cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Loss of SMARCB1 Expression Confers Poor Prognosis to Sinonasal Undifferentiated Carcinoma.

Background Due to the diverse histopathologic features and variable survival rates seen in sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma (SNUC), it is likely that this diagnostic entity is comprised of a heterogonous group of morphologically undifferentiated tumors. As advancements in molecular testing have led to a better understanding of tumor biology, it has become increasingly evident that SNUC may actually encompass several tumor subtypes with different clinical behavior. As a result, it is also likely that all SNUC patients cannot be treated in the same fashion. Recent investigations have identified loss of the tumor suppressor SMARCB1 (INI1) expression in a subset of undifferentiated sinonasal tumors and extrasinonasal tumors and, studies have suggested that this genetic aberration may be a poor prognostic marker. The objective of this study was to identify differential expression of SMARCB1 in SNUC and to analyze and compare the survival outcomes in SNUC patients with and without SMARCB1 expression. Methods All cases of undifferentiated or poorly differentiated neoplasms of the sinonasal tract treated between 2007 and 2018 at a single tertiary care institution were selected. All cases of SNUC were tested for SMARCB1 status by immunohistochemistry (IHC). Clinical parameters were analyzed using Student's t-test and Fischer's test. Kaplan–Meier methods were used to estimate survival durations, while comparison between both the subgroups was done using the log-rank test. Statistical analysis was performed with the use of SPSS software, Version 25 (IBM, New York, NY, United States). Results Fourteen cases of SNUC were identified. Approximately two-thirds (64%; n = 9) of patients were male and the majority (79%; n = 11) were between fifth to seventh decade. Skull base and orbital invasion were seen in 79% (n = 11) and 93% (n = 13) of cases, respectively. Fifty-seven percent of tumors (n = 8) retained SMARCB1 expression by IHC (SR-SNUC), while the remaining 43% (n = 6) showed loss of SMARCB1 expression and, thus, were considered as SMARCB1-deficient (SD-SNUC). Although clinicopathological features and treatment modalities were similar, SD-SNUC showed poorer (OS: p = 0.07; disease free survival [DFS]: p = 0.02) overall survival (OS) and DFS on Kaplan–Meier curves. Additionally, SD-SNUC showed higher recurrence (75 vs. 17%) and mortality (67 vs. 14%) (hazard rate = 8.562; p = 0.05) rates. Both OS (28.82 ± 31.15 vs. 53.24 ± 37.50) and DFS durations (10.62 ± 10.26 vs. 43.79 ± 40.97) were consistently worse for SD-SNUC. Five-year survival probabilities were lower for SD-SNUC (0.33 vs. 0.85). Conclusion SNUC represents a heterogeneous group of undifferentiated sinonasal malignancies. Based on the status of SMARCB1 expression, the two subgroups SD-SNUC and SR-SNUC appear to represent distinct clinical entities, with loss of SMARCB1 expression conferring an overall worse prognosis.
As ruínas urbanas de Daniel Galera

Este ensaio propoe examinar a cartografia da desilusao que transparece nas obras do escritor porto alegrense Daniel Galera. Se analisara dois dos seus romances, Maos de cavalo (2006) e Meia-noite e vinte (2016). Em ambas obras encontramos protagonistas jovens e desiludidos, que transitam pelas ruas da capital gaucha. Em ambos romances se pode ler este trânsito como uma metafora de uma busca por um projeto de futuro – projeto este que nao se cumpre de forma satisfatoria. O tom melancolico dos dois romances sugere uma falta de horizontes utopicos tanto no plano pessoal, como no social e politico. Para os protagonistas de ambos textos, a ideia de futuro se apresenta limitada, atrelada a uma cartografia urbana igualmente truncada tanto geografica como simbolicamente. O ensaio propoe, portanto, a leitura do espaco urbano contemporâneo como o de uma territorialidade (Storey) da crise – do sujeito e do social.
Examining strategies to increase student evaluation of teaching completion rates

Student evaluations of teaching (SETs) can provide valuable assessment information. However, online administration of SETs has corresponded with lower SET completion rates. We examined perceptions ...
International electives in neurological surgery training: a survey of program directors from Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education–approved neurological surgery programs

Objective The burden of neurosurgical disease in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) has emerged as a significant factor in global health. Additionally, calls have been growing for first-world neurosurgeons to find ways to help address the international need. Allowing residents to pursue international elective opportunities in LMICs can help alleviate the burden while also providing unique educational opportunities. However, pursuing international work while in residency requires overcoming significant logistical and regulatory barriers. To better understand the general perspectives, perceived barriers, and current availability of international rotations, a survey was sent out to program directors at Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)-approved residencies. Methods An anonymous survey was sent to all program directors at ACGME-approved residencies. The survey included branch points designed to separate programs into program directors with an existing international rotation, those interested in starting an international rotation, and those not interested in starting an international rotation. All participants were asked about the perceived value of international training and whether residents should be encouraged to train internationally on a 5-point Likert scale. The survey ended with open-response fields, encouraging thoughts on international rotations and overcoming barriers. Results Forty-four percent of recipients (50/113) responded; of the 50 programs, 13 had an established international elective. Of programs without a rotation, 54% (20/37) noted that they were interested in starting an international elective. Key barriers to starting international training included funding, the Residency Review Committee approval process, call conflicts, and the establishment of international partners. Perceived learning opportunities included cultural awareness, unique pathology, ingenuity, physical examination skills, and diagnosis skills. The majority of respondents thought that international rotations were valuable (74%, 37/50) and that residents should be encouraged to pursue international educational opportunities (70%, 35/50). Program directors who maintained an existing international rotation or were interested in starting an international elective were more likely to perceive international rotations as valuable. Conclusions Recent calls from The Lancet Commission on Global Surgery for increased surgical interventions in the developing world have been expanded by neurosurgical leadership to include neurosurgical diseases. Resident involvement in international electives represents an opportunity to increase treatment of neurosurgical disease in LMICs and develop the next generation of international neurosurgeons. To increase opportunities for residents at international sites, attention should be focused on overcoming the practical and regulatory barriers at a local and national level.
Exploring Factors Linked to Weight Status in Salvadoran Infants.

Introduction:Potential risk factors of infant overweight/obesity in Salvadoran mother–infant dyads (N = 88) at routine 9- to 12-month wellbaby visits were examined in a correlational study at two p...
Risk Factors and Prevalence of Mental Illness

Refugees face many challenges in their path of migration putting them at risk for mental distress. Prevalence of mental illness varies across different studies of refugees due to methodological differences and heterogeneity among refugees. Overall, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depression are the most common mental illnesses seen in refugees. Somatic manifestations of mental distress are also seen, sometimes manifesting as specific cultural syndromes. Risk factors for mental illness can be categorized into premigration, migration, and post-migration phases. The chapter starts with a brief review of overseas mental health screening and then summarizes the available literature on risk factors and prevalence of mental illness in refugees. Resilience and posttraumatic growth in refugees are also discussed.
Delay dynamics of a levitating motor with two-limit control strategy

Abstract In a recent work (Shayak, 2019), I have proposed a new comparator-based control algorithm for a magnetically levitated motor. The rotor dynamics are governed by a sixth order nonlinear differential equation, whose stability analysis is treated as given. Here we consider this device from a dynamical systems viewpoint. We first present a simplified model which is a second order nonlinear delay differential equation. We then see that in this equation, a fixed point which is unstable in the absence of control gets converted to a small-amplitude stable limit cycle in its presence. Extrapolating from the simplified model, we find that insufficient damping can create an instability but it can be countered by increasing the inverter voltage, decreasing the inverter switching period, and relaxing the displacement tolerance value. Extensive simulation results show that all predictions made on the basis of the simplified model are applicable to the original system.
Parental role alteration strongly influences depressive symptoms in mothers of preoperative infants with congenital heart disease.

Abstract Background Mothers of infants with congenital heart disease are at risk for depression. Objectives This study explored the influence on maternal depressive symptoms of several known factors for mothers in the pediatric cardiac intensive care unit, including perceived stressors, attachment, and anxiety. Methods This study was a secondary analysis of 30 mothers of infants awaiting cardiac surgery. Linear regressions were calculated to determine the relationships between perceived stressors, maternal attachment, anxiety, and maternal depressive symptoms. Results Nearly half of mothers reported depressive symptoms above the measure cut-off score, indicating they were at risk for likely clinical depression. Subscales of perceived stress explained 61.7% of the variance in depressive symptoms (F = 11.815, p Conclusions Findings underscore the importance of mental health screening and instituting nursing practices to enhance parental role for mothers of infants awaiting cardiac surgery.
Impact of Dynamic Corporate News Networks on Asset Return and Volatility

This paper analyzes the relationship between asset return, volatility and the centrality indicators of a corporate news network conducting a longitudinal network analysis. We build a sequence of daily corporate news network for the period 2005-2011 using companies of the STOXX 50 index as nodes, the weights of the edges are the sum of the number of news items with the same topic by every pair of companies identified by the topic model methodology. The STOXX 50 includes the top 50 European companies by level of capitalization. We performed the Granger causality test and the Brownian distance covariance test of independence among several measures of centrality, return and volatility. We found that the average eigenvector centrality of the corporate news networks at different points of time has an impact on return and volatility of the STOXX 50 index. Likewise, return and volatility of the STOXX 50 index also has an effect on average eigenvector centrality. These results are more significant during the most important period of the recent financial crisis (January 2008-March 2009). So, we observe that there is a dynamic process that affects and is affected by return, volatility, and centrality. The causality tests suggest it is possible to improve the prediction of return and volatility by extracting and analyzing a network based on the common topics of news stories.
The Unique Role of 11-Oxygenated C19 Steroids in Both Premature Adrenarche and Premature Pubarche.

Introduction Recent studies have shown 11-oxygenated androgens (11oAs) are the dominant androgens in premature adrenarche (PA). Our objective was to compare 11oAs and conventional androgens in a well-defined cohort of children with PA or premature pubarche (PP) and correlate these androgens with metabolic markers. Methods A prospective cross-sectional study was conducted at a university hospital. Fasting early morning serum steroids (including 11oAs) and metabolic biomarkers were compared and their correlations determined in children ages 3-8 years (F) or 3-9 years (M) with PA or PP (5 M and 15 F) and healthy controls (3 M and 8 F). Results There were no differences between PA, PP, and controls or between PA and PP subgroups for sex, BMI z-score, or criteria for childhood metabolic syndrome. Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) was elevated only in the PA subgroup, as defined. 11oAs were elevated versus controls in PA and PP although no differences in 11oAs were noted between PA and PP. Within the case cohort, there was high correlation of T and A4 with 11-ketotestosterone and 11β-hydroxyandrostenedione. While lipids did not differ, median insulin and HOMA-IR were higher but not statistically different in PA and PP. Conclusions PA and PP differ only by DHEAS and not by 11oAs or insulin sensitivity, consistent with 11oAs - rather than DHEAS - mediating the phenotypic changes of pubarche. Case correlations suggest association of 11oAs with T and A4. These data are the first to report the early morning steroid profiles including 11oAs in a well-defined group of PA, PP, and healthy children.
Secondary analysis of change in physical function after exercise intervention in older adults with hyperkyphosis and low physical function.

Hyperkyphosis is common in older adults and associated with low physical function and reduced health related quality of life (HrQol). Improved kyphosis has been previously established in kyphosis-targeted interventions in randomized controlled trials in older adults with hyperkyphosis; however, evidence for improved physical function is conflicting. Few studies have investigated change in physical function after a targeted kyphosis intervention in older adults with low physical function. The primary aim in this descriptive study was to explore change in physical function after a progressive high-intensity 3-month targeted kyphosis exercise and posture training intervention in older adults with low physical function and hyperkyphosis. Secondary aims were to explore change in HrQol, spinal strength and spinal curvature, and adherence and safety of the intervention. In this secondary analysis of the Specialized Center of Research (SCOR) Kyphosis randomized trial, 101 community dwelling older men and women with hyperkyphosis who completed the intervention were divided into a low function group (LFG) and high function group (HFG). Baseline characteristics were compared between LFG and HFG. Physical function, HrQol, spinal strength and spinal curvature (kyphosis and lordosis) pre/post intervention change scores were explored within and between groups. Adherence and adverse events were examined in the LFG and HFG. Twenty-six (26%) older adults were LFG, mean Short Phyiscal Performance Battery (SPPB) 9.62 (SD = 1.17) points. At baseline, the LFG was older than HFG (p = 0.005), experienced more pain, (p = 0.060), had worse physical function and HrQol (p ≤ 0.001), and comparable kyphosis (p = 0.640). SPPB changed 0.62 (95% CI: − 0.20 to 1.44) points in the LFG and - 0.04 (95%CI: − 0.28 to 0.19) points in the HFG, p = 0.020. Gait speed changed 0.04 (95% CI: − 0.02 to 0.10) m/s in the LFG. Kyphosis improved equally in both groups. Adherence to the intervention was 83% in the LFG and 79% in the HFG. There were no adverse events in either group. Older adults with low physical function and hyperkyphosis may improve physical function after a kyphosis targeted intervention. Older adults with low physical function may safely participate in targeted high-intensity kyphosis exercise and posture training. This observation needs to be confirmed in larger adequately powered studies. Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT01766674 .
Correlation of stress radiographs to injuries associated with lateral ankle instability

Background Stress radiographs have demonstrated superior efficacy in the evaluation of ankle instability. Aim To determine if there is a degree of instability evidenced by stress radiographs that is associated with pathology concomitant with ankle ligamentous instability. Methods A retrospective review of 87 consecutive patients aged 18-74 who had stress radiographs performed at a single institution between 2014 and 2020 was performed. These manual radiographic stress views were then correlated with magnetic resonance imaging and operative findings. Results A statistically significant association was determined for the mean and median stress radiographic values and the presence of peroneal pathology (P = 0.008 for tendonitis and P = 0.020 for peroneal tendon tears). A significant inverse relationship was found between the presence of an osteochondral defect and increasing degrees of instability (P = 0.043). Conclusion Although valuable in the clinical evaluation of ankle instability, stress radiographs are not an independent predictor of conditions associated with ankle instability.
Protein Condensation: Kinetic Pathways to Crystallization and Disease

The quest to understand the condensation of proteins from solutions is a rapidly evolving field. The purpose of this book is to bring to an interdisciplinary audience the state-of-the-art in current research. The first part of the book deals with issues related to the production of high quality protein crystals from solution. Since protein function is determined by structure, high quality protein crystals must be grown in order to determine their structure by X-ray crystallography. The book also discusses diseases that occur due to undesired protein condensation, an increasingly important subject. Examples include sickle cell anemia, cataracts and Alzheimer's disease. Current experimental and theoretical work on these diseases is discussed, which seeks understanding at a fundamental, molecular level, to prevent the undesired condensation from occurring. The book, containing color plate sections, is suitable for graduate students and academic researchers in physics, chemistry, structural biology, protein crystallography and medicine.
On the feasibility of providing power system spinning reserves from thermal storage

Abstract As power systems integrate more intermittent renewable generation, and as extreme weather events become more frequent with climate change, power systems are likely to require increasing amounts of spinning reserves in order to maintain reliable operation. While traditionally spinning reserves have been supplied by generators, demand-side resources can also provide reserves by increasing or decreasing consumption in response to system needs. As a major contributor to peak system loads, air conditioning equipment is a promising source of demand-side spinning reserves. Through building energy modeling and simulation, this paper demonstrates, for the first time, the technical feasibility of providing spinning reserves by curtailing air conditioning systems in commercial buildings, while maintaining occupant comfort by providing cooling from thermal storage. The economic benefits to the building owner are shown to be attractive, primarily due to capacity payments in the spinning reserves market. Furthermore, it is possible for a building equipped with thermal storage to participate in both frequency regulation and spinning reserves markets for more economic benefits as spinning reserves are less frequently deployed.
Social Capital in Developing Democracies: Nicaragua and Argentina Compared

Drawing on extensive field work in Nicaragua and Argentina, as well as public opinion and elite data, Leslie E. Anderson's Social Capital in Developing Democracies explores the contribution of social capital to the process of democratization and the limits of that contribution. Anderson finds that in Nicaragua, strong, positive, bridging social capital has enhanced democratization while in Argentina the legacy of Peronism has created bonding and non-democratic social capital that perpetually undermines the development of democracy. Faced with the reality of an anti-democratic form of social capital, Anderson suggests that Argentine democracy is developing on the basis of an alternative resource – institutional capital. Anderson concludes that social capital can and does enhance democracy under historical conditions that have created horizontal ties among citizens, but that social capital can also undermine democratization where historical conditions have created vertical ties with leaders and suspicion or non-cooperation among citizens.
Price and prospects for oil: Carrying the burden of excess capacity in the 1980s and beyond

Abstract The continuing decline in world oil prices will not be halted in the short term, and prospects for the long run are not encouraging. There is a problem of unprecedented gravity in the surplus capacity of the oil industry. A glut of 10 million bbl/day of crude oil remains unsold, the cohesion of the OPEC cartel is becoming more strained, and a sizeable proportion of refinery plant has been taken off-stream. The basic difficulty is that high interest rates have curbed international capital formation and depressed demand. Upward pressures on the US dollar have been created by the deficit on US domestic and external accounts, and have retarded the recovery of the global economy. Today the cost of money exceeds the factor price of oil, and the market is highly unstable. The devastating costs of carrying surplus capacity are likely to survive through the 1980s.
Fibrinogen synthesized by cancer cells augments the proliferative effect of fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2).

Summary. Background: Fibroblast growth factor (FGF)-2 is a critical growth factor in normal and malignant cell proliferation and tumor-associated angiogenesis. Fibrinogen and fibrin bind to FGF-2 and modulate FGF-2 functions. Furthermore, we have shown that extrahepatic epithelial cells are capable of endogenous production of fibrinogen. Objective: Herein we examined the role of fibrinogen and FGF-2 interactions on prostate and lung adenocarcinoma cell growth in vitro. Methods: Cell proliferation was measured by 3H-thymidine uptake and the specificity of FGF-2-fibrinogen interactions was measured using wild-type and mutant FGF-2s, fibrinogen γ-chain (FGG) RNAi and co-immunoprecipitation. Metabolic labeling, immunopurification and fluorography demonstrated de novo fibrinogen production. Results: FGF-2 stimulated DU-145 cell proliferation, whereas neither FGF-2 nor fibrinogen affected the growth of PC-3 or A549 cells. Fibrinogen augmented the proliferative effect of FGF-2 on DU-145 cells. The role of fibrinogen in FGF-2-enhanced DNA synthesis was confirmed using an FGF-2 mutant that exhibits no binding affinity for fibrinogen. FGG transcripts were present in PC-3, A549 and DU-145 cells, but only PC-3 and A549 cells produced detectable levels of intact protein. RNAi-mediated knockdown of FGG expression resulted in decreased production of fibrinogen protein and inhibited 3H-thymidine uptake in A549 and PC-3 cells by 60%, which was restored by exogenously added fibrinogen. FGF-2 and fibrinogen secreted by the cells were present in the medium as a soluble complex, as determined by coimmunoprecipitation studies. Conclusions: These data indicate that endogenously synthesized fibrinogen promotes the growth of lung and prostate cancer cells through interaction with FGF-2.
Theiler’s Murine Encephalomyelitis Virus-Induced Demyelinating Disease (TMEV-IDD) and Autoimmunity

Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV) belongs to the Picornaviridae family and is a natural enteric pathogen of mice. Neurovirulence upon experimental intracerebral injection varies depending on the strain of TMEV ranging from a rapidly fatal encephalitis, in which grey matter neurons are infected and lysed upon infection with the GDVII strain, to an initial acute phase of grey matter involvement followed by a chronic phase of viral persistence, inflammation, and demyelination in the white matter of the spinal cord following infection with the BeAn or DA strains. TMEV-IDD is a well-characterized CD4 + T cell-mediated model of Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Life-long persistent viral infection of central nervous system (CNS) resident microglia, macrophages, and astrocytes is directly related to the development of the chronic demyelinating disease. Initial myelin damage is mediated by a bystander mechanism wherein the primary effector cells are mononuclear phagocytes (microglia/macrophages) activated by inflammatory cytokines produced from TMEV specific Thl cells responding to viral epitopes that persist in the CNS. Multiple cells in MS lesions have the potential to fully activate both naive and memory T cells within the CNS.
Interactions in Transition: How Truth Commissions and Trials Complement or Constrain Each Other

While there have been recent advances in theories of transitional justice, there remains a lack of theory about how truth commissions and human rights trials interact with each other to facilitate or constrain efforts at transitional justice. This is an important deficiency to remedy because numerous countries long ago leapt ahead of transitional justice theory by sequencing trials and truth commissions, while the International Criminal Court (ICC) will have to manage relationships with truth commissions as its work accelerates. The aim of this article is to use current literatures on transitional justice and political transitions to build a theory of how trials and truth commissions interact with each other. This will be done in three steps. First, the article will elaborate the goals and critiques of trials and truth commissions in order to provide a foundation for how they might interact. Second, the article will consider these institutions in sequence to understand how they interact when trials operate first, truth commissions first, or when they operate simultaneously. Third, the article will consider these sequences in context to understand how legacies of violence and its termination may affect their relationship. This effort is meant to clarify the theoretical issues at stake in the sequencing of these two important institutions, stimulate debate, and inform institutional design.
Hydrogeologic Investigations of Flow in Fractured Tuffs, Rainier Mesa, Nevada Test Site

Rainier Mesa, a primary site for nuclear testing, is located in the north central area of the Nevada Test Site, and is composed of highly fractured and altered Tertiary tuffs. A hydrogeologic study was conducted within the mesa concentrating on several parameters: the source of ground water found in Rainier Mesa, period of principal recharge, ground-water travel time between the mesa surface and the turf nel level, period of hydraulic response, and total amount of recharge per year to U12n Tunnel recharge basin. The data base consists of: the precipitation record, discharge record of seeps within Rainier Mesa, the gross chemistry and stable isotopic composition of these seeps, and two tracer studies conducted from the mesa surface. Results indicate that ground water is of recent meteoric origin, winter is the period of principal recharge, the period of hydrologic response is at least four months, the total recharge is approximately eight percent of the precipitation which falls on the U12n recharge basin, and travel time is estimated as greater than one year and less than six. These observations describe an environment which has been subjected to nuclear testing since 1957. It is certain that this testing has altered the hydrogeochemical environment and it is suspected that some alteration of the hydraulic system has also occurred.
The Role of Faculty Development in Online Teaching's Potential to Question Teaching Beliefs and Assumptions.

A literature review was conducted to investigate the adult education and faculty development literature and research to discover what is known about changes or transformation in teaching assumptions and beliefs when faculty prepare to teach online or when they are engaged in online teaching, and to uncover any gaps in research involving these changes. There were four primary themes that resulted from the analysis of the articles: moving from classroom practice to online teaching; changes related to online teaching, framing faculty development within adult education; and faculty development models. Critiques and implications are considered in regard to the possibility of faculty development for online teaching as transformative learning.
Wideband direction-of-arrival estimation using the ESPRIT algorithm

A novel direction-of-arrival (DOA) estimation algorithm is proposed that applies to wideband emitter signals. A sensor array with a translation invariance structure is assumed, and an extension of the ESPRIT algorithm for narrowband emitter signals is obtained. Following the ideas of G. Su and M. Morf (1986) the authors model the emitter signals as the stationary output of a finite-dimensional linear system driven by white noise. The array response to a unit impulse from a given direction is represented as the impulse response of a linear system. The measured data from the sensor array can then be seen as the output of a multidimensional linear system driven by white noise sources and corrupted by additive noise. The emitter signals are characterized by the modes of the linear system. The ESPRIT algorithm is applied at the poles of the system, the power of the signals sharing the pole is captured and the effect of noise is reduced. >
Haggling for a patent: what a government would have to pay for prescription drug patents.

In previous papers (Guell, R. and Fischbaum, M. The Milbank Quarterly 1995; 73: 2 and Applied Economics Letters in press), we established that the allocative inefficiency in the prescription drug industry is so pervasive that some remedy is warranted. In the first paper, we estimated a lower bound on this inefficiency at approximately $3 billion, with an upper bound of approximately $30 billion; all on total industry sales of approximately $50 billion. In the second paper, on a narrower set of drugs for which sales were $8 billion, we more precisely estimated this dead weight loss to be $5 billion. From this we showed that a system could exist whereby a government would purchase a drug patent from a willing seller, freely distribute it and reap significant efficiency benefits. In those papers we considered the possibility that the innovating firm would not want to relinquish the patent, but we assumed that they would be indifferent between being paid the expected net present value of future monopoly profits and reaping those uncertain profits over time. While that may be the case, a more likely scenario would be that a negotiation would take place. In the current paper I show the bargaining range that would exist under different risk preference assumptions and show that this range widens as each side becomes more risk averse and narrows if the government threatens to use its power of eminent domain. Lastly, I acknowledge the risk of firms ‘capturing’ the government agents doing the negotiation. To conclude, I present the circumstances under which the proposed agency would likely improve societal welfare and contrast that with the circumstances where the presently inefficient system would be made more so by government intervention. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A model for interpreting continental-shelf hydrographic processes from the stable isotope and cadmium: Calcium profiles of scallop shells

Abstract Stable oxygen and carbon isotope, and cadmium:calcium profiles from the shells of scallops collected from the outer continental shelf of the South Atlantic Bight and the Virginia Bight appear to trace the hydrographic processes of the two regions. A model is developed to distinguish two principal modes of nutrient and trace metal input to the outer shelf from the biogeochemical profiles of the shell. The oxygen isotope profiles record bottom-water temperature changes caused by seasonal temperature cycles and water-mass movements. Nutrient input and subsequent phytoplankton blooms are recorded in the carbon isotope and Cd:Ca profiles. The shell profiles from the South Atlantic Bight record the dominant effect of upwelling caused by Gulf Stream meandering. The shell profiles from the Virginia Bight show the influence of spring river runoff and summer water-column stratification. Biogeochemical profiles in mollusk shells are potentially important tools for studying the dynamics of both modern and ancient continental-shelf upwelling systems.
The Thoracic Surgery Directors Association (TSDA): focus upon curriculum for resident education.

Background T horacic surgery residency has long presented the challenge of balancing the requirements of quality graduate medical education against often staggering, labor-intensive service needs. Historically, surgery (and its specialties) has been taught under an apprentice model of education, ie, "observe the master, do as I do until one day you, too, will be ready to be an independent surgeon." In reality, elementary school teachers who are, by training, educators have been far more organized about providing a structured curriculum for their pupils, defining what it is that they want to teach, how they are going to teach it, and how they are going to assess that the information has been learned by their students. The majority of thoracic surgery faculty members are not, by training, educators, and they have been unaccustomed to thinking about the most fundamental feature of the process of education: a curriculum. When historians review developments in the specialty of thoracic surgery, the decade of the 1990s will be recognized as a time of new commitment and energy on behalf of thoracic surgery resident education. In 1991, The Annals qfTlzoracic Surgery' published an editorial symposium on Thoracic Surgery Education. 1 The same year, Dr John Waldhausen, President of the AATS, convened a retreat of thoracic surgery leadership in Snow Bird, lIT, to address expressed concerns about the direction thoracic surgery education was taking-including educational endeavors. Recommendations arising out of the Snow Bird conference were to: (1) maintain the integrity of cardiothoracic surgery by providing integrated train-
The maximal solution of a restricted subadditive inequality in numerical analysis

For a fixed non-negative integerp, letU 2p = {U 2p (n)},n ≥ 0, denote the sequence that is defined by the initial conditions $$U_{2p} (0) = U_{2p} (1) = U_{2p} (2) = = U_{2p} (2p) = 1$$ and the restricted subadditive recursion $$U_{2p} (n + 2p + 1) = \mathop {\min }\limits_{0 \leqslant / \leqslant p} (U_{2p} (n + l) + U_{2p} (n + 2p - l)),n \geqslant 0$$ U 2p is of importance in the theory of sequential search for simple real zeros of real valued continuous 2p-th derivatives In this paper, several closed form expressions forU 2p (n), n > 2p, are determined, thereby providing insight into the structure ofU 2p Two of the properties thus illuminated are (a) the existence of exactlyp + 1 limit points (1 + 1/(p + 1 +i), 0 ≤i ≤p) of the associated sequence {U 2p (n + 1)/U 2p (n)},n ≥ 0, and (b) the relevance toU 2p of the classic number theoretic function ord
Diversity and evolution of a non-TIR-NBS sequence family that clusters to a chromosomal ’’hotspot” for disease resistance genes in soybean

In soybean, genes controlling resistance to numerous diseases have been shown to cluster to regions on several chromosomes. One such vital chromosomal region is on the soybean molecular linkage group (MLG) F flanked by the RFLP markers K644 and B212. Here, genes controlling resistance to bacterial blight, Phytophthora root rot, and several viral diseases, as well as QTLs conditioning resistance to corn earworm, root knot nematode, and white mold have been mapped. We have previously identified two classes (b and j) of disease resistance-related nucleotide binding site (NBS) sequences that localize to this cluster of genes. Using both cDNA and genomic analyses, we have studied one multi-gene family of sequences representing the previously reported class j NBS of soybean. This class of NBS resembles the RPS2-like NBS sequences. RPS2 and similar resistance genes are referred to as non-TIR because they do not encode motifs homologous to the Toll-Interleukin-1 region (TIR). By designing PCR primers that specifically target these non-TIR-NBS encoding sequences, we have amplified at least six class j sequence members from soybean. In addition, we have conducted genomic and cDNA library screenings to identify additional class j members. In all, we have characterized 12 class j NBS sequence members. These members have been mapped within a 2-cM region of the soybean F linkage group. We have also identified homoeologous chromosomal regions on linkage groups A2 and E that contain class j NBS sequences. A BLAST search of the GenBank database has shown that non-TIR NBS sequences are present across the legume family. We have compared these non-TIR sequences from other legumes with the soybean clones to assess the level of diversity within this class of disease resistance-related sequences.
Raman studies of reactive DC-magnetron sputtered thin films of YBaCuO on MgO

Raman spectroscopy was employed to study Y-Ba-Cu-O films prepared by multilayer, reactive sputtering from separate Y, Cu, and Ba{sub 0.5}Cu{sub 0.5} targets. A set of films having the composition Y{sub {ital x}}Ba{sub 2}Cu{sub {ital y}}O{sub {ital z}} with 0.7{lt}{ital x}{lt}1.8 and 2.8{lt}{ital y}{lt}3.5 and critical temperature with zero resistance, {ital T}{sub {ital c}}({ital R}=0), ranging from 25 to 90 K was studied with the Raman technique. The correlation between Raman data and critical temperature, {ital T}{sub {ital c}}, was investigated. This technique provides important information concerning the film crystallinity, homogeneity, and impurity content (including other phases) which is useful in judging the quality of high {ital T}{sub {ital c}} superconducting films. We also found that the rapid thermal annealing process is a very efficient way to reduce chemical reactions between the film and the substrate.
OPERATIONAL TEXTURE ANALYSIS

Abstract A comprehensive overview is presented of the elements that enter quantitative techniques of texture measurement, analysis and representations. There are many potential errors to be corrected and many choices to be made in all these stages, and we present those that we consider most appropriate. They have been implemented in a software package that is available publicly. A number of novel techniques are used including, for example, in the representation of measured textures, both for quantitative visual inspection and for use in the prediction of anisotropic properties. The symmetry of the test sample is allowed to be general, and that of the crystal structure may be as low as trigonal.
Poisson-Nernst-Planck Systems for Ion Flow with Density Functional Theory for Hard-Sphere Potential: I-V Relations and Critical Potentials. Part I: Analysis

We consider a one-dimensional steady-state Poisson–Nernst–Planck type model for ionic flow through membrane channels. Improving the classical Poisson–Nernst–Planck models where ion species are treated as point charges, this model includes ionic interaction due to finite sizes of ion species modeled by hard sphere potential from the Density Functional Theory. The resulting problem is a singularly perturbed boundary value problem of an integro-differential system. We examine the problem and investigate the ion size effect on the current–voltage (I–V) relations numerically, focusing on the case where two oppositely charged ion species are involved and only the hard sphere components of the excess chemical potentials are included. Two numerical tasks are conducted. The first one is a numerical approach of solving the boundary value problem and obtaining I–V curves. This is accomplished through a numerical implementation of the analytical strategy introduced by Ji and Liu in [Poisson–Nernst–Planck systems for ion flow with density functional theory for hard-sphere potential: I–V relations and critical potentials. Part I: Analysis, J. Dyn. Differ. Equ. (to appear)]. The second task is to numerically detect two critical potential values V c and V c .The existence of these two critical values is first realized for a relatively simple setting and analytical approximations of V c and V c are obtained in the above mentioned reference. We propose an algorithm for numerical detection of V c and V c without using any analytical formulas but based on the defining properties and numerical I–V curves directly. For the setting in the above mentioned reference, our numerical values for V c and V c agree well with the analytical predictions. For a setting including a nonzero permanent charge in which case no analytic formula for the I–V relation is available now, our algorithms can still be applied to find V c and V c numerically.
Proton transfer in matrix-isolated naphthol/ammonia complexes

Abstract The spectroscopy and proton transfer dynamics of matrix-isolated α-naphthol. (NH 3 ) n and β-naphthol (NH 3 ) n , n = 1, 2, … complexes have been studied. The complexes are formed by annealing of α- or β-naphthol/NH 3 /argon matrices. The annealing studies indicate that the α-naphthol. (NH 3 ) 3 and β-naphthol. (NH 3 ) 3 complexes undergo excited state intermolecular proton transfer. Time-resolved studies indicate that the proton transfer times are 22 ± 5 and 24 ± 5 ps for the α-naphthol · (NH 3 ) 3 and β-naphthol. (NH 3 ) 3 complexes, respectively. These results are discussed in terms of a simple tunneling theory.
Modulation of lamprey fictive swimming and motoneuron physiology by dopamine, and its immunocytochemical localization in the spinal cord

Abstract The distribution of dopamine immunoreactivity (DA-IR) in lamprey spinal cord was examined using antibodies to dopamine. This revealed a population of small cells slightly ventral to the central canal, with processes extending to it. Ventral to the cells is a sparse plexus of DA-IR fibers. Bath application of DA during glutamate-induced fictive swimming caused cycle rate acceleration at 0.1–1 μM, but slowed the rhythm at higher concentrations (10 μM-1 mM). Bath application or pressure ejection of DA onto spinal motoneurons reduced the late afterhyperpolarization phase of action potentials by 40–50%, without affecting input resistance, membrane potential, or action potential amplitude or duration.
A simplified method for growth of human microvascular endothelial cells results in decreased senescence and continued responsiveness to cytokines and growth factors

Human dermal microvascular endothelial cells are used to analyze the functions of microvascular endothelium in vitro. However, the low yield and short lifespan of these cells in culture has limited the types of analysis that could be performed. Human microvascular endothelial cells are typically grown in media containing supplements such as dibutyryl cyclic AMP, hydrocortisone, bovine brain extract, and antifungal agents, each of which increase the complexity of experimental design and interpretation of results. In the present study, endothelial cells were transferred after Ulex europeus-I selection into a simplified medium consisting of Endothelial Basal Medium 131, 10% fetal bovine serum, and 2 ng/ml basic fibroblast growth factor and analyzed over 3 mo. The human microvascular endothelial cells expressed the endothelial markers von Willebrand factor, CD31, P-selectin, and E-selectin. In addition, the cells showed increased proliferation in the presence of basic fibroblast growth factor (0.5 ng/ml) or vascular endothelial cell growth factor (10 ng/ml). Tumor necrosis factor-α-induced expression of E-selectin was similar in cells at Passages 3, 6, and 12, indicating that the cells maintained responsiveness to cytokines over several weeks. Furthermore, the endothelial cells attained a typical cobblestone morphology with increased cellular density and also formed capillarylike tubes on Matrigel. In summary, the human dermal microvascular endothelial cells display the expected endothelial characteristics when grown for several passages and, therefore, provide a valuable in vitro model for human microvascular endothelium.
Surface Gravity Fields for Asteroids and Comets

The characteristics of the interior gravity field are derived, summarized, and evaluated near the surface of an asteroid for the purpose of small body proximity operations. In order to characterize the gravity field of a body, the exterior gravity field is widely in use. However, the exterior gravity field expression breaks down when computing the potential and its gradients within the Brillouin sphere, meaning that spacecraft dynamics cannot be modeled accurately in close proximity to the body's surface. On the other hand, the convergence of the potential and its gradients are guaranteed within the Brillouin sphere of the interior potential, a feature that enables the gravity field modeling near the surface of a body. After derivation, a technique for converting an exterior gravity field or a polyhedral gravity field into an interior gravity field is outlined, a method to numerically approximate the interior spherical harmonic coefficients for a body with a homogeneous density distribution is introduced,...
MEASUREMENT OF THE PLANE POLARIZATION OF GAMMA RADIATION

A simplified experimental technique, utilizing Compton scattering as the analyzing process, has been developed for the measurement of the plane polarization of gamma radiation emitted from oriented nuclei. Nuclei of ${\mathrm{Ce}}^{139}$ and ${\mathrm{Ce}}^{141}$ were aligned in a neodymium ethylsulfate lattice at low temperatures by the magnetic-hyperfine-structure method. The plane polarization of the emitted gamma radiation was measured as a function of temperature. The measured polarization of this radiation was found to be consistent with published results.
Selective expression of Nkx-2.2 transcription factor in chicken oligodendrocyte progenitors and implications for the embryonic origin of oligodendrocytes.

Recent studies have demonstrated that oligodendrocytes originate from the ventral region of the developing spinal cord. However, the precise neuroepithelial origin of oligodendrocytes remains controversial, and the transcriptional control of oligodendrocyte lineage specification is largely unknown. Here we present evidence that oligodendrocytes in the embryonic chicken spinal cord can be generated from neuroepithelial cells that express the Nkx-2.2 homeodomain transcription factor. Nkx-2.2 expression is initially confined to a narrow stripe of neuroepithelium flanking the floor plate. Later, Nkx-2.2+ cells migrate ventrally and dorsolaterally into the surrounding gray and white matter regions where they undergo rapid proliferation. Double labeling experiments revealed that Nkx-2.2+ cells coexpress markers specific for oligodendrocyte progenitors, e.g., PDGFRalpha+, O4, and R-mAb antigens. In the brain, the Nkx-2.2 cells are also highly migratory and can generate oligodendrocytes. The persistent expression of the Nkx-2.2 homeodomain transcription factor in the oligodendrocyte lineage suggests its important role in the control of oligodendrocyte development.