cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Biological activity of 19-nor, 10-keto, 25-hydroxyvitamin D3.

19 nor, 10 keto, 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (19/10–25OHD3) is a metabolite of 25-OHD3 produced in vitro by various phagocytes including normal human blood monocytes and transformed cell lines, U937 and HL-60. We recently reported that 19/10–25OHD3 induced differentiation of U937 cells. In these studies, 19/10–25OHD3 alone produced no detectable effect on the growth rates, surface adherence, and oxidative metabolism of U937 and HL-60 cells. When combined with lymphocyte-conditioned medium (LCM), 19/10–25OHD3 reduced proliferation, increased surface adherence and stimulated luminol-dependent luminescence (LDL) of the U937 cells. In contrast, the combination of 19/10–25OHD3 and LCM had no effect on the growth of HL-60 cells but did increase the surface adherence and the expression of a complement receptor component. 19/10–25OHD3 competed for tritium-labeled 1,25(OH)2D3 binding to receptors extracted from cultured human skin fibroblasts. This displacement capacity was 600 times weaker than that of unlabeled 1,25(OH)2D3. Incubation of human skin fibroblasts for 24 hr with 19/10–25OHD3 induced 25OHD3-24-hydroxylase activity in the fibroblasts. The inductive potency of 19/10–25OHD3 was 1/50 that of 1,25(OH)2D3. These results demonstrate bioactivity of 19/10–25OHD3 in several systems. At least one of these responses, the induction of 25OHD3-24-hydroxylase, is a receptor-mediated event. Some of the other responses may be independent of the cellular receptor for 1,25(OH)2D3. Interestingly, the potency of 19/10–25OHD3 was highest in the receptor-mediated response (1:50) and lower in the other parameters, ranging from 1: 100 to 1:600 compared to 1,25(OH)2D3. This range of bioactivity in phagocytes and fibroblasts is presently unexplained.
Selling an asset to a competitor

A seller decides whether to allocate an item among two potential buyers. The seller and buyer 1 interact ex post in such a way that each of them suffers a negative externality if the other possesses the item. We show that the optimal allocation rule favors buyer 2, who does not interact ex post with the seller, and in particular bidder 1 may not obtain the good even if his valuation is highest. The auction is therefore subject to resale. When resale is possible, the seller must distort the original auction. We show that the mechanism depends crucially on the way resale is organized ex post. The seller may decide to always allocate the good to the agent with the highest valuation when rents are fully extracted by an intermediary on the resale market. However, she may resort to a stochastic mechanism when the winner of the primary auction has full bargaining power in the resale stage.
Effects of testosterone on use of space by male dark-eyed juncos when their mates are fertile

Testosterone is an important determinant of spatial activity in male birds. Using radio- telemetry, male dark-eyed juncos, Junco hyemalis, were followed during the period when their mates were fertile to investigate the relationship between testosterone and behaviours (territoriality, consort- ing with female) through which males might guard paternity. Males with experimentally elevated testosterone levels (T-males) and control males (C-males) did not diVer significantly in their use of space during this period. T-males and C-males occupied similar home ranges, used similar-sized core areas (areas enclosing 95% of all activity), spent similar amounts of time close to their mates, and experienced similar intrusion rates onto their territories. Experimentally elevating testosterone above control levels did not detectably aVect the spatial activity of male juncos during the female fertile period, although earlier studies have shown that its eVects are pronounced during other stages of the nesting cycle. ? 1997 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour
Estimation of material fluxes in an estuarine cross section: A critical analysis of spatial measurement density and errors1

Estuarine budget studies often suffer from uncertainties of net flux estimates in view of large temporal and spatial variabilities. Optimum spatial measurement density and material flux errors for a reasonably well mixed estuary were estimated by sampling 10 stations from surface to bottom simultaneously every hour for two tidal cycles in a 320-m-wide cross section in North Inlet, South Carolina. Discharge and ATP and NII,+-N fluxes were computed, The analysis method was to form a number of cases, each based on a different number and combination of stations and compare these fluxes to the ideal case using all 10 stations. A percentage error, y, (rms derivation of a given case from the ideal cast compared to the tidal prism) was <15% with only three lateral stations, each located to cover a separate bathymetric regime. In estuaries with dimensions similar to North Inlet, these results should prove useful in selecting an optimum (or minimum) number of required stations.
Bleeding Rate for Ultrasound‐Guided Paracentesis in Thrombocytopenic Patients

Objectives The purpose of this study was to determine the rate of major bleeding complications for ultrasound-guided paracentesis performed in thrombocytopenic patients. Methods We retrospectively reviewed the electronic medical records of patients with platelet counts of less than 50,000/μL who had ultrasound-guided paracenteses performed in the Department of Radiology without correcting preprocedural platelet transfusions between 2005 and 2011. Medical records were evaluated for evidence of major bleeding complications (grade 3 or higher as defined by the National Institutes of Health's Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events, version 4.03) and their clinical sequelae. Platelet count and bleeding complications were evaluated for an association, and a sensitivity analysis was performed to determine whether analysis of a control group of patients without thrombocytopenia would yield added confidence in this assessment. Results Among 304 procedures in 205 thrombocytopenic patients (69% male; mean age ± SD, 56.6 ± 11.9 years), the mean platelet count was 38,400 ± 9300/μL (range, 9000-49,000/μL). Three major bleeding complications requiring red blood cell transfusion were observed in patients with platelet counts of 41,000 to 46,000/μL, for a complication rate of 0.99% (95% confidence interval, 0.3%-2.9%). No patient required an additional procedure or died because of the bleeding complication. There was no association of platelet count with bleeding complications. The sensitivity analysis showed that further evaluation of patients with normal platelet counts would not add to the conclusion. Conclusions The risk of major bleeding after ultrasound-guided paracentesis in thrombocytopenic patients is very low. In most patients, routine assessment of the preprocedural serum platelet concentration is not necessary, and correction of such an abnormal laboratory value is not indicated.
Trampling the sacred: multicultural education as pedagogical racism

The following paper is a critical examination involving the misuse of sacred cultural tools and practices in the name of multicultural education. Native American practices are identified to illustrate how such inappropriate usages promote pedagogical racism. The misuse continues the hegemonic distribution of social capital. Through the irresponsible portrayal of complex and sophisticated cultures, American education continues to perpetuate pedagogical violence against children who are already socially and educationally disenfranchised. Using Freire, Giroux, Deloria, and Grande, this paper will identify strategies of communication and education necessary to eliminate pedagogical racism and begin to reverse the violence against children.
Review of Hume's Social Philosophy: Human Nature and Commercial Sociability in A Treatise of Human Nature

Christopher J. Finlay: Review of Hume's Social Philosophy: Human Nature and Commercial Sociability in A Treatise of Human Nature. London: Continuum, 2007, 202 pp. £60.00 (hb.). ISBN 978-0-8264-9162...
Molecular docking simulations of steroid substrates into human cytosolic hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (AKR1C1 and AKR1C2): Insights into positional and stereochemical preferences

AKR1C1 and AKR1C2 are human cytosolic hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases, which play pivotal roles in the metabolism and action of natural and synthetic steroid hormones. The two enzymes are highly homologous, and have distinct positional and stereochemical preferences with various substrates. We performed molecular docking simulations of three steroid substrates, including an androgen (5alpha-dihydrotestosterone, DHT), a progestin (progesterone, PRO), and a synthetic hormone ([7alpha,17alpha]-17-hydroxy-7-methyl-19-norpregn-5(10)-en-20-yn-3-one or tibolone, TIB), into the active sites of the two enzymes. For each substrate and enzyme pair, the activity inferred by the "productive" docking models (in which the spatial arrangement of the steroid and the cofactor would permit a reaction) matched the experimentally observed positional and stereochemical outcome. These productive conformations were energetically and statistically favored except for TIB and PRO with AKR1C2, where experimentally strong substrate inhibition and low activity were observed, respectively. Results showed that (i) a 3-ketosteroid (DHT) and a 20-ketosteroid (PRO) were reduced by AKR1C1 since the carbonyl groups could occupy the same position by "backwards" binding of steroids; (ii) 3alpha-reduced (DHT) and 3beta-reduced (TIB) products were formed by AKR1C2 since the angular methyl groups of the steroids were inverted by "upside-down" binding of steroids; and (iii) the 3beta- and 3alpha-reduction of DHT by AKR1C1 and AKR1C2, respectively occurred since the steroids employed a "swinging" motion to present opposite faces to the cofactor. Favorable nonproductive modes were observed with all substrates in both enzymes in which the steroid was bound at a "near-entry" position and/or an "in-middle" position, which may influence the reaction coordinate.
A novel endoscopic oidrs system for non-invasive early diagnosis of esophageal cancers

In this paper, we report the design, fabrication and testing of a new endoscopic OIDRS (oblique incidence diffuse reflectance spectroscopy) system for non-invasive early diagnosis of human esophageal pre-cancers and cancers. The endoscopic OIDRS system consists of an automated data acquisition interface and a micro “side-viewing” optical probe. The optical probe is capable of delivering oblique light incidence onto and collecting the resulting diffuse reflectance from the interrogated tissue in parallel. The entire OIDRS system has been successfully tested to measure the diffuse reflectance from human esophageal tissue samples and achieved 100% accuracy in differentiating cancerous and benign cases.
γ-Radiation Decontamination of Alfalfa Seeds Naturally Contaminated with Salmonella Mbandaka

Samples of alfalfa seeds inoculated with Salmonella Mbandaka isolated from a naturally contaminated lot were γ-irradiated to 1 of 8 doses between 0 and 2.8 kGy, producing a maximum inactivation of 3.3 logs CFU/g. Analysis of the data indicates that the γ-radiation D value is 0.81 ± 0.02 kGy. An absorbed dose of 4 kGy, but not 3 kGy, eliminated viable S. Mbandaka from naturally contaminated seeds. Results of experiments with different percentages of inoculated seeds indicate that the dose required to inactivate a contaminating pathogen on alfalfa seeds is dependent upon the maximum contamination per seed, not the mean contamination of the lot.
Fractals and foods.

Abstract Fractal geometry and related concepts have had only a very minor impact on food research. The very few reported food applications deal mainly with the characterization of the contours of agglomerated instant coffee particles, the surface morphology of treated starch particles, the microstructure of casein gels viewed as a product limited diffusion aggregation, and the jagged mechanical signatures of crunchy dry foods. Fractal geometry describes objects having morphological features that are scale invariant. A demonstration of the self‐similarity of fractal objects can be found in the familiar morphology of cauliflower and broccoli, both foods. Processes regulated by nonlinear dynamics can exhibit a chaotic behavior that has fractal characteristics. Examples are mixing of viscous fluids, turbulence, crystallization, agglomeration, diffusion, and possibly food spoilage.
An auto-adaptive synthetic neural network for real-time separation of independent signal sources

Discusses the following classical signal processing problem: given N physically distinct measurements which represent a priori unknown linear combinations of N independent signal sources, the network autoadaptively extracts the original independent signals. The authors consider the N input/output case. The analysis is restricted to signals which are zero mean, stationary and either periodic or aperiodic, deterministic or nondeterministic and to a medium which is homogeneous and introduces no time delay. In practice, the source separation algorithm also works well for nonstationary signals. The authors investigated the constraints which the network's learning rule must satisfy and tested the proposed learning rules with digital simulations. To achieve real-time operation, they implemented three different circuit designs for 2 and 6 input/output networks using 2 mu m n-well analog VLSI hardware. >
Red Onions, Elodea, or Decalcified Chicken Eggs? Selecting & Sequencing Representations for Teaching Diffusion & Osmosis

Diffusion and osmosis are important biological concepts that students often struggle to understand. These are important concepts because they are the basis for many complex biological processes, such as photosynthesis and cellular respiration. We examine a wide variety of representations used by experienced teachers to teach diffusion and osmosis. To help teachers select appropriate representations for their students, we briefly describe each representation and discuss its pros and cons. After teachers select representations, we offer recommendations for sequencing them. We recommend beginning with macroscopic-level representations that easily allow students to visualize the phenomenon, then moving to microscopic-level representations (cell-level), and finally exploring the phenomenon at the molecular level using virtual representations.
Philopatry of both sexes leads to the formation of multimale, multifemale groups in Ctenodactylus gundi (Rodentia: Ctenodactylidae)

Gundis (Ctenodactylus gundi) are gregarious, rock-dwelling rodents found in northern Africa. Very little is known about the behavioral ecology of C. gundi, or any other ctenodactylid rodent. The current study uses mark and recapture data of social groups of C. gundi in Tunisia to ascertain information on group composition and to obtain preliminary evidence on group formation. The majority of groups were found to be multimale and multifemale. Group size averaged 5.6 individuals ± 2.0 SD with 2.6 ± 0.9 adult males and 3.0 ± 1.7 adult females per social unit. Examination of recapture data suggests that groups of C. gundi result from both male and female natal philopatry in conjunction with male-biased dispersal. This study provides evidence that C. gundi may be a cooperatively breeding rodent, although results may be confounded by the effect of a drought.
Transcatheter Ablation of Cardiac Arrhythmias in the Young

Transcatheter ablation offers the possibility of complete, safe correction of tachyarrhythmias, particularly supraventricular, in children. Although radiofrequency energy is the predominant form of energy delivery to ablate abnormal pathways and ectopic foci in the human heart, cryotherapy, long used in the operating room but now delivered through a catheter, introduces a new technique that is, prior to full application, reversible. Thus, as one is applying a discrete, well-localized cryotherapy lesion, one can see its effects, whether salutary or deleterious, and terminate the delivery, allowing reversal of an adverse cryo effect. Early experience suggests that transcatheter cryoablation is a useful addition to the treatment of a number of tachyarrhythmias—especially AV nodal reentry tachycardia. Other advances in the understanding of arrhythmias, in catheter design (smaller, more flexible), in navigation techniques, in imaging systems (real time magnetic resonance imaging), and in ablation energy sources promise to bring even further innovation in the future.
Cutting Tool Condition Monitoring and Prediction Based on Dynamic Data Driven Approaches

In this paper, monitoring and prediction of cutting tool wear condition based on dynamic data driven approaches were investigated. Sensor signals obtained from the machining processes were processed through wavelet denoising to filter the noise un-related to cutting, features in time and frequency domains were extracted using classical signal processing approaches, and then were selected with Pearson correlation coefficient. The most related features were sent to the feature fusion approaches including neural network (NN), adaptive neural fuzzy inference system (ANFIS), or support vector regression (SVR) to estimate the tool wear. Statistics performance evaluation based on correlation coefficient (R2), average absolute error (AAE), and Se/Sy, as well as cross validation, selected the most proper feature fusion approach. Further, prediction models based on Bayesian model average were applied to predict the future tool wear. A case study based on the end mill experiment with signals of 3-axis cutting forces, 3-axis vibrations and acoustic emission, illustrated the proposed approach. It showed that ANFIS has the best estimation accuracy with the R2 of 0.99, AAE of 0.42, Se/Sy of 0.12, and cross validation error of 13.36. In the prediction stage, the prediction model has high prediction accuracy with all the experiment results covered by 95% confidence interval of prediction.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
Three simple rules to ensure reasonably credible subgroup analyses

The limitations of subgroup analyses are well established—false positives due to multiple comparisons, false negatives due to inadequate power, and limited ability to inform individual treatment decisions because patients have multiple characteristics that vary simultaneously. In this article, we apply Bayes’s rule to determine the probability that a positive subgroup analysis is a true positive. From this framework, we derive simple rules to determine when subgroup analyses can be performed as hypothesis testing analyses and thus inform when subgroup analyses should influence how we practice medicine.
Questions raised by the Benelux CML study group: Results from the randomized study with hydroxyurea alone versus hydroxyurea combined with low- dose interferon-α 2b for chronic myeloid leukemia [10] (multiple letters)

To the Editor: The recently reported Benelux study[1][1] raised several issues, some of them regarding current and future investigational studies in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). ##### Dose-intensity schedule of interferon-α (IFN-A) therapy and outcome. Our studies and several others,[2-10][2
HOMs of the SRF Electron Gun Cavity in the BNL ERL

Abstract The Brookhaven Energy Recovery Linac (ERL) is operated as an R&D test bed for high-current, low emittance electron beams. It comprises a superconducting five-cell cavity and a half-cell superconducting RF photo-injector electron gun. The ERL is undergoing commissioning with focus on the performance of the electron gun, not the least on the cavity Higher Order Modes (HOM). Among the various alternative solutions, a beam tube damper based on a layer of ferrite tiles was adopted for the five-cell accelerator cavity. For the gun, a ceramic-ferrite damper consisting of a lossless ceramic cylinder surrounded by damping ferrite tiles has been investigated. This design is innovative in its damper approach and combines a variety of goals including broadband HOM damping and protection of the superconducting cavity vacuum from potential damage by the separately cooled absorber. In this paper the empirical performance of an installed ceramic-ferrite damper is described by the Q reduction of a few selected gun cavity resonances. The theoretical coupling impedance presented to a traversing beam is numerically analyzed in terms of radial waveguide modes in the damper section. Strong damping of the gun cavity HOMs by the fundamental power coupler (FPC) is found and discussed. Finally, the measured Q -values of the operational gun cavity without the ceramic-ferrite damper at superconducting temperatures are presented
Government Regulation and the Rise of the California Fruit Industry: The Entrepreneurial Attack on Fruit Pests, 1880–1920

Sensing the opportunity to reap great profits by selling fruit to hungry urban consumers back East, nineteenth-century entrepreneurs flocked to California to establish commercial orchards and citrus groves. Invasions of fruit pests, however, threatened years of investment and patient cultivation, and made the public wary of the uneven quality of California fruit. In this article, Mr. Seftel describes how fruit growers organized and called on government to check the menace. Between 1880 and 1920, orchard owners created an elaborate regulatory network, linking local, state, federal, and academic institutions with their enterprise. These fruit-growing capitalists came to believe that only compulsory compliance with government-enforced pest control regulations could ensure their success. During these four decades, the growing horticultural bureaucracy helped transform California fruit growing from an entrepreneurial venture of uncertain promise into the state's second largest industry.
Increasing Reference Access to Post-1991 Russian Archives

If only archival restrictions were the most glaring insufficiency of our archival service. Here we have a whole complex of problems, for which it is insufficient to decide from on high merely to declassify archives. We still need to fell the whole world exactly what is held in them, to publish inventories and catalogues of previously secret documents. Academician Dimitrii S. Likhachev September 1989 Crucially important for expanding access to archives is what western archivists often call “intellectual access”–reference facilities that effectively and efficiently assist researchers in preparing for work in the archives, lead them to appropriate documents, and help them understand their archival context. The dramatic opening of Russian archives in the past decade has revolutionized research opportunities and scholarship in many fields. Today, not only are archives being declassified, but the finding aids for previously classified files are available to researchers and new reference facilities are being developed to an extent Likhachev and others never dreamed possible.
Concomitant Renal Cell Carcinoma and Hematologic Malignancy in Immunosuppressed Patients

Abstract Objectives Treatment of a renal mass in patients with hematologic malignancy or on immunosuppression can be complex and is not well defined. Surgical excision or thermal ablation of renal mass is generally recommended in view of concern for tumor progression in immunosuppressed patients. We report our management decision experience in patients and literature review on concomitant renal and hematologic malignancy. Materials and Methods A retrospective medical record review of patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and a hematologic malignancy over 3 years at our University Hospital was performed. Data were collected including patient׳s demographics, renal tumor and hematologic malignancy characteristics (stage, pathologic subtype, time of diagnosis, treatment type and prognosis). Surgical and medical management of each malignancy was reviewed and perioperative and overall outcomes are reported. Results In total, 6 patients were identified with RCC and a hematologic malignancy of which 4 were on immunosuppressive therapy. A total of 5 patients had leukemia and 1 patient had multiple myeloma. Most kidney tumors were stage I, 83%; and 80% were Fuhrman grade II. There was equal distribution of clear cell and papillary-type RCC. All but 1 patient had undergone nephron-sparing surgery. Overall, 50% of our patients died within 1 year after renal surgery for pT 1 a tumors from causes that are unrelated to renal cancer. Conclusions Our small cohort showed significant mortality in patients with hematologic malignancy on immunosuppression, who had their renal mass treated with surgical excision or thermal ablation. However, this mortality was not secondary to surgical procedure itself. The prognosis of the hematologic malignancy might dictate the management of RCC.
Warning of Land Price Foam

With the quickening of the socialist marketing economy, our country is harmed by losing control of land development. There appear at times the phenomenon of prices out of control and land price foam caused by speculation. These problems seriously undermine the land-use system reform and the healthy development of real estate.
Methodology for quantifying impacts of urbanization on the water distribution networks of irrigation districts

Abstract In this paper, a new methodology is presented for analyzing urbanization of irrigation districts within a region. This method is based upon the fragmentation of irrigation water distribution networks (i.e. canals, pipeline, reservoirs, water control structures, etc.) due to urban growth and expansion. Two functions are presented, the fragmentation index which defines the extent that the water distribution network (i.e., canals and pipelines) is impacted by patchy urbanized areas within an irrigation district, and the fragment density index which identifies the most impacted locations in the region. Urban expansion and the use of these indexes are demonstrated through an analysis of 28 irrigation districts located in the Lower Rio Grande Region (LRGR) of South Texas over a 10 year period. In the LRGR, from 1996 to 2006, the total urbanized area within irrigation districts increased by 28%, and there was a 31% increase in canals and pipelines that became engrossed by urbanization. The engrossment rate of other distribution components varied but was higher, such as 62% for water control structures. The total numbers of network fragments increased by 48%, resulting in a 140% increase of the number of locations with a high fragment density defined as locations with more than 1.4 fragments/km2 and with a density index >0.5. Locations with a high fragment density index shifted within the region, which is consistent with the dynamics of patchy urbanization in which patches tend to merge together while new patches are generated. Maps of the changes in fragment density index maps from 1996 to 2006 clearly show urbanization trends that can be used for rehabilitation planning and other purposes.
Truth and Value

Ethics, esthetics and logic are not addenda to philosophy but descriptions of the contents of reality, inventories of the properties of the matter and energy of the cosmos. The world is composed of the values of the good and the beautiful hung upon the structure of the true. Matter has truth and value because it occupies space and time. If we knew the totality of truths about any material thing, we could deduce from this its value. Understood in this way, truth is a function of space and value a function of time.
Elliott Gould: The Urban Don Quixote

This chapter situates Elliott Gould’s incipient star career as an attempt to appeal to young educated adults while simultaneously maintaining and extending Hollywood traditions, much like Hoffman and Nicholson. However, Gould’s performance style considerably differed from theirs, and it was this difference that proved consequential for successive films. Gould is both a continuation of the “ethnic everyman” figure pioneered by Hoffman and something of an expansion of the type, specifically an extension that bridges gaps between Hoffman’s persona and the personas of classical-era stars. While Hoffman was understood as an exaggerated, mannered performer, Gould, by overwhelming critical consensus, was understood to be “playing himself.” (In a characteristic comment, Gould said at this time, “My secret of being a formidable actor is that I seldom act. I’m always me.”1 (emphasis his)) Under Gould, the Rough Rebel figure retained its appeal to youth and to “ironic alienation,” but expanded its parameters towards a more naturalistic acting style. Naturalism at this time was not favored in and of itself, as demonstrated by the fact that, in 1970, Gould starred in four films while the equally naturalistic Robert Redford, coming off of the smash hit Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), starred in none. Gould promoted a more everyman-inflected naturalism in 1969 and 1970, but by the end of 1971, curiously enough, considerably undermined it.
A General-Purpose Model for Investigating Dynamic Cardiopulmonary Responses During Exercise

Among the essential features of a heuristic physiological model are that it summarizes the available knowledge regarding a particular system and allows investigation of the consequent implications of the chosen model structure on a range of physiological responses. Our approach here was to pursue the latter feature, as it is evident that physiological inferences are often drawn in the literature without actual determination of whether the inferred behavior is, in fact, achievable with the given model. Hence, our purpose was to choose an explicit model that describes certain observed features of the body’s gas-exchange control system, and to determine the necessary consequences imposed by its structure on the observable behavior, under specified stimuli of physiological interest. We therefore required that: (a) the explicit model be sufficiently general to allow such determination without restricting it to espouse solely any particular control-system hypothesis, and (b) it allow progressive incorporation of particular observed behavior, thus developing in complexity (and completeness) in a “building-block” fashion. We found that surprising consequences often attended the simplest of stimulus profiles when constrained by the chosen model structure. But although intuition can be significantly misleading, it can be appropriately redirected by observing calculated variables when the (assumed) model is challenged over a suitable range of stimuli.
Computer-determined kinetic parameters from TG curves: Part XVI

Abstract In a previous communication [1], expressions were developed which were utilized to analyze data from non-isothermal TG (NITG) curves, at relatively low conversions, for activation energy (E). Such an analysis led to the estimation of E alone, virtually independent of reaction order (n) values. In this paper, expressions have been developed with the same goal in mind, to determine values of E irrespective of the n-values. To this end, rational approximations and an iterative computer procedure were employed.
Is There a Role for Historical Fiction in Public Administration? An Introduction

In this symposium, its contributors are experimenting with shotgunning history and fiction into a merged subject of Public Administration historical fiction. According to the symposium editor, historical fiction is a form of mental gymnastics that can provide a constructive albeit minor contribution to understanding Public Administration's past, analyzing its present and helping shape its future.
Commentary on "Evidence-Based Self-management Programs for Seniors and Other With Chronic Diseases": Patient Experience-Patient Health-Return on Investment.

IN his article, Dr Goldfield elegantly discusses the changes in medicine, the attempts to make it more efficient, and the rise of new health care professionals. One thing is missing, the role of the patient in managing his or her illness and teaching others to self-manage. In most of the discussion,
Incidental liver lesions seen on Breast MRI: When is additional imaging warranted?

Abstract Purpose Incidental hepatic lesions identified on breast MR can be a diagnostic dilemma due to concern for liver metastases or other significant hepatic lesions. The purpose of this study was to identify the incidence and nature of liver lesions seen on breast MR, and determine if additional imaging is necessary. Methods and materials Imaging reports of all breast MR examinations performed at our institution from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2011 were reviewed to identify reports with hepatic abnormalities. Lesion characteristics, subsequent diagnosis, duration of follow up and additional imaging results (if performed) were all recorded. Results Of 1664 breast MRs, incidental hepatic lesions were seen in 207 studies (12.4%) in 169 patients. In 154 of 169 patients (91.1%) the lesions were characterized as T2 hyperintense and clearly as bright as adjacent fat on T2-weighted or localizer sequences. 0 of these 154 lesions were clinically significant at clinical or radiological follow-up. In the remaining 8.9% (15 of 169), lesions were characterized as not as bright as adjacent fat on T2 weighted or localizer imaging. In two cases, lesions were confirmed as incidental hepatic metastatic disease. Conclusion 91.1% of incidental hepatic lesions were circumscribed, T2 hyperintense lesions and characterised as clearly as bright as adjacent fat on T2 weighted imaging at additional review. None of which were clinically significant at clinical or radiological follow-up. We advocate that circumscribed T2 hyperintense lesions which are clearly as bright as adjacent fat on T2 weighted imaging are of unlikely clinical significance and follow-up imaging should not be recommended, reducing the rate of additional imaging from 37.3% to 5.3%.
Managing Continuous Improvement in Vietnam: Unique Challenges and Approaches to Overcome Them

As Vietnam enters the global marketplace, it must take steps to avoid the low-cost labor trap and move up the production value chain by improving quality and productivity with continuous improvement (CI) practices. Despite interest from the internationa..
Blaming the Polish plumber: phantom agents, invisible workers, and the liberal arena

The French ‘no’ vote to the European constitutional referendum of 2005 was broadly attributed by political elites and mainstream media to popular fear of the Polish plumber. This phantom of globalised neoliberal labour does not, however, emerge from vernacular culture but from a deep-rooted liberal imaginary that constitutes the autonomous individual through repudiation of both intimate and foreign Others. This paper proposes the concept of phantom agents as a mechanism through which accredited political actors seek to account for the exclusions of the liberal arena and, more concretely, deflect blame for bad outcomes from themselves onto voters. Tracing the circulation and afterlife of the plumber figure through political performances across French and Anglo-American arenas, I argue that the normative chain of agencies sustaining liberal democracies—reciprocal attributions of praise and blame among representatives, media, and voters—is discredited by phantom attributions that constrain the visibility of living working-class actors and impede their access to normative political agency as liberal individuals. Accordingly, excluded actors may instead seize agency within the political arena through the ‘acting out’ of phantom personae.
Explaining sex differences in existential isolation research

Abstract Existential isolation (EI) is the subjective experience of feeling fundamentally separate from other human beings. Recent studies examining EI have observed a consistent sex difference wherein men report higher levels of EI than women. Our first study used a large undergraduate survey. It replicated the sex difference in EI and showed that controlling for loneliness and self-esteem did not account for this difference. Study 2 replicated this pattern using an online sample, and tested the hypothesis that this difference may be mediated by the sex difference in endorsement of communal and agentic values. We found that sex differences in endorsement of communal (but not agentic) values mediated the sex difference in EI. However, agentic value endorsement played no role. These findings indicate that men may be higher in existential isolation because they do not endorse communal values as much as women do. This suggests that one way to reduce the disproportionate experience of EI among men may be to increase their endorsement of communal values.
On Numerical Integration of a Class of Pressure-Sensitive Plasticity Models with Mixed Hardening

ABSTRACT Theoretical and numerical formulations of pressure-sensitive plasticity models with mixed hardening were presented in strain space. The strain-space formulation eliminated the singularity (in stress space) of the evolution of the back stress. The numerical scheme leads to robust and consistent algorithms.
The Effect of Complex Fault Rupture on the Distribution of Landslides Triggered by the 12 January 2010, Haiti Earthquake

The MW 7.0, 12 January 2010, Haiti earthquake triggered more than 7,000 landslides in the mountainous terrain south of Port-au-Prince over an area that extends approximately 50 km to the east and west from the epicenter and to the southern coast. Most of the triggered landslides were rock and soil slides from 25°–65° slopes within heavily fractured limestone and deeply weathered basalt and basaltic breccia. Landslide volumes ranged from tens of cubic meters to several thousand cubic meters. Rock slides in limestone typically were 2–5 m thick; slides within soils and weathered basalt typically were less than 1 m thick. Twenty to thirty larger landslides having volumes greater than 10,000 m3 were triggered by the earthquake; these included block slides and rotational slumps in limestone bedrock. Only a few landslides larger than 5,000 m3 occurred in the weathered basalt. The distribution of landslides is asymmetric with respect to the fault source and epicenter. Relatively few landslides were triggered north of the fault source on the hanging wall. The densest landslide concentrations lie south of the fault source and the Enriquillo-Plantain-Garden fault zone on the footwall. Numerous landslides also occurred along the south coast west of Jacmel. This asymmetric distribution of landsliding with respect to the fault source is unusual given the modeled displacement of the fault source as mainly thrust motion to the south on a plane dipping to the north at approximately 55°; landslide concentrations in other documented thrust earthquakes generally have been greatest on the hanging wall. This apparent inconsistency of the landslide distribution with respect to the fault model remains poorly understood given the lack of any strong-motion instruments within Haiti during the earthquake.
Darstellung der beiden theoretischen Konzepte Sozialcharakter und Habitus

Die theoretische Grundlegung des Sozialcharakterkonzepts ist das wissenschaftliche Verdienst des Psychoanalytikers und Soziologen Erich Fromm, der von 1930 bis 1939 Mitarbeiter am Institut fur Sozialforschung (IfS) war. Es war Fromm, der am Institut das Konzept des kultur- und klassenspezifischen Sozialcharakters im (meta-) theoretischen Gesamtzusammenhangs einer kritischen Sozialpsychologie entwickelte. Dieses sozialisationstheoretische Konzept ist allgemein gefasst. Es kann nicht auf den besonderen Typus des autoritaren Charakters reduziert werden, sondern dient zur empirischen Erforschung und theoretischen Erklarung von unterschiedlichen Charakterstrukturen, die in einer Gesellschaft vorherrschen und sich historisch wandeln. Die Ursache der Genese der verschiedenen Sozialcharaktere wird dabei letztlich in der soziookonomischen (Klassen-) Struktur der Gesellschaft gesehen.
Who votes for mayor? Evidence from midsized American cities

Who, or what, governs the mosaic of the almost 39,000 general purpose local governments across the United States? While the determinants of voter turnout in both national and sub-national elections...
HEMODYNAMIC EFFECTS OF SILDENAFIL ON RIGHT HEART FUNCTION IN LEFT VENTRICULAR DEVICES

Right ventricular failure (RVF) is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality for patients with a left ventricular assist device (LVAD). There is limited data to support lowering pulmonary pressure with a phosphodiesterase inhibitor to improve right ventricular function. This study aims to
Dynamic Electricity Pricing to Smart Homes

For the first time in the history of the power industry, because of smart meters, we now have the technology deployed to charge real-time prices for electricity to large populations of consumers. A...
Predicting the Potential Invasive Range of Klambothrips myopori (Thysanopetra: Phlaeothripidae)

Temperature-driven development of myoporum thrips, Klambothrips myopori (Thysanopetra: Phlaeothripidae), was examined at seven constant temperatures (15, 17, 20, 25, 30, 34, and 35.5°C) on Myoporum laetum Forst (Lamiales: Scrophulariaceae). Thrips successfully completed development to adult stage between 15 and 35.5°C. One linear and three nonlinear models were fitted to describe developmental rates of K. myopori as a function of temperature, and for estimating thermal constants and bioclimatic thresholds (Tmin, Topt, and Tmax). The Briere-1 model performed best in describing the developmental rate of cumulative life stages. Two ecological niche models, CLIMEX and Maxent, were used to predict the geographic distribution of K. myopori in its native range and globally. Overall predictions of environmental suitability differed greatly across models. The CLIMEX model accurately predicted known invasive and native localities, while the Maxent model failed to predict the native localities and parts of the invasive range. Based on the CLIMEX model, K. myopori has the potential to establish in many regions of the globe.
Antiviral Polymers: Past Approaches and Future Possibilities

Treating a viral disease is no simple feat. Drug resistance, latent reservoirs in the body, emerging novel viruses, and a frequent lack of specific treatments all complicate antiviral therapy. For ...
Comparison of Effectiveness Using Different Dual Bronchodilator Agents in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Treatment

The effectiveness and safety of fixed dual long-acting bronchodilators for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients have been well established; however, there is a paucity of clinical effectiveness comparison in patients with COPD treatment. The aim of the current study was to compare the effectiveness of three once-daily dual bronchodilator agents in patients with COPD. Patients with diagnosed COPD and treated with a long-acting beta-agonist (LABA) + long-acting muscarinic antagonist (LAMA) fixed-dose combination therapy (UME/VIL (umeclidinium and vilanterol inhalation powder), IND/GLY (indacaterol and glycopyrronium), and TIO/OLO (tiotropium and olodaterol)) were enrolled in this retrospective study over a period of 12 months. Effectiveness assessments were evaluated using a COPD assessment test (CAT) and lung function parameters. Besides, times for acute exacerbation were also assessed. The enrolled patients' number was 177 in IND/GLY, 176 in UME/VIL and 183 in TIO/OLO. Lung function measurements with FEV1 had significantly improved for patients using TIO/OLO (98.7 mL) compared to those of IND/GLY (65.2 mL) and UME/VIL (64.4 mL) (p < 0.001). CAT scores were also significantly decreased in patients treated with TIO/OLO (CAT down 5.6) than those with IND/GLY (3.8) and UME/VIL (3.9) (p = 0.03). Acute exacerbation was also reduced in patients using TIO/OLO (4.9%) compared with those using IND/GLY (10.2%) and UME/VIL (11.9%) (p = 0.01). Significant improvement in pulmonary function, symptoms were demonstrated after 12 months of LABA/LAMA fixed-dose combination therapy with three different treatment options. TIO/OLO demonstrated higher therapeutic effects compared with UME/VIL or IND/GLY. Determining clinical relevance will require a well-designed randomized controlled trial.
Publicly available low-cost sensor measurements for PM2.5 exposure modeling: Guidance for monitor deployment and data selection.

Abstract High-resolution, high-quality exposure modeling is critical for assessing the health effects of ambient PM2.5 in epidemiological studies. Using sparse regulatory PM2.5 measurements as principal model inputs may result in two issues in exposure prediction: (1) they may affect the models’ accuracy in predicting PM2.5 spatial distribution; (2) the internal validation based on these measurements may not reliably reflect the model performance at locations of interest (e.g., a cohort’s residential locations). In this study, we used the PM2.5 measurements from a publicly available commercial low-cost PM2.5 network, PurpleAir, with an external validation dataset at the residential locations of a representative sample of participants from the Adult Changes in Thought - Air Pollution (ACT-AP) study, to improve the accuracy of exposure prediction at the cohort participant locations. We also proposed a metric based on principal component analysis (PCA) - the PCA distance - to assess the similarity between monitor and cohort locations to guide monitor deployment and data selection. The analysis was based on a spatiotemporal modeling framework with 51 “gold-standard” monitors and 58 PurpleAir monitors for model development, as well as 105 home monitors at the cohort locations for model validation, in the Puget Sound region of Washington State from June 2017 to March 2019. After including calibrated PurpleAir measurements as part of the dependent variable, the external spatiotemporal validation R2 and root-mean-square error, RMSE, for two-week concentration averages improved from 0.84 and 2.22 μg/m3 to 0.92 and 1.63 μg/m3, respectively. The external spatial validation R2 and RMSE for long-term averages over the modeling period improved from 0.72 and 1.01 μg/m3 to 0.79 and 0.88 μg/m3, respectively. The exposure predictions incorporating PurpleAir measurements demonstrated sharper urban-suburban concentration gradients. The PurpleAir monitors with shorter PCA distances improved the model’s prediction accuracy more substantially than the monitors with longer PCA distances, supporting the use of this similarity metric.
Are US Founding Families Expropriators or Stewards? Evidence from Quasi-Natural Experiment

We use board structure changes brought by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX; 2002) and subsequent listing standards as a natural experiment to investigate if founding families are expropriators or stewards of shareholder value. We hypothesize gain in a firm’s value post-SOX if founding families are expropriators and a value loss if they are stewards. Using a difference-in-difference approach, we find that family firms that did not meet the requirements of SOX-related, board independence provisions before 2002, suffered significant value loss post-SOX. Our results favor the steward role for founding families.
Differential Equation of Compressible Turbulent Skin-Friction Coefficient Around an Arbitrary Body of Revolution at High Speed

plotted in Figs. 1 and 2 as full triangles and as a dashed and dotted line, respectively, while the full and dashed lines show the predictions of references 1 and 2, respectively; and the points correspond to the experimental data as shown in Figs. 3 and 4 of reference 1. I t is evident that the reference-enthalpy method predicts a heat-flux distribution which is close to the predictions of reference 1 or reference 2 for the hemisphere-cylinder. For the flat-nosed body, reference 2 predicts a distribution which for s/L > 1 tends to be higher than either reference 1 or the present method or the experimental points. Thus, Lees' method modified with the reference-enthalpy concept appears to predict closely the local heat-transfer coefficients along the surface of a blunt-nosed body in dissociated air flow. The simplicity of the method recommends it for engineering calculations.