cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Reverse Subclavian Flap Repair for Coarctation with Hypoplastic Arch

Acriticalneonatalcoarctationcanbedefinedasonethatis sufficiently severe to keep the neonate prostaglandindependent. Perfusion distal to the coarctation must be maintained by ensuring patency of the ductus arteriosus and maintaining elevation of pulmonary vascular resistance by appropriate ventilatory manipulation. 1 One of the complexities of managing the critical neonatal coarctation is that it is often associated with hypoplasia of the isthmus,distalaorticarch,orproximalaorticarch.Itmustbe remembered that these segments of the aorta are normally smallerthantheascendingaortaconsequenttothebranching of the aortic arch. In general, an isthmic diameter that is less than 40% of the ascending aortic diameter is inadequate. Likewise a distal aortic arch diameter that is less than 50% of the ascending aorta, or a proximal aortic arch that is less than 60% of the ascending aorta, is inadequate. It is exceedingly common to find severe hypoplasia of the isthmus so that resectionoftheisthmusoraslideplastyasillustratedhereare almost routinely incorporated into the management of criticalneonatalcoarctation.Distalaorticarchhypoplasiaisaless frequent but still not rare problem. Severe hypoplasia of the aortic arch proximal to the left common carotid artery is a very rare finding. The most common technique for dealing with the hypoplastic distal aortic arch has been to perform an extended end-to-end anastomosis as illustrated in the accompanying article by Tsang. However, an alternative approach that we have found particularly helpful in the neonate is to perform a reverse subclavian flap procedure. Disadvantages of the Left Subclavian Flap Approach
Incorporating Learning Research into Instructional Program Design

An interactive videodisc program on primates was developed to help upper elementary school students learn problem-solving skills as well as information about primates. The program is student-driven, encouraging the student to think like a scientist as he/she carries out a set of “missions” to study primates: making hypotheses, collecting observations, drawing conclusions, and solving problems. Each aspect of the program is based upon recent research in cognitive strategies and learning theory, as well as standard instructional design principles. Research indicates the advantages of presenting a theme and background information, structuring the material according to that schema, providing help when requested, and making feedback constructive. Teaching problem solving is, essentially, teaching students to think for themselves. This requires allowing students to work in teams to analyze the problem, conduct their own inquiry, and experience the satisfaction of a solution. Interactive videodisc offers several...
Computational design of enhanced learning protocols

The authors use computational modeling to design an optimized learning protocol that takes into account the precise timing of molecular signaling cascades that are necessary for synaptic facilitation. This study demonstrates how learning and memory can be enhanced by the coordination of biochemical mechanisms and training protocols.
Theory as a Guide to Administrative Behavior

The authors state the case for the importance of administrative theory. The effective administrator, they contend, is one who has successfully developed and implemented a personalized administrative theory.
Recoil-distance measurement of lifetimes of rotational states in Dy 164

Lifetimes of the ${4}^{+}$ to ${12}^{+}$ levels in the ground state rotational band of $^{164}\mathrm{Dy}$ have been measured by means of the Doppler-shift recoil-distance technique. Our best values for the mean lives of the ${4}^{+}$-${12}^{+}$ states are 286 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 15, 39.0 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 1.9, 10.4 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 0.7, 3.7 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 0.8, and 1.6 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 0.8 ps, respectively. The corresponding $B(E2)$ values exhibit a spin dependence consistent with rigid-rotor predictions. Within the respective experimental uncertainties, previous results obtained by multiple Coulomb excitation and Doppler-broadened line shape methods are in agreement with the present recoil-distance values.NUCLEAR REACTIONS $^{164}\mathrm{Dy}$($^{40}\mathrm{Ar}$, $^{40}\mathrm{Ar}\ensuremath{'}$), $E=152.6$ MeV; measured $\ensuremath{\tau}$, ${E}_{\ensuremath{\gamma}}$; deduced $B(E2)$.
Pinning Frequencies of the Collective Modes in α -Uranium

Uranium is the only known element that features a charge-density wave (CDW) and superconductivity. We report a comparison of the specific heat of single-crystal and polycrystalline $\ensuremath{\alpha}$-uranium. In the single crystal we find excess contributions to the heat capacity at 41 K, 38 K, and 23 K, with a Debye temperature ${\ensuremath{\Theta}}_{\mathrm{D}}=256\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{K}$. In the polycrystalline sample the heat capacity curve is thermally broadened (${\ensuremath{\Theta}}_{\mathrm{D}}=184\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{K}$), but no excess heat capacity was observed. The excess heat capacity ${C}_{\ensuremath{\phi}}$ (taken as the difference between the single-crystal and polycrystal heat capacities) is well described in terms of collective-mode excitations above their respective pinning frequencies. This attribution is represented by a modified Debye spectrum with two cutoff frequencies, a pinning frequency ${\ensuremath{\nu}}_{0}$ for the pinned CDW (due to grain boundaries in the polycrystal), and a normal Debye acoustic frequency occurring in the single crystal.
Design of a Thin Multi-aperture Infrared Imager

We have designed a thin, multiplexed infrared imaging system that uses a diffractive element for generating shift-encoded images in each aperture. We present preliminary experimental results that demonstrate imager performance.
Effect of interfacial phenomena on dewetting in dropwise condensation.

Abstract Image-analyzing interferometry was used to investigate the dynamics of the dewetting meniscus of a partially wetting fluid on a modified quartz surface during dropwise condensation. The vivid difference in the behavior of the retracting meniscus with respect to its variation in apparent contact angle and curvature after the merger of the drop with the meniscus was found to depend on the wettability of the surface. On the hydroxylated quartz surface, the meniscus shed mass during retraction. The dewetting velocity decreased with time. On a slightly hydrophobic quartz surface, the meniscus showed a curvature gradient in the axial direction during drop merger and that gradient decreased as the meniscus moved towards the corner. The dewetting of the meniscus is discussed using the interfacial concepts of spreading and the Kelvin–Clapeyron phase change model.
Kraichnan Turbulence via Finite Time Averages

Relations central to Kraichnan’s theory of fully developed two-dimensional turbulence are rigorously established for finite time averages. In particular, we prove that if the ratio of the averages of palinstrophy to enstrophy is large, then a large inertial range displaying an enstrophy cascade exists. Moreover, if this ratio is comparable (up to a logarithm) to the dissipation wave number (a necessary condition for turbulence), then the power law for the energy spectrum, until now derived only heuristically, is rigorously shown to provide (up to a logarithm) an upper bound for the energy spectrum. Finally we show that, deep in the dissipation range, the palinstrophy contributed by eddies smaller than a specified length decays exponentially in the corresponding wave number. The averaging times needed for these relations are bounded in terms of the generalized Grashof number, independent of the solution for which the time averages are taken. Solutions are not assumed to be on the global attractor, merely within the absorbing ball, an easily verified condition.
VideoStyle, WebStyle, NewsStyle: Gender and Candidate Communication

VideoStyle, WebStyle, NewsStyle: Gender and Candidate Communication. By Dianne G. Bystrom, Mary Christine Banwart, Lynda Lee Kaid, and Terra A. Robertson. New York: Routledge. 2004. 240 pp. $23.95.In their ambitious and timely book, Dianne Bystrom and her colleagues seek to answer the following question: Why are women still so underrepresented among political officials? The authors design an impressive study to examine whether gender differences in campaigning style influence voters' reactions to candidates.
Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor 3 Interacts with and Activates TGFβ-Activated Kinase 1 Tyrosine Phosphorylation and NFκB Signaling in Multiple Myeloma and Bladder Cancer

Cancer is a major public health problem worldwide. In the United States alone, 1 in 4 deaths is due to cancer and for 2013 a total of 1,660,290 new cancer cases and 580,350 cancer-related deaths are projected. Comprehensive profiling of multiple cancer genomes has revealed a highly complex genetic landscape in which a large number of altered genes, varying from tumor to tumor, impact core biological pathways and processes. This has implications for therapeutic targeting of signaling networks in the development of treatments for specific cancers. The NFκB transcription factor is constitutively active in a number of hematologic and solid tumors, and many signaling pathways implicated in cancer are likely connected to NFκB activation. A critical mediator of NFκB activity is TGFβ-activated kinase 1 (TAK1). Here, we identify TAK1 as a novel interacting protein and target of fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 (FGFR3) tyrosine kinase activity. We further demonstrate that activating mutations in FGFR3 associated with both multiple myeloma and bladder cancer can modulate expression of genes that regulate NFκB signaling, and promote both NFκB transcriptional activity and cell adhesion in a manner dependent on TAK1 expression in both cancer cell types. Our findings suggest TAK1 as a potential therapeutic target for FGFR3-associated cancers, and other malignancies in which TAK1 contributes to constitutive NFκB activation.
Ibn al-Haytham's Universal Solution for Finding the Direction of the Qibla by Calculation

This paper presents an edition of al-Hasan ibn al-Ḥasan ibn al-Haytham's (d. 1040) treatise, Qawl fi samt al-qibla bi-al-ḥisāb (on finding the azimuth of the Qibla by calculation) with translation and commentary. In it Ibn al-Haytham provides a universal method for finding the direction of the qibla at any location on the surface of the earth by using spherical trigonometry and accurate calculation. Ibn al-Haytham's computational solution has not been studied before, and it has often been confused with another work of his in which he uses an analemma construction to solve the problem of the qibla graphically. As a result of this confusion, contemporary scholars have mistakenly attributed the first universal solution of the qibla problem to Jamshīd al-Kāshī (15th century), some four centuries after the introduction of this method by Ibn al-Haytham. The present treatise represents an important juncture in the history of the development of mathematics of the qibla, and sheds more light on the contributions of one of the most important scientists of medieval Islam.
Caregiving burden and psychiatric morbidity in spouses of persons with mild cognitive impairment

Background While the deleterious psychosocial and mental health effects of dementia caregiving are firmly established, very little is known about the burdens or psychiatric outcomes of providing care to a spouse with less severe cognitive impairment, such as mild cognitive impairment (MCI). We characterized the nature and level of caregiver burden and psychiatric morbidity in spouses of persons diagnosed with MCI. Methods Interview assessments were completed on a cohort of 27 spouses of persons with a recent diagnosis of MCI. Patient medical records were reviewed to collect information regarding the MCI patient's medical history. Results Respondents endorsed elevated levels of both task-related responsibilities and subjective caregiver burden. Depression and anxiety symptom levels also showed some elevations. Measures of caregiver burden were significantly associated with depression and anxiety levels. In particular, even after controlling for demographic risk factors for distress, nursing task burden was correlated with elevated depressive symptoms, and greater lifestyle constraints were correlated with higher anxiety levels. Conclusions Although caregiver burden and psychiatric morbidity levels were lower than those typically observed in family dementia caregiving samples, our findings suggest that MCI caregivers have already begun to experience distress in association with elevated caregiving burden. These individuals may be ideal targets for selective preventive interventions to maximize their psychological well-being as caregiving burdens related to their spouses' cognitive impairment increase. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Physiologic and pathophysiologic consequences of altered sialylation and glycosylation on ion channel function

Voltage-gated ion channels are transmembrane proteins that regulate electrical excitability in cells and are essential components of the electrically active tissues of nerves, muscle and the heart. Potassium channels are one of the largest subfamilies of voltage sensitive channels and are among the most-studied of the voltage-gated ion channels. Voltage-gated channels can be glycosylated and changes in the glycosylation pattern can affect ion channel function, leading to neurological and neuromuscular disorders and congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG). Alterations in glycosylation can also be acquired and appear to play a role in development and aging. Recent studies have focused on the impact of glycosylation and sialylation on ion channels, particularly for voltage-gated potassium and sodium channels. The terminal step of sialylation often affects channel activation and inactivation kinetics. The presence of sialic acids on O or N-glycans can alter the gating mechanism and cause conformational changes in the voltage-sensing domains due to sialic acid's negative charges. This manuscript will provide an overview of sialic acids, potassium and sodium channel function, and the impact of sialylation on channel activation and deactivation.
Medication Prescribing and Adherence Patterns Among Prison Inmates With Diabetes Mellitus

Diabetes is one of the most common and costly medical conditions among prison inmates. Scarce information, however, currently exists about the management of this condition in the correctional setti...
Reducing obesity prejudice in medical education

Background: Healthcare worker attitudes toward obese individuals facilitate discrimination and contribute to poor health outcomes. Previous studies have demonstrated medical student bias toward obese individuals, but few have examined effects of the educational environment on these prejudicial beliefs. We sought to determine whether an innovative educational intervention (reading a play about obesity) could diminish obesity prejudice relative to a standard medical lecture. Methods: We conducted a randomized, controlled trial enrolling medical students (n = 129) from three universities. Students were assigned to play-reading or a standard lecture. Explicit attitudes and implicit bias toward obese individuals were assessed prior to intervention and after four months. Results: At baseline, students demonstrated moderate explicit and implicit bias toward obese people despite high scores on empathy. Students randomized to the play-reading group had significantly decreased explicit fat bias (P = 0.01) at follow-up, while students in the lecture group showed increased endorsement of a prescriptive model of care at the expense of a patient-centered approach (P = 0.03). There was a significant increase in empathy for those in both the theater (P = 0.007) and lecture group (P = 0.02). The intervention had no significant effect on implicit bias or regard for obesity as a civil rights issue. Discussion: Dramatic reading may be superior to traditional medical lectures for showcasing patient rights and preferences. The present study demonstrates for the first time that play-reading diminishes conscious obesity bias. Further research should determine whether nontraditional methods of instruction promote improved understanding of and care for obese patients.
Working with patterns and code

The paper describes the basis for a suite of tools that lets the programmer work in terms of design patterns and source code simultaneously. It first introduces a language for defining design patterns. This language breaks a pattern down into elements and constraints over a program database of structural and semantic information. The language supports both creation of new program elements when a pattern is created or modified and generating source code for these new elements. The paper next describes tools for working with patterns. These tools let the user identify and create instances of patterns in the source code. Once patterns are so identified, they can be saved in a library of patterns that accompanies the system and the patterns can be verified, maintained as the source evolves, and edited to modify the source.
Lexical interference effects in sentence processing: Evidence from the visual world paradigm and self-organizing models

Psycholinguistic research spanning a number of decades has produced diverging results with regard to the nature of constraint integration in online sentence processing. For example, evidence that language users anticipatorily fixate likely upcoming referents in advance of evidence in the speech signal supports rapid context integration. By contrast, evidence that language users activate representations that conflict with contextual constraints, or only indirectly satisfy them, supports nonintegration or late integration. Here we report on a self-organizing neural network framework that addresses 1 aspect of constraint integration: the integration of incoming lexical information (i.e., an incoming word) with sentence context information (i.e., from preceding words in an unfolding utterance). In 2 simulations, we show that the framework predicts both classic results concerned with lexical ambiguity resolution (Swinney, 1979; Tanenhaus, Leiman, & Seidenberg, 1979), which suggest late context integration, and results demonstrating anticipatory eye movements (e.g., Altmann & Kamide, 1999), which support rapid context integration. We also report 2 experiments using the visual world paradigm that confirm a new prediction of the framework. Listeners heard sentences like “The boy will eat the white . . .” while viewing visual displays with objects like a white cake (i.e., a predictable direct object of “eat”), white car (i.e., an object not predicted by “eat,” but consistent with “white”), and distractors. In line with our simulation predictions, we found that while listeners fixated white cake most, they also fixated white car more than unrelated distractors in this highly constraining sentence (and visual) context.
A History Of Thyratron Lifetimes At The Stanford Linear Accelerator Center

The Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) has been in almost continuous operation since the middle 1960s, providing a remarkable opportunity to amass thyratron data. This paper reviews the history of this thyratron usage, focusing primarily on data collected during the last ten years of accelerator operation. There have been two distinct operating conditions during the history of operation at SLAC. Prior to 1985, the fundamental thyratron operating points were 46 kV anode voltage (Epy), 4.2 kA peak current, 3.8 {mu}s equivalent square pulse (esp), with a maximum repetition rate of 360 pulses per second (pps). The accelerator was upgraded during 1985, and the thyratron operating points are now 46 kV Epy, 6.3 kA, 5.4 {mu}s esp, with a maximum repetition rate of 120 pps. The SLAC high-energy physics research program requires that each of the available modulator klystron units provide a stable microwave energy source. Within these constraints, this paper explores historical thyratron lifetimes at SLAC, reviewing the available data to determine how long these thyratrons can be expected to operate before failure currently or recently used in the 243 accelerator modulators.
Treatment of Affective Disorder and Obesity with Topiramate

OBJECTIVE:To report a case of weight loss and mood stabilization in a patient being treated with the antiepileptic drug topiramate.CASE SUMMARY:A 37-year-old obese white woman with affective instability and obesity was being treated with adjunctive topiramate therapy. The patient lost 10 kg over 10 weeks of treatment with topiramate and improved clinically, as evidenced by a reduction in the number of × that she had to be admitted to a management unit for constant observation, and a decrease in the number of × that mechanical restraints or medication interventions were required for aggressive outbursts. Furthermore, the patient successfully completed two home visits while receiving topiramate therapy and was out of the hospital on her third home visit at the time of this writing.DISCUSSION:This case further strengthens previous reports that topiramate may be useful in treating affective disorders as well as inducing weight loss in a patient population in which weight gain is common. The patient discussed ...
Improving dependability of real-time communication with preplanned backup routes and spare resource pool

Timely recovery from network component failures is essential to the applications that require guaranteed-performance communication services. To achieve dependable communication, there have been several proposals that can be classified into two categories: reactive and proactive.The reactive approach tries to reroute traffic upon detection of a network link/node failure. This approach may suffer from contention and resource shortage when multiple connections need to be rerouted at the same time. The proactive approach, on the other hand, prepares a backup channel in advance that will be activated upon failure of the corresponding primary channel due to a broken link or node. The proactive approach, although it offers higher dependability, incurs higher routing overhead than the reactive approach.We propose a hybrid approach that reduces signaling overhead by decoupling backup routing from resource provisioning. We also propose an efficient backup routing algorithm for the hybrid approach. Our in-depth simulation results show that the proposed approach can achieve the ability of failure recovery comparable to the proactive scheme without the need for broadcasting the routing information.
α4β1-Integrin regulates directionally persistent cell migration in response to shear flow stimulation

α4β1-Integrin plays a pivotal role in cell migration in vivo. This integrin has been shown to regulate the front-back polarity of migrating cells via localized inhibition of α4-integrin/paxillin binding by phosphorylation at the α4-integrin cytoplasmic tail. Here, we demonstrate that α4β1-integrin regulates directionally persistent cell migration via a more complex mechanism in which α4-integrin phosphorylation and paxillin binding act via both cooperative and independent pathways. We show that, in response to shear flow, α4β1-integrin binding to the CS-1 region of fibronectin was necessary and sufficient to promote directionally persistent cell migration when this integrin was ectopically expressed in CHO cells. Under shear flow, the α4β1-integrin-expressing cells formed a fan shape with broad lamellipodia at the front and retracted trailing edges at the back. This “fanning” activity was enhanced by disrupting paxillin binding alone and inhibited by disrupting phosphorylation alone or together with disrupting paxillin binding. Notably, the phosphorylation-disrupting mutation and the double mutation resulted in the formation of long trailing tails, suggesting that α4-integrin phosphorylation is required for trailing edge retraction/detachment independent of paxillin binding. Furthermore, the stable polarity and directional persistence of shear flow-stimulated cells were perturbed by the double mutation but not the single mutations alone, indicating that paxillin binding and α4-integrin phosphorylation can facilitate directionally persistent cell migration in an independent and compensatory manner. These findings provide a new insight into the mechanism by which integrins regulate directionally persistent cell migration.
The Very Partisan Nonpartisan Top-Two Primary: Understanding What Voters Don't Understand

Abstract In 2008, following a series of legal battles, Washington State adopted an open nonpartisan “Top-Two” primary system in which only the top two vote earners, regardless of party affiliation, advance to the general election—the same system California adopted via a 2010 ballot measure. The new primary system is described as a nonpartisan primary but allows candidates to describe their “political party preference.” The state allows candidates to place on the ballot “Prefers Republican Party” or “Prefers Democratic Party” next to their name while arguing that the primary is nonpartisan. Upon adoption, both political parties objected, arguing that they were being forced to associate with candidates they did not select. The state countered that the winners of the Top-Two primary are not “nominees” because the new election is not a primary but a “winnowing election” for the purposes of producing a general election ballot. After the Top-Two primary was struck down on its face by the U.S. Ninth Circuit Cour...
Conscientious personality and young drivers' crash risk

Introduction: Personality characteristics are associated with many risk behaviors. However, the relationship between personality traits, risky driving behavior, and crash risk is poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between personality, risky driving behavior, and crashes and near-crashes, using naturalistic driving research methods. Method: Participants' driving exposure, kinematic risky driving (KRD), high-risk secondary task engagement, and the frequency of crashes and near-crashes (CNC) were assessed over the first 18 months of licensure using naturalistic driving methods. A personality survey (NEO-Five Factor Inventory) was administered at baseline. The association between personality characteristics, KRD rate, secondary task engagement rate, and CNC rate was estimated using a linear regression model. Mediation analysis was conducted to examine if participants' KRD rate or secondary task engagement rate mediated the relationship between personality and CNC. Data were collected as part of the Naturalistic Teen Driving Study. Results: Conscientiousness was marginally negatively associated with CNC (path c = − 0.034, p = .09) and both potential mediators KRD (path a = − 0.040, p = .09) and secondary task engagement while driving (path a = − 0.053, p = .03). KRD, but not secondary task engagement, was found to mediate (path b = 0.376, p = .02) the relationship between conscientiousness and CNC (path c′ = − 0.025, p = .20). Conclusions: Using objective measures of driving behavior and a widely used personality construct, these findings present a causal pathway through which personality and risky driving are associated with CNC. Specifically, more conscientious teenage drivers engaged in fewer risky driving maneuvers, and suffered fewer CNC. Practical Applications: Part of the variability in crash risk observed among newly licensed teenage drivers can be explained by personality. Parents and driving instructors may take teenage drivers' personality into account when providing guidance, and establishing norms and expectations about driving.
Bacterial degradation of atrazine in redox potential gradients in fixed-film sand columns.

The purpose of this study was to assess the biodegradation of atrazine [2-chloro-4-(ethylamino)-6-(isopropylamino)-s-triazine] under different redox conditions in the presence and absence of an electron donor (glucose) and electron acceptors (oxygen, NO 3 - ). Experiments were conducted in sand-column systems saturated with a liquid medium and characterized by the vertical separation of oxic, anoxic, and reduced zones with distinct redox regimes. The columns were inoculated with an atrazine-mineralizing bacterium to establish a fixed film on sand particles. Aerobic and anaerobic zones were created in the column by sparging with air or N 2 , respectively, and Na 2 S was added to the deepest zone of the column to establish redox potential gradients ranging from about - 400 to 400 mV. Samples were removed from the various depths of the column to determine changes in redox potential and in the concentration of atrazine, NO 3 - , and NO 2 - with time, Atrazine biodegradation in the sand columns could be described with a first-order rate equation. Concurrent atrazine and NO 3 - consumption occurred in both de-aerated (N 2 -purged) and sulfide-poised anaerobic zones of the columns, whereas only atrazine was used under aerobic conditions. Atrazine degradation was not adversely influenced by low redox potential and was enhanced under anaerobic conditions with combined NO 3 - and glucose amendment.
"Practice makes perfect"...or does it?

The medical profession cannot ignore the striking findings reported by Choudhry and colleagues and their implications: Practice does not make perfect. Physicians must make an ongoing vigorous effor...
Impact of Creatinine Calibration on Performance of GFR Estimating Equations in a Pooled Individual Patient Database

Background Variation in performance of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) estimating equations is related to variation in calibration of the creatinine assay across clinical laboratories. Study Design Cross-sectional analysis. Setting & Participants 6 research studies and 4 clinical populations including 5,504 participants who had GFR measured using urinary clearance of iothalamate. Measurements Standardized serum creatinine values obtained by means of calibration to the Cleveland Clinic Research Laboratory using frozen specimens, a calibration panel, and/or survey results from the College of American Pathologists. Predictor Noncalibrated serum creatinine assayed in research and clinical laboratories compared with standardized serum creatinine. Outcome Difference between measured GFR versus GFR estimated from the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) Study and Cockcroft-Gault equations. Results For a noncalibrated serum creatinine value of 1 mg/dL (88.4 μmol/L), standardized serum creatinine value was 0.07 mg/dL (6.2 μmol/L) less than noncalibrated values. In the pooled data set, for the MDRD Study equation, calibration improved median percentage of difference between measured and estimated GFR from 9.0% (interquartile range [IQR], 28%) to 5.8% (IQR, 28%) and improved the percentage of estimates within 30% of measured GFR (P 30 ) from 80% to 83%. The effect of calibration was greater at higher levels of GFR and varied across studies. For the Cockcroft-Gault equation, calibration worsened the median percentage of difference from −2.0% (IQR, 38%) to −11.4% (IQR, 39%), and the P 30 , from 74% to 69%. Limitations College of American Pathologist samples were used for calibration of clinical populations; calibration factors do not account for drift over time in the serum creatinine assay; calibration cannot account for variation in assay performance among individuals. Conclusion Calibration improves the performance of the MDRD Study equation. After calibration, larger errors remain for GFR estimates greater than 60 mL/min/1.73 m 2 (>1 mL/s/1.73 m 2 ).
Heat transfer and fluid dynamics in mercury-water spray columns

Heat transfer and fluid dynamics were studied in columns in which hot mercury was sprayed into a rising stream of water. Volumetric and area heat transfer coefficients are presented which were found to be lower than those reported for heat transfer from fixed spheres. It was observed that considerable water bypassed the stream of drops, while some surrounding the drops flowed downward. This behavior resulted in water temperatures at the base of the column which were considerably higher than the inlet water temperatures. Consequently the outlet mercury temperature did not approach the inlet water temperature as a limit. The very unconventional flow pattern of the water was unexpected and is believed to be an important factor in spray-column heat transfer and mass transfer kinetics.
Simulation-based reusable posynomial models for MOS transistor parameters

The paper presents an algorithm to automatically design posynomial models for parameters of the MOS transistors using simulation data. These models improve the accuracy of the geometric programming flow for automatic circuit sizing. The models are reusable for multiple circuits on a given silicon technology and hence don't adversely affect the scalability of the geometric programming approach. The proposed method is a combination of genetic algorithms and quadratic programming. It is the only approach for posynomial modeling with real-valued exponents which is easily extensible to different error metrics. The authors compare the proposed technique with state-of-art posynomial/monomial modeling techniques and show its superiority
Mathematical and computer modelling reports: Reinforced concrete hysteresis model based on the damage concept

Reinforced concrete members subjected to cyclic inelastic deformation may exhibit both stiffness and strength degradation, depending on the maximum amplitude and the number of cycles experienced by the member. Many of the currently available models do not simulate the cycle-dependent stiffness loss often observed during the experiments. An analytical model based on a damage parameter which is a function of the cumulative cyclic inelastic deformation is proposed. A small-scale reinforced concrete beam-column joint was constructed and subjected to cyclic loading to calibrate the damage parameter. The model is able to approximate the complete hysteretic response and is simple to implement. The sensitivity of the analytical model was examined by comparing the model with several experimental results.
Political Economy of Macroeconomic Policymaking: Economic Crises and Technocratic Governance

How do economic crisis affect national-level policy choices? Are technocratic advisors more likely to enter government during periods of severe economic volatility? If so, how does such governance affect economic policymaking and social responsiveness? In this paper, I evaluate the role of technocratic advisors on Latin American reforms. Building on the political psychology literature, I argue that collective crisis memories in technocratic communities have a disproportionate influence on elite-level policymaking. Employing an originally constructed data index, the Index of Economic Advisors, I conduct a large-N cross-national test from 1960-2011 to examine whether economic crisis lead to more technocrats serving in presidential cabinets, and find that crises often professionalize presidential teams. The statistical results also show that technocrats' governance approaches are conditioned by the nature of past shocks. An inflationary crisis history makes budget austerity more likely. Deflationary spirals have been far less common in Latin America, but comparative case study evidence of Argentina in the early 2000s shows that these shocks often catalyze sustained fiscal expansion. This investigation has significant implications for the study of democrazy and development. Technocratic governance might help provide economic stability following crises, but an enduring political focus on past crises can limit policy flexibility and social responsiveness.
On the Influence of Athermal ω and α Phase Instabilities on the Scale of Precipitation of the α Phase in Metastable β -Ti Alloys

In the presentation and manuscript in the International Conference on Solid-Solid Phase Transformations in Inorganic Materials (PTM 2015 conference), the authors presented the preliminary results showing that the nano-scale compositional and structural instabilities in the parent β phase in titanium alloys have significant influence on the subsequent phase transformations, such as α phase precipitation, by a combination of advanced electron microscopy and phase field simulation. The aim of the current research described in this paper has been to develop an understanding of the role of two instabilities in metastable β Ti alloys which may influence the scale of refined distributions of the α phase. The first of these involves the role of athermal ω phase on the nucleation of the α phase, and the second is the stability of the α phase itself during up-quenching experiments performed as a part of heat-treatment schedules that lead to refined distributions of this phase. The first investigation has involved heat treatments designed to ensure that the athermal ω phase is present at a temperature at which α nucleation is known, from previous research, to occur. It was found that the scale of α precipitation produced was “refined”, rather than “super-refined”. Hence, it is concluded that athermal ω plays no role in the nucleation of the α phase. The second investigation involves up-quenching of samples already containing an incipient “super-refined” distribution of the α phase to determine the stability of these distributions against such up-quenching. It has been found that the stability of the α phase is dependent on the composition, C 0(T), i.e., the alloy composition where, for a given temperature, T, the free energies of the α and β phases are equal.
Fuel-Efficient Operation of Compressor Stations Using Simulation-Based Optimization

One of the primary concerns in the operation of a compressor station is minimization of fuel consumption while maintaining the desired throughput of natural gas. In practice, the station operator tries to achieve this by shutting down units or controlling individual unit speeds based on experience. This is generally a trial-and-error process without any guarantee of optimality. In this paper we present a robust structured solution process for tackling this problem using simulation-based optimization. The first step to develop this solution process is to devise an analysis scheme that provides the simulation support required by the optimization. This was achieved by developing a fully implicit finite difference formulation of the continuity, momentum and energy equations for flow under non-isothermal conditions. The performance of each compressor unit was modeled by fitting polynomials to the compressor map. These polynomial equations were appended to the flow equations to obtain a complete set of system governing equations. The nonlinear algebraic equations resulting from this formulation were then solved using a Newton-Raphson iteration to obtain system performance. The problem of optimizing the operation of a compressor station was then formulated as a nonlinear programming problem (NLP) in which the design variables are the compressor unit speeds and the objective function to be minimized is the fuel consumption. A constraint was also placed on the minimum mass flow rate through the station to ensure that adequate flow is maintained while minimizing fuel consumption. This NLP was then solved using a sequential unconstrained minimization technique (SUMT) with a derivative-free grid search for handling the unconstrained minimizations. The simulation algorithm mentioned earlier is invoked whenever the optimization needs to evaluate the system response at a candidate operating point. The results obtained show that the simulation works very well in terms of predicting system response, and the proposed simulation-based optimization approach is highly effective in minimizing fuel consumption in a systematic way. The approach is successfully applied to single stations as well as to a sequence of stations along a pipeline, thereby establishing its applicability to station-level and network-level optimization.© 2004 ASME
A Correlation between Si Surface Micro-Roughness and Atomic Concentration on Surface: Application to Micro-Roughness Measurement of Si

We have developed a new method of evaluating Si surface micro-roughness, by forming thin oxide in HCI/H2O2 solution and then measuring the concentration of chlorine atoms or the total charge in this oxide. It is shown that this oxide does not affect the surface micro-roughness, and the surface concentration of chlorine atoms incorporated in this oxide and the total oxide charge are proportional to the surface micro-roughness, as obtained by AFM. From these correlations, it is possible to evaluate the surface microroughness for large areas compared with the areas of AFM measurement.
Draft Genome Assembly of Acinetobacter baumannii ATCC 19606

Two sibling species of tephritid fruit fly, Bactrocera tryoni and Bactrocera neohumeralis, are differentiated by their time of mating, which is genetically determined and requires interactions between the endogenous circadian clock and light intensity. The cryptochrome (cry) gene, a light-sensitive component of the circadian clock, was isolated in the two Bactrocera species. The putative amino acid sequence is identical in the two species. In the brain, in situ hybridization showed that cry is expressed in the lateral and dorsal regions of the central brain where PER immunostaining was also observed and in a peripheral cell cluster of the antennal lobes. Levels of cry mRNA were analyzed in whole head, brain, and antennae. In whole head, cry is abundantly and constantly expressed. However, in brain and antennae the transcript cycles in abundance, with higher levels during the day than at night, and cry transcripts are more abundant in the brain and antennae of B. neohumeralis than in that of B. tryoni. Strikingly, these results are duplicated in hybrid lines, generated by rare mating between B. tryoni and B. neohumeralis and then selected on the basis of mating time, suggesting a role for the cry gene in the mating isolation mechanism that differentiates the species.
Orientations and Membership: A Study of Group Occupational Mobility

Unionization and professionalization can be seen as alternative modes of group occupational mobility (Haug and Sussman, 1971). Each mode implies a distinct ideology. But empirical evidence from a c...
A Clinicopathologic Study of Children with Idiopathic Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis

There is little information about the clinicopathological correlations of focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) in children. Renal biopsies of 46 patients with primary FSGS were reviewed between 1994 and 2015. Clinical and laboratory findings were evaluated at the time of renal biopsy. Totally, not otherwise specified (NOS) was the most common pathologic variant in 38 patients. There was no correlation between age, gender, serum protein, urine protein, hematuria, and steroid response with five distinct pathologic variants and histopathologic lesions. Hgb level had a negative correlation to the glomerular hyalinosis, mesengial hypercellularity, mesengial deposition, and glomerular volume. Renal dysfunction and blood pressure had a significant positive association with the extent of tubular atrophy, interstitial fibrosis, synechiae in Bowman capsule, arteriolar hyalinosis, mononuclear infiltration, atherosclerosis, glomerular hyalinosis, mesengial hypercellularity, mesengial deposition, and glomerular sclerosis. In conclusion, serum creatinine and blood pressure were the significant predictors of histopathologic lesions in children with primary FSGS.
Investigation of Pelvic Floor in Female Stress Urinary Incontinence by Three-Dimentional Ultrasound

Objective: Observing pelvic floor by three-dimentional ultrasound in nulliparous women and postpartum stress urinary incontinence(SUI),to investigate the changes of the bladder neck and urethral mobility and the changes of levator ani caused by trauma.To assess the value of three-dimentional ultrasound in diagnosing female SUI.Methods: In control group and study group,we observed pelvic floor visualized by three-dimentional ultrasound and measured the mobility of urethrovesical junction(UVJ-M),poster urethrovesical angle during the Valsalva maneuver,measured pubovisceral muscle thickness and pubovisceral muscle angles at rest time and during the Valsalva maneuver,respectively.Results: In study group,UVJ-M 15.93±2.07mm is larger than control group 7.64±1.37mm(P0.01),poster urethrovesical angle 145.90±22.03°is larger than control group 106.49±14.32°too(P0.01).The pubovisceral muscle thickness of study group 6.39±0.48 mm is thinner than control group 6.71±0.69(P0.05)at rest time,during the Valsalva maneuver study group 6.13±0.49 mm is thinner than control group 6.64±0.61 too(P0.05).The angle of pubovisceral muscle in study group 70.08±3.15 at rest time is larger than control group 69.45±2.19°,but there is no significant difference(P0.01).The angle 75.49±3.92°during the Valsalva maneuver is larger than control group 70.35±1.51°(P0.01).Conclusions: It is direct to observe female pelvic floor by three-dimentional ultrasound imaging.It is a sensitive and effective method to diagnose SUI.
Influence of Gualougen San on Blood Glucose and Blood Lipids in Diabetic Rats

Objective:To study the influence of Gualougen San on blood glucose and blood lipids in diabetic rats,analyse the relationship between hypoglycemic effect and drug dose.Method:SPF male Wistar rats were injected with 36 mg·kg-1 of STZ intraperitioneally to establish rat models of diabetes.According to the random number table,the model rats were randomly divided into the model group,the metformin hydrochloride group,the Ginseng-astragalus hypoglycemic granule group and the low,middle,high dose(2,4,6 g·kg-1) of Gualougen San groups(n=10 each).Treatments were ig applied with corresponding drugs every day.Ten normal rats were set up as the normal control group(ig with normal saline).The fasting blood glucose and weight of the rats were measured before the treatments and eight weeks after the treatments.Blood sample was finally obtained from aorta of rats.Triglyceride and cholesterol were tested.Result:High and low doses of Gualougen San could reduce blood sugar in the diabetic rats(P0.01).The low dose of the powder was the strongest while the middle dose of the powder did not show significant effect.High,middle and low doses of Gualougen San all could reduce blood lipids in the diabetic rats(P0.05),however,it could not control weight-losing in the rats(P0.05).Conclusion:Gualougen San can reduce blood sugar in type 2 diabetic rats without clear dose-effect relationship.The hypolipidemic effect is obvious while it can not change the trend of weight loss in diabetic rats.
Review of Models and Instruments in Epistemological Beliefs Studies

Epistemological beliefs concern the notions of knowledge and knowing, and involve various understandings of the nature, construction and evaluation of knowledge. Contemporary research on epistemological beliefs has shifted from philosophical inquiry to psychological investigation. The purpose of this paper is to provide Chinese researchers with new pathways in this area by presenting and reviewing the adaptability and limitations of the major models, including Developmental Model, Reflective Judgment Model and Embedded System Model, and their corresponding instruments.
Reply to Joel Sarout's comment on “Physical constraints on c13 and δ for transversely isotropic hydrocarbon source rocks”

We thank Joel Sarout for his perspective reading of our paper (Sarout 2016). First, we want to state explicitly that the physical constraints on c13 are not theoretical constraints; they are heuristic constraints based on observation of laboratory static measurement and physical intuition concerning the explanation of the behavior of a certain amount of hydrocarbon source rocks, to the author’s knowledge. As the title suggests, they only applied to hydrocarbon source rocks whose elastic properties can be described by transverse isotropy. This point is also emphasized in the discussion part of our paper.