cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Advances in Evaluation of Primary Brain Tumors

The evaluation of primary brain tumor is challenging. Neuroimaging plays a significant role. At diagnosis, imaging is needed to establish a differential diagnosis, provide prognostic information, as well as direct biopsy. After the initial treatment, imaging is needed to distinguish recurrent disease from treatment-related changes such as radiation necrosis. In low-grade gliomas, this also includes monitoring anaplastic transformation into high-grade tumors. Recently, targeted treatments have been an extremely active area of research. Evaluation in clinical trials of such targeted treatments demands advanced roles of imaging such as treatment planning, monitoring response, and predicting treatment outcomes. Current clinical gold standard magnetic resonance imaging provides superior structural detail but poor specificity in identifying viable tumors in treated brain with surgery/radiation/chemotherapy. 18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) is capable of identifying anaplastic transformation and has prognostic value. The sensitivity and specificity of FDG in evaluating recurrent tumor and treatment-induced changes can be significantly improved by coregistration with magnetic resonance imaging and potentially by delayed imaging 3 to 8 hours after injection. Amino acid PET tracers can be more sensitive than FDG in imaging some recurrent tumors, in particular recurrent low-grade tumors. They are also promising for differentiating between recurrent tumors and treatment-induced changes. Newer PET tracers to image important aspects of tumor biology have been actively studied. Tracers for imaging membrane transport such as 18 F-choline have shown promise in differential diagnosis. 18 F-labeled nucleotide analogs such as 3′-deoxy-3′-[ 18 F]-fluorothymidine (FLT) and 18 F-FMAU have been developed to image proliferation. The use of FLT has demonstrated prognostic power in predicting treatment response in patients treated with an antiangiogenic agent. Tracers for imaging hypoxia such as 18 F-FMISO have been studied and appear promising in providing prognostic information as well as planning treatment.
Total Length Estimation of Red Drum from Head Dimensions

Abstract Four head dimensions of red drum Sciaenops ocellatus were individually regressed against total length (TL) to facilitate estimation of the size of hatchery-reared fish recaptured by sport anglers. Head length, postorbital head length, snout length, and eye diameter measurements were obtained from 58 individuals ranging from 130 to 639 mm TL. Each of the head dimensions was correlated with TL, and r 2 coefficients ranged from 0.963 for eye diameter to 0.995 for head length. All of the head dimensions examined appear to be good predictors of red drum TL.
Catalytic Ring-Closing Metathesis and the Development of Enantioselective Processes

Catalytic ring-closing metathesis makes available a wide range of cyclic alkenes, thus rendering a number of stereoselective olefin functionalizations practical. The availability of effective metathesis catalysts has also spawned the development of a variety of methods that prepare specially-outfitted diene substrates that can undergo catalytic ring closure. The new metathesis catalysts have already played a pivotal role in a number of enantioselective total syntheses.
Language planning and policy in native America: history, theory, praxis

Language practices are a significant area of contention in political processes from local to national levels, and Teresa McCarty's book provides an excellent overview of the historical and ongoing ...
Reconsidering the Third of May constitution and the rhetoric of Polish-Lithuanian reforms, 1788–1792

Persuaded that our common fate depends entirely upon establishing and rendering perfect a national constitution; convinced by a long train of experience of many defects in our government, and willing to profit by the present circumstances of Europe, and by the favorable moment which has restored us to ourselves; free from the disgraceful shackles of foreign influence; prizing more than life, and every personal consideration, the political existence, external independence, and internal liberty of the nation, whose care is entrusted to us; desirous, moreover, to deserve the blessing and gratitude, not only of our contemporaries, but also of future generations; ... in order to exert our natural rights with zeal and firmness, we do solemnly establish the present Constitution. . . . '
Significance Levels of Randomization Trend Tests in the Event of Rare Occurrences

In the statistical evaluation of data from a dose-response experiment, it is frequently of interest to test for dose-related trend: an increasing trend in response with increasing dose. The randomization trend test, a generalization of Fisher's exact test, has been recommended for animal tumorigenicity testing when the numbers of tumor occurrences are small. This paper examines the type I error of the randomization trend test, and the Cochran-Armitage and Mantel-Haenszel tests. Simulation results show that when the tumor incidence rates are less than 10%, the randomization test is conservative; the test becomes very conservative when the incidence rate is less than 5%. The Cochran-Armitage and Mantel-Haenszel tests are slightly anti-conservative (liberal) when the incidence rates are larger than 3%. Further, we propose a less conservatived method of calculating the p-value of the randomization trend test by excluding some permutations whose probabilities of occurrence are greater than the probability of the the observed outcome.
Bilirubin labeling of borderzone and anterior cerebral artery territory infarction

A 50-year-old woman developed multiorgan system failure secondary to sepsis. She became obtunded during a period of hypotension, and cranial CT demonstrated diffuse borderzone infarction. Brain autopsy revealed green pigmentation in areas of infarction due to vascular leakage of bilirubin at sites of blood–brain barrier disruption, mapping the borderzone regions and bilateral anterior cerebral artery territories with this endogenous label (total bilirubin at time of death was 24 mg/dL; direct bilirubin 19 mg/dL) (figure). This brain–liver association evokes the first description of pathology in the borderzone regions in 1883 by Samuel-Jean Pozzi,1 who attributed the lesions to cortical “cirrhosis.”
TPA-resistance in Friend erythroleukemia cells: role of membrane lipid fluidity.

Summary Fluorescence polarization of 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene was used to examine membrane lipid dynamics in clones of Friend erythroleukemia cells displaying sensitivity or resistance to the tumor promoting agent 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate (TPA). Two resistant clones yielded higher fluorescence anisotropy values, indicative of decreased lipid fluidity, as compared to two sensitive clones. This difference in fluorescence anisotropy was abolished by treatment of the sensitive clones with cholesteryl hemisuccinate. The treatment also removed another phenotypic difference between the sensitive and resistant clones. Cell adherence to plastic culture dishes in the presence of TPA, a property of sensitive but not of resistant clones, was markedly diminished when the former were enriched with the cholesteryl ester. No significant differences were observed in the binding of a phorbol ester to high affinity saturable receptors between sensitive versus resistant cells. These results implicate membrane lipids as determinants of the actions of phorbol ester tumor promoters.
Muscle CARs and TcRs: turbo-charged technologies for the (T cell) masses

A central role for T cells in the control of cancer has been supported by both animal models and clinical observations. Accordingly, the development of potent anti-tumor T cell immunity has been a long-standing objective of immunotherapy. Emerging data from clinical trials that test T cell immune-modulatory agents and genetically engineered and re-targeted T cells have begun to realize the profound potential of T cell immunotherapy to target cancer. This review will focus on a description of recent conceptual and technological advances for the genetic engineering of T cells to enhance anti-tumor T cell immunity through the introduction of tumor-specific receptors, both Chimeric Antigen Receptors (CAR) and T cell receptors (TcR), as well as an overview of emerging data from ongoing clinical trials that highlight the potential of these approaches to effect dramatic and potent anti-tumor immunity.
A multi-block ADI finite-volume method for incompressible Navier-Stokes equations in complex geometries

An efficient second-order accurate finite-volume method is developed for a solution of the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations on complex multi-block structured curvilinear grids. Unlike in the finite-volume or finite-difference-based alternating-direction-implicit (ADI) methods, where factorization of the coordinate transformed governing equations is performed along generalized coordinate directions, in the proposed method, the discretized Cartesian form Navier-Stokes equations are factored along curvilinear grid lines. The new ADI finite-volume method is also extended for simulations on multi-block structured curvilinear grids with which complex geometries can be efficiently resolved. The numerical method is first developed for an unsteady convection-diffusion equation, then is extended for the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations. The order of accuracy and stability characteristics of the present method are analyzed in simulations of an unsteady convection-diffusion problem, decaying vortices, flow in a lid-driven cavity, flow over a circular cylinder, and turbulent flow through a planar channel. Numerical solutions predicted by the proposed ADI finite-volume method are found to be in good agreement with experimental and other numerical data, while the solutions are obtained at much lower computational cost than those required by other iterative methods without factorization. For a simulation on a grid with O(10^5) cells, the computational time required by the present ADI-based method for a solution of momentum equations is found to be less than 20% of that required by a method employing a biconjugate-gradient-stabilized scheme.
Opportunities and challenges for the new vocationalism in American community colleges

Vocational education assumes greater importance as community colleges expand their mission to address growing workforce, economic, and community needs. This chapter provides definitions, principles, and models to illuminate the meaning and importance of the new vocationalism in American community colleges.
Intergenerational Correlation in Monte Carlo k -Eigenvalue Calculation

This paper investigates intergenerational correlation in the Monte Carlo k-eigenvalue calculation of a neutron effective multiplicative factor. To this end, the exponential transform for path stretching has been applied to large fissionable media with localized highly multiplying regions because in such media an exponentially decaying shape is a rough representation of the importance of source particles. The numerical results show that the difference between real and apparent variances virtually vanishes for an appropriate value of the exponential transform parameter. This indicates that the intergenerational correlation of k-eigenvalue samples could be eliminated by the adjoint biasing of particle transport. The relation between the biasing of particle transport and the intergenerational correlation is therefore investigated in the framework of collision estimators, and the following conclusion has been obtained: Within the leading order approximation with respect to the number of histories per generation, the intergenerational correlation vanishes when immediate importance is constant, and the immediate importance under simulation can be made constant by the biasing of particle transport with a function adjoint to the source neutron's distribution, i.e., the importance over all future generations.
Improved survival associated with somatic PIK3CA mutations in copy-number low endometrioid endometrial adenocarcinoma

The phosphoinositide-3-kinase (PI3K) signaling pathway has been implicated in the development of endo- metrioid endometrial adenocarcinoma (EEC). Recently, The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project stratified EEC into four molecular subgroups, with the majority of tumors falling into the copy-number low-EEC (CNL-EEC) molecular subgroup. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether alterations of the PI3K pathway are associated with specific survival outcomes in patients with EEC. The clinical and genomic data of 307 patients with endometrioid-type tumors were obtained from TCGA project, including 90 patients in the CNL-EEC subgroup. Patients were evaluated in terms of survival and clinicopathological characteristics, as well as mutations in the PI3K catalytic subunit alpha (PIK3CA) gene and their effect on PIK3CA function. In CNL-EEC subgroup patients, somatic PIK3CA mutations (48/90 cases) were asso- ciated with significantly improved overall survival compared with that of wild-type PIK3CA (P=0.018). Furthermore, this improved survival was specific to the CNL‑EEC subgroup and was not observed in other TCGA molecular subgroups. The majority of CNL-EEC cases were low-stage (stage I) and low-to-intermediate grade (grades 1-2) endometrioid tumors. There were no significant differences in age, stage, histology or International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics grade between PIK3CA-mutated and non-mutated patient groups (P>0.05). In addition, the majority of cases contained activating PIK3CA mutations. Overall, in the TCGA cohort, PIK3CA mutations had a favorable effect on the survival of patients with EEC, and this effect was dependent on tumoral molecular sub‑stratification. Future studies on larger indepen - dent cohorts with long term follow-up are warranted to further analyze this association.
Interactive visualization of 3D seismic data: a volumetric method

The authors demonstrate the utility of examining seismic data with a volumetric scheme, whereby a synoptic view of the interior of the data volume is possible before conventional interpretation. High-amplitude seismic events, representing reflections from subterranean surfaces, are transformed to color pixels, and the resulting 3-D images reveal the structure of the geological layers. Such morphological features as hills, valleys, and faults are apparent indicating that the approach could prove useful for identifying potential oil reservoirs. The authors implement the technique on a personal computer to produce displays of similar quality, but they find that the construction of the 3-D images is too slow for reasonable interactivity. However, with the addition of a parallel-processing accelerator, a personal-computer-based workstation would be feasible for this kind of 3-D visualization and interpretation. >
The Autocorrelation Spectral Density for Doppler-Weather-Radar Signal Analysis

Time-domain autocovariance processing is widely accepted as a computationally efficient method to estimate the first three spectral moments of Doppler weather radar signals (i.e., mean signal power, mean Doppler velocity, and spectrum width). However, when signals with different frequency content (e.g., ground clutter) contaminate the weather signal, spectral processing using the periodogram estimator of the power spectral density (PSD) is the preferred tool of analysis. After spectral processing (i.e., filtering), a PSD-based autocorrelation estimator is typically employed to produce unbiased estimates of the weather-signal spectral moments. However, the PSD does not convey explicit phase information, which has the potential to aid in the spectral analysis of radar signals. In this paper, the autocorrelation spectral density (ASD) is introduced for spectral analysis of weather-radar signals as a generalization of the classical PSD, and an ASD-based autocorrelation estimator is proposed to produce unbiased estimates of the weather-signal spectral moments. A significant advantage of the ASD over the PSD is that it provides explicit phase information that can be exploited to identify and remove certain types of contaminant signals. Thus, the ASD provides an alternative means for spectral analysis, which can lead to improved quality of meteorological data from weather radars.
THE EFFECT OF MARKER HETEROZYGOSITY ON THE POWER TO DETECT LINKAGE DISEQUILIBRIUM

The relationship between marker heterozygosity and the power to detect linkage disequilibrium is examined through the analysis of an example and through a simulation study. The analysis suggests that, despite the penalties for multiple testing incurred with multiple alleles, greater heterozygosity results in greater power. The results of the simulation study are in accord with those of the analysis.
Inter Organizational Policy Systems and Research on Public Organizations

This article argues that the basic unit for much of public organization analysis is not the organization as is the convention in organization and management theory. Rather, it is an interorganizational unit—the policy system-which centers on a public policy domain.
Disruptions in the Separation-Individuation Process of Domestically Violent Men -- An Empirical Examination of Mahler's Theory

In the past twenty-five years, domestic violence has emerged as a significant social issue for research and theory development. This paper proposes an examination of domestic violence through the lens of Margaret Mahler's separation-individuation theory of development. This paper examines the existing empirical literature of domestically violent men using Mahler's theory of development. The paper then discusses the results from an empirical examination of the hypothesis that men who batter evidence disruptions in the separation-individuation process. This study has implications for treatment of domestically violent men, and suggests that interventions should include models that develop insight into the effects from developmental ruptures.
Emerging approaches to flow control in hydrodynamics

Recent developments in two approaches to hydrodynamic flow control are considered. One is concerned with the closed-loop large-scale control of maneuvering of biologically-inspired small underwater vehicles in a disturbed littoral ocean environment. The other is the small-scale closed- and open-loop control of turbulence in a boundary layer developing on the outer surface of an ocean going vehicle. Theoretical and experimental progress made are described. The former type appears to be well amenable to closed-loop active control with the potential payoff of a high degree of precision in maneuvering. In the latter type, an active open-loop control appears to have the best potential for turbulence quieting and drag reduction. The paper is limited to exploratory work.
Arthroscopic bankart suture repair for recurrent traumatic unidirectional anterior shoulder dislocations

Abstract We report our experience with arthroscopic repair of the Bankart lesion following traumatic unidirectional anterior shoulder dislocation. Thirty consecutive patients (7 women, 23 men; average age, 26.5 years) were followed for an average of 38 months (minimum 2-year follow-up) after arthroscopic Bankart suture repair for recurrent shoulder dislocation. The study included patients who had pure shoulder dislocations (excluding those with instability secondary to subluxation, multidirectional instability, or an atraumatic origin), had experienced an initial frank shoulder dislocation (documented radiographically or requiring the assistance of medical personnel for reduction), and had a Bankart lesion, visualized arthroscopically. Clinical evaluation using the Rowe functional grading system showed 11 patients rated as excellent, 8 as good, 3 as hair, and 8 as poor. Six of 8 patients were rated as poor because they frankly redislocated following their arthroscopic shoulder stabilization. Our study shows a 27% failure rate in this group. Critical reevaluation of the transglenoid arthroscopic Bankart procedure is mandatory to identify the appropriate patient population for this procedure.
New Dual Quark Models

On the basis of new representations of the projective group, we construct some new dual quark models whose spin and internal symmetry are not multiplicative. One model is a factorized theory of exotic states with broken exchange degeneracy, ninth mesons being optional. The exotic states are suppressed three units below the Pomeranchon. In another model, with spin-orbit coupling and curved trajectories, both spin ghosts and orbital ghosts are involved in the Ward identities.
The Down-Regulation of Cathepsin G in THP-1 Monocytes after Infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis Is Associated with Increased Intracellular Survival of Bacilli

Cathepsin G (CatG) is a serine protease found in the azurophilic granules of monocytes that is known to have antimicrobial properties, but its role in Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection is unknown. We found that M. tuberculosis infection of human THP-1 monocytic cells induced the down-regulation of CatG mRNA expression, as demonstrated by gene array analysis and reverse transcription-PCR. This was associated with a concomitant decrease in CatG protein and enzymatic activity. In contrast, the expression of lysosomal cathepsins B and D was up-regulated in infected cells. This effect was also observed when THP-1 cells were induced to differentiate into adherent macrophages by exposure to bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). In agreement with this, CatG expression was null in adherent macrophages isolated from bronchoalveolar lavages and normal blood. We wanted to determine if the down-regulation of CatG would be relevant to M. tuberculosis infection. First, we found that addition of CatG to THP-1 cells prior to infection resulted in decreased bacillary viability, presumably due to extracellular killing of bacilli. However, pretreatment of cells with LPS, which decreases intracellular CatG expression, resulted in increased bacillary viability. Second, we found that CatG cationic peptides killed M. tuberculosis bacilli and were five- to sevenfold more bactericidal than full-length CatG. These observations suggest that M. tuberculosis infection of human monocytic cells results in a “cathepsin switch” with down-regulation of CatG rendering M. tuberculosis bacilli more viable. Therefore, the downregulation of CatG in macrophages is advantageous to M. tuberculosis bacilli and possibly is an important mechanism by which M. tuberculosis is able to evade the host immune defenses. Tuberculosis (TB) is the leading cause of death worldwide due to an infectious disease, with an estimated 3 million deaths per year (4, 12). The causative agent of TB, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, is an intracellular pathogen that is highly adapted to infect and persist within mammalian tissues. Primary infection occurs when aerosol-droplet nuclei containing a small number of bacilli are deposited in the alveoli of the lung and subsequently phagocytosed by alveolar macrophages. During these early stages of infection, a key determinant of virulence is the ability of the tubercle bacillus to enter and replicate within the phagosome of phagocytic cells, thereby evading the natural host defense mechanisms (24). In this contest for survival between host and pathogen, complex cell-mediated immune responses are elicited that can lead to the formation of caseating granulomas followed by tissue destruction with liquefaction and cavity formation (9).
Clinically relevant measures of fit? A note of caution.

Risk reclassification methods have become popular in the medical literature as a means of comparing risk prediction models. In this issue of the Journal, Pencina et al. (Am J Epidemiol. 2012;176(6):492–494) present further results for continuous measures of model discrimination and describe their characteristics in nested models with normally distributed variables. Measures include the change in the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, the integrated discrimination improvement, and the continuous net reclassification improvement. Although theoretically interesting, these continuous measures may not be the most appropriate to assess clinical utility. The continuous net reclassification improvement, in particular, is a measure of effect rather than model improvement and can sometimes exhibit erratic behavior, as illustrated in 2 examples. Caution is needed before using this as a measure of improvement. Further, the test of the continuous net reclassification improvement and that for the integrated discrimination improvement are similar to the likelihood ratio test in nested models and may be overinterpreted. Reclassification in risk strata, while requiring thresholds, may be more relevant clinically with its ability to examine potential changes in treatment decisions.
Capacity performance of an inductively coupled near field communication system

The capacity performance of VLF/ULF air-air and ocean-ocean near-field communication (NFC) links, consisting of transmitter and receiver coils connected via appropriate impedance matching network to source and load respectively, is evaluated based on equivalent circuit model of the system and Shannon's information theory, at frequencies 1 kHz and 3 kHz respectively for different setups of impedance matching at transmitter and receiver. The analytical results provide good guidelines about the capacity estimation of a NFC link.
Parallel PSO/FDTD algorithm for the optimization of patch antennas and EBG structures

A novel evolutionary optimization technique is presented in this paper by introducing its applications in some representative electromagnetic design problems. The kernel of the optimizer applies particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm, and the fitness functions are evaluated by finite difference time domain (FDTD) simulations. The algorithm is executed on parallel clusters to reduce computational time caused by foil-wave analysis. The performances of the optimized patch antennas and electromagnetic band-gap (EBG) structures validate the robustness of the algorithm in various electromagnetic applications.
The Interpersonal Context of Emotion: Anger with Close Friends and Classmates

While a great deal of work in recent years has focused on the role of cognitive evaluation of events in the elicitation of anger, little has been said about how the interpersonal context of events colors such evaluation. In this study, we varied critical features of events identified by theorists (provocation, intent, and apology) along with the interpersonal context of the events. We examined the reactions of preadolescent and young adolescent boys and girls to hypothetical situations involving anger-provoking actions by best friends and classmates (casual acquaintances). The situations involving best friends elicited higher ratings of personal violation, more intense and prolonged negative emotion (including sadness and hurt feelings in addition to anger), and more coping attempts geared toward relationship preservation than did the situations involving classmates. Girls seemed to be particularly sensitive to relationship differences, consistently reporting different responses when friends and classmates were involved. Findings associated with the theoretical features of anger elicitation (provocation, intent, and apology), while generally fitting predictions, were less clear and convincing, overall, than the effects of relationship context. Findings related to age were limited but were consistent with research on the changing nature and meaning of friendship as children enter adolescence. Overall, our findings underscore the importance of relationship context as a backdrop against which emotional experience must be viewed.
Mlh1-dependent suppression of specific mutations induced in vivo by the food-borne carcinogen 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo [4,5-b] pyridine (PhIP).

Disruption of the DNA mismatch repair (MMR) pathway results in elevated mutation rates, inappropriate survival of cells bearing DNA damage, and increased cancer risk. Relatively little is known about the potential impact of environmentally relevant carcinogens on cancer risk in individuals with MMR-deficiency. We determined the effect of MMR status ( Mlh1 +/+ versus Mlh1 −/− ) on mutagenesis induced by the cooked-meat mutagen, 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo [4,5-b] pyridine (PhIP) within cII and supFG1 transgene reporters. Despite being a lymphomagen in mice, PhIP was not mutagenic in thymus. In colon, PhIP exposure induced 3-fold more mutations in Mlh1-deficient mice compared to their Mlh1 +/+ littermates. Similar induction was seen in Mlh1 −/− small intestine. Analysis of mutational spectra revealed that G/C to T/A transversions, the “signature PhIP mutation”, were induced to similar levels regardless of Mlh1 status. In contrast, Mlh1 −/− mice exhibited hypermutability to frameshifts, G/C to A/T transitions, and G/C to C/G transversions. Thus, both the level and types of mutation induced by PhIP are influenced by the activity of the MMR system. MMR may suppress PhIP-induced mutation through recognition and processing of specific mispairs (PhIP-G/T, PhIP-G/G, and PhIP-G/loop mispairs). In contrast, the PhIP-G/A mispair is unlikely to be a MMR substrate. In addition, the similar induction of both transversions and transitions in Mlh1 −/− mice suggests that mutagenic bypass of PhIP-G is similarly efficient with dATP, dTTP, and dGTP, in contrast to previously published conclusions. Our data suggests that MMR-deficiency would increase the likelihood of PhIP-induced carcinogenic mutations. Further evaluation of the risk that consumption of heterocyclic amines may impart to MMR-deficient individuals therefore is warranted. © 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
China's English language policy for primary schools

ABSTRACT: This paper explores the implementation of China's English language policy for primary schools in the 2004–5 school year through case studies of four public schools of different types. Data were collected through document reviews, interviews, and observations. The investigation of the four schools illustrates that during 2004–5 the policy has not been universally implemented in school settings – whether a school is able to implement the policy as required is determined by the interplay of various factors, including the school's geographic location, size, administration, availability of teachers, and funding. On the basis of these findings, the paper argues that the policy was issued prematurely, which could have undesirable impact on educationally disadvantaged students, less privileged schools, ELT at the junior secondary school level, and social stratification. Implications may be drawn from the Chinese case for policy-making regarding primary English education in other Expanding Circle countries.
Blade-forced vibration effects in turbomachinery rotor-stator interaction

Understanding rotor-stator interaction is essential for the design of turbomachines with increased performance and improved reliability. The sources of unsteadiness currently modeled in the rotor-stator interaction studies include potential flow interaction, wake interaction, hot streak interaction, vortex shedding and shock/boundary layer interaction. The objective of this paper is to investigate the effects of blade-forced vibration on the rotor-stator interaction in turbomachinery. An existing parallelized solver of the Euler/Navier-Stokes equations for multi-stage compressors and turbines has been extended to model vibrating rotor blades. This numerical implementation can model rotor blades that vibrate with a plunging and/or pitching motion. The rotor blade vibration is superimposed on the blade rotation. The numerical algorithm has been used to simulate the flow in a two-stage turbine. Assuming that the first-stage rotor blades were plunging with an amplitude equal to 10% of the chord and the second-stage rotor blades were pitching with an amplitude of 5 deg, both rows vibrating with a frequency of 1230 Hz, the total-to-total efficiency decreased approximately 2 points compared to the rigid blade turbine. Consequently, blade-forced vibration can significantly affect the rotor-stator interaction in turbomachiner y.
The hemodynamic effects of intravenous verapamil in patients on chronic propranolol therapy

Abstract Concern exists regarding the negative inotropic and chronotropic effects of verapamil given to patients receiving chronic propranolol therapy. In order to evaluate the safety of combined therapy, the hemodynamic effects of verapamil were investigated in a group of 19 patients on chronic propranolol therapy undergoing cardiac catheterization. Hemodynamic measurements and left ventriculography were performed prior to and 30 minutes after initiation of intravenous administration of verapamil. Verapamil doses varied from 0.025 mg/kg to 0.1 mg/kg intravenous bolus injection followed by an infusion of 0.005 mg/kg/min. Following verapamil administration, systolic, diastolic, and arterial mean pressures and systemic vascular resistance decreased significantly. There was no significant change in left ventricular end-diastolic pressure, mean pulmonary capillary wedge pressure, cardiac index, arteriovenous oxygen difference, heart rate, mean velocity of circumferential fiber shortening (VCF), end-diastolic volume index, end-systolic volume index, stroke volume index, and ejection fraction (EF). Stroke work index decreased significantly. Lack of improvement in cardiac index, VCF, and EF and decrease in stroke work index in spite of constant filling pressure and decreased afterload suggest the additive negative inotropic action of verapamil. The depressant action of propranolol itself was not determined by this study. In spite of the negative inotropic effect of verapamil, it can be administered acutely to patients who have been on propranolol therapy with relative safety if the propranolol has not already produced severe left ventricualr dysfunction, relative hypotension, bradyarrhythmia, or conduction abnormalities.
Level control in the steam generator of a nuclear power plant

Poor control of the steam generator water level in the secondary circuit of a nuclear power plant can lead to frequent reactor shutdowns. Such shutdowns are caused by violation of safety limits on the water level and are common at low operating power where the plant exhibits strong nonminimum phase characteristics and flow measurements are unreliable. There is, therefore, a need to systematically investigate the problem of controlling the water level in the steam generator in order to prevent costly reactor shutdowns. This paper presents a general framework for addressing all aspects of this problem using model predictive control techniques.
Multiphase buck converters with extended duty cycle

A family of multiphase, pulse-width-modulated (PWM) step-down converters that exhibit high input-to-output voltage conversion ratios is introduced. The proposed converters operate with larger duty cycles and lower voltage stresses on the switches than their conventional converter counterparts making them suitable for applications in high-frequency, nonisolated point-of-load converters employed in powering today's microprocessors.
Studying the characteristics of bubble motion in pool boiling in microgravity conditions under the influence of a magnetic field

Pool boiling of a paramagnetic liquid in two identical tanks was created under microgravity conditions to study the characteristic behavior of bubbles under influence of a magnetic field. The main objective of this research project was to study the Kelvin force effect on bubbles in microgravity conditions. In addition, characteristics of bubble motion in pool boiling in microgravity condition with and without the influence of a magnetic field were studied. The reduced gravity conditions or microgravity conditions demonstrate the behavior in outer space environments.
Nickel compounds induce phosphorylation of histone H3 at serine 10 by activating JNK-MAPK pathway

Nickel (Ni) is a known carcinogen, although the mechanism of its carcinogenicity is not clear. Here, we provide evidence that Ni can induce phosphorylation of histone H3 at its serine 10 residue in a c-jun N-terminal kinase (JNK)/stress-activated protein kinase (SAPK)-dependent manner. Ni induces the phosphorylation of JNK, with no effect on the phosphorylation states of the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) or p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases. An inhibitor of JNK eliminated the Ni-initiated JNK-mediated induction of histone H3 phosphorylation at serine 10, whereas inhibitors specific for ERK or p38 kinases had no effect on the phosphorylation levels of histone H3 at serine 10 (P-H3S10) in Ni-treated cells. A complete loss of Ni ion-induced phosphorylation of H3S10 was observed when JNK was specifically knocked down with RNAi. These results are the first to show the specific JNK-mediated phosphorylation of histone H3 at its serine 10 residue. We show that addition of Ni to an in vitro P-H3S10 dephosphorylation reaction does not change the loss of phosphorylation in the reaction, supporting the notion that Ni causes H3S10 phosphorylation via the JNK/SAPK pathway. It is likely that modification of H3S10 is one of a growing number of epigenetic changes believed to be involved in the carcinogenesis caused by Ni.
Necessary monitoring in the postanesthesia care unit

J. Clin. Anesth. 6:17&179, 1994. Volume 12 of Anesthesiology (1951) contained two articles that have ultimately had a tremendous impact on our daily care of surgical patients. Stephen et al.’ published “The oximeter: a technical aid to the anesthesiologist,” while Lowenthal and Russell’ reported on the cost-effectiveness of a “recovery room.” Nearly 40 years elapsed before the technical problems involving oximetry were resolved to the point where this monitoring device has become part of our practice.* The development of recovery rooms such as the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) and, ultimately, the intensive care unit has been progressive in the care of both postoperative patients and the critically ill. In this issue of the Journal of Clinical Anesthesia, Wiklund et al3 investigate these two developments: the effectiveness of oximetry and other monitors used in recovery rooms. Although oximetry has been generally accepted as a routine monitor in the PACU, it does present significant limitations.4,5 The current study compares the utility of pulse oximetry, ECG, and respiratory rate (RR) measured by both bioimpedance and nasal sampled capnometry. The authors conclude that nasal sampling of carbon dioxide (CO,) is the most effective means of detecting apnea in the PAW. However, there are several problems with this article, not the least of which are the small sample size on which it is based, the inability to determine false negative results appropriately, and the nearly self-fulfilling prophecy of the question asked. In the PACU as in the operating room, expired CO, will invariably detect changes in RR. Moreover, the study did not examine which device was most effective in reducing morbidity and mortality in the PACU, or which device provided the most value as a monitor (cost vs. effectiveness). In spite of these limitations, this study does pose an important question: what are appropriate noninvasive monitors for routine use in the PACU? Over the past decade, the pulse oximeter has been adopted as the routine monitor in any setting where oxygenation may be in question. Its broad acceptance can be directly attributed to its basic functions as a continuousrecording, noninvasive, easy-to-use, accurate, and relatively inexpensive device. It monitors two vital parameters-oxygen saturation (SpO,) and heart rate (HR)--that can assess the competence of the cardiopulmonary system. One might ask whether apnea, even for a prolonged period of time, with normal HR and SpO, is clinically significant? The data from this study3 do provide confirmation of an interesting finding regarding patients recovering from anesthesia.4 The authors noted that apneic episodes, defined as a lack of a capnometer reading of greater than 30 seconds, occurred with nearly equal frequency during the entire PACU stay. That is, these episodes occurred with nearly the same frequency during the 30 minutes prior to discharge as during the 30 minutes immediately following admission. In 1988, Morris et aL4 reported SpO, values during admission and prior to
Identification of Stage-Specific Antigens of Toxoplasma Gondii.

An immunologic evaluation of the surface antigens of the three major life-cycle stages of Toxoplasma gondii was performed. Mouse antisera were raised against these stages, which included the oocyst-sporozoite (feline-excreted stage), bradyzoite (chronic tissue cyst stage), and tachyzoite (invasive stage). The antisera were used in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and Western blot (immunoblot) analysis to demonstrate the presence of stage-specific antigens. These antigens were of various molecular weights and were specific to each stage investigated. Cross-reaction studies showed that the mouse antisera recognized commonly shared antigens to at least two of the three stages. A panel of monoclonal antibodies identified specific immune epitopes unique to each of the stages investigated. These studies further support the hypothesis that stage-specific antigens are present in T. gondii.
Building Capable Organization: A Study On Strategic Responses To Increased Global Competition

While the government still plays a critical role in capitalizing organizational market transformation, firms work hard to improve their management capabilities to manage this transformation. This article outlines the strategic challenges facing a China’s electric leader as the level of both global and domestic competition rises, and identifies the range of strategic responses being made to overcome these challenges. As the firm builds competitive capabilities, its “battle tested” strategies may provide useful lessons for today’s managers who are also facing a growing range of competitive challenges in the global marketplace.
Steroids and myocardial preservation.

The use of corticosteroids in the management of acute nonoperative myocardial infarction (MI) is controversial, but experimental evidence indicates reduction of infarct size with steroid treatment. Corticosteroids are also felt to be beneficial in low-flow states because of membrane stabilization. Methxlprednisolone (MP) effectiveness in limitation/prevention of perioperative Ml was assessed by serial ECG and serum LDH, SGOT, CPK, and CPK-MB measurements during the postoperative period in 150 patients. Of these, 75 randomly selected, received 2 Gm. of MP ½ hour prior to institution of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). There was no difference between the groups in operative technique, patient age, previous Ml, angina severity, graft number, CPB duration, myocardial ischemia duration, or graft patency. Four patients required ionotropic and intra-aortic balloon counterpulsation before removal from CPB could be accomplished. Three of these patients were in the treated group, and the only operative death occurred in the MP group. Analysis of enzymes did not further discriminate the incidence of MI or provide evidence of reduction of ischemic injury in the MP group. Nine patients in each group demonstrated ECG evidence of myocardial injury. New Q wave ST-T change, 48 nr. Total patients MP 6 3 9 No MP 5 4 9 Methylprednisolone did not reduce the incidence of perioperative myocardial injury during CABG.
Free plasma estrogens in the channel catfish.

SummaryIsolation of free plasma estrogens from blood and ovaries of the Channel Catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, led to identification of 16-ketoestradiol, estriol, epiestriol, estrone, estradiol-17α and estradiol-17β. It was found that as the ovary increases in weight at 1–3 weeks before spawning, there is a gradual increase for all free plasma estrogens. In order of their increasing concentration, in μg/100 ml of plasma, the free plasma estrogens were found to be: estradiol-17α, estrone, estradiol-17β, epiestriol, estriol and 16-ketoestradiol.
Hemorrhoidal bleeding following transrectal prostatic biopsy. Etiology and management.

Three cases of rectal bleeding within a series of 120 transrectal prostatic biopsies are reported. The precipitating factor was the presence of hemorrhoids which were unsuspected prior to prostatic biopsy. Rectal bleeding in these patients was arrested by ballon tamponade with a 24 French Foley catheter.In situ monitoring of the rectal Foley catheter was discontinued when no further rectal bleeding was ascertained. There were no complications due to this simple, safe, and effective technique. When hemorrhoids are suspected, preliminary proctoscopy aids and alerts surgeons to choose alternative routes to the prostatic bed.
Flight Testing with Senior Design Students - Invited

Students arriving in Senior Design, being new to design and flight testing, are not accustomed to looking at what can go wrong. Although going thru design and construction, they experience many problems or failures, they remain optimistic. The System Level Airworthiness Tool forces them to address the failure modes. This has reduced the number of iterations while determining their Test Hazard Analysis.
Population and Sample Selection Effects in Measuring International Income Inequality

The issue of world income inequality has been debated widely in the literature. At issue is whether inequality has, on the whole, been increasing or decreasing over time. I reexamine results from Firebaughs (1999) seminal article on demographic e?ects on inequality, in which he found a 30-year plateau of world income inequality when countries are weighted based on their populations. In contrast, I show that the increasing integration of market economies over the past decades has been re?ected in dramatically increasing international inequality. Inequality as currently measured, however, may bear little resemblance to a naive under-standing of the term. I conclude with some preliminary ?gures from an alternate characterization of convergence and divergence, based on world-systems categories.
Trends in Acute Ischemic Stroke Hospitalizations in the United States

Background Population‐based studies have revealed declining acute ischemic stroke (AIS) hospitalization rates in the United States, but no study has assessed recent temporal trends in race/ethnic‐, age‐, and sex‐specific AIS hospitalization rates. Methods and Results Temporal trends in hospitalization for AIS from 2000 to 2010 were assessed among adults ≥25 years using the Nationwide Inpatient Sample. Age‐, sex‐, and race/ethnic‐specific and age‐adjusted stroke hospitalization rates were calculated using the weighted number of hospitalizations and US census data. From 2000 to 2010, age‐adjusted stroke hospitalization rates decreased from 250 to 204 per 100 000 (overall rate reduction 18.4%). Age‐specific AIS hospitalization rates decreased for individuals aged 65 to 84 years (846 to 605 per 100 000) and ≥85 years (2077 to 1618 per 100 000), but increased for individuals aged 25 to 44 years (16 to 23 per 100 000) and 45 to 64 years (149 to 156 per 100 000). Blacks had the highest age‐adjusted yearly hospitalization rates, followed by Hispanics and whites (358, 170, and 155 per 100 000 in 2010). Age‐adjusted AIS hospitalization rates increased for blacks but decreased for Hispanics and whites. Age‐adjusted AIS hospitalization rates were lower in women and declined more steeply compared to men (272 to 212 per 100 000 in women versus 298 to 245 per 100 000 in men). Conclusions Although overall stroke hospitalizations declined in the United States, the reduction was more pronounced among older individuals, women, Hispanics, and whites. Renewed efforts at targeting risk factor control among vulnerable individuals may be warranted.
Numerical Investigations of Fan-in-Wing Aerodynamic Performance with Active Flow Control

Aerodynamic performance of a fan-in-wing configuration in hover is numerically investigated using a high-fidelity three-dimensional unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes flow solver based on uns...