cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Two-dimensional echocardiography and Doppler ultrasound in managing obstetric patients

Abstract Objective: To test the usefulness of ultrasound-derived measurements of intracardiac filling pressures and cardiac performance in the noninvasive management of obstetric patients with an indication for hemodynamic monitoring. Methods: We included patients with oliguria unresponsive to crystalloid boluses, with hypertension unresponsive to hydralazine, and at high risk for pulmonary edema who were determined to be candidates for invasive monitoring. They were first studied with two-dimensional echocardiography and Doppler ultrasound using a technique previously validated at our institution. Cardiac dimensions, filling pressures, and function were assessed at the bedside. Subsequently, management decisions were made based on these findings. Results: Fourteen patients were studied. Two received a pulmonary artery catheter after noninvasive evaluation indicated a need for continuous monitoring. The 12 patients managed without the need for a pulmonary artery catheter included women with intractable hypertension (one patient), pulmonary edema (two patients), complex cardiac lesions (two patients), oliguria (five patients), intractable hypertension and oliguria (one patient), and unexplained dyspnea with peripheral arterial oxygen desaturation (one patient). Although some patients received as much as 8 L of crystalloid, none developed pulmonary edema or left ventricular failure. In all 12 cases, the ultrasound monitoring allowed successful noninvasive management of the patient. Conclusion: This pilot study suggests that two-dimensional echocardiography and Doppler examination may be an effective alternative to invasive monitoring in the management of selected pregnant patients.
Rural Property Tax Delinquency and Recession in Agriculture

Agricultural recession causes the property tax delinquency rate to increase in rural counties. The annual volume of unpaid property taxes as a percent of the tax levy is regressed on the farm debt-asset ratio, farm and nonfarm income, and the ratio of the interest rate to the delinquency penalty rate. Data from thirteen agriculturally-dependent Indiana counties are used. Increases in the debt-asset ratio and decreases in farm and nonfarm income are found to increase delinquency. Delinquency is also used as a source of capital when interest rates exceed the penalty rate.
Open quiz-solution: Case report 668

A 4-month-old infant with bronchiolitis was found to have hyperdense bones on chest roentgenograms. The diagnosis of osteopetrosis was demonstrated by generalized increased radiological bone density and by a bone biopsy showing persistence of calcified cartilage. The infant also had a mixed proximal and distal renal tubular acidosis requiring as much as 12 mEq/kg per day of sodium bicarbonate. Measurement of his erythrocyte carbonic anhydrase activity revealed a deficiency of CA II. His parents showed values of CA activity that were intermediate between controls and the proband. Thus, this is a patient with the CA II deficiency syndrome; he is the youngest reported case without any family history of osteopetrosis to be diagnosed initially on the basis of his radiographic features.
Photonics Beyond Diffraction Limit: Plasmon Waveguide, Cavities and Integrated Laser Circuits

I will discuss recent development in scaling down photonics. First I will present theoretical and experimental investigation of passive low loss waveguide using hybrid plasmon design. We propose a new optical cavity design approach using indefinite medium that has a drastically different scaling law than conventional microcavities, and discuss its experimental demonstrations. We will show an active plasmonic laser circuit that integrated with 5 tiny cavities that multiplexed into a single waveguide-an effort towards integrated photonics at nanoscale. Finally if time allow, I will discuss photonic spin hall effect that provides a new channel for photonic information transfer.
G protein signaling in tumor cell growth and metastasis

G protein signaling has been implicated in different aspects cancer growth and progression. Our studies have identified that the G12-family of G proteins that defines the gep family of oncogenes are critically involved in tumor cell proliferation and metastasis. Defining these pathways has shown that the gep protooncogene GNA12 is specifically involved in the proliferation of ovarian cancer cells whereas GNA13 is involved in cancer cell metastasis. Consequently, the silencing of the gep proto-oncogenes potently inhibited tumor growth of ovarian cancer cells in a mouse xenograft model, thus suggesting the dominant role for the gep oncogenes in ovarian cancer growth and progression. In addition we demonstrate a similar role for GNA13 in the invasive migration of pancreatic cancer cells. Furthermore, we demonstrate that an eleven amino acid peptide derived from the gep oncogenes Gα12/13 can effectively disrupt LPA-stimulated oncogenic pathways. Thus, in addition to unraveling the molecular mechanism underlying cancer progression and metastasis, our results provide evidence that the G protein signaling nodes can be targeted for cancer chemotherapy. This work was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health ({"type":"entrez-nucleotide","attrs":{"text":"CA123233","term_id":"34976541","term_text":"CA123233"}}CA123233, CA 125752, CA 116984).
Mediated public diplomacy: Satellite TV news in the Arab world and perception effects:

Using Entman’s work on mediated public diplomacy, the authors conducted an Arabic-language online survey of news consumers on Arab websites, including one US-funded media outlet. They examined factors leading to gaps in exposure and perceptions of credibility for three Arab news outlets. Specifically, they examined variables that differentiated between exposure to and perceived credibility regarding the three satellite news media – al-Jazeera, al-Arabiya, and al-Hurra. Results showed that issue importance and attitudes toward the United States were significant predictors of exposure gaps between the US-funded network and other Arab media. Exposure gaps were also powerful predictors of perceived credibility.
Release of protein from axons during rapid axonal transport: An in vitro preparation

An in vitro system from the frog was used to study fast axonal transport and determine if transported protein is released from the axons. This preparation included the eighth and ninth dorsal root ganglia with their roots, sciatic nerve and gastrocnemius muscle. The preparation was placed in three-compartment chamber with each compartment separated by a silicone grease barrier. The dorsal root ganglia were incubated in [14C]leucine for 5 h in compartment A. The labeled protein was transported down the axon from compartment A to compartment B. The sciatic nerve in compartment B was superfused with frog Ringer. This solution was collected in hourly samples and dialyzed to remove unincoprorated leucine before counting. Incubating the ganglia in 100 microng/ml cycloheximide in frog Ringer blocked the release of labeled protein from the axon. Superfusing compartment B with solution containing 100 microng/ml cycloheximide inhibited axonal and Schwann cell protein synthesis, but did not block the release of labeled protein. It was concluded that the labeled protein released into the superfusing solution was synthesized in the ganglia and transported to the axon before release. SDS acrylamide gels were used to separate the labeled proteins. Sectioning the gels in 2 mm slices and determining the radioactivity showed that 80-85% of the counts were contained in two fast moving bands.
Shape Memory Alloy Actuator Arrays Using Thermoelectric Devices for Dual Sensing and Actuation

A sensor-less control method for locally heating and cooling Shape Memory Alloy (SMA) actuators using an array of thermoelectric devices (TED) for both temperature measurement and actuation is presented in this paper. Each SMA wire is divided into many segments whose thermal state is controlled independently and selectively for generating a desired displacement of the SMA wire. In lieu of dedicated temperature sensors, each TED used to heat and cool the SMA wires can also be used to monitor the local temperature difference across each device via the Seebeck effect. A pulse width-modulated control system is implemented to drive the thermoelectric device and sample the Seebeck voltage of each TED between pulses. Least-squares system identification is employed to fit an auto-regressive/exogenous input model to the measured temperature of the SMA wires using the Seebeck voltage and the ambient temperature as inputs. A feedback controller is presented which, using this model, is able to control the temperature of the shape memory alloy wires to within 3 °C over a target temperature range between 30 °C and 80 °C.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
Baboon lecithin cholesterol acyltransferase (LCAT): cDNA sequences of two alleles, evolution, and gene expression.

Abstract Lecithin cholesterol acyltransferase (LCAT) is a key enzyme of cholesterol metabolism that catalyzes esterification of cholesterol for packaging in high-density lipoprotein (HDL) particles. In this study, we cloned and sequenced LCAT cDNA from baboon, a nonhuman primate model of atherosclerosis. LCAT sequences have been highly conserved over approximately 25 million years since the divergence of the baboon and human lineages. The baboon and human sequences are 97% identical at the nucleotide (nt) level and 98% identical at the amino acid (aa) level. Only 18% of the nt substitutions change the aa sequence (nonsynonymous substitutions). The aa substitutions between baboon and human LCAT do not alter key functional sites including the interfacial substrate active site, asparagine-linked glycosylation sites, or sites at which rare mutations cause human familial LCAT deficiencies. We also sequenced LCAT cDNA for a less common allele that is associated with higher LCAT activities and altered lipoprotein phenotypes. There were no sequence differences between the two alleles, which suggests that genotypic effects are most likely due to allelic differences in gene expression. The tissue specificity of LCAT expression was investigated using an RNase protection assay calibrated with known amounts of synthetic human LCAT RNA. In a survey of baboon tissues, the highest levels of LCAT mRNA were found in the cerebellum and liver and trace amounts in the ileum, spleen and cerebral cortex.
MR findings of endocardial fibroelastosis in children.

Background Endocardial fibroelastosis (EFE) is characterized by a diffuse white fibrous tissue lining the endocardium. The diagnosis is difficult to establish because clinical symptoms and electrocardiographic findings are nonspecific. Surgical resection of EFE requires the establishment of the diagnosis and delineation of the extent of the fibrotic changes.
ON THE MECHANISM OF CHLORIN RETENTION IN PNEUMONIA

The following conclusions may be drawn from an analysis of the protocols: 1. The chlorin output is very much diminished during the process of experimental pneumonia in dogs (tables I and II). The quantity of chlorin retained in the cases with well developed exudates (table I) is much larger than the exudate could account for. 2. Turpentine pleurisy in dogs (tables III and IV) also is associated with a retention of chlorin, but this is not so marked as in pneumonia. There is no direct quantitative relation between the water output and the chlorin excretion. 3. The rabbits with pneumococcal septicemia (tables V and VI) did not retain chlorin in any phase of the disease, a fact which Hutchison has also noticed. It seems justifiable to conclude that the retention of chlorin in the organism in the course of pneumonia is conditioned by more than one factor. The formation of the exudate is one of these factors, but it alone is not capable of producing the same degree of chlorin retention as occurs in pneumonia. The additional factors are not yet determined; but it may be stated that the retention of chlorin is probably not due to the general effect of the pneumococcus on the organism or to its injury to the kidney. The principal cause of the retention seems, therefore, to be due to local changes associated with the pulmonary condition.
Hedgehog signaling in pancreas development

Hedgehog proteins are secreted molecules that bind to their cell surface receptors to elicit concentration dependent responses essential for numerous tissue patterning and cell differentiation events during embryogenesis. However, during early stages of pancreas organogenesis, hedgehog signaling has been shown to inhibit tissue morphogenesis and cell differentiation. By contrast, recent cell culture studies indicate that an active hedgehog pathway might be required for maintenance of adult endocrine cell functions. This review describes our current understanding of the requirement of hedgehog signaling during pancreas morphogenesis and cell differentiation and discusses how individual hedgehog genes might act at various stages to ensure proper pancreas development and organ function.
precision holding in humans, non-human primates, and Plio-Pleistocene hominids

Four Types of precision holding in the human hand have been identified and described in accordance with the contrasting regional properties of a differentiated ungual pulp of the distal phalanx. Comparisons were made with the non-human primates for types of precision holding and for morphological features of the distal phalanx. Many non-human primates employ most types of precision behavior: one of these, Type 1, predominates and derives from the «set» of the grasping hand for power gripping during arboreal progression. Unlike that of humans, the ungual pulp of the non-human primates is undifferentiated. A distinction is made for the presence of an ungual tuft and ungual spines for humans and for their absence in the non-human primates. The distal phalanx of the Plio-Pleistocene hominids was evaluated for its role in precision holding. The variations in expression of the ungual tuft and the absence of ungual spines suggest an undifferentiated or incompletely differentiated ungual pulp. It is believed that most of the Types of precision holding were possible in the Plio-Pleistocene hominids; however, such Types were not utilized as in contemporary humans. The presence of ungual tufts and spines of the distal phalanx should be considered diagnostic features of the hominid hand. These features and the precision behavior inferred are integral elements in the hominization process.
Robot is best to play with human

In this paper we present StimCards: an interactive game for cognitive training exercises. To increase the impact of this game we experiment four kinds of interfaces: a basic computer, an embodied conversational agent and a robot with two different appearances. The report of these experiments shows that the robot is the best positive feedback for cognitive game.
Adjusting for confounding.

y previous column1 dealt with the concept of confounding. An mportant consideration when examining the association between ny two variables (e.g., an exposure of interest and a particular isease) is whether the apparent association (or, perhaps, the lack hereof) may be due, at least in part, to the effects of a third ariable related to the other two. This phenomenon is referred to as onfounding, and the third variable that obscures the association of eal scientific interest is referred to as a confounder. In this column discuss a tried and trusted method of adjusting for confounding n the analysis: stratification. Figure 1 presents (hypothetical) data from a study that examned the association between vitamin E supplementation and the isk of occurrence of coronary heart disease (CHD). The data are rom 1000 participants between the ages of 50 and 55 y who were nitially free of CHD and followed for 15 y. Those who developed HD during the 15-y follow-up were identified; study participants lso were classified according to their use of vitamin E suppleents (the “exposure” variable). Analysis of the data shown in igure 1 indicates that the risk of CHD for those who used vitamin supplements is approximately 0.09 (or 50 of 551) and that the orresponding risk for those who did not is approximately 0.15 (or 5 of 449). This apparent association can be expressed in terms of he odds ratio2 (OR):
Half-life of sulphur-35☆

Abstract A new value of 87·39 ± 0·10 days for the half-life of sulphur-35 has been obtained by following the decay of nine samples over a period of approximately one year.
Supraventricular Tachycardia Initiated by Sinus Beats

In the present report, A-V dissociation with concealed retrograde conduction into the A-V node, caused SINUS beats to exhibit antegrade A-V nodal conduction delay sufficient to result in episodes of supraventricular tachycardia (SVT). In this patient, atrial ectopic premature depolarizations were never observed. The primary role of A-V nodal conduction delay in the genesis of paroxysmal SVT is substantiated by this unusual electrophysiological observation.
Assets and liabilities, race/ethnicity, and children's college education

Abstract This study examines the extent to which household assets and liabilities are related to disparities in children's college attendance and college graduation among White, Black, and Hispanic families. Results indicate that, after household assets are considered, a substantial portion of the Black–White gap in college attendance and college graduation disappears, and a small portion of the Hispanic–White gap in college graduation also disappears. Separate analyses of children from each racial/ethnic group further indicate that family income and financial assets are related to White children's college attendance and graduation, but nonfinancial assets and unsecured debt are associated with college attendance and graduation among Black and Hispanic children. Policy implications are considered.
Nerve conduction velocity studies of workers employed in the manufacture of phenoxy herbicides

Abstract Conduction velocities (NCV) of the median motor, median sensory, and sural nerves were measured in 56 workers employed in the manufacture of 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxy acetic acid (2,4,5-T) and 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid (2,4-D). Mean age was 35 years and mean duration of employment was 7 years. The control group consisted of 25 subjects without exposure to neurotoxic agents. When compared with controls, slowing was noted in the sural nerve (mean = 34.0 vs 40.1 m/sec, P > 0.02). All values were then adjusted for age and temperature and were transformed to Z values (mean = 0, standard deviation = 1), where-upon slowing was seen in the sural (−2.21 vs −0.52, P
New Scaling Coefficients for Biorthogonal Filter to Control Distortion Variation in 3D Wavelet Based Video Coding

In 3D based wavelet video coders that use longer filters, the PSNR of the reconstructed frames within a GOF varies significantly. This distortion variation is not directly related to the motion in the video sequence as in the case of hybrid video coding schemes. The paper focuses on the problem of controlling erratic variation of distortion in 3D coders. The wavelet filter properties are explored and scaling coefficients for the wavelet filter is calculated with the objective of smoothening the temporal PSNR. The biorthogonal 5/3 wavelet filter is considered in this paper and experimental results are presented for 2D+t and t+2D wavelet coders.
Response to interferon treatment decreases with epidermal dedifferentiation in condylomas

After interferon (IFN) treatment of patients with condyloma acuminatum, groups clinically proven to be responders or nonresponders were selected, and cellular parameters that might influence the clinical response were studied in pretreatment biopsies by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The nonresponders were found to express higher amounts of cellular proliferative markers, such as proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), cyclin A, and cdc2 kinase, but lower levels of growth suppressor genes (TGF-β1, TGF-β2 and p53) before IFN treatment. The responders retained the epidermal keratinization, except for some signs of hyperproliferation (K6, K16 cytokeratins). In addition, the nonresponders showed a shift in the keratinization pattern to a mucosal or fetal type, as evidenced by high expression of the K18, K6, K16 and K13 cytokeratins but decreased K5, K14 and K10 levels before treatment. The expression of the human papillomavirus (HPV) genes is consistent with these differentiation patterns. The crucial conclusion to be drawn from this study is that those condylomas whose pretreatment phenotype most closely resembles that of normal epidermis respond to IFN treatment, whereas those more akin to nonkeratinizing epithelia fail to respond, i.e. the resistance of condylomas to IFN treatment is correlated with dedifferentiation.
Attentional asymmetry in schizophrenia: controlled and automatic processes

Two versions of Posner's covert orienting task were administered to 14 drug-free schizophrenic patients and 12 normal controls. In the schizophrenic subjects, automatic orienting to exogenous cues in the right visual field was impaired. However, this lateralizing general deficit was not present when the schizophrenics were able to direct attention effortfully in the second version of the task using endogenous cues. These findings support the hypothesis that there is a deficit in left hemispheric mechanisms mediating visual spatial attention in schizophrenia. However, when schizophrenics are given the opportunity to use an attentional strategy they are able to partially overcome this lateralized processing deficit.
The ompA 5′ untranslated region impedes a major pathway for mRNA degradation in Escherichia coli

Summary The unusual longevity of the Escherichia coli ompA transcript is determined by its 5′untranslated region (UTR), which functions In vivo as an mRNA stabilizer. Here we show that this 5′UTR can prolong the lifetime in E. coli of a variety of heterologous mRNAs to which it is Joined, either as a gene fusion or as an operon fusion. Statistical extrapolation suggests that it is quite likely that most E. coli mRNAs could be stabilized in this manner. We conclude that the ompA 5′ UTR impedes a major pathway for mRNA degradation in E. coli and that stabilization by fusion to this UTR does not require translational readthrough of the heterologous mRNA segment by ribosomes that initiate translation at the ompA ribosome-binding site. Additional experiments indicate that the E. coli ribonuclease whose action is slowed by the ompA 5′ UTR is not RNase III.
Reducing Math Anxiety: Findings from Incorporating Service Learning into a Quantitative Reasoning Course at Seattle University

How might one teach mathematics to math-anxious students and at the same time reduce their math anxiety? This paper describes what we found when we incorporated a service learning component into a quantitative reasoning course at Seattle University in Fall 2010 (20 students) and Spring 2011 (28 students). The course is taken primarily by humanities majors, many of whom would not take a course in math if they didn’t need to satisfy the university’s core requirement. For the service learning component, each student met with and tutored children at local schools for 1-2 hours per week (total about 15 service hours), kept a weekly journal reflecting on the experience, and wrote a five-page final paper on the importance and reasonable expectations of mathematics literacy. The autobiographies, self-description at the beginning of the class, focus group interviews at the end of the term, journal entries, final essays, and student evaluations indicated that the students gained confidence in their mathematical abilities, a greater interest in mathematics, and a broader sense of the importance of math literacy in modern society. One notable finding was that students discovered that the act of manufacturing enthusiasm about math as a tool for tutoring the children made them more enthusiastic about math in their own courses.
French electoral theory: The national front test

Abstract The National Front (FN) has become a serious force in the French electoral arena. What has brought voters to this extreme-right alternative? We first try to cast the explanation in terms of traditional variables orienting the French voter—class, religion, region, ideology. Analysis of these cleavages has virtually no utility along the lines of class or religion. However, there is some relationship to region and, with respect to the ideological variable, FN supporters sharply distinguish themselves from other right wing partisans (RPR and UDF). Their far-right ideology has an issue base, resting broadly on the ‘materialist’ values of law and order, and economic wellbeing. In particular, it is the issues of crime, immigration, and unemployment (taken together in a pattern of statistical interaction), that manage largely to account for National Front support. These issues, as they persist, transform the meaning of right, or at least extreme-right, ideological identification. The French electorate continues to be anchored by left-right ideology, but its content is undergoing change.
Field of play: sensual interface

Focusing on intuitive, non-expert users as audience yields an interface that maximizes the sensuous features of the desktop environment, including sound, color, and pattern. It fits into a category that is not computer games or graphics software per se, but a kind of art that makes art. Digital activities of this sort can act as a bridge to more analytical aspects of computers.
Aetiology of community-acquired pneumonia in the ICU setting and its effect on mortality, length of mechanical ventilation and length of ICU stay: a 1-year retrospective review.

Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is the most common infectious reason for admission to ICUs and has mortality of up to 37% [1]. Highest mortality rates are in Gram-negative infections with lower rates in Streptococcus pneumoniae and viral infections [2]. Microbiology is difficult to establish with most prospective studies identifying agents in only 50% of cases [3]. We analysed microbial aetiology of CAP in ICU over 1 year and assessed its effects on inpatient mortality, length of mechanical ventilation and length of ICU stay.
Advancing Psychology as a Bio-behavioral Science

Concerns for the integrity of psychology as an independent discipline have caused some psychologists to object to introducing any knowledge from the biological sciences into the training of psychologists. However, calls for the greater incorporation of the behavioral sciences in medical education, increased attention to research on the mechanisms of bio-behavioral interaction, and initiatives in translational medical research and clinical care, have prompted increased interest in interdisciplinary research, health care, and teaching. These changes, in turn, are resulting in a re-conceptualization of the structure of academic medicine with increasing emphasis upon multidisciplinary knowledge and interdisciplinary collaboration, and less emphasis upon disciplinary insularity and competitiveness. If clinical health psychology is to play a role in this evolving concept of academic health care, it must adequately prepare its trainees to function in interdisciplinary academic health care settings. This will require not only expertise in the role of behavioral factors relevant to medical disorders, but also some basic familiarity with the biological processes to which those behavioral factors relate. With the evolution of its fund of knowledge, clinical health psychology has the potential to utilize its science to discover, describe, interpret, teach and clinically apply knowledge of the mechanisms of interaction between biological functions and behavioral, learning, cognitive, socio-cultural and environmental processes. By failing to seize this initiative, clinical health psychology risks becoming irrelevant to the evolving model of medical research, education and health care.
Vegetation spatial variability and its effect on vegetation indices

Landsat MSS data were used to simulate low resolution satellite data, such as NOAA AVHRR, to quantify the fractional vegetation cover within a pixel and relate the fractional cover to the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and the simple ratio (SR). The MSS data were converted to radiances from which the NDVI and SR values for the simulated pixels were determined. Each simulated pixel was divided into clusters using an unsupervised classification program. Spatial and spectral analysis provided a means of combining clusters representing similar surface characteristics into vegetated and non-vegetated areas. Analysis showed an average error of 12.7 per cent in determining these areas. NDVI values less than 0.3 represented fractional vegetated areas of 5 per cent or less, while a value of 0.7 or higher represented fractional vegetated areas greater than 80 per cent. Regression analysis showed a strong linear relation between fractional vegetation area and the NDVI and SR values; correlation values were 0.89 and 0.95 respectively. The range of NDVI values calculated from the MSS data agrees well with field studies.
URINARY ACIDIC GLYCOHYDROLASE AS AN INDEX OF EARLY RENAL DAMAGE IN JUVENILE DIABETES MELLITUS (JDM)

Acidic glycohydrolases involved in the degradation of glyeoprotein are present in small amounts in normal urines, but increase 4-fold in active renal diseases in children. To assess early renal involvement in JDM, Addis counts (timed urinary cell excretions), quantitative proteinuria, creatinine clearance, urinary acidic glycohydrolases, B-galactosidase (B-galase), B-N-hexosaminidase (B-hexase), and plasma acidic glycohydrolases, α-galactosidase, B-galase, B-hexase, α-mannosidase (α-mannase), α-fucosidase, were studied in 110 JDM children aged 3-16 years. Urinary B-galase and B-hexase was significantly higher in JDM than in normals, but lower than in children with active renal disease. Urinary B-galase, B-hexase had no correlation to urinary RBC's, WBC's, protein and sugar, but significantly correlated to plasma trlglycerides, age of the child, and duration of JDM (p<0.01). Of the plasma glycohydrolase, B-hexase and α-mannase correlated to blood sugar, cholesterol, triglycerides and to age of the child and duration of JDM (p<0.01). Six hours after insulin, mean urinary B-galase and B-hexase in 18 children returned to near normal levels. These data suggest that both urinary and plasma acidic plycohydrolases may be used as an index of Glycoprotein catabolism and hence early renal involvement in JDM.
A contrast-sensitive channelized-Hotelling observer to predict human performance in a detection task using lumpy backgrounds and Gaussian signals

Previously, a non-prewhitening matched filter (NPWMF) incorporating a model for the contrast sensitivity of the human visual system was introduced for modeling human performance in detection tasks with different viewing angles and white-noise backgrounds by Badano et al . But NPWMF observers do not perform well detection tasks involving complex backgrounds since they do not account for random backgrounds. A channelized-Hotelling observer (CHO) using difference-of-Gaussians (DOG) channels has been shown to track human performance well in detection tasks using lumpy backgrounds. In this work, a CHO with DOG channels, incorporating the model of the human contrast sensitivity, was developed similarly. We call this new observer a contrast-sensitive CHO (CS-CHO). The Barten model was the basis of our human contrast sensitivity model. A scalar was multiplied to the Barten model and varied to control the thresholding effect of the contrast sensitivity on luminance-valued images and hence the performance-prediction ability of the CS-CHO. The performance of the CS-CHO was compared to the average human performance from the psychophysical study by Park et al ., where the task was to detect a known Gaussian signal in non-Gaussian distributed lumpy backgrounds. Six different signal-intensity values were used in this study. We chose the free parameter of our model to match the mean human performance in the detection experiment at the strongest signal intensity. Then we compared the model to the human at five different signal-intensity values in order to see if the performance of the CS-CHO matched human performance. Our results indicate that the CS-CHO with the chosen scalar for the contrast sensitivity predicts human performance closely as a function of signal intensity.
Race and Violent Offender “Propensity”: Does the Intraracial Nature of Violent Crime Persist on the Local Level?:

In the 1980s, some scholars suggested black violent offenders had a “propensity” to select white victims. Subsequent research demonstrated, however, that violent offenders tend to victimize intraracially. One weakness of this research was its reliance on national-level data. Using national-level estimates to calculate expected values of interracial offending implicitly assumes people have access to each other across the nation. Segregation patterns suggest otherwise. This study examines whether the propensity of violent offenders to select victims intraracially holds up if expected values are calculated locally. Findings indicate that violent offenders do tend to select victims intraracially at the local level, but that the intraracial character of violent offending varies by crime, offender race, and locale. For most cities in the analysis, assault is predominantly intraracial across offense/offender categories. For a few cities, however, criminal assault is less intraracial than expected (with white off...
Development of titania nanostructures for the exploration of electron transport in dye-sensitized solar cells

Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC) utilizing titania (TiO2) nanomaterials in conjunction with a light-absorbing dye have been extensively explored for the last few decades. Earlier efforts to surpass the 10% overall light conversion efficiency of these devices emphasized the synthesis of dyes with enhanced light-absorbing capabilities, but slow progress in the increase in efficiency has directed attention to the exploration into the modification of the TiO2 nanostructure. Up to this point, the most efficient electrodes in DSSC devices have consisted of 10 micron-thick mesoporous TiO2 film with an interconnected network of 15-20nm particles. This type of structure has shown to impart a large enough surface area for efficient light absorption and charge formation, but the random distribution of nanometer-sized particles is thought to be the limiting factor for enhanced electron transport, hindering further progress in achieving higher efficiencies. Our research utilizes TiO2 nanorods in an attempt to explore and compare the electron transport pathways associated with 1) a random distribution of nanoparticles and 2) a straightforward arrangement of nanorods within the TiO2 nanostructure. It is assumed that a more ordered structure of nanorods would minimize inefficient electron percolation pathways and improve ion diffusion at the TiO2-dye-electrolyte interface by eliminating the randomization of the particle network, by increasing contact points for good electrical connection, and by decreasing small necking points that have shown to develop between adjacently-bound particles in the current TiO2 nanoparticle structure after sintering. The current-voltage (I-V) behavior of three solar cell electrode structures consisting of (1) TiO2 nanoparticle film, (2) TiO2 nanoparticle-nanorod film, and (3) TiO2 nanorod film were compared and analyzed to determine whether the nanorod structure provided a more efficient pathway for effective electron conduction. SEM analysis was also done to examine the structural alignment and morphology of each TiO2 electrode.
Spatial Relationships between Markers for Secretory and Endosomal Machinery in Human Cytomegalovirus-Infected Cells versus Those in Uninfected Cells

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) induces extensive remodeling of the secretory apparatus to form the cytoplasmic virion assembly compartment (cVAC), where virion tegumentation and envelopment take place. We studied the structure of the cVAC by confocal microscopy to assess the three-dimensional distribution of proteins specifically associated with individual secretory organelles. In infected cells, early endosome antigen 1 (EEA1)-positive vesicles are concentrated at the center of the cVAC and, as previously seen, are distinct from structures visualized by markers for the endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus, and trans-Golgi network (TGN). EEA1-positive vesicles can be strongly associated with markers for recycling endosomes, to a lesser extent with markers associated with components of the endosomal sorting complex required for transport III (ESCRT III) machinery, and then with markers of late endosomes. In comparisons of uninfected and infected cells, we found significant changes in the structural associations and colocalization of organelle markers, as well as in net organelle volumes. These results provide new evidence that the HCMV-induced remodeling of the membrane transport apparatus involves much more than simple relocation and expansion of preexisting structures and are consistent with the hypothesis that the shift in identity of secretory organelles in HCMV-infected cells results in new functional profiles.
Morphological Changes and Immunohistochemical Expression of RAGE and its Ligands in the Sciatic Nerve of Hyperglycemic Pig (Sus Scrofa)

The aim of our project was to study the effect of streptozotocin (STZ)—induced hyperglycemia on sciatic nerve morphology, blood plasma markers and immunohistochemical expression of RAGE (the Receptor for Advanced Glycation End-products), and its ligands—S100B and Carboxymethyl Lysine (CML)-advanced glycation endproduct (AGE) in the laboratory pig. Six months after STZ—injections, blood plasma measurements, morphometric analysis of sciatic nerve fiber density, immunofluorescent distribution of potential molecular neuropathy contributors, ELISA measurement of plasma AGE level and HPLC analysis of sciatic nerve levels of one of the pre-AGE and the glycolysis intermediate products—methyl-glyoxal (MG) were performed. The results of our study revealed that STZ—injected animals displayed elevated levels of plasma glucose, gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT) and triglycerides. The sciatic nerve of STZ-injected pigs revealed significantly lower numbers of small-diameter myelinated fibers, higher immunoreactivity for RAGE and S100B and increased levels of MG as compared to control animals. Our results correspond to clinical findings in human patients with hyperglycemia/diabetes-evoked peripheral neuropathy and suggest that the domestic pig may be a suitable large animal model for the study of mechanisms underlying hyperglycemia-induced neurological complications in the peripheral nerve and may serve as a relevant model for the pre-clinical assessment of candidate drugs in neuropathy.
Dynamic and implicit latin square doubly stochastic S-boxes with reversibility

S-Boxes play a vital role in cipher designs and have been researched for years. In this article a new way of dynamically designing S-boxes using Latin Square doubly stochastic matrix is proposed. And it is demonstrated that the enciphering/deciphering process is a mimic of a Markov chain Monte Carlo simulation. Unlike conventional dynamic S-boxes, the proposed S-boxes are not directly defined by keys, but contained in the key dependent doubly stochastic matrix. The created matrix has desired properties including: 1) it implicitly contains S-boxes and thus complicates the internal structure of S-boxes; 2) it naturally defines S-boxes with reversibility and thus any S-boxes used for encryption can be directly used for decryption; 3) it satisfies the Strict Avalanche Criterion (SAC) for S-Boxes and thus it has good resistance to differential or linear cryptanalysis; 4) it guarantees the independence of the ciphertext distribution from plaintext one; and 5) it ensures that the expected ciphertext distribution is uniform and thus attains excellent confusion properties when use these S-Boxes iteratively. Theoretical and experimental results show that the proposed S-box has a high security level and is suitable to design cryptosystem for data encryption. We also extend our S-boxes to a simple image cipher. Experimental results show that the proposed dynamical flexible structure S-boxes has cryptographic properties comparable or better than some existing image encryption methods.
Device and process modeling: 20 Years at Intel's other fab

Embedding TCAD engineers in technology working groups has been an integral part of Intel's process development strategy since the company's inception. While this strategy remains the same, the challenges faced and the tools used by TCAD has undergone dramatic change over the last 20 years. This talk will discuss three recent trends in process and device TCAD: the rise in the use of “atomistic” scale simulations, the focus on modeling defects, and the continuing need to bridge new, more physically rigorous approaches to older, more computationally efficient methods. These trends will be illustrated with recent TCAD studies conducted at Intel.
Decreased striatal dopamine efflux after intrastriatal application of benzazepine-class D1 agonists is not mediated via dopamine receptors.

Abstract Previous pharmacological studies have reported that striatal dopamine efflux is negatively modulated not only by presynaptic D2 dopamine autoreceptors but also by striatal D1 dopamine receptors. The present experiments employed in vivo microdialysis to further examine the ability of widely used benzazepine-class D1 agonists to modulate striatal dopamine efflux. In the present study, both the partial D1 agonist (±)-SKF 38393 (10 μM) and the full D1 agonist (±)-SKF 82958 (10 and 100 μM) significantly reduced striatal dopamine efflux during intrastriatal application. Intrastriatal application of the less active enantiomer, S(−)-SKF 38393 (10 μM) did not decrease striatal dopamine suggesting a selective receptor-mediated mode of action of (±)-SKF 38393. Additional experiments were conducted with the full D1 agonist (±)-SKF 82958 in order to characterize the receptor(s) mediating the observed decrease in dopamine efflux. Neither local application of the D1 antagonist R(+)-SCH 23390 (100 μM) nor local application of the selective D2 antagonist raclopride (5 μM) blocked the ability of (±)-SKF 82958 (10 μM) to decrease striatal dopamine efflux. However, intrastriatal application of the less selective D2 antagonist haloperidol (1 μM) did prevent the decrease in striatal dopamine efflux observed during intrastriatal (±)-SKF 82958 application. The present data suggest that the ability of intrastriatally applied benzazepine-class D1 agonists to decrease striatal dopamine efflux is receptor-mediated, but this action apparently is not mediated at D1 or D2 receptors. There is therefore no indication for an intrastriatal population of D1 receptors capable of modulating dopamine efflux.
The Heat Is On: Graphene Applications

It is well recognized that power consumption and heat removal in state-of-the-art integrated circuits (ICs) with the nanometer size of transistors is an urgent challenge. The electronic industry's transition to multicore designs, where the performance increase is achieved not via the increase in the clock frequency but rather through the increase in the number of processors, helped to alleviate some of the thermal issues but has not solved the problem of the nonuniformity of heat distribution inside a computer chip.
Facts, Events, and Semantic Emphasis in Causal Statements

L'A. defend a la fois son opinion concernant l'attribution complexe de la causalite dans la phrase suivante: Socrate a bu la cigue au crepuscule, ce qui a cause sa mort, et sa propre interpretation de la theorie complexe de l'evenement, qui s'inscrit dans la theorie generale des faits, des propositions et des evenements, developpee par J. Kim, F. Dretske, et D. Sanford contre la these de C. Stern selon laquelle la phrase citee contient une forme conjonctive reliant deux series causales d'evenements d'une part, et d'etats d'affaires d'autre part, (distincts du terme d'evenement)
Behavioral assessment and treatment of acquired visuoperceptual disorders

Visuoperceptual deficits are common sequelae of damage to either hemisphere of the brain, but are typically more pronounced following injuries involving the right cerebral hemisphere. Common visuoperceptual disorders include visual field cuts, hemi-inattention and hemi-spatial neglect, hemi-perceptual deficits, and gaze and visual pursuit disturbances. A number of behavioral interventions have been developed to teach patients to compensate for acquired visual deficits. Studies addressing assessment and treatment issues in this area are reviewed, and future directions for research are outlined.
Long-Term Outcomes of Lobectomy for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer After Definitive Radiation Treatment

Background Salvage surgical resection for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients initially treated with definitive chemotherapy and radiotherapy can be performed safely, but the long-term benefits are not well characterized. Methods Perioperative complications and long-term survival of all patients with NSCLC who received curative-intent definitive radiotherapy, with or without chemotherapy, followed by lobectomy from 1995 to 2012 were evaluated. Results During the study period, 31 patients met the inclusion criteria. Clinical stage distribution was stage I in 2 (6%), stage II in 5 (16%), stage IIIA in 15 (48%), stage IIIB in 5 (16%), stage IV in 3 (10%), and unknown in 1 (3%). The reasons surgical resection was initially not considered were: patients deemed medically inoperable (5 [16%]); extent of disease was considered unresectable (21 [68%]); small cell lung cancer misdiagnosis (1 [3%]), and unknown (4 [13%]). Definitive therapy was irradiation alone in 2 (6%), concurrent chemoradiotherapy in 28 (90%), and sequential chemoradiotherapy in 1 (3%). The median radiation dose was 60 Gy. Patients were subsequently referred for resection because of obvious local relapse, medical tolerance of surgical intervention, or posttherapy imaging suggesting residual disease. The median time from radiation to lobectomy was 17.7 weeks. There were no perioperative deaths, and morbidity occurred in 15 patients (48%). None of the 3 patients with residual pathologic nodal disease survived longer than 37 months, but the 5-year survival of pN0 patients was 36%. Patients who underwent lobectomy for obvious relapse (n = 3) also did poorly, with a median overall survival of 9 months. Conclusions Lobectomy after definitive radiotherapy can be done safely and is associated with reasonable long-term survival, particularly when patients do not have residual nodal disease.