cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Egr-1, a Stress Response Transcription Factor and Myeloid Differentiation Primary Response Gene, Behaves As Tumor Suppressor in CML

The transcription factor early growth response 1 (Egr-1) gene was identified as a macrophage differentiation primary response gene, shown to be essential for and to restrict differentiation along the macrophage lineage. There’s evidence consistent with Egr-1 behaving as a tumor suppressor of leukemia, both in vivo and in vitro, including (1) loss of Egr-1 associated with therapy derived MDS and AML; (2) deregulated Egr-1 overriding blocks in myeloid differentiation, and (3) haplo-insufficiency of Egr-1 in mice leading to increased development of myeloid disorders following treatment with the potent DNA alkylating agent, N- ethyl-nitrosourea (ENU). BCR-ABL driven leukemia (Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia [CML]) was chosen as a model system to investigate the role of Egr-1 as a tumor suppressor for leukemia. CML is a disease resulting from the neoplastic transformation of hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) with the BCR-ABL oncogene. To assess the effect of Egr-1 on BCR-ABL driven leukemia, lethally irradiated syngeneic wild type mice were reconstituted with bone marrow (BM) from either wild type or Egr-1 null mice transduced with a 210-kD BCR-ABL-expressing MSCV-GFP retrovirus (bone marrow transplantation {BMT}). It was observed that loss of Egr-1 accelerated the development of BCR-ABL driven leukemia in recipient mice. Analysis of hematopoietic organs is consistent with loss of Egr-1 accelerating development of CML but not altering the nature of the disease. Cells expressing BCR-ABL that are null for Egr-1 exhibit increased survival and proliferation, which can account for some of the above observations. Substantial evidence is available that loss of Egr1 increases the leukemia initiating cell population, which can account for the more rapid development of disease. An increased population of lineage negative BM cells was observed in Egr-1-/- BCR-ABL recipient mice compared to animals transplanted with WT BCR-ABL BM. Serial BMT has shown that Egr-1-/- BCR-ABL BM has an increased leukemic burden compared to the WT counterpart. Furthermore, data from serial colony transfer experiments confirmed that loss of Egr-1 increases leukemia initiating cells. Preliminary studies on the effect of gain of Egr-1 function are consistent with the tumor suppressor behavior of Egr-1. These data as well as analysis of human CML samples will be presented. Further investigation could result in novel targets for diagnosis, prognosis, and targeted therapeutics, including strategies for activating Egr-1 expression that can be used to treat CML, as well as other leukemic diseases. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Beyond Mendel's Ghost

At a major conference on genetics in 2003, a team of researchers reported that the Maori, the indigenous people of New Zealand, are far more likely than Caucasians to carry a variant of the MAOA ge...
Perceived Social Support, Parental Notification, and Parental Engagement after Pelvic Inflammatory Disease among Urban Adolescent and Young Adults.

BACKGROUND Urban adolescent and young adult women often require adult support throughout their transition to adulthood particularly regarding seeking healthcare. While confidentiality is crucial feature of care delivery, successful adherence to treatment can be multi-factorial. The purpose of this study is to determine factors associated with parental notification and engagement in self-care of young women diagnosed with Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID). METHODS This study utilizes data from 187 participants in the Technology Enhanced Community Health Nursing (TECH-N) study, a randomized controlled trial of an intervention to prevent recurrent STIs after a diagnosis of mild-moderate PID. Participants were recruited from pediatric ambulatory settings provided baseline demographic, reproductive history, and perceived social support using an audio computerized self-interview at baseline and parental notification collected during a two-week follow-up interview, served as the primary outcome. RESULTS Sixty-five percent of participants informed a parent of their PID diagnosis, 74% of whom reported receiving supportive care. Participants who reported a higher sense of responsibility to others were 17% less likely to inform a parent of their diagnosis. CONCLUSION Most urban young women with PID notify parents of their diagnosis and obtain support for self-management in the outpatient setting. While autonomy is a critical milestone for transition to young adulthood, these data suggest that proactive youth-managed parental engagement may be an underutilized resource for young women diagnosed with PID.
Invertibility via distance for non-centered random matrices with continuous distributions

Let $A$ be an $n\times n$ random matrix with independent rows $R_1(A),\dots,R_n(A)$, and assume that for any $i\leq n$ and any three-dimensional linear subspace $F\subset {\mathbb R}^n$ the orthogonal projection of $R_i(A)$ onto $F$ has distribution density $\rho(x):F\to{\mathbb R}_+$ satisfying $\rho(x)\leq C_1/\max(1,\|x\|_2^{2000})$ ($x\in F$) for some constant $C_1>0$. We show that for any fixed $n\times n$ real matrix $M$ we have $${\mathbb P}\{s_{\min}(A+M)\leq t n^{-1/2}\}\leq C'\, t,\quad\quad t>0,$$ where $C'>0$ is a universal constant. In particular, the above result holds if the rows of $A$ are independent centered log-concave random vectors with identity covariance matrices. Our method is free from any use of covering arguments, and is principally different from a standard approach involving a decomposition of the unit sphere and coverings, as well as an approach of Sankar-Spielman-Teng for non-centered Gaussian matrices.
Best Interests in the Long Term: Fiduciary Duties and ESG Integration

Two persistent misconceptions continue to affect the way fiduciaries think about sustainable investing: (1) fiduciary duties block a fiduciary investor from considering environmental and social factors and (2) if a fiduciary investor engages in sustainable or responsible investing, the portfolio will suffer financially. An examination of socially responsible investing, ESG integration (an investment process that involves consideration of material environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors together with traditional financial metrics), corporate social responsibility, and impact investing, shows that neither of these assumptions is correct. Analyses of different forms of sustainable investing have found no necessary cost to a portfolio when sustainable funds are compared with traditional funds. The SEC already requires companies to report material information, and reporting standards developed by the Sustainable Accounting Standards Board (SASB) and the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) are improving the understanding of the financial materiality of ESG factors. Given the changes in finance, fiduciary duties also require examination. The duty to act as a prudent investor is of central importance, and the available data explains why a prudent investor should consider ESG information. Moreover, since the duty of impartiality protects future beneficiaries, that duty requires a long-term investment time horizon, increasing the need to take ESG factors into consideration. It follows that a prudent fiduciary investor not only may, but should, use ESG information in developing financial policy and decisions.
Comparison of magnetic resonance angiography and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography in large-vessel vasculitis.

Objectives To assess agreement between interpretation of magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) and 18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (PET) for disease extent and disease activity in large-vessel vasculitis (LVV) and determine associations between imaging and clinical assessments. Methods Patients with giant cell arteritis (GCA), Takayasu’s arteritis (TAK) and comparators were recruited into a prospective, observational cohort. Imaging and clinical assessments were performed concurrently, blinded to each other. Agreement was assessed by per cent agreement, Cohen’s kappa and McNemar’s test. Multivariable logistic regression identified MRA features associated with PET scan activity. Results Eighty-four patients (GCA=35; TAK=30; comparator=19) contributed 133 paired studies. Agreement for disease extent between MRA and PET was 580 out of 966 (60%) arterial territories with Cohen’s kappa=0.22. Of 386 territories with disagreement, MRA demonstrated disease in more territories than PET (304vs82, p Conclusions In assessment of LVV, MRA and PET contribute unique and complementary information. MRA better captures disease extent, and PET scan is better suited to assess vascular activity. Clinical and imaging-based assessments often do not correlate over the disease course in LVV. Trial registration number NCT02257866.
Student Characteristics and Enrollment in a CTE Pathway Predict Transfer Readiness.

This research predicts transfer readiness of student’s characteristics and enrollment in CTE pathway; and most significantly addressed statewide CTE transfer students that meet the transfer requirements under CTE Taxonomy of program (TOP) code for students who transfer to a California State University (CSU), and Private or out-of-state university. There is a lack of adequate pathways for CTE students to prepare for transfer to the California State University system. The CTE pathways include a high number of underrepresented students, compounding the problem of equity in current transfer policy. Research indicates that students in career and technical education pathways have a limited path toward a university transfer. Policy has been enacted to improve transfer processes between California community colleges and the CSU system, however the policy does not directly address barriers for students in CTE programs.
Suppes’ Work in the Foundations of Psychology

Patrick Suppes contributions to the foundations of psychology all concern the development of psychology as a formal science. The aim is to develop formal theories that are conceptually clear and empirically testable in the spirit of theoretical work in the physical and biological sciences.
New directions in differential equations: A framework for interpreting students' understandings and difficulties

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to offer a framework for interpreting students' understandings of and difficulties with mathematical ideas central to new directions in differential equations. These new directions seek to guide students into a more interpretive mode of thinking and to enhance their ability to graphically and numerically analyze differential equations. The framework reported here is the result of investigating in depth six students' understandings through a series of task-based individual interviews and classroom observations. The two major themes of the framework, the function-as-solution dilemma theme and students' intuitions and images theme, extend previous research on student cognition at the secondary and collegiate level to the domain of differential equations and reflect the increased recognition of situating analyses of student learning within students' learning environment. For new areas of interest such as differential equations, mapping out students' understandings of important mathematical ideas can be an important part of curricular and instructional design that seeks to refine and build on students' ways of thinking.
Meeting the Diversity Challenge at PepsiCo: The Steve Reinemund Era

This case profiles PepsiCo's diversity journey under the leadership of former chairman and CEO Steve Reinemund who instituted diversity as one of the company's strategic imperatives. It demonstrates the ways in which Reinemund partnered with his leadership team and employees throughout the organization to make diversity a key factor in PepsiCo's culture and performance. It also reveals how, regardless of the success, PepsiCo employees were openly speculating what it would mean for the diversity strategy that Reinemund would be turning the helm of PepsiCo over to Indra Nooyi, a 50-year old Indian-born woman, who would need to find her own voice and approach to leading the company and it's diversity efforts.
Providing quality of service in packet switched networks

Increases in bandwidths and processing capabilities of future packet switched networks will give rise to a dramatic increase in the types of applications using them. Many of these applications will require guaranteed quality of service (QOS) such as a bound on the maximum end-to-end packet delay and/or on the probability of packet loss. This poses exciting challenges to network designers. In this paper we discuss the QOS requirements of different applications and survey recent developments in the areas of call admission, link scheduling, and the interaction between the provision of QOS and call routing and traffic monitoring and policing. We identify what some of the important issues are in these areas and point out important directions for future research efforts.
Validation of PROMIS Physical Function Instruments in Patients With an Orthopaedic Trauma to a Lower Extremity.

Objectives To evaluate the reliability, convergent validity, known-groups validity, and responsiveness of the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Mobility Computer Adaptive Test (CAT) and PROMIS Physical Function 8a Short Form. Design Prospective cohort study. Setting Two Level-I trauma centers. Patients Eligible adults with an isolated lower extremity trauma injury receiving treatment were approached consecutively (n = 402 consented at time 1, median = 80 days after treatment). After 6 months, 122 (30.3%) completed another assessment. Intervention Cross-sectional and longitudinal monitoring of patients. Main outcome measurements Floor and ceiling effects, reliability (marginal reliability and Cronbach's alpha), convergent validity, known-groups discriminant validity (weight-bearing status and fracture severity), and responsiveness (Cohen's d effect size) were evaluated for the PROMIS Mobility CAT, PROMIS Physical Function 8a Short Form, and 5 other measures of physical function. Results PROMIS PFSF8a and Foot and Ankle Ability Measure Activities of Daily Living Index had ceiling effects. Both PROMIS measures demonstrated excellent internal consistency reliability (mean marginal reliability 0.94 and 0.96; Cronbach's alpha = 0.96). Convergent validity was supported by high correlations with other measures of physical function (r = 0.70-0.87). Known-groups validity by weight-bearing status and fracture severity was supported as was responsiveness (Mobility CAT effect size = 0.81; Physical Function Short Form 8a = 0.88). Conclusions The PROMIS Mobility CAT and Physical Function 8a Short Form demonstrated reliability, convergent and known-groups discriminant validity, and responsiveness in a sample of patients with a lower extremity orthopaedic trauma injury.
Status of physical activity in Japanese adults and children

Objective: To summarise the status of physical activity in Japanese adults and children. Methods: Results obtained by several nationwide surveys such as the National Health and Nutrition Survey of Japan carried out annually were reviewed. Moreover, relevant guidelines or summaries and results of papers were introduced. Results: Average step counts have decreased by about 1000 steps from peak values observed before the year 2000, but the decrease after 2010 was less than 200 steps in both sexes. Based on the results of a meta-analysis and national survey, a new physical activity guideline for Japanese, 'ActiveGuide', was published. The most important message is the '+10', which indicates an 'additional 10 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA per day to the status quo'. According to the Japan Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth, there was no nationwide survey on the overall Physical Activity Levels for children. However, grades for Organised Sports Participation and Active Transportation were very good. The mean values of cardiorespiratory endurance for Japanese children were around the 90th centiles of the international criterion-referenced data. Conclusions: More accurate measures of daily physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep should be developed for a nationwide survey.
The Surgical Treatment of Peyronie's Disease in the Older Man: Patient Characteristics and Surgical Outcomes in Men 65 and Older.

Abstract Introduction Surgery remains the gold standard for the correction of penile deformities secondary to Peyronie’s disease (PD). Nevertheless, there is no published data on the surgical treatment of PD in older men. Aim Considering the aging national and international population, we sought to evaluate the pre-operative characteristics and surgical outcomes of men aged 65 or older who underwent surgical treatment for PD at our tertiary care institution. Methods We retrospectively reviewed the charts of all men 65 years or older who underwent surgery for PD from January 2010 to September 2017. We compared men who underwent penile prosthesis implantation with straightening maneuvers (PP+SMs), tunica albuginea plication (TAP), and plaque partial excision with grafting (PEG). Main Outcome Measure The main objective of this study was to find the baseline pre-operative patient characteristics and postoperative patient-reported outcomes. Results A total of 86 men with a median age of 68 years underwent surgery during the study period. 39 men underwent PP+SM (45%), 25 men a TAP (29%), and 22 men a PEG (26%). The mean curvature for all men was 59.9 ± 22.0° (range 0−105°). Those who underwent a PEG had a mean ± SD degree of curvature of 78.6 ± 16.6°, significantly higher than those who underwent PP+SM or TAP (49.1 ± 20.2° and 61.4 ± 17.4°, respectively; P Clinical Implications Our findings suggest that the surgical treatment of PD in older men is safe, effective, and associated with high patient satisfaction. Although this represents a surgical series susceptible to selection bias, it underscores the importance of patient selection and counseling in achieving good surgical outcomes. Strengths & Limitations Our study is the first to report on outcomes of surgical treatment of PD in an elderly patient population with relatively long-term follow-up. Our limitations include a small sample size, single operating surgeon, and the lack of a younger comparison group. Conclusion Despite an aging global population, surgery remains a viable and reliable option for the properly selected and counseled older men with PD. Abdelsayed GA, Setia SA, Levine LA. The Surgical Treatment of Peyronie’s Disease in the Older Man: Patient Characteristics and Surgical Outcomes in Men 65 and Older. J Sex Med 2019;16:1820–1826.
National Model for a Nursing Faculty Affairs Office.

Abstract This article describes the creation and work of an Office of Faculty Affairs (OFA) and an Associate Dean for Academic Affairs (ADFA) within a Graduate School of Nursing. The OFA supports the development and career advancement of faculty and the ADFA serves as a faculty mentor and advocate to promote faculty excellence in teaching, scholarship, practice and professional service. The ADFA has focused responsibility to partner with faculty, academic programs, and administration to provide programs and resources that assist and promote faculty growth and accomplishment. The ADFA must be a cross-boundary manager and consultant committed to monitoring, evaluating, developing and implementing educational and administrative programs to meet both faculty and program requirements. Responsibilities of and initiatives created by the ADFA are presented, along with metrics used to evaluate the effectiveness of the office and the role.
Searching for Higher Ground: Migration and Quality of Life

Migration is a source of contemporary social controversy in the USA and around the world. Britain’s 2016 vote to withdraw from the European Union, dubbed, “Brexit,” was driven by anti-globalist and anti-immigrant sentiment, and in the same year in the USA, immigration from Central America sparked a political backlash that helped elect Donald Trump as president. The American Community Survey (ACS) provides a valuable window into migration-related issues, including illegal immigration, migration across states, and settlement within cities.
Implementing the dual-rate grouping scheme in cell-based schedulers

The use of fluid generalized processor sharing (GPS) algorithm for integrated services networks has received a lot of attention since early 1990s because of its desirable properties in terms of delay bound and service fairness. Many packet fair queuing (PFQ) algorithms have been developed to approximate GPS. However, owing to their implementation complexity, it is difficult to support a large number of sessions with diverse service rates while maintaining the GPS properties. The grouping architecture has been proposed to dramatically reduce the implementation complexity. However, it can only support a fixed number of service rates, thus causing the problem of granularity. We present a viable implementation of our previously proposed dual-rate grouping architecture, and demonstrate that, as compared with the original grouping architecture, our proposed scheme possesses better performance in terms of approximating per session-based PFQ algorithms without increasing the implementation complexity.
Electron intensities obtained during backscattered-Mössbauer spectroscopy: II. Theoretical and experimental comparisons of emergent angular distributions

Abstract When gamma-rays from a 57Co source impinge on an absorber containing 57Fe, they can be resonantly absorbed, resulting in the generation of conversion electrons and subsequent Auger electrons, or they can be nonresonantly scattered via photoelectric and Compton processes. The ratio of resonant to nonresonant electrons escaping from the absorber represents the absolute peak height/area obtained from a backscattered-conversion electron Mossbauer spectrum and provides important information helpful in the depth-profiling of multilayer specimens. A simple theoretical model which accounts for resonant and nonresonant electrons emerging from the surface at angles from zero to 2π radians with energies above zero eV has been developed previously. The signal-to-background (S/B) ratios from 5 nm iron films and 2.5 × 106 nm iron foils have been calculated using this model, and good agreement between calculated and experimental results has been obtained. The intensity of resonant and nonresonant electrons emerging from the absorber in specific angular intervals has also been calculated using this model for a 1.0 μm thick 92.8% enriched 57Fe foil mounted on a stainless steel substrate. The simulated angular distributions for backscattered-resonant electrons and backscattered-nonresonant electrons both provide cosine-type curves and are similar to experimental data, resulting in an isotropic distribution of the S/B ratio. The predicted S/B ratio, however, is about twice the S/B ratio measured experimentally. This discrepancy may result from the neglect of: (i) electrons below 50 eV and (ii) multiple scattering events. Despite these shortcomings, the model proposed in this study is capable of comparing the relative magnitude of the resonant and nonresonant signals, thereby calibrating the resonant signal against the nonresonant background. This procedure appears to provide additional information helpful for nondestructive depth-profiling studies.
Animals and the Environment : Advocacy, activism, and the quest for common ground

Introduction Lisa Kemmerer Part 1: Establishing and Exploring Common Ground A. Foundations: Theoretical Connections Poem: The Pika and the Desert Boot Randall Gloege 1. Conflict and Accord: A Critical Review of Relations between Earth and Animal Advocacy Lisa Kemmerer and Daniel Kirjner 2. Beyond Intersectionality to Total Liberation Carol L. Glasser 3. Earthlings Seeking Justice: Integrity, Consistency, and Collaboration Carrie P. Freeman 4. Caring for Earth and Her Creatures Josephine Donovan B. Common Ground: Wildlife an Wilderness Poem: Bison Sculptures Cara Chamberlain 5. Activism and Asian Wisdom: Oneness, Interdependence, Harmony Lisa Kemmerer 6. Hunting Delusions Lisa Kemmerer 7. Essential Elements for Elephants: Problems and Solutions Valerie J. Chalcraft 8. Trapped: Individuals, Species, and Ecosystems at Risk Lisa Kemmerer and Anja Heister 9. Seeing is Believing: Nature Films in a Patriarchal Culture Melanie J. Martin C. Common Ground: Dietary Choice Poem: The Cicada Killer Bernard Quetchenbach 10. So You Want to Stop Devouring Ecosystems? Do the Math! John M. Halley 11. A Fishy Business Lisa Kemmerer and Bethany Dopp 12. Farm Gone Factory: Industrial Animal Agriculture, Animal Welfare, and the Environment Chris Hunt 13. Eating Ecosystems Lisa Kemmerer D. Common Ground: Raising Questions, Pondering Connections Poem: Laridae Cara Chamberlain 14. The Many and the One Randall Gloege 15. A Better Balance for Wildlife: Conservation Research and Animal Activism Jon E. Swenson 16. Plague Bernard Quetchenbach 17. The Morning of the World Cara Chamberlain Part 2: Politics, Organized Activism, and Personal Encounters A: Foundations: Community and Politics Poem: Breathtaking Bit of Being Lisa Kemmerer 18. Enforcing Human Rights for People, Animals, and the Planet Debra Erenberg 19. Recipe for Cooperation: Omniocracy and the Definitional Good Charlotte Laws 20. Deeper than Numbers: Consumers, Cows, and Condoms Lisa Kemmerer, Daniel Kirjner, Jennifer Gross and Nathan Baillet B. Bringing Change: Activists and NGOs Poem: An Absurd Design Randall Gloege 21. Hunting for a Trophy Hunting Ethic: Big Bears and Little Men (with Big Guns) Chris Darimont, Chris Genovali, Christina Service and Paul Paquet 22. Camp Uganda Haida Bolton 23. Preserving Earth is Protecting Animals Phaik Kee Lim C. Bringing Change: Personal Encounters and Reflections Poem: Goldeneye, Vole Tami Haaland 24. Keeping Caged Animals, Keepings Secrets: Working as a Zoo Keeper Bethany Dopp 25. Intersections: Activism and the Natural Sciences Xylem T. Galadhon 26. Ecology, Food and Holistic Politics Deric Shannon
Doctors' knowledge, attitudes, and compliance with 2013 ACC/AHA guidelines for prevention of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease in Singapore.

Purpose There is an unmet need for strategies to prevent atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease in Singapore. The main objective of this study was to investigate Singapore physicians’ response to the 2013 American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) guidelines for treatment of cholesterol and their impact on clinical practice.
Big data and its epistemology

The article considers whether Big Data, in the form of data-driven science, will enable the discovery, or appraisal, of universal scientific theories, instrumentalist tools, or inductive inferences. It points out, initially, that such aspirations are similar to the now-discredited inductivist approach to science. On the positive side, Big Data may permit larger sample sizes, cheaper and more extensive testing of theories, and the continuous assessment of theories. On the negative side, data-driven science encourages passive data collection, as opposed to experimentation and testing, and hornswoggling "unsound statistical fiddling". The roles of theory and data in inductive algorithms, statistical modeling, and scientific discoveries are analyzed, and it is argued that theory is needed at every turn. Data-driven science is a chimera.
Cartoon Violence: Is It as Detrimental to Preschoolers as We Think?

It is a commonly accepted belief that the violence depicted in television programs, particularly cartoons, has a negative impact on young children's behavior. However, young children may be less inclined to emulate violent actions seen on television than currently thought. Research indicates that preschoolers have limited comprehension of television content but relatively sophisticated moral reasoning. This research review critically examines the effects of cartoon violence on children's moral understanding and behavior for the purposes of enabling early childhood educators and parents to make informed decisions about what constitutes potentially harmful television viewing.
Linear Reduction for Haplotype Inference

Haplotype inference problem asks for a set of haplotypes explaining a given set of genotypes. Popular software tools for haplotype inference (e.g., PHASE, HAPLOTYPER) as well as new algorithms recently proposed for perfect phylogeny inference (DPPH) are often not well scalable. When the number of sites (SNP’s) comes to thousands these tools often cannot deliver answer in reasonable time even if the number of haplotypes is small. In this paper we propose a new linear algebra based method which drastically reduces the number of sites in the original data. After solving a reduced instance, linear decoding allows to recover haplotypes of full length for given genotypes. Experiments show that our method significantly speeds up popular haplotype inference tools while finding almost the same solution practically in all cases thus not compromising the quality of the known haplotype inference methods.
Heuristics or Prescription: Synthesis Rather than Choice

The debate as to whether heuristics or prescription provides the best approach to teaching technical writing is still largely unresolved. When heuristics are used as process, as problem-solving devices, and when prescription is used as a product-producing device, a useful synthesis of the two approaches occurs. This article presents such a synthesis of heuristics and prescription; it concludes with a short annotated bibliography on heuristics and prescription which can be used by the technical writing teacher and the technical writer.
Analysis of thermally-annealed InGaN quantum wells for light-emitting diodes

Thermally-annealed InGaN quantum wells (QWs) with various interdiffusion lengths (L d ) are numerically analyzed as improved active region for Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs). The calculations of the band structure, wavefunction for electrons and holes are based on a self-consistent 6-band k·p method taking into account the valence band mixing, strain effect, spontaneous and piezoelectric polarizations and carrier screening effect. The spontaneous emission radiative recombination rate (R sp ) was calculated for thermally-annealed 3-nm In 0.25 Ga 0.75 N QWs with various interdiffusion lengths (L d ), as compared to that of the conventional InGaN QWs emitting at the similar wavelength. Studies show that the electron-hole wavefunction overlap is significantly enhanced for the thermally-annealed InGaN QWs, which results in the improved spontaneous emission radiative recombination rate for enhancing LED output power.
Microwave ablation with loop antenna: in vivo porcine liver model.

PURPOSE: To determine the effectiveness of tissue ablation with a loop microwave antenna in various configurations in porcine liver tissue. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Microwave energy was applied for 7 minutes at 60 W in six porcine livers (mean weight, 68.2 kg) by using single (n = 7) or dual 2.7-cm loop microwave probes in parallel (n = 9) or orthogonal (n = 9) configurations. Volume, diameter, shape, and temperature of the zone of necrosis and the presence of viable tissue inside the loop were determined and compared by means of factorial analysis of variance. RESULTS: Mean lesion volume and maximum diameter, respectively, were 32.2 cm3 ± 14.4 (SD) and 4.6 cm ± 1.4 for lesions ablated with parallel probes (parallel lesions), 29.5 cm3 ± 8.1 and 4.3 cm ± 0.6 for lesions ablated with orthogonal probes (orthogonal lesions), and 6.4 cm3 ± 1.9 and 3.4 cm ± 0.62 for lesions ablated with single probes (single lesions) (P < .05, single vs parallel and orthogonal lesions). Mean minimum diameter was greatest for orth...
Numerical calculation of stable densities and distribution functions

Computational formulas are given for stable densities and distribution functions in Zolotarev'(M) parameterization. These formulas are used in a software package called STABLE to calculate general stable densities, distribution functions and quantiles
Pyridoxal 5′-phosphate as an antidote for cyanide, spermine, gentamicin, and dopamine toxicity: An in vivo rat study

Pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP), the active form of vitamin B6, readily forms complexes with a wide variety of potentially toxic substances, including cyanide (KCN), spermine (SPM), gentamicin (GM), and dopamine (DOP). The role of PLP as an antidote for these toxicants in vivo was studied. Rats were given intraperitoneal injections of the toxicant, followed by injections of either saline or PLP. For KCN, PLP increased the LD50 from 0.088 to 0.188 mmol/kg and extended the survival time at the highest dose employed from a median of 3 min to a median of 60 min. For SPM, PLP increased the LD50 from 0.162 to 0.262 mmol/kg and prevented death from renal failure at all doses employed except the highest. PLP protected against GM-induced neuromuscular paralysis and death. In the case of DOP, results were equivocal, but no deaths were seen in the PLP-treated rats. The combination of individually nontoxic doses of GM, DOP, and SPM caused death with renal tubular necrosis, pulmonary edema and hemorrhages, congestion of the viscera, and a diffuse coagulopathy. Because many seriously ill patients have elevated SPM levels and are given GM and/or DOP, we suggest that further investigation of the potential protective role of PLP in serious illness be undertaken.
The cost of preterm birth: the low cost versus high value of tocolysis

The consequences of preterm birth (PTB), to the individual and society at large, remain a major financial and personal burden. Babies born at the limits of viability, who survive, often have major neurological impairments, such as cerebral palsy, developmental delay and blindness. The cost of initial hospitalisation is more than $200 000 for each birth but takes no account of future costs once they leave the hospital. The major morbidities associated with extreme prematurity are respiratory distress syndrome (RDS), intraventricular haemorrhage (IVH) and necrotising enterocolitis (NEC). With advancing gestational age at birth, the financial costs and morbidity associated with these conditions decrease. The major morbidities (RDS, IVH and NEC) are rare by 34 weeks of gestation, with the exception of RDS, which complicates 7% of deliveries at this gestational age. While the vast majority of infants survive the first year of life, the infant mortality rate is markedly increased by three- to five-fold even for the mildly preterm infants, as compared with that of the term infants. Neonates born after 34 completed weeks of gestation rarely have mortality or major morbidity, but the financial costs remain significant ($7000 per case), and efforts to prevent delivery at this gestational age are probably indicated. Economic costs associated with PTB include the cost of initial hospitalisation, the cost of any chronic diseases resulting from the prematurity and social costs including loss of gainful employment by a family member taking care of the infant or child and loss of potential future earnings of the affected child. Antenatal steroids, if given to the mother at least 48 hours prior to a PTB, have shown significant reductions in RDS, IVH and NEC. Efforts to prevent, or avoid, PTB include the use of tocolytic agents which have been shown to prolong gestation for a minimum of 48 hours, or longer in some cases. The range of tocolytic agents used to delay or prevent PTB work through many different pathways, with varying degrees of success. Which tocolytic agent to use depends on many factors including underlying maternal status, gestational age of the fetus and documented efficacy of agent used.
Provenance of eastern Magallanes foreland basin sediments: Heavy mineral analysis reveals Paleogene tectonic unroofing of the Fuegian Andes hinterland

Abstract Documenting variations in the composition of foreland basin detrital sediments is a useful tool for reconstructing the kinematic history of associated orogenic systems. Herein we report the results of our SEM-EDS heavy mineral analysis of the Late Cretaceous to early Miocene eastern Magallanes basin of southernmost Argentina. Our data indicate that Campanian to middle Eocene sediments had a mafic/ophiolitic provenance, which we interpret as being derived from the Patagonian–Fuegian magmatic arc and the mafic floor of the preceding Rocas Verdes marginal basin. Upper middle Eocene to lower Miocene heavy minerals, on the other hand, indicate a metamorphic/metasedimentary provenance, which we interpret as being derived from the Cordillera Darwin metamorphic complex. Together, these data indicate an abrupt shift in sediment provenance in middle to late Eocene time, thereby corroborating recent interpretations of the basin's detrital–zircon geochrononology, and providing further support for temporal and possibly genetic relationships between development of the Patagonian orocline, the opening of Drake Passage and the Oi-1 glaciation of Antarctica.
Kinetics of orientational order/disorder transitions and their application to carbon material synthesis

This paper treats the kinetics of the orientational order/disorder transitions with special application to liquid crystalline transitions in which molecular mobility is severely limited. Potential applications include non-equilibrium cooling of isotropic liquid phases, lyotropic transitions in which the liquid crystal forming species are dissolved or suspended in viscous solvents and the synthesis of carbon materials from condensed phase organic starting materials. It will be demonstrated that a simple hard line simulation embodying the essential competition between growth rate and mobility in ensembles of canonical anisometric objects can mimic the formation of nanostructures in several important classes of carbon materials.
Film stress studies and the multilayer Laue lens project

A Multilayer Laue Lens (MLL) is a new type of linear zone plate, made by sectioning a planar depth-graded multilayer and used in Laue transmission diffraction geometry, for nanometer-scale focusing of hard x-rays. To produce an MLL, a depth-graded multilayer consisting of thousands of layers with a total thickness of tens of microns is needed. Additionally, the multilayer wafer has to be sectioned and polished to a thickness of ~10 to 25 microns to yield a diffracting grating to focus x-rays. The multilayers must have both low stress and good adhesion to survive the subsequent cutting and polishing processes, as well as sharp interfaces and accurate layer placement. Several partial MLLs using WSi 2 /Si multilayers with precise zone-plate structures have been successfully fabricated. A W/Si multilayer with the same structure, however, cracked and peeled off from the Si substrate after it was grown. Here we report results of our film stress studies of dc magnetron-sputtered WSi 2 , W, and Mo thin films and WSi 2 /Si, W/Si, and Mo/Si multilayers grown on Si(100) substrates. The stress measurements were carried out using a stylus profiler to measure the curvatures of 2-inch-diameter, 0.5-mm-thick Si(100) wafers before and after each coating. The physical origins of the stress and material properties of these systems will be discussed.
Unearthing the visions of a master: harmonic Maass forms and number theory

Together with his collaborators, most notably Kathrin Bringmann and Jan Bruinier, the author has been researching harmonic Maass forms. These non-holomorphic modular forms play central roles in many subjects: arithmetic geometry, combinatorics, modular forms, and mathematical physics. Here we outline the general facets of the theory, and we give several applications to number theory: partitions and $q$-series, modular forms, singular moduli, Borcherds products, extensions of theorems of Kohnen-Zagier and Waldspurger on modular $L$-functions, and the work of Bruinier and Yang on Gross-Zagier formulae. What is surprising is that this story has an unlikely beginning: the pursuit of the solution to a great mathematical mystery.
Lymphocyte and granulocyte phosphatidylethanolamine N-methyltransferase: properties and activity in cystic fibrosis.

ABSTRACT. Human lymphocyte and granulocyte membranes contain an enzyme, phosphatidylethanolamine Nmethyltransferase (PEMT), which catalyzes the transfer of a methyl group from S-adenosylmethionine to the polar head group of phosphatidylethanolamine to form phosphatidylmonomethylethanolamine. This enzyme, in lymphocyte membranes, has Km for S-adenosylmethionine of 7.01 ± 2.9 (SD) µM, and specific activity 0.57 ± 0.31 pmol/mg protein/15 min, is inhibited by S-adenosylhomocysteine, displays optimal activity at pH 8.0–9.0, and is stimulated by isoproterenol in dose-dependent, propranolol-inhibitable fashion, to a lesser extent by epinephrine, but not by norepinephrine, prostaglandin E1, concanavalin A, or adenosine 3´:5´ cyclic monophosphate, with or without phosphodiesterase inhibitors. Granulocyte membrane PEMT has Km for S-adenosylmethionine of 4.4 µM and specific activity 0.54 ± 0.51 pmol/mg protein/15 min, is inhibited by S-adenosylhomocysteine, displays optimal activity at pH 8.0–9.5, and is stimulated by isoproterenol>epinephrine>norepinephrine, but not by prostaglandin E1, serumtreated zymosan, formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine, or adenosine 3´:5´ cyclic monophosphate. Because activation of PEMT reportedly contributes to several processes known to be abnormal in cystic fibrosis, including coupling of the s-adrenergic receptor to adenylate cyclase, activity of PEMT was compared in lymphocyte and granulocyte membrane preparations from cystic fibrosis patients and healthy controls, in which abnormal coupling of s-adrenergic receptor to adenylate cyclase had been demonstrated. For both cell types, the Km and specific activity of PEMT were comparable in normal and cystic fibrosis samples. Therefore, the hypothesis that reduced PEMT activity accounts for the impaired coupling of s-adrenergic receptor to adenylate cyclase in lymphocytes and granulocytes in cystic fibrosis is rejected.
Homologous insemination—Revisited

Between July 1, 1969, and December 31, 1983, 1774 patients were evaluated in the private infertility clinic at the University of Virginia Hospital. Homologous artificial insemination was performed in 158 patients for the following indications: male factor (75.3%), cervical factor (16.7%), sperm deposition problem (3.7%), patient's request (2.5%), and immunologic factor (1.8%). Whole-ejaculate insemination was performed in 68 patients; split ejaculates were used in 90 women. Additional fertility factors in 140 patients included endometriosis, anatomic abnormalities, and ovulatory difficulties. Of the 158 women, 23 (14.6%) had a total of 27 pregnancies (mean number of cycles, 5.7); 135 failed to conceive during treatment with homologous artificial insemination (mean number of cycles, 8.4). Most pregnancies (70.4%) occurred in those patients in whom homologous artificial insemination was used for a male factor. Among the 135 couples who failed to conceive with homologous artificial insemination, 20 (14.8%) patients subsequently had 25 pregnancies. Male factor had been the indication for homologous artificial insemination in 72% of the couples. Pregnancy outcomes were similar in all subgroups. Homologous artificial insemination may not be indicated for male factor-related infertility.
Coherent 95 GHz Instrumentation Radar

A coherent instrumentation radar was designed and developed to support the collection of target and clutter backscatter data of 95 GHz. The radar is completely solid-state and uses a phase locked Gunn oscillator and injection locked IMPATT oscillators to achieve the frequency stability required for coherent signal processing. Data can be collected under a selectable set of pulsewidth, polarization and pulse repetition interval conditions. Since data integrity (coherence) is almost totally dependent on system spectral purity, major design effort was focused on signal generation and control. System tests have demonstrated that the required degree of stability and control has been achieved for operation with both stationary and moving targets.© (1982) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Waste heat recovery power generation systems for cement production process

Cement production process is highly energy intensive with approximately 3–4-GJ energy consumption per ton of cement produced. Moreover, energy costs are responsible for 25% of total production costs, whereas 75% of primary energy usage is thermal energy. However, the process is characterized by a significant amount of heat loss mainly by the flue gases and the air stream used for cooling down the clinker. Waste heat is generated by a fuel combustion process or chemical reactions and then dumped into the environment although it could still be reused for some useful and economic purposes. Reducing the amount of wasted heat as well as reusing it has been a matter of great concern for the past couple of decades. A heat recovery system could increase the efficiency of the cement plant as well as reduce the amount of $\hbox{CO}_{2}$ emissions to the environment by lowering the temperature of the exhaust gases. This paper is an introduction to waste heat recovery generation systems and their operations and feasibility for the cement production process and is also a review of the four common power generation cycles, i.e., steam Rankine cycle, organic Rankine cycle, Kalina cycle, and supercritical $\hbox{CO}_{2}$ cycle.
Encoded Archival Description: Are Finding Aids Boundary Spanners or Barriers for Users?

ABSTRACT The article reports the results of a usability study of an EAD interface. Findings indicate that subjects had trouble understanding archival terminology and how best to search for information in finding aids. Furthermore, they were not familiar with the structure or contents of finding aids. In addition to building interfaces that minimize archival jargon and rely heavily on users' prior understanding of hierarchical finding aids, this study indicates that users require new forms of virtual reference assistance in the online environment.
Photometric imaging near infrared spectrometer

A description of the design and performance of an imaging spectrometer intended for operation in the seven to fourteen micrometer wavelength range is presented. It is based upon a sixteen by sixteen element Si:Bi hybrid array, a circular variable filter wheel, and a microcomputer data acquisition system. The spatial-spectral photometric performances have been evaluated in the laboratory as well as field tested at astronomical observatories. The performance characteristics of the system are presented as well as laboratory and astronomical images.
Pharmacologic evidence for a serotonin neural pathway involved in hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal function in rats.

Abstract The hypothesis that a serotonin neural pathway stimulates ACTH secretion in rats was supported by pharmacologic data. Fluoxetine, an inhibitor of serotonin reuptake, caused a dose-related elevation of plasma corticosterone levels in intact but not in hypophysectomized rats. The previously-reported elevation of plasma corticosterone by 5-hydroxytryptophan (5HTP) was confirmed and shown to be stereospecific, L-5HTP being much more active than D-5HTP. Simultaneous injection of subeffective doses of fluoxetine and L-5HTP caused marked elevation of plasma corticosterone. Fluoxetine pretreatment potentiated the elevation of plasma corticosterone by L-5HTP. Although the elevation of plasma corticosterone by fluoxetine was of short duration (perhaps due to compensatory reduction of serotonin release), the potentiation of the L-5HTP effect by fluoxetine lasted for more than 24 hrs as predicted by the duration of uptake inhibition by fluoxetine. The dose-response characteristics for corticosterone elevation and L-5HTP potentiation by fluoxetine were similar to those for serotonin uptake blockade.