cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Comparison of glycerol and a zwitter ion buffer system as cryoprotective media for human spermatozoa. Effect on motility, penetration of zona-free hamster oocytes, and acrosin/proacrosin

This study compared the cryoprotective effect of glycerol with that of a zwitter ion buffer system (TESTCY). Spermatozoa that are cryopreserved in the presence of glycerol possess a somewhat higher progressive motility immediately after thawing than those preserved in the presence of TESTCY. However, after a 1-hour incubation in glycerol-free medium, the progressive motilities of the glycerol- and TESTCY-treated spermatozoa become essentially identical. After 2 hours in culture medium, TESTCY-treated spermatozoa possess a higher motility than glycerol-treated spermatozoa, indicating that TESTCY is a better preservative than glycerol for the long-term motility of human spermatozoa. The fertilizing potential of the cryopreserved spermatozoa was assessed by their ability to penetrate zona-free hamster oocytes in vitro. Spermatozoa that are cryopreserved in the presence of TESTCY produce three- to four-fold higher penetration rates than glycerol-treated, cryopreserved spermatozoa. Cryopreservation in the presence of TESTCY also results in a higher stability of the acrosin/proacrosin system than when the spermatozoa are preserved in glycerol, since about two- to three-fold higher levels of proacrosin are retained. These results indicate that TESTCY is a better cryopreservative for human spermatozoa than glycerol.
Chapter 9 - Counting Problems in Moduli Space

Abstract In this series of lectures, we describe some counting problems in moduli space and outline their connection to the dynamics of the SL (2, ℝ) action on moduli space. Much of this is presented in analogy with the space of lattices SL ( n , ℝ)/ SL ( n , ℤ).
Bolus effects on patient awareness of swallowing difficulty and swallow physiology after chemoradiation for head and neck cancer.

Background Patients treated for head and neck cancer frequently develop dysphagia. Bolus characteristics are altered during fluoroscopic swallowing studies to observe the impact on swallowing function. The purpose of this study was to determine bolus volume and consistency effects on oropharyngeal swallowing physiology and patient awareness of swallowing difficulty. Methods Twenty-one patients with head and neck cancer were assessed pre-chemoradiation and post-chemoradiation. The Modified Barium Swallow Study (MBSS) was utilized to examine swallow physiology. Each patient provided perceptual ratings of swallowing difficulty after each swallow of varying bolus types. Results Oral transit times were significantly longer with pudding boluses. There were trends for higher residue percentages as well as perceptual ratings for pudding and cookie boluses. One correlation between perceptual ratings and physiology was significant. Conclusion Patient awareness of swallowing difficulty and aspects of swallowing physiology vary with bolus consistency. Patient awareness does not correlate with observed changes in swallowing physiology. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck 37: 1122–1129, 2015
The asiatic clam, Corbicula fluminea (Müller), in the tidal Potomac River, Maryland

The Asiatic clam,Corbicula fluminea (Muller), has extended its range to include the tidal fresh-water portion of the Potomac River, Maryland. Though patchily distributed, the clams have attained densities of 665 m−2. Size-class distributions indicate that the clams first appeared in 1975. About 90% of the population belong to year-class I and were less than 12 mm in length. Elsewhere, this species has created severe water quality problems; it should be closely watched in the Potomac.
God, Sport Philosophy, Kinesiology: A MacIntyrean Examination

Sport philosophy is in crisis. This subdiscipline of kinesiology garners little to no respect and few tenure track lines in kinesiology departments. Why is this the case? Why isn’t philosophy held in greater esteem? Is it possible that philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre’s (2009) diagnosis found in “God, Philosophy, Universities” could actually be fruitfully applied to kinesiology? MacIntyre argued that philosophy’s fall from grace parallels the decline of theology in universities. This is the case for two simple reasons. First, philosophy was traditionally charged with giving an account of how the different disciplines fit together on the presumption that an orderly account of the universe could be given. However, the imperative for, as well the intelligibility of, such an account is hard to defend absent God. Second, without God, it becomes very difficult to argue that the philosophic enterprise is fundamentally human. Instead, philosophy becomes an esoteric enterprise meant for specialists. If this is right...
Lack of association between resident doctors' well-being and medical knowledge.

OBJECTIVES Resident doctors' (residents) well-being impacts on the medical care they provide. Despite the high prevalence of resident doctors' distress, the relationship between their well-being and the specific competencies defined by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education is poorly understood. We evaluated the association of resident well-being with medical knowledge as assessed on both a standardised test of general medical knowledge and at the end of web-based courses on a series of focused topics. METHODS We conducted a repeated cross-sectional study of associations between well-being and medical knowledge scores over time for internal medicine residents from July 2004 to June 2007. Well-being measures included linear analogue self-assessment (LASA) scales measuring quality of life (including overall quality of life, mental, physical and emotional well-being, and fatigue), the Medical Outcome Study Eight-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-8) assessment of mental and physical well-being, the Maslach Burnout Inventory and the PRIME-MD two-item depression screen. We also measured empathy using the perspective taking and empathic concern subscales of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index. Medical knowledge measures included scores on web-based learning module post-tests and scores on the national Internal Medicine In-Training Examination (IM-ITE). As data for each association were available for at least 126 residents, this study was powered to detect a small-to-moderate effect size of 0.3 standard deviations. RESULTS No statistically significant associations were observed between well-being and either web-based learning module post-test score or IM-ITE score. Parameter estimates of the association of well-being variables with knowledge scores were uniformly small. For all well-being metrics, meaningful differences were associated with knowledge score difference estimates of < 1 percentage point. CONCLUSIONS Resident well-being appears to have limited association with competence in medical knowledge as assessed following web-based courses on specific topics or using standardised general medical examinations.
Decomposition and recognition of a multi-channel audio source using matching pursuit algorithm

Performing real time note detection of multiple audio sources is a difficult task due to the complex nature of audio signals. Typically notes are close in pitch and the harmonic overtones of each note are strongly interlaced, thus preventing standard filtering techniques. In this paper, we develop signal-optimized harmonic atom matching pursuit algorithm, which will be used to decompose an audio signal in terms of elementary waveforms called harmonic atoms. Matching pursuit is an iterative algorithm that correlates the signal against a dictionary set of Gabor atoms and searches for the atoms that exhibit the highest level of correlation. The resulting matched atoms allow for accurate and efficient detection of a single note or multiple notes played simultaneously. In this paper prior knowledge of the signal is used to calculate a parameter set to avoid a costly research over the complete dictionary. The parameter set defined for our proposed algorithm includes time-location, decay rate, frequency, scale and phase, which are calculated at the onset of each note played. The onset (transient) is detected by using a fourth order digital difference then an appropriate interval and optimal window atom is selected. This optimized algorithm is demonstrated through synthesized analysis example. The application of this algorithm in multi-source audio signal can also be demonstrated.
Did decimalization hurt institutional investors

Abstract We examine institutional trading costs around the move to penny size ticks in 2001 (i.e., decimalization). We find that overall trading costs declined, with improvements in most partitions across order size, firm size, and manager style. Improvements were most pronounced for orders that were executed over multiple days and for stocks where the minimum tick sizes were likely to have been binding. However, costs did increase for orders executed within a single day. The improvements we document contrast with changes accompanying the reduction of minimum ticks to sixteenths in 1997 though, in both cases, results suggest that more patient traders fare relatively better than those that demand immediacy.
Night-time respiration rate and leaf carbohydrate concentrations are not coupled in two alpine perennial species

Summary • The relationship between night-time respiration rate and carbohydrate supply are measured in two alpine perennials, Bistorta bistortoides and Campanula rotundifolia. • Natural populations of B. bistortoides and C. rotundifolia were subjected to high and low light treatments. During the following night, respiration rate and carbohydrate content of leaves were measured. • At the beginning of the dark period, leaf carbohydrate concentrations were significantly lower in plants exposed to lower irradiance on the previous day. The night-time respiration rate in leaves of both species was rarely affected by the previous days’ irradiance; over the course of the night, respiration rate remained unchanged in C. rotundifolia and decreased, but not consistently, in B. bistortoides. No significant interaction was found between irradiance and the night-time pattern of carbohydrate concentration or respiration rate. Nocturnal carbohydrate export was positively correlated with the previous days’ irradiance in leaves of C. rotundifolia only. • Leaf respiration rate is uncoupled from carbohydrate supply in leaves of B. bistortoides and C. rotundifolia, possibly allowing more carbohydrate to be exported to underground storage organs.
Detection of Lexical and Morphological Anomalies by Children with and without Language Impairment.

Purpose The abilities of 5-year-old children with and without language impairment (LI) to detect anomalies involving lexical items and grammatical morphemes in stories were compared. The influence ...
Work in progress: Choose your own homework

We are developing online interactive materials that allow students to adapt their text and homework to their own needs and interests. For example, students may specify topic areas of interest and then selected mathematics homework word problems are adapted to those areas. Using proper data management, their work can be hand-graded with feedback for the students and allowances for students to correct and resubmit their work after initial feedback in less time than is taken in grading traditional assignments. Such tools can support individualizing instruction even in large lecture classes.
Inferring cognition from action: Does martyrdom imply its motive?

Drawing inferences about the decision utilities of suicide terrorists from their final action is tempting, but hazardous. Direct elicitation of those utilities would be more informative, but is infeasible. Substituting examination of archival materials for elicitation makes the assumption that leaders and bombers have similar utilities. Insight regarding the beliefs of terrorist leaders might be available from observations of recruitment strategies. Language: en
Ab Initio Study of Adsorption and Decomposition of NH3 on Si(100)-(2×1)

We investigate the mechanism of NH3 adsorption and initial decomposition on the (2×1) reconstructed Si(100) surface using B3LYP density functional theory. The Si(100)-(2×1) surface is described using cluster approximation. Ammonia is found to adsorb on the “down” atom of the buckled silicon dimer with no activation barrier. We also find that only half of the surface silicon atoms are active sites for ammonia adsorption. Ammonia adsorption on the Si(100)-(2×1) is exothermic with an adsorption energy of 29 kcal/mol. Dissociation of the adsorbed ammonia to form NH2(a) and H(a) proceeds with a low activation energy of 5 kcal/mol below the NH3(g) and bare Si(100)-(2×1) energy. Our calculated recombination desorption energy of 51 kcal/mol is found to be in good agreement with the temperature-programmed desorption experimental result of 47 kcal/mol. Additionally, our calculated vibrational spectra of NH2(a) and H(a) agree within 2% of the experimental high-resolution electron energy loss spectra.
Source apportionment modeling of volatile organic compounds in streams

It often is of interest to understand the relative importance of the different sources contributing to the concentration c(w) of a contaminant in a stream; the portions related to sources 1, 2, 3, etc. are denoted c(w,1), c(w2), c(w3), etc. Like c(w), the fractions alpha1 = c(w,1)/c(w), alpha2 = c(w,2)/c(w), alpha3 = c(w,3)/c(w), etc. depend on location and time. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can undergo absorption from the atmosphere into stream water or loss from stream water to the atmosphere, causing complexities affecting the source apportionment (SA) of VOCs in streams. Two SA rules are elaborated. Rule 1: VOC entering a stream across the air/water interface exclusively is assigned to the atmospheric portion of c(w). Rule 2: VOC loss by volatilization, flow loss to groundwater, in-stream degradation, etc. is distributed over c(w,1), c(w,2), c(w3), etc. in proportion to their corresponding alpha values. How the two SA rules are applied, as well as the nature of the SA output for a given case, will depend on whether transport across the air/water interface is handled using the net flux F convention or using the individual fluxes J convention. Four hypothetical stream cases involving acetone, methyl-tert-butyl ether (MTBE), benzene, chloroform, and perchloroethylene (PCE) are considered. Acetone and MTBE are sufficiently water soluble from air for a domestic atmospheric source to be capable of yielding c(w) values approaching the common water quality guideline range of 1 to 10 microg/L. For most other VOCs, such levels cause net outgassing (F > 0). When F > 0 in a given section of stream, in the net flux convention, all of the alpha(j) for the compound remain unchanged over that section while c(w) decreases. A characteristic time tau(d) can be calculated to predict when there will be differences between SA results obtained by the net flux convention versus the individual fluxes convention. Source apportionment modeling provides the framework necessary for comparing different strategies for mitigating contamination at points of interest along a stream.
Cytoarchitectonic appearance of the isolated hypothalamus of the cat.

Neuronal changes in the hypothalamus were studied in 24 cats following extensive forebrain ablations, usually accompanied by mesencephalic transaction. Postoperative survival periods ranged from 13 to 283 days. In the intact but isolated hypothalamus, severe degeneration was observed in the mamillary nuclei and nucleus of the diagonal band of Broca. Degenerative changes also occurred in portions of the lateral and posterior hypothalamic areas and the area of tuber cinereum. There was a suggestion of cell loss in the suprachiasmatic and infundibular nuclei. Cell loss and atrophy were seen also in subthalamic and entopeduncular nuclei and in globus pallidus. It was possible to correlate degenerative changes in some cells groups with removal of particular regions of the brain. When entire regions of the hypothalamus itself were also removed, little additional degeneration was seen until the ablation included all but a narrow rim of hypothalamic tissue dorsal and caudal to the optic chiasm. The lateral hypothalamic area is proposed as the main site of interconnections between medial hypothalamic cell groups and extrahypothalamic structures. The mamillary nuclei alone appear to be dependent upon extrahypothalamic connections. The possible significance of extensive connections between medial hypothalamic cell groups and the neurohypophysis is discussed as well as the possible role of hormones in the maintenance of hypothalamic neuron.
Abdominal visceral findings in patients with Marfan syndrome.

Purpose: Marfan syndrome is an autosomal dominant disorder historically defined by well-characterized features in the cardiovascular, ocular, and skeletal systems. To date, there have been no reports concerning abdominal visceral findings in this disorder. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of abdominal visceral findings in patients with Marfan syndrome. Methods: Computed tomography or magnetic resonance studies of 69 patients with Marfan syndrome and an age- and sex-matched cohort of control subjects were reviewed. The presence of abdominal visceral findings was noted. Chi-square and Student t tests were used to determine significance of differences between the patient and control groups. This retrospective study was approved by the local institutional review board and determined to be exempt from Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act reporting requirements. Results: Renal cysts were present in 41 Marfan patients (59.4%) versus 21 control subjects (30.4%), P = 0.001. The average number of renal cysts was greater in Marfan patients than controls (2.4 vs. 0.9, P = 0.005). Hepatic cysts were present in 24 Marfan patients (34.8%) versus 12 control patients (17.3%), P = 0.02. The average number of hepatic cysts was also greater in Marfan patients than controls (0.9 vs. 0.3, P = 0.027). Cholelithiasis was present in 12 Marfan patients (18.1%) versus one control patient (1.5%), P < 0.001. Conclusions: Marfan syndrome patients have liver and renal cysts more often, in increased number, and at an earlier age than controls, in addition to an increased prevalence of cholelithiasis. Further study will be needed to relate these findings to recent developments concerning the underlying molecular genetics of this disorder.
The influence of morphological regularities on the dynamics of a connectionist network.

The effects of morphological regularities on the behavior of connectionist networks were studied by training identical networks on orthographic-semantic mappings that either contained such regularities or did not. Morphological regularities had a substantial impact on both the amount of training needed to learn a mapping and the number of words that could be included in the training set. A variety of analyses demonstrated how morphological regularities structure the organization and componentiality of a network's internal representations.
ADP is not Involved in Thrombin-induced Aggregation of Thrombocytes of a Non-mammalian Vertebrate

PLATELETS are aggregated in vivo and in vitro by ADP1,2. Several agents such as thrombin, collagen and certain fatty acids cause aggregation by releasing ADP3. We reported that ADP, 5-hydroxytryptamine and adrenaline do not bring about aggregation of nucleated thrombocytes of chicken (Gallus domesticus), turtle (Pseudemys scripta elegans), alligator (Alligator mississippensis) and smooth dogfish (Mustelus canis), whereas thrombin does4,5. Thrombin seems to aggregate platelets by releasing ADP, and so we wondered whether ADP has any role in the aggregation of turtle thrombocytes by thrombin. We were also interested in the ability of thrombin and collagen to cause release of adenine nucleotides from thrombocytes.
The pragmatic role of codeswitching in play contexts

Some of the theory and research on bilingualism and bilingual development have assumed the monolingual user as the norm. Recent development on the notion of multicompetence has questioned the validity of the monolingual norm, suggesting instead that multiple language users are uniquely distinct from monolinguals. In this study we describe one child’ s (Elena) varied uses of two languages, English and German, as she interacts with her adult caregivers during play. We used two broad questions to guide the study: What kinds of play activity are Elena and her adult interlocutors involved in? How does Elena use her two languages to constitute her involvement in play? The findings revealed that Elena took part in three different play activities (shared-role; adult as leader; and child as leader) which provided her opportunities to use different language functions to realize similar kinds of play. There were subtle differences in her language use during play in both English and German play events, which suggest that through her interactions with different interlocutors in play she was learning and rehearsing different communicative skills in both languages. The findings suggest that involvement in play activities with adult caregivers can result in the development of pragmatically differentiated bilinguals both in terms of code use and language functions.
Liquid-crystal-based optical time-delay control system for wideband phased arrays

We introduce a novel, time delay-based, transmit-receive mode, remotely located, optical control system for wide instantaneous bandwidth phased arrays. Time delays are achieved using a cascade of free-space and fiber-based optical delay lines using bulk imaging optics for low complexity, two dimensional, free-space optical interconnects. High channel isolation, low insertion loss optical switching between delayed and undelayed paths is based on polarization switching using the low cost nematic liquid crystal arrays and polarizing beam splitters. The system allows for noise reduction via spatial and polarization filtering. A dual- channel time-multiplexed system arrangement is used to implement the fast (e.g., 200 beams/s) radar scan rates using the several millisecond response time nematic liquid crystals.
Bladder exstrophy in the newborn: a snapshot of contemporary practice patterns.

Abstract Objectives To use a large nationwide database to investigate and describe practice patterns in the contemporary management of bladder exstrophy. Methods The Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Nationwide Inpatient Sample (1988 to 2000) was queried to identify infants with bladder exstrophy hospitalized during the first week after birth. Admission and disposition patterns, resource utilization and length of stay, surgical repair trends, and factors associated with in-hospital death were analyzed. Results We identified 426 hospital admissions of newborns with exstrophy. Most patients (75%) were transferred in from, or out to, other facilities; this was a fundamental feature of early exstrophy care. Racial differences were evident, with Hispanics less likely to be transferred (19% versus 60%, P = 0.001). Among newborns who were not transferred, many (46%) were discharged without bladder surgery. Surgical repair was usually done in a hospital other than the birth hospital; the mean hospital charges for surgery were $75,742. Of the 5 patients who died after repair, all had undergone surgery at “low-volume” hospitals. The length of stay did not change significantly during the study period, helping to keep resource utilization high in this population. Conclusions The results of this study provide a “snapshot” of bladder exstrophy practice patterns during the newborn period between 1988 and 2000. Additional research should investigate whether newborns with exstrophy are receiving optimal care, including appropriate timing of surgery, equitable transfers to tertiary centers, and reconstruction at centers with adequate volume and experience.
Surgery for subvalvar aortic stenosis

Abstract In children, subaortic stenosis can be discrete or diffuse and often occurs with other significant cardiovascular lesions. Surgical management of this condition is associated with varying complexities and risks according to the types of associated defects. This review presents general and specific principles of surgical management of subaortic stenosis.
Sex specific impact of perinatal bisphenol A (BPA) exposure over a range of orally administered doses on rat hypothalamic sexual differentiation

Abstract Bisphenol A (BPA) is a high volume production chemical used in polycarbonate plastics, epoxy resins, thermal paper receipts, and other household products. The neural effects of early life BPA exposure, particularly to low doses administered orally, remain unclear. Thus, to better characterize the dose range over which BPA alters sex specific neuroanatomy, we examined the impact of perinatal BPA exposure on two sexually dimorphic regions in the anterior hypothalamus, the sexually dimorphic nucleus of the preoptic area (SDN-POA) and the anterioventral periventricular (AVPV) nucleus. Both are sexually differentiated by estradiol and play a role in sex specific reproductive physiology and behavior. Long Evans rats were prenatally exposed to 10, 100, 1000, 10,000 μg/kg bw/day BPA through daily, non-invasive oral administration of dosed-cookies to the dams. Offspring were reared to adulthood. Their brains were collected and immunolabeled for tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) in the AVPV and calbindin (CALB) in the SDN-POA. We observed decreased TH-ir cell numbers in the female AVPV across all exposure groups, an effect indicative of masculinization. In males, AVPV TH-ir cell numbers were significantly reduced in only the BPA 10 and BPA 10,000 groups. SDN-POA endpoints were unaltered in females but in males SDN-POA volume was significantly lower in all BPA exposure groups. CALB-ir was significantly lower in all but the BPA 1000 group. These effects are consistent with demasculinization. Collectively these data demonstrate that early life oral exposure to BPA at levels well below the current No Observed Adverse Effect Level (NOAEL) of 50 mg/kg/day can alter sex specific hypothalamic morphology in the rat.
Composite hydrophone devices coupling piezoelectricity and tensegrity

The concept of tensegrity as conceived by Buckminster Fuller has been incorporated into a passive hydrophone device. Tensegrity is described as the physical phenomenon that produces a stable geometric structure using solid compressional elements arranged in tandem with flexible tensional cables. In the devices built by the authors, six PZT 5H™ bars acting as compressional elements in the tensegrity structure have been coupled with tensional bands of either polyaramid or carbon fiber. This stable system is then wrapped with an outer layer of either polyaramid or carbon fiber and rubber film to form a sealed device, which is referred to as a piezotensegritive device in this paper. The six bars are arranged in parallel electrical connectivity for all devices described. The resonant frequency for these devices ranged from 19.5 to 20.3 kHz depending on the material used for wrapping the piezoelectric bars. These devices were also tested in a hydrostatic environment to determine the relevant piezoelectric coefficients. For devices wrapped with carbon fiber, dh peaked at ∼6000 pC/N and gh at ∼275 mVm/N. For devices wrapped with polyaramid, dh peaked at ∼2000pC/N and gh at ∼100mVm/N. Sensitivities from –182–195 db ref. 1V/µPa were calculated for these devices.
EGF induces efficient Cx43 gap junction endocytosis in mouse embryonic stem cell colonies via phosphorylation of Ser262, Ser279/282, and Ser368.

Gap junctions (GJs) traverse apposing membranes of neighboring cells to mediate intercellular communication by passive diffusion of signaling molecules. We have shown previously that cells endocytose GJs utilizing the clathrin machinery. Endocytosis generates cytoplasmic double-membrane vesicles termed annular gap junctions or connexosomes. However, the signaling pathways and protein modifications that trigger GJ endocytosis are largely unknown. Treating mouse embryonic stem cell colonies – endogenously expressing the GJ protein connexin43 (Cx43) – with epidermal growth factor (EGF) inhibited intercellular communication by 64% and activated both, MAPK and PKC signaling cascades to phosphorylate Cx43 on serines 262, 279/282, and 368. Upon EGF treatment Cx43 phosphorylation transiently increased up to 4-fold and induced efficient (66.4%) GJ endocytosis as evidenced by a 5.9-fold increase in Cx43/clathrin co-precipitation.
FAIR excluding radiation damping (FAIRER)

It is shown that the flow-sensitive alternating inversion recovery (FAIR) technique is complicated by the effect of radiation damping, leading to problems in calibrating this method on phantoms and to inaccuracies in measured flows. A modified scheme called FAIRER (FAIR excluding radiation damping) is proposed, which suppresses the damping effects by employing very weak magnetic field gradients (0.06 G/cm) during the inversion recovery, spin-echo, and predelay periods. Results on phantoms and in vivo on cat brain are presented that demonstrate that FAIRER effectively solves these problems.
Preoperative Chemotherapy (Cisplatin and Fluorouracil) and Radiation Therapy in Stage III Non-small Cell Lung Cancer: A Phase 2 Study of the LCSG

Study objective : To determine the feasibility, toxicity, and potential efficacy of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy before surgery in patients with non-small cell lung cancer limited to the chest. Design : Phase 2 pilot study. Setting : Multi-institutional, multimodality cooperative group. Patients : Eight-five patients with advanced stage III-A or minimal stage III-B non-small cell lung cancer in whom attempted resection would have been likely to leave residual disease. Intervention : Cisplatin, 75 mg/m 2 , was given on days 1 and 29; fluorouracil, 1 g/m 2 for 24 h, was given as a continuous infusion on days 1 to 4 and 29 to 32; thoracic radiation, 30 Gy in 15 fractions, was administered on days 1 to 19. Thoracotomy with tumor resection was planned for day 57. Measurements and results : Two patients achieved a complete and 46 achieved a partial response after the neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy for an overall response rate of 56%. Toxicity was moderate but acceptable. Fifty-four patients underwent thoracotomy and tumor resection was attempted in 44; 29 (34%) had complete and 15 (18%) had incomplete resections. There was no apparent increase in postoperative complications. In eight patients (9%), no viable tumor was detected pathologically in the resection specimen. Of the 18 patients whose tumors were completely resected and had disease recurrence, none had recurrence only in the chest, 15 (83%) had recurrence in distal sites, and 3 (17%) developed second primary tumors. Median survival of all patients was 13 months. Conclusions : This neoadjuvant regimen did not appear to provide major benefit in patients with advanced but potentially resectable non-small cell lung cancer. Further studies are needed to better define the relative roles of preoperative radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
Non-isotopic hybridization assays for bacterial DNA samples.

Abstract The background problem associated with the use of streptavidin in detecting biotin-labelled probes hybridized to DNA in crude bacterial extracts has been investigated. We have found that streptavidin binds specifically to a limited number of polypeptides which are difficult to remove by rapid extraction processes. Altering the hybridization and detection protocols results in a marked but not complete reduction of non-specific background in streptavidin-biotin assays. Complete elimination of non-specific background was achieved only when streptavidin was replaced with antibodies for the detection of biotinylated or sulphone-modified probes. The antibody-sulphone and streptavidin-biotin dot blot assays described here require 4·5 – 5 hours to perform and can detect DNA sequences in samples extracted from 2 × 10 7 cells or fewer.
Trends in Natural Resource Economics in JEEM 1974–1997: Breakpoint and Nonparametric Analysis☆

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to identify trends in natural resource economics as reflected in publications in JEEM over the period since its inception in 1974. A secondary purpose is to suggest an explanation for any patterns we observe in the data. The data base consists of all articles published during this period, classified by topic and method. We apply statistical techniques of increasing sophistication to determine the existence of trends, and interpret the results by appealing to what we characterize as forces of demand and supply.
Neurophysiological approach as a tool to study effects of drugs on the central nervous system: Dose-effect of ketamine

Abstract The effects of different doses of ketamine on acoustic evoked responses were studied in four brain sites in freely behaving rats. Permanent semimicroelectrodes (60 μm in diameter) were implanted stereotaxically under pentobarbital anesthesia within the inferior colliculus, the primary relay site for acoustic input; within the mesencephalic reticular formation; in the ventromedial hypothalamus; and within the somatosensory cortex. After recovery from surgery (6 to 8 days), the averaged acoustic field potentials following 32 repetitive stimuli were averaged to one trace. Four traces were recorded at 10-min intervals before and after each injection. Ten doses of ketamine were studied (1, 5, 10, 20, 40, 60, 80, 100, 120, and 140 mg/kg ip). The dose which induced surgical anesthesia was found to be 80 mg/kg ip. Differences in the number of cases in which ketamine induced changes in sensory field potentials were observed between structures. The evoked responses in the somatosensory cortex exhibited dose-dependent changes. The lower doses of ketamine below the anesthetic dose (80 mg/kg) induced depression of the responses, whereas higher doses (100 to 140 mg/kg) induced increases in the response amplitudes, shifted the amplitude to the right (long latency), and prolonged the duration of the responses. However, the responses in the sensory relay nuclei were affected by the initial dose of 1 mg/kg and remained about constant following the remaining doses. The reticular formation and ventromedial hypothalamus were affected differently by ketamine. There was demonstrated the possibility that acoustic evoked responses from the somatosensory cortex can be used as an indication of the level of ketamine anesthesia.
Conflict on city councils in Wisconsin

: Community conflict has been the domain of social science researchers for decades. However, the systematic study of conflict on city councils has received scant attention in this literature. In this study the authors explore the extent to which conflict is present on city councils in Wisconsin communities with populations greater than 10,000. By using the literature on non-profit and local government boards, the authors develop a set of hypotheses for testing in the analysis of the survey data. The multivariate model used in the analysis reveals certain demographic characteristics of council members, community characteristics, and board practices and behaviors explain a significant amount of the variance in city council conflict in Wisconsin local governments.
Parton energy loss in strongly coupled AdS/CFT

Abstract This is a brief review of the theory and phenomenology of parton energy loss in strongly coupled field theories with a gravity dual and its comparison with parton energy loss in QCD at weak coupling.
Linguistic Studies Presented to John L. Finlay

Linguistic Studies Presented to John L. Finlay. H. C. Wolfart. ed. Algonquian and Iroquoian Linguistics, Memoir 8. Winnipeg: University of Manitoba, 1991. 190 pp. $24.00 (paper)
Measuring the Gas Constant R: Propagation of Uncertainty and Statistics

Determining the gas constant R by measuring the properties of hydrogen gas collected in a gas buret is well suited for comparing two approaches to uncertainty analysis using a single data set. The brevity of the experiment permits multiple determinations, allowing for statistical evaluation of the standard uncertainty uR within a laboratory period, while calculating R from the several measured quantities (pressure, volume, etc.) invokes a number of different methods of estimating the individual uncertainties involved in the calculation of the combined standard uncertainty uc(R). The two uncertainties, as obtained by several classes of upper-level college students, are typically within a factor of two or three. In the course of the data analysis, students interpret a q-q plot, identify outliers using Dixon’s test, and apply the F test to the ratio of the two variances. Thus, the experiment gives students experience with a variety of methods for evaluating data they have gathered themselves. The Supporting ...
Preference Inconsistency in Multidisciplinary Design Decision Making

Research from behavioral psychology and experimental economics asserts that individuals construct preferences on a case-by-case basis when called to make a decision. A common, implicit assumption in engineering design is that user preferences exist a priori. Thus, preference elicitation methods used in design decision making can lead to preference inconsistencies across elicitation scenarios. This paper offers a framework for understanding preference inconsistencies, within and across individual users. We give examples of three components of this new framework: comparative, internal, and external inconsistencies across users. The examples demonstrate the impact of inconsistent preference construction on common engineering and marketing design methods, including discrete choice analysis, modeling stated vs. revealed preferences, and the Kano method and thus QFD. Exploring and explaining preference inconsistencies produces new understandings of the relationship between user and product.Copyright © 2007 by ASME
The efficient generation of coherent radiation continuously tunable from 2500 Å to 3250 Å

Abstract The generation of continuously tunable UV radiation in the wavelength range 2500–3250 A by frequency doubling the output of a nitrogen pumped dye laser is described. An ADP crystal 25 mm long yields 11% conversion to the UV at a fundamental dye laser power of 60 kW. The parameters affecting the conversion efficiency are discussed.
In-Hospital Nocturnal Penile Tumescence (NPT) Monitoring and Penile-Rigidity Determination in the Differential Diagnosis of Erectile Dysfunction

Penile erections occurring consistently during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep have been documented in healthy males between 3 and 79 but probably occur throughout life. Two mercury-filled strain-gauges on the proximal and distal shaft of the penis accurately detect changes in penile circumference. These changes, recorded in a sleep laboratory concomitantly with other physiological parameters, allow evaluation of the stage and normality of sleep. During an episode of maximum tumescence, penile rigidity was evaluated in 62 subjects by a rigidometer. To date, our findings indicate that penile rigidity of less than 100 mm Hg predicts insufficient firmness for vaginal penetration.Nocturnal penile tumescence (NPT) monitoring is the most objective way to differentially diagnose erectile dysfunction. When solely psychogenic in etiology, NPT and penile rigidity are normal for age; when organic, one or both parameters is decreased.
A local finite element implementation for imposing periodic boundary conditions on composite micromechanical models

Recent advances in computational speed have resulted in the ability to model composite materials using larger representative volume elements (RVEs) with greater numbers of inclusions than have been previously studied. Imposing periodic boundary conditions on very large RVEs can mean enforcing thousands of constraint equations. In addition, a periodic mesh is essential for enforcing the constraints. The present study investigates a method that uses a local implementation of the constraints that does not adversely affect the computational speed. The present study demonstrates the method for two-dimensional triangular and square RVEs of periodically-spaced regular hexagonal and square arrays of composite material containing fibers of equal radii. To impose the boundary conditions along the edges, this study utilizes a cubic interpolant to model the displacement field along the matrix edges and a linear interpolant to model the field along the fiber edges. It is shown that the method eliminates the need for the conventional node-coupling scheme for imposing periodic boundary conditions, consequently reducing the number of unknowns to the interior degrees of freedom of the RVE along with a small number of global parameters. The method is demonstrated for periodic and non-periodic mesh designs.
Nonlinear fluorescence modulation of an organic dye for optical data storage

Most approaches to high-capacity 3D optical data storage (ODS) require confinement of the writing action to a specified depth in the writing medium. This is achieved by a nonlinear photoresponse, usually two-photon absorption, which requires a pulsed long-wavelength source. Fluorescence photobleaching of a dye/polymer composite can be used at a short wavelength to store data at the diffraction limit in a layered storage medium. In this work, the writing response of a bleachable dye/polymer system illuminated with single pulses of various duration obtained from a modulated 405 nm wavelength CW laser was studied. A transition from a linear to nonlinear writing mechanism was observed near the microsecond time scale. Concentration-dependent measurements indicate that a photothermal mechanism accounts for the nonlinear response in the short pulse, higher power regime. This nonlinear response may be useful for realizing terabyte scale ODS in multilayered polymer media.
The price of success? Security-oriented cultures and high reliability organizations

A review of culture studies in high reliability organizations demonstrates the predominance of a highly controlling security-oriented culture in such diverse organizations as the Federal Aviation Administration, Naval Air Squadrons and aircraft carrier deck operations. The organizations share behavioral norms supporting hierarchical referral of decisions and avoidance of conflict. Such norms tend to be behavior-inhibiting and are associated with member dissat isfaction and role conflict. Little evidence is indicated for use of operator dis cretion and problem solving despite repeated calls for more decentralization in high reliability organizations during crises. High reliability organizations need to learn to manage the transition between the centralization and control appro priate for standard operating conditions and the flexibility and discretion crises necessitate.
Corporate Research Ethics: Whose Responsibility?

The recent publication of a study conducted by Facebook, which manipulated the amount of positive or negative material that users saw in their Facebook newsfeeds, has provoked much critical comment...
Domestic violence: A comparative study of perceptions and attitudes toward domestic abuse cases among social service and criminal justice professionals

Addressing the diverse and interdisciplinary needs of victims and abusers of acts of domestic violence requires efforts of collaboration on the part of both social service and justice professions. Yet information on the extent to which practitioners in various professions share common perceptions and attitudes toward victims and perpetrators of domestic violence is somewhat limited. This article evaluates the extent to which professionals from six social service and criminal justice agencies share similar attitudes and perceptions relative to the definitions of various acts of domestic violence, the best method for handling domestic violence, the criminalization of domestic violence, the endorsement of treatment of domestic violence, and the most helpful agencies in responding to cases of domestic violence.
Phosphorus removal in the activated sludge process

Abstract The results from this research suggest that both calcium phosphate precipitation and enhanced biological uptake play a role in phosphorus removal in the activated sludge process when a non-nitrifying, anaerobic-aerobic system is used to treat a low calcium wastewater. The primary removal mechanism was found to be biological uptake, as calcium phosphate precipitation accounted for only 15–27% of the total phosphorus removed. Calcium phosphate precipitation in the aerobic unit was enhanced because of the pH increase in that reactor. This was the result of low CO2 production (indicated by low specific oxygen uptake values) and intense aeration which caused excessive CO2 stripping in the aerobic unit
Histological assessment of cellular immune response to the phytohemagglutinin skin test in Brazilian free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiliensis)

Bats are known reservoirs for numerous emerging infectious diseases, occupy unique ecological niches, and occur globally except for Antarctica. Given their impact on human and agricultural health, it is critical to understand the mechanisms underlying immunocompetence in this reservoir host. To date, few studies have examined immune function in the Order Chiroptera, particularly among natural colonies of bats. The phytohemagglutinin (PHA) skin test has been widely used to measure delayed-type cellular immune response in a wide variety of vertebrates, and has been routinely employed in immunoecological studies. Although this test is frequently described as a measure of T cell proliferation, recent studies indicate it may represent a combination of immune responses. In mammals, the immune response is differentially, temporally and spatially regulated, therefore, we characterized the infiltrating leukocyte response to the PHA skin test in bats by examining a time-series of histological sections from PHA and saline injection areas in 41 Brazilian free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiliensis). Results suggest that bats exhibit diverse leukocyte traffic within 6 h, and up to 24 h following subcutaneous PHA injection. There was a significant presence of lymphocytes and neutrophils, as well as eosinophils, basophils, and macrophages observed in the PHA-injected tissues, compared with saline-injected control tissues. We observed a highly significant negative correlation between the number of lymphocytes and neutrophils in PHA-injected tissue, with peak lymphocyte response at 12 h, and peak neutrophil response at 24 h post-injection. These results indicate substantial variation in the immune response of individuals, and may aid our understanding of disease emergence in natural populations of bats.
Voter Turnout in City Elections

The author used a random sample of 57 cities with populations between 25,000 and 1,000,000 to predict the impact of the form of government on voter turnout in city elections, controlling for socioe...