cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Clinical effectiveness of open thrombectomy for thrombosed autogenous arteriovenous fistulas and grafts.

Abstract Objective Arteriovenous (AV) fistulas are the preferred hemodialysis access for patients with end-stage renal disease, although multiple interventions are typically needed to maintain patency. When AV fistulas thrombose, however, there is debate as to whether open thrombectomy should be attempted, particularly for salvage of upper arm fistulas. This study was designed to evaluate outcomes after open thrombectomy of upper arm and forearm AV fistulas compared with AV grafts. Methods We identified all patients who underwent an open thrombectomy procedure for a thrombosed AV fistula or graft at a single academic medical center between January 2006 and March 2017. The specific type of AV fistula or graft was evaluated, as were the patients' demographics, comorbidities, medications, adjunctive procedures during thrombectomy, and secondary interventions. The primary outcome measures, postintervention primary patency and postintervention secondary patency, were analyzed using Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox regression models for risk adjustment. Results During the study period, 209 open thrombectomy procedures were performed in 139 patients; 73 (35%) were undertaken in AV fistulas and 136 (65%) in grafts. Patients with upper arm fistulas (n = 52; 54% brachiocephalic, 46% brachiobasilic) and forearm fistulas (n = 16) were more likely to be male but less likely to have cerebrovascular disease or ischemic heart disease and to be receiving anticoagulation therapy compared with graft patients. After thrombectomy, the majority of patients underwent dialysis successfully (70% upper arm fistulas, 56% forearm fistulas, 63% grafts; P > .05), and 1-year survival rates were similar in all three cohorts. Postintervention primary patency at 1 year was significantly higher for AV fistulas vs grafts (33% for upper arm fistulas and 25% for forearm fistulas vs 9% for grafts; P P P = .16), but in multivariate analysis, upper arm fistulas were significantly less likely to fail (hazard ratio, 0.63; 95% confidence interval, 0.40-1.00; P = .05). Conclusions Our data suggest that AV fistula thrombectomy is successful in up to 70% of cases, with significantly improved risk-adjusted 1-year primary and secondary patency rates for upper arm fistulas compared with grafts. Whereas the risk of access failure is high after thrombectomy, efforts to salvage upper arm AV fistulas are effective in most patients and should be undertaken when feasible.
Transformation of Rabbit Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells by SV40 Virus

Evidence is accumulating that viruses may participate in atherogenesis. In chickens, infection with Marek’s disease virus induces atherosclerotic lesions in the absence of hypercholesterolemia. In humans, several distinct viruses have been found in atherosclerotic lesions. To assess the possible effects of viral transformation on vascular smooth muscle cell growth and metabolism, we infected subconfluent cultured rabbit arterial smooth muscle cells with simian virus 40 (SV40), Baylor strain, wild type. Three weeks after infection, a transformed cell line was isolated. The transformed cells expressed intranuclear SV40 T antigen yet still retained smooth muscle characteristics as documented by a uniform positive reaction with antibodies against smooth muscle cell-specific actin. These transformed cells were further subcultured, and 18 clones were obtained, each exhibiting a characteristic phenotype. The morphological appearances of the cells in the different clones ranged from multinucleated giant cells of variable shape to small uniform-sized cells. The transformed cell clones contained significantly more polyploid cells than control cells, and the modal chromosome number ranged from 41 to 83, whereas the control smooth muscle cells maintained a modal diploid number of 44. The transformed cells grew both faster and to a higher saturation density than did control smooth muscle cells in culture medium containing either 1% or 5% fetal calf serum. When the cells were incubated in the presence of lipoprotein-deficient serum, the clones displayed greater diversity in their intracellular lipid content. In preliminary experiments, incubation of certain clonal cell lines with lipoproteins resulted in massive lipid overloading. These results indicate that virus-transformed smooth muscle cells exhibit phenotypic changes that should be of considerable value for studying the consequences of viral infection of vascular smooth muscle cells in atherogenesis.
Single-channel to multichannel conversions in adult cochlear implant subjects.

Objective: This study aimed to compare open-set speech perception of single-channel with multichannel cochlear implants in the same ear of postlingually deafened adults. Study Design: The study design was a retrospective case and literature review. Setting: The study was conducted at a tertiary referral center with an associated veterans administration hospital. Patients: Postlingually deafened adults with at least 6 months of experience with a single-channel cochlear implant were studied. Intervention: Replacement of a single-channel with a multichannel cochlear implant in the same ear was performed. Main Outcome Measures: Open-set word and sentence perception scores at least 6 months after single-channel implantation and multichannel reimplantation were measured. Results: Six of six patients had substantial improvement in open-set speech recognition after reimplantation of the same ear. Conclusions: Removal of a functioning single-channel implant and replacement with a multichannel device are appropriate in postlingually deafened adults who desire better speech recognition.
Regulation of inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptors by phosphorylation and adenine nucleotides.

Publisher Summary This chapter describes the current state of knowledge regarding the mechanisms and physiological ramifications of 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor (IP3R) regulation by phosphorylation and ATP binding. Phosphorylation by various kinases represents a common mode of ion channel regulation. The transfer of phosphate allows rapid, reversible modification of channel function not provided by changes in gene transcription, which are more energetically demanding. Similar to other ion channels, IP3R are phosphorylated by several ser/thr kinases and tyr kinases that comprise the two major classes of mammalian protein kinases. Protein kinase (PKA) is activated by increases in the second messenger cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP), and phosphorylation of IP3R allows interplay or crosstalk between the ubiquitous cAMP and Ca2+ signaling pathways. Other second messenger activated serine/threonine kinases, including cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP)-dependent protein kinase (PKG), protein kinase C (PKC), and Ca2+–calmodulin-activated kinase II (CaMKII) have been shown to phosphorylate IP3R1. PKG phosphorylates IP3R1 at the same residues as PKA but the functional effects of direct PKG phosphorylation were distinct from those of PKA phosphorylation.
Trust but Verify?: Trust and Behavior Controls in Virtual Teams

Trust and controls are two mechanisms that organizations use to manage virtual teams. Nonetheless their relationship is not fully understood. The current literature on trust and behavior controls i...
Recent Developments in Male Contraception

Unplanned pregnancies are an ongoing global burden, posing health and economic risks for women, children, and families. Advances in male contraception have been historically stymied by concerning failure rates, problematic side effects, and perceived market limitations. However, increased interest in reliable and reversible options for male contraception have resulted in resurgent efforts to introduce novel contraceptives for men. Hormonal male contraception relies on exogenous androgens and progestogens that suppress gonadotropin production, thereby suppressing testicular testosterone and sperm production. In many men, effective suppression of spermatogenesis can be achieved by androgen-progestin combination therapy. Small-scale contraceptive efficacy studies in couples have demonstrated effectiveness and reversibility with male hormonal methods, but side effects related to mood, sexual desire and cholesterol remain concerning. A number of novel androgens have reached clinical testing as potential contraceptive agents; many of these have both androgenic and progestogenic action in a single, modified steroid, thereby holding promise as single-agent contraceptives. Currently, these novel steroids hold promise as both a “male pill” and long-acting injections. Among non-hormonal methods, studies of reversible vaso-occlusive methods (polymers that block transport of sperm through the vas deferens) are ongoing, but reliable reversibility and long-term safety in men have not been established. Proteins involved in sperm maturation and motility are attractive targets, but to date both specificity and biologic redundancy have been challenges for drug development. In this review, we aim to summarize landmark studies on male contraception, highlight the most recent advances and future development in this important field of public health and medicine.
Heat Inactivation of Coccidioides posadasii and Coccidioides immitis for Use in Lower Biosafety Containment.

Introduction:The difficulty involved in obtaining sufficient intact genomic deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) from Coccidioides spp for downstream applications using published protocols prompted the expl...
An Analysis of Online Ratings of Hip and Knee Surgeons

Abstract Background Public domain physician review websites (PRWs) and personal websites are extremely popular measures that patients use to evaluate physicians before receiving care. Few studies have examined how orthopedic surgeons are rated on PRWs and personal websites. This study examines the online ratings of hip and knee replacement subspecialists. Methods The American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons (AAHKS) fellow’s ratings were examined from October 1st, 2018 to December 31st, 2018, on Healthgrades.com, Vitals.com, RateMDs.com, Google.com, and personal websites. Number of responses and average ratings (0.0-5.0) were recorded, along with provider gender, years in practice (0-10, 11-20, and 21+), practice type (academic, private), geographic region (NE, SE, MW, SW, W), degree (MD, DO), and fellowship training (yes, no). The Kruskal-Wallis testing was performed to determine factors affecting positive surgeon ratings. Results 98.3% (483) of 490 AAHKS surgeons were rated at least once. No significant differences in average ratings were identified between websites. Surgeons in practice 1-10 years had significantly higher ratings than those in practice 11-20 and 21+ years (P Conclusions AAHKS surgeons have high average ratings and are rated online frequently. Surgeons in practice 1-10 years had statistically higher overall average ratings. Adult reconstruction fellowship training was also associated with higher average ratings for surgeons in practice 1-10 years. Public domain PRWs and personal websites showed no difference in average ratings.
Lack of standardization among clinical trials of injection therapies for knee osteoarthritis: a systematic review.

Purpose: Osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee is a debilitating, expensive, and prevalent disease, and interest in the non-surgical management of knee OA has grown recently. Our objective was to systema...
The effect of insurance status on overall survival among children and adolescents with cancer.

BACKGROUND Differences in access, delivery and utilisation of health care may impact childhood and adolescent cancer survival. We evaluated whether insurance coverage impacts survival among US children and adolescents with cancer diagnoses, overall and by age group, and explored potential mechanisms. METHODS Data from 58 421 children (aged ≤14 years) and adolescents (15-19 years), diagnosed with cancer from 2004 to 2010, were obtained from the National Cancer Database. We examined associations between insurance status at initial diagnosis or treatment and diagnosis stage; any treatment received; and mortality using logistic regression, Cox proportional hazards (PH) regression, restricted mean survival time (RMST) and mediation analyses. RESULTS Relative to privately insured individuals, the hazard of death (all-cause) was increased and survival months were decreased in those with Medicaid [hazard ratio (HR) = 1.27, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.22 to 1.33; and -1.73 months, 95% CI: -2.07 to -1.38] and no insurance (HR = 1.32, 95% CI: 1.20 to 1.46; and -2.13 months, 95% CI: -2.91 to -1.34). The HR for Medicaid vs. private insurance was larger (pinteraction <0.001) in adolescents (HR = 1.52, 95% CI: 1.41 to 1.64) than children (HR = 1.16, 95% CI: 1.10 to 1.23). Despite statistical evidence violation of the PH assumption, RMST results supported all interpretations. Earlier diagnosis for staged cancers in the Medicaid and uninsured populations accounted for an estimated 13% and 19% of the survival deficit, respectively, vs. the privately insured population. Any treatment received did not account for insurance-associated survival differences in children and adolescents with cancer. CONCLUSIONS Children and adolescents without private insurance had a higher risk of death and shorter survival within 5 years following cancer diagnosis. Additional research is needed to understand underlying mechanisms.
Reactive Axillary Lymphadenopathy to COVID-19 Vaccination on F18-FDG PET/CT.

In this report, we present FDG PET/CT findings of reactive left axillary and supraclavicular hypermetabolic lymphadenopathy, as well as ipsilateral delta muscle injection site radiotracer uptake related to recent COVID-19 vaccination in a patient with osteosarcoma. With growing number of patients receiving COVID-19 vaccine, recognition of benign characteristic FDG PET/CT image findings will ensure staging/restaging accuracy and avoid unnecessary biopsy.
A Fragmented and Polarized Diaspora: The Making of an Iranian Pluralist Consciousness in Malaysia

This article explores the diasporic subjectivities of Iranians in Malaysia, specifically how homeland and host country’s national domestic policies and bilateral state relations, in addition to int...
Parabolic Wave Equation Model for Ducted Environments

The goal of this work is to develop a numerical EM tool based on a parabolic wave equation (PWE) model that can accurately predict propagation losses over a wide range of frequencies, geometries, atmospheric and ocean conditions, including very small elevation angles. The code is specifically written for accurate field computations in ducted environments for low grazing angle air-to-ground links (typically less than 4-5°). It can run as a hybrid model with upper atmosphere is modeled using fast simpler models and lower marine atmospheric boundary layer is simulated by a discrete mixed Fourier transform-based PWE. It also include a Monte Carlo module that allows statistical estimation of realistic effects of varying sea surface, and turbulence by providing both the coherent and incoherent components of the field.
Reported organic food consumption and metabolic syndrome in older adults: cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses

Examine cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships between organic food consumption, metabolic syndrome (MetS), and its components among older adults. Respondents of the 2012 Health and Retirement Study (HRS), and Health Care and Nutrition Study (HCNS) were included in this study. Organic food consumption was measured with a crude binary question asking about past-year consumption (yes/no). Cross-sectional analyses were conducted with 6,633 participants (mean (SE) age, 65.5 (0.3) years). Longitudinal analyses were conducted with a subset of 1,637 respondents who participated in the HRS Venous Blood Study (mean (SE) age, 63.8 (0.4) years). Hemoglobin A1C and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol were assessed using dried blood spots at baseline. Glucose, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglycerides were assessed using fasting blood samples collected 4 years after baseline. Waist circumference and blood pressure were measured at baseline and follow-up. Logistic and linear regressions were used to assess the associations between organic food consumption, MetS, and its components. Any organic food consumption over the previous year was reported among 47.4% of cross-sectional and 51.3% of longitudinal participants. Unadjusted models showed inverse cross-sectional associations between organic food consumption and waist circumference, blood pressure, and hemoglobin A1C, and positive longitudinal association with high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. No significant associations were detected in the fully adjusted models. No association was observed between organic food consumption and MetS among older adults after adjusting for confounders. Future studies with a precise definition, quantitative assessment of the consumption, and duration of organic food consumption, together with pesticides biomarkers, are warranted.
Plant and Bacterial Toxins as RNA N-Glycosidases

Along with identification of the enzymatic function of ribosome-inactivating proteins (RIPs) came the recognition that certain bacterial toxins, called Shiga toxins (Stxs), fit into the category of plant proteins. We now know that these plant and bacterial poisons have the broader specificity of polynucleotide:adenosine glycosidases, at least in vitro. This chapter refers to the enzymes interchangeably as RIPs or RNA N-glycosidases. Recently, additional enzymatic activities have been attributed to the RIPs. However, when four different RIPs were highly purified, the only enzymatic activity they retained was the capacity to remove adenine from rRNA or DNA. This observation indicates that the RIPs, originally defined as RNA N-glycosidases, are actually polynucleotide:adenosine glycosidases, at least in vitro. One unusual feature of the RIPs is that, although they share the same enzymatic activity and their preferred target is intact mammalian ribosomes, they are not equally active on target ribosomes in vitro. There appear to be at least two explanations for this phenomenon. One reason that some RNA N-glycosidases do not appear to be as active as others in cell-free assays is that they require cofactors such as ATP. The second reason that some RIPs have varying specificities is that they appear to interact with ribosomal proteins. Consistent with a protective function for the plant RNA N-glycosidases is that the RIPs are both lethal and often stored in large quantities.
Repair of corroded and buckled short steel columns using concrete-filled GFRP jackets

Abstract Many bridges and structures in the United States that are supported on steel columns or piles exhibit inadequate strength due to increasing load demand or aging due to corrosion, or both. The combination of increased load demand and reduction of capacity due to corrosion-induced section loss can lead to unexpected buckling of the piles. This paper investigates the effectiveness of a glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP)-based technique for rapid retrofit of buckled steel piles or columns. The system consists of a GFRP jacket, which is formed on-site and subsequently filled with an expansive concrete. Thirteen-buckled short steel columns with varying degrees of section loss were repaired and tested to failure under axial compression. The research results indicate that the repair system restored the capacity of the buckled columns to between 69% and 104% of the capacity of the undamaged control column. Further the repaired piles exhibited a hardening response in the non-linear range rather than the sudden loss of capacity and softening response that is characteristically associated with buckling of steel columns. The findings suggest that installation of concrete-filled GFRP jackets can be an effective technique to rapidly repair corroded and buckled short steel columns or piles.
A Bayesian approach to gross error detection in chemical process data: Part II: Simulation results☆

Abstract Tamhane, A.C., Iordache, C. and Mah, R.S.H., 1988. A Bayesian approach to gross error detection in chemical process data. Part II: Simulation results. Chemometrics and Intelligent Laboratory Systems , 4: 131–146. The performance of the gross error detection scheme based on the Bayesian test is evaluated using Monte Carlo simulation methods. Effects of selected control factors (implementation options) and noise factors (e.g., violation of assumptions and misspecification of priors) are studied. A comparison is made with the gross error detection scheme based on the non-Bayesian measurement test of Mah and Tamhane. The Bayesian scheme is found to be relatively robust. It performs better than the measurement test scheme when gross error occurrences are not infrequent. However, its performance characteristics converge rather slowly and hence accurate prior estimates of the various unknown parameters are necessary before the method can be put to practical use. In conclusion, the Bayesian approach offers the promise of improving gross error detection and identification capabilities by using past failure data. Its technical feasibility is demonstrated by this investigation, but much remains to be done to make it a practical method.
MEDICAL PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED IN MILITARY SERVICE

Excerpt In the world about us we now witness millions of people arrayed in bitter conflict against other millions, defenseless masses dying at the hands of ruthless aggressors, and commerce of neut...
Principals Sense of Efficacy: Assessing a Promising Construct.

In this era of accountability and significant school reform, efforts to improve schools increasingly look to the principal to spearhead change efforts at the school level. Good principals are the cornerstones of good schools. Without a principal's leadership efforts to raise student achievement, a school cannot achieve its fundamental academic mission. The principal is seen as a key agent at the school level, initiating change by raising the level of expectations for both teachers and students. One promising, but largely unexplored avenue to understanding principal motivation and behavior is principals' sense of efficacy. Self‐efficacy is a perceived judgment of one's ability to effect change, which may be viewed as a foundational characteristic of an effective school leader. This paper reports on three studies that were conducted in the search for a reasonably valid and reliable measure to capture principals' sense of efficacy.
Supervisors' Instrumental and Emotional Influences on Subordinate Help-Seeking Behavior: An Exploratory Study

Research on subordinate help-seeking in the workplace is limited. In the present research, we hypothesize that subordinates' help-seeking behaviors will be influenced by 3 supervisor influences that are instrumentally and emotionally related to the subordinate: providing direct job-related assistance and emotional support, and socializing with the supervisor outside of work. The results indicate that providing job-related assistance and socializing are significant predictors of subordinates' help-seeking behaviors. Dominance analysis reveals that socializing outside of work is the dominant factor influencing subordinates' help-seeking behaviors. Implications from the findings and suggestions for future research are presented.
Archaeoastronomy in the Ancient Americas

Since its popular resurgence in the 1960s, the interdisciplinary field of archaeoastronomy, which seeks evidence from the written as well as the unwritten record to shed light on the nature and practice of astronomy and timekeeping in ancient civilizations, has made ever-increasing significant use of the archaeological record. This essay briefly touches on the origin and history of these developments, discusses the methodology of archaeoastronomy, and assesses its contributions via the discussion of selected case studies at sites in North, South, and Mesoamerica. Specifically, archaeology contributes significantly to clarifying the role of sky events in site planning. The rigorous repetition of axial alignments of sites and individual oddly shaped and/or oriented structures can be related to alterations in the calendar often initiated by cross-cultural contact.Together with evidence acquired from other forms of the ancient record, archaeology also helps clarify the relationship between functional and symbolic astronomical knowledge. In state-level societies, it offers graphic evidence that structures that served as chronographic markers also functioned as performative stages for seasonally timed rituals mandated by cosmic connections claimed by the rulership.
Comparison of task response times in parallel systems

Generic queuing models of parallel systems with K>or=2 exponential servers, where jobs may be split into K independent tasks, are considered. The queuing of jobs is distributed if each server has its own queue and centralized if there is a common queue. The scheduling of jobs is no splitting if all tasks of a job must run on one processor and splitting if they can run concurrently on different processors. Exact and approximate expressions for the mean response time, T/sub r:K/, of the rth, r=1, 2, . . ., K, departing task in a job are obtained and compared for four models: distributed/splitting, distributed/no splitting, centralized/splitting, and centralized/no splitting. The queuing models are described. Exact and approximate analyses of the various models are presented where expressions are obtained for the mean task response time. The various models are compared and applications in the areas of distributed query processing and parallel systems are included. >
Tracking Cholera in Coastal Regions using Satellite Observations

Cholera remains a significant health threat across the globe. The pattern and magnitude of the seven global pandemics suggest that cholera outbreaks primarily originate in coastal regions and then spread inland through secondary means. Cholera bacteria show strong association with plankton abundance in coastal ecosystems. This review study investigates relationship(s) between cholera incidence and coastal processes and explores utility of using remote sensing data to track coastal plankton blooms, using chlorophyll as a surrogate variable for plankton abundance, and subsequent cholera outbreaks. Most studies over the last several decades have primarily focused on the microbiological and epidemiological understanding of cholera outbreaks. Accurate identification and mechanistic understanding of large scale climatic, geophysical and oceanic processes governing cholera-chlorophyll relationship is important for developing cholera prediction models. Development of a holistic understanding of these processes requires long and reliable chlorophyll dataset(s), which are beginning to be available through satellites. We have presented a schematic pathway and a modeling framework that relate cholera with various hydroclimatic and oceanic variables for understanding disease dynamics using latest advances in remote sensing. Satellite data, with its unprecedented spatial and temporal coverage, have potentials to monitor coastal processes and track cholera outbreaks in endemic regions.
Chronomics analysis toolkit (CATkit)

Chronomics, and the study of biological rhythms, is a rapidly growing area of study. As biological researchers transition to awareness of the impact biological oscillators have on experimental outcomes, and the need to design experiments around genetic, molecular, physiological, and behavioral rhythms, there is increasing need to identify and characterize rhythmicity. There is a corresponding increase in demand for accessible software tools to analyze data for rhythms, both macroscopically and quantitatively. The chronomics analysis toolkit (CATkit), an R package for analysis of periodicities in time series, is a free and open source suite of rhythm analysis tools that runs on UNIX, Windows, and Macintosh platforms. It is particularly well suited to the often scarce, frequently noisy, biological data, and is also applicable to long and/or denser records. CATkit includes a variety of tools, providing visualization and inspection tools to aid in determining whether data meet key assumptions for analysis; as...
Crowdfunding: The Real and the Illusory Exemption

Crowdfunding is commonly defined as raising small amounts of capital from a large number of people over the internet. To avoid the expense of securities regulation, companies often crowdfund by giving away rewards (like a free t-shirt) instead of selling stock or other securities. In April 2012, Title III of the JOBS Act sought to change this status quo by directing the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to facilitate securities-based crowdfunding through websites like Kickstarter. Congress and the President believed this would broaden access to sidelined capital and help companies grow and hire. But this “retail crowdfunding” exemption, open to all investors, was not the only means of crowdfunding in the bill. A last minute compromise, which has been largely over-looked, expanded the ability of issuers to use the private placement exemption, as revised in new Rule 506(c), to crowdfund from accredited investors. This “accredited crowdfunding” exemption provides a less regulated alternative to retail crowdfunding that is available to the same companies and more.This article is the first to examine the impact that accredited crowdfunding will have on retail crowdfunding. It claims that accredited crowdfunding is likely to dominate and, depending on SEC action, could render retail crowdfunding superfluous or a market for lemons. But it also claims that accredited crowdfunding – when compared to traditional private placements – may face a similar lemons problem over the longer term on account of rules that discourage investors from fending for themselves. These potential problems threaten to undermine the social welfare goals of the JOBS Act: increasing access to capital, spurring business growth, and creating jobs. But the SEC can minimize these problems and promote social welfare by strengthening the bargaining incentives of accredited investors and encouraging retail investors to piggyback off of their work. The normative part of this article provides targeted recommendations that balance the need for capital formation against a novel incentives-based theory of investor protection.
Prevalence, morbidity, and current medical management of uterine leiomyomas.

Abstract Background Uterine leiomyoma is the most common pelvic tumor in women, but the actual prevalence is unknown. Objectives To review the literature on the prevalence of uterine leiomyoma, presenting symptoms, and medical management. Search strategy On April 1–30, 2014, a PubMed search for studies reported in English was conducted using the terms “uterine leiomyoma,” “prevalence,” and “symptoms.” Another search was performed using the terms “uterine leiomyoma” and “treatment.” Selection criteria All trial types other than internet-only studies were included. Animal studies were excluded from the prevalence/symptom review, but included in the medical management review. Data collection and analysis Prevalence rates were recorded on the basis of imaging modality, cohort studied, ethnic origin, and age. Main results Studies involving asymptomatic women revealed a trend in prevalence similar to that in symptomatic women, and showed that leiomyomas are more common in this cohort than previously recognized. Affected patients can present with many complaints, but no single symptom has been shown to be specific for this tumor. Various medical therapies are reviewed, summarizing efficacy and toxicity. Conclusions Further research needs to be conducted on the prevalence in asymptomatic women. Current and future medical management options provide promising results in symptom reduction.
Correlation of the Cambrian-Ordovician boundary between the Acado-Baltic and North American faunal provinces

The conodont form species Cordylodus proavus Muller, 1959, occurs in the Acado-Baltic faunal province below the Cambrian-Ordovician (Olenidian-Tremadocian Series) boundary on Navy Island, New Brunswick, Canada. Its lowest occurrence in the North American faunal province is in the uppermost Cambrian Corbinia apopsis Subzone of the Saukia Zone. These data, combined with the appearance of the olenid trilobites Jujuyaspis and Parabolinella in the Acado-Baltic lower Tremadocian and in the North American lowermost Ordovician Missisquoia and Symphysurina Zones, suggest but do not prove an approximate equivalency of the Cambrian-Ordovician boundary in the two faunal provinces.
Adaptive rating scales in sequential decisions

The benefits gained in decision research through the use of computer-controlled procedures, as opposed to the use of traditional pencil-and-paper techniques, can exceed the expected gains of efficiency and standardization. Computers extend the scope of a sequential decision making paradigm by enhancing (1) the strength of experimental design, (2) reliability of measurement, (3) procedural flexibility, and (4) single-subject data analysis. Data are reported that indicate the necessity of using computers to obtain reliable measurements and valid results for this type of decision research.
Coronary Angioplasty of Bifurcational Lesions: Use of Simultaneous Over‐the‐Wire and Probe™ Systems

Different techniques have been used to perform coronary angioplasty of bifurcational lesions. Advantages and disadvantages of the kissing balloon technique, the single guiding-double wire technique, and the double Probe(tm) technique are reviewed. We describe a new technique for coronary angioplasty of bifurcational lesions through a single guiding catheter that has advantages of both the over-the-wire and the Probe(tm) systems.
Surface feature identification using a vision-based manifold for robotic demanufacturing

Robotic demanufacturing requires efficient operation on complex product surfaces from a diverse product stream. A new vision-based approach for surface identification is proposed. Vision-based information defines a surface manifold utilizing structured lighting. The surface manifold model is integrated with a surface estimation model to relate information back to the robot work space. A technique for developing surface patches related to surface objects detected in machine vision images is shown. Case study results from a scrap keyboard are presented and discussed. It is shown that the method iteratively generates a complete surface patch for any viewable surface object.
Cleansing Noisy City Names in Spatial Data Mining

One of the biggest adversaries to data mining from a large data warehouse is poor data quality. It is because most data mining algorithms have been designed based on the assumption that the data is clean and meaningful. Hence, poor data quality may lead to completely unexpected results. In this paper, an automatic city name correction algorithm is proposed to cleanse a large spatial database without requiring human intervention or a prior knowledge of the context. The algorithm achieves a precision of 96.6% which is significantly better than the 86.6% of the traditional Levenshtein distance and the 92% of the Longest Common Subsequence algorithm.
An Anesthesia Medication Cost Scorecard --- Concepts for Individualized Feedback

There is a growing emphasis on both cost containment and better quality health care. The creation of better methods for alerting providers and their departments to the costs associated with patient care is one tool for improving efficiency. Since anesthetic medications used in the OR setting are one easily monitored factor contributing to OR costs, anesthetic cost report cards can be used to assess the cost and, potentially the quality of care provided by each practitioner. An ongoing challenge is the identification of the most effective strategies to control costs, promote cost awareness and at the same time maximize quality. To test the scorecard concept, we utilized existing informatics systems to gather and analyze drug costs for anesthesia providers in the OR. Drug costs were analyzed by medication class for each provider. Individual anesthesiologist's anesthetic costs were collected and compared to the average costs of the overall group and individual trends over time were noted. We presented drug usage data in an electronic report card format. Real-time individual reports can be provided to anesthesiologists to allow for anesthetic cost feedback. Data provided can include number of cases, average case time, total anesthetic medication costs, and average anesthetic cost per case. Also included can be subcategories of pre-medication, antibiotics, hypnotics, local anesthetics, neuromuscular blocking drugs, analgesics, vasopressors, beta-blockers, anti-emetics, volatile anesthetics, and reversal agents. The concept of anesthetic cost report card should be further developed for individual feedback, and could include many other dimensions. Such a report card can be utilized to encourage lower anesthetic costs, quality improvement among anesthesia providers, and for cost containment in the operating room.
Erasing the Brown Scare : Referential Afterlife and the Power of Memory Templates

Perhaps paradoxically, events can have effects despite having been "forgotten." Events have, in Erving Goffman's (1981:46) phrase, a referential afterlife , the period in which events can be referred to with the expectation that audiences will understand their relevance and symbolic meaning. When an event has passed this period of shared recollection it still may leave traces, especially if responses to the event have been institutionalized. We examine the dynamics by which events serve as memory templates for subsequent events. We distinguish templates into two subtypes: interpretative templates and action templates, those that contribute to how the public recalls the past and those that provide strategies for action. To examine the power of templates, we analyze the forgetting of the brown scare of the early 1940s, and specifically the largest sedition case in American history, United States v. McWilliams . Attacks on the right contributed to the development of the national security state and courtroom tactics in political trials, but the public rarely remembers them.
Multivariate statistical analysis of geophysical data in Nevada

Regional magnetic, gravity, and gamma‐ray data in Nevada were analyzed using a multivariate statistical method. The algorithms used are part of the public‐domain Geographical Resource Analysis Support System (GRASS). Twenty‐seven statistical groups (clusters) were found to be the optimum number that best represents the geophysical data. The resulting map of the distribution of these groups shows linear features which define a geophysical trend not previously recognized. This trend is clearly related to the northern Nevada rift and extends from near the northern border of Nevada to the southern part of the State with a northwest‐southeast trend to about 37°N latitude, where a change of direction occurs to a northeast‐southwest trend. Although not spatially coincident, the Roberts Mountains Thrust, the Golconda Thrust, and the 0.706 contour of the 87Sr/86Sr ratio exhibit similar trends over part of their lengths. The significance of this geophysical trend is uncertain. One possible interpretation is that it...
Ultrastructural autoradiography and cytochemistry of the iodine-binding cells in the ascidian endostyle

Thyroid-like activity was investigated in the endostyles of Molgula manhattensis, M. occidentalis and Styela plicata. Animals were immersed in sea water containing 125I for one to 24 hours. Although electron microscopic autoradiography revealed an extracellular accumulation of silver grains associated with zone 8 in all three species and with zone 9 in two of them, intracellular accumulations were found only in zone 7. Within this zone in each of the three species, grains were present over the apical cell membrane, multivesicular bodies and the apical cytoplasmic matrix after brief exposure to 125I. After longer exposure, grains were also present over large dense bodies and more basal regions of the cytoplasmic matrix. Certain features, suggestive of thyroidal functions, were observed in the cells of zone 7. These included morphological evidence for secretory and pinocytotic activities and cytochemical evidence both for peroxidase activity and for the presence of carbohydrate material which may represent a glycoprotein. It is concluded that active binding of iodine is restricted to zone 7 in the endostyles of Molgula and Styela, where it occurs at both the apical cell membrane and within multivesicular bodies. Some of the iodinated product may be immediately passed into the lumen of the pharynx. The rest is stored intracellularly within multivesicular bodies and dense bodies of zone 7. Intracellular binding and storage of iodine are considered to represent primitive conditions preceding the evolution of the follicular structure of the thyroid gland.
On Some Procedures Based on Fisher's Inverse Chi-Square Statistic

We present approximations to the distribution of the weighted combination of independent and dependent p - values, . In case that independence of Pi 's is not assumed, it is argued that the quantity A is implic-itly dominated by positive definite quadratic forms that induce a chi-square distribution. This gives way to the approximation of the associated degrees of freedom using Satterthwaite (1946) or Patnaik (1949) method. An approximation by Brown (1975) is used to estimate the covariance between the log transformed P - values. The performance of the approximations is compared using simulations. For both the independent and dependent cases, the approximations are shown to yield probability values close to the nominal level, even for arbitrary weights, ωi ’s.
Composition studies on tobacco. XXI.—The headspace vapours of leaf

A procedure for the collection of tobacco headspace vapours without the use of steam, heat, reduced pressure or elaborate apparatus is described. Typical results are presented showing the presence of at least 35 components in the concentrated vapours from Turkish tobacco examined by temperature programmed gas chromatography. The use of selective removal techniques to classify components by functional group reactions is described, and tentative identifications of some of these components by the use of retention indices are reported.
Heavy-quark triangle diagram contributions to Z boson production in hadron collisions.

We study $Z$ boson production in hadron-hadron collisions, computing the contributions in second-order QCD of diagrams involving a cut heavy-quark triangle with vector, vector, and axial-vector vertices. These contributions are shown to be small compared with those of topologically similar diagrams, studied by other authors, with a virtual triangle and identical flavor structure.
Biological applications of confocal fluorescence anisotropy imaging

Fluorescence anisotropy is a well known but under-explored area in biomedical imaging. We have implemented fluorescence anisotropy imaging in the context of a confocal microscope and are exploring several interesting applications including enzyme activity imaging, determination of photosensitizer orientation in membranes, and suppression of cell and tissue autofluorescence.
A Theory for the mechanical properties of metal-matrix composites at ultimate loading

A theory describing the strain, ultimate strength, and work during uniform strain to ultimate loading of metal-matrix composites deformed in tension parallel to the reinforcement is presented. These quantities may be calculated for composites of arbitrary volume fraction using only the component stress-strain curves. The theory is based on the systematic application of a macroscopic principle commonly used to predict the ultimate strength of ductile monolithic materials—namely, that necking occurs when the load borne by the material is maximized. For brittle reinforcing elements, the results are identical to those of previous workers. For ductile reinforcing elements, necking strains intermediate between those of the components and ultimate strengths increasing smoothly with volume fraction from that of the matrix to that of the reinforcement are predicted. The theory can be used to predict the variation of composite ultimate properties with any parameter of interest. In this paper the variation with volume fraction and yield strength of the matrix are studied, with both exact solutions and useful approximations being derived.
REDUCENESS PROPERTIES AND APPLICATIONS TO THE OPTIMAL ASSIGNMENT PROBLEM

Abstract The paper deals with a new approach to the solution of the optimal assignment problem, which can be formulated in terms of integer matrices, and is thus connected to graph theory and matroids. Such problems arise in structural system identification, resource allocation, transportation problems, etc. Current approaches rely on exhausting searches, graph theory and linear programming techniques. The new approach is based in the notion of extended reduceness of Boolean matrices, which exploits the structure of the specific problem and reduces the computational effort and the complexity. The connection of the new structural approach to bipartite graphs, matroids and linear programming is established.
Psychosocial factors associated with medication adherence in ethnically and socioeconomically diverse patients with epilepsy

The current study examined psychosocial correlates of medication adherence in a socioeconomically and racially diverse sample of patients with epilepsy. Fifty-five patients with epilepsy completed standardized self-report questionnaires measuring depression, stress, social support, and medication and illness beliefs. Antiepileptic drug (AED) adherence was measured using the 8-item Morisky Medication Adherence Scale 36% reported poor adherence. We tested which psychosocial factors were independently and most strongly associated with AED adherence. Stress and depression were negatively correlated with adherence, while perceived social support was positively correlated with adherence (Ps<.05). When all three of these variables and relevant covariates in a multiple regression model were included, only perceived social support remained a significant predictor of adherence (P=.015). This study is one of the first to suggest the importance of targeting social support in screening and intervention approaches in order to improve AED adherence among low-income, racially/ethnically diverse patients with epilepsy.
Position of the hyoid and larynx in people with muscle tension dysphonia.

Objectives/Hypothesis: To determine whether radiographic measures of hyoid position, laryngeal position, and hyolaryngeal space during phonation were different for people with primary muscle tension dysphonia (MTD) as compared to control participants without voice disorders. Study Design: Prospective, quasi-experimental research design. Methods: Twenty participants, 10 with primary MTD and 10 without voice disorders who were age and sex matched were studied radiographically while producing phonation. Lateral x-ray images were obtained for each participant during three tasks: resting state, sustained phonation, and a swallow-hold maneuver. Vertical positions of the hyoid and larynx were measured on a Cartesian coordinate system and were normalized to reflect change from rest during phonation. Results: Normalized, vertical hyoid, and laryngeal positions during phonation were significantly higher for people with MTD than for control participants. Normalized hyolaryngeal space during phonation did not show differences between groups. A low to moderate significant correlation for radiographically measured hyoid and laryngeal position and the total score from a subjective laryngeal palpatory scale were evidenced, but no relationship was evidenced for radiographic laryngeal position and the laryngeal position subscore of the palpatory examination. Conclusions: Objective determinants of physiology are critical for the differential diagnosis of MTD and its effective treatment. Radiographic findings from this study indicate that hyoid and laryngeal positions during phonation are higher in people with primary MTD as compared to people without voice disorders.