cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Distress and depression in men who have sex with men: the Urban Men's Health Study.

Objective: This study estimates the prevalence of depression and describes the correlates and independent associations of distress and depression among U.S. men who have sex with men. Method: A household-based probability sample of men who have sex with men (N=2,881) was interviewed between 1996 and 1998 in four large American cities. With cutoff points of 15 and 22 for the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, individual correlates and predictors of distress and depression were examined, and multinomial logistic regression was performed. Results: The 7-day prevalence of depression in men who have sex with men was 17.2%, higher than in adult U.S. men in general. Both distress and depression were associated with lack of a domestic partner; not identifying as gay, queer, or homosexual; experiencing multiple episodes of antigay violence in the previous 5 years; and very high levels of community alienation. Distress was also associated with being of other than Asian/Pacific Islander ethnicity and experiencing early antigay harassment. Depression was also associated with histories of attempted suicide, child abuse, and recent sexual dysfunction. Being HIV positive was correlated with distress and depression but not significantly when demographic characteristics, developmental history, substance use, sexual behavior, and current social context were controlled by logistic regression. Conclusions: Rates of distress and depression are high in men who have sex with men. These high rates have important public health ramifications. The predictors of distress and depression suggest prevention efforts that might be effective when aimed at men who have sex with men.
Gender effects on airway closure in normal subjects.

The present study was designed to examine age and gender differences with respect to the duration of laryngeal closure, the onset of laryngeal closure in relation to the first cricopharyngeal opening, and the duration of cricopharyngeal opening for six different groups: normal younger men and women (22–29 years), normal middle-aged men and women (45–53 years), and normal older men and women (81–94 years) (10 subjects in each group for a total of 60 subjects). Data were collected by means of videofluoroscopic studies. During swallows of liquid barium, results indicated that normal older subjects had longer cricopharyngeal opening than younger subjects (P = 0.044). Results also revealed that the mean duration of laryngeal closure was significantly longer in women than in men (P = 0.013). The onset of laryngeal closure was significantly earlier in women than in men (P = 0.006). Also, bolus volume effects were observed for both the duration of laryngeal closure (P < 0.0001) and cricopharyngeal opening (P < 0.0001). During liquid barium swallows there was a linear increase in both the duration of laryngeal closure and cricopharyngeal opening.
A DIFFUSION MODEL FOR SELECTED DEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES: AN APPLICATION TO SOVIET DATA

ABSTRACT This paper discusses the formal characteristics of spatial diffusion of demographic change from a center into a region. A procedure proposed for testing hypotheses concerning its empirical occurrence is applied to ascertaining occurrence and modalities of spatial diffusion of demographic change in two regions of the USSR centered at Moscow and Leningrad. Evidences of diffusion of fertility declines were found in both regions, of death rate declines in the Leningrad but not in the Moscow region, and of increases in divorce rates in the Moscow but not in the Leningrad region.
Discrimination of speech stimuli by the mynah bird: A vocal FR test

Discrimination of auditory inputs and consequent vocal control in the mynah bird is an important preliminary to speech acquisition. Previous studies demonstrating a speech discriminated operant may have been confounded by a consequence (reinforcement/non-reinforcement) of initial vocal activity. A fixed ratio test for the first ISI indicates that the birds actually discriminate the input and the consequence-feedback alternative is not an appropriate explanation.
Allelic Losses at 1p36 and 19q13 in Gliomas: Correlation with Histologic Classification, Definition of a 150-kb Minimal Deleted Region on 1p36, and Evaluation of CAMTA1 as a Candidate Tumor Suppressor Gene

Purpose: Allelic loss at 1p is seen in 70% to 85% of oligodendrogliomas (typically in association with 19q allelic loss) and 20-30% of astrocytomas. Because most 1p deletions in gliomas involve almost the entire chromosome arm, narrowing the region of the putative tumor suppressor gene has been difficult. To better define the histologic correlates of different patterns of 1p and 19q loss, we evaluated 1p/19q status in a large group of gliomas. This also allowed us to define a very small minimal deleted region (MDR) on 1p36. Experimental Design: Among 205 consecutive cases of glioma studied for 1p loss of heterozygosity (LOH), 112 tumors were evaluated for both 1p and 19q LOH using at least three polymorphic markers on 1p and 19q each. The latter group included both low-grade tumors (oligodendroglioma, diffuse astrocytoma, and “oligoastrocytoma”) and high-grade tumors (anaplastic oligodendrogliomas, anaplastic astrocytomas, anaplastic oligoastrocytomas). Tumors with small segmental 1p losses (defined as LOH at some loci with retention of heterozygosity at other loci) were studied using a more extensive panel of markers to define the 1p MDR. The candidate gene was screened for mutations and its expression was studied by qualitative and quantitative reverse transcriptase-PCR and Northern blotting. Results: Allelic losses on 1p and 19q, either separately or combined, were more common in classic oligodendrogliomas than in either astrocytomas or oligoastrocytomas ( P P = 0.006). Eleven tumors (6 oligodendrogliomas or having oligodendroglial components, 5 purely astrocytic) with small segmental 1p losses underwent further detailed LOH mapping. All informative tumors in the oligodendroglial group and 2 of 3 informative astrocytomas showed LOH at 1p36.23, with a 150-kb MDR located between D1S2694 and D1S2666, entirely within the CAMTA1 transcription factor gene. Mutation analysis of the exons encoding conserved regions of CAMTA1 showed no somatic mutations in 10 gliomas, including 6 cases with and 4 cases without 1p LOH. CAMTA1 is normally expressed predominantly in non-neoplastic adult brain tissue. Relative to the latter, the expression level of CAMTA1 was low in oligodendroglial tumors and was further halved in cases with 1p deletion compared with those without 1p deletion (Mann-Whitney, P = 0.03). Conclusions: Our data confirm the strong association of combined 1p/19q loss with classic oligodendroglioma histology and identify a very small segment of 1p36 located within CAMTA1 that was deleted in all oligodendroglial tumors with 1p LOH. This MDR also overlaps the neuroblastoma 1p36 MDR. CAMTA1 shows no evidence of inactivation by somatic mutations but its expression is reduced by half in cases with 1p LOH, suggesting that the functional effects of CAMTA1 haploinsufficiency warrant further investigation.
Exact wave-based Bloch analysis procedure for investigating wave propagation in two-dimensional periodic lattices

Abstract This paper presents an exact, wave-based approach for determining Bloch waves in two-dimensional periodic lattices. This is in contrast to existing methods which employ approximate approaches (e.g., finite difference, Ritz, finite element, or plane wave expansion methods) to compute Bloch waves in general two-dimensional lattices. The analysis combines the recently introduced wave-based vibration analysis technique with specialized Bloch boundary conditions developed herein. Timoshenko beams with axial extension are used in modeling the lattice members. The Bloch boundary conditions incorporate a propagation constant capturing Bloch wave propagation in a single direction, but applied to all wave directions propagating in the lattice members. This results in a unique and properly posed Bloch analysis. Results are generated for the simple problem of a periodic bi-material beam, and then for the more complex examples of square, diamond, and hexagonal honeycomb lattices. The bi-material beam clearly introduces the concepts, but also allows the Bloch wave mode to be explored using insight from the technique. The square, diamond, and hexagonal honeycomb lattices illustrate application of the developed technique to two-dimensional periodic lattices, and allow comparison to a finite element approach. Differences are noted in the predicted dispersion curves, and therefore band gaps, which are attributed to the exact procedure more-faithfully modeling the finite nature of lattice connection points. The exact method also differs from approximate methods in that the same number of solution degrees of freedom is needed to resolve low frequency, and arbitrarily high frequency, dispersion branches. These advantageous features may make the method attractive to researchers studying dispersion characteristics, band gap behavior, and energy propagation in two-dimensional periodic lattices.
Semi-global existence and convergence of solutions of the Robinson-Trautman (2-dimensional Calabi) equation

It is shown that for smooth initial data solutions of the Robinson-Trautman equation (also known as the two-dimensional Calabi equation) exist for all positive “times,” and asymptotically converge to a constant curvature metric.
Decoding dumping ducks.

Conspecific brood parasitism, where females of the same species lay eggs in each other's nests, is common in waterfowl, and is usually considered costly to host females, which are stuck looking after eggs and chicks that are not their own. However, since female waterfowl often exhibit an unusual propensity to nest near where they were born, there has been some uncertainty over whether, in ducks and geese, laying in nests of conspecifics really is parasitism. Do parasitic and host females tend to be related? And is parasitism actually a form of cooperation in disguise? In a population in Hudson Bay, Andersson & Waldeck (this issue) found that ‘parasitic’ eggs in nests of the common eider, Somateria mollissima sedentaria, are more closely related to host eggs than expected by chance. In fact, host and ‘donor’ eggs are more closely related than are females breeding at neighbouring nests. The Hudson Bay population of common eiders is unusual, because unlike in more benign climates, females do not tend to breed near their natal nest. Spatial proximity alone cannot account for the high relatedness between host eggs and ‘dumped’ or donor eggs. Instead, the high relatedness values are probably the result of active recognition, where females favour kin, either when dumping or accepting eggs. These new data, along with evidence indicating that the donor lays the first egg in the nest nearly half the time, suggest that what appears to be parasitism in common eiders may be a form of kin-based cooperation.
The Baf60c/Deptor Pathway Links Skeletal Muscle Inflammation to Glucose Homeostasis in Obesity

Skeletal muscle insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes is associated with a shift from oxidative to glycolytic metabolism in myofibers. However, whether this metabolic switch is detrimental or adaptive for metabolic homeostasis has not been resolved. We recently demonstrated that the Baf60c/Deptor pathway promotes glycolytic metabolism in the muscle and protects mice from diet-induced insulin resistance. However, the nature of the signals that impinge on this pathway and the role of Baf60c in glucose homeostasis in the severe insulin-resistant state remain unknown. Here we show that expression of Baf60c and Deptor was downregulated in skeletal muscle in obesity, accompanied by extracellular signal–related kinase (ERK) activation. In cultured myotubes, inhibition of ERK, but not Jun NH2-terminal kinase and IκB kinase, blocked the downregulation of Baf60c and Deptor by the proinflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor-α. Treatment of obese mice with the ERK inhibitor U0126 rescued Baf60c and Deptor expression in skeletal muscle and lowered blood glucose. Transgenic rescue of Baf60c in skeletal muscle restored Deptor expression and Akt phosphorylation and ameliorated insulin resistance in ob/ob mice. This study identifies the Baf60c/Deptor pathway as a target of proinflammatory signaling in skeletal muscle that may link meta-inflammation to skeletal myofiber metabolism and insulin resistance.
Analysis for Plasma Protein Biomarkers Following an Accidental Human Exposure to Sulfur Mustard

Following an accidental human exposure to a vesicating agent, plasma samples were analyzed for specific biomarkers of sulfur mustard. One individual suffered chemical burns over 6.5% of the body surface area and required hospitalization; the second individual developed a single, small blister. Plasma specimens from both individuals were examined using two different assays. The first assay targeted sulfur mustard adducts to cysteine-34 of albumin using affinity chromatography, enzyme digestion, and analysis of the alkylated peptide fragment using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. The second assay targeted alkylation sites of glutamic and aspartic acids of plasma proteins. Following precipitation of plasma proteins, the sulfur mustard adducts were cleaved from the protein using base, derivatized, and analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Samples obtained over a 42-day period from the individual requiring hospitalization produced positive results for sulfur mustard adducts using both assays. Observed levels of the sulfur mustard biomarker decreased by approximately 75% between days 2 and 42 for both assays. Samples obtained over a six-day period from the individual with a single, small blister produced positive results for the albumin adduct assay. Observed levels were much lower than levels from the hospitalized patient. Blood samples from suspected human exposures to sulfur mustard have only rarely been made available for analysis by sensitive and specific laboratory assays. The data presented here add significantly to the small database of information that currently exists on human biomarkers of sulfur mustard exposure, linking a well-documented exposure event with levels of plasma protein adducts.
The View from the Dean’s Office

It is the role of a medical school student affairs dean to balance the responsibilities of advocating for students with upholding the integrity of the curricular program. This work is especially challenging when dealing with students who are struggling and require remediation. Given her diverse portfolio of responsibilities as dean for student affairs, which includes overseeing the academic progress of students, disciplinary process, mentoring and advising, student health and wellness programs, international health program, student life, and chairing of an executive committee for admissions, she is often the first one to identify and intervene with a struggling student. In addition to working with students and faculty to identify the underlying causes of a student’s problem, the dean’s office needs to be concerned about resource availability for and cost of remediation, legal and privacy issues, the implications of labeling students, the definition of the official written record, and final competency decisions. In this chapter, the author discusses the resources needed for remediation, their costs, and resources currently not available. This experienced student affairs dean shares her experience reviewing admission information, discusses preadmission factors that may portend the need for remedial assistance once in medical school, and offers NYU School of Medicine technical standards as an example. She discusses her approach to counseling students regarding how to communicate their remediation history to future training directors and employers. She thereby demonstrates how it is possible to balance the school’s interests with obligations to students, faculty, and society.
The Future for Business Trusts

The trust serves a variety of important commercial functions, yet remains under-analyzed and under-utilized. In both Canada and the United States, the lack of dedicated organizational law has diminished the commercial appeal and utility of business trusts, inspiring recent reforms through draft uniform legislation - the Canadian Uniform Income Trusts Act and the American Uniform Statutory Trust Entity Act. The author critically reviews and assesses the two uniform statutes. He argues that they reflect markedly different views on the goals of organizational law. The Canadian legislation supposes that the trust should be a fixed organizational form subject to extensive mandatory regulation. It reflects the relatively modest goals of improving the governance of income trusts and resolving uncertainty over the applicability of ordinary trust law to income trusts while avoiding rules that inhibit value and tax arbitrage. The American legislation has more complex and ambitious goals. It creates an entirely new entity intended to offer efficiency gains by virtue of its extraordinary adaptability to different business purposes as well as market and settlor preferences. The author offers a functional assessment of the uniform legislation, arguing that each statute has mixed success in meeting its legislative objectives. The author also offers normative evaluation of the uniform legislation, focusing on positions taken on key normative questions of organizational law. The Canadian statute gives significant protection to investors but not other stakeholders. The American statute offers flexibility at the cost of accountability, with significant deficits in investor and stakeholder protection.
Large-Strain Viscoelastic Constitutive Models for Thin Polyethylene Films

This paper presents a constitutive model capable of predicting the thermoviscoelastic behavior of the balloon thin film StratoFilm subject to large strains up to yielding. The model is based on the free volume theory of nonlinear thermoviscoelasticity and extended to orthotropic membranes. An ingredient of the present approach is that the experimentally inaccessible out-of-plane material properties are determined by fitting the model predictions to the measured non-linear behavior of the film. Creep tests, uniaxial tension tests, and biaxial bubble tests are used to determine the material parameters. The model has been validated experimentally, against data obtained from uniaxial tension tests and biaxial cylindrical tests at a wide range of temperatures and strain rates spanning two orders of magnitude (0.01%/s ~ 1%/s).
Molecular Multipole Potential Energy Functions for Water

Water is the most common liquid on this planet, with many unique properties that make it essential for life as we know it. These properties must arise from features in the charge distribution of a water molecule, so it is essential to capture these features in potential energy functions for water to reproduce its liquid state properties in computer simulations. Recently, models that utilize a multipole expansion located on a single site in the water molecule, or “molecular multipole models”, have been shown to rival and even surpass site models with up to five sites in reproducing both the electrostatic potential around a molecule and a variety of liquid state properties in simulations. However, despite decades of work using multipoles, confusion still remains about how to truncate the multipole expansions efficiently and accurately. This is particularly important when using molecular multipole expansions to describe water molecules in the liquid state, where the short-range interactions must be accurate,...
Large Area Subgrain-Boundary-Free Sot Induced by Thermal Gradient Control of Transitional Seeded-Growth

The transitional region of subgrain-boundary-free crystal to subgrain-boundary-laced crystal formed during the initial stage of energy-beam induced seeded recrystallization of thin film silicon on an insulator has been examined to study the primary cause of subgrain boundary formation and the conceptual basis of its suppression. Observations include the systematic variation of: facet, cellular, and dendritic features; subgrain boundary directions and spacings; and the stable growth distance as a function of silicon film thickness and energy beam density. A temperature gradient argument based on constitutional supercooling theory has been used to explain these observations. There are indications that an increased thermal gradient at the solidification front can suppress the onset of growth instability for large area, defect free growth of SOI.
AIDS-related Knowledge and Attitude Among General Population in Xixia District of Yinchuan,2006-2008

Objective To understand the AIDS-related knowledge level and attitude change of general population in Xixia district of Yinchuan by using random sampling methods,evaluate the effecacy of AIDS prevention program.Methods A total of 300 residents were randomly collected to carry out the questionnaire survey,with 300 qualified questionnaires withdraw,Compare the awareness rate of AIDS-related knowledge and the attitude change among residents.Results During 2006-2008,the awareness rate of AIDS-related knowledge in Xixia district was 78.7%(80%,66% and 90% respectively).Pairwise comparison,χ2 was 16.783,4.972 and 3.922 respectively,P 0.05.The difference was statistically significant.The attitude to HIV infected person and patients,no discrimination ratio was 35.3%(8%,47% and 51% respectively).Ratio(no discrimination)in 2007 and 2008,compared with 2006,increased significantly,with statistical difference(P 0.0001).Conclusion The awareness rate of AIDS-related knowledge and ratio of no discrimination attitude to infected people and patients in Xixia district during 2006-2008 showed an increasing trend,but the ratio of no discrimination is still not high,further strengthen of AIDS-related knowledge education in general population is needed.
Changes of serum VEGF and Ang-2 in asthmatic children and its clinical significance

Objective: To detect the levels of serum VEGF and Ang-2 in children patients with asthma,and to explore its clinical significance in the occurrence of bronchial asthma.Methods: Children patients with pneumonia or asthma that were treated in outpatient department or inpatients or our hospital from February 2010 to August 2012 were enrolled in this study including 38 asthma cases(asthma group) and 33 pneumonia cases(Pneumonia group).Besides,28 healthy children were also enrolled as control group.Serum levels of VEGF and Ang-2 as well as their changes before and after budesonide treatment were detected.Besides,correlation among serum VEGF and Ang-2 levels were analyzed.Results: The serum VEGF,Ang-2 levels in children with asthma were significantly increased compared with pneumonia group and normal control group.After budesonide treatment,the levels of serum VEGF in children with asthma decreased from(389.1±101.2) pg/ml to(298.0±85.5) pg/mL(P0.05),the levels of Ang-2 in serum decreased from(142.8 ± 46.7) pg/mL to(78.2 ± 28.5) pg/mL.The levels of VEGF and Ang-2 were positively related in children asthma;Conclusion: VEGF and Ang-2 might be used as a marker of the severity of the disease in asthma children,and they may be involved in airway remodeling.
Expression and significance of HOXA10 gene in the eutopic and ectopic endometrium of endometriosis

Objectives To investigate the expression and clinical significance of HOXA10 gene in the eutopic and ectopic endometrium of endometriosis.Mehtods Between Jan.2009 to Aug.2010,30 patients with endometriosis undergoing laparoscopic surgery in Maternal and Children's Hospital of Foshan.Eutopic and ectopic endometrium were obtained.In the mean time,30 patients with benign ovary cyst or tubal infertihty undergoing laparoscopic surgery were selected as controls.Their uterine endometrium were obtained real-time fluorescent quantitation,western blot and immunohistochemistry technique were used to detect mRNA and protein expression of HOXA10 gene in the eutopic endometrium group,ectopic endometrium group and control group.Results The mRNA and protein expression of HOXA10 gene were 0.61 ±0.07 and 0.47 ±0.05 in the eutopic endometrium of endometriosis,0.64 ±0.06 and 0.50 ±0.05 in ectopic endometrium of endometriosis,which were significantly lower than 1.22 ± 0.14 and 1.42 ± 0.14 in control group ( P ＜ 0.01 ).However,the mRNA and protein expression of HOXA 10 between eutopic and ectopic endometrium of endometriosis did not reach statistical difference ( P ＞ 0.05 ).The expression of HOXA10 in eutopic and ectopic endometrium of endometriosis were decreased by immunohistochemistry staining.Conclusion The lower expression of HOXA10 gene in the eutopic and ectopic endometrium of endometriosis might be associated with pathogenesis and infertility of endometriosis. Key words: Endometriosis; Homeodomain proteins; Gene expression
Diffusion: Homogeneous Chemical Reactions

Diffusion rates can be tremendously altered by chemical reactions. Indeed, these alterations are among the largest effects discussed in this book, routinely changing the mass fluxes by orders of magnitude. The effects of a chemical reaction depend on whether the reaction is homogeneous or heterogeneous. This question can be difficult to answer. In well-mixed systems, the reaction is heterogeneous if it takes place at an interface and homogeneous if it takes place in solution. In systems that are not well mixed, diffusion clouds this simple distinction, as detailed in Section 16.1. The effects of chemical reactions are exemplified by the data for ammonia adsorption in water summarized in Fig. 17.0-1. The overall mass transfer coefficient, in cm/sec, is based on a liquid side driving force given in mol/cm 3 . The specific values shown are for a hollow-fiber membrane contactor, though similar values would be obtained in a packed tower or other more conventional apparatus. The different mass transfer coefficients shown in Fig. 17.0-1 represent different forms of ammonia and different rate-controlling steps for mass transfer. At pH above 5, the mass transfer coefficient is small, somewhat less than typical values for liquids. Below pH 4, the mass transfer coefficient rises.
Novel Use of Proteomic Profiles in a Convex-Hull Ensemble Classifier to Predict Gynecological Cancer Patients' Susceptibility to Gastrointestinal Mucositis as Side Effect of Radiation Therapy.

Background: Whole-pelvis radiation therapy is common practice in the post-surgical treatment of cervical and endometrial cancer. Gastrointestinal mucositis is an adverse side effect of radiation therapy, and is a primary concern in patient management. We investigate whether proteomic information obtained from blood samples drawn from patients scheduled to receive radiation therapy for gynecological cancers could be used to predict which patients are most susceptible to radiation-induced gastrointestinal mucositis, in order to improve the individualization of radiation therapy. Methods: We use 132 proteins measured on 17 gynecological cancer patients in a convex-hull-based, selectivevoting ensemble classifier to classify each patient into one of two classes: patients who would not (class 1) or would (class 2) develop gastrointestinal mucositis. We employ 20 repetitions of 10-fold cross-validation to measure classification accuracy. Results: We achieved a 95% confidence interval on average prediction accuracy of (0.711, 0.771) using preradiation proteomic profiles to predict which patients would experience gastrointestinal mucositis. Pathway analysis of the 12 most prominent proteins indicated that they could be assembled into a single interaction network with direct associations. The function associated with the highest number of these 12 proteins was cell-to-cell signaling and interaction. Conclusions: Pre-radiation proteomic profiles have the potential to classify cervical/endometrial cancer patients with high accuracy as to their susceptibility to gastrointestinal mucositis following radiation therapy. Further study of the network of 12 identified proteins is warranted with a larger patient sample to confirm that these proteins are predictive of gastrointestinal mucositis in this patient population.
Impaired cardiac autonomic nervous system function is associated with pediatric hypertension independent of adiposity.

Impaired cardiac autonomic nervous system function is associated with pediatric hypertension independent of adiposity
Great House Architectural Variability Across Time and Space

ABSTRACTThe broad similarities that allow for the definition and recognition of great house architecture at sites throughout the greater San Juan Basin strongly suggest the form is not the product of independent invention. How and why were great houses built in outlier communities? What does the appearance of great house architecture suggest for relationships between outliers and Chaco Canyon, and for the social structure of the outlier communities themselves? As part of my dissertation research (Van Dyke 1998, 1999) I conducted a comparative architectural study designed to address these questions. In this paper, I revisit the original study, using 188 cases from an expanded database developed by participants in the Chaco World meeting. Variables compared among the outlier cases include geographic location, distance from Chaco Canyon, size, room count, kiva/room ratio, and presence/absence of great kivas, roads, earthworks, core-and-veneer masonry, and elevated kivas. Not surprisingly, Bonito style archit...
A Plan Patching Approach to Switchbox Routing

We present a new AI approach to doing switchbox routing. Switchbox routing is the problem of connecting net terminals which are fixed on the boundaries of a rectangular routing area. It can be regarded as a planning problem in which the overall goal is to route the switchbox, and the individual subgoals are to route individual nets. The solution can then be called the completed “route-plan”. Switchbox routing is usually viewed as a constructive process based on a statically ordered set of heuristic rules, which is used to select the next net to route and to dictate how that net is to be routed. If the next net cannot be routed without conflict (overlapping nets in some track), the router quits in failure. Our approach starts at this point and is based on resolving such conflicts by patching the almost-correct route-plan. But this repair process can itself be regarded as a planning problem in which the overall goal is to resolve all of the conflicts, and the individual interacting subgoals are to correct individual conflicts. The solution can then be called the “patch-plan” which patches the route-plan. Because repair is formulated as a planning problem, the same planning architecture used to construct the route-plan can be used to construct the patch-plan. Therefore, we will use the architecture we have developed for our constructive PI-CAD ROUTER to build our reparative PI-CAD PATCHER. The result is a plan to patch another plan which is constructed in a situation-specific, interaction-sensitive manner.
Ventricular Tachycardia in Patients Following Surgery for Congenital Heart Disease

Ventricular tachycardia, and the possible relation of ventricular tachycardia to sudden death, remains one of the most difficult management issues in patients who have previously undergone surgical repair of significant congenital heart defects. The occurrence of sudden death in this patient population is even more devastating when one considers that for the most part, the presenting life-threatening hemodynamic abnormalities in these patients have been successfully managed by surgery, often years or decades before the occurrence of a fatal arrhythmic event. Initially, attention had been focused on the possibility that the development of complete atrioventricular (AV) block might be a possible explanation for sudden death in such patients. However, although AV block is certainly the explanation in a few patients, it has not been implicated in most instances of sudden death. In patients who have undergone major atrial surgery, such as the Mustard or Senning repair for transposition of the great vessels or the Fontan procedure for various forms of single ventricle, atrial flutter with rapid conduction is certainly involved in the etiology of sudden death. 1 2 However, because of the frequent occurrence of premature ventricular complexes, nonsustained and sustained ventricular tachycardia in patients who have undergone complete repair of tetralogy of Fallot and related defects such as double outlet right ventricle, ventricular tachycardia has been implicated in the etiology of sudden death in this patient group. Indeed, it has been reported that postoperative tetralogy of Fallot is the single most common condition seen in children between the ages of 1 and 16 years who have experienced sudden death, 3 although the risk for sudden death is also increased in aortic stenosis, coarctation, and transposition. 4
Perspectives on contemporary lesbian relationships.

This article introduces the special issue on contemporary lesbian relationships. The beginning notes some of the prominent changes that have occurred in the past 15 years in the visibility and positive representation of lesbian couples in our popular U.S. culture. The remainder focuses on identifying and summarizing the primary themes of the special issue, including the implications of changes in marriage rights, the acknowledgment and exploration of the effects of sexual minority stress, and a shift in the framing of research to better reflect the diversity of lesbian relationship experiences.
Reactor Kinetics and Point Kinetics

The point kinetics model can be obtained directly from the space- and time-dependent transport equations. However, these equations are too complicated to be of any practical application. The diffusion approximation, obtained by keeping only the PI terms of the spherical harmonics expansion in the angular variable of the directional flux, is frequently used in neutronic analysis. This chapter discusses reactor characteristics that change because of changing reactivity. A basic approach using a minimum of mathematics has been followed. Emphasis has been placed on distinguishing between prompt and delayed neutrons and showing relationships among reactor variables, keff, period, neutron density, and power level.
Utility of Microdialysis in Infectious Disease Drug Development and Dose Optimization

Adequate drug penetration to a site of infection is absolutely imperative to ensure sufficient antimicrobial treatment. Microdialysis is a minimally invasive, versatile technique, which can be used to study the penetration of an antiinfective agent in virtually any tissue of interest. It has been used to investigate drug distribution and pharmacokinetics in variable patient populations, as a tool in dose optimization, a potential utility in therapeutic drug management, and in the study of biomarkers of disease progression. While all of these applications have not been fully explored in the field of antiinfectives, this review provides an overview of how microdialysis has been applied in various phases of drug development, a focus on the specific applications in the subspecialties of infectious disease (treatment of bacterial, fungal, viral, parasitic, and mycobacterial infections), and developing applications (biomarkers and therapeutic drug management).
Conditioned pain modulation dampens the thermal grill illusion.

Background The thermal grill illusion (TGI) refers to the perception of burning heat and often pain that arises from simultaneous cutaneous application of innocuous warm and cool stimuli. This study utilized conditioned pain modulation (CPM) to help elucidate the TGI's underlying neural mechanisms, including the debated role of ascending nociceptive signals in generating the illusion. Methods To trigger CPM, subjects placed the left hand in noxious cold (6 °C) water before placing the right volar forearm onto a thermal grill. Lower pain and unpleasantness ratings of the grill in this CPM run compared to those in a control run (i.e. 33 °C water) were taken as evidence of CPM. To determine whether CPM reduces noxious heat pain and illusory heat pain equally, an experimental group of subjects rated pain and unpleasantness of a grill consisting of innocuous alternating warm (42 °C) and cool (18 °C) bars, while a control group rated a grill with all bars controlled to a noxious temperature (45 °C). Results CPM produced significant and comparable reductions in pain, unpleasantness and perceived heat of both noxious heat and the TGI. Conclusions This result suggests that the TGI results from signals in nociceptive dorsal horn convergent neurons, since CPM involves descending inhibition with high selectivity for this neuronal population. More broadly, CPM's ability to produce a shift in perceived thermal sensation of both noxious heat and the TGI from ‘hot’ to ‘warm’ implies that nociceptive signals generated by a cutaneous stimulus can contribute to its perceived thermal intensity. Significance Conditioned pain modulation reduces the perceived painfulness, unpleasantness and heat of the thermal grill illusion and noxious heat similarly. The results have important theoretical implications for both types of pain.
Soliton Stability in Multimode Fibers

We numerically investigate the stability of solitons in a multimode fiber in the presence of intermodal nonlinear coupling by solving the coupled nonlinear Schrodinger equations. While individual fundamental and higher order solitons propagating in any mode are stable, simultaneous propagation of solitons in different modes leads to interesting phenomena on account of intermodal nonlinear coupling. Soliton trapping is also observed under certain conditions such that two solitons in different modes travel at the same speed despite considerable intermodal differential group delay between them. Finally the effect on launching the solitons at different wavelengths is investigated.
Presidential Agenda-Setting on the Economy during the “Great Recession”

Presidents are often identified as the most significant agenda-setter in the policy making process. However, agenda-setting theory indicates significant limitations to presidential leadership, particularly under certain policy contexts. In order to assess the presidency’s capacity to lead the systemic agenda in the context of an economic downturn, I analyze President Obama’s public relations efforts on the economy from January 2009 through May 2012. Specifically, I track the amount of attention given the economy in Obama’s public speeches and remarks and assess the degree to which they impacted or responded to media coverage of the economy and public concern for and confidence in the economy at both a weekly and monthly level. The findings suggest that the president’s attention to the economy was largely responsive to shifts in media attention and public opinion on the economy. This was especially the case with regard to the president’s attention to jobs and unemployment. However, Obama’s public leadership efforts on the topics of debt and spending directly impacted media coverage and indirectly affected public opinion on the economy.
Power and sovereignty in hypermedia space: Middle East case studies

For state and non-state actors in the Middle East, the dual imperatives of ontological security and territorial sovereignty has rendered media an important site of contestation, if not conquest. Th...
A qualitative examination of the effects of international counter-drug interdictions.

Abstract Background The purpose of this study is to utilize unique qualitative data to determine the effects of sporadic international drug interdictions on drug trafficking, and to assess whether the responses of drug traffickers align with rational choice theory. Methods Qualitative data obtained from 23 high-level United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) informants, who are embedded in international drug trafficking groups, are examined to identify common responses to drug interdiction operations. Results The findings indicate that sporadic counter-drug interdictions do not a have permanent deterrent effect on transnational drug smuggling operations. However, these types of law enforcement operations produce temporary alterations in drug trafficking, as traffickers adopted a variety of methods to thwart the efforts of law enforcement—often by relying on information acquired from corrupt local law enforcement. The results also indicate that while interdiction operations displaced trafficking activities (temporally, spatially, and methodological), there is little evidence that drug traffickers responded to such operations by moving into new areas (i.e., malign spatial displacement). Conclusion Sporadic international drug interdiction programs do little to deter drug trafficking organizations (DTOs) from engaging in their illicit trade. Instead, DTOs adjust in a calculating manner to these operations to ensure that their illegal products reach consumer marketplaces, which is congruent with the rational choice theoretical perspective.
Mechanisms in rabbit aorta for hyperglycaemia-induced alterations in angiotensin II and norepinephrine effects.

The (Na+, K+)-ATPase activity operative in rabbit aortic intima-media incubated with normal plasma levels of glucose and myo-inositol (70 μmol/l) is decreased when the glucose content of the medium is raised from 5 to 10 mmol/l or higher; this effect is prevented by aldose reductase inhibitors and by raising the myo-inositol content of the medium to 500 μmol/l. The decrease in (Na+, K+)-ATPase activity results from the loss of a component normally regulated (stimulated) by endogenously released adenosine through a receptor that stimulates phosphatidylinositol turnover in a discrete pool. The replenishment of this phosphatidylinositol pool selectively requires myo-inositol transport and is inhibited when increased polyol pathway activity impairs myo-inositol transport at a normal plasma level. Adenosine is a vasodilator, some endothelium-released vasodilators modulate the responses to vasoconstrictors by stimulating an increase in (Na+, K+)-ATPase activity in vascular smooth muscle. Whether adenosine mediates this effect in angiotensin II or norepinephrine-stimulated aorta was examined. Angiotensin II (100 nmol/l) and norepinephrine (1 μmol/l) evoked marked increases in (Na+, K+)-ATPase activity in aortic intima-media incubated with 5 mmol/l glucose and 70 μmol/l myo-inositol, which were inhibited when adenosine deaminase was added or the medium myo-inositol omitted to inhibit myo-inositol transport. Raising the medium glucose to 30 mmol/l inhibited the angiotensin II and norepinephrine evoked increases in (Na+, K+)-ATPase activity, and this was prevented when tolrestat (10 μmol/l) was added or the myo-inositol content of the medium was raised from 70 to 500 μmol/l. Hyperglycaemia causes decreased (Na+, K+)-ATPase activity prevented by aldose reductase inhibitors and by raising plasma myo-inositol by a mechanism which inhibits an adenosine-(Na+, K+)-ATPase regulatory system, which modulates the responses to angiotensin II and norepinephrine in some blood vessels.
The Emotional Stroop Paradigm: Performance as a Function of Stimulus Properties and Self-Reported Mathematics Anxiety

Stroop tasks are considered useful in assessing anxious affect. Although symptomatically mathematics anxiety is similar to other anxiety conditions, demonstrating a Stroop interference effect among individuals with math anxiety has proven difficult. High and low math anxious individuals were administered a Stroop-like card task involving the counting of numerals and letters, along with a standard computer-based Stroop color-naming task using mathematical and neutral control words. On the card task, processing time was significantly longer among high math anxious participants, an effect most pronounced in the numeral condition. Response time did not differ on the standard Stroop color-naming task as a function of anxiety group or word type. Results suggest that interference effects of math anxiety may be a function of inhibitory deficits or excitatory processes (or both) that are compounded when exposed to more salient (i.e. numeric) stimuli. Implications regarding the assessment of mathematics anxiety and Stroop task methodology are discussed.
A quantitative genetic analysis of slow-wave sleep in influenza-infected CXB recombinant inbred mice.

Influenza-infected C57BL/6J mice spend increased amounts of time in slow-wave sleep (SWS) during the dark phase of the circadian cycle compared to healthy mice. In contrast, infected BALB/cByJ mice show a normal or reduced time in SWS, particularly during the light phase. To identify genetic loci with linkage to these traits, we measured sleep in 13 CXB recombinant inbred (RI) strains derived from a cross between C57BL/6ByJ and BALB/cByJ mice. The probability density distribution of sleep patterns of influenza-infected CXB RI mice showed modes that correspond roughly with the parental modes during the dark phase of the circadian cycle and are intermediate or C57BL/6-like during the light phase. These patterns are consistent with the presence of a low number of major effect quantitative trait loci (QTLs). Chromosomal regions with provisional association to strain variation in influenza-induced SWS patterns were identified. In particular, a 10- to 12-cM interval on Chr 6 between D6Mit74 and D6Mit188 contains a QTL (LRS = 16.6 at 1 cM proximal to D6Mit316; genomewide p<.05) that influences the SWS response to influenza infection during the light phase. We have provisionally named this QTL Srilp1 (sleep response to influenza, light phase 1). Candidate genes for mediation of this phenotype include Ghrhr (growth hormone releasing hormone receptor), Crhr2 (corticotropin releasing hormone receptor 2), and Cd8a (an epitope on cytotoxic T lymphocytes). Several other intervals achieved suggestive probability scores that are sufficient to warrant further analysis either with additional RI strains or with F2 panels. The analysis also suggests that dark phase and light phase responses are regulated by different genetic factors.
Best Interest, Harm, God's Will, Parental Discretion, or Utility.

The impassioned and well-reasoned essays in this edition of the journal all agree with two claims: (1) children have moral claims that should be protected and recognized, and (2) we need ongoing di...
Keats’s American Ode

Grant F. Scott considers how other kinds of ‘placing’ in Keats—the order of poems in a volume—both condition poetic practice and work against the settled orthodoxies of reception. Scott examines the ‘truism’ that the Great Odes form a coherent and thematic whole and were composed in a specific order, arguing that the order of the odes’ appearance in the Lamia volume of 1820 in fact divided and dispersed them. Contesting the odes’ status as fetishized lyric commodities, Scott’s chapter pulls ‘Ode to Psyche’ into relief to ‘rescue’ it from the ‘hothouse’ of the Great Odes and ‘transplant it in two other gardens’: the 1820 volume and the 1819 journal letter to Keats’s brother and sister-in-law, George and Georgiana, who had left England for America. The ode, Scott suggests intriguingly, becomes an allegory of place—an ‘allegory of emigration’.