cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Is outpatient shoulder arthroplasty safe in patients aged ≥65 years? A comparison of readmissions and complications in inpatient and outpatient settings.

ABSTRACT: Background Recent studies indicate that outpatient total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA) is cost-effective and may have a low complication rate similar to inpatient TSA. However, existing studies have included younger patient cohorts who typically possess fewer medical comorbidities. Patients older than 65 years are commonly enrolled in Medicare, which has traditionally designated TSA as an inpatient-only procedure. The purpose of this study was to compare surgical complication rates and 90-day readmission rates between inpatient and outpatient TSA performed in adults over the age of 65 years. Methods Medical records for all patients > 65 years of age who underwent primary anatomic or reverse TSA by a single surgeon from July 2015 to May 2020 were reviewed. Patients were preselected for outpatient or inpatient surgery based on lack of significant cardiopulmonary comorbidities and patient preference. Demographics, body mass index (BMI), and American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) scores were collected in addition to emergency department (ED) visits and readmissions within 90 days of the index surgery. Relationships among frequency and types of complications and surgical setting (inpatients versus outpatient) were assessed. Complication rates and demographic variables between inpatient and outpatient procedures were compared. Logistic regressions were performed to account for interacting predictor variables on the odds of having complications. Results A total of 145 shoulders (138 patients; 95 male, 43 female) were included in the analysis, of which 98 received inpatient TSA and 47 received outpatient TSA. Average age was 75.5±7.2 for inpatient TSA and 70.5±4.5 for outpatient TSA (p 0.05). Each one-year increase in age increased the predicted odds of having a surgical complication by 14% (OR=1.14; p=0.021), irrespective of surgical setting. Those who underwent inpatient TSA had a significantly higher frequency of 90-day readmission (inpatient=16, outpatient=1; p=0.034). Conclusions Postoperative complications and ED returns were not statistically different between inpatient and outpatient TSA. Each one-year increase in age increased the odds of postoperative surgical complications by 14%, regardless of surgical setting. Outpatient TSA was found to be safe for appropriately selected patients 65 years or older, and re-evaluation of TSA as an inpatient-only procedure should be considered.
Spatial-Temporal Hybrid Neural Network With Computing-in-Memory Architecture

Deep learning (DL) has gained unprecedented success in many real-world applications. However, DL poses difficulties for efficient hardware implementation due to the needs of a complex gradient-based learning algorithm and the required high memory bandwidth for synaptic weight storage, especially in today’s data-intensive environment. Computing-in-memory (CIM) strategies have emerged as an alternative for realizing energy-efficient neuromorphic applications in silicon, reducing resources and energy required for neural computations. In this work, we exploit a CIM-based spatial-temporal hybrid neural network (STHNN) with a unique learning algorithm. To be specific, we integrate both multilayer perceptron and recurrent-based delay-dynamical system, making the network becomes linear separable while processing information in both spatial and temporal domains, better yet, reducing the memory bandwidth and hardware overhead through the CIM architecture. The prototype fabricated in 180 nm CMOS process is built of fully-analog components, yielding an average on-chip classification accuracy up to 86.9% on handprinted alphabet characters with a power consumption of 33 mW. Beyond that, through the handwritten digit database and the radio frequency fingerprinting dataset, software-based numerical evaluations offer $1.6 -to- 9.8 \times $ and $1.9 {-to-} 4.4 \times $ speedup, respectively, without significantly degrading its classification accuracy compared to the cutting-edge DL approaches.
The WSLA Framework: Specifying and Monitoring Service Level Agreements for Web Services

We describe a novel framework for specifying and monitoring Service Level Agreements (SLA) for Web Services. SLA monitoring and enforcement become increasingly important in a Web Service environment where enterprise applications and services rely on services that may be subscribed dynamically and on-demand. For economic and practical reasons, we want an automated provisioning process for both the service itself as well as the SLA managment system that measures and monitors the QoS parameters, checks the agreed-upon service levels, and reports violations to the authorized parties involved in the SLA management process. Our approach to these issues is presented in this paper. The Web Service Level Agreement (WSLA) framework is targeted at defining and monitoring SLAs for Web Services. Although WSLA has been designed for a Web Services environment, it is applicable as well to any inter-domain management scenario, such as business process and service management, or the management of networks, systems and applications in general. The WSLA framework consists of a flexible and extensible language based on XML Schema and a runtime architecture comprising several SLA monitoring services, which may be outsourced to third parties to ensure a maximum of objectivity. WSLA enables service customers and providers to unambiguously define a wide variety of SLAs, specify the SLA parameters and the way they are measured, and relate them to managed resource instrumentations. Upon receipt of an SLA specification, the WSLA monitoring services are automatically configured to enforce the SLA. An implementation of the WSLA framework, termed SLA Compliance Monitor, is publicly available as part of the IBM Web Services Toolkit.
Effects of Anesthetics, Sedatives, and Opioids on Ventilatory Control

This article provides a comprehensive, up to date summary of the effects of volatile, gaseous, and intravenous anesthetics and opioid agonists on ventilatory control. Emphasis is placed on data from human studies. Further mechanistic insights are provided by in vivo and in vitro data from other mammalian species. The focus is on the effects of clinically relevant agonist concentrations and studies using pharmacological, that is, supraclinical agonist concentrations are de-emphasized or excluded.
Comparison of Three Methods Used to Isolate Dengue Virus Type 2

During the 1969 dengue epidemic in Puerto Rico, human sera and Aedes aegypti mosquitoes were collected for virus isolation and identification. Three methods of isolation were used and compared. In the first method, we inoculated newborn mice by the intracranial route, noted any signs of illness, and serially passed specimens in mice until virus was isolated. In the second method, we inoculated tube cultures of LLC-MK2 cells, noted any cytopathic effect (CPE), and assayed fluids for virus by plaque formation in LLC-MK2 cell monolayers. The third method was different from the second only in that the original specimens were first inoculated into fluid cultures of Singh9s A. albopictus cells. No significant CPE was seen in LLC-MK2 cultures; however, distinct syncytial CPE was observed in A. albopictus cells. About the same number of virus isolates were made in each isolation system. Virus isolates from both sera and mosquitoes were identified as dengue type 2 by a plaque-reduction neutralization test in LLC-MK2 cells. The utility of the three methods, individually or in combination, is discussed and related to diagnostic and epidemic situations. Images
Commentary on “Variability in College Student Suicide

ABSTRACT Stephenson, Belesis, and Balliet (2005) urge that future research on college student suicide should not continue its historical emphasis on completed suicide nor on the contrast between students and non-students. But their paper does not provide an adequately complete and accurate summary of our present knowledge of completed student suicide. This commentary, by redressing these shortcomings, provides an up to date review of our present knowledge of college student suicide. In doing so it enhances both the context for considering future research directions and the bases for the design of future studies.
Duality and evolving set bounds on mixing times

This survey is an in-depth development of the theoretical aspects of the method of Evolving Sets, a method which has been used in several of my papers. It is fairly esoteric as to a large degree it stems from my efforts to ascertain whether Evolving sets is provably stronger than other isoperimetric methods (answer: yes, with qualifications). For an introduction to the method please see Chapter 4 of my book "Mathematical aspects of mixing times in Markov chains" with Prasad Tetali, or the paper "Evolving sets, mixing and heat kernel bounds" by Morris and Peres.
Mozambique and the West: The Search for Common Ground, 1975-1991

The following article analyzes the nature of the relations between the Western world, particularly the United States, and Mozambique during the postcolonial era, within the context of Southern Africa and the peculiar situation prevailing in the country. It argues that Mozambique's recent rapprochement with the West has been dictated by internal and external forces and is not therefore the result of a deliberate, rational and voluntary change of mind or ideology by the FRELIMO government Internal factors have included severe periodic droughts and floods, the on-going civil strife, and unwise policies resulting in popular discontent, while external forces have comprised both subtle and obvious pressures from the United States and South Africa, the passive attitude of the Soviet Union, and, more recently, the collapse of the Eastern European bloc. The article further argues that the basis of US foreign policy toward Mozambique, particularly during the Reagan era, has been an attempt to contain the advance of communism in Southern Africa, although contrary to popular analysis, Mozambique has never been considered by the West to be as strategically important as, for example, Angola, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. In spite of its proximity to South Africa and its geographical location as an outlet to the sea for its landlocked neighbors, Mozambique has remained a lower priority for the United States.1 Finally, it is this writer's contention that the leaders of Mozambique, notwithstanding the economic and political changes forced upon them more recently, have not abandoned their Marxist-Leninist socialism. They remain convinced that only their ideology can solve the country's problems.
Applying landscape ecology in biological conservation

Foreword--Richard T. T. Forman.- Preface.- Acknowledgments.- Contributors.- Section I. Introduction.- Central Concepts and Issues of Landscape Ecology--John A. Wiens.- Central Concepts and Issues of Biological Conservation--Richard L. Knight and Peter B. Landres.- Broad-Scale Ecological Science and Its Application--Barry R. Noon and Virginia H. Dale.- Section II. Multiple Scales, Connectivity, and Biota Movement.- Spatial Factors Affecting Organism Occurrence, Movement, and Conservation: Introduction to Section II--Kevin J. Gutzwiller.- Patch-, Landscape-, and Regional- Scale Effects on Biota--Kathryn Freemark, Marc-AndrT Villard, and Dan Bert.- Corridors and Species Dispersal--Claire C. Vos, Hans Baveco, and Carla J. Grashof-Bokdam.- Using Percolation Theory to Assess Landscape Connectivity and Effects of Habitat Fragmentation--Kimberly A. With.- Landscape Connections and Genetic Diversity--H. B. Britten and R. J. Baker.- Habitat Networks and Biological Conservation-- Richard J. Hobbs.- Landscape Invasibility by Exotic Species--John L. Vankat and D. Graham Roy.- Section III. Landscape Change.- Conservation in Human-Altered Landscapes: Introduction to Section III.
Deficiency of 60 to 70S RNA in Murine Leukemia Virus Particles Assembled in Cells Treated with Actinomycin D

Production of particles with the ultrastructural appearance of C-type virions persisted for at least 6 h in actinomycin D-treated cells infected with murine leukemia virus. This phenomenon occurred despite severe inhibition of viral RNA synthesis. Virus particles present in a 6-h harvest sedimented in sucrose gradients with the buoyant density characteristic of RNA tumor viruses (1.16 g/cm(3)) and exhibited high levels of reverse transcriptase activity in response to the exogenous template polyriboadenylic acid.oligo deoxythymidylic acid in the range of untreated controls. However, RNase-sensitive endogenous activity was only (1/5) the level found in controls. This observation correlated with a marked reduction in infectivity. Kinetic studies on the appearance of labeled RNA in banded virions revealed that within the first hour after addition of actinomycin D, particles contained 60 to 70S RNA and two low-molecular-weight RNA species corresponding to 8 and 4S RNA. After approximately 1 h of incubation with actinomycin D, 60 to 70S RNA could not be detected and 4S RNA was the predominant species. These findings suggest that murine leukemia virus particles assembled in the presence of actinomycin D are deficient in 60 to 70S viral RNA.
MAPS-NET: educational meteorology

MAryland Pilot Earth Science and Technology Education NETwork (MAPS-NET) is an educational program that recognizes the need for broader education in the schoolroom on the subject of remote sensing and its interpretation. The authors set out to develop a pilot program to teach teachers in the engineering and science disciplines to be able to apply modern techniques in the classroom. They began with weather prediction and understanding. The local weather for any student is a very real part of his/her life experience. The local forecasts on radio and TV are part of everyday events. The ability of a student to interact directly with the satellite, interrogate the data, understand the meteorological principles, and to find out how the model works will stimulate new interest and indulge the student in new 'hands-on' science, engineering, and math experiences. Teachers were selected from middle and high schools from across the State of Maryland. The program was run during the summers of 1991,'92 and '93. In 1994, the teachers were charged to prepare a textbook on the subject, entitled Looking at Earth from Space for other interested teachers. They also produced a glossary of terms which runs to several hundred entries. These text material are a guide for peers in their own profession. The course consists of both lectures and laboratory experiences. The lectures are divided into engineering and science. Engineering deals with the principles of satellite observations, on-board instruments, and the methods of storing the data.
Coolerless operation of 980 nm pump modules

Efficient fiber Bragg grating wavelength and power stabilization of 980 nm pump lasers at high fiber-coupled output power (150 mW at 75/spl deg/C and 95 mW at 100/spl deg/C) over a wide temperature range of 90/spl deg/C is demonstrated.
An architectural design selection tool based on design tactics, scenarios and nonfunctional requirements

This paper discusses a method and its supporting tool to select the software architecture for a family of software systems (commonly known as architectural styles) that meets the needs of the user. Our approach emphasizes the importance of basing architecture on non-functional requirements (NFRs). To this end, we have utilized a scenario-based approach that will determine NFRs of software architecture. NFRs are then mapped to optimal software architecture of a system by a set of table. Tables are applied to properly bridge the gap between NFRs and its corresponding software architecture
Genetic and molecular basis of human hereditary diseases.

A fresh view of some old and new diseases recognized by means of modern genetics and biochemistry.
“Deviant” Behavior Patterns in School Children, Application of Kds™-14

In designing and implementing effective mental health services for children, the ability to identify deviant behavior patterns in school children and to determine the number of children who fall into these areas is crucial. By means of a preliminary survey which identified such children, we were able to perform a study of problem students who fell into three categories, unusually aggressive children, children with learning difficulties, and shy-withdrawn children. After our preliminary survey, more intensive examinations were carried out using a teacher's rating scale (KDS™-14). On the basis of these data we have a fairly accurate picture of the over-all incidence of certain behaviors occurring in the population of a school system. These procedures suggest that it may be possible to screen school populations to identify those children who might need professional intervention.
Mechanisms for crystallographic orientation in the crystallization of thin silicon films from the melt

The dependence of the growth velocity on crystal orientation has been studied during crystallization of thin polycrystalline silicon films from the melt. Two types of growth velocity anisotropy have been observed. In the first, competitive growth between (100) textured seeds and seeds with (110) and (111) textures indicates that the relative growth velocities are ν(100) > ν(110)ν(111). It is postulated that this textural growth velocity anisotropy is a result of the differences in the interal energy of grains with different textures. This assumption, combined with the data, yields estimates of the interfacial energy anisotropy for the Si–SiO2 interface: γ(111) − γ(100) = 0.069 J/m2 and γ(110) − γ(100) = 0.012 J/m2. Another type of growth velocity anisotropy is responsible for the development of in-plane orientation in competitive growth between (100)-textured seeds. Simple models, which describe development of these two types of crystallographic orientation via anisotropies in growth velocity, agree well with the experimental results.
Graphic Modernism From the Baltic to the Balkans, 1910–1935

The article briefly describes the exhibition Graphic Modernism From the Baltic to the Balkans, 1910–1935, which took place at The New York Public Library from October 5, 2007 through January 27, 2008. Works exhibited were created by Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Russian, Czech, Hungarian, Romanian, Bulgarian, Slovenian, Croatian, and Serbian artists and authors. They included monographs, serials, and posters. The exhibit was curated by the author and Steven Mansbach.
Digoxin-like immunoreactive factor in rat plasma: effect of sodium and calcium intake.

Abstract Studies have been performed in rats to determine whether an endogenous material capable of binding to digoxin antibodies is present in the plasma. Such a material has been shown in other species and has been hypothesized to represent an endogenous ligand for the receptor on NaK ATPase through which cardiac glycosides act. In rats consuming a normal rodent chow (1 % calcium by weight) and drinking deionized water, endogenous binding of digoxin antibody in radioimmunoassay amounted to 23.1 ± 4.6 fM digoxin equivalents/100μ 1 of plasma (mean ± SEM, n = 8). Since a hypothetical role for such an endogenous ligand is the regulation of renal sodium excretion by inhibition of renal NaK ATPase, the effect of increased sodium intake on plasma levels of this digoxin-like immunoreactive factor (DLIF) was studied. Animals consuming the same chow, but drinking 0.5% NaCl solution in place of water for a 4 week period showed significantly greater DLIF in plasma which was measured at 109.2±20.3 fM digoxin equivalents/100μl of plasma (p
Analysis of the human MBP promoter in primary cultures of oligodendrocytes: Positive and negative cis‐acting elements in the proximal MBP promoter mediate oligodendrocyte‐specific expression of MBP

Since the regulation of myelin basic protein expression depends primarily on the initiation of transcription, we analyzed the 5' flanking region of the human myelin basic protein gene in transient transfection studies in primary cultures of developing oligodendrocytes. We demonstrated that 149 base pairs 5' of the initiation of transcription was sufficient to direct oligodendrocyte-specific expression of myelin basic protein. The capsite of the fusion transcript was identical with that of the endogenous myelin basic protein transcript, and chloramphenicol acetyl transferase reporter gene expression was restricted to oligodendrocytes in these cultures. Within this 149 base pair region, one distal, negative cis-acting segment, containing a consensus nuclear factor I site, and one proximal, positive cis-acting segment were identified. The distal segment behaved more negatively in Cos-7 cells than in oligodendrocytes, reducing expression to background levels. Furthermore, these functionally important cis-acting segments bound oligodendrocyte nuclear proteins in a pattern differing from other cells, including Cos-7 cells. Interestingly, the distal segment increased heterologous SV40 promoter activity in oligodendrocytes but had no effect on the SV40 promoter in Cos-7 cells. We conclude that the functionally negative distal segment may mediate oligodendrocyte-specific expression of MBP by restricting its expression in other cells. These experiments strongly support using primary cultures of oligodendrocytes for analyzing the myelin-specific promoters.
A Linear Time Scale for Spatial Vectorcardiographic Data

Spatial vectorcardiograms have certain advantages over electrocardiograms for study of the heart's electric activity. They also have a marked disadvantage in that temporal relations are difficult to represent. Many of the advantages of the spatial vectorcardiogram can be retained and temporal relations can be adequately represented by presenting vectorcardiographic data as simultaneous traces of spatial magnitude and orientation about 2 axes. Such records have been derived from electrocardiographic leads obtained with 2 systems of electrode placement. The information known to beclinically important in the electrocardiogram was present in easily accessible form in these records.
The moral metaphors of nursing

The essence of metaphor is understanding and experiencing one thing in terms of another. Metaphorical concepts structure and reflect what we perceive, how we act, and how we relate to other people. In nursing ethics, several metaphors have emerged which have had a great impact on nursing practice. These metaphors include the military metaphor which exemplified nursing during the 1800s, the advocacy and academic metaphors which became a philosophical basis for nursing during the 1960s, and the individualist and community as caring metaphors which have emerged more recently. Although beneficial in some ways, these metaphors may be obscuring the complex moral reality of nursing practice. This article defines a moral metaphor, critiques nursing's moral metaphors, and provides an historical overview of their development with examples of how they have and do affect nursing practice.
Importazole, a Small Molecule Inhibitor of the Transport Receptor Importin-β

During interphase, the transport receptor importin-β carries cargoes into the nucleus, where RanGTP releases them. A similar mechanism operates in mitosis to generate a gradient of active spindle assembly factors around mitotic chromosomes. Importin-β and RanGTP have been implicated in additional cellular processes, but the precise roles of the Ran/importin-β pathway throughout the cell cycle remain poorly understood. We implemented a FRET-based, high-throughput small molecule screen for compounds that interfere with the interaction between RanGTP and importin-β and identified importazole, a 2,4-diaminoquinazoline. Importazole specifically blocks importin-β-mediated nuclear import both in Xenopus egg extracts and cultured cells, without disrupting transportin-mediated nuclear import or CRM1-mediated nuclear export. When added during mitosis, importazole impairs the release of an importin-β cargo FRET probe and causes both predicted and novel defects in spindle assembly. Together, these results indicate that importazole specifically inhibits the function of importin-β, likely by altering its interaction with RanGTP. Importazole is a valuable tool to evaluate the function of the importin-β/RanGTP pathway at specific stages during the cell cycle.
Resistant proteoglycans in epiphyseal plate cartilage. Variations in their distribution in relationship to age and species

The localizations of resistant proteoglycans (RPGs) in the epiphyseal plates of rats, dogs, and humans are similar. In the epiphyseal plates from young rats, dogs, and humans, the RPGs form a stratum at the junction of the zones of resting and proliferating cells. Non-calcified cartilage RPGs are associated with cells which have the potential for proliferation or column organization. As the individuals age, RPGs are found in intercolumnar regions or at times are even absent. There is also a type of RPGs in calcified cartilage, including the calcified cartilage subjacent to the articular surface, in all species. In human epiphyseal plates, looser fibrillar RPGs change abruptly to a more condensed type in the zone of provisional calcification. Calcified cartilage RPGs stain more intensely with toluidine blue and may represent a different type of RPGs.
The Struggle to Remake Politics: Liberal Reform and the Limits of Policy Feedback in the Contemporary American State

President Barack Obama's two signature first-term legislative victories—the Affordable Care Act and the Dodd-Frank Act—are the law of the land, but the political battle over their entrenchment continues. The question now is whether these landmark reforms will be consolidated and create a new politics going forward. We develop an argument about the limits of policy feedback to illuminate the obstacles to durable liberal reform in the contemporary American state. We argue that political scientists have paid insufficient attention to the fragility of inherited policy commitments, and that the capacity of reforms to remake politics is contingent, conditional, and contested. Feedbacks are shaped not only by the internal attributes of policies, but also by the interaction between policy-specific characteristics, the strategic goals of officeholders and clientele groups, and the political forces arising from a contentious and uncertain political environment.
Genetic and epigenetic changes in chromosomally stable and unstable progeny of irradiated cells.

Radiation induced genomic instability is a well-studied phenomenon, the underlying mechanisms of which are poorly understood. Persistent oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, elevated cytokine levels and epigenetic changes are among the mechanisms invoked in the perpetuation of the phenotype. To determine whether epigenetic aberrations affect genomic instability we measured DNA methylation, mRNA and microRNA (miR) levels in well characterized chromosomally stable and unstable clonally expanded single cell survivors of irradiation. While no changes in DNA methylation were observed for the gene promoters evaluated, increased LINE-1 methylation was observed for two unstable clones (LS12 and CS9) and decreased Alu element methylation was observed for the other two unstable clones (115 and Fe5.0–8). These relationships also manifested for mRNA and miR expression. mRNA identified for the LS12 and CS9 clones were most similar to each other (261 mRNA), while the 115 and Fe5.0–8 clones were more similar to each other, and surprisingly also similar to the two stable clones, 114 and 118 (286 mRNA among these four clones). Pathway analysis showed enrichment for pathways involved in mitochondrial function and cellular redox, themes routinely invoked in genomic instability. The commonalities between the two subgroups of clones were also observed for miR. The number of miR for which anti-correlated mRNA were identified suggests that these miR exert functional effects in each clone. The results demonstrate significant genetic and epigenetic changes in unstable cells, but similar changes are almost as equally common in chromosomally stable cells. Possible conclusions might be that the chromosomally stable clones have some other form of instability, or that some of the observed changes represent a sort of radiation signature and that other changes are related to genomic instability. Irrespective, these findings again suggest that a spectrum of changes both drive genomic instability and permit unstable cells to persist and proliferate.
Patterns of protective factors in an intervention for the prevention of suicide and alcohol abuse with Yup'ik Alaska Native youth

Background: Community-based participatory research (CBPR) with American Indian and Alaska Native communities creates distinct interventions, complicating cross-setting comparisons. Objective: The objective of this study is to develop a method for quantifying intervention exposure in CBPR interventions that differ in their forms across communities, permitting multi-site evaluation. Methods: Attendance data from 195 youth from three Yup’ik communities were coded for the specific protective factor exposure of each youth, based on information from the intervention manual. The coded attendance data were then submitted to latent class analysis to obtain participation patterns. Results: Five patterns of exposure to protective factors were obtained: Internal, External, Limits, Community/family, and Low Protection. Patterns differed significantly by community and youth age. Conclusion: Standardizing interventions by the functions an intervention serves (protective factors promoted) instead of their forms or compon...
The role of DNA polymerase η in UV mutational spectra

UV irradiation generates predominantly cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers (CPDs) and (6-4) photoproducts in DNA. CPDs are thought to be responsible for most of the UV-induced mutations. Thymine-thymine CPDs, and probably also CPDs containing cytosine, are replicated in vivo in a largely accurate manner by a DNA polymerase eta (Pol eta) dependent process. Pol eta is encoded by the POLH (XPV) gene in humans. In order to clarify the specific role of Pol eta in UV mutagenesis, we have used an siRNA knockdown approach in combination with a supF shuttle vector which replicates in mammalian cells. This strategy provides an advantage over studying mutagenesis in cell lines derived from normal individuals and XP-V patients, since the genetic background of the cells is identical. Synthetic RNA duplexes were used to inhibit Pol eta expression in 293T cells. The reduction of Pol eta mRNA and protein was greater than 90%. The supF shuttle vector was irradiated with UVC and replicated in 293T cells in presence of anti-Pol eta siRNA. The supF mutant frequency was increased by up to 3.6-fold in the siRNA knockdown cells relative to control cells confirming that Pol eta plays an important role in mutation avoidance and that the pol eta knockdown was efficient. UV-induced supF mutants were sequenced from siRNA-treated cells and controls. Surprisingly, neither the type of mutations nor their distribution along the supF gene were substantially different between controls and siRNA knockdown cells and were predominantly C to T and CC to TT transitions at dipyrimidine sites. The data are compatible with two models. (i) Incorrect replication of cytosine-containing photoproducts by a polymerase other than Pol eta produces similar mutations as when Pol eta is present but at a higher frequency. (ii) Due to lack of Pol eta or low levels of remaining Pol eta, lesion replication is delayed allowing more time for cytosine deamination within CPDs to occur. We provide proof of principle that siRNA technology can be used to dissect the in vivo roles of lesion bypass DNA polymerases in DNA damage-induced mutagenesis.
Crack deflection processes—I. Theory

A fracture mechanics approach has been used to predict fracture toughness increases due to crack deflection around second phase particles. The analysis is based on a determination of the initial tilt and the maximum twist of the crack front between particles, which provides the basis for evaluating the deflection-induced reduction in crack driving force. Features found to be important in determining the toughness increase include the volume fraction of second phase, the particle morphology and aspect ratio, and the distribution of interparticle spacing. Predictions are compared with expected surface area increases.
Fast trainable pattern classification by a modification of Kanerva's SDM model

A universal classifier called the modified sparse distributed memory (MSDM) is presented. Because the classifier is independent of the data distribution, the accuracy of classification does not require making any statistical assumptions. The reference addresses in MSDM are regular and dense instead of random and sparse as in sparse distributed memory. The random-address array is absent in an MSDM. The MSDM classifies patterns of small integers (smaller than 32) instead of binary numbers. Pattern similarity and address selection may be measured by a Euclidean rather than a Hamming distance. A learning procedure is first presented for the MSDM. Then a scheme for classifying multispectral images with large number of bands is described. The test results show that the MSDM is able to classify multispectral images with very high accuracy. The speed of classification by MSDM is totally competitive with the minimum distance classification (MDC), which currently remains one of the fastest traditional methods. However, MDC is not very accurate. >
Strategic Interaction and the Statistical Analysis of International Conflict

Although strategic interaction is at the heart of most international relations theory, it has largely been missing from much empirical analysis in the field. Typical applications of logit and probit to theories of international conflict generally do not capture the structure of the strategic interdependence implied by those theories. I demonstrate how to derive statistical discrete choice models of international conflict that directly incorporate the theorized strategic interaction. I show this for a simple crisis interaction model and then use Monte Carlo analysis to show that logit provides estimates with incorrect substantive interpretations as well as fitted values that can be far from the true values. Finally, I reanalyze a well-known game-theoretic model of war, Bueno de Mesquita and Lalman's (1992) international interaction game. My results indicate that there is at best modest empirical support for their model.
Homoerotic Art Collection from 1750 to 1920

This paper considers the general structural logic of homoerotic art collections from the later eighteenth to the early twentieth centuries, focusing on their collation of contemporary with non-modern (usually classical Greek and Roman or Italian Renaissance) arts. The mere appreciation of a homoerotically attractive work of art, such as a sculptural depiction of a beautiful and desirable male body, whether contemporary or not, did not necessarily create a homoerotic display or collection. Patrons and viewers could aesthetically admire such canonical objects without thereby expressing any awareness of, let alone attachment to, their original and to possible contemporary pederastic or homosexual connotations. But canonically homoerotic aesthetic appreciation could be inflected pederastically or homosexually by acquiring, admiring and displaying objects in configurations that suggested their phallic significance or potential; the non-canonical, sometimes subversive, appeal of phallica and homoerotica – again, usually ancient or early modern, though modern replications were frequently produced – was a crucial element in the constitution of the ‘homosexual’ (or, better, homosexualized) collections of the nineteenth century. Recognized in ironic and quasi-pornographic representations by d’Hancarville, Noel, Goethe, Forberg, Famin and other writers and collectors, the phallic inflection of homoerotic beauty offered an alternative to Winckelmannian and Kantian aesthetics. In particular, the paper considers the phenomenon of ‘phallic doubling’– the representation or display of homoerotically beautiful works such that they appeared to respond to one another, to address one another’s implied narratives, and to supplement and sometimes to undermine one another’s stable erotic connotations – as the key principle of ‘homosexual’ art collections, necessarily clandestine in their formation and circulation, even as they worked with canonical ideals.
The machine to aspire to: The computer in rural south India

This study examined the perception of technology from the frame of aspiration in rural India. We argue here that the idea of technology as a critical part of modernity has been deeply tied to India’s discourse of development, and that this was in turn a portrayal of technology in a range of outlets in the public sphere. In villages of rural south India, we found an environment of great expectations from technology to reduce poverty and open urban opportunities, including from those who had never used a computer before. Specifically in schools, where this research was conducted, we found that computers played a much larger role than just as a delivery mechanism for digital educational material since they represented an aspirational artifact to children and parents alike. With historically low performance records at public schools, the computer frequently has been seen as a device offering a cure to systemic educational problems. Children, in part imbibing a discourse of technology from their own parents and media, have seen the computer as a critical part of their schooling experience. The device, and its mastery, then became an affirmation of pecking order among children themselves, and influenced the way that they interacted with fellow students.
A butterfly algorithm for synthetic aperture radar

It is not currently known if it is possible to accurately form a synthetic aperture radar image from N data points in provable near-linear complexity, where accuracy is defined as the e 2 error between the full O(N 2 ) backprojection image and the approximate image. To bridge this gap, we present a backprojection algorithm with complexity O(log(1/e)N log N), with e the tunable pixelwise accuracy. It is based on the butterfly scheme, which works for vastly more general oscillatory integrals than the discrete Fourier transform. Unlike previous methods this algorithm allows the user to directly choose the amount of acceptable image error based on a well-defined metric. Additionally, the algorithm does not invoke the far-field approximation or place restrictions on the antenna flight path, nor does it impose the frequency-independent beampattern approximation required by time-domain backprojection techniques.
Cancer. The silence of the genes.

The discovery that a transcriptional repressor is turned on in prostate tumours as they become metastatic, leading to the silencing of many genes, suggests a new mechanism for tumour progression.
Perceptions of Self-Disclosing Counselors Among Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Individuals

The present study tested the effect of counselor self-disclosure on lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals’ perceptions of counselor expertness, trustworthiness, and attractiveness. A national sample of 275 lesbian, gay, and bisexual university students was recruited for an online survey. Participants were randomly assigned to read a written vignette with varying levels of counselor self-disclosure. According to an a priori comparison test, lesbian, gay, and bisexual participants who received professional and personal background disclosure rated the counselor as significantly more expert, trustworthy, and attractive than participants who received professional background disclosure alone. An overall main effect for therapist self-disclosure was also revealed by multivariate analysis of variance. These findings were consistent with the study's hypotheses and previous research in the area of counselor self-disclosure. Practice implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.
Materials requirements lot sizing: a multi-level approach

SUMMARY Several lot sizing rules exist to aid managers in the decision-making process as it pertains to determining the appropriate lot size in a materials requirements planning system! The literature in this area has almost exclusively focused on the single-level lot sizing problem. In this paper, the multi-level lot sizing problem is examined. This study consists of six different demand patterns (master schedules) and four different lot sizing rules. The rules are economic order quantity, least total cost, lot for lot and period order quantity. The study looks at these rules in combination. Therefore, sixteen different lot sizing sequences are examined for each of the six forecasts. Conclusions are drawn as to the relative efficiency of the lot sizing sequences, and suggestions for further research are made.
Host-dependent recombination of a Tomato bushy stunt virus coat protein mutant yields truncated capsid subunits that form virus-like complexes which benefit systemic spread.

This study examined the contribution of the Tomato bushy stunt virus (TBSV) coat protein (CP) and its corresponding RNA to systemic infection of plants. Compared to results obtained with a mutant lacking the 5'-half of the CP gene, the presence of those CP-RNA sequences in another mutant benefited TBSV infection on Nicotiana benthamiana even though wild-type CP expression was eliminated by introduction of a small out-of-frame deletion. RT-PCR of viral RNA associated with rapid infections established by this CP frameshift deletion mutant revealed that in planta recombination had provided the progeny with the ability to express a truncated CP (tCP) with a block of N-proximal 30 residues deleted from the 66 amino acid RNA-binding domain. Subsequent biochemical characterizations revealed the presence of large ribonucleoprotein complexes that were shown to contain viral RNA as well as the approximately 38-kDa tCP. Electron microscopic examination of purified complexes showed particle-like structures that were nonuniform in size and shape compared to wild-type TBSV particles. Inoculation of pepper with the tCP-containing ribonucleoprotein complexes resulted in a rapid systemic infection similar to that caused by wild-type TBSV. In contrast, infections established in pepper by the original CP frameshift deletion mutant transcripts were restricted to inoculated leaves and did not yield recombinants capable of systemically infecting this host. In summary, TBSV possesses the flexibility to form alternative virion-like structures even if a substantial portion of the RNA-binding domain is deleted from the CP; mutants producing the tCP-containing particle-like structures are more effective for virus spread than those devoid of CP expression; and recombination events to produce the alternative tCP-RNA complexes are host-dependent.
Human cytomegalovirus UL84 is a phosphoprotein that exhibits UTPase activity and is a putative member of the DExD/H box family of proteins.

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) UL84 is required for lytic DNA replication and is proposed to be the key factor in initiation of viral DNA synthesis. We now show that UL84 has a high degree of homology to the DExD/H (where x can be any amino acid) box family of helicases, displays UTPase activity, and is phosphorylated at serine residues. Affinity column-purified UL84-FLAG fusion protein was used in an in vitro nucleoside triphosphatase (NTPase) assay to show that UL84 has NTPase activity, preferring UTP. This UTPase activity was linear with respect to enzyme concentration and slightly enhanced by the addition of nucleic acid substrates. UL84 UTPase was the highest at low salt concentrations, a pH of 7.5, and a temperature of 45 °C. The enzyme preferred Mg2+ as the divalent cation but was also able to catalyze the UTPase reaction in the presence of Mn2+, Ca2+, and Zn2+ albeit at lower levels. The evidence presented here suggests that the UL84 UTPase activity may be part of an energy-generating system for helicase activity associated with the initiation of HCMV DNA replication.
Fecal incontinence in elderly patients: Common, treatable, yet often undiagnosed

It is important for primary care physicians to take fecal incontinence seriously and not dismiss it as a normal part of aging. Elderly patients may be reluctant to admit fecal incontinence, so clinicians need to ask about it. Two of the most common causes are fecal impaction (especially in nursing home patients) and rectosphincter dysfunction in people with diabetes.
Hydration of Alkylammonium Ions in the Gas Phase

Electrospray ionization−high-pressure mass spectrometry was used to determine the enthalpy, entropy, and Gibbs free energy for the equilibrium gas-phase ion−molecule association reactions of CmH2m+1NH3+ (m = 1−8), (CH3)2NH2+, and (CH3)3NH+ with one to three water ligands. A subset of these ions has been studied previously, and the thermochemical properties determined in this investigation compare favorably with the previously published results, providing validation of our experimental technique and method. In addition, the present measurements show that the addition of a water ligand to the monohydrated alkylammonium ion results in an increased stabilization in its structure and binding.
REAL PART OF THE ALPHA-NUCLEUS POTENTIAL.

The various phenomenological potential form factors which describe the elastic scattering of $\ensuremath{\alpha}$ particles from a given target nucleus are similar at large radii. It is shown that reasonably accurate limits can be placed on both the magnitude and falloff rate of the potential in this surface region close to the maximum of the Coulomb barrier. This surface-region potential is found to be well reproduced by a simple folding of the nuclear-matter distribution with a two-body potential which fits free nucleon-$\ensuremath{\alpha}$ scattering.
Prey bone utilization by predatory dinosaurs

Abstract Many mammalian predators chew and crush bone to various degrees during their utilization of a prey carcass, leaving tooth marks on the prey bones as evidence of their activity. Recognition of similar types of tooth marks on dinosaur bones provides a means to evaluate the degree to which predatory dinosaurs were capable of prey bone utilization. A survey of 858 dinosaur prey bones from six dinosaur localities in Wyoming, Utah and Montana, has shown the frequencies of tooth-damaged bone range from 0.0% to 4.0%. Compared to bone assemblages in which there is a strong inference of mammalian scavenging, the frequencies of tooth-marked bone from the dinosaur localities are decidedly less common. Theropod dinosaur feeding behaviors were probably more similar to Komodo monitor behavior observed in the monitor communities of Indonesia, than for mammalian-based communities. The results of this survey indicate that bone crushing was not employed by predatory dinosaurs during their utilization of prey carcasses. The routine crushing of bone, then, as a means of obtaining further nutrients contained within a prey carcass was not an ecological or functional phenomenon present in the Mesozoic and was only developed later by mammalian predators in the Cenozoic.