cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Medial artery calcification in ESRD patients is associated with deposition of bone matrix proteins

Medial artery calcification in ESRD patients is associated with deposition of bone matrix proteins. Background In non-ESRD patients, recent studies have demonstrated that the process of vascular calcification resembles developmental osteogenesis. Patients with ESRD are known to have excessive vascular calcification, but this has previously been attributed to the non-cell-mediated process of metastatic calcification. Methods To determine if the calcification observed in patients with ESRD is related to a cell-mediated process, we removed a piece of inferior epigastric artery at the time of renal transplant. Calcium content of the entire vessel was quantified with spiral computed tomography (CT). The vessel was then examined histologically for calcification and the presence of bone matrix proteins by immunohistochemistry, and medial and intimal thickness quantified by histomorphometry. These findings were correlated with demographic, clinical and laboratory values. Results The proximal inferior epigastric artery was obtained from 41 patients undergoing renal transplantation, but two were inadequate for histologic examination. Twenty-seven of the remaining vessels had no evidence of calcification by MacNeal's or Alizarin red pH 4.2 staining, five vessels had mild/moderate calcification, and seven had severe calcification, all in the medial layer. Calcification assessed histologically was closely correlated with calcification score as assessed by spiral CT, normalized for vessel weight ( P = 0.027). Positive immunostaining for the bone matrix proteins osteopontin, type I collagen, bone sialoprotein, and alkaline phosphatase was strongly correlated with calcification (all P ≤ 0.001), as was a history of coronary artery disease ( P P = 0.034). The calcification score by spiral CT correlated with these same factors and the serum phosphorus and calcium × phosphorus product ( P = 0.032 and 0.037). The location of immunostaining for the bone proteins was strongly associated with the presence of calcification. However, positive immunostaining also was observed in association with disorganization of the vascular smooth muscle cells in the medial layer due to deposition of a matrix-like substance, prior to overt calcification. Conclusions In patients with ESRD undergoing renal transplantation, vascular calcification of the medial layer of the inferior epigastric artery is common (44%), can be detected by spiral CT, and is associated with deposition of bone matrix proteins. This implies an active cell-mediated process, raising hope that directed intervention can arrest this process.
Robot, feed thyself: Plugging in to unmodified electrical outlets by sensing emitted AC electric fields

We describe a robot that is able to autonomously plug itself in to standard, unmodified electrical outlets by sensing the 60Hz electric fields emitted from the outlet. The building electrical infrastructure is not modified in any way. Unlike previous powerline localization work, no additional signal is injected in the powerlines—the already present AC power carrier signal in the outlet is used as the localization beacon. This technique is faster, more accurate, and potentially less expensive than previously reported vision-based systems for autonomous plugging in.
Does distraction interfere with fear reduction during exposure? A test among animal-fearful subjects

Theoretical conceptualizations of distraction as an inhibitor of fear reduction during exposure were tested among 60 subjects with marked animal fears. Subjects underwent high or low intensity in vivo exposure in the presence of highly affective slides (high distraction), neutral slides (low distraction), or no slides. Self-reported attention did not differ between the high and low distraction groups; thus, data from these groups were combined in the analyses. The combination of distraction and high exposure intensity was found to interfere both with self-reported fear reduction during exposure and with the pre- to post-exposure behavioral approach tasks; improvement in pre- to post-exposure behavioral approach was impeded also. Distraction had no impact under low intensity exposure conditions. Counter to prediction, return of fear was not evident across groups. Heart rate increased in all groups during exposure, suggesting a possible sensitization effect. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed, and recommendations for future research are provided.
Occupational conditions and workers' sense of community: Variations by gender and race

The literature is reviewed to define a sense of community in the workplace and to identify factors that may foster it. A model is developed and estimated with survey data from a culturally diverse sample of men and women performing lower-level jobs at a medium-sized manufacturing firm. Results of regression analyses are reported that correct for sample selection bias resulting from the lower response rates of minority workers. Findings suggest that well-designed jobs and supportive workplace relationships and policies are important in explaining workers' sense of community, defined as workers' perceptions of mutual commitment between employee and employer. Informal sources of support play a larger role in explaining men's sense of community, while formal sources of support are more important in explaining women's sense of community. Findings further suggest that African American workers, especially women, have a difficult time experiencing a sense of community at work.
Developing a leadership pipeline: the Cleveland Clinic experience

The complexity of health care requires excellent leadership to address the challenges of access, quality, and cost of care. Because competencies to lead differ from clinical or research skills, there is a compelling need to develop leaders and create a talent pipeline, perhaps especially in physician-led organizations like Cleveland Clinic. In this context, we previously reported on a cohort-based physician leadership development course called Leading in Health Care and, in the current report, detail an expanded health care leadership development programme called the Cleveland Clinic Academy (CCA). CCA consists of a broad suite of offerings, including cohort-based learning and ‘a la carte’ half- or full-day courses addressing specific competencies to manage and to lead. Academy attendance is optional and is available to all physicians, nurses, and administrators with the requisite experience. Course selection is guided by competency matrices which map leadership competencies to specific courses. As of December 2012, a total of 285 course sessions have been offered to 6,050 attendees with uniformly high ratings of course quality and impact. During the past 10 years, Cleveland Clinic’s leadership and management curriculum has successfully created a pipeline of health care leaders to fill executive positions, search committees, board openings, and various other organizational leadership positions. Health care leadership can be taught and learned.
Hyperosmotic volume regulation in the gills of the ribbed mussel, Geukensia demissa: rapid accumulation of betaine and alanine.

Abstract The content of betaine and alanine in gills of the ribbed mussel Geukensia demissa increases rapidly following transfer of the tissues from 250 to 1000 mOsm seawater (SW). Increases in alanine, proline and glycine account for most of the increase in the amino acid pool. The betaine content increases from 45 to 150 μmol/g dry weight within 12 h. Transfer of isolated gills from 250 to 1000 mOsm SW results in a temporary cessation of all ciliary activity. Within 20–40 min following transfer, ciliary activity has recovered. Recovery of ciliary activity precedes recovery of tissue hydration. The uric acid content of gills is unchanged by exposure to hyperosmotic media, suggesting that uric acid is not a store of nitrogen for alanine synthesis from pyruvate. In other organisms, the accumulation of betaine in response to hyperosmotic stress is a slow (days to weeks) process that probably involves changes in gene expression. The rapid, large increases in betaine reported here suggest that gene expression is not a factor in volume recovery by euryhaline bivalve tissues exposed to acute hyperosmotic stress.
Onychomycosis in clinical practice: factors contributing to recurrence.

The treatment of onychomycosis has improved in recent years and many patients can now expect a complete and lasting cure. However, for up to 25% of patients, persistent disease remains a problem, thus presenting a particular challenge to the clinician. For these patients, it is obviously important to ensure that a correct diagnosis of onychomycosis has been made, as misdiagnosis will inevitably jeopardize the perception of therapeutic effectiveness. Although onychomycosis accounts for about 50% of all nail diseases seen by physicians, nonfungal causes of similar symptoms include repeated trauma, psoriasis, lichen planus, local tumours vascular disorders and inflammatory diseases. Predisposing factors that contribute to a poor response to topical and/or oral therapy include the presence of a very thick nail, extensive involvement of the entire nail unit, lateral nail disease and yellow spikes. However, poor penetration of systemic agents to the centre of infection, or the inability of topical agents to diffuse between the surface of the nail plate and the active disease below, probably contributes to this. Other factors contributing to recurrence may be related to the patient's family history, occupation, lifestyle or underlying physiology. In addition, patients with concomitant disease (e.g. peripheral vascular disease, diabetes) or patients who are immunosuppressed (e.g. those with human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) are more susceptible to onychomycosis. In the elderly, the prevalence of onychomycosis may be as high as 60%, and increases with age; in this population, physical trauma plays a major role in precipitating recurrence, especially in patients with faulty biomechanics due to underlying arthritis and bone abnormalities. It is also possible that recurrence in some cases is due to early termination of treatment or use of an inappropriate dose, and these possibilities should be eliminated before further investigations are undertaken. There is good evidence to suggest that a combination of oral and topical therapies, when given at the same time, yield excellent clinical outcomes, although there remains a need for more effective topical agents with greater nail penetration and more effective oral antifungal agents.
Biochemical mechanism of cross-resistance to paclitaxel in a mitomycin c-resistant human bladder cancer cell line.

The present study describes the biochemical mechanism(s) of cross-resistance to paclitaxel in a human bladder cancer cell line (J82/MMC-2), which is >9-fold more resistant to mitomycin C (MMC) than parental cells (J82/WT). The IC50 values for paclitaxel in J82/WT and J82/MMC-2 cell lines were 0.7±0.03 and 2.8±0.7 μM, respectively (P<0.05). Thus, the J82/MMC-2 cell line exhibited 4-fold cross-resistance to paclitaxel compared with J82/WT. Intracellular accumulation of [3H]paclitaxel was comparable in J82/WT and J82/MMC-2 cell lines. There were no qualitative or quantitative differences between the J82/WT and J82/MMC-2 cell lines in terms of their α-tubulin and β-tubulin contents. Paclitaxel-induced apoptosis could not be detected in either cell line over a wide range of drug concentrations. These results indicate that cross-resistance to paclitaxel in the J82/MMC-2 cell line is not linked to reduced drug accumulation, increased drug efflux, alterations in tubulin content or reduced paclitaxel-induced apoptosis. Paclitaxel-induced DNA strand breakage, however, determined by alkaline elution, was markedly lower in the J82/MMC-2 cell line than in J82/WT. These results suggest that paclitaxel cross-resistance in J82/MMC-2 may be attributed to reduced paclitaxel-induced DNA strand breakage. The precise mechanism of reduced paclitaxel-induced DNA strand breakage in J82/MMC-2 cell line relative to J82/WT cells, however, remains to be elucidated.
Local impact damage and erosion mechanisms in WC-6wt.%Co alloys

Abstract The erosion by Al 2 O 3 particles of WC-6wt.%Co alloys with WC grain size in the range 0.57–3.25 μm was determined as a function of impinging particle size (63–405 μm), velocity (35–93 m s −1 ) and angle of impact (20°–90°). The angle at which the maximum in erosion rate occurred decreased from 90° as the particle size and velocity increased and the WC grain size decreased. Scanning electron microscopy observations revealed that the erosion mode depended on the relative size of the impact crater with respect to the WC grain size. When the crater encompassed less than 10 WC grains, the erosion mode was of the brittle type; when it encompassed more than 100 WC grains it had the characteristics of the ductile type. The principal material removal mechanism in the brittle mode was by cracking and crushing of the WC grains; that in the ductile mode by plastic deformation and fracture of the binder phase, the WC grains remaining relatively intact. Some plastic deformation of the WC grains occurred in both modes. The results for the ductile mode were in accord with a modification of the plastic indentation model, and those for the brittle mode with the elastic-plastic fracture models. Fragmentation of the impacting particles occurred and its magnitude and significance are discussed.
Simulation of the Pressure Field Near a Jet by Randomly Distributed Vortex Rings

Fluctuations of the pressure field in the vicinity of a jet are simulated numerically by a flow model consisting of axially symmetric vortex rings with viscous cores submerged in a uniform stream. The time interval between the shedding of successive vortices is taken to be a random variable with a probability distribution chosen to match that from experiments. It is found that up to 5 diameters downstream of the jet exit, statistics of the computed pressure field are in good agreement with experimental results. Statistical comparisons are provided for the overall sound pressure level, the peak amplitude, and the Strouhal number based on the peak frequency of the pressure signals.
Some Circular Regions of Convergence for Branched Continued Fractions of a Special Form

For branched continued fractions of a special form, we obtain circular regions of convergence. These regions are related to the multidimensional generalizations of some well-known theorems (W. Leighton, H. S. Wall, W. J. Thron, L. J. Lange, J. Mc Laughlin, and N. J. Wyshinski) on twin convergence regions for continued fractions. In the case where a branched continued fraction is transformed into a continued fraction ( N = 1 ), the obtained circular regions can of convergence be wider (under certain conditions imposed on the parameters) than some known twin convergence regions for continued fractions. An important place in the theory of continued fractions is occupied by twin convergence regions. Twin convergence regions are called pairs of regions E 1 ,E 2 of the complex plane such that the conditions a 2k−1 ∈E 1 and a 2k ∈E 2 , k ≥1 , ensure the convergence of the fraction k=1
Direction in problem solving.

(1949). “Direction” in Problem Solving. The Journal of Psychology: Vol. 27, No. 2, pp. 331-345.
Transaortic Cannulation for Balloon Pumping: Report of a Patient Undergoing Closed Chest Decannulation

A technique is described for introduction of an intraaortic balloon (for circulatory augmentation) through the transverse aorta using a crimped Dacron arterial graft brought out through a lateral skin incision. When balloon pumping is discontinued, the balloon catheter is withdrawn through the percutaneous graft without reopening the chest. The graft is amputated and buried without ill effect.
Mapping contacts between gRNA and mRNA in trypanosome RNA editing

All guide RNAs (gRNAs) identified to date have defined 54 anchor sequences, guiding sequences and a nonencoded 34 uridylate tail. The 54 anchor is required for in vitro editing and is thought to be responsible for selection and binding to the pre-edited mRNA. Little is known, however, about how the gRNAs are used to direct RNA editing. Utilizing the photo-reactive crosslinking agent, azidophenacyl (APA), attached to the 54or 34-terminus of the gRNA, we have begun to map the structural relationships between the different defined regions of the gRNA with the pre-edited mRNA. Analyses of crosslinked conjugates produced with a 54-terminal APA group confirm that the anchor of the gRNA is correctly positioning the interacting molecules. 34 Crosslinks (X-linker placed at the 34-end of a U10 tail) have also been mapped for three different gRNA/ mRNA pairs. In all cases, analyses indicate that the U-tail can interact with a range of nucleotides located upstream of the first edited site. It appears that the U-tail prefers purine-rich sites, close to the first few editing sites. These results suggest that the U-tail may act in concert with the anchor to melt out secondary structure in the mRNA in the immediate editing domain, possibly increasing the accessibility of the editing complex to the proper editing sites.
Two Time-Scaled Battery Model Identification With Application to Battery State Estimation

Electrified propulsion systems have now become an increasingly popular option for automotive companies to meet the more stringent emissions standards. A well-designed battery state estimation (BSE) system, which includes state-of-charge and state-of-health estimation, is one of the most important aspects of a successful electrified propulsion system design. Among different methods, model-based state estimation has proven to be very successful in their accuracy and implementability. A relatively newer approach to model-based BSE is to identify the battery model parameters (typically a low-order control-oriented model) in real time. This allows the battery model parameter to adjust to changing characteristics of the battery, and thus further improving the robustness of the design. However, standard identification algorithms used have very limited capability in performing this identification successfully due to the frequency response characteristics of the battery. In this brief, we describe a two time-scaled battery model parameter identification method, where the slower and faster battery dynamics are identified separately. Compared with standard approach to real-time battery model identification, where no such separation is made, this method can generate a model whose frequency response is much closer to that of the actual battery. Furthermore, this method uses the standard least squares regression method, which can be easily implemented in real time in the form of recursive least squares. Using this identification method, we show how battery SoC can be estimated. Laboratory battery cell data is used to illustrate the difference between this method and the more standard approach. Then, battery pack collected from a test vehicle is used to demonstrate the SoC estimation capability.
Nitric Oxide and Hydrogen Cyanide Formation in Laminar Methane/Air Diffusion Flames

Abstract Nitric oxide and hydrogen cyanide concentration distributions established in an unseeded, laminar, atmospheric methane-air diffusion flame have been analyzed in order to gain insight into the role nitrogen-containing species play in influencing NO formation in such flames. The experimental data indicate that HCN and NO formation are strongly dependent on the local stoichiometry within the flame region. Cyanide formation occurs only within the fuel-rich luminous flame core, presumably via reaction between hydrocarbon radicals and molecular nitrogen or nitric oxide. The cyanide species are subsequently partially converted to nitric oxide on the fuel-lean side of the primary reaction zone, contributing 15-30 percent of the total nitric oxide production by the flame. The nitric oxide concentration profiles peak on the fuel-lean side of the flame in the zone where the thermal production of NO by the extended Zeldovich mechanism occurs.
Quality-driven geospatial data integration

Accurate and efficient integration of geospatial data is an important problem with applications in areas such as emergency response and urban planning. Some of the key challenges in supporting large-scale geospatial data integration are automatically computing the quality of the data provided by a large number of geospatial sources and dynamically providing high quality answers to the user queries based on a quality criteria supplied by the user. We describe a framework called the Quality-driven Geospatial Mediator (QGM) that supports efficient and accurate integration of geospatial data from a large number of sources. The key contributions of our framework are: (1) the ability to automatically estimate the quality of data provided by a source by using the information from another source of known quality, (2) representing the quality of data provided by the sources in a declarative data integration framework, and (3) a query answering technique that exploits the quality information to provide high quality geospatial data in response to user queries. Our experimental evaluation using over 1200 real-world sources shows that QGM can accurately estimate the quality of geospatial sources. Moreover, QGM provides better quality data in response to the user queries compared to the traditional data integration systems and does so with lower response time.
Bearing Her Secret: Mary Elizabeth Braddon's Aurora Floyd

Were the sketch made from a man's point of view, its openness would at least be less repulsive. The peculiarity of it in England is, that it is oftenest made from the woman's side-that it is women who describe these sensuous raptures-that this intense appreciation of flesh and blood, this eagerness of physical sensation, is represented as the natural sentiment of English girls.-Margaret Oliphant HE SUBGENRE OF THE SENSATION NOVEL FREQUENTLY USES AS A PLOT device the revelation of dreadful secrets, secrets that underwrite Victorian domestic ideology. One such secret is that Victorian domestic ideology is founded on the abjection 1 of the female body by both men and women. This is the secret that Mary Elizabeth Braddon's novels reveal. The male characters of Aurora Floyd and Lady Audley's Secret, Talbot Bulstrode and Robert Audley, reflect domestic ideology by constructing the female characters, Aurora and Lady Audley, as mysteriously dreadful powers of horror. This phantasy, already provided by the Symbolic, allows them to establish their masculine identity by mastering the female characters' secrets. Aurora Floyd dismantles the femme fatale myth of women as powers of horror, by examining the male characters' reactions to Aurora. The fact that this dark heroine, suspected because she has dark hair and eyes, turns out to be innocent, suggests that the male characters in this novel create the myth that women possess dreadful, hidden secrets in order to secure their identity by positing Aurora as being a mysterious terror of power they can then detect. The secret they discover is that the dark
Neuropsychological dysfunction in patients with end-stage pulmonary disease: lung transplant evaluation.

There has been a relative absence of studies that have examined the neuropsychological profiles of potential lung transplant candidates. Neuropsychological data are presented for 134 patients with end-stage pulmonary disease who were being evaluated as potential candidates for lung transplantation. Neuropsychological test results indicated that a significantly greater proportion of the patients exhibited impaired performances on a number of Selective Reminding Test (SRT) tasks as compared to the expected population frequency distributions for these measures. The highest frequencies of impairment were observed on the SRT’s Immediate Free Recall (46.43%), Long-term Retrieval (41.67%), and Consistent Long-term Retrieval (51.19%) variables. On the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2)/Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-Adolescent (MMPI-A), patients’ mean clinical profile revealed elevations on Scales 1 (Hypochondriasis) and 3 (Conversion Hysteria). This profile indicated that they were experiencing an array of symptomatology ranging from somatic complaints to lethargy and fatigue, and that they may have been functioning at a reduced level of efficiency. Findings are discussed in light of patients’ end-stage pulmonary disease and factors possibly contributing to their neuropsychological test performances. Implications for clinical practice and future research are also provided.
Employment of Substandard Antiemetic Prophylaxis in Recent Trials of Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting

OBJECTIVETo determine the prevalence of substandard antiemetic therapy among recently published trials conducted in patients with cancer who received emetogenic chemotherapy.DATA SOURCESA MEDLINE search was conducted (2000–July 2004) using the key words 5-HT3 antagonists, ondansetron, granisetron, dolasetron, tropisetron, ramosetron, palonosetron, NK-1 antagonists, and aprepitant.STUDY SELECTION AND DATA EXTRACTIONall antiemetic trials in patients receiving chemotherapy that were published from January 2000 to July 2004 were evaluated. Standard prophylactic antiemetic therapy was derived from contemporary antiemetic guidelines published by oncology professional organizations and expert panels. The number of patients and studies in which patients received standard and substandard antiemetic therapy was determined for both the acute and delayed phases of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV). Separate determinations were made for severely and moderately emetogenic chemotherapy. The annual percenta...
Secondary Special Educators: Perspectives of Preservice Preparation and Satisfaction

This study addressed special education teachers' perspectives of secondary special education for students with mild mental impairment and learning disabilities. Secondary special education teachers responded to a survey regarding teacher preparation and teacher satisfaction. Results from the study suggested that changes need to be made to preservice preparation, as a low percentage of teachers had experience working with secondary special education students prior to their first position. Changes in preservice preparation are also necessary to resolve the lower levels of satisfaction teachers reported for programs serving students with mild mental impairment than those serving students with learning disabilities. Overall issues of secondary special education preparation need to continue to be examined.
An Alternative Approach to Teaching Microbial Diversity

An alternative approach to teaching microbial diversity was designed to enhance learning of important concepts in microbiology, increase retention of content, improve microbiology-related skill sets, and positively influence student interest in and disposition toward the natural sciences.
Pairagon: a highly accurate, HMM-based cDNA-to-genome aligner

Motivation: The most accurate way to determine the intron–exon structures in a genome is to align spliced cDNA sequences to the genome. Thus, cDNA-to-genome alignment programs are a key component of most annotation pipelines. The scoring system used to choose the best alignment is a primary determinant of alignment accuracy, while heuristics that prevent consideration of certain alignments are a primary determinant of runtime and memory usage. Both accuracy and speed are important considerations in choosing an alignment algorithm, but scoring systems have received much less attention than heuristics. Results: We present Pairagon, a pair hidden Markov model based cDNA-to-genome alignment program, as the most accurate aligner for sequences with high- and low-identity levels. We conducted a series of experiments testing alignment accuracy with varying sequence identity. We first created ‘perfect’ simulated cDNA sequences by splicing the sequences of exons in the reference genome sequences of fly and human. The complete reference genome sequences were then mutated to various degrees using a realistic mutation simulator and the perfect cDNAs were aligned to them using Pairagon and 12 other aligners. To validate these results with natural sequences, we performed cross-species alignment using orthologous transcripts from human, mouse and rat. We found that aligner accuracy is heavily dependent on sequence identity. For sequences with 100% identity, Pairagon achieved accuracy levels of >99.6%, with one quarter of the errors of any other aligner. Furthermore, for human/mouse alignments, which are only 85% identical, Pairagon achieved 87% accuracy, higher than any other aligner. Availability: Pairagon source and executables are freely available at
EARS buoy applications by LADC: II. 3-D seismic airgun array characterization

In September 2007 the Littoral Acoustic Demonstration Center (LADC), a consortium of University and Navy scientists, conducted an experiment in the northwest Gulf of Mexico to measure the three-dimensional acoustic field of the primary arrival from a seismic airgun array. The water depth was approximately 1500 m. The acoustic measurements were made by Generation 2 4-channel EARS (Environmental Acoustic Recording System) buoys developed by the Naval Oceanographic Office (NAVOCEANO), with each channel capable of measuring to 25 kHz. A total of 48 hydrophones were deployed on 3 moorings at 20 different depths. At each depth there was a sensitive and desensitized phone, the latter used to prevent clipping. Eight hydrophones (four pairs) were ship-deployed near the surface. A dedicated source ship, the M/V Fairfield ENDEAVOR, supplied almost all the shots, although the M/V Veritas VANTAGE, which was conducting a survey in the area, provided a few lines of opportunity. The M/V CAPE HATTERAS was used to deploy, manage, and recover the receiving hydrophone arrays, as well as to conduct all environmental measurements. It also deployed and provided communication and control for the Ultra Short BaseLine Localization (USBL) system and a single Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP), which were used to give accurate hydrophone positions during the experiment. About 3.5 TB of data were collected.
A directionality based location discovery scheme for wireless sensor networks

A sensor network is a large ad hoc network of densely distributed sensors that are equipped with low power wireless transceivers. Such networks can be applied for cooperative signal detection, monitoring, and tracking, and are especially useful for applications in remote or hazardous locations. This paper addresses the problem of location discovery at the sensor nodes, which is one of the central design challenges in sensor networks. We present a new method by which a sensor node can determine its location by listening to wireless transmissions from three or more fixed beacon nodes. The proposed method is based on an angle-of-arrival estimation technique that does not increase the complexity or cost of construction of the sensor nodes. We present the performance of the proposed method obtained from computer simulations.
Shortest Link Scheduling with Power Control under Physical Interference Model

Shortest link scheduling (SLS) in multihop wireless networks under physical interference model is notoriously hard to resolve and been studied only recently by a few works. Most of the obtained approximation bounds grow linearly with the number of links, and many are only valid with single-hop wireless networks, and some claimed approximation bounds are even false. This paper conducts a rigorous algorithmic study of SLS with power control under the physical interference model. We develop a polynomial $O\left(\beta\ln\alpha\right) $-approximation algorithm for SLS, where $\alpha$ is the independence number and \ $\beta$ is the power diversity.
Patient Positioning; Incision/Port Placement

Positioning, incision, and port placement are critical to the safety and effectiveness of radical prostatectomy either open or robotic. For both approaches, there are variations in positioning that are acceptable and provider-dependent. A uniform feature of robotic positioning is a steep Trendelenburg position that mandates careful attention to securing and padding the patient. There are important physiological effects of Trendelenburg position that with pneumoperitoneum require both anesthesia and surgeon attention. Open or radical retropubic prostatectomy is performed supine with or without table flexion, and attention to patient padding is also critical. Certain patient factors may impact the safety of positioning including obesity and cardiopulmonary disease. Port placement for robotic surgery varies but there are general guidelines to port placement that minimize clashing of robotic arms and enable access to the membranous urethra. The incision for open surgery is standardized to the lower abdomen to enable access to the extraperitoneal space, though skin incisions may vary.
Modelling of Failure Time Distributions for Interconnects Due to Stress Voiding and Electromigration

A status report is given on a comprehensive modeling project aimed at predicting failure time distributions of interconnect lines. We discuss our novel approach to calculate the evolution of stresses in lines using elastic response functions. It is argued that this approach makes it possible to model the stress and damage evolution in a large ensemble of lines efficiently so that statistically meaningful failure time distributions can be generated. The elastic response functions enable us also to derive a generalized Korhonen equation which includes the effects of mass transport at remote locations. Basic features of this equation are demonstrated with a one-dimensional implementation and its results are compared with the classical Korhonen [8, 9, 10] model.
Intraspecific Variation in Chlaenius Tomentosus (Say) (Coleoptera, Carabidae)

Measurements of this species vary allometrically, the head and apical width of the pronotum being proportionally smaller in larger specimens. C. amplus Leconte and C. tomentosus lacustrinus Casey, based on individuals of extreme sizes, are considered to be full synonyms of C. tomentosus. Though there is a very wide overlap, southern specimens average considerably larger than northern ones. This difference may be correlated with climatic differences; and possibly year-to-year climatic fluctuations in a given area might cause fluctuations in the average size, and consequently the shape, of the beetle.
Acute Injuries of the Cervical Spine

Care of the patient with spinal cord injury is stressed. Successive steps in management are presented beginning at the scene of injury and proceeding to the emergency room and then to the hospital ward. Diagnostic procedures are discussed, and emphasis is placed on prevention of pressure sores, initial treatment of the paralytic bladder and bowel, and prevention of deformities.
BRUGADA SYNDROME-A CASE REPORT

Brugada syndrome is a type of arrhythmia disorder, which is characterised by abnormal electrocardiogram (ECG) findings and an increased risk of sudden cardiac death. The most frequent sign is a persistent ST elevation in the electrocardiographic leads V1-V3 with a right bundle branch block (RBBB).We present a case of 12 years old healthy child, without any complains until then. He had 2 episodes of collapse/ syncope, which lasted long and spontaneously disappeared. The collapses were provoked by physical activity. On ECG we found sinus rhythm 62 bpm, RBBB (right bundle brunch block) and Brugada signs in V2 and V3 channel-ST elevation ≥ 2 mm. The child was sent in electrophysiological centre abroad where the electrophysiological study was performed. They did not found any accessory pathway. The atrioventricular (AV) conduction was normal. Long lasting polymorphic ventricular tachycardia/fibrillation was induced with programed stimulation with 3 extrastimuli in right ventricular outflow tract. Performing one defibrillation the rhythm turned in sinus way. Then they performed ECG with translocation of electrodes V1-3 in 2nd intercostal space and the Brugada I type findings was discovered. After confirming of presence of Brugada type -1 syndrome the implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) was applied on child heart.
Voltammetric characterization of ion-ionophore complexation using thin polymeric membranes: asymmetric thin-layer responses.

Selective ion–ionophore complexation in a polymeric membrane is crucial to various sensing applications. In this work, we report on a novel voltammetric approach based on a thin polymeric membrane to determine the stoichiometry and overall formation constant of an ion–ionophore complex. With this approach, a ∼1.6 μm thick ionophore-doped membrane contacts an aqueous solution containing an excess amount of a target ion to facilitate voltammetric ion transfer across the membrane/water interface. Advantageously, the resultant thin-layer voltammogram shows no diffusional effect, which simplifies the theoretical modeling and quantitative analysis of the voltammogram. We predict theoretically that the complexation stoichiometry affects not only the peak current and peak potential of the thin-layer voltammogram, but also the symmetry of the peak shape with respect to the peak potential. Experimentally, a symmetric voltammogram ensures the formation of a 1:1 complex for a Na+-selective ionophore. By contrast, the...
Valved versus nonvalved cannula small-gauge pars plana vitrectomy for repair of retinal detachments with Grade C proliferative vitreoretinopathy

PURPOSE Valved cannulas are a recent addition to small-gauge pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) and provide stable intraocular fluidics. The goal of this study was to compare outcomes and postoperative complication rates of valved vs nonvalved cannula small-gauge PPV for repair of retinal detachments (RDs) complicated by Grade C proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR). METHODS A retrospective chart review of 364 consecutive eyes with either valved or nonvalved cannula PPV for RD repair was performed. The primary outcomes were single surgery and final anatomic success and change in best-corrected visual acuity for repair of RDs complicated by Grade C PVR. RESULTS We identified 36 eyes in the valved group and 31 eyes in the nonvalved group with Grade C PVR RD. The single surgery success was 83% vs 77% (P=0.555) and the final anatomic success was 94% vs 87% (P=0.404) in the valved vs nonvalved eyes, respectively. The mean final visual acuity gain was -0.36 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (logMAR; approximate Early Treatment Diabetes Retinopathy Study [ETDRS] score =17 letters) in valved eyes vs -0.33 logMAR (approximate ETDRS score =16 letters) in nonvalved eyes (P=0.81). Postoperative complication rates including postoperative day 1 hypotony, hypertony, and anterior chamber fibrin formation; postoperative retention of intraocular or subretinal perfluorocarbon liquid; and subsequent epiretinal membrane peel were not statistically different between groups. CONCLUSION Valved cannula PPV yields equivalent visual acuity and anatomic outcomes without increased postoperative complication rates compared to traditional nonvalved cannula PPV for Grade C PVR-associated RD repair.
The Democratization of Energy

The electricity industry is changing in dramatic ways. Most significantly, as demonstrated by the Obama Administration's Clean Power Plan, the country is witnessing the merger of energy and environmental regulation. Historically, energy regulation was driven by the need to produce more power for economic growth. By contrast, environmental regulation attended to the pollution of the environment. Production of energy depends upon the use of natural resources, and throughout the fuel cycle from extraction and transportation to the burning and disposal of those resources, the environment is directly affected. Most dramatically, greenhouse gas emissions present climate change challenges. In order to effectively address those challenges and transition to a clean energy future, it is necessary that we rethink our energy and environmental politics. This Article argues that we are experiencing change in energy/environmental politics and as a consequence of that change, decisions are being decentralized and consumers have a greater input into their energy choices. This expansion of decision making constitutes the democratization of energy.
Traveling to the USA for Fertility Services: Push and Pull Factors

This chapter uses the USA as a case study to illustrate factors contributing to the phenomenon of reproductive tourism. Martin describes how policies regarding reproductive technologies create biopolitical regimes that enable or inhibit intended parents from accessing the services they desire. This chapter applies the typology of push and pull factors to analyze the patterns and directions of reproductive tourism from one biopolitical regime to another. Martin discusses such push factors as restrictive policies that prohibit services or limit access, and pull factors that include a country’s reputation for effective health care and legal clarity. By using the typology of push and pull factors, Martin explains how the USA became a global destination for surrogacy, egg vending, pre-implementation genetic diagnosis, and sex selection.
Voluntary Membership and Well-Being of Nonprofit, Government, and Business Employees

While the benefits the volunteers offer nonprofit organizations are substantial, they can also cause problems for these groups. In an environment where people willingly donate their time and energy to a cause that they ostensibly support, why is disruptive behavior so common? This ethnographic study of volunteers at an animal shelter identifies the factors that lead to problematic behavior. The paper argues that disruptions occur when there is a mismatch between the needs of the volunteer and the needs of the organization and because of structural conditions that lead to uncertainty among volunteers. These findings shed light on volunteer behavior broadly and present the opportunity to address disruptive behavior. As a result, the benefits the volunteers provide for an organization can be maximized.
Compressive Sensing and Vector Quantization based image compression

The images collected by many remote sensing systems need to be transmitted wirelessly to the ground station for further analysis. These small, battery-powered remote sensing systems suffer from limited communication bandwidth and computational resources. To address these two limitations, we have developed a novel compression technique by combining Compressive Sensing (CS), Vector Quantization (VQ) and Arithmetic Coding (AC). We have applied it to compress images and videos, and compared its performance with the industry standard JPEG/MPEG compression schemes. Our results indicate that our algorithm provides better quality images at the same compression rate and eleven times faster compression of images on the transmit side as compared to JPEG/MPEG techniques. The details of our algorithm and comparison results with JPEG are provided in this paper.
Gulliver's Travels: Michael Moore the Explorer in Who to Invade Next

AbstractAmerica is identified as a nation of immigrants. These immigrants are thought to be the source of its subcultures. It is also a nation of individual explorers and inventors. Their activities are also a source of diverse subcultures. Many notable movies have made heroes of such innovators in different fields of endeavor. Michael Moore's movie Who to Invade Next is a documentary about his trips to other countries in search of more successful institutions of work, education, health services, and incarceration. The premise of the movie is Moore has come to invade the other countries and steal the secrets of their successes in order to reform similar American institutions. Moore finds only mild amusement rather than amazement from his “victims.” He discovers the advances he attributes to other countries were originally American innovations, adopted in other societies but abandoned in America, which has become strangely timid about progress and reform.
A spectroscopic membrane permeation cell for in-situ infrared-reflection absorption spectroscopic analysis of membrane surfaces and simultaneous measurement of trans-membrane gas permeation rates

Abstract In this work, we describe a spectroscopic membrane permeation cell that we have designed and fabricated to enable—for the first time—the surface of metal membranes to be analyzed by infrared-reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRAS) while simultaneously measuring the rate of hydrogen permeation across the membrane under realistic permeation conditions. As a proof-of-concept, we demonstrate that the permeation cell can (1) accurately measure the rate of H 2 permeation across a 25 µm-thick Pd foil membrane, (2) detect sub-monolayer coverages of CO on the membrane surface in the 333–533 K temperature range, and (3) measure the rate of H 2 permeation across the membrane while simultaneously detecting surface-adsorbed CO during exposure to H 2 /CO gas mixtures at 533 K. IRAS spectra recorded during exposure to H 2 /CO gas mixtures at 533 K indicate that CO dissociates on the membrane surface, and C–H bonds are formed, which modify the surface adsorption properties of the membrane and result in irreversible losses in the H 2 flux across the membrane. With this spectroscopic membrane permeation cell, it is possible to correlate microscopic surface processes to macroscopic rates of permeation across the membrane, which will enable the rational design of new membrane materials that are resistant to deactivation.
CORONALS, CONSONANT CLUSTERS, AND THE CODA CONDITION

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews coronals, consonant clusters, and the coda condition. It has often been observed that coronal consonants can occur in positions in syllables where consonants with other places of articulation cannot occur. It has been argued that geminates and sequences of consonants that include a coronal have in common the fact that only one set of Place features is needed for the cluster. In the case of geminates, these features are shared; in the case of a cluster containing a coronal, the non-coronal has Place features and the coronal does not. The special freedom of occurrence enjoyed by coronal consonants in many languages has been argued to result from their lack of Place features. Languages restrict the occurrence of Place features, and the result is that unspecified consonants occur more freely, surfacing as geminate or homorganic if doubly linked or as default coronals or laryngeals otherwise. Languages may place these restrictions on codas, such as Japanese and Finnish, or on clusters.
The Critical Effect of Hydration on the THz Signatures of Biomolecules and Bioparticles

Here we present an original study of the effect of hydration on THz absorption signatures in biomolecules (lactose monohydrate and biotin) and bioparticles (Bacillus thuringiensis and Bacillus cereus spores). We observe a “red-shift” in center frequency with increasing hydration in all samples, consistent with Lorentzian-oscillator behavior. But the effect of hydration on linewidth is ambiguous, sometimes increasing the linewidth (consistent with Lorentzian behavior) and sometimes decreasing the linewidth.
Theorizing mathematics instruction using ritual: tensions in teaching fractions in a fifth grade classroom

This study offers an account of ways in which ritual (McCloskey, 2014) serves as a lens for identifying societal and cultural patterns related to mathematics teaching and learning in present-day US classrooms. We use data from an ethnographic study of a fifth grade mathematics classroom in which a student teacher and a mentor teacher shared responsibility for teaching a fractions unit. Using the analytic framework of ritual, we highlight the cultural nature of teaching, learning, and learning to teach mathematics. We use classroom observations and interview data to identify instances of each of the four aspects of ritual and draw on Gregg (1995) to suggest cultural patterns at work in this classroom. Our analysis and interpretation illuminate aspects of the complexity of teaching, learning, and learning to teach mathematics.