cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Topotecan in the First-Line Treatment of Small Cell Lung Cancer

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is generally sensitive to first-line chemotherapy, but limited disease often recurs and extensive disease is rarely curable. The most common first-line therapy regimen is cisplatin (Platinol; Bristol-Myers Squibb; Princeton, NJ) plus etoposide (Etopophos; Bristol-Myers Squibb)--PE, which is associated with overall response rates >80% in patients with limited SCLC. Although it is associated with median survival times of approximately 18-20 months for limited disease, PE yields median survival times of only approximately 8-12 months in patients with extensive disease, and symptom palliation becomes the primary therapeutic goal. The toxicities of PE may undermine quality of life and leave patients more susceptible to adverse events during subsequent therapies. Topotecan (HYCAMTIN; GlaxoSmithKline; Philadelphia, PA), an established treatment for recurrent SCLC, is being investigated in the first-line setting because of its novel mechanism of action; predictable, noncumulative, and manageable toxicities; and potential synergy with other active agents. Several recent phase II trials have generated promising results for topotecan-based combination regimens, including topotecan/paclitaxel (TAXOL; Bristol-Myers Squibb) (overall response rates 45%-100%), topotecan/etoposide (overall response, 95%), and topotecan, paclitaxel, and platinum agent triplets (overall response rates 51%-93%). The most frequent serious toxicity associated with these regimens was reversible and noncumulative neutropenia, which was generally manageable with supportive care. Additional clinical trials to investigate topotecan-based combination regimens and confirm their role in the first-line treatment of SCLC are under way.
The Ant Larvae of the Subfamily Ponerinae: Supplement

Earlier studies on the larvae of the Ponerinae were published by the authors in 1952 and 1957. The present supplement contains descriptions of the larvae of 25 additional species in the genera Acanthoponera, Amblyopone, Anochetus, *Belonopelta, Euponera, Gnamptogenys, Leptoyenys, *Myopopone, Onychomyrmex, *Paranomopone, Ponera, Prionopelta, *Psalidomyrmex Rhytido-ponera, *Thaumatomyrmex, Trapeziopelta , and Typhlomyrmex. Genera marked with an asterisk are new to the authors' collection and are characterized here for the first time. Necessary revisions are made in earlier descriptions and additional references to the literature are cited. The body profiles of ponerine larvae are classified into 8, mandible shapes into 20, and tubercles into 9 generalized types. The least specialized profile is that of Myrmecia ; the most specialized are those of Platythyrea and Proceratium. Myrmecia also has the least specialized mandible shape; the most specialized is probably that of Proceratium. The taxonomic value and the possible functions of the tubercles are discussed. A new key is given to the mature larvae in the authors' collection, based mostly on body profile and mandible shape.
Blockade of the inward rectifying potassium current terminates ventricular fibrillation in the guinea pig heart.

Introduction: Stable high-frequency rotors sustain ventricular fibrillation (VF) in the guinea pig heart. We surmised that rotor stabilization in the left ventricle (LV) and fibrillatory conduction toward the right ventricle (RV) result from chamber-specific differences in functional expression of inward rectifier (Kir2.x) channels and unequal IK1 rectification in LV and RV myocytes. Accordingly, selective blockade of IK1 during VF should terminate VF. Methods and Results: Relative mRNA levels of Kir2.x channels were measured in LV and RV. In addition, LV(n = 21)and RV(n = 20)myocytes were superfused with BaCl2 (5–50 μmol/L) to study the effects on IK1. Potentiometric dye-fluorescence movies of VF were obtained in the presence of Ba2+(0–50 μmol/L)in 23 Langendorff-perfused hearts. Dominant frequencies (DFs) were determined by spectral analysis, and singularity points were counted in phase maps to assess VF organization. mRNA levels for Kir2.1 and Kir2.3 were significantly larger in LV than RV. Concurrently, outward IK1 was significantly larger in LV than RV myocytes. Ba2+ decreased IK1 in a dose-dependent manner (LV change > RV change). In baseline control VF, the fastest DF domain(28–40 Hz)was located on the anterior LV wall and a sharp LV-to-RV frequency gradient of21.2 ± 4.3 Hzwas present. Ba2+ significantly decreased both LV frequency and gradient, and it terminated VF in a dose-dependent manner. At 50 μmol/L, Ba2+ decreased the average number of wavebreaks (1.7 ± 0.9to0.8 ± 0.6 SP/sec · pixel, P < 0.05) and then terminated VF. Conclusion: The results strongly support the hypothesis that IK1 plays an important role in rotor stabilization and VF dynamics. (J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 14, pp. 621-631, June 2003)
Introduction to the Yogurt in Nutrition Initiative and the First Global Summit on the Health Effects of Yogurt

Yogurt has been part of the human diet for thousands of years, and during that time a number of health benefits have been associated with its consumption. The goal of the First Global Summit on the Health Effects of Yogurt was to review and evaluate the strength of current scientific knowledge with regard to the health benefits of yogurt and to identify areas where further research is needed. The evidence base for the benefits of yogurt in promoting bone health, maintaining health throughout the life cycle, improving diet quality, and reducing the incidence of chronic diseases, such as obesity, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease, was presented. When assessing a complex food matrix, rather than specific nutrients, scientists and consumers are faced with new challenges as to how a food item's quality or necessity would be judged as part of an individual's whole diet. To tackle this challenge, speakers described methods for assessing the nutrient density of foods and its application to yogurt, use of yogurt for lactose intolerance, and the cost-effectiveness of yogurt and dairy products in reducing health care expenses. Last, speakers described the role of dairy products in global public health and nutrition, the scientific basis for current dairy recommendations, and future scientific and policy needs related to dairy and yogurt recommendations.
Effects of chronic hypoxia and altered hemodynamics on endothelial nitric oxide synthase expression in the adult rat lung.

Mechanisms that regulate endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) expression in normal and hypoxic pulmonary circulation are poorly understood. Lung eNOS expression is increased after chronic hypoxic pulmonary hypertension in rats, but whether this increase is due to altered hemodynamics or to hypoxia is unknown. Therefore, to determine the effect of blood flow changes on eNOS expression in the normal pulmonary circulation, and to determine whether the increase in eNOS expression after chronic hypoxia is caused by hemodynamic changes or low oxygen tension, we compared eNOS expression in the left and right lungs of normoxic and chronically hypoxic rats with surgical stenosis of the left pulmonary artery (LPA). LPA stenosis in normoxic rats reduced blood flow to the left lung from 9.8+/-0.9 to 0.8+/-0.4 ml/100 mg/min (sham surgery controls vs. LPA stenosis, P 0.05). We conclude that reduction of pulmonary blood flow decreases eNOS mRNA and protein expression in normoxic adult rat lungs, and that hypoxia increases eNOS expression independently of changes in hemodynamics. These findings demonstrate that hemodynamic forces maintain eNOS content in the normoxic pulmonary circulation of the adult rat, and suggest that chronic hypoxia increases eNOS expression independently of changes in hemodynamics.
Predicting the unpredictable: future directions in internetworking and their implications

The author explores the likely networking technologies to mature over the next decade, and the implications on other fields of information systems and society. He has chosen to restrict himself to the decade timescale since predicting beyond that time frame is likely to be writing science fiction. This article addresses two major themes. The first explores at the 10,000-foot level the major technology changes one expects to bear fruit over the next decade; the second explores the implications of these changes on our society. Since the time the talk on which this article is based was given, the world has changed. The need for security and robustness of our electronic infrastructure has dramatically increased, and our understanding of how to do this unfortunately has not kept up with the need. In many countries, there is an increasing strain between the privacy desires of citizens and the desire for safety. In many industries, such as music and motion pictures, the rapid expansion of digital content and the ease of distribution of that content has created demands for increased protection, much of which must be implemented in computer hardware and networking protocols. How this will impact the perceived right of the public to fair use of that material is a battle being fought in the legislature and the courts. First he explores the technological directions of the next decade.
Chromosomal Amplification of the Escherichia coli lipB Region Confers High-Level Resistance to Selenolipoic Acid

One of the mutants (slr7 mutant) of a wild-type Escherichia coli strain resistant to selenolipoic acid reported previously (K. E. Reed, T. W. Morris, and J. E. Cronan, Jr., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 91:3720-3724, 1994) unexpectedly grew on minimal medium following transductional introduction of a lipA null mutation. We report that the slr7 strain carries a duplication of the lip chromosomal region that causes the phenotype of the mutant strain.
Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery: A New Wrinkle

A number of facial altering surgical procedures have been presented. Several areas are important to note. Most of these procedures were devised by practitioners lost to antiquity and individuals in a plethora of different fields, including orthopedics, dermatology, oral surgery, plastic surgery, and otolaryngology. Just as in the other specialties that perform these procedures, not all surgeons of the specialties perform the entire scope of their specialty. However, dentistry now has the capability to change the jaws, soft tissue drape of the face, neck, nose, and eyes, as well as smile lines and the shape and color of the dentition. No other profession in the history of human-kind has ever had this potential to make such facial changes.
A discontinuous Galerkin finite element method for directly solving the Hamilton-Jacobi equations

In this paper, we propose a new discontinuous Galerkin finite element method to solve the Hamilton-Jacobi equations. Unlike the discontinuous Galerkin method of [C. Hu, C.-W. Shu, A discontinuous Galerkin finite element method for Hamilton-Jacobi equations, SIAM Journal on Scientific Computing 21 (1999) 666-690.] which applies the discontinuous Galerkin framework on the conservation law system satisfied by the derivatives of the solution, the method in this paper applies directly to the solution of the Hamilton-Jacobi equations. For the linear case, this method is equivalent to the traditional discontinuous Galerkin method for conservation laws with source terms. Thus, stability and error estimates are straightforward. For the nonlinear convex Hamiltonians, numerical experiments demonstrate that the method is stable and provides the optimal (k+1)th order of accuracy for smooth solutions when using piecewise kth degree polynomials. Singularities in derivatives can also be resolved sharply if the entropy condition is not violated. Special treatment is needed for the entropy violating cases. Both one and two-dimensional numerical results are provided to demonstrate the good qualities of the scheme.
Direct Conductor-Cooling of Large Steam Turbine-Generator 4-Pole Rotors

An increasing number of 4-pole steam turbine-driven generators are being ordered each year by utilities and with steadily increasing unit ratings. This paper discusses rotor cooling for 4-pole generators and shows that gas conductor cooling can be applied to unit sizes far in excess of those now being built. In particular, the radial flow system of cooling, very successfully applied to date, has capability for steam turbine-generator rotor cooling for units forecast for the 1980's.
The Effect of Carbohydrate Amount, Quality and Type on Arterial Pulse Pressure in Cuban-Americans with and Without Type 2 Diabetes

Background Arterial pulse pressure, the difference between systolic and diastolic blood pressure, has been used as an indicator (surrogate measure) of arterial stiffness. High arterial pulse pressure (> 40) has been associated with increased cardiovascular disease and mortality. Several clinical trials have reported that the proportion of calories from carbohydrate has an effect on blood pressure. The primary objective of this study was to assess arterial pulse pressure and its association with carbohydrate quantity and quality (glycemic load) with diabetes status for a Cuban American population. Methods A single point analysis included 367 participants. There was complete data for 365 (190 with and 175 without type 2 diabetes). The study was conducted in the investigator’s laboratory located in Miami, Florida. Demographic, dietary, anthropometric and laboratory data were collected. Arterial pulse pressure was calculated by the formula systolic minus the diastolic blood pressure. Glycemic load, fructose, sucrose, percent of average daily calories from carbohydrate, fat and protein, grams of fiber and micronutrient intakes were calculated from a validated food frequency questionnaire. Results The mean arterial pulse pressure was significantly higher in participants with (52.9 ± 12.4) than without (48.6 ± 13.4) type 2 diabetes. The odds of persons with diabetes having high arterial pulse pressure (>40) was 1.85 (95% CI =1.09, 3.13); p=0.023. For persons with type 2 diabetes higher glycemic load was associated with lower arterial pulse pressure. Conclusions Arterial pulse pressure and diet are modifiable risk factors of cardiovascular disease. Arterial pulse pressure may be associated with carbohydrate intake differently considering diabetes status. Results may be due to individuals with diabetes following dietary recommendations. The findings of this study suggest clinicians take into consideration how medical condition, ethnicity and diet are associated with arterial pulse pressure before developing a medical nutrition therapy plan in collaboration with the client.
Multistatic waveform design for seeing through the wall

We present the matched illumination based waveform design for improved detection of targets behind walls and in enclosed structures using a multistatic radar system. The generalization of the matched illumination waveform design concept for through-the-wall multistatic operation bridges the problem to multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) operation and puts in context the offering of MIMO to urban sensing and imaging of targets in enclosed structures.
Reinforcement Learning for Operational Space Control

While operational space control is of essential importance for robotics and well-understood from an analytical point of view, it can be prohibitively hard to achieve accurate control in face of modeling errors, which are inevitable in complex robots, e.g., humanoid robots. In such cases, learning control methods can offer an interesting alternative to analytical control algorithms. However, the resulting supervised learning problem is ill-defined as it requires to learn an inverse mapping of a usually redundant system, which is well known to suffer from the property of non-convexity of the solution space, i.e., the learning system could generate motor commands that try to steer the robot into physically impossible configurations. The important insight that many operational space control algorithms can be reformulated as optimal control problems, however, allows addressing this inverse learning problem in the framework of reinforcement learning. However, few of the known optimization or reinforcement learning algorithms can be used in online learning control for robots, as they are either prohibitively slow, do not scale to interesting domains of complex robots, or require trying out policies generated by random search, which are infeasible for a physical system. Using a generalization of the EM-based reinforcement learning framework suggested by Dayan and Hinton, we reduce the problem of learning with immediate rewards to a reward-weighted regression problem with an adaptive, integrated reward transformation for faster convergence. The resulting algorithm is efficient, learns smoothly without dangerous jumps in solution space, and works well in applications of complex high degree-of-freedom robots.
Interpreting Energy and Tracer Spectra of Upper-Ocean Turbulence in the Submesoscale Range (1–200 km)

Submesoscale (1–200km) wavenumber spectra of kinetic and potential energy and tracer variance are obtained from in situ observations in the Gulf Stream region and in the eastern subtropical North Pacific. In the Gulf Stream region, steep kinetic energy spectra at scales between 200 and 20km are consistent with predictions of interior quasigeostrophic–turbulence theory, both in the mixed layer and in the thermocline. At scales below 20km, the spectra flatten out, consistent with a growing contribution of internal-wave energy at small scales. In the subtropical North Pacific,theenergyspectraareflatterand inconsistentwith predictionsofinteriorquasigeostrophic–turbulence theory. The observed spectra and their dependence on depth are also inconsistent with predictions of surface quasigeostrophic–turbulencetheoryfortheobservedoceanstratification.Itappearsthatunbalancedmotions,most likely internal tides at large scales and the internal-wave continuum at small scales, dominate the energy spectrum throughout the submesoscale range. Spectra of temperature variance along density surfaces, which are not affected by internal tides, are also inconsistent with predictions of geostrophic-turbulence theories. Reasons for this inconsistency could be the injection of energy in the submesoscale range by small-scale baroclinic instabilities or modifications of the spectra by coupling between surface and interior dynamics or by ageostrophic frontal effects.
A New Empirical Model of the Temperature-Humidity Index

Abstract A simplified scale of apparent temperature, considering only dry-bulb temperature and humidity, has become known as the temperature–humidity index (THI). The index was empirically constructed and was presented in the form of a table. It is often useful to have a formula instead for use in interpolation or for programming calculators or computers. The National Weather Service uses a polynomial multiple regression formula, but it is in some ways unsatisfactory. A new model of the THI is presented that is much simpler—having only 3 parameters as compared with 16 for the NWS model. The new model also more closely fits the tabulated values and has the advantage that it allows extrapolation outside of the temperature range of the table. Temperature–humidity pairs above the effective range of the NWS model are occasionally encountered, and the ability to extrapolate into colder temperature ranges allows the new model to be more effectively contained as part of a more general apparent temperature index.
Evaporation and the field scale soil water diffusivity function

Note: 29(4): 1279-1286 Reference EFLUM-ARTICLE-1993-003doi:10.1029/93WR00094 Record created on 2005-09-08, modified on 2017-02-23
Philippe Pinel in the Twenty-First Century

The myth of Pinel, the Revolutionary republican “chainbreaker,” has been definitively discredited by historians.1 Yet today it is alive and well in France and abroad. Two novels have recently appeared that show the persistent hold of this myth on the French imagination. In Dans la nuit de Bicetre [In the Darkness of Bicetre] (Paris: Gallimard, 2006) Marie Didier invents an intimate relationship between Jean Baptiste Pussin, the “governor” of Pinel’s mental ward at Bicetre Hospice and Dr. Jean Colombier, the royal inspector of hospitals and prisons. The only documented fact of a relationship between Colombier and Pussin is the presence of the inspector as Pussin’s sponsor at his marriage in 1786—indeed a surprising and hitherto unexplained discovery. Colombier’s humane Instructions for the management and treatment of the mentally ill, issued by Louis XVI’s government in 1785, are here said to have been devised—possibly dictated—by the unschooled but talented keeper of the 200 madmen on Pinel’s service. Didier even suggests that it was Pussin who single-handedly created “moral treatment” for the insane. This interpretation has unfortunately been anchored in Anglo-American history of medicine by Jan Goldstein’s characterization of Pinel (in an otherwise excellent book) as a “charlatan” using methods unworthy of a physician and scientist.2 Thus the claim to fame continues: Pussin performed the first physical act; Pinel heralded a world-wide emancipation. One intriguing sub-text of this controversy is the current championship of the nursing profession as the real caregivers of hospitalized patients, far out-performing the doctors who only appear for brief visits on the wards and never get to know the patient as a person.3 One might add that no one, in early nineteenth-century France, thought of creating a lay nursing profession: Catholics were so used to the free services of the religious orders that organized professional nursing had to wait until the arrival of “nightingales” at the end of the century.4
Educational Transitions, Trajectories, and Pathways

Education is a prominent social institution in advanced societies, with primary responsibility for socializing the young to become productive adults. The movement of individuals through the education system is thus a central object of study in sociology, both as a phenomenon to be explained and as a determinant of subsequent outcomes throughout the life course. In this chapter, I examine the study of educational trajectories, including the transitions that punctuate these trajectories, and the well-traveled pathways that shape them. I begin by explaining why educational trajectories have only recently become a central analytic concept in the sociology of education, and discussing the linkages between educational pathways and educational trajectories. Drawing on the sociology of the life course’s concern with age, aging, and historical time, I then examine the conceptualization and measurement of educational trajectories, and the analytic models that are used to describe them. Next, I summarize some recent research on educational trajectories in Great Britain and the United States. I conclude by charting some future directions for research on educational pathways and trajectories.
Genetic Variation in Desiccation Resistance and Adaptability of the Red Imported Fire Ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) to Arid Regions

We examined the genetic variation in resistance to desiccation in a polygyne fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren, population from central Texas using full-sib analysis. Single-queen colonies were established artificially in the laboratory, and resulting daughters were subjected to desiccation upon maturity. We found significant genetic variation in time-to-death, and the heritability estimated using the Jackknife resampling method was significantly larger than zero ( h 2 = 0.4187). Head width was measured as an indicator of body size and heritability of body size was estimated. Body size and time-to-death was not genetically correlated, indicating that resistance to desiccation is not a function of body size. The significant genetic variation of desiccation resistance found in this study suggests that in a polygyne fire ant nest, queens with different degrees of resistance to desiccation may produce a cohort of workers that, as a group, can survive environments with a wide range of temporal and spatial variations in water availability. Results indicate that a polygyne fire ant population might be capable of adapting to arid habitats like those in western Texas, although at a slow pace as suggested by the low heritability. This study suggests that dominance of polygyne over monogyne fire ants in central and western Texas might be an adaptation to the local environments.
Nuclear control of monokaryotic fruiting in Schizophyllum commune

(1984). Nuclear Control of Monokaryotic Fruiting in Schizophyllum Commune. Mycologia: Vol. 76, No. 4, pp. 760-763.
Functional Analysis of Wnt Signaling in the Early Sea Urchin Embryo Using mRNA Microinjection

The Wnt pathway is a highly conserved signal transduction pathway that plays many critical roles in early animal development. Recent studies have shown that this pathway plays a conserved role in the specification and patterning of the animal-vegetal (A-V) axis in sea urchins and sea anemones. These observations have suggested that the common ancestor to cnidarians and bilaterians used the Wnt signaling pathway for specifying and patterning this maternally established axis. Because the A-V axis plays a critical role in germ layer segregation, a better understanding of how the Wnt pathway is regulated along the A-V axis will provide key insight into the molecular mechanisms regulating germ layer segregation and germ layer evolution in animal embryos. Here, we provide a detailed protocol for using mRNA microinjection that can be used to analyze Wnt signaling in early sea urchin embryos. This protocol can also be adapted to introduce morpholino anti-sense oligonucleotides into sea urchin embryos.
Effect of extrusion processing on immune activation properties of hazelnut protein in a mouse model

Although food processing can alter food allergenicity, the impact of extrusion processing on in vivo hazelnut allergenicity is unknown. Here, we tested the hypothesis that extrusion processing will alter the immune activation properties of hazelnut protein (HNP) in mice. Soluble extrusion-processed HNP (EHNP) was prepared and evaluated for immune response using an established transdermal sensitization mouse model. Mice were sensitized with identical amounts of EHNP versus raw HNP. After confirming systemic IgE, IgG1 and IgG2a antibody responses, oral hypersensitivity reaction was quantified by hypothermia shock response (HSR). Mechanism was studied by measuring mucosal mast cell (MMC) degranulation. Compared to raw HNP, the EHNP elicited slower but similar IgE antibody (Ab) response, lower IgG1 but higher IgG2a Ab response. The EHNP exhibited significantly lower oral HSR as well as MMC degranulation capacity. These results demonstrate that the extrusion technology can be used to produce soluble HNP with altered immune activation properties.
Analysis of Race and Time to Antibiotics Among Patients with Severe Sepsis or Septic Shock.

The objective of this study is to investigate potential racial disparities in time to antibiotics among patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) with severe sepsis or septic shock. This was a retrospective observational study of adults >18 years with severe sepsis or septic shock presenting to a large, urban, academic ED and admitted to the ICU from 10/2005 to 2/2012. Time to antibiotic data was abstracted by ICU research staff; other data were abstracted by blinded trained research assistants using standardized abstraction forms. Time from ED arrival to antibiotics was compared in white vs. non-white patients using cumulative events curves followed by Cox proportional hazards regression, controlling for age, gender, ethnicity, source of infection, and SOFA score. Seven hundred sixty-eight patients were included; 19.5 % (n = 150) were non-white. Median minutes to antibiotics was 131 in white patients vs. 158 in non-white patients (p = 0.03, log-rank test). The unadjusted hazard ratio for non-white patients was 0.82 (95 %CI 0.58–0.98). After adjustment, the hazard ratio for race was not significant (0.90, 95 %CI 0.73–1.10). In a single-center sample of patients with severe sepsis or septic shock, adjustment for factors including age and infectious source eliminated the difference in time to antibiotics by race. Further research should investigate disparities in sepsis care between hospitals with differing patient populations.
Does Nature Know Best? Pericyclic Reactions in the Daphniphyllum Alkaloid-Forming Cation Cascade.

Heathcock’s classic cyclization/rearrangement cascade for formation of Daphniphyllum alkaloids is subjected to analysis using density functional theory calculations. The results of these calculations are consistent with a two-step pathway involving two pericyclic reactions, a Diels–Alder cycloaddition and an ene reaction.
Intrinsic Base-Pair Rearrangement in the Hairpin Ribozyme Directs RNA Conformational Sampling and Tertiary Interface Formation

Dynamic fluctuations in RNA structure enable conformational changes that are required for catalysis and recognition. In the hairpin ribozyme, the catalytically active structure is formed as an intricate tertiary interface between two RNA internal loops. Substantial alterations in the structure of each loop are observed upon interface formation, or docking. The very slow on-rate for this relatively tight interaction has led us to hypothesize a double conformational capture mechanism for RNA–RNA recognition. We used extensive molecular dynamics simulations to assess conformational sampling in the undocked form of the loop domain containing the scissile phosphate (loop A). We observed several major accessible conformations with distinctive patterns of hydrogen bonding and base stacking interactions in the active-site internal loop. Several important conformational features characteristic of the docked state were observed in well-populated substates, consistent with the kinetic sampling of docking-competent s...
Toward a Risk-Informed Performance-Based Approach for Post-Earthquake Fire Protection Design of Buildings

Post-earthquake fires have extracted great tolls on society. While this has been acknowledged for some time and significant effort has been expended to develop tools to simulate post-earthquake fire spread at an urban scale, to develop performance-based seismic design methods for buildings, and to develop performance-based fire design methods for buildings, there has been little research dedicated to the development of performance-based design approaches which integrate earthquake and fire design of structures. In this paper, an overview of the post-earthquake fire problem and of post-earthquake building performance is provided, performance-based seismic and fire design approaches are briefly introduced, and developments toward risk-informed performance-based approach to seismic and fire design for buildings in earthquake-prone areas are presented.
Climate-related response of dust flux to the central equatorial Pacific over the past 150 kyr

Abstract High resolution paleoclimate records from low latitudes are critical for understanding the role of the tropics in transmitting and generating feedbacks for high-latitude climate change on glacial–interglacial and millennial timescales. Here we present three new records of 230Thxs,0-normalized 232Th-derived dust fluxes from the central equatorial Pacific spanning the last 150 kyr at millennial-resolution. All three dust flux records share the “sawtooth” pattern characteristic of glacial–interglacial cycles in ice volume, confirming a coherent response to global climate forcing on long timescales. These records permit a detailed examination of millennial variability in tropical dust fluxes related to abrupt perturbations in oceanic and atmospheric circulation. Increases in dust flux in association with at least six of the longest Greenland stadials provide evidence that abrupt, high-latitude climate oscillations influenced the atmospheric aerosol load in the equatorial Pacific, with implications for both direct and indirect effects on the tropical energy balance. Our latitudinal transect of cores captures shifts in the position of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) in response to variations in the interhemispheric thermal gradient associated with cooling in Greenland and bipolar seesaw warming in Antarctica. These observations demonstrate that changes in the energy and hydrologic balance of the tropics were repeated features of the penultimate deglaciation, last glacial inception and last glacial cycle, and highlight the role of the tropical atmosphere as a dynamic and responsive component of Earth's climate system.
High-resolution topograms of fingerprints using multiwavelength digital holography

Fingerprint analysis is a popular identification technique due to the uniqueness of fingerprints and the convenience of recording them. The quality of a latent fingerprint on a surface can depend on various conditions, such as the time of the day, temperature, and the composition of sweat. We first developed latent fingerprints on transparent and blackened glass slides by depositing 1000-nm-thick columnar thin films (CTFs) of chalcogenide glass of nominal composition Ge28Sb12Se60. Then, we used transmission-/reflection-mode multiwavelength digital holography to construct the topograms of CTF-developed fingerprints on transparent/blackened glass slides. The two wavelengths chosen were 514.5 and 457.9 nm, yielding a synthetic wavelength of 4.1624 μm, which is sufficient to resolve pores of depths 1 to 2 μm. Thus, our method can be used to measure the level-3 details that are usually difficult to observe with most other techniques applied to latent fingerprints.
Waveform Window #39: Deep Brain Stimulator Artifact on EEG Recording.

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) has been increasingly used for treatment of neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, tremor, epilepsy, and pain. DBS is delivered through an impla...
Bicuspid aortic valve type: it takes two.

Not all patients with bicuspid aortic valves behave similarly. Some patients have early valve dysfunction and require intervention in infancy or childhood. More commonly, bicuspid valves degenerate gradually throughout adulthood and valve failure does not occur until the fifth decade or later. Some patients have primarily aortic stenosis while others have aortic regurgitation. Others have mixed valve dysfunction. The aorta dilates in some, but not all patients with bicuspid aortic valves. Furthermore, dilation can occur at the sinuses, in the mid-ascending aorta, or in both regions. Numerous authors have attempted to explain this heterogeneity in valve dysfunction and aortic morphology. However, to date, the reason for the variability in presentation remains incompletely explained. The most common way to categorise bicuspid aortic valves is according to the morphology of leaflet fusion, since most valves are trileaflet with a fused commissure. Fusion of the right and left coronary cusps (RL fusion) is most common, followed by fusion of the right and non-coronary cusps (RN fusion). Fusion of the left and non-coronary cusps is quite rare. Some valves have no identifiable raphe and are described as ‘true’ or ‘pure’ bicuspid aortic valves. Because the morphology of bicuspid aortic valves is usually easy to define by echocardiography, it is tempting to ascribe …
Human dengue virus serotype 2 neutralizing antibodies target two distinct quaternary epitopes

Dengue virus (DENV) infection causes dengue fever, dengue hemorrhagic fever and dengue shock syndrome. It is estimated that a third of the world's population is at risk for infection, with an estimated 390 million infections annually. Dengue virus serotype 2 (DENV2) causes severe epidemics, and the leading tetravalent dengue vaccine has lower efficacy against DENV2 compared to the other 3 serotypes. In natural DENV2 infections, strongly neutralizing type-specific antibodies provide protection against subsequent DENV2 infection. While the epitopes of some human DENV2 type-specific antibodies have been mapped, it is not known if these are representative of the polyclonal antibody response. Using structure-guided immunogen design and reverse genetics, we generated a panel of recombinant viruses containing amino acid alterations and epitope transplants between different serotypes. Using this panel of recombinant viruses in binding, competition, and neutralization assays, we have finely mapped the epitopes of three human DENV2 type-specific monoclonal antibodies, finding shared and distinct epitope regions. Additionally, we used these recombinant viruses and polyclonal sera to dissect the epitope-specific responses following primary DENV2 natural infection and monovalent vaccination. Our results demonstrate that antibodies raised following DENV2 infection or vaccination circulate as separate populations that neutralize by occupying domain III and domain I quaternary epitopes. The fraction of neutralizing antibodies directed to different epitopes differs between individuals. The identification of these epitopes could potentially be harnessed to evaluate epitope-specific antibody responses as correlates of protective immunity, potentially improving vaccine design.
What's Critical about Critical Phenomenology?

This essay considers what is critical in critical phenomenology, and asks what features critical and phenomenological methods share. I suggest three fundamentally significant resonances between the critical and phenomenological enterprises. First is the suggestion that critique, like phenomenology, is an attempt to move beyond a dualism of inside and outside in order to extend into outer regions of what is known. Second is the insistence that what at first appears to be a purely negative endeavor, a finding of limit, is incomplete if, upon finding that limit, it comes to a stop. Just as the reduction is not a means to banish or negate the world, but rather the condition through which it can more fully emerge, critique cannot be merely a cataloguing of the limitations of the present situation. Third is the openness to the possibilities of the world, a wonder or curiosity, that is revealed through the work of description in phenomenology, or Foucault’s characterization of philosophy not as an unmasking, but a making visible of what is visible. Finally I consider critical phenomenology’s futures: How is a newly enlivened kind of scholarship emerging from these two forms of thinking, both of which have been dismissed as outmoded or irrelevant? The new work currently emerging in phenomenology, with its emphasis on its own reflexive self-consideration and decolonization, offers hope that it might yet be capacious enough to simultaneously encompass the revelation of its limitations as well as the expansion of its reach.
Nonradioactive In Situ Hybridization in Combination with Tract-Tracing

The use of in situ hybridization (ISH) for the detection of mRNAs in cell bodies has greatly expanded our ability to detect cellular phenotypes in the central nervous system. Riboprobes have been used in the past to identify neuropeptide precursors, distribution of receptors, ion channels, and enzymes. More recently, the discovery of unambiguous markers for the major ionotropic transmitters has made possible the definitive identification of neurons involved in fast transmission. The advantages and disadvantages of different types of probes, including DNA probes, oligonucleotides, and RNA probes for the detection of mRNAs are described. Although in situ hybridization was pioneered with the use of radioactive probes, nonradioactive alternatives are now readily available. The relative merits of nonradioactive probes, specifically for combination with tract-tracing, are discussed. This chapter focuses on in situ hybridization methods based on nonradioactive riboprobes and their use in combination with tract-tracing and immunocytochemistry.
Chirped excitation of optically-dense inhomogeneously broadened media using Eu3+:Y2SiO5

Novel pump-probe experiments provide practical, sensitive diagnostics of media inversion by linearly chirped optical pulses. Maxwell-Bloch simulations and Landau-Zener calculations support the experiments and provide a general prescription for inversion of hole-burning media by chirps.
Conditional Hypoellipticity and Fourier Multipliers for Weighted Lp-Spaces with an Exponential Weight

Our intention is to discuss some results, connected with a notion of conditional hypoellipticity, i.e. hypoellipticity in dependence on behaviour of solutions at infinity.
Modeling Landscape Management

The second question we asked in the opening chapter was: How do different approaches to forest management affect relatively large and complex ecosystems? This calls for a landscape analysis of the constituent stands. The goal is to expand information on the options that may increase the compatibility between wood production and other societal values derived from forest-lands (Haynes and Monserud 2002). The nature of the problem focuses our attention on multidisciplinary solutions across a broad area (large scale). Planning based on single-resource issues can prove costly, or, in some cases, infeasible (Barrett et al. 2000). Forest planning models typically predict forest inventory, harvest levels, and economic outputs over time. Some landscape forest planning models also predict the spatial configuration of stand vegetation and other resources over time. Such models can then make spatially dependent predictions such as insect contagion effects, habitat availability for wildlife species, potential fire risk, aesthetics, or reduction in timber yields because of management constraints on adjacent land (Barrett 1997).
Introduction to Compartmental Models

In this chapter, we first present elements of the theory of compartmental models. We then present a few special cases and examples and examine the structure of the associated matrices.
Improving police officer training: The use of job analysis procedures and assessment center technology

This paper presents the results of procedures whereby police agencies can develop a training program which will most accurately fulfill the agency's needs, and also a technique to accurarely assess the trainee's progress in the training program. The Critical Incidem Job Analysis technique was used to develop the training program, and an assessment center procedure was described for the purpose of assessing the trainee's progress in the training program. The use of the assessment center in a training program represents a new use for assessment centers. The advantages of using these procedures for police training are disctassed.
Single-channel Speech Extraction Using Speaker Inventory and Attention Network

Neural network-based speech separation has received a surge of interest in recent years. Previously proposed methods either are speaker independent or extract a target speaker’s voice by using his or her voice snippet. In applications such as home devices or office meeting transcriptions, a possible speaker list is available, which can be leveraged for speech separation. This paper proposes a novel speech extraction method that utilizes an inventory of voice snippets of possible interfering speakers, or speaker enrollment data, in addition to that of the target speaker. Furthermore, an attention-based network architecture is proposed to form time-varying masks for both the target and other speakers during the separation process. This architecture does not reduce the enrollment audio of each speaker into a single vector, thereby allowing each short time frame of the input mixture signal to be aligned and accurately compared with the enrollment signals. We evaluate the proposed system on a speaker extraction task derived from the Libri corpus and show the effectiveness of the method.
Production of CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Self-Cleaving Helper-Dependent Adenoviruses.

Prolonged expression of CRISPR/Cas9 raises concerns about off-target cleavage, cytotoxicity, and immune responses. To address these issues, we have developed a system to produce helper-dependent adenoviruses that express CRISPR/Cas9 to direct cleavage of the vectors’ own genome after transduction of target cells. To prevent self-cleavage during vector production, it was necessary to downregulate Cas9 mRNA as well as inhibit Cas9 protein activity. Cas9 mRNA downregulation was achieved by inserting the target sequences for the helper-virus-encoded miRNA, mivaRNAI, and producer-cell-encoded miRNAs, hsa-miR183-5p, and hsa-miR218-5p, into the 3′ UTR of the HDAd-encoded Cas9 expression cassette. Cas9 protein activity was inhibited by expressing anti-CRISPR proteins AcrIIA2 and AcrAII4 from both the producer cells and the helper virus. After purification, these helper-dependent adenoviruses will perform CRISPR/Cas9-mediated self-cleavage in the transduced target cells, thereby limiting the duration of Cas9 expression and thus represent an important platform for improving the safety of gene editing by CRISPR/Cas9.
Investigating ESL Graduate Students' Intercultural Experiences of Academic English Writing: A First Person Narration of a Streamlined Qualitative Study Process

This report is a first person narration of the entire process of a qualitative study exploring the impact of ESL students’ native cultural and rhetorical conventions, as well as classroom cultures on their academic English writing in American universities. Data were collected through semistructured interviews. A coding system was constructed to analyze transcriptions of the interviews. The study found that there were impacts of L1 culture on the students’ academic English writing, but their effects were minor. The main factors associated with ESL students’ English writing were their familiarity with the disciplinary contents and general composing skills. Implications for culturally responsive tertiary education
Using computer automated systems to conduct personal interviews: Does the mere presence of a human face inhibit disclosure?

Abstract Personal interviews are widely used to collect open-ended data in an array of settings, many of which require solicitation of data that may be regarded as sensitive or threatening by interviewees. The high costs of employing human interviewers can be mitigated by utilizing computer-generated “human-like” interviewers, at least in scripted interview conditions. However, the effects of replacing humans with human-like interviewers on interviewees’ level of actual disclosure has not been well-researched. This experiment compared disclosure of sensitive information obtained from personal interviews utilizing various interviewer modes. One-hundred and fifty-eight students from a southwestern university were randomly assigned to answer a series of open-ended questions in one of three different personal interview modes: 1) audio-only computer-assisted self-interview (i.e., ACASI); 2) human-like embodied conversational agent (i.e., ECA); or 3) a human interviewer. Disclosure was measured using both self-report and objective scores derived from trained judges. Disclosure levels were significantly higher in the faceless ACASI condition than in the combined virtual and human interviewer conditions – both of which were embodied with a face. There was no significant difference between the ECA and human interviewer conditions. This suggests that the mere presence of a human face can inhibit disclosure.