cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Behavioral and psychological health inequities in income disparate perimenopausal women: a brief report.

OBJECTIVE To assess differences in behavioral and psychological health characteristics in perimenopausal women delineated by income disparity. METHODS A hypothesis generating secondary data analysis was conducted in 33 women, using public health insurance enrollment as a proxy for income. Sociodemographic characteristics were assessed. Study outcomes included behavioral health characteristics: current cigarette smoking, substance abuse history, current exercise, obesity (BMI ≥30); psychological health characteristics, and sleep: depressed mood (Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale [CES-D]), anxiety (Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 [GAD-7]), and sleep (Insomnia Severity Index [ISI]). Group comparisons were assessed via the Student t test, Wilcoxon Rank-Sum test or Chi-square test, and multivariable models. RESULTS Forty-two percent (n = 14) were designated as income disparate, and sociodemographic characteristics were similar between groups; nearly half were Black/African American. More income disparate women reported current cigarette smoking [71% (10) vs 21%(4), P = 0.004] and substance abuse history [79%(11) vs 5%(1), P < 0.0001]. Fewer income disparate women reported current exercise [57%(8) vs 89%(17), P = 0.03] and more were obese [BMI ≥30; 50%(7) vs 11%(2), P = 0.01]. Income disparate women experienced significantly higher CES-D scores [13.5 (11.75, 23.75) vs 6 (0, 9), P < 0.0001], GAD-7 scores [5.5 (2, 8.75) vs 2 (0, 4), P = 0.04], and ISI scores [11 (5.55) vs 5 (4.36), P = 0.004]. CONCLUSIONS Findings from this preliminary analysis evidence inequities in behavioral, psychological, and sleep characteristics in perimenopausal women. Awareness of how the social determinants of health impact outcomes among vulnerable perimenopausal women is critical to developing equitable aging opportunities, including customized preventive health screenings and interventions that engage income disparate perimenopausal women.
Poly-prescription drug misuse across the life course: Prevalence and correlates across different adult age cohorts in the U.S.

ABSTRACT Background Most research on prescription drug misuse (PDM) focuses on the misuse of specific classes of psychoactive prescription drugs among adolescents or young adults. The current research addressed important gaps in the literature by assessing poly-prescription drug misuse (poly-PDM), the misuse of more than one class of psychoactive prescription drug, across different adult age cohorts. Methods We used the 2015–2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health to examine the prevalence of past-year poly-PDM and specific combinations of PDM. Multinomial logistic regression was used to identify demographic, health-related factors, and substance use behaviors that were significantly associated with poly-PDM. Results The prevalence of poly-PDM decreases with age and is common among individuals who engage in PDM. Slightly more than one in four respondents in age cohorts 18–25 (31.66%, 95% CI = 30.35, 33.00) and 26–34 (29.92%, 95% CI = 25.82, 30.12) who engage in PDM, misused more than one class of prescription drug. Additionally, poly-PDM was identified as a high-risk type of PDM as roughly 60% of adults younger than 65 who endorse poly-PDM reported having a substance use disorder (SUD). While certain characteristics (i.e., race/ethnicity, marital status, depression, suicidal ideation, illegal drug use, and SUD) were consistently associated with poly-PDM across age cohorts, other characteristics (i.e., sexual identity, income, and justice involvement) varied across age cohorts. Finally, a comparison of poly-PDM to single PDM showed, in all age cohorts, that having an SUD was associated with an increased likelihood of poly-PDM, while Black adults were less likely than whites to report poly-PDM. Conclusions By identifying prevalence and correlates of poly-PDM across adult age cohorts, the current research has significant implications. Understanding stability and heterogeneity in the characteristics associated with poly-PDM should inform interventions, identify at-risk groups, and shape public health approaches to dealing with high-risk substance use behavior.
Implications of WMAP Observations On the Population III Star Formation Processes

In an earlier paper (Cen 2003) we pointed out the strong likelihood for the universal reionization to occur twice, giving rise to a larger Thomson optical depth. Here we perform a more focused analysis of the Thomson optical depth in light of the WMAP observations. While the current uncertainties on the observed Thomson optical depth are still relatively large, with tau_e=0.17+-0.04 (68%) (Kogut et al 2003), important implications on Pop III star formation processes at high redshift can already be inferred. We are able to draw four conclusions: (1) in the absence of a top-heavy initial stellar mass function (IMF) for Pop III metal-free stars and without a dramatic upturn in the star formation efficiency and ionizing photon escape fraction at high redshift (z>6), we find tau_e = = 0.17 requires either of the following two conditions: the cosmological model power index n is positively tilted to n >= 1.03, Pop III star formation in minihalos with molecular hydrogen cooling has an efficiency c_*(H_2,III)>0.01 (with ionizing photon escape fraction greater than 30%). If the current observed value of Thomson optical depth withstands future data, we will have strong observational evidence that Pop III stars are massive and their formation efficiency may be much higher than current theoretical works suggest. Alternatively, there may be unknown, non-stellar ionizing sources at very high redshift.
Decomposing U.S. Political Ideology: Local Labor Market Polarization and Race in the 2016 Presidential Election

Donald Trump’s presidential campaign highlighted protectionism of U.S.-born workers at a time of growing income inequality, racial tensions, and labor market polarization. Our study investigates if and how voters' life circumstances affected election behavior between 2012 and 2016, and how voter behavior relates to compositional versus structural change of communities. We relate changes in the Republican vote share between 2012 and 2016 to demographic and economic characteristics of U.S. counties and to rates of return (in terms of vote share) to these characteristics. We find that structural change in how local-level community attributes (most especially race) affect elections played a greater role between 2012 and 2016 than did differences in these community characteristics themselves. We find this more pronounced in battleground states, and in the presidential race as opposed to congressional ones.
Targeting the RIG-I-like receptor signaling pathway to improve the efficacy of immunotherapy in mucosal and uveal melanoma.

e21593Background: Patients with cutaneous (CM) or acral (AM) melanoma have high response rates to immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapies including anti-CTLA4, anti-PD1, and their combination. I...
The autonomy of morality

In The Autonomy of Morality Charles Larmore challenges two ideas that have shaped the modern mind. The world, he argues, is not a realm of value-neutral fact, nor does human freedom consist in imposing principles of our own devising on an alien reality. Rather, reason consists in being responsive to reasons for thought and action that arise from the world itself. Larmore shows that the moral good has an authority that speaks for itself. Only in this light does the true basis of a liberal political order come into view, as well as the role of unexpected goods in the makeup of a life lived well.
Reassessing Jewish Life in Medieval Europe: Prologue: Group Narratives: Their Tenacity and Their Accuracy

Human beings require meaningful personal narratives, which may or may not correspond to the realities of the individual’s actual life trajectory. The same is true on the group level as well. Societies of all kinds construct meaningful group narratives that may or may not correspond to the realities of the group’s experience. These narratives constitute coping devices, enabling the group to assimilate its past into a coherent and positive pattern and thus to engage the future constructively and creatively. Once well established, these narratives tend to be resistant to change, because their usefulness convinces group members of their truth. Group narratives do on occasion break down for some members of society, normally because they are challenged by an alternative and more useful narrative. Two examples we shall encounter regularly in this study are the replacement for many Europeans of the traditional Christian historical narrative by a Greco-Roman–centered narrative highly critical of Christianity and the replacement for many Jews of the nineteenth century, emancipation-oriented Jewish narrative by a nationalist alternative. In both cases, the new narratives enabled those embracing them to pursue alternative objectives and ideals, while asserting the roots of these objectives and ideals in the group past.
Characters of Finite-Dimensional Irreducible q(n) -Modules

The solution of the Kac character problem for the‘queer’ series of Lie superalgebras q(n) is announced. An explicit algorithm which computes the character of an arbitrary finite-dimensional irreducible q(n)-module is presented. As an illustration, the ‘correction terms’ to the generic character formula of Penkov (Monatsh. Math.118 (1994), 419) are written down for all finite-dimensional irreducible representations of q(n), for n≤4, with nongeneric character.
Comparison of Local External Force Functions for Non-rigid Registration of 3D Medical Images

Non-rigid volumetric registration has many applications, including inter-patient image fusion, motion quantification, and automatic atlas-based segmentation. Computation time is often a limiting factor in using current methods in clinical environments. Minimizing computation time requires both the internal and the external force updates to be as efficient as possible. In this article, we concentrate on the choice of the external force function. We compare different methods based on optical flow and propose a new correlation-based external force function. In addition, we propose an acceleration technique and study its effect on image quality and the speed of convergence. The results indicate that the acceleration technique improves both the speed and quality, and increases the stability of all the external force methods considered.
Thermolabile Triose Phosphate Isomerase in a Psychrophilic Clostridium

It was found that a psychrophilic Clostridium contains a triose phosphate isomerase which is very labile at moderate temperatures. An investigation showed that the optimal growth temperature of the psychrophile was between 15 and 20 deg C. No growth occurred at 25 deg C. The thermostability of the glycolytic enzymes in the cell-free extracts of Clostridium sp. strain 69 was studied. The data obtained show that the triose phosphate isomerase is quite labile at moderate temperatures. The instability of the enzyme is sufficient to explain the low maximum growth temperature of the psychrophile.
Quantitative methodology for corticosteroids based on chemical oxidation to electrophilic products for electron capture-negative chemical ionization using capillary gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. I. Assessment of feasibility in the analysis of horse urine for dexamethasone.

Abstract Sensitive and specific methodology based on capillary column gas chromatography-electron capture-negative chemical ionization-mass spectrometry has been developed for the quantitative analysis of corticosteroids from biological fluids. The feasibility of this method is demonstrated in the quantitative analysis of dexamethasone in horse urine following administration of the drug. A structurally similar compound, 6α-methylprednisolone, is added to the urine as an internal standard. The free dexamethasone and the internal standard are extracted and oxidized to high-electron-affinity 1,4-androstadiene-3,11,17-trione structural analogs and then analyzed by capillary column gas chromatography-electron capture-negative chemical ionization-mass spectrometry.
Transgender Health Disparities: Comparing Full Cohort and Nested Matched-Pair Study Designs in a Community Health Center.

Abstract Purpose: U.S. health surveillance systems infrequently include measures to identify transgender respondents or monitor the health of this underserved and marginalized population. Methods: From 2001 to 2002, transgender and nontransgender adults were sampled at a Massachusetts clinic. Health differences were formatively examined by transgender identity using a cross-sectional, clinic-based sample (n=2,653) and a nested matched-pair subsample (n=155). Results: Both designs produced virtually identical findings: (1) the prevalence of HIV, substance abuse, and smoking did not differ significantly for transgender and nontransgender patients; (2) transgender patients were more likely to endorse a lifetime suicide attempt and ideation compared with nontransgender patients (p<0.05); (3) transgender patients disproportionately reported social stressors (violence, discrimination, childhood abuse) relative to nontransgender patients (p<0.05). Conclusion: Findings suggest that a nested design may provide an ...
Adaptive Rates of Convergence in Active Learning.

We study the rates of convergence in classification error achievable by active learning in the presence of label noise. Additionally, we study the more general problem of active learning with a nested hierarchy of hypothesis classes, and propose an algorithm whose error rate provably converges to the best achievable error among classifiers in the hierarchy at a rate adaptive to both the complexity of the optimal classifier and the noise conditions. In particular, we state sufficient conditions for these rates to be dramatically faster than those achievable by passive learning.
Twiddler's syndrome in a patient with epilepsy treated with deep brain stimulation.

SUMMARY Twiddler’s syndrome is the conscious or unconscious manipulation of implantable pulse generators (IPGs) or associated wire systems by the patient. Most commonly, this complication has been documented in patients with cardiac pacemakers, but there are reported cases in patients with deep brain stimulators. Twisting of stimulator systems results in dislodgement or damage to leads and loss of stimulation to the desired target. The present case illustrates a rare complication that may have serious consequences in patients with deep brain stimulators. A 21 year-old woman presented with recurrence of seizures from failure of her deep brain stimulator targeting the anterior nuclei of the thalamus to control refractory epilepsy, 6 months after it was implanted. Radiographic imaging revealed that the IPG had been twisted upon itself causing coiling and looping of extension wires. The patient denied any conscious manipulation of the system, which was subsequently surgically revised. Surgical revision achieved the desired stimulation and effects. On 4-month follow-up the deep brain stimulator remained stable and untwisted; however, it was subsequently removed in the fourth month because of infection at the extension site. In conclusion, twiddler’s syndrome is a rare complication occurring in patients with deep brain stimulator implants and warrants awareness among neurologic and neurosurgical epilepsy specialists.
Weight acceptance versus body dissatisfaction: Effects on stigma, perceived self-esteem, and perceived psychopathology.

Abstract Objective It is unknown whether weight acceptance or body dissatisfaction impact anti-fat stigma. Therefore, this study utilized a 2 × 2 between-subject experimental design to examine of the relationship between body acceptance and stigmatization. Method Participants were university undergraduates (N = 394, 70% women, mean age = 20.8 years, mean BMI = 23.61 kg/m2) who were randomly assigned to read vignettes describing an obese or normal-weight target described as either accepting or not accepting of her weight. Participants completed measures of stigma (the Fat Phobia Scale (FPS), the modified Anti-fat Attitudes Scale (AFA)), perceived self-esteem (assessed with the modified Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSE)), and perceived psychopathology. Results Analyses revealed significant main effects for acceptance. Notably, targets who accepted their weight were less stigmatized on the FPS (F(1, 354) = 66.82, p Conclusion Results from this study suggest that size acceptance, even when practiced by obese targets, was significantly less stigmatized than body dissatisfaction and associated with better perceived self esteem and mental health.
Propagation of a 10 Gbps RZ bit stream in a circulating loop using TrueWave/sup TM/ and DCF with 100 km EDFA spacing

Summary form only given. We present propagation of a 10 Gbps RZ bit stream which has been studied in the path average normal-, anomalous-, and zero-dispersion regimes. The circulating loop has a 100-km amplifier spacing and dispersion compensation is performed at every amplifier.
Federal health research spending to hit $1 billion, but when?

Health Minister Anne McLellan and Dr. Alan Bernstein both foresee a $500-million raise for the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). But the timing of the increase is another matter. At BIO 2002, a huge international biotechnology conference held in Toronto in June, McLellan said Ottawa
Investigating the GADPH-Sir2 interaction in S. cerevisiae (763.2)

The yeast glyceraldehyde-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), Tdh3, has been found to interact with the silencing protein Sir2 in S. cerevisiae. Sir2 is a protein deacetylase that removes acetyl groups...
Primary care physician practices in the diagnosis, treatment and management of men with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome

To describe practice patterns of primary care physicians (PCPs) for the diagnosis, treatment and management of chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS), we surveyed 556 PCPs in Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles (RR=52%). Only 62% reported ever seeing a patient like the one described in the vignette. In all, 16% were 'not at all' familiar with CP/CPPS, and 48% were 'not at all' familiar with the National Institutes of Health classification scheme. PCPs reported practice patterns regarding CP/CPPS, which are not supported by evidence. Although studies suggest that CP/CPPS is common, many PCPs reported little or no familiarity, important knowledge deficits and limited experience in managing men with this syndrome.
Attorneys’ Self-Reported Perspectives and Criteria for Requesting Competency Evaluations in Criminal Defense Cases

It is hypothesized that attorneys with more experience and attorneys with a more favorable opinion of the usefulness of competency to stand trial evaluations will adopt a more paternalistic approach in the application and use of competency evaluation. The criteria by which attorneys adopting the paternalistic approach decide to have certain defendants evaluated for their competency to stand trial is focused more on the client’s best interests, such as mental welfare, rather than strictly on case outcome, or the least restrictive measures. This study surveys criminal defense attorneys in a large, urban, North Texas county as to which decisional approach, paternalism or pure advocacy, they follow. The study finds that attorneys with a more favorable opinion of the usefulness of competency evaluations express a greater degree of support of the use of both paternalistic and pure-advocacy items as solitary criteria for seeking a competency evaluation.
Music Information Retrieval.

Les approches utilisees pour la recherche d'information musicale (RIM) sont multidisciplinaires : bibliotheconomie et science de l'information, musicologie, theorie musicale, ingenierie du son, informatique, droit et commerce... L'article vise a identifier et a expliquer la problematique de de la RIM alors qu'elle devient une discipline a part entiere, les influences historiques, l'etat-de-l'art de la recherche et les solutions potentielles. L'information musicale est multifacette - ton, temporalite, harmonie, timbre, edition, texte et bibliographie - , l'acces a chacune de ces facettes constituant un defi pour la recherche et le developpement. Mais la RIM represente egalement un defi multirepresentationnel, multiculturel, multiexperience et multidisciplinaire. Les systemes de RIM deploient differents degres d'exhaustivite representationnelle. Ils relevent generalement de deux types : les systemes analytiques ou de production, et les systemes de localisation. En conclusion, l'A. mentionne quelques ateliers et symposiums recents ainsi que les principaux projets de recherche concernant la RIM.
Online versus paper evaluations: differences in both quantitative and qualitative data

This study sought to determine if differences exist in the quantitative and qualitative data collected with paper and online versions of a medical school clerkship evaluation form. Data from six-and-a-half years of clerkship evaluations were used, some collected before and some after the conversion from a paper to an online evaluation system. The quantitative data consisted of a composite score based on the average of several Likert-type items; the qualitative data consisted of open-ended comments about the clerkships. Clerkship ratings were more positive in the online version. Students made significantly longer comments about both strengths and weaknesses on the online form than on the paper form. In addition, comments made on the online form were judged to be more informative and showed less evidence of “negativity” than those made on the paper form. The findings suggest that both quantitative and qualitative data obtained with online evaluation forms can differ in important ways from data collected with paper forms.
Generic simulation of multi-element ladar scanner kinematics in USU LadarSIM

This paper presents a generic simulation model for a ladar scanner with up to three scan elements, each having a steering, stabilization and/or pattern-scanning role. Of interest is the development of algorithms that automatically generate commands to the scan elements given beam-steering objectives out of the ladar aperture, and the base motion of the sensor platform. First, a straight-forward single-element body-fixed beam-steering methodology is presented. Then a unique multi-element redirective and reflective space-fixed beam-steering methodology is explained. It is shown that standard direction cosine matrix decomposition methods fail when using two orthogonal, space-fixed rotations, thus demanding the development of a new algorithm for beam steering. Finally, a related steering control methodology is presented that uses two separate optical elements mathematically combined to determine the necessary scan element commands. Limits, restrictions, and results on this methodology are presented.
Soft-adaptive turbo equalization: Using soft information in adaptation

Turbo equalizers have been exploited for underwater wireless communication due to their excellent practical performance. As the equalizer is adaptive, it is possible to take advantage of the soft information available from the decoder in the adaptation process. In this paper, we consider a method to do this and compare it with the use of soft information in feedback, which is a method that has been considered in the past. Data from the KAM11 experiment demonstrates that using soft information in adaptation can improve performance over using it only in feedback. We also consider combining these different approaches and how this affects performance.
Critical thinking and communication skills: Integration and implementation issues

Abstract This article describes issues associated with implementing an integrated approach to critical thinking and communication skills within accounting courses. The article builds on the work of Hirsch and Collins (1988) and discusses the following issues: (a) the collaboration of accounting and English faculty, (b) types of assignments, (c) assignment design, (d) the feedback process, (e) revisions in courses to accommodate a communication skills program, and (f) resources and motivation. The examples offered are from management/cost accounting courses, but our experience suggests that such an integrated approach to teaching critical thinking and both oral and written communication skills works well within most accounting and other business courses. However, individual programs will need to be tailored in order to address the issues defined here in ways that best fit their mission, goals, and resources.
Brain pH has a significant impact on human postmortem hippocampal gene expression profiles

Studies of neurobiological disorders in the brain, including schizophrenia, rely on the use of postmortem brain tissues, in which an understanding of the effects of various pre- and postmortem variables on gene expression is critical. In several different brain regions, pH has been shown to have a large effect on postmortem brain gene expression patterns. One region that has not yet been evaluated in such studies is the hippocampus, a region often implicated in schizophrenia research. In the present study, we show that postmortem brain pH is similar across different brain regions. Brain pH accounted for greater variation in hippocampal gene expression profiles than any other parameter evaluated, including gender and schizophrenia. The predictive value of brain pH in an independent sample set was also greater than the disease, demonstrating that pH represents one of the most important control parameters in human postmortem gene expression studies in schizophrenia.
Every connected graph is a query graph

Let V be a set of bit strings of length k, i.e., V ⊂ {0, 1}k. The query graph Q(V) is defined as follows: the vertices of Q(V) are the elements of V, and {ū, v} is an edge of Q(V) if and only if no other w ϵ V agrees with ū in all the positions in which v does. If V represents the set of keys for a statistical data base in which queries that match only one key are rejected, then the security of the individual data is related to the graph Q(V). Ernst Leiss showed that graphs belonging to any of several classes could be represented as query graphs and asked whether any connected graph could be so represented. We answer his question in the affirmative by making use of a spanning tree with special properties.
Crystallization kinetics of Mo-N

Thin film samples of molybdenum were electron-beam evaporated at 80 K in a 6.6×10−4 Pa partial pressure of nitrogen and subsequently analysed for structure, superconductivity and crystallization behaviour. X-ray diffraction of as-deposited samples showed a typical amorphous structure and fcc and bcc phases upon heating. A superconducting transformation at 7.0 to 7.2 K was detected by the resistivity technique. Isothermal DSC scans obtained for a range of temperatures were calibrated and integrated to produce transformed volume (x)-time data. All plots of In [-In (1−x)] against Int have two linear regions with slopes ofn 1≅3.6 for 0<x<0.5 andn 2≅ 2.0 for 0.7<x<1; wheren is the principal parameter in the Johnson-Mehl-Avrami theory of the crystallization transformation. The relationship of this binary pattern of crystallization to the observation of two apparent crystallization peaks in dynamic DSC scans of several samples of electron-beam deposited Mo-N and to the appearance of both Mo-bcc and Mo2N-fcc phases in the X-ray patterns of the crystallized samples is discussed. Possible patterns of simultaneous or successive modes of nucleation and growth, including combinations of varying nucleation rates, different dimensionals of growth, and interfacial and diffusion controlled growth, are considered.
CALCULATION OF THE SMOOTHING SPLINE WITH WEIGHTED ROUGHNESS MEASURE

A self-contained mathematical derivation of the smoothing spline with weighted roughness measure is offered, along with a discussion of the computational details required for its implementation. The introduction of a weighted roughness measure, even if only piecewise constant, provides additional flexibility in the shaping of the smoothing spline, while not materially increasing the computational cost of its construction or use.
Microstructure and Field Emission of Nanocrystalline Diamond Prepared from C 60 Precursors

Cold cathode electron field emission from nanocrystalline diamond thin films produced by microwave plasma-enhanced CVD with C{sub 60} as the growth precursor has been observed. The lowest onset field obtained is about 2 V/{micro}m, and a 4 V/{micro}m field is required to emit a current density of 0.4 mA/cm{sup 2}. It has been found that hydrogen content of the plasma, which can be varied over a wide range, strongly affects the microstructure and electron field emission properties of the nanocrystalline diamond thin films. This is an important new development which allows one to exercise powerful control over many properties of diamond films. Based on TEM characterization and field emission measurements, the effects of the structural defects and the orientations of the diamond grains on the field emission properties are discussed.
MOLECULAR CLONING AND EXPRESSION OF TWO NOVEL ZEBRAFISH SEMAPHORINS

Abstract The large, conserved semaphorin/collapsin gene family encodes putative axon guidance molecules. We describe the cloning and expression of two novel zebrafish semaphorins that represent an increase in the size and diversity of the family. These semaphorins are expressed in unique and dynamic patterns during development.
AN INDEX OF FACTORIAL SIMPLICITY

An index of factorial simplicity, employing the quartimax transformational criteria of Carroll, Wrigley and Neuhaus, and Saunders, is developed. This index is both for each row separately and for a factor pattern matrix as a whole. The index varies between zero and one. The problem of calibrating the index is discussed.
P98S100/calgranulin-mediated inflammation induces fibroblast growth factor 23 and promotes cardiac remodeling in chronic kidney disease

Purpose: S100A12 and fibroblast growth factor (FGF) 23 are biomarkers for cardiovascular mortality in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). The present study was designed to test the hypothesis that elevated serum levels of S100/calgranulin in mice with CKD would accelerate pathological cardiac remodeling, and to discover a potential link between S100A12 and FGF23. Methods: Human S100/calgranulin is expressed in C57BL6/J mice using a bacterial artificial chromosome containing the genes and regulatory elements for hS1008/9 and hS100A12 (hBAC-S100). hBAC-S100 mice were bred with mice lacking the receptor for advanced glycation endproducts (RAGE). CKD was induced in hBAC-S100 mice and wild type (WT) littermate mice by surgical ligation of the ureters. The heart and aorta were analyzed after 10 weeks of CKD. Results: S100A12 protein is expressed in myeloid cells and in serum of hBAC-S100 mice (25 ng/ml serum), and increased further in response to CKD. Moreover, serum IL-6 and IL-22 are elevated in hBAC-S100 mice at age 3 and 12 month. hBAC-S100 mice with CKD developed cardiac hypertrophy, diastolic dysfunction and ectopic cardiac calcification upon in-vivo echocardiography, heart weight, histology and gene expression of ANP, β-MHC, TGF-β, CTGF, and Col 1a1. Serum FGF23 was equally increased in WT/CKD and hBAC-S100/CKD compared to sham-operated animals. However, intra-cardiac expression of FGF23 mRNA (6 fold) and protein (2 fold) was increased only in hBAC-S100, and localized to the fibrous tissue of the aortic and mitral valve annulus. Importantly, IL-6, TNF-a, and LPS induced FGF23 mRNA and protein expression in cultured neonatal or adult cardiac fibroblasts while FGF23 mRNA was reduced by 90% in response to calcification-inducing medium (10mM glycerophosphate and 10nM dexamethasone). Recombinant S100A12 did not induce FGF23 mRNA. hBAC-S100 mice lacking RAGE, the receptor for S100/calgranulin, showed attenuation of systemic inflammation (IL-6, Il-22), attenuation of cardiac hypertrophy, diastolic dysfunction, cardiac FGF23 expression, and ectopic cardiac calcification when subjected to CKD, and the cardiac phenotype was similar to WT mice with CKD. Furthermore, aortic valve calcification develops spontaneously in 10-12-month old hBAC/S100 mice, suggesting that CKD accelerates this process, but is not required for S100/calgranulin-medicated aortic valve sclerosis. Conclusion: Myeloid-derived S100/calgranulin is sufficient to induce a sustained inflammatory state in vivo, which is associated with increased FGF23 expression in cardiac fibroblasts and cardiac remodeling in a RAGE dependent manner.
Minimum exergy requirements for the manufacturing of carbon nanotubes

The purpose of this paper is to address both the high values, and the large variation in reported values for the energy requirements for the production of carbon nanotubes. The paper includes an estimate of the standard chemical exergy for single walled carbon nanotubes, as well as a historical look at how the minimum physical flow exergy improved as the HiPco process developed.
No Place Like Home: An Examination of the Home Field Advantage in Gambling Strategies in NFL Football

Abstract Home teams in sports have an advantage because of learning, travel and crowd factors. In the National Football League, home teams won 58% of games over the period 1981–1996. An examination of the betting market on NFL games showed that bettors generally have recognized the magnitude of the home field advantage. The point spread market was efficient in that the strategy of betting on home teams produced a win rate of .499. However, for a subset of games which had national focus (i.e., Monday night and playoff games), betting on the home team produced a .592 win rate, which was significantly different than .5 at the .0003 level, and betting on underdog Monday night and playoff home teams produced a .656 win rate. These results suggest that the home field advantages recognized in the sports psychology literature are increased under the public attention of national exposure to a larger extent than is recognized by bettors, and the point spread market is inefficient for national focus games.
Attitudes Toward Older Adults: A Reexamination of Two Major Scales

Two studies were conducted to reexamine the psychometric properties of two major scales measuring attitudes toward older adults. The Kogan Attitudes Toward Old People Scale (Kogan OP Scale; Kogan, 1961b) was administered to a sample of 512 college students in Study One. The refined version (Polizzi & Millikin, 2002) of the Aging Semantic Differential (ASD; Rosencranz & McNeivin, 1969) using an attitudinal target, older adults, was evaluated in Study Two with a sample of 785 college students. Overall, the refined ASD using a nongender and age-specific attitudinal target, older adults, was found to be more psychometrically promising than the Kogan OP Scale. Much refinement is needed for the Kogan OP Scale because of a major flaw associated with OP+ and OP subscales. The refined ASD using older adults as the attitudinal target is a potentially practical tool in gerontological and geriatric fields with future clarification of its factor structure. Strengths and shortcomings of these scales are discussed based on psychometric features. Implications for future studies are discussed.
Functional neuroimaging studies of encoding, priming, and explicit memory retrieval

Human functional neuroimaging techniques provide a powerful means of linking neural level descriptions of brain function and cognition. The exploration of the functional anatomy underlying human memory comprises a prime example. Three highly reliable findings linking memory-related cognitive processes to brain activity are discussed. First, priming is accompanied by reductions in the amount of neural activation relative to naive or unprimed task performance. These reductions can be shown to be both anatomically and functionally specific and are found for both perceptual and conceptual task components. Second, verbal encoding, allowing subsequent conscious retrieval, is associated with activation of higher order brain regions including areas within the left inferior and dorsal prefrontal cortex. These areas also are activated by working memory and effortful word generation tasks, suggesting that these tasks, often discussed as separable, might rely on interdependent processes. Finally, explicit (intentional) retrieval shares much of the same functional anatomy as the encoding and word generation tasks but is associated with the recruitment of additional brain areas, including the anterior prefrontal cortex (right > left). These findings illustrate how neuroimaging techniques can be used to study memory processes and can both complement and extend data derived through other means. More recently developed methods, such as event-related functional MRI, will continue this progress and may provide additional new directions for research.
Linear free energy relationship in thin layer chromatography of 5-arylidenebarbiturates

Among 33 investigated 5-arylidenebarbiturates (I) and their N,N-dimethyl analogs (II) containing different substituents in the phenyl ring, 14 are new derivatives. Substituent effects of the phenyl ring on the ability of adsorption on silica gel were observed by TLC. The significant correlations between the RM values and σ or σ+ substient constants were found for both ortho-substituted derivatives of series I and N,N-di-methyl derivatives of series II. The mechanism of adsorption on the silica gel in relationships to our previous studies on barbituric acid derivatives is discussed.
Nitric oxide synthase inhibitors reduce sarcomere addition in rat skeletal muscle.

Increases in the number of sarcomeres in series (sarcomere number) in skeletal muscle myofibrils are important for normal muscle development and function. Such sarcomere addition is necessary for longitudinal muscle growth (Williams & Goldspink, 1971). Sarcomere addition influences muscle force-length (Williams & Goldspink, 1978) and force-velocity properties (Spector et al. 1980). Insufficient sarcomere addition is believed to induce complications in cerebral palsy (O'Dwyer et al. 1989) and during bone lengthening (Simpson et al. 1995). Despite the importance of sarcomere addition, little is known about its regulation. Mechanical stimuli are thought to be involved in regulating sarcomere addition (Herring et al. 1984; Goldspink, 1985). For example, increasing passive tension in adult skeletal muscle by stretch-immobilization results in sarcomere addition (e.g. Tabary et al. 1972). In addition, increasing excursion in growing muscle by increasing the muscle moment arm, or decreasing excursion by immobilization, results in increased or decreased sarcomere addition, respectively (Williams & Goldspink, 1971; Koh & Herzog, 1998). Although mechanical signals appear to modulate sarcomere addition, the mechanisms by which muscle cells transduce mechanical signals into sarcomere addition have not been explored. A putative mechanotransducer for sarcomere addition should: (1) be localized at the muscle-tendon junction (MTJ), since this is the primary site of sarcomere addition (Williams & Goldspink, 1971), (2) be responsive to mechanical stimuli such as passive stretch and excursion, which have been shown to modulate sarcomere addition, and (3) produce a signal that acts locally at sites of sarcomere addition. The neuronal isoform of nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) fulfills all three criteria. First, nNOS is located in skeletal muscle cells at the sarcolemma through direct interaction with the dystrophin complex, and is particularly concentrated at the MTJ (Chang et al. 1996). Second, nNOS activity is positively regulated by mechanical activity; static stretch of excised muscle and cyclic stretch of cultured myotubes both increase nNOS activity (Tidball et al. 1998). Third, the short half-life of NO (Lowenstein et al. 1994) would limit its actions to targets close to its site of production, which in muscle would be the region of the MTJ. Together, these data are consistent with the possibility that nNOS may be a mechanotransducer for sarcomere addition. Our hypothesis is that NO derived from nNOS is a positive modulator of sarcomere addition. The experimental model used in this study was the rat soleus muscle exposed to immobilization followed by remobilization. Such remobilization is associated with increased passive stretch and excursion of the soleus muscle, and has been shown to be associated with rapid sarcomere addition (Williams & Goldspink, 1971). We tested the hypothesis by administering NOS inhibitors and substrate during remobilization to determine whether modulation of NOS activity alters sarcomere addition.
First-principles thermodynamics from phonon and Debye model: Application to Ni and Ni3Al

Abstract Starting from first-principles projector-augmented wave method, finite temperature thermodynamic properties of Ni and Ni3Al, including thermal expansion coefficient, bulk modulus, entropy, enthalpy and heat capacity, have been studied in terms of quasiharmonic approach. The thermal electronic contribution to Helmholtz free energy is estimated from the integration over the electronic density of state. The vibrational contribution to Helmholtz free energy is described by two methods: (i) the first-principles phonon via the supercell method and (ii) the Debye model with the Debye temperatures determined by Debye–Gruneisen approach and Debye–Wang approach. At 0 K, nine 4-parameter and 5-parameter equations of state (EOS’s) are employed to fit the first-principles calculated static energy (without zero-point vibrational energy) vs. volume points, and it is found that the Birch-Murnaghan EOS gives a good account for both Ni and Ni3Al among the 4-parameter EOS’s, while the Murnaghan EOS and the logarithmic EOS are the worse ones. By comparing the experiments with respect to the ones from phonon, Debye–Gruneisen and Debye–Wang models, it is found that the thermodynamic properties of Ni and Ni3Al studied herein (except for the bulk modulus) are depicted well by the phonon calculations, and also by the Debye models through choosing suitable parameters. The presently comparative studies of Ni and Ni3Al by phonon and Debye models, as well as by different EOS’s, provide helpful insights into the study of thermodynamics for solid phases at elevated temperatures.
High-spin states in 191, 193, 195Au

Abstract The 191, 193, 195 Au nuclei have been studied by means of the ( α , x n γ ) and (Li, x n γ ) reactions. A decoupled band built on the h 11 2 orbital has been identified in all three nuclei. Also a considerable number of lower- and intermediate-spin levels based on this orbital have been observed and compared with the expectations from a simple rotation-aligned coupling scheme. Isomeric states were also observed in these three gold nuclei, having an energy of about 2 MeV and probable spin 21 2 + . This state is most likely due to a coupling of the aligned h 11 2 hole with the 5 − states observed in the nearby even Pt, Hg, and Pb nuclei. The nature of these 5 − states is discussed.
Using a forest stand simulation model to examine the ecological and climatic significance of the late-quaternary pine-spruce pollen zone in eastern Virginia, U.S.A.

Full-glacial pollen records from southeastern United States are composed primarily of pine and spruce, with lesser amounts of fir, birch, and oak. A simulation model of forest dynamics was used to reconstruct the composition and structure of these forests on the Delmarva Peninsula of Virginia, where pollen data were available to test the model, and climate and soils data were available to drive the model. Reconstructed annual precipitation and summer air temperature were consistent with modern analog estimates from the pollen record. Annual precipitation was also consistent with climates simulated by atmospheric general circulation models, but summers were colder. Correcting these simulated climates for possible errors resulted in summer air temperature consistent with our estimate. However, two alternative parameter sets relating simulated tree growth to air temperature sums precluded robust forest reconstructions. With one parameter set, the species dominating the simulated forests were not consistent with the pollen record. The other parameter set produced forests more consistent with paleoecological data, indicating that the climate was correct. These differences in simulated forest composition reflected inadequacies in the parameterization of air temperature effects in forest models.
Performance of a video-image-subtraction-based patient positioning system

Purpose: We have developed and tested an interactive video system that utilizes image subtraction techniques to enablehigh precision patient repositioning using surface features. We report quantitative measurements of system performance characteristics. Methods and Materials: Video images can provide a high precision, low cost measure of patient position. Image subtraction techniques enable one to incorporate detailed information contained in the image of a carefully verified reference position into real-time images. We have developed a system using video cameras providing orthogonal images of the treatment setup. The images are acquired, processed and viewed using an inexpensive frame grabber and a PC. The subtraction images provide the interactive guidance needed to quickly and accurately place a patient in the same position for each treatment session. We describe the design and implementation of our system, and its quantitative performance, using images both to measure changes in position, and to achieve accurate setup reproducibility. Results: Under clinical conditions (60 cm field of view, 3.6 m object distance), the position of static, high contrast objects could be measured with a resolution of 0.04 mm (rms) in each of two dimensions. The two-dimensional position could be reproduced using the real-time image display with a resolution of 0.15 mm (rms). Two-dimensional measurement resolution of the head of a patient undergoing treatment for head and neck cancer was 0.1 mm (rms), using a lateral view, measuring the variation in position of the nose and the ear over the course of a single radiation treatment. Three-dimensional repositioning accuracy of the head of a healthy volunteer using orthogonal camera views was less than 0.7 mm (systematic error) with an rms variation of 1.2 mm. Setup adjustments based on the video images were typically performed within a few minutes. The higher precision achieved using the system to measure objects than to reposition them suggests that the variability in repositioning is dominated by the ability of the therapist to make small, controlled changes in the position of the patient. Conclusion: Using affordable, off-the-shelf technology, we have developed a patient positioning system that achieves repositioning accuracy normally associated with fractionated stereotactic systems. The technique provides real-time guidance and can be used to easily and quickly correct patient setup before every treatment, thus significantly reducing overall random positioning error. This improved positioning capability provides the precision required to realize the potential gains of conformal radiotherapy. 0 1997 Elsevier Science Inc.
Optimal Estimation Of Voltage Phasors And Frequency Deviation Using Linear And Non-Linear Kalman Filtering: Theory And Limitations

This paper presents two techniques for optimal tracking of power system voltage phasors and frequency deviation. The first technique is based on a two-state linear Kalman filter model. The second technique is based on a three-state extended Kalman filter model. In the latter the frequency deviation is considered a third state variable and is recursively computed on-line. It is shown that the Kalman filter models are well suited for noisy measurements. The effect of sampling rate, computer burden and overall accuracy are also investigated. Finally comparison with other techniques is presented.