cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Impact of Cardiac Cath Lab Organization on Process and Outcome Quality: A Case Study

Quality improvement must balance two conflicting objectives: process conformance and process re-engineering. Healthcare facility organization structure may favor one approach over the other. We examined whether cardiac cath labs that are open [permitting operators to work at other sites] or closed achieve faster door-to-balloon times [D2B] and lower in-hospital mortality. We used retrospective secondary data from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health on all 30,903 cath lab visits involving a percutaneous coronary intervention [PCI] in 4/1/03-12/31/04. Patient-level models were estimated for in-hospital mortality in all patients, and for D2B time in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction [STEMI] patients, accounting for patient risk, hospital and operator PCI procedural volume.The parameters of interest were the effects of a lab’s closed status or the by the mean number of labs where an open lab’s operators worked across. In unadjusted analyses, the patients of closed labs had lower in-hospital mortality (1.0% vs. 1.7%, PPatients of closed and less open cath labs in Massachusetts were less likely to receive timely PCI, but not more or less likely to die in hospital. Hospital and operator PCI experience was inconsistently associated with D2B times. This case study’s findings support a broader search for the success factors of PCI quality beyond experience or site processes towards aspects of a lab’s organization and staffing pattern.
Treatment-related fractures after combined modality therapy for soft tissue sarcomas of the proximal lower extremity: Can the risk be mitigated?

Abstract Purpose The purpose of this study was to investigate the incidence of and risk factors associated with femur fracture after combined modality therapy for soft tissue sarcomas (STS) of the proximal lower extremity. Methods and materials We reviewed the records of 596 patients with STS of the proximal lower extremity consecutively treated with surgery and radiation therapy (RT) from 1966 to 2012. One hundred ninety-seven patients (33%) received 50 Gy to the entire femur circumference (n = 197, 33%); 265 patients (45%) received perioperative chemotherapy, and during surgery, 155 patients (26%) had bone exposure, whereas 82 patients (14%) had the periosteum stripped. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to estimate actuarial outcome rates, and both Cox regression modeling and competing risk analyses using the method of Fine and Gray were performed. Results Median follow-up time was 110 months (range, 6-470 months). The actuarial 10-year local control and overall survival rates were 88% (95% confidence interval [CI], 84%-90%) and 62% (95% CI, 57%-66%). Twelve patients had pathologic fractures, which were associated with 50 Gy to the entire bone circumference (P Conclusions Although femur fractures are rare, a component from each of the 3 therapeutic modalities contributes to the overall risk, and a multidisciplinary approach to mitigating fracture risk is needed. Although avoiding circumferential bone coverage with the 50-Gy isodose line may be a valuable dosimetric parameter, more rigorous dosimetric studies are required.
Smart Wind Power Control System Design Based on IEC61400-25

Aiming at information model for wind farm in the environment of smart grid and grid-friendly wind farm requirements,smart wind power control system based on the IEC61400-25 framework is proposed,and the key issues need to be resolved are discussed.The smart wind power control system information model is established and coordination between CIM model and IEC61400-25 wind farm model is analyzed.The online adaptation method of the CIM model and wind farm models is presented.The design method of IED model and information interface in smart wind power control system is proposed.According to the key issues of smart wind power control system,the corresponding solutions are presented.
A new model for non-invasive, reproducible fixation of a stereotaxic frame using an orthodontic resin plate : technical note

The authors describe a new method for reproducible, non-invasive fixation of a stereotaxic localizing frame. A localizing system similar to that of Brown-Roberts-Wells for MR can be fixed at the base of the facial skeleton to the upper dental arch by an orthodontic resin plate. Results of trials with CT scan, advantages and disadvantages are discussed. The new fixture could be employed in open surgery and in fractionated radiotherapy.
Prevention of Cultural-Familial Mental Retardation

Prevention—a term often associated simplistically with immunization against a specific disease—takes three major forms. The first and more widely known form is primary prevention, which is designed to incapacitate the disease-producing agent and therefore stop the anticipated occurrence of the disease. Immunization with vaccines is an example of this form of prevention. Secondary prevention has been defined as those activities undertaken to intervene after disease can be detected but before it is symptomatic. A third form, tertiary prevention, is defined as those activities undertaken to prevent the progression of symptomatic disease or illness (Report To The Congress, February 6, 1979). The definition of secondary prevention has been further refined to include (1) early diagnosis and prompt screening, and (2) disability limitation, or adequate treatment to arrest disease, stop further complications, and avert death (Report To The Congress, February 6, 1979). It is with primary and secondary prevention, and more specifically with the first aspect of secondary prevention, as it relates to mental retardation, that this chapter is concerned.
Editorial: Statins for Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Expanding the Scope of Prevention

In addition to cholesterol depletion, statins also significantly decrease systemic inflammation as measured by C-reactive protein. In this issue of American Journal of Gastroenterology, Ungaro et al. present their results on the associations between statin prescriptions and risk of Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). Using a national medical claims and pharmacy database created by Symphony Health Solutions LLC (SHA), they show that any use of statin is protective against diagnosis of CD and UC. The protective effect against CD appears strongest among older populations (>60 years old). These findings offer intriguing insights into inflammatory pathways that could be modulated by cholesterol lowering drugs. In addition, if replicated in other cohorts, these results provide further rationale for investigating the use of statins in broader preventive efforts, including healthy patients at risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease.
Differentiation and cryovolcanism on Charon: A view before and after New Horizons

Abstract Before the arrival of the New Horizons probe at the Pluto-Charon system, we developed a series of models that predicted that Kuiper Belt Objects, even as small and as cold as Charon, have experienced internal ice-rock differentiation and possibly cryovolcanism. Confronting these predictions is a wide array of spectroscopy, imagery, and other data from New Horizons. In this article we compare the predictions against the new observations, and find that they largely support the expected history of the Pluto system and the evolution of Charon. Following the collision of two partially differentiated impactors with radii ≈1000 km, a disk of material formed around Pluto, from which Charon and Pluto’s other moons formed. Because the impactors did not completely differentiate, the disk contained rocky material from their crusts, explaining the moons’ different densities and compositions. Long-lived radionuclides in Charon, assisted by ammonia antifreeze in the ice, melted ice and created a subsurface ocean that eventually refroze ≈ 1.7 − 2.5 Gyr ago. The freezing of this ocean would have created extensional stresses that possibly created Serenity Chasma, and could have led to widespread resurfacing, explaining the apparently younger age of Vulcan Planum. Buildup of radiogenic heat then created a second, smaller ocean that refroze 0.5–1.7 Gyr ago. As it froze, cryovolcanism would have been enabled, possibly creating Kubrick Mons. Charon’s “moated mountains” such as Kubrick Mons have a natural explanation as cryovolcanoes depressing a thin lithosphere over a cryomagma chamber. We offer further predictions about other aspects of Charon’s surface. Our previous predictions that Charon is a world shaped by geological activity have been largely borne out by New Horizons observations.
Revertant mosaicism in genodermatoses

Inherited monogenic skin disorders include blistering disorders, inflammatory disorders, and disorders of differentiation or development. In most cases, the skin is broadly involved throughout the affected individual’s lifetime, but rarely, appearance of normal skin clones has been described. In these cases of revertant mosaicism, cells undergo spontaneous correction to ameliorate the effects of genetic mutation. While targeted reversion of genetic mutation would have tremendous therapeutic value, the mechanisms of reversion in the skin are poorly understood. In this review, we provide an overview of genodermatoses that demonstrate widespread reversion and their corrective mechanisms, as well as the current research aimed to understand this “natural gene therapy”.
Cause-effect analysis for sustainable development policy

The sustainable development goals (SDGs) launched by the United Nations (UN) set a new direction for development covering the environmental, economic, and social pillars. Given the complex and inte...
Structure identification in layered precedence networks

We consider the problem of identifying the structure of a network when precedence constraints are present. The associated graph is assumed to be directed, layered and with edges that exist only between successive layers. Such precedence networks arise in manufacturing processes resulting from a necessary or desirable sequencing of subassembly tasks to be completed in order to assemble the final product. Each node in the graph corresponds to a task and each edge represents a precedence constraint. We provide a simple and natural algorithm that can identify the network structure. We study the corresponding sample complexity as a function of the number of layers L, the maximum number of nodes, D, per layer and the maximum node in-degree M in the network. We show that, for networks that are start-time synchronized, i.e., networks in which all tasks per layer are coordinated to start simultaneously, identification with probability at least 1 − ∊ for some 0 < ∊ < 1 is guaranteed for a number of samples satisfying n = Ω (Mlog ((L − 2)DM/∊)).
Reciprocity and its Association with Treatment Adherence in an Online Breast Cancer Forum

Online health communities (OHCs) are increasingly relied upon by individuals exchanging social support for diagnoses and treatment regimens. It has been shown that social support from trusted relationships (e.g., family and friends) positively influence treatment adherence in offline environments, but much less is known about the online setting. In this study, we focus on how relationships established in an online breast cancer discussion board induce reciprocity (specifically in the form of reciprocal exchange of support) and its impact on adherence to a five-year hormonal therapy, a highly prevalent long-term treatment for breast cancers, with varying completion rates. We measure reciprocity as responses to forum posts to analyze interactions of over 6,000 patients and 100,000 responses. In doing so, we assess how reciprocity is related to time active in the OHC and the tones communicated by authors in their posts (e.g., emotions, writing styles and social tendencies). We further assess if such reciprocity is associated with treatment adherence. We find the volume of the reciprocity is positively associated with completing the five-year protocol, rather than the rate of the reciprocity or the fraction of the posts that received replies.
Chapter 26 – Social Capital

This chapter surveys research on social capital. We explore the concepts that motivate the social capital literature, efforts to formally model social capital using economic theory, the econometrics of social capital, and empirical studies of the role of social capital in various socioeconomic outcomes. While our focus is primarily on the place of social capital in economics, we do consider its broader social science context. We argue that while the social capital literature has produced many insights, a number of conceptual and statistical problems exist with the current use of social capital by social scientists. We propose some ways to strengthen the social capital literature.
Facilitating Students’ Interaction with Real Gas Properties Using a Discovery-Based Approach and Molecular Dynamics Simulations

We present an interactive discovery-based approach to studying the properties of real gases using simple, yet realistic, molecular dynamics software. Use of this approach opens up a variety of opportunities for students to interact with the behaviors and underlying theories of real gases. Students can visualize gas behavior under a variety of conditions; they can implement kinetic theory expressions as computer code to compute macroscopic quantities from microscopic/kinematic behaviors of the simulated gases, and they can explore strategies to quantitatively and qualitatively evaluate deviations from ideal gas behavior. A simple and fully functional molecular dynamics program written in the C programming language that has been tested on Windows, Mac, and Linux platforms accompanies this article; detailed suggestions are provided for implementing this exercise with or without programming activities.
Inhibition of Bacterial Adherence by Cranberry Juice: Potential Use For the Treatment of Urinary Tract Infections

Cranberry juice has been widely used for the treatment and prevention of urinary tract infections and is reputed to give symptomatic relief from these infections. Attempts to account for the potential benefit derived from the juice have focused on urine acidification and bacteriostasis. In this investigation it is demonstrated that cranberry juice is a potent inhibitor of bacterial adherence. A total of 77 clinical isolates of Escherichia coli were tested. Cranberry juice inhibited adherence by 75 per cent or more in over 60 per cent of the clinical isolates. Cranberry cocktail was also given to mice in the place of their normal water supply for a period of 14 days. Urine collected from these mice inhibited adherence of E. coli to uroepithelial cells by approximately 80 per cent. Antiadherence activity could also be detected in human urine. Fifteen of 22 subjects showed significant antiadherence activity in the urine 1 to 3 hours after drinking 15 ounces of cranberry cocktail. It is concluded that the reported benefits derived from the use of cranberry juice may be related to its ability to inhibit bacterial adherence.
Reassessing the Impact of Information Technology in the Production Function: A Meta-Analysis

This paper analyzes and extends the growing econometric literature on the economic impact of information technology (IT). I begin with a "meta-analysis" to systematically examine the results of twenty empirical studies and show that much of the observed variation in estimates of the output elasticity of IT is predictable and due to differences in model specification and econometric echnique. Using a single dataset for U.S. industries, I then find similar variation across alternative specifications and estimation methods. Most results show a productivity effect from IT-use, but the point estimate of the elasticity is fragile and depends on the details of the estimation.
Knowledge-based natural language understanding

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses different aspect of natural language understanding, namely, the part that is knowledge-based. It provides an overview of knowledge-based natural language understanding within an historical framework. A story understanding system is typically presented with a brief fragment of a story about which it is expected to be able to answer questions. However, the answer to the question is not always explicitly present in the story but rather refers to background knowledge that the program is presumed to possess. The first knowledge structure that was proposed as a powerful device for inference generation was the script. Scripts are designed to encode stereotypic event sequences. This is mundane knowledge about some standard scenario for which a common linguistic community shares knowledge.
Self-Report Questionnaire

Most of this questionnaire is self-explanatory, but there are two pages that require some explanation.
Medical Management of Thyroid Cancer

Thyroid cancer, the most common endocrine malignancy, accounts for 1.1% of all the newly diagnosed malignancies in the United States (1). It occurs three times more commonly in women. Its annual incidence has increased over the last few decades, possibly in part owing to improved diagnosis and cancer registration (2). However, the mortality rates owing to thyroid cancer have decreased by 20% between the years 1973 and 1996, because of early diagnosis, and better surveillance and treatment.
Event-Based Programming Structures for Multimedia Information Flows

In this paper, we propose a programming model based on ‘timed event dissemination’ for structuring a distributed real-time multimedia presentation. In this model, event notifications capture program-generated actions and/or user-level object accesses on a multimedia window. A coherent effect of these actions requires enforcing deadlines on the event processing over prescribed time intervals. To meet this requirement, the paper advocates an integration of the ‘flow of time’ as part of the semantics of data presentation on a multimedia window. The paper explores a programming paradigm for event processing: causal ordering of timed messages, to realize multimedia data presentations. This yields simplicity and uniformity in the programming structure of multimedia applications. The presentation specifications in our model can be easily and accurately mapped onto system-level QOS parameters (such as network delays and play-out buffer delays) for scheduling purposes. This in turn may lead to an optimal use of the system resources by a multimedia presentation protocol. The generality of our event-oriented programming interface also allows reducing the multimedia system development costs through software reuse.
Liquid Particle Counter Comparison

Liquid laser particle counters from two manufacturers were compared by the simultaneous measurement of particles in deionized (DI) water and in various acids. Good correlation was observed for certain size ranges; for others, the numbers were dissimilar but predictable. The particle distribution was characteristic for each counter type, and consistent for the different fluids examined.
The Extent of Barriers and Linkages to Health Care for Head Start Children

Data were gathered as part of a larger survey of 218 Head Start Programs in Region II (New York City, New York State (excluding New York City), New Jersey, Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands) in 1993–94. The general purpose of the survey was to obtain information on child health, screening practices, training needs, family health and community problems, barriers to diagnosis and treatment and the extent of linkages between Head Start programs and health and nutrition providers at the local level. In this study barriers to the care of Head Start children and their families were examined as perceived by the Health Coordinators or other health related staff of the Health Services Component of these programs. The extent of linkages with health and nutrition service providers were also examined. The most frequently reported barriers were lack of parent participation (72%), private transportation not available (67%), parents' perception of quality of care (64%), distance to provider (63%), cost of transportation (63%), lack of funding (56%), limited/inconvenient hours (56%), and health services not available in the community (55%). On average, programs reported linkages to 14.5 providers (including an average of 4 nutrition programs). More than 90% of them reported linkages with public health services, child protective services, WIC and private physicians/dentists. Finally, the extent of barriers and linkages were compared across different geographic areas. Significant barriers were identified in this study, yet the survey confirmed and validated the extensive nature of formal linkages with health and nutrition service providers at the local levels. These findings may indicate that the current levels of service availability may not be sufficient to meet the severity and diversity of health needs of this population.
Spiritual Formation and Soul Care on a College Campus: The Example of the Ignatian Center at Santa Clara University:

Religiously affiliated colleges and universities typically take spiritual formation and soul care very seriously and are usually intentional about the spiritual and religious development of not onl...
Laboratory Evaluation of Antiphospholipid Syndrome.

Objectives Anti-β2 glycoprotein I domain I (anti-domain I) and anti-phosphatidylserine/prothrombin (aPS/PT) antibodies are present in patients with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS); however, their use in evaluation remains unclear. Methods Diagnostic attributes of lupus anticoagulant (LAC), anti-domain I IgG, anti-cardiolipin, anti-β2 glycoprotein I (anti-β2GPI), and aPS/PT IgG and IgM antibodies were assessed in 216 patients evaluated for APS. Results LAC had the best odds ratio (OR, 14.2) while that for anti-domain 1 IgG was comparable to anti-β2GPI IgG (OR, 8.3 vs 9.4) but higher than all others. Significant correlations were observed for thrombosis (P = .03) and pregnancy-related morbidity (P = .001) with anti-domain IgG and for any thrombosis with aPS/PT IgG (P = .006). Use of noncriteria antiphospholipid with or without criteria markers did not significantly increase the probability to diagnose APS. Conclusions Noncriteria tests can contribute to diagnosis and stratification of APS but do not improve diagnostic yield. Optimal strategies for implementation require prospective investigation.
Vaccinating Against Hate: Using Attitudinal Inoculation to Confer Resistance to Persuasion by Extremist Propaganda

Research in several domains has shown that attitudinal inoculation effectively promotes resistance to persuasion. Despite its proven efficacy, inoculation has not been empirically tested as a strat...
Landscape scale thermoregulatory costs from sublethal exposure to Deep Water Horizon oil in the double-crested cormorant.

Abstract Toxic effects of heavy oiling to wildlife are well known from oil spills, although sublethal oil exposure effects are poorly understood. We used Niche Mapper™, to compute spatially and temporally specific energetic and behavioral impacts of repeated sublethal oil exposure to double-crested cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus). During winter (October–March) cormorants exposed to 13 g, 39 g, and 65–78 g of oil, had on average a 31%, 59%, and 76% predicted increase in total resting energetic requirements (RMR) compared to unoiled birds, respectively. Increased RMR resulted in a mean (±SD) predicted increase in time spent foraging of 36 (±13) min·d−1. During the breeding season (April–September), cormorants had on average a 29%, 57% and 73% increase in total RMR and the mean predicted increase in time spent foraging was 131 (±49) min·d−1. Thermoregulatory effects of sublethal oil exposure may cause greater impacts to bird populations than is currently understood.
Discordance between platelet-supported and vesicle-supported factor VIII activity in the presence of anti-C2 domain inhibitory antibodies

Background We recently reported that factor VIII (FVIII) binds to a macromolecular complex including fibrin on thrombin-stimulated platelets and that two antibodies against FVIII diminish platelet-supported FVIII activity more than vesicle-supported activity. The C2 domain of FVIII is known to bind to phospholipid membrane and also binds fibrin. Objectives We asked whether the degree of inhibition by anti-C2 antibodies would show differences between platelet-supported and the standard activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) assay. Methods We evaluated the inhibition by a well-defined panel of monoclonal anti-C2 domain antibodies encompassing the major epitopes of the C2 domain. Activity was measured in an activated platelet time (aPT) assay containing fresh, density gradient-purified human platelets. Results The aPT exhibited a log-linear relationship between FVIII and time to fibrin formation over a 4-log range, encompassing 0.01% to 100% plasma FVIII. Nine of 10 mAbs inhibited 89% to 96% of FVIII activity, whereas mAb F85 did not. There was no correlation between the degree of inhibition in the aPTT-based assay and the platelet assay. In particular, four mAbs did not inhibit the aPTT assay, yet inhibited 90% of platelet-based activity. Residual FVIII activity in purified-protein assays, relying on platelets, correlated with the aPT assay. Conclusions The degree of FVIII impairment by some inhibitor antibodies is substantially different on platelet membranes vs synthetic vesicles. Thus, current inhibitor assays may underestimate the frequency of significant inhibitors, and a platelet-based assay may more accurately assess bleeding risk.
Off the Beaten Path: Can Statewide Articulation Support Students Transferring in Nonlinear Directions?:

Students who transfer between colleges risk losing credits and decreasing their chances of degree completion. Despite emerging evidence regarding the effectiveness of articulation agreements to add...
Filling Friction Stir Welding In-Process Exit Holes in Copper Squirrel Cage Rotors for Electric Motors

Abstract The automotive industry is developing designs and manufacturing processes for new generations of electric motors intended for use in hybrid and electric vehicles. This paper focuses on the in-process exit hole at the end of the friction stir welding (FSW) path where the tool is withdrawn along the Z-axis and this leaves an impression in the material at the point of extraction. Despite the interest in the FSW technology of solid-state welding to join copper end rings to copper spokes in the fabrication of copper rotors, one of the concerns about the circular tool path is the exit hole produced. Several processes were considered and some of them evaluated for mass production application. The exit hole mitigation was explored using the friction plug welding process for refilling the hole made in copper end rings with consumable tool plugs. The influences of the tool plug’s taper geometry and plunging process parameters for two different method variations were investigated. The microstructure of the plug boundary was difficult to control. The weld characteristics were sufficient for this application but large defects at the interface could result in the separation of the plug at higher speeds due to thermo-mechanical stresses in the end rings during motor operation. Finally, this work puts forth a major welding process for induction copper rotors.
Calibration of optimized minimum inductor bandpass filter with controllable bandwidth and stopband rejection

Abstract A calibration methodology for the optimized minimum inductor (OMI) bandpass filter (BPF) to compensate passive components' inherent loss, such as resistances and reactances, is presented. OMI BPF prevails conventional elliptic and Chebyshev BPFs by introducing fewer inductors for the same stopband rejection requirement. Given design specifications (bandwidth, stopband rejection) at a specific center frequency, the calibration flow optimizes the approach to offset the inaccuracy of center frequency, bandwidth, and stopband rejection due to the discrepancy between the actual and ideal prototype passive components. Two OMI BPF designs before and after calibration are presented for demonstration and comparison. They are 1) a 3rd order centered at 2.388 GHz, 35.54% fractional bandwidth (FBW), 29.97 dB stopband rejection, and 2) a 7th order centered at 2.333 GHz, 17.40% FBW, 62.29 dB stopband rejection.
A novel predictor of ACE2-binding ability among betacoronaviruses.

Background Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has resulted in ~4.8 million deaths worldwide as of this writing. Almost all conceivable aspects of SARS-CoV-2 have been explored since the virus began spreading in the human population. Despite numerous proposals, it is still unclear how and when the virus gained the ability to efficiently bind to and infect human cells. In an effort to understand the evolution of receptor binding domain (RBD) of the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2, and specifically, how the ability of RBD to bind to angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 receptor (ACE2) of humans evolved in coronaviruses, we have applied an alignment-free technique to infer functional relatedness among betacoronaviruses. This technique, concurrently being optimized for identifying novel prions, was adapted to gain new insights into coronavirus evolution, specifically in the context of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Novel methods for predicting the capacity for coronaviruses, in general, to infect human cells are urgently needed. Methodology proposed method utilizes physicochemical properties of amino acids to develop fully dynamic waveform representations of proteins that encode both the amino acid content and the context of amino acids. These waveforms are then subjected to dynamic time warping (DTW) and distance evaluation to develop a distance metric that is relatively less sensitive to variation in sequence length and primary amino acid composition. Results and Conclusions Using our proposed method, we show that in contrast to alignment-based maximum likelihood (ML) and neighbor-joining (NJ) phylogenetic analyses, all bat betacoronavirus spike protein RBDs known to bind to the ACE2 receptor are found within a single physicochemical cluster. Further, other RBDs within that cluster are from pangolin coronaviruses, two of which have already been shown to bind to ACE2 while the others are suspected, yet unverified ACE2 binding domains. This finding is important because both severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and SARS-CoV-2 use the host ACE2 receptor for cell entry. Surveillance for coronaviruses belonging to this cluster could potentially guide efforts to stifle or curtail potential and/or early zoonotic outbreaks with their associated deaths and financial devastation. Lay Summary Robust methods for predicting human ACE2 receptor binding by the spike protein of coronaviruses are needed for the early detection of zoonotic coronaviruses and biosurveillance to prevent future outbreaks. Here we present a new waveform-based approach that utilizes the physicochemical properties of amino acids to determine the propensity of betacoronaviruses to infect humans. Comparison with the established phylogenetic methods demonstrates the usefulness of this new approach in the biosurveillance of coronaviruses.
Preventive Counseling: Helping People to Become Empowered in Systems and Settings

Dedication Preface List of Charts Section I:Foundations of Preventive Counseling Chapter 1: Prevention in Mental Health Chapter 2: Everyday Prevention Chapter 3: A Conceptual Model Section II: Describing and Analyzing Prevention Programs That Work Chapter 4: Program Planning and Education Chapter 5: Prevention Programs in the Family Setting Chapter 6: Prevention Programs in the School Setting Chapter 7: Prevention Programs in the Community Setting Chapter 8: Prevention Programs in the Work Setting Section III: Training and the Future Chapter 9: Education, Training and Skills Chapter 10: The Future of Preventive Counseling References Index About the Author
Intake Rate: Border and Furrow

Water infiltration data which are to be used for evaluation, planning, or management of surface irrigation systems should be obtained by flooding or furrow-flow methods. This chapter describes methods that can be used for determining infiltration rates under actual operating conditions of border or furrow systems.
Activation of Integrin αIIbß3 by Modulation of Transmembrane Helix Associations

Transmembrane helices of integrin α and β subunits have been implicated in the regulation of integrin activity. Two mutations, glycine-708 to asparagine-708 (G708N)and methionine-701 to asparagine-701, in the transmembrane helix of the β3 subunit enabled integrin αIIbβ3 to constitutively bind soluble fibrinogen. Further characterization of the G708N mutant revealed that it induced αIIbβ3 clustering and constitutive phosphorylation of focal adhesion kinase. This mutation also enhanced the tendency of the transmembrane helix to form homotrimers. These results suggest that homomeric associations involving transmembrane domains provide a driving force for integrin activation. They also suggest a structural basis for the coincidence of integrin activation and clustering.
Coordination synthesis on metal centers : III. Preparation and reactions of vinylchromium

Abstract The reaction of vinylmagnesium chloride with chromium trichloride tristetrahydrofuranate in tetrahydrofuran in various molecular ratios has been examined. When equimolar amounts of the reagents are used the chromium(III) species is reduced to chromium(II) with the concomitant formation of butadiene, ethylene and some acetylene. Deuterolysis of the 3:1 mixture at low temperatures furnishes monodeuteroethylene indicating, in solution, the presence of a σ-bonded vinylchromium. With disubstituted acetylenes the vinylchromium system yields tetrasubstituted as well as the anticipated trimeric hexasubstituted benzene derivatives.
Optimal pricing of museum admission.

This paper examines the impact of free admission on museum revenue and evaluates the desirability, from an income maximizing perspective, of an additional free day. The model capitalizes on diverse audience composition. Regression analysis is used to estimate marginal shop and restaurant revenue for both art patrons and marginal consumers. Empirical estimation shows that an additional free day would not be profitable. A theoretical model which specifies crowding and “museum recognition” effects is provided as an appendix.
Transmission Imaging: Forward Scattering and Scatter Reconstruction

We give here a theory for the nature of the image if produced by the scanning laser acoustic microscope (SLAM) at a surface in the far field of the flaw. A physical model and an exact calculation of scattering of longitudinal acoustic waves by spherical defects are presented. The total displacement field (incident plus scattered) is evaluated at planes at a distance from the defect by using the Ying and Truell scattering theory. It is found that evaluation of the exact type and size of a defect is not possible from direct observation of the total field. A holographic type reconstruction technique using either 2-dimensional Fourier transform, or Rayleigh-Sommerfeld diffraction formulae, was used to reconstruct the field at the location of the defect from a knowledge of the field at an observation plane, a distance z away from the defect. It is found that accurate defect characterization can be made using this reconstruction technique.
Effect of massage therapy on pain, anxiety, relaxation, and tension after colorectal surgery: A randomized study.

The purpose of this randomized controlled trial was to evaluate the effect of postoperative massage in patients undergoing abdominal colorectal surgery. One hundred twenty-seven patients were randomized to receive a 20-min massage (n = 61) or social visit and relaxation session (no massage; n = 66) on postoperative days 2 and 3. Vital signs and psychological well-being (pain, tension, anxiety, satisfaction with care, relaxation) were assessed before and after each intervention. The study results indicated that postoperative massage significantly improved the patients' perception of pain, tension, and anxiety, but overall satisfaction was unchanged. In conclusion, massage may be beneficial during postoperative recovery for patients undergoing abdominal colorectal surgery. Further studies are warranted to optimize timing and duration and to determine other benefits in this clinical setting.
A Note on Inequalities for Probabilities of Large Deviations of Estimators in Nonlinear Regression Models

where thef,(B) are known functions defined on a parameter space 0 E Rk, k 2 1, and the E, are independent but not necessarily identically distributed random variables with mean values 0 and known variances. Throughout what follows 8 is assumed to be a measurable subset of Rk and P,, denotes the probability distribution of the sample x” when 19 is the parameter. Recently Sieders and Dzhaparidge [7] (abbreviated henceforth as S-D) considered the LS estimator 8, defined by
Medial olivocochlear efferent reflex in humans: otoacoustic emission (OAE) measurement issues and the advantages of stimulus frequency OAEs.

Otoacoustic emissions (OAEs) are useful for studying medial olivocochlear (MOC) efferents, but several unresolved methodological issues cloud the interpretation of the data they produce. Most efferent assays use a “probe stimulus” to produce an OAE and an “elicitor stimulus” to evoke efferent activity and thereby change the OAE. However, little attention has been given to whether the probe stimulus itself elicits efferent activity. In addition, most studies use only contralateral (re the probe) elicitors and do not include measurements to rule out middle-ear muscle (MEM) contractions. Here we describe methods to deal with these problems and present a new efferent assay based on stimulus frequency OAEs (SFOAEs) that incorporates these methods. By using a postelicitor window, we make measurements in individual subjects of efferent effects from contralateral, ipsilateral, and bilateral elicitors. Using our SFOAE assay, we demonstrate that commonly used probe sounds (clicks, tone pips, and tone pairs) elicit efferent activity, by themselves. Thus, results of efferent assays using these probe stimuli can be confounded by unwanted efferent activation. In contrast, the single 40 dB SPL tone used as the probe sound for SFOAE-based measurements evoked little or no efferent activity. Since they evoke efferent activation, clicks, tone pips, and tone pairs can be used in an adaptation efferent assay, but such paradigms are limited in measurement scope compared to paradigms that separate probe and elicitor stimuli. Finally, we describe tests to distinguish middle-ear muscle (MEM) effects from MOC effects for a number of OAE assays and show results from SFOAE-based tests. The SFOAE assay used in this study provides a sensitive, flexible, frequency-specific assay of medial efferent activation that uses a low-level probe sound that elicits little or no efferent activity, and thus provides results that can be interpreted without the confound of unintended efferent activation.
A High Arctic frost-creep/gelifluction slope, 1981–89: Resolute Bay, Cornwallis Island, Northwest Territories, Canada

Frost creep and gelifluction have been little studied in a High Arctic arid climate with ubiquitous permafrost. The paper reports the results of such a study based on theodolite observations over the period 1981–89 at Resolute Bay in the Canadian High Arctic. Along a target line on an average slope of 7 ° that was obviously active, the average cumulative downslope movement of targets was 222 mm (28 mm/a) for targets whose base was inserted to an initial depth of 400 mm and whose top was seasonally exposed every year during the 1981–89 period. For targets initially inserted to a depth of 200 mm, the average movement of the targets immediately adjacent to each target of the deeply inserted group measured 246 mm (31 mm/a). For all targets inserted to the 200 mm depth and exposed every year the average downslope movement was 236 mm (30 mm/a). A number of other targets remained snow/ice covered in some years. The seasonal progress downslope was dependent on retreat of snow cover and water supply to the slope, which differed from year to year. The results are necessarily highly site specific but provide some insights into the seasonal progress of combined frost creep and gelifluction in this environment. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Le frost creep et la gelifluxion ont ete peu etudies sous le climat aride du Haut Arctique ou existe un pergelisol continu. La presente recherche donne les resultats d'une etude de ces processus realisee a Resolute Bay dans le Haut Arctique Canadien par des observations au theodolite pendant la periode 1981–1989. Le long d'une ligne de mesure etablie sur une pente moyenne de 7 ° (ou les processus invoques etaient clairement actifs), le mouvement de descente cumule a ete de 222 mm (28 mm par an) pour les cibles dont la base etait installee jusqu'a une profondeur initiale de 400 mm et dont le sommet a ete toutes les saisons de 1981 a 1989 exhume de la neige et de la glace. Pour les cibles installees au depart jusqu'a une profondeur de 200 mm, le mouvement moyen des cibles immediatement proches des cibles installees plus profondement, a ete de 246 mm (31 mm par an). Pour toutes les cibles enfoncees jusqu'a une profondeur de 200 mm et exposees chaque annee, le mouvement de descente moyen a ete de 236 mm (30 mm par an). De nombreuses autres cibles sont restees couvertes de neige et de glace pendant quelques annees. Les mouvements saisonniers de descente ont ete controles par le retrait de la couverture de neige et par la fourniture d'eau sur la pente, phenomenes qui ont varie d'une annee a l'autre. Les resultats sont evidemment propres au site etudie mais fournissent cependant quelques vues sur l'effet combine du frost creep et de la gelifluxion dans cet environnement. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Mercury inhibition of fatty acid synthesis in chicks.

Summary Male chicks were fed a commercial ration and were given drinking water which contained 0, 50, 100, 150, 200 or 300 μg of mercury/ml as mercuric chloride from hatching to 3 weeks of age. In one experiment, the mercuric chloride was administered by injection into the abdominal cavity rather than in the drinking water. At 3 weeks the chicks were killed, and the livers were removed and weighed. The activity of fatty acid synthetase in the 800 × g av supernatant fractions of the liver homogenates and in vivo incorporation of [ 14 C]acetate into liver and carcass fatty acids and respiratory 14 CO 2 was determined as indicated. Administration of mercury at a treatment level of 300 μg/ml of drinking water depressed growth, feed and water consumption, liver weight, hepatic fatty acid synthetase activity, and in vivo incorporation of [ 14 C]-acetate into liver and carcass fatty acids, and increased the production of respiratory 14 CO 2 as compared with controls. In experiments in which graded doses of mercury were administered, body weights, liver weights, and feed and water intakes of the chicks receiving 0, 50 and 100 μg of mercury/ml of drinking water were similar to each other, but these parameters were severely depressed by 200 μg of mercury/ml of drinking water. Mercury caused a dose-related decrease of fatty acid synthetase activity. Incorporation of [ 14 C]acetate into carcass fatty acid was depressed by 50 and 200 μg of mercury/ml of drinking water; incorporation into liver fatty acids and production of respiratory 14 CO 2 was not affected by mercury. Intra-abdominal injection of 6 mg of mercury/100 g body weight (as mercuric chloride) into well alimented chicks depressed hepatic fatty acid synthetase activity at 1 h post-injection. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that a portion of the effects of mercury on fatty acid synthesis are direct rather than a secondary effect of inanition.
A rationale for stakeholder‐based management in developing nations

Purpose – The paper aims to provide a rationale for stakeholder‐based management in developing countries. To implement the objectives, the paper contrasts the implications of agency and stakeholder theories as they apply to developing countries and highlight “total wealth creation” and “purposive adaptation” that support developmental goals of developing countries. This “purposive adaptation” also implicates the use of management accounting tools in a flexible way to meet the needs of the strategy.Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses conceptual analysis and the case study approachFindings – The Tata Steel case illustrates the normative stakeholder approach in the developing country context. Specifically, the case highlights strategy developed through “stakeholder engagement” and the application of the balanced scorecard to address stakeholder issues in implementing the strategy, illustrating the rationale underlying the stakeholder approach in addressing developmental concerns through more dispers...
Leaky Scid Phenotype Associated with Defective V(D)J Coding End Processing in Artemis-Deficient Mice

Radiosensitive severe combined immune deficiency in humans results from mutations in Artemis, a protein which, when coupled with DNA-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit (DNA-PKcs), possesses DNA hairpin-opening activity in vitro. Here, we report that Artemis-deficient mice have an overall phenotype similar to that of DNA-PKcs-deficient mice-including severe combined immunodeficiency associated with defects in opening and joining V(D)J coding hairpin ends and increased cellular ionizing radiation sensitivity. While these findings strongly support the notion that Artemis functions with DNA-PKcs in a subset of NHEJ functions, differences between Artemis- and DNA-PKcs-deficient phenotypes, most notably decreased fidelity of V(D)J signal sequence joining in DNA-PKcs-deficient but not Artemis-deficient fibroblasts, suggest additional functions for DNA-PKcs. Finally, Artemis deficiency leads to chromosomal instability in fibroblasts, demonstrating that Artemis functions as a genomic caretaker.
Pharmacogenomic profiling in postmarketing surveillance: prospects and challenges

Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) represent a major public health and economic global problem. Growing evidence suggests that pharmacogenomics may potentially play a role in reducing drug-induced adverse events. Research efforts are increasingly directed towards this goal. However, knowledge about whether or not pharmacogenomics may be useful as a novel approach in postmarketing surveillance programs is at present rather limited. A critical analysis of some of the methodological design and ethical issues generated by the potential incorporation of pharmacogenomic profiling into pharmacosurveillance programs is presented.
“A New Myth to Live By”: The Graphic Vision of Kathy Acker

While contemporary narrative structure continues to represent a predominantly male experience of the hero's journey through the maze, or labyrinth, which represents a search for meaning, or truth, female experience is limited to that of being helper or hindrance, sex object or ego mirror. Even if there is no getting beyond or breaking free of a Western, Oedipal model of narrative as literature now exists and continues to evolve, there may to be way to write which, as passionately and bravely as Kathy Acker's narratives seek, integrates the graphic “languages of the body” into the analytical world of the mind: where the author may die or disappear, but the writer merges with the reader, and the act of searching is the meaning. The novels, Blood and Guts in High School, Empire of the Senseless, and collection of essays, Bodies of Work, together mark moments that verily explode and pulse in the body as well as the mind. In Acker's work, which draws heavily on the avant-garde, the surreal, and the “cut-up,” c...