cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Role of matrix/reinforcement interfaces in the fracture toughness of brittle materials toughened by ductile reinforcements

Crack interactions with ductile reinforcements, especially behavior of a crack tip at the interface, have been studied using MoSi2 composites reinforced with Nb foils. Effects of fracture energy of interfaces on toughness of the composites have also been investigated. Variation of interfacial bonding was achieved by depositing an oxide coating or by the development of a reaction prod- uct layer between the reinforcement and matrix. Toughness was measured using bend tests on chevron-notched specimens. It has been established that as a crack interacts with a ductile re- inforcement, three mechanisms compcte: interfacial debonding, multiple matrix fracture, and direct crack propagation through the reinforcement. Decohesion length at the matrix/reinforcement interface depends on the predominant mechanism. Furthermore, the results add to the evidence that the extent to which interfacial bonding is conducive to toughness of the composites depends on the criterion used to describe the toughness and that ductility of the ductile reinforcement is also an important factor in controlling toughness of the composites. Loss of ductility of the ductile reinforcement due to inappropriate processing could result in little improvement in tough- ness of the composites.
Synchronous occurrence of nasopharyngeal carcinoma and Hodgkin lymphoma

Latent Epstein-Barr virus infection is associated with several lymphoid and epithelial malignancies. This is the first reported case of a patient presenting with synchronous nasopharyngeal carcinoma and Hodgkin lymphoma associated with Epstein-Barr virus. A 17-year-old previously healthy African-American male presented with anterior mediastinal mass and a nasopharyngeal mass. Histology from biopsy of both lesions revealed evidence of Epstein-Barr virus. The patient successfully completed sequential therapies with chemo radiation with no evidence of active disease. Simultaneous occurrence of the two malignancies is undoubtedly a rare event, and their coexistence raises the question of a common etiologic factor.
A retrospective study of cutaneous neoplasms in domestic rabbits (1990–2001)

Spontaneous skin tumors in privately-owned domestic rabbits, particularly nonviral-associated neoplasms, have been sporadically documented in the veterinary literature. The purpose of this study was to retrospectively survey cutaneous neoplasms submitted from veterinary practitioners for routine histopathological evaluation. Four hundred and forty surgical pathology specimens from lagomorphs were submitted to the Laboratory of Pathology Diagnostic Service at the University of Pennsylvania, School of Veterinary Medicine, from 1990 through 2001. Of those, 139 were cutaneous neoplasms. Trichoblastomas (basal cell tumors) were the most commonly diagnosed skin neoplasm (total = 45) and comprised 32% of all skin tumors, while three trichoepitheliomas (2%), and three papillomas (2%) were also identified. Malignant epithelial neoplasms (10%) consisted of four squamous cell carcinomas, three apocrine carcinomas, one basal cell carcinoma, one sebaceous carcinoma and five carcinomas that were not further classified. Two cases of cutaneous malignant melanoma were found. Cutaneous Shope and non-Shope fibromas (34) comprised 25% of the cases. Seven lipomas (5%) were diagnosed. Malignant mesenchymal neoplasms consisted of 29 soft tissue sarcomas (21%). One case of cutaneous epidermotropic lymphosarcoma and one nonepitheliotropic malignant round cell tumor were also identified. In this study, trichoblastomas were found to be the most common nonviral-associated cutaneous neoplasm.
Postwar Trends in Family Size

Recognizing that postwar trends in family size derive both from changes in the living arrangements of adults and from changes in the presence of children, this paper develops annual estimates of mean family size, mean members less than 18, and mean members 18 and older by race, by family type, and by age of head. Group differences in the course and source of changes in family size are evident as anticipated on the basis of group differences in family structure, economic resources and life cycle stage.
Wegener's granulomatosis presenting as oral lesions: A case report

Wegener's granulomatosis will classically present as a triad of respiratory, kidney, and vascular involvement. The disease may run a course of rapidly progressive or mild and indolent and escape diagnosis for some time. The clinician must be aware of the possibility of Wegener's granulomatosis presenting initially with intraoral lesions. Prompt biopsies and blood studies along with the proper referrals will give the patient their best chance at a remission with the least systemic damage. We present a case of Wegener's granulomatosis that presented with oral lesions before other signs and symptoms.
ONTOGENY OF ERYTHROPOIETIN (EP) KINETICS IN FETAL, NEWBORN, AND JUVENILE SHEEP

EP regulates erythropoiesis in the fetus (F), newborn (N), and juvenile (J). Delineating the developmental changes that occur in EP kinetics would be important in explaining the possible role that EP plays in the pathophysiology of anemia and polycythemia. We investigated the differences in EP kinetics in the F, N, and J by infusing 35S labelled human Ep into 5 F (126 day), 6 N (7-8 day), and 4 J (270 day) sheep. After bolus infusion, timed blood samples were obtained and the plasma was precipitated with 20% trichloroacetic acid. Plasma half life (T½), volume of distribution (Vd) and EP clearance (Cep) were determined from the beta decay curves of ln EP vs time: F Ep T½ is prolonged when compared to N and J (p<0.05). T½ decreases as F and N mature (r= -0.53, p<0.05). We conclude that the F, N, and J have differences in Ep kinetics. These differences, which reflect maturational processes, may play role in the pathophysiology of anemia and polycythemia.
Heavy meson pair production in e+e− annihilation from the static quark effective theory

Abstract We construct a static quark effective theory, for a current coupling to two heavy quarks, in which we simultaneously treat both of them as heavy. This allows us to retain in the matching conditions the dependence on the ratio of their masses. We use this to predict the cross sections for production of B B , B ∗ B and B ∗ B ∗ in e+e− annihilation in terms of the cross section for D D . The effective theory is also used to calculate form factors in semileptonic B to D or D∗ decays.
Brain Imaging Findings in Elderly Adults and Years of Life, Healthy Life, and Able Life over the Ensuing 16 Years: The Cardiovascular Health Study

Objectives: To determine whether elderly people with different patterns of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings have different long-term outcomes. Design: Longitudinal cohort study. Setting: Cardiovascular Health Study. Participants: Individuals aged 65 and older were recruited (N = 5,888); 3,660 of these underwent MRI, and 3,230 without a stroke before MRI were included in these analyses. Measurements: Cluster analysis of brain MRI findings was previously used to define five clusters: normal, atrophy, simple infract, leukoaraiosis, and complex infarct. Participants were subsequently classified as healthy if they rated their health as excellent, very good, or good and as able if they did not report any limitations in activities of daily living (ADLs). Mean years of life (YoL), years of healthy life (YHL), and years of able life (YAL) were calculated over 16 years after the MRI and compared between clusters using unadjusted and adjusted regression analyses. Results: Mean age of participants was 75.0. With 16 years of follow-up, mean YoL was 11.3; YHL, 8.0; and YAL, 8.4. Outcomes differed significantly between clusters. With or without adjustments, outcomes were all significantly better in the normal than complex infarct cluster. The three remaining clusters had intermediate results, significantly different from the normal and complex infarct clusters but not usually from one another. Over 16 years of follow-up, participants in the complex infarct cluster (n = 368) spent the largest percentage of their 8.4 years alive being sick (38%) and not able (38%). Conclusion: Findings on MRI scans in elderly adults are associated not only with long-term survival, but also with long-term self-rated health and limitation in ADLs. The combination of infarcts and leukoaraiosis carried the worst prognosis, presumably reflecting small vessel disease.
Phylogenetic analysis of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 gene from 13 sipunculan genera: intra- and interphylum relationships

. Sipunculans are a phylum of non-segmented, marine worms. Although they are well characterized morphologically, relationships within the phylum and the relationship of Sipuncula to other spiralian phyla have been strongly debated. I analyzed representatives of 13 of 17 described genera using a 654-bp fragment of the mitochondrial gene, cytochrome c oxidase subunit I, to construct the first intraphylum phylogenetic hypothesis for sipunculans based on molecular sequence data. Within the phylum, tree topologies are loosely congruent with a previously published morphological analysis, except that the monotypic genus Phascolopsis occurred within the Golfingiaformes as a sister group to, or nested within, the Themistidae. Phylogenetic analyses, including 30 sequences from additional invertebrate taxa, suggest that sipunculans are most closely related to the Annelida (including Echiura). A previously proposed sipunculan-molluscan relationship is not supported. While not universally accepted, this hypothesis is consistent with other recent and past data on phylum-level relationships.
Study of monensin complexes with monovalent metal lons in anhydrous methanol solutions

Potentiometric and cyclo-voltammetric studies have been carried out on monensin anion (Mon−) complexes with the alkali ions as well as with Tl+ and Ag+ in absolute methanol solutions. The log Kf values obtained for the complexity constants and corrected for the activity effects are: Li+, 3.3±0.1; Na+, 6.72±0.05; K+, 5.18±0.05; Rb+, 4.58±0.05; Cs+, 3.75±0.05; Tl+, 5.31±0.05; Ag+, 8.2±0.2. It is seen that for the alkali, the most stable complex is formed with Na+. The enthalpy and entropy of complexation with the sodium ion were found to be ΔHo=−5.47±0.24 kcal-mole−1 and ΔSo=+12.4±0.7 e.u. The complex, therefore, is enthalpy and entropy stabilized.
Sensory registration and informational persistence

The traditional view of iconic memory as a precategorical, high-capacity, quickly decaying visible memory has recently come under attack (e.g., Coltheart, 1980). Specifically, distinctions have been drawn between visible persistence, or the phenomenal trace of an extinguished stimulus, and informational persistence, knowledge about the visual properties of the stimulus. In the present research we tested two alternative conceptions of informational persistence. One conception is that visual information persists in a visual memory that begins at stimulus offset and lasts for 150-300 ms, independently of exposure duration. The second is that informational persistence arises from a nonvisual memory that contains spatial coordinates for displayed items along with identity codes for those items. Three experiments were conducted in which 3 X 3 letter arrays were presented for durations ranging from 50 to 500 ms. A single character mask presented at varying intervals after array offset cued report of an entire row of the array. Comparison of the cued row's masked and unmasked letters revealed that spatially-specific visual (i.e., maskable) information persisted after stimulus offset, regardless of exposure duration. This result favors the visual conception of informational persistence. But there was also support for the nonvisual conception: Accuracy increased and item intrusion errors decreased as stimulus duration increased. The implications of these results for models of informational persistence and for transsaccadic integration during reading are discussed. Language: en
Barometer elections in comparative perspective

Abstract This paper develops a conceptual framework for studying the performance of the government in what we term ‘barometer elections’. Barometer elections are defined as elections that reflect changes in citizens' attitudes toward the government in response to changing political and economic conditions, absent the opportunity to install a new executive. We classify British by-elections and German Land elections as barometer elections and test a general model that incorporates the electoral cycle; public opinion toward the government; economic conditions; and previous performance as determinants of election outcomes. Considering both short-term and long-term changes in public attitudes and economic performance in the empirical analysis, we find that barometer election outcomes can be explained with a similar set of independent variables across systems.
Dependency on Beamwidth in an SD Method Utilizing Two-Ray Fading Characteristics

Using ray-tracing propagation calculation, we clarify the dependency on antenna element beamwidth of the channel capacity of a spatial division (SD) transmission method utilizing the characteristics of two-ray fading. It was clarified that the SD transmission method can be effectively applied to microstrip antennas or horn antennas with beamwidth of more than 10 ${^\circ}$ , but that it is not effective when applied to narrow-beam antennas with less than 10 ${^\circ}$ beamwidth. In such cases, simple parallel transmission is a better way to utilize the narrow beam to increase channel capacity .
Behavior setting theory and community psychology: An analysis and critique

Although Barker's “behavior setting theory” (Barker, 1968; Price, 1976) is widely cited for its potential applications to community psychology, critical examination of this conception reveals significant limitations in its operational definition of “community” and in the extent to which predictions regarding direct influences on behavior have been validated in natural settings. From the perspective of community psychology there is also reason to question behavior setting theory's fundamental emphasis on the structural form of settings rather than on the functions they fulfill for their participants. Adopting new units of analysis and placing greater emphasis on the intended and unintended satisfactions that settings produce will make behavior setting theory more relevant to several problems in community psychology, including community assessment, person-environment interaction, and community change.
Activation of intestinal arginine transport by protein kinase C is mediated by mitogen-activated protein kinases.

L-Arginine uptake by the small intestine can play a pivotal role in regulating nitric oxide synthesis and immune functions in catabolic states. We previously showed that protein kinase C (PKC) activation stimulates intestinal brush-border membrane arginine transport. However, the signaling pathways implicated in this activation have not been studied. The purpose of this study was to investigate the intracellular signal transduction pathways involved in the protein kinase C stimulation of arginine transport across the apical membrane of intestinal epithelial Caco-2 cells. [3H]-L-arginine transport activity, Northern blot analysis of mRNA levels of the intestinal arginine transporter CAT1,and Western blot analysis of the mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases phospho-p44/42 activity and phospho-MEK1/2 were measured in cultured Caco-2 cells treated with phorbol ester (phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate, TPA; 0 to 0.5_mol/L), and the MEK1 inhibitor PD 98059 (0 to 50_ mol/L). Phorbol ester stimulated intestinal arginine transport activity. Arginine transporter gene CAT1 mRNA, phospho-p44/42, and phospho-MEK1/2 levels were stimulated in phorbol ester-treated cells, compared with the control group. Phorbol ester stimulation of arginine transport activity and transporter CAT1 mRNA levels was blocked by PD 98059. These data suggest that phorbol ester stimulates arginine transport in Caco-2 cells via signaling pathways that lead to increased transcription and/or stabilization of CAT1 mRNA. Protein kinase C and MAP kinases MEK1/2 and p44/42 are key intracellular regulators involved in this signal transduction cascade.
Sexual aggression in normal men: Incidence, beliefs, and personality characteristics

This study examined personality characteristics and beliefs of two groups of college men: one which reported a high use of force in sexual experiences and one which reported a low use of force in sexual experiences. A discriminant function analysis revealed that the endorsement of the acceptability of using force in sexual encounters, the self-reported likelihood to rape if certain of not being detected, and the personality characteristics of aggression, social recognition, impulsivity, and dominance discriminated between the two groups. However, the High Force men's scores on the four personality traits above were not outside the normal range for college men. Likelihood of being accused or convicted of rape were believed to be "somewhat unlikely" by both groups. The incidence of use of physical force to obtain sexual intercourse was comparable to that found in other studies: 4.78%. Two-week test-retest reliability estimate for the Use of Force in Sexual Experiences Scale, was 0.82 (P lt 0.01). These incidence rates as well as the fact that none of the men scored outside the normal range on the personality characteristics suggest that men who use force in sexual relationships reflect a statistically, non-deviant group of individuals.
Biologic fluorescence decay characteristics: determination by Laguerre expansion technique

Fluorescence decay characteristics are used to identify biologic fluorophores and to characterize interactions with the fluorophore environment. In many studies, fluorescence lifetimes are assessed by iterative reconvolution techniques. We investigated the use of a new approach: the Laguerre expansion of kernels technique (Marmarelis, V.Z., Ann. Biomed., Eng. 1993; 21, 573-589) which yields the fluorescence impulse response function by least- squares fitting of a discrete-time Laguerre functions expansion. Nitrogen (4 ns FWHM) and excimer (120 ns FWHM) laser pulses were used to excite the fluorescence of an anthracene and of type II collagen powder. After filtering (monochromator) and detection (MCP-PMT), the fluorescence response was digitized (digital storage oscilloscope) and transferred to a personal computer. Input and output data were deconvolved by the Laguerre expansion technique to compute the impulse response function which was then fitted to a multiexponential function for determination of the decay constants. A single exponential (time constant: 4.24 ns) best approximated the fluorescence decay of anthracene, whereas the Type II collagen response was best approximated by a double exponential (time constants: 2.24 and 9.92 ns) in agreement with previously reported data. The results of the Laguerre expansion technique were compared to the least-squares iterative reconvolution technique. The Laguerre expansion technique appeared computationally efficient and robust to experimental noise in the data. Furthermore, the proposed method does not impose a set multiexponential form to the decay.© (1996) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
The Long and Short of Salem Witchcraft: Chronology and Collective Violence in 1692

This essay closely examines the chronological and geographic scope of the Salem witchcraft outbreak of 1692, the only mass witch hunt in American history. Drawing upon data about 152 accused witches in over two dozen communities, as well as scholarship in early-modern witchcraft and collective violence, it challenges the traditional image of Salem as a yearlong epidemic of hysteria. Analysis reveals, instead, that accusations progressed as a sequence of limited and brief flare-ups and that the accused were generally logical targets. Within most communities, the witch hunt passed quickly and the number of accused was small. Even in the high profile centers of the storm, such as Salem and Andover, the episode was limited in duration. Everywhere, the victims of 1692 most often resembled those who were traditionally associated with witchcraft in seventeenth-century England and New England. Despite its reputation for irrationality and excess, Salem witchcraft demonstrated the kind of constraints, limits, and coherence that scholars have found in riots, crowds, and other forms of collective violence. Such an approach helps explain how the outbreak spread to numerous communities as well as why the episode came to an end.
Body Composition Influences Serum Leptin Concentration in Children † 418

Background. Serum leptin concentrations are elevated in children with increased body fatness. However, there is a gender-based divergence in this relationship. We hypothesized that body composition, fat distribution, and body size may contribute to the gender differences.
Production of mystical Islam in Europe: Religious authorization in the Süleymanlı Sufi community

This article examines the production of religious authority among the Suleymanli, a branch of the Naqshibandiyya order, which is the largest Sufi community active among Turkish-origin Muslims in Europe. Like other Islamic organizations, the Suleymanli claims to represent “true Islam,” which they construct during their central communal ritual, hatim, in which religious knowledge is produced and disseminated. The interaction of a religious corpus of assertions, media of representation, and social organization during this ritual produces its “criteria of Islamic validity and priority” which authorizes mystical Islam. European adaptations of the Islamic tradition require an analysis of how Islam is authorized rather than simply what “European Islam” is or who speaks on behalf of it, individually or communally.
Compound action potentials of cat optic nerve produced by stimulation of optic tracts and of optic nerve.

Abstract Compound action potentials of the optic nerve in cat were studied with electrodes in the optic tracts and in the prechiasmal and retrobulbar portions of the optic nerve. Recordings from either portion of the nerve showed strong electrical stimulation in one or both tracts to be less effective than moderate stimulation through the other electrode in the nerve. Either type of stimulation produced action potentials with discrete electrical components. Number and latency of components varied depending on stimulus parameters and thus did not permit classification of discrete fiber groups. Stronger stimulation of the optic nerve, however, reduced prominence and number of individual components and led to large action potentials with smoother contour which included conduction velocities of 3.5–70 m/sec and a maximum at 15–25 m/sec. These results agree with the anatomy of the optic nerve, particularly with reports on the total range of fiber sizes, on a unimodal distribution of sizes within this range, and on segregation of fiber sizes in different parts of the cross section of optic nerve and tract.
Retarded electric and magnetic Casimir interaction of a polarizable system and a dielectric permeable wall.

Using an expansion of the electromagnetic field in terms of quantized Fresnel modes, we calculate the retarded Casimir interaction, in the asymptotic domain, of a polarizable system and a dielectric permeable wall, that is, a wall characterized by a dielectric constant ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\epsilon}}}_{2}$ and a magnetic permeability ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\mu}}}_{2}$. We obtain explicit analytic results for the atom-wall and for the electron-wall interactions. When magnetic effects are ignored, the results reduce to those obtained by Lifshitz [Sov. Phys. 2, 73 (1956)] for the atom-wall interaction and by the present authors for the electron-wall interaction. The results simplify greatly for an ideal metallic wall and for a wall made of material such as liquid helium, for which the dielectric constant and the permeability are very close to unity. Other than in the determination of the amplitudes of the Fresnel modes, the calculations are entirely classical.
Dependence on Emergency Care among Young Adults in the United States

BACKGROUND Young adults have a high prevalence of many preventable diseases and frequently lack a usual source of ambulatory care, yet little is known about their use of the emergency department.
Vicarious infringement creates a privacy ceiling

In high-tech businesses ranging from Internet service providers to e-commerce websites and music stores like Apple iTun-es, there is considerable potential for collecting personal information about customers, monitoring their usage habits, or even exerting control over their behavior - for example, restricting what can be done with a purchased song. A privacy ceiling is an effective limit to these privacy intrusions, created by the perceived or actual legal liability of possessing too much information or control. As we show in this paper, the risk is not simply that of customer backlash, but liability for a customer's actions, owing to the ability to identify, report, or prevent them from taking those actions. In some cases high-tech businesses have been obligated to divulge their store of personal information or to police their customers at the demand of third parties; this unwanted result derives from the possession of too much information or control for the company's own good. We argue that vicarious infringement liability in particular creates a privacy ceiling, a point beyond which there is no economic incentive to intrude on a user's privacy; and, indeed, there is an incentive to architect one's business so that such intrusions are difficult or impossible.
The eclectic primal algorithm: Cutting-plane method that accommodates hybrid subproblem solution techniques

Conversion of a given integer program into a sequence of smaller subproblems — also integer programs — is demonstrated in this paper. The fundamental procedure is a primal cutting plane method similar to the Simplified Primal Algorithm of Glover [3] and Young [8]. At the subproblem level either cutting plane methods or enumerative methods are feasible. No computational results are available. Hopefully the method will provide, among other things, a vehicle for extending the computational power of enumerative methods to larger problems, since the use of these methods is confined to comparatively small subproblems.
Exploiting belief bounds: practical POMDPs for personal assistant agents

Agents or agent teams deployed to assist humans often face the challenges of monitoring the state of key processes in their environment (including the state of their human users themselves) and making periodic decisions based on such monitoring. POMDPs appear well suited to enable agents to address these challenges, given the uncertain environment and cost of actions, but optimal policy generation for POMDPs is computationally expensive. This paper introduces three key techniques to speedup POMDP policy generation that exploit the notion of progress or dynamics in personal assistant domains. Policy computation is restricted to the belief space polytope that remains reachable given the progress structure of a domain. We introduce new algorithms; particularly one based on applying Lagrangian methods to compute a bounded belief space support in polynomial time. Our techniques are complementary to many existing exact and approximate POMDP policy generation algorithms. Indeed, we illustrate this by enhancing two of the fastest existing algorithms for exact POMDP policy generation. The order of magnitude speedups demonstrate the utility of our techniques in facilitating the deployment of POMDPs within agents assisting human users.
Modeling and simulation of osteoporosis and fracture of trabecular bone by meshless method

Abstract Osteoporosis is a skeletal disease characterized by a decrease in bone strength as a result of a decrease of bone mass and a deterioration of bone microstructure. In this work, the imaging data of a CT scanned human femoral neck trabecular bone is directly converted into a meshless model. A model is developed to analyze osteoporosis process. A fracture criterion and the corresponding post-failure are proposed for trabecular bone. The fracture process is modeled and simulated. The simulations show that the fracture stress is not a monotonically decreasing function in the process of fracture, and the microstructure of trabecular bone has a positive effect in preventing progressive failure. The approach in this work may be used to understand the osteoporosis-related fracture and the bone density–strength relationship, and to serve as a way for prognosis of osteoporosis.
Pyrimidine Dimers: Effect of Temperature on Photoinduction

Ultraviolet-induced pyrimidine dimer formation in DNA and polyuridylic acid was inhibited on irradiation at 77° K. Enhancement of thymine dimer formation in solutions of DNA occurred upon addition of ethylene glycol. Low temperature measurements of absorbance of polyuridylic acid at low temperature showed that no significant alteration of the residues occurred after irradiation at 77°K and before thawing.
P18.09STRESS INDUCED IMMUNE DYSFUNCTION IN NEURO-ONCOLOGY CAREGIVERS

Family caregivers are vital in the care of persons with a primary malignant brain tumor (PMBT) and also report high levels of psychological distress. The impact of psychological distress on caregivers' physical health has not been explored in neuro-oncology. The aims of the study were to determine profiles of proinflammatory cytokines (IL-6 and IL-1ra) over time in caregivers of persons with a PMBT and to identify the effect of caregivers' psychological distress on their cytokine levels. After institutional review board approval, sociodemographic data, measures of psychological distress (depressive symptoms, anxiety, caregiver burden) and blood samples were collected from 103 caregivers at baseline (time of patient diagnosis), 4, 8, and 12 months. Caregivers were >21, not a primary caregiver for anyone else, and caring for a person diagnosed with a PMBT verified via pathology (NIH R01CA117811). Plasma was batch analyzed using high sensitivity and regular ELISA. Trajectory analyses of log transformed cytokine levels were performed. Then, univariate analyses evaluated potential confounding variables; variables with p < .10 were included in model testing. Multiple logistic regression analyses used high versus low cytokine group membership as outcome variables to determine the impact of psychological distress on cytokine level. With IL-1ra, two groups of caregivers were identified (BIC= -235.28). One-third (34%) had high IL-1ra levels (M = 575.91pg/ml); two-thirds had low levels (M = 252.80pg/ml). With IL-6, two groups of caregivers were identified (BIC= -299.44); 59% had high IL-6 levels (M = 2.30pg/ml) and 41% had low levels (M = .90pg/ml). None of the groups significantly changed over time (baseline to 1 year). After controlling for confounding variables, all female caregivers and those male caregivers reporting increased anxiety were significantly (p = .02) more likely have high IL-1ra. Caregivers that reported higher levels of caregiver burden were significantly more likely to have both high IL-1ra (p = .01) and high IL-6 (p = .03) levels. Depressive symptoms did not significantly affect IL-1ra or IL-6 levels. Poor physical health in family caregivers has the potential to increase institutionalization rates for patients, affect the quality of care delivered in the home, and place a new burden on the healthcare system. These data provide support for mechanistic pathways of stress-induced immune dysfunction and are among the first of their kind to highlight the health risks for neuro-oncology family caregivers.
Octaalkynylsilsesquioxanes, Nano Sea Urchin Molecular Building Blocks for 3-D-Nanostructures

The design and construction of 3-D molecular scaffolds is currently an area of extreme interest for a variety of reasons including hydrogen storage, gas separation and molecular sieving. Octahedral silsesquioxanes, [RSiO1.5]8, represent a class of unusually robust, nanometer size molecules with cubic symmetry that places each functional group in a different octant in Cartesian space. This 3-D array of functional groups offers the potential to design nanobuilding blocks to construct multifunctional, nanocomposite materials including molecular scaffolds. We describe here detailed studies on the synthesis of octaalkyne silsesquioxanes using Sonogashira coupling of octaiodophenylsilsesquioxane, [p-IC6H4SiO1.5]8 (I8OPS) and a related bromine derivative with terminal alkynes. We describe versatile and reliable methods for synthesizing octaalkyne silsesquioxanes in moderate to high yields with 100% conversion of the I8OPS to the octaalkynes. The inorganic core provides 3-D rigidity and the heat capacity of cryst...
Bilateral paroxysmal hemicrania with autonomic symptoms: the first case report.

Paroxysmal hemicrania (PH) is a rare headachedisorder of unknown aetiology with a mean age ofonset of 34 years, with a range of 6–81 years. Thepain is always unilateral, often severe, with a dura-tion between 2 and 30 min (occasionally 2 h), and afrequency of attacks of 2–30 per 24 h with an evencircadian distribution (1). Ipsilateral autonomicsymptoms occur during attacks with the followingfrequencies: lacrimation, 62%; conjunctival injec-tion, 36%; nasal congestion, 42%; and rhinorrhea,36% (2). Eyelid oedema, ptosis, miosis and facialsweating are less frequently reported. There is afemale to male predominance of about 2.36 : 1. Sideshift has been rarely reported (3). There are twoforms: the episodic, which occurs during a periodlasting 7 days to 1 years separated by pain-freeperiods lasting 1 month or more; and the chronic,which has attacks that occur for more than 1 yearwithout remission or with remissions lasting lessthan 1 month.To my knowledge, this is the ﬁrst case report ofbilateral PH with cranial autonomic symptoms.
Does induction therapy have a significant impact on survival in lung transplantation? A prospective, randomized, controlled study comparing Zenapax, Thymoglobulin and no induction

and dacluzimab immunosuppressive induction therapy on the frequency and severity of acute cellular rejection in lung transplanted patients. Method: A retrospective analysis of 362 lung transplanted patients from a single centre in the period 1992–2003. Patients included in the study completed standard ATG (Merieux 2.5 mg/kg/d for 3 consecutive days) (n 144) or dacluzimab (5 fortnightly treatments at a dose of 1mg/kg) (n 126) induction therapy, and survived a minimum of 6 months post-transplant. End points included acute cellular rejection requiring treatment ( A2), and moderate/severe acute cellular rejection (A3/A4). Results: The percentage of patients free of rejection requiring treatment ( A2) at 2, 4, 6, 12, and 26 weeks post-transplant was: 64%, 46%, 37%, 31%, and 28%, respectively in the ATG group; and 44%, 18%, 11%, 7%, and 7% respectively in the dacluzimab group (p 0.0001). In comparison with the ATG group, a significantly higher proportion of patients in the dacluzimab group experienced 3 or more episodes of acute cellular rejection A2 (p 0.0001). The dacluzimab group also experienced a higher number of moderate/ severe acute cellular rejection episodes compared with the ATG group (p 0.009). Conclusion: During the first 6 months after lung transplantation, the frequency and severity of acute cellular rejection is significantly lower in patients receiving ATG compared with dacluzimab induction therapy.
The Economic Stimulus Payments of 2008 and the Aggregate Demand for Consumption

Households in the Nielsen Consumer Panel were surveyed about their 2008 Economic Stimulus Payment. In estimates identified by the randomized timing of disbursement, the average household’s spending rose by ten percent the week it received a Payment and remained high cumulating to 1.5–3.8 percent of spending over three months. These estimates imply partial-equilibrium increases in aggregate demand of 1.3 percent of consumption in the second quarter of 2008 and 0.6 percent in the third. Spending is concentrated among households with low wealth or low past income; a household’s spending did not increase significantly when it learned about its Payment.
Temperature Inverted Haloclines Provide Winter Warm-Water Refugia for Manatees in Southwest Florida

Florida manatees (Trichechus manatus latirostris) overwintering in the Ten Thousand Islands and western Everglades have no access to power plants or major artesian springs that provide warm-water refugia in other parts of Florida. Instead, hundreds of manatees aggregate at artificial canals, basins, and natural deep water sites that act as passive thermal refugia (PTR). Monitoring at two canal sites revealed temperature inverted haloclines, which provided warm salty bottom layers that generally remained above temperatures considered adverse for manatees. At the largest PTR, the warmer bottom layer disappeared unless significant salt stratification was maintained by upstream freshwater inflow over a persistent tidal wedge. A detailed three-dimensional hydrology model showed that salinity stratification inhibited vertical convection induced by atmospheric cooling. Management or creation of temperature inverted haloclines may be a feasible and desirable option for resource managers to provide passive thermal refugia for manatees and other temperature sensitive aquatic species.
Nitric oxide synthase gene therapy rapidly reduces adhesion molecule expression and inflammatory cell infiltration in carotid arteries of cholesterol-fed rabbits.

Background—Hypercholesterolemia reduces nitric oxide bioavailability, manifested by reduced endothelium-dependent vascular relaxation, and also induces vascular adhesion molecule expression and inflammatory cell infiltration. We have previously shown that gene therapy with NO synthase in hypercholesterolemic rabbits substantially reverses the deficit in vascular relaxation. In the present study, we show that NO synthase gene therapy rapidly and substantially reduces vascular adhesion molecule expression, lipid deposition, and inflammatory cell infiltration. Methods and Results—Thirty male New Zealand White rabbits were maintained on a 1% cholesterol diet for 11 to 13 weeks, then underwent carotid artery gene transfer with Ad.nNOS or Ad.βGal (recombinant adenoviruses expressing neuronal NO synthase or β-galactosidase, respectively), or received medium alone in a sham procedure. Arteries were harvested at 1 and 3 days after gene transfer, and the following parameters were determined by immunohistochemical a...
Real estate sales agents and the code of ethics: A voice stress analysis

This study evaluates responses to the Real Estate Ethical Code. Voice Stress Analysis (VSA) is used to evaluate the responses of real estate sales people to ethically-based questions. The process and the responses given enabled the authors to gain insight into pressure-causing ethical situations and to explore new uses of VSA. Some respondents were stressed while following the ethical code guidelines. Others showed no stress about breaking the formal code. The study reaffirms that the presence of formal ethical guidelines does not assure that the rules will be willingly followed.
The Solution of a Special Set of Hermitian Toeplitz Linear Equations

Abstract : The solution of a set of m linear equations L sub m s sub m = d sub m, where L sub m is an mth order Hermitian Toeplitz matrix and the elements of d sub m possess a Hermitian symmetry, is considered. A specialized algorithm is developed for this case which solves for s sub m in about 1.5 m square operations, whereas the Hermitian case of an algorithm developed by Zohar solves for s sub m in approximately 2 m square operations. An operation is used here to denote one addition and one multiplication. A further reduction in computational requirements is shown in case L sub m and d sub m are real. As with Zohar's algorithm, the specialized algorithm requires that all principal minors of L sub m be nonzero.
Expanding our knowledge of conditions associated with the ASXL gene family

Genome-wide sequencing has identified de novo truncating mutations in ASXL3 in four patients with intellectual disability, feeding problems and distinctive facial features. Their presentation resembles that of Bohring-Opitz syndrome, which is associated with de novo nonsense mutations in ASXL1. This newly defined phenotype provides an important clinical resource for comparison with future cases in which mutations are found in ASXL3. The phenotypes for patients with mutations in each gene will undoubtedly be further delineated as more patients are reported.
Pathological aspects of apoptosis in severe sepsis and shock

Today, despite the application of contemporary operative/pharmacological approaches in the treatment of the critically ill trauma/surgery patient, we are still faced with a high incidence of patients who develop sepsis and subsequent multiple organ failure. This review attempts to summarize data gathered over the last few years, from both experimental and patient settings, that not only documents the presence of apoptosis, but begins to define its contribution to the pathology of sepsis and shock, which in turn precipitate organ injury/damage.
Inactivation of selected picornaviruses by high hydrostatic pressure

The potential of high hydrostatic pressure processing (HPP) to inactivate Aichi virus (AiV), human parechovirus-1 (HPeV-1), and the coxsackievirus strains A9 and B5 was investigated. For coxsackievirus A9 (CAV9), a 5-min HPP treatment in minimum essential growth medium (MEM) supplemented with 10% fetal bovine sera (FBS) resulted in 3.4-, 6.5-, and 7.6-log(10) tissue culture infectious dose (50%) (TCID(50)) reductions at 400, 500, and 600megaPascals (MPa), respectively. For HPeV-1, a 5-min treatment in MEM with 10% FBS resulted in reductions of 1.3-, 4.3-, and 4.6-log(10) TCID(50) at 400, 500, and 600MPa, respectively; however, AiV and coxsackievirus B5 (CBV5) in MEM supplemented with 2 and 10% FBS, respectively, remained fully infectious after a 5-min treatment at 600MPa. These data establish that different picornaviruses have widely variable pressure inactivation thresholds in response to HPP.
SECONDARY PREDICATES AND LEXICAL IDENTIFICATION

. This article argues in favor of base-generating secondary predicates and the verbal arguments with which they are coindexed inside the lexical maximal projection VP in Spanish, confirming Roberts (1988) analysis of secondary predicates in English. Under this hypothesis, object oriented (O-) predicates are generated inside the c-domain of the verb as sisters to the internal argument, whereas subject oriented (S-) predicates attach to VP as sisters to the external argument in [Spec, V]. Hence, O-predicates are governed by the verb, while S-predicates are neither governed nor in Spec-head agreement with the verb. Based on this asymmetry, I propose that traces of movement must be identified at s-structure via lexical government or Spec|head agreement with a lexical category. Traces in [Spec, V] (i. e. subjects) or in [NP, V] (i. e. objects) may be licensed via lexical government or lexical Spec-head agreement or by being part of a chian governed by or in Spec-head agreement with a lexical head. A so, traces of O-predicates may be governed by the lexical head, hence they are licensed as required. On the other hand, since S-predicates are neither governed by nor in Spec-head agreement with a lexical head, traces in S-predicate position fail to be licensed, thus accounting for the impossibility of wh-movement from this site.
A narrowband high frequency channel simulator with delay spread

It is very difficult to design state-of-the-art HF communication equipment without the ability to test and verify that equipment consistently. RF equipment designers can avoid the pitfalls of inconsistent, unpredictable and costly field-testing by using channel simulators. This paper describes a new channel simulator that includes channel effects that have not been implemented in narrowband simulators to date. Using a wideband high frequency (WBHF) channel model, that was developed by the Institute for Telecommunication Sciences (ITS) and is now under ITU-R consideration, ITS has developed a narrowband high frequency (NBHF) channel simulator that includes delay spread effects. This new simulator eliminates one of the limitations ofthe Watterson NBHF channel model. When the Watterson (1970) model was validated, data was selected which represented quiet ionospheric conditions (no delay spread). There is widespread interest in the effects of delay spread on the NBHF communication equipment. It was with this in mind that ITS set out to create an inexpensive way to evaluate the performance of equipment when confronted with a delay spread. This paper provides an explanation of the application of the ITS WBHF channel model (of which the Watterson model is a limiting case) in a narrowband simulator implemented on a common PC based digital signal processing (DSP) board.
Incidence and situational factors surrounding sexual assault against delinquent youths

This study reports the results of extensive interviews with an intact sample of moderately delinquent adolescents concerning their sexual assault histories. Findings indicate a surprisingly high incidence of victimization among the females interviewed which, the authors suggest, may characterize the larger population of delinquent females. The behavioral-situational contexts of reported victimization experiences are examined for salient commonalities and the following composite rape scenerio can be cast from the data: An unsupervised, 14-year-old female, who has been consuming alcohol or marijuana, is sexually assaulted, following threat and/or force, to the point of penile-vaginal penetration, by an older male friend or acquaintance (who has also consumed alcohol or marijuana) in his home or vehicle or other place where she is inherently unprotected. Some comments are offered concerning the requirements of an effective technology of child rape prevention.
Accurate hyper-Rayleigh scattering polarization measurements

Apparatus and methods are described for measurement of the polarization dependence of hyper-Rayleigh scattering near 90° scattering angle with 0.1% accuracy for all four configurations where the incident and scattered light is linear polarized either parallel or perpendicular to the scattering plane. Measurements are made with large collection aperture and extrapolated to zero collection numerical aperture (NA = 0). Fiber coupling allows the system to be easily reconfigured for either polarization or spectral measurements.