cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Precision Nutrition and Childhood Obesity: A Scoping Review

Environmental exposures such as nutrition during life stages with high developmental plasticity-in particular, the in utero period, infancy, childhood, and puberty-may have long-lasting influences on risk of chronic diseases, including obesity-related conditions that manifest as early as childhood. Yet, specific mechanisms underlying these relationships remain unclear. Here, we consider the study of 'omics mechanisms, including nutrigenomics, epigenetics/epigenomics, and metabolomics, within a life course epidemiological framework to accomplish three objectives. First, we carried out a scoping review of population-based literature with a focus on studies that include 'omics analyses during three sensitive periods during early life: in utero, infancy, and childhood. We elected to conduct a scoping review because the application of multi-'omics and/or precision nutrition in childhood obesity prevention and treatment is relatively recent, and identifying knowledge gaps can expedite future research. Second, concomitant with the literature review, we discuss the relevance and plausibility of biological mechanisms that may underlie early origins of childhood obesity identified by studies to date. Finally, we identify current research limitations and future opportunities for application of multi-'omics in precision nutrition/health practice.
Concurrent Use of Mepolizumab and Rituximab for Eosinophilic Granulomatosis With Polyangiitis and Multisystem Involvement.

Eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA), formerly Churg-Strauss, is an anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated autoimmune vasculitis, involving small- and medium-sized arteries, which could involve several organs. This rare syndrome can present with a myriad of symptoms, which may make diagnosis challenging. It has been suggested that there are variants of EGPA, which may respond differently to available modes of treatment. Multiple and different mechanisms may be at play in each case of EGPA. This may influence the decision of clinicians to combine treatment strategies as done in this case. The addition of immunosuppressive agents other than high-dose steroids may mitigate end-organ damage, facilitate faster recovery, and prevent relapse. Rituximab among others has been seen to provide better outcomes, including a lower incidence of relapse. Mepolizumab was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2017 for the treatment of EGPA. Administered at a higher dose than approved for severe eosinophilic asthma, it has been shown to lengthen remission in EGPA. The optimal dose and duration of therapy with mepolizumab remain unclear. The rarity alone of EGPA creates room for further investigation regarding pathogenesis, outcome over time, and treatment strategies, which may vary depending on how an individual case presents. This case describes the course of a 55-year-old woman who presented with respiratory symptoms, pauci-immune necrotizing granulomatous nephropathy, and neuropathy secondary to P-ANCA-positive EGPA who was successfully treated with rituximab and mepolizumab, in addition to glucocorticoids.
“An Altercation Full of Meaning”: The Duel between Francis B. Cutting and John C. Breckinridge

A Duel!” In late March of 1854, the northern press burst with the news. A duel had allegedly taken place between two members of the House of Representatives—Francis B. Cutting of New York and John C. Breckinridge of Kentucky. Confusion and anticipation reigned, and a flurry of rumors circulated. Had Breckinridge been shot in the neck? Was he killed or wounded? Did Cutting emerge victorious? Or was the entire affair a mere hoax? The situation became so dramatic that it even appeared in a theatrical advertisement, beckoning people to see a play that promised to be just as exciting as the alleged duel. By early April, it had become clear that despite the conflict between Cutting and Breckinridge, an actual duel had been averted. Although their misunderstanding had been amicably settled, the affair still left many questions unanswered. Why did these two Congressmen feel compelled to resort to arms? And how did Cutting, a northerner, nearly become embroiled in a duel—a violent ritual typically understood by historians today as an archaic institution that was confined to the Old South? These questions can be partially answered by examining the CuttingBreckinridge affair within the context of nineteenth century dueling culture generally and the increased sectional tensions that emerged during the Kansas-Nebraska debate specifically. However, the near-duel was given meaning and political staying power only through interpretation and manipulation by the northern antislavery press, which used the conflict to indict dueling as a product of violent southern slaveholding culture. The Cutting-Breckinridge affair was part of the larger sociopolitical phenomenon of dueling that has been discussed by historians of early and nineteenth century America. In her critical study Affairs of Honor, Joanne B. Freeman explains that duels in early America stemmed from a commitment to “sacrifice one’s life for one’s honor,” or a sense of self-worth tied up with manliness and, in some cases, ability as a political leader. [excerpt]
Ruin or Renewal? Thoughts on America’s Third Century

This paper examines the state of American politics as the 2020 approaches. It argues that partisan bitterness is reflective of an underlying binary dispute over values, not over President Trump per...
Ziegler–Natta catalyst activation. Thermodynamic and kinetic aspects of metallocenium ion-pair formation, dissociation, and structural reorganization

This contribution reviews thermochemical and dynamic NMR studies of metallocenium olefin polymerization catalyst formation from, and dissociation to, the neutral metallocene dimethyl precursors and either fluoroarylboranes or methylalumoxane (MAO), as well as the kinetics of ion pair separation/recombination/reorganization. Significant correlations are found between borane Lewis acidity, the enthalpy of catalyst formation, catalyst NMR spectral parameters, the free energy of activation of catalyst ion pair separation/recombination/reorganization, and ethylene polymerization activity.
Spatio-temporal methods for estimating subsurface ocean thermal response to tropical cyclones

Tropical cyclones (TCs), driven by heat exchange between the air and sea, pose a substantial risk to many communities around the world. Accurate characterization of the subsurface ocean thermal response to TC passage is crucial for accurate TC intensity forecasts and for an understanding of the role that TCs play in the global climate system. However, that characterization is complicated by the high-noise ocean environment, correlations inherent in spatio-temporal data, relative scarcity of in situ observations, and the entanglement of the TC-induced signal with seasonal signals. We present a general methodological framework that addresses these difficulties, integrating existing techniques in seasonal mean field estimation, Gaussian process modeling, and nonparametric regression into a functional ANOVA model. Importantly, we improve upon past work by properly handling seasonality, providing rigorous uncertainty quantification, and treating time as a continuous variable, rather than producing estimates that are binned in time. This functional ANOVA model is estimated using in situ subsurface temperature profiles from the Argo fleet of autonomous floats through a multi-step procedure, which (1) characterizes the upper ocean seasonal shift during the TC season; (2) models the variability in the temperature observations; (3) fits a thin plate spline using the variability estimates to account for heteroskedasticity and correlation between the observations. This spline fit reveals the ocean thermal response to TC passage. Through this framework, we obtain new scientific insights into the interaction between TCs and the ocean on a global scale, including a three-dimensional characterization of the near-surface and subsurface cooling along the TC storm track and the mixing-induced subsurface warming on the track's right side.
Coverage of EBT practices in routine clinical supervision for youth: how much overlap with the evidence base?

Clinical supervision is a common practice in youth mental health services; however, research that characterizes the extent to which routine supervision aligns with gold standard supervision describ...
Natural hazard, employment uncertainty, and the choice of labor contracts

This paper explores how contractual arrangements emerge in labor markets in response to two risky prospects that employers might face, namely production failure from natural hazard conditions and that from worker non-availability. Modeling the process of contract determination as a dynamic game of symmetric but imperfect information in the presence of power asymmetry between employers and workers, the paper posits, when workers have alternative employment opportunities, and employers seek to avoid labor shortage, employers would choose a ‘fixed’ rather than a ‘variable’ contract and bear the risk of supporting the hired workers even if hazardous conditions may realize later in nature.
Low-Cost PUMA Array on a BGA Package

A low-cost Planar Ultra-wideband Modular Antenna (PUMA) array on a ball grid array (BGA) package is proposed. The PUMA array has been designed to operate with 7.25-31GHz instantaneous bandwidth and at wide scan angles. This array-on-package uses non-collapsible solder balls to further enhance the modularity of PUMA and meets low-cost organic PCB fabrication design rules. Infinite array simulation results that include the BGA transition predicted broadside VSWR < 2 and less than 2.7 at θ = 45° in E- and H-planes, while maintaining cross polarization isolation levels better than 10 dB out to θ = 45° in all diagonal planes.
High-throughput CRISPR-mediated 3D enrichment platform for functional interrogation of chemotherapeutic resistance

Cancer is a disease of somatic mutations. These cellular mutations compete to dominate their microenvironment and dictate the disease outcome. While a therapeutic approach to target-specific oncogenic driver mutations helps to manage the disease, subsequent molecular evolution of tumor cells threatens to overtake therapeutic progress. There is a need for rapid, high-throughput, unbiased in vitro discovery screening platforms that capture the native complexities of the tumor and rapidly identify mutations that confer chemotherapeutic drug resistance. Taking the example of the CDK4/6 inhibitor (CDK4/6i) class of drugs, we show that the pooled in vitro CRISPR screening platform enables rapid discovery of drug resistance mutations in a three-dimensional (3D) setting. Gene-edited cancer cell clones assembled into an organotypic multicellular tumor spheroid (MCTS), exposed to CDK4/6i caused selection and enrichment of the most drug-resistant phenotypes, detectable by next-gen sequencing after a span of 28 days. The platform was sufficiently sensitive to enrich for even a single drug-resistant cell within a large, drug-responsive complex 3D tumor spheroid. The genome-wide 3D CRISPR-mediated knockout screen (>18,000 genes) identified several genes whose disruptions conferred resistance to CDK4/6i. Furthermore, multiple novel candidate genes were identified as top hits only in the microphysiological 3D enrichment assay platform and not the conventional 2D assays. Taken together, these findings suggest that including phenotypic 3D resistance profiling in decision trees could improve discovery and reconfirmation of drug resistance mechanisms and afford a platform for exploring noncell autonomous interactions, selection pressures, and clonal competition.
Impacts Analysis of Electric Vehicles Integration to the Residential Distribution Grid

The proliferation of Electric Vehicles (EVs) can cause vulnerability to the electric grid. This paper analyzes the EV integration impacts on the distribution grid that mainly consists of residential loads. The EV uncertainties are addressed by a comprehensive model using arrival time and miles traveled. The penetration of EV is modeled based on the maximum permissible number of customers that can be connected to each node of a representative residential feeder. The temporal power consumption of EVs is calculated by using their daily trip and capacity information which are measured by utilizing specific EV models. An IEEE 123 bus feeder is used for power flow simulation and the demonstration of different case studies. Results from the customer-oriented modeling presented here show that wide voltage deviations occur at local nodes with higher penetration of EVs and it also depends on the distance of the nodes from the substation. The coincidental peak can cause large voltage unbalance at the closer nodes and hourly voltage profiles can vary significantly based on this. While voltage deviation increases with higher EV penetration at the distant nodes, the closer nodes demonstrate insignificant change in voltage deviation for different levels of penetrations. The synergy between EV and grid modeling and the in-depth statistical analysis of voltage distribution at the local nodes are needed by the grid operators for higher EV integration in the future.
Withdrawn and Acting out?: Early Adolescents’ Social Avoidance and Externalizing Problems

Relative to other motivations of social withdrawal (i.e., shyness, unsociability), social avoidance is understudied. Furthermore, the relation between social avoidance and externalizing problems seldom has been investigated despite reasons to expect an association. We examined the association between social avoidance and externalizing problems using a sample of early adolescents in the United States using parents' reports (N = 294; 54.1% boys; M age = 12.43 years). Supporting our hypotheses, structural equation models indicated that social avoidance positively predicted concurrent externalizing problems, controlling for shyness, unsociability, and internalizing problems (including depression and anxiety). Findings highlight that socially avoidant adolescents' behaviors may include avoiding others as well as acting out. Longitudinal work is needed to examine the potential bidirectional relations between social avoidance and externalizing problems.
Denoising with discrete Morse theory

Denoising noisy datasets is a crucial task in this data-driven world. In this paper, we develop a persistence-guided discrete Morse theoretic denoising framework. We use our method to denoise point-clouds and to extract surfaces from noisy volumes. In addition, we show that our method generally outperforms standard methods. Our paper is a synergy of classical noise removal techniques and topological data analysis.
UserIdentifier: Implicit User Representations for Simple and Effective Personalized Sentiment Analysis.

Global models are trained to be as generalizable as possible, with user invariance considered desirable since the models are shared across multitudes of users. As such, these models are often unable to produce personalized responses for individual users, based on their data. Contrary to widely-used personalization techniques based on few-shot learning, we propose UserIdentifier, a novel scheme for training a single shared model for all users. Our approach produces personalized responses by adding fixed, non-trainable user identifiers to the input data. We empirically demonstrate that this proposed method outperforms the prefix-tuning based state-of-the-art approach by up to 13%, on a suite of sentiment analysis datasets. We also show that, unlike prior work, this method needs neither any additional model parameters nor any extra rounds of few-shot fine-tuning.
Fat soluble vitamin status in children on home parenteral nutrition in a tertiary paediatric intestinal rehabilitation unit

Summary Backgrounds & aims Children with intestinal failure on home parenteral nutrition are at risk of fat malabsorption and fat soluble vitamin deficiency. Fish oil containing mixed lipid emulsions (SMOFlipid®) with higher vitamin E content, have a theoretical risk of exceeding current recommendations for vitamin E dosing and, may influence other fat soluble vitamin status in these children. The aim of this study was to assess for fat soluble vitamin status in children on long-term home parental nutrition receiving a mixed lipid emulsion (SMOFlipid®) compared with those receiving traditional soy or soy/olive oil based (non- SMOFlipid®) lipid emulsions and whether this is influenced by the underlying cause of intestinal failure. Methods Retrospective longitudinal study in a tertiary referral paediatric hospital of children on home parental nutrition during the period January 2000 to June 2019. Data was retrieved using medical and pharmacy records, laboratory database, and summarised using inferential statistics. Results 111 patients (n = 58 female) received home parental nutrition in 121 discrete episodes (range 45–5329 days). N = 61 (55%) were diagnosed with anatomical short bowel syndrome, of which necrotising enterocolitis was the most common cause (n = 14). SMOFlipid® was used exclusively in n = 79 patients, non-SMOFlipid® exclusively in n = 19, and n = 13 changed from non-SMOFlipid® to SMOFlipid® during the study period. The median vitamin E level and vitamin E:lipid ratio were significantly higher for patients on SMOFlipid® compared to non-SMOFlipid® (27.9 vs 18.3 μmol/L respectively, p Conclusion The use of SMOFlipid® correlated with higher Vitamin E level in paediatric home parental nutrition patients. Lower vitamin D level appears to correlate with the use of non-SMOFlipid®. A larger prospective cohort is required to delineate any clinical significance from these findings.
Predictors of Attrition in Two Types of Group Programs for Men Who Batter

This study examines the predictors of precounseling attrition, incounseling attrition, and duration of attendance in 2 group programs for men who batter. Predictors of precounseling attrition were a history of child abuse, being non-White, and having more self-reported anger. Younger age and antisocial personality were significant predictors of attrition during counseling in both logit and Zero Inflated Poisson regression analyses. We further identified predictors of attrition by type of group treatment. In cognitive-behavioral groups, younger age, no reports of violence in childhood, and antisocial personality were significantly related to attrition. In process-psychodynamic groups, low income was related to attrition. Program and research implications of these findings are discussed.
Resonance Methods, Introduction

Welcome to the chapter on resonance methods in the Characterization of Materials. There are several taxonomies which can be used to classify analytical techniques used to characterize materials. They may be grouped according to the probing electromagnetic energy (gamma-ray, ultraviolet, visible, infrared, microwave, or radio frequency photons), energy level (nuclear, electronic, spin, vibrational, etc), the interaction (absorption, scattering, emission, etc) or the detection scheme (photoelectric, resonance, heat, etc), to name a few. In this chapter a simple taxonomy was adopted, the word resonance in the technique name. By this taxonomy, resonance methods in materials science cover a broad range of techniques. These methods include nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR), solid-state (SS) NMR, electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), ferromagnetic resonance (FMR), Mossbauer, and cyclotron resonance (CR) spectroscopies; andmagnetic resonance imaging (MRI). This chapter showshowthese extremely useful andunique techniques can help solve problems in materials science. The concept of a probe, located centrally within a material, is common to all these resonance techniques. Keywords: nuclear magnetic resonance; NMR; nuclear quadrupole resonance; electron paramagnetic resonance; cyclotron resonance; Mossbauer spectroscopy
Poor Immigrants Use Public Benefits at a Lower Rate than Poor Native-Born Citizens

Low-income immigrants use public benefits like Medicaid or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly the Food Stamp Program) at a lower rate than low-income native-born citizens. Many immigrants are ineligible for public benefits because of their immigration status. Nonetheless, some claim that immigrants use more public benefits than the native born, creating a serious and unfair burden for citizens. This analysis provides updated analysis of immigrant and native-born utilization of Medicaid, SNAP, cash assistance (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and similar programs), and the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program based on the most recent data from the Census Bureau’s March 2012 Current Population Survey (CPS). Low-income (family income below 200% of poverty line) non-citizen children and adults utilize Medicaid, SNAP, cash assistance, and SSI at a generally lower rate than comparable low-income native-born citizen children and adults, and the average value of public benefits received per person is generally lower for non-citizens than for natives. Because of the lower benefit utilization rates and the lower average benefit value for low-income non-citizen immigrants, the cost of public benefits to noncitizens is substantially less than the cost of equivalent benefits to the native-born.
Design flow of wearable heart monitoring and fall detection system using wireless intelligent personal communication node

Most current remote health monitoring systems provide limited physiological information on the user end. Raw physiological data collected from the on-body sensors are sent to a distant location for data storage and analysis without being analyzed on the user end. In this paper, we present the design flow of a system utilizing the Wireless Intelligent Personal Communication Node (W-iPCN) for analyzing heart activities and detecting sudden fall situations of a remote patient. The W-iPCN is a small, compact and lightweight system which has the ability to process and analyze body sensor data. Furthermore, this system is capable of communicating with other devices through wireless protocols. The purpose of having the W-iPCN for wireless body sensor network system is to provide in-depth biomedical data to the user in real-time. As an example, we emphasize on electrocardiography (ECG), accelerometer and gyroscope data analysis to show the feasibility and capability of the W-iPCN. The ECG sensor data is useful to determine current heart conditions of the user. Accelerometer and gyroscope data are useful to detect sudden collapse events. In this paper, we expand our system design to an Android smartphone to present acquired analyzed sensor data to the user. In addition, the Android smartphone transmits the data to the distant server for data logging and history keeping through the Internet in realtime. Our system targets standard Android smartphone users to be able to install and run our Android application software without requiring expert software knowledge.
Identity and Development: Tongan Culture, Agriculture, and the Perenniality of the Gift

Identity and Development: Tongan Culture, Agriculture, and the Perenniality of the Gift. Paul van der Grijp. Leiden: KITLV Press, 2004. 227 pp.
Bayesian semiparametric regression in the presence of conditionally heteroscedastic measurement and regression errors.

Summary. We consider the problem of robust estimation of the regression relationship between a response and a covariate based on sample in which precise measurements on the covariate are not available but error-prone surrogates for the unobserved covariate are available for each sampled unit. Existing methods often make restrictive and unrealistic assumptions about the density of the covariate and the densities of the regression and the measurement errors, for example, normality and, for the latter two, also homoscedasticity and thus independence from the covariate. In this article we describe Bayesian semiparametric methodology based on mixtures of B-splines and mixtures induced by Dirichlet processes that relaxes these restrictive assumptions. In particular, our models for the aforementioned densities adapt to asymmetry, heavy tails and multimodality. The models for the densities of regression and measurement errors also accommodate conditional heteroscedasticity. In simulation experiments, our method vastly outperforms existing methods. We apply our method to data from nutritional epidemiology.
Safety and efficacy of overlapping sirolimus-eluting versus paclitaxel-eluting stents.

Background The short-term and long-term safety and efficacy of paclitaxel versus sirolimus-overlapping drug-eluting stents (DES) is unknown. We sought to examine the clinical consequences of overlapping sirolimus versus paclitaxel DES. Methods We reviewed catheterization reports from April 2003 to May 2005 for all patients who underwent percutaneous coronary revascularization with DES. All patients were followed-up for at least 1 year. Patients were included if they received only 2 single-type overlapping stent (eg, sirolimus-sirolimus) during the index procedure. The end points included early (inhospital and 30-day) and late composite of all-cause mortality, stent thrombosis, myocardial infarction, and target lesion revascularization. Results A total of 282 individuals met our study criteria. Of these, 188 had sirolimus and 94 had paclitaxel-overlapping DES. There were 78 events for a median follow-up of 24 months for the composite end point. No statistically significant differences between overlapping sirolimus and paclitaxel DES were seen for inhospital, 30-day (16% vs 23%, respectively; P = .13), and long-term (25% vs 33%, respectively; P = .16) composite end points. In addition, in Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazard analysis, no significant differences for the composite end point were noted. Conclusions In this analysis, there were no significant differences in safety or efficacy between the 2 types of overlapping DES. Trends toward more events with overlapping paclitaxel stents should be evaluated in an adequately powered randomized controlled trial.
Streamlined sign-out of capillary protein electrophoresis using middleware and an open-source macro application.

Background: Interfacing of clinical laboratory instruments with the laboratory information system (LIS) via middleware software is increasingly common. Our clinical laboratory implemented capillary electrophoresis using a Sebia; Capillarys-2™ (Norcross, GA, USA) instrument for serum and urine protein electrophoresis. Using Data Innovations Instrument Manager, an interface was established with the LIS (Cerner) that allowed for bi-directional transmission of numeric data. However, the text of the interpretive pathology report was not properly transferred. To reduce manual effort and possibility for error in text data transfer, we developed scripts in AutoHotkey, a free, open-source macro-creation and automation software utility. Materials and Methods: Scripts were written to create macros that automated mouse and key strokes. The scripts retrieve the specimen accession number, capture user input text, and insert the text interpretation in the correct patient record in the desired format. Results: The scripts accurately and precisely transfer narrative interpretation into the LIS. Combined with bar-code reading by the electrophoresis instrument, the scripts transfer data efficiently to the correct patient record. In addition, the AutoHotKey script automated repetitive key strokes required for manual entry into the LIS, making protein electrophoresis sign-out easier to learn and faster to use by the pathology residents. Scripts allow for either preliminary verification by residents or final sign-out by the attending pathologist. Conclusions: Using the open-source AutoHotKey software, we successfully improved the transfer of text data between capillary electrophoresis software and the LIS. The use of open-source software tools should not be overlooked as tools to improve interfacing of laboratory instruments.
Heteroscedasticity of residuals: a non-parametric alternative to the goldfeld-quandt peak test

This paper discusses the problem of heteroscedasticity of residuals in a regression model. Tests that detect a monotonie relationship between mean and variance are presented. The theo-retical shortcomings of these tests are discussed and the tests are compared by an empirical sampling computation of their powers.
Influence of Gravity and Ambient Pressure on Combustion and Flammability of n-Heptane and 1-Propanol Droplets in Air-Diluent Environments

Reduced gravity and normal gravity combustion experiments were performed with individual fiber-supported n-heptane and 1-propanol droplets with initial diameters in the 1-mm size range. Experiments were performed with air-inert mixtures at 0.1 MPa or 0.3 MPa and about 298 K, where helium, carbon dioxide, or xenon were separately used as inerts. The amount of inert gas required to suppress combustion was generally higher in reduced gravity than normal gravity, and higher mole fractions of xenon were required for suppression of combustion relative to helium or carbon dioxide. Helium was found to perform the best as a flame suppressant on a mass basis, i.e., mass fractions of helium required to suppress combustion were significantly smaller than for the other inert gases. Increasing the amount of inert gas generally decreased burning rates. Results indicate that ambient gas transport properties and the fuel type play an important role in determining flammability and combustion behaviors of the droplets. Comp...
AP30, a differential protein marker for perilymph and cerebrospinal fluid in middle ear fluid, has been purified and identified as human apolipoprotein D

Abstract Using two-dimensional (2-D) gel electrophoresis, human perilymph and cerebrospinal fluid have been shown to be highly enriched for an acidic protein with Mr 30 000, we designated it as AP30. The protein exhibits charge heterogeneity, with at least eight isoforms visible between pI 4.5 to 5.5 on 2-D gels. Purification of the protein was carried out by ammonium sulfate precipitation, polybuffer exchanger column chromatofocusing, and acetone fractional precipitation. The resulting preparation also contains eight spots in the acidic area of 2-D gels, and one broad band located at Mr 30 000 by SDS-PAGE. Digestion of AP30 with neuraminidase causes the isoforms to shift to a more basic position and to consolidate into two primary spots, indicating that AP30 is a variably sialylated glycoprotein. Amino acid analysis of AP30 revealed an amino acid content very similar to that of human apolipoprotein D. Attempts to determine the amino acid sequence demonstrated that the N-terminus is blocked. Edman sequencing of two peptide fragments, generated by cyanogen bromide cleavage of AP30, both revealed sequences having 100% identity to human apolipoprotein D. Western blot analysis of AP30 with the antibody against authentic human apolipoprotein D demonstrated a high degree of cross-reactivity. These studies indicate that AP30 from human perilymph and cerebrospinal fluid is a member of the apolipoprotein D family.
The global existence of solutions of delay differential equations

Recent studies of differential equations with delayed arguments have revealed interesting, and often surprising, facts about the behavior of solutions. In this paper, the question of the existence of solutions defined for all time is investigated. We begin by applying the following result of Winston [5] to demonstrate some simple scalar delay equations which admit only the zero solution on the line.
Distributed pupil telescope designs

The diffractive performance of large segmented telescope mirrors is discussed with particular emphasis on understanding the PSF structure of arrays of hexagonal and circular mirrors. Discriminating issues needed to select mirror size and array are discussed and one solution is proposed as it has been studied for the Canada France Hawaii Telescope.
Inhibition of calcium and glucose uptake by murine leukemia L5178Y cells treated with antiserum

Studies were performed to determine whether decreases in transport of calcium and glucose might be among the earliest changes triggered by the antigen-antibody reactions occurring on the cell surface of murine leukemia L5178Y cells after treatment with rabbit antisera. After treatment with antisera, in the absence of complement, these cells exhibited a decreased uptake of 45Ca, 2-deoxy[3H]glucose, and 3-0-methyl[3H]glucose. These changes occurred rapidly, within 2 minutes after the addition of antiserum, in contrast to the previously reported inhibitory effects of antiserum on DNA, RNA, and protein synthesis, which became demonstrable only after 4 to 8 hours. The kinetics of uptake of the radioactive substrates was biphasic, with a very rapid initial uptake followed by less rapid linear uptake. The precise mechanism of cell growth inhibition remains to be elucidated, but one of the initial effects of antiserum treatment may be a perturbation at the cell membrane such that transport of specific nutrients is decreased, resulting in the observed effects on macromolecular synthesis.
Basic Approaches to Green Production of Board Wood Composite Materials

Deep processing of wood raw materials is the main field of its use. The forecast of timber industry development provides deep chemical processing and start-up of board materials production. In the available forest reserves the share of pulpwood and forestry engineering raw materials is up to 13 per cent. Some measures will contribute to settle the problems of increasing wood raw material complex use and green production of board wood composite materials. They include the improvement of existing technologies and implementation of progressive technologies and systems increasing the volume and quality of board output. One of the main directions will be the maximum possible use of all components of raw materials, when some production wastes are the raw material for the manufacture of new products. This will provide the balance in efficient environmental management. The priority will be given to creation of a relatively closed cycle of wood resources use. Particularly promising in achieving a balance of economic and environmental interests of society will be obtaining of cheap boards capable to be not worse than solid wood with minimum cost of natural resources and preservation of individual properties of each component.
Hemodynamic and hormonal responses to atrial distension in the ovine fetus.

Abstract OBJECTIVE: Our purpose ws to evaluate the hemodynamic and endocrine responses to elevations of atrial pressure in fetal sheep. STUDY DESIGN: By use of a randomized block design, 10 ovine fetuses underwent pulmonary artery constriction proximal to the ductus arteriosus with and without propranolol pretreatment. RESULTS: Atrial pressure doubled ( p p > 0.05), in response to pulmonary artery constriction in both groups. Atrial natriuretic peptide tripled ( p p p CONCLUSIONS: The fetal sheep responds to increased atrial pressure with not only increased levels of atrial natriuretic peptide but also with arginine vasopressin and plasma renin activity over time. These changes occur in spite of increases in both atrial pressure and atrial natriuretic peptide. We speculate that the fetal heart may participate in redistribution of cardiac output by releasing atrial natriuretic peptide and augmenting secretion of arginine vasopressin and plasma renin activity.
Some Demographic and Diagnostic Characteristics of a Geriatric Population in a State Geriatric Facility

Data are presented on some of the chief characteristics of a sample of 276 patients (152 women and 124 men) in a long-term state psychiatry facility, who had previously undergone intensive psychiatric treatment. For the women the average age was 81.6 years, and for the men 75.8 years. The women had slightly more schizophrenia, manic depressive illnesses and cerebrovascular syndromes. The men had distinctly more CNS syphilis and alcoholic dementia. Initially, patients with schizophrenia had been admitted at ages ranging from 15 to 99 years, and those with manic depressive illness at ages ranging from 20 to 70 years. For cerebrovascular syndromes, admissions were concentrated in the age range of 70–90 for women and 65–85 for men. For CNS syphilis, the admissions (for men) were concentrated in the age range of 50–70, and for alcoholic dementia in the age range of 60–80. Length of stay was extremely long for schizophrenic and manic depressive illness and relatively short for cerebrovascular syndromes. However, for the majority of the cerebrovascular patients, the length of stay was at least five years for the men and at least ten years for the women.
Adsorption of ions on smooth and roughened silver surfaces: A comparative study by optical second harmonic generation

Abstract Optical second harmonic generation on silver electrode surfaces is shown to be highly sensitive to surface morphology at potentials within the double layer charging region. Slight alterations in the surface structure result in the appearance of a strong potential-dependent SH signal at biases negative to the potential of zero charge. As observed in previous studies on smooth silver electrodes, this signal is strongly affected by anion adsorption on the surface.
Associations between smoking cessation and anxiety and depression among U.S. adults

Many studies have shown a relationship between smoking and depression. However, few studies have examined the association between current depression and smoking and even fewer used large cross-sectional data to support these findings. Using the 2006 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data (n=248,800), we compared rates of lifetime depression, lifetime anxiety, current depression, and current depressive symptoms among smokers who unsuccessfully attempted to quit (unsuccessful quitters), former smokers (successful quitters), and smokers who made no attempts to quit (non-quitters). Unsuccessful quitters experienced more lifetime depression and anxiety than non-quitters (OR=1.2; 95% CI, 1.0-1.4), whereas successful quitters experienced less (OR=0.7, 95% CI, 0.6-0.8). Current depression prevalence was 14.3% among non-quitters, 18.8% among unsuccessful quitters, and 8.0% among successful quitters. On average, unsuccessful quitters also experienced more days of depressive symptoms during the previous month than either non-quitters or successful quitters. Our results suggest that smokers who attempt to quit unsuccessfully may experience lifetime depression as well as current depression at a higher rate than other smokers and former smokers.
Sensitization of mice to paraphenylenediamine and structurally-related compounds: adjuvant effects of vitamin A supplementation

Allergic contact dermatitis from moderate and weak contact sensitizers is generally studied with guinea pigs, since they are readily sensitized to contact allergens. Mice, by contrast, are poor responders to weak contact allergens. However, the variety of in vitro murine systems as well as murine specific reagents make mice the preferable species. With the use of vitamin A supplementation, 2 protocols were developed which sensitized CBA/J female mice to paraphenylenediamine. Mice were sensitized by 5 daily topical applications to shaven dorsal skin. Alternately, mice were sensitized by 2 intraperitoneal injections of antigen pulsed spleen cells. Sensitization to paraphenylenediamine was determined by ear swelling following topical application. Vitamin A supplementation was found to be essential for optimum response. Lymph node and spleen cells from sensitized mice were capable of proliferating to paraphenylenediamine in vitro. With the use of vitamin A supplementation and intraperitoneal injection, CBA/J mice were also sensitized to a number of compounds structurally related to paraphenylenediamine, including the ortho- and meta-derivatives of paraphenylenediamine, as well as hydroquinone and resorcinol. These new protocols, combined with vitamin A supplementation, expand the use of mice to study moderate sensitizers with minimal animal utilization.
Traditional Management Theory as Panoptic Discourse: Language and the Constitution of Somatic Flows

This paper examines the classical management theories of Henri Fayol and Frederick Taylor as examples of "panoptic discourse." According to Michel Foucault, panopticism has been a principle method of exercising social control during the modern era. When applied to classical organizational theory, it is possible to show how panoptic techniques constituted modern organizational space by fostering the methodical observation and normalization of human behavior. Applying the panoptic model to managerial discourse therefore allows one to understand more precisely the role management discourse has played in articulating the normative order of organizations.
Effects of Tax Reform on Labor Supply, Investment, and Saving

The U.S. tax system received two major overhauls during the 1980s: the tax cuts of 1981 and the Tax Reform Act of 1986. Supporters of both reforms argued that major changes in tax policy could boost saving, investment, labor supply, and entrepreneurship. Eventually, it was argued, such changes could reverse the slowdown in economic growth that began in the early 1970s and spur improvements in American living standards. The aim of this paper is to assess whether the goals of increased labor supply and capital formation were achieved.
Renal Interstitial Fluid Concentrations of Angiotensins I and II in Anesthetized Rats

Previous studies have indicated that angiotensin II (Ang II) concentrations in renal interstitial fluid are much higher than plasma levels. In the present study, we performed experiments to explore renal interstitial fluid concentrations of Ang I and Ang II further and to determine whether these levels are altered by acute arterial infusion of an ACE inhibitor (enalaprilat) or by volume expansion. Microdialysis probes (molecular weight cutoff point: 30 000 Da) were implanted in the renal cortex of anesthetized rats and were perfused at a rate of 2 microL/min. Using relative equilibrium rates, the basal renal interstitial fluid Ang II concentration averaged 3.07+/-0.43 nmol/L, a value much higher than the plasma Ang II concentration of 107+/-8 pmol/L (n=7). Interstitial fluid Ang I concentrations (0.84+/-0.04 nmol/L) were consistently lower than the Ang II concentrations but higher than the plasma Ang I concentrations (112+/-14 pmol/L). Intra-arterial infusion of enalaprilat (7.5 micromol/kg/min, n=5) for 120 minutes resulted in a significant decrease in mean arterial pressure (from 114+/-4 to 68+/-4 mm Hg) along with reductions in plasma and renal ACE activity (by -99% and -52%, respectively). Enalaprilat resulted in a significant increase in plasma Ang I from 133+/-21 to 1167+/-328 pmol/L and a decrease in plasma Ang II from 110+/-12 to 67+/-9 pmol/L. During enalaprilat infusion, interstitial fluid concentration of Ang I was significantly increased from 0.78+/-0.06 to 0.97+/-0.08 nmol/L; however, Ang II concentrations were not altered significantly (3.67+/-0.28 versus 3.67+/-0.25 nmol/L). Acute volume loading with Ringer's solution containing 1% bovine serum albumin at a rate of 150 microL/min for 2 hours (6% to 7% of body weight) lowered plasma concentrations of Ang I from 110+/-23 to 16+/-2 pmol/L and Ang II from 100+/-23 to 36+/-6 pmol/L; however, renal interstitial fluid concentrations of Ang I and Ang II were not altered significantly during volume expansion (Ang I, from 0.77+/-0.05 to 0.69+/-0.03 nmol/L; Ang II, from 3.76+/-0.43 to 3.59+/-0.39 nmol/L, n=5). These data indicate that renal interstitial fluid concentrations of Ang I and Ang II are substantially higher than the corresponding plasma concentrations. Furthermore, the fact that the high interstitial fluid concentrations of Ang II are not responsive to acute ACE inhibition or volume expansion suggests the compartmentalization and independent regulation of renal interstitial fluid Ang II.
Discussion: “Heat Transfer and Fluid Flow Analysis of Interrupted-Wall Channels, with Application to Heat Exchangers” (Sparrow, E. M., Baliga, B. R., and Patankar, S. V., 1977, ASME J. Heat Transfer, 99, pp. 4–11)

R. K. Shah. Heat transfer and flow friction characteristics of compact heat exchanger surfaces are mainly determined experimentally. Theoretical/analytical solutions that are available are primarily useful only for continuous cylindrical passage type compact surfaces. The authors of this paper are the first investigators to analyze the complex flows and heat transfer in one type of interrupted wall compact surface which is referred to as strip fin, serrated fin or offset fin. Analyses of this type are long needed and are most welcome. My congratulations to the authors for their very fine and practical paper. As the authors have clearly mentioned in their Introduction, the heat transfer coefficients in the entrance region of a duct are substantially higher than those at locations further downstream. This fact has motivated having heat exchanger surfaces interrupted in the flow direction. It is a common presumption that the shorter the interrupted length, the higher the performance of the surface and subsequently of the exchanger. The reduction in the strip length is presently limited by the manufacturing technology, although significant advances have been made by the industry in the past decade. One simple way to predict the heat transfer performance of the strip fin may be the use of the conventional plain duct thermal entry length solutions. The idealizations made in such solutions are: uniform temperature profile and uniform (or developed) velocity profile at the start of each strip fin and the conventional boundary layer growth over it. The applicable theoretical mean Nusseit numbers correspond to those for the entrance region of a plain duct of length L. In Fig. 10, such Num_r for the constant wall temperature boundary condition are plotted as a function of L* = L/(iH Re Pr) for parallel plates for two flow conditions: developing velocity profiles, and fully developed velocity profiles [10]. Superimposed are Nup from Table 1 of the paper for the periodic fully developed flow, and N u m j (=7.541) for the fully developed flow through parallel plates. The following observations may be made from this figure: 1 For L* > 0.017, the strip length mean Nusseit numbers associated with a periodic fully developed flow are greater than those for a simultaneously developing flow for parallel plates. The augmentation characteristics of the interrupted wall is clearly seen in this region. 2 As expected, periodic fully developed Nup are always greater than 7.541 for the stable fully developed flow through parallel plates.
The Estimation of 24-Hour Urine Urea Nitrogen Excretion from Urine Collections of Shorter Duration in Continuously Alimented Patients

Urine urea nitrogen excreted in 24 hr is used to estimate nitrogen balance in patients. Normal diurnal variation of urea excretion may be less pronounced in patients alimented continuously, and a urine collection of shorter duration may be representative of the 24-hr excretion. Five stabilized trauma center patients on continuous enteral or parenteral alimentation were studied with six consecutive 4-hr urine collections analyzed for urine urea nitrogen content. Excretion rates for various lengths of urine collection were compared with the 24-hr excretion rate. Urine collections spanning 4 or 8 hr frequently exceeded an error of 10% in predicting 24-hr urea nitrogen excretion, while collections of 12 hr or more had small errors. A comparison of three consecutive 8-hr collections was suggestive of diurnal variation existing under these conditions.