant texts shows that the evidence for that interpretation collapses. Moreover, the redundancy interpretation is at odds with guiding prescriptions in the post-1932 corpus. Wittgenstein doesn’t hold that truth can be defined or characterized thinly, as redundancy theorists propose, but that it isn’t susceptible to any such generic treatment.
Peripheral control of food intake: interaction between test diet and postingestive chemoreception.

Abstract The experiments reported here were designed to investigate the role of the duodenum in conjunction with the palatability of the diet in the control of meal size. Rats fitted with chronic cannula resting in the duodenal cap were infused with 15 ml of 5.05% glucose, 10.1% glucose, 1.6% urea, 3.2% urea, 15.15% glucose and 4.8% urea at a rate of 0.2 ml/min, or were not infused at all. In one experiment, intake of sweetened condensed milk, and in a second experiment, intake of a 3.2% glucose solution was recorded over a 5 1 2 hour period. Only infusions of very concentrated solutions had significant effects on milk ingestion. On the other hand glucose infusions isosmotic to body fluids led to a decrease in the size of the first meal of a 3.2% glucose solution and a lengthening of the subsequent intermeal interval. These effects were directly related to the concentration of the glucose infused. Equiosmolar urea infusions had no consistent effect on glucose drinking. Intake of moderately palatable substances can be altered by the presence of small amounts of glucose in the duodenum, but intake of highly palatable substances remains largely unaffected unless high concentrations of glucose are infused.
Wholes that cause their parts: organic self-reproduction and the reality of biological teleology.

Abstract A well-rehearsed move among teleological realists in the philosophy of biology is to base the idea of genuinely teleological forms of organic self-reproduction on a type of causality derived from Kant. Teleological realists have long argued for the causal possibility of this form of causality—in which a whole is considered the cause of its parts—as well as formulated a set of teleological criteria of adequacy for it. What is missing, to date, is an account of the mereological principles that govern the envisioned whole-to-part causality. When the latter principles are taken into account, we find that there is no version of whole-to-part causality that is mereologically, causally and teleologically possible all at once, as teleological realism requires.
Placental calcification: a metastatic process?

Placental calcification commonly increases with gestational age. The mechanism of apatite mineralization probably involves one of three known mechanisms of tissue calcification: physiological (like bone), dystrophic (ischaemia-related) or metastatic (mineralization in a supersaturated environment). This study was designed to determine the mechanism of calcification by examining (1) the mineral content of placental calcifications in comparison to other physiological and pathological apatites, and (2) the expression of bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), which are important in physiological calcification, across gestational age. By energy-dispersive x-ray analysis (EDXA), the Ca/P weight ratio for apatitic mineral from mature calcifications was 2.00+/-0.05 (s.e.), which is similar to that for stones formed in a metastatic, supersaturated environment and lower than that observed in physiological calcification. Biologically active BMP, which was determined by bioassay, was demonstrated in mature and postmature placentae. The BMPs PLAB, PDF and related protein INSL-4 were identified by semiquantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), but their mRNA expression was independent of gestational age (7-41 weeks of gestation). We conclude that (1) the identified BMPs were not related directly to placental calcification, which argues against physiological calcification, and (2) the chemical composition of the apatitic mineral was suggestive of rapid formation in a supersaturated environment, which is consistent with a metastatic mechanism of calcification.
Learning about the natural history of rheumatoid arthritis development through prospective study of subjects at high risk of rheumatoid arthritis-related autoimmunity.

Multiple studies have demonstrated abnormalities of rheumatoid arthritis (RA)–related autoantibodies and biomarkers of inflammation prior to the presence of the signs and symptoms of inflammatory arthritis (1–18). Many of these studies were performed using retrospectively assembled samples from subjects who fortuitously had biologic specimens available from before their diagnosis of RA. Therefore, our understanding of the precise temporal relationship between biomarker abnormalities and the onset of the signs and symptoms of inflammatory arthritis is limited. However, despite these limitations, overall these studies have had a profound impact on the understanding of the early development of RA. Furthermore, these studies, in conjunction with studies that have established genetic risk factors for RA (such as the shared epitope [19]), support the concept that RA development occurs in several phases, as depicted in Figure 1.
The vero cell receptor for the hepatitis B virus small S protein is a sialoglycoprotein

The Vero (African green monkey kidney-derived) cell line is capable of binding recombinant hepatitis B surface antigen (rHBsAg) particles containing only the small surface (S) protein of hepatitis B virus (HBV). This binding activity appears to be due to a single major population of receptors (M. E. Peeples et al., Virology 160, 135-142 (1987]. Since infectious HBV particles also contain the small S protein, it is possible that the Vero cell receptor might also function as an HBV receptor. The initial physical characterization of this receptor is reported here. Treatment of Vero cells with each of four proteases reduced their binding activity by 70% or greater, indicating that the receptor is partially protein in nature. Binding activity was also reduced by pretreating cells with neuraminidase or low levels of sodium periodate, indicating that sialic acid also plays a major role in the receptor activity. Consistent with this interpretation, N-acetylneuraminic acid and N-acetylneuraminyl-lactose were able to competitively inhibit rHBsAg particle attachment to Vero cells. The protein nature of the Vero cell receptor was confirmed by the demonstration that chymotrypsin treatment which resulted in 70% loss of binding had little effect on the cell sialic acid content. Therefore, the Vero cell receptor for rHBsAg particles is a sialoglycoprotein.
Application of the proper orthogonal decomposition to datasets of internal combustion engine flows

The proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) is applied to both computational fluid dynamics and particle imaging velocimetry data of simplified motored engine flows using two different methods. The first method is to apply the POD to ensembles of velocity fields obtained by considering the flow field taken at fixed crank-angle positions over a number of cycles. As a result, sets of POD modes are found, each of which describe the structure of the flow at a given piston position. These sets give some indication of the instability mechanism involved in tumble breakdown. The second method we use represents a novel approach of applying the POD to flows within a time-varying domain. The velocity fields are stretched to a fixed domain and normalized so that all phases of the flow are equally weighted. In this way, ‘phase-invariant POD modes’ are created. The phase-invariant modes show desirable properties for forming a suitable basis for future low-dimensional models which should describe the breakdown process mor...
Numerical Estimates of the Hausdorff Dimension of the Largest Cluster and Its Backbone in the Percolation Problem in Two Dimensions

We present numerical estimates of the Hausdorff dimension $D$ of the largest cluster and its "backbone" in the percolation problem on a square lattice as a function of the concentration $p$. We fine that $D$ is an approximately linear function of $p$ in the region near $p={p}_{c} (\ensuremath{\simeq}0.59)$ with a dimension about equal to that of a self-avoiding walk when $p=0.455$. The dimension of the backbone, or biconnected part, of the largest cluster equals that of the self-avoiding walk when $p\ensuremath{\simeq}{p}_{c}$. At $p={p}_{c}$ the dimension of the largest cluster equals the anomalous dimension introduced by Stanley et al.
Revised Basis Sets for the LANL Effective Core Potentials.

We suggest a new contraction of the basis sets associated with the Hay-Wadt relativistic effective core potentials (RECPs) for the main group and transition metal atoms. These bases are more suitable for density functional theory investigations than the previous ‘double-ζ’ contractions based upon Hartree−Fock atomic results. The original Hay-Wadt primitives are now contracted [5s5p3d], [4s4p3d], and [4s4p3d] for the first, second, and third transition series, respectively, and denoted as LANL2TZ basis sets. For the main group atoms, we advocate using a completely uncontracted basis denoted LANL08. While modestly extending the size of the basis, the resulting sets should be suitable for both DFT and wave function based approaches. The valence bases for the transition metal atoms can be supplemented with the polarization functions determined by Frenking.
A new three-dimensional dose distribution reduction scheme for tubular organs.

In tubular structures, spatial aspects of the dose distribution may be important in determining the normal tissue response. Conventional dose-volume-histograms (DVHs) and dose-surface-histograms (DSHs) lack spatial information and may not be adequate to represent the three-dimensional (3D) dose data. A new 3D dose distribution data reduction scheme which preserves its longitudinal and circumferential character is presented. Dose distributions were generated at each axial level for esophagus or rectum in 123 patients with lungcancer or prostate cancer. Dose distribution histograms at each axial level were independently analyzed along the esophageal or rectal circumference to generate dose-circumference-histogram (DCH) sheets. Two types of plots were then generated from the DCH sheet. The first considered the percentage of the circumference at each axial level receiving various doses. The second considered the minimum dose delivered to any percentage of the circumference at each axial level. The DCH as a treatment planning tool can be easily implemented in a 3D planing system and is potentially useful for the study of the relationship between the complication risk and the longitudinal and circumferential dose distributions.
Multiple comparisons with control in a single experiment versus separate experiments : why do we feel differently ?

Abstract We contrast comparisons of several treatments to control in a single experiment versus separate experiments in terms of Type I error rate and power. It is shown that if no Dunnett correction is applied in the single experiment case with relatively few treatments, the distribution of the number of Type I errors is not that different from what it would be in separate experiments with the same number of subjects in each treatment. The difference becomes more pronounced with a larger number of treatments. Extreme outcomes (either very few or very many rejections) are more likely when comparisons are made in a single experiment. When the total number of subjects is the same in a single versus separate experiments, power is generally higher in a single experiment even if a Dunnett adjustment is made.
Fine structure transitions in alkali metal-rare gas collisions

Abstract The cross section for transitions between fine structure levels of the alkali atom in Na-He and Rb-He collisions are calculated by numerical integration of the time dependent Schrodinger equation with a van der Waals interaction.
Predictors of radiation therapy noncompliance in an urban academic cancer center.

Purpose To quantify the frequency of patient noncompliance in an urban radiation oncology department and identify predictors of noncompliance. Methods and Materials We identified patients treated with external beam radiation therapy (RT) with curative intent in our department from 2007 to 2012 for 1 of 7 commonly treated malignancies. Patients who missed 2 or more scheduled RT appointments were deemed "noncompliant." An institutional database was referenced to obtain clinical and demographic information for each patient, as well as a quantitative estimate of each patient's socioeconomic status. Logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with RT noncompliance. Results A total of 2184 patients met eligibility criteria. Of these, 442 (20.2%) were deemed "noncompliant." On multivariate analysis, statistically significant predictors of noncompliance included diagnosis of head-and-neck, cervical, or uterine cancer, treatment during winter months, low socioeconomic status, and use of a long treatment course (all P Conclusion This is the first large effort examining patient noncompliance with daily RT. We have identified demographic, clinical, and treatment-related factors that can be used to identify patients at high risk for noncompliance. These findings may inform future strategies to improve adherence to prescribed therapy.
Glycosylation of catalase inhibitor necessary for activity

Abstract A protein isolated from maize scutella which inhibits catalase in vitro has been shown to contain 12% carbohydrate in the form of galactose. This corresponds to four galactose molecules per inhibitor subunit. Removal of the carbohydrate with β-galactosidase or blockage with a galactose-specific lectin abolished activity of the inhibitor.
The role of acculturation in the career adjustment of Asian American workers: a test of Leong and Chou's (1994) formulations.

F.T.L. Leong and E.L. Chou (1994) provided a theoretical model for understanding the acculturation process among Asian Americans and applied that model to predicting the potential career adjustment problems encountered by Asians in the United States. Several of the hypotheses proposed by Leong and Chou were empirically tested in 2 separate studies. In Study 1, acculturation (R.M. Suinn, K. Rickard-Figueroa, S. Lew, & P. Vigil, 1987) was found to be positively related to job satisfaction (A.H. Brayfield & H.F. Rothe, 1951) and negatively related to occupational stress and strain (S. H. Osipow & A.R. Spokane, 1981) in a sample of 39 Asian American employees from 2 major companies who attended career development workshops. In Study 2, acculturation was found to be positively related to supervisors' performance ratings in a different sample of 27 Asian American employees. These preliminary data suggest that acculturation plays an important role in the career development of Asian Americans. The theoretical, research, and counseling implications of the findings are discussed.