cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Corticosteroids Increase Procollagen Gene Expression, Synthesis, and Secretion by Human Intestinal Smooth Muscle Cells

Abstract Background & Aims Collagen synthesis by smooth muscle cells plays an important role in intestinal fibrosis. Corticosteroids inhibit collagen synthesis in fibroblasts. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of corticosteroids on the expression of collagen by human intestinal smooth muscle (HISM) cells in vitro. Methods Collagen synthesis was determined by the sensitivity of radiolabeled protein to collagenase. Secretion was determined by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of radiolabeled procollagen in the medium. Procollagen messenger RNA was determined by Northern blot analysis. Results Collagen synthesis by confluent HISM cells was not affected by corticosteroids at 10 −10 to 10 −5 mol/L but, in subconfluent cultures, was nonspecifically increased 50% at 10 −5 mol/L. Procollagen secretion was nonspecifically increased 60% at 10 −6 mol/L dexamethasone without any effect on the type IIII ratio. Procollagen I and III messenger RNA levels responded in a biphasic manner: a 45%–65% increase at 10 −10 mol/L and a 15% and 30% decrease at 10 −8 and 10 −6 mol/L. In fibroblasts, collagen synthesis was inhibited 85% by dexamethasone, procollagen secretion was decreased 70%, the type IIII ratio decreased from 70:1 to 18:1, and procollagen messenger RNA was inhibited 25% and 60% (types I and III). Conclusions Collagen expression by HISM cells is refractory to corticosteroids and, at certain concentrations, is augmented.
Ultrasonic Modulation of Scattered Light in Turbid Media and a Potential Novel Tomography in Biomedicine

Ultrasonic modulation of scattered laser light was used to image objects buried in tissue-simulating turbid media. The ultrasonic wave focused into the turbid media modulated the laser light passing through the ultrasonic field. The modulated laser light collected by a photomultiplier tube reflected primarily the local mechanical and optical properties in the zone of ultrasonic modulation. A raster scanning over a heterogeneous turbid medium yielded an image of the medium based on the ultrasound-modulated optical signal. The detectability of modulated signal was estimated using diffusion theory. The dependence of the modulated signal on the off-axis distance of the detector from the optic axis and on the amplitude of ultrasound was studied. The mechanisms of ultrasonic modulation of scattered light are discussed. A theory based on the field autocorrelation function is reviewed as well.
A new perspective to assess the urban heat island through remotely sensed atmospheric profiles

Abstract The detection of urban heat island (UHI) is generally conducted from ground observations of air temperature and remote sensing of land surface temperature (LST). Satellite remotely sensed LST has many merits, such as global coverage and consistent periodicity, which overcomes the weaknesses of ground observations related to the footprint, site distributions, and costs. For human related studies and urban climatology, air temperatures are equally important. This study explores the potential to estimate the near-surface air and dew-point temperatures from the MODIS 07 atmospheric profile product (MOD07_L2) to capture the UHI dynamics at 5 km resolution. Four mega-cities in North America: Phoenix, Houston, Chicago, and Toronto, are evaluated during 2003–2013 summers. The comparison between the MODIS near-surface temperature and the ground observations suggests an accuracy of 3–7 K RMSE for different cities and times of day. For air temperature, the Aqua overpass has better agreements, and nighttime has higher accuracy than daytime in most cases. In general, very dry (Phoenix) and very moist (Houston) climate conditions increase the variability of the MODIS temperature accuracy. This study also develops an urban heat island curve (UHIC) to represent UHI intensity by integrating the urban surface heterogeneity in a curve, showing the relationship between air temperature and urban fraction. UHIC provides a new way to quantify UHI city by city, which emphasizes the temperature gradients, consequently decreasing the impact of data biases.
Posterior capsule opacification.

AbstractPurpose of reviewThis paper assesses the factors that contribute to the formation of an effective capsular bend as a deterrent to posterior capsule opacification. Its goal is to assist the practicing ophthalmologist in separating current understanding of this process from various working mod
The acid extraction of histones from calf thymus deoxyribonucleoprotein

Histones extracted from calf thymus deoxyribonucleoprotein at several low pH values have been fractionated by chromatography on Amberlite IRC50. Chromatographic fractions of the histones were characterized further by their amino acid composition, behavior on zone electrophoresis, and fingerprints of tryptic digests. Histone was not removed from the nucleoprotein at or above pH 2·65. Only histone fractions la and lb (arginine/lysine ratio, about 0·1) were removed in the pH interval 2·6 to 1·75. Below pH 1·75, histone fractions lib, III and IV (arginine/lysine ratios, 0·6, 1·4 and 1·4) were removed simultaneously, but histone fraction IIa (arginine/lysine ratio, 1·1) was extracted only below pH 1·2. Removal of histone was complete at pH 0·7, but the residual material contained much protein. From the size and composition of the histone fractions, it appears that the ease of removal of the fractions from nucleic acid is inversely proportional to the number of ionic bonds to be broken. When removal (partial or complete) of histones by acid was effected at temperatures below 0°C, the remaining nucleoprotein was of high molecular weight; it was not depurinated and its DNA was not denatured. The progressive removal of histones led to an enhanced efficiency in priming RNA synthesis.
Anomalous reactivity of mono substituted rhodium stabilized vinylcarbenoids

Abstract In contrast to rhodium(lI) stabilized vinylcarbenoids with two electron withdrawing groups, the related mono substituted vinylcarbenoids exhibit reactivity at either the carbenoid center or the vinylogous position. The site of reactivity may be controlled by appropriate catalysts and solvents, leading to the effective synthesis of bicyclic systems by a tandem cyclopropanation/Cope rearrangement sequence.
Explicit Feedback Arbitration Schemes for Crosspoint Buffered Packet Switches

A frame-based round-robin arbitration scheme with explicit feedback control (FRE) for combined input-crosspoint buffered (CICB) packet switches have shown high switching performance. In this paper, we propose two FRE derivative schemes and a control model of crosspoint buffers in CICB switches. The proposed FRE schemes provide high throughput.
Model for Alfvén Wave Turbulence in Solar Coronal Loops: Heating Rate Profiles and Temperature Fluctuations

It has been suggested that the solar corona may be heated by dissipation of Alfven waves that propagate up from the solar photosphere. According to this theory, counterpropagating Alfven waves are subject to nonlinear interactions that lead to turbulent decay of the waves and heating of the chromospheric and coronal plasma. To test this theory, better models for the dynamics of Alfven waves in coronal loops are required. In this paper, we consider wave heating in an active region observed with the Solar Dynamics Observatory in 2010 May. First a three-dimensional (3D) magnetic model of the region is constructed, and ten magnetic field lines that match observed coronal loops are selected. For each loop we construct a 3D magnetohydrodynamic model of the Alfven waves near the selected field line. The waves are assumed to be generated by footpoint motions inside the kilogauss magnetic flux elements at the two ends of the loop. Based on such models, we predict the spatial and temporal profiles of the heating along the selected loops. We also estimate the temperature fluctuations resulting from such heating. We find that the Alfven wave turbulence model can reproduce the observed characteristics of the hotter loops in the active region core, but the loops at the periphery of the region have large expansion factors and are predicted to be thermally unstable.
Management of interstitial emphysema by high-frequency low positive-pressure hand ventilation in the neonate.

N E o N A X E S treated with mechanical ventilation for respiratory distress syndrome frequently develop pulmonary air leaks. Air dissecting along perivascular sheaths can rupture into pleural, pericardial, interstitial, subcutaneous, peritoneal, and mediastinal spaces. The development of severe pulmonary interstitial emphysema is always a serious and often a self-perpetuatin g complication. It can lead to progressive acidosis, hypercarbia, and hypoxemia which often result in increasing ventilator requirements, further aggrevating the PIE. The following case reports illustrate the use of high-frequency low positive-pressur e hand ventilation in the management of interstitial emphysema.
Ultrasound-mediated blood–brain barrier disruption for targeted drug delivery in the central nervous system

The physiology of the vasculature in the central nervous system (CNS), which includes the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and other factors, complicates the delivery of most drugs to the brain. Different methods have been used to bypass the BBB, but they have limitations such as being invasive, non-targeted or requiring the formulation of new drugs. Focused ultrasound (FUS), when combined with circulating microbubbles, is a noninvasive method to locally and transiently disrupt the BBB at discrete targets. This review provides insight on the current status of this unique drug delivery technique, experience in preclinical models, and potential for clinical translation. If translated to humans, this method would offer a flexible means to target therapeutics to desired points or volumes in the brain, and enable the whole arsenal of drugs in the CNS that are currently prevented by the BBB.
Mass spectrometric evidence for the very high stability f gaseous ThIr and ThPt and method of calculating dissociation energies of diatomic intermetallic compounds with multiple bonds

Abstract The dissociation energes, D 0 0 , of the molecules ThIr and ThPt have been measured by high temperature Knudsen cell mass spectrometry as 136.4=10 and 130.7=10 kcal mole −1 or 570.7±41.8 and 546.6±41.8 kJ mole −1 , respectively. A method is proposed for the calculation of dissociation energies of gaseous intermetallic compounds with multiple bonds.
Baseline studies and anticonvulsant drug effects on the sleep EEG power spectral profile

Resume Ce travail est une nouvelle approche de l'application de l'analyse de puissance spectrale EEG a la recherche d'une evaluation quantitative objective des effets de drogues anti-convulsivantes sur le systeme nerveux central des primates. Des echantillons standards d'EEG ont ete preleves pendant le sommeil lent. Quatre singes rhesus ont ete habitues a leur chaise de contention et a des enregistrements prolonges en cabine isolee. Des electrodes implantees chroniquement ont permis de surveiller l'alternance veille-sommeil, l'EEG etant recueilli en derivation bipolaire frontale, centrale et occipitale. Les spectres de puissance ont ete etablis pour des nuits normales succesives ou espacees, et pour des nuits suivant une injection intramusculaire de liquide physiologique. Les spectres ont ete compares avec des donnees identiques etablies de 1 h 30 a 2 h 30 apres une injection intramusculaire aigue d'un des 5 composants suivants: diazepam, carbamazepine, acide valproique, phenobarbital et pentobarbital, le dernier constituant un temoin non anticonvulsivant. Des echantillons de serum preleves apres enregistrement de l'EEG ont confirme que les doses utilisees etaient faibles par rapport aux normes cliniques. Les mesures de reference se sont montrees stables dans toutes les conditions de test sans utilisation de drogues, specialement pour celles derivees du cortex somatosensoriel. En comparaison avec les valuers obtenues apres injection de serum physiologique, on a note une attenuation significative de la puissance spectrale de l'activite 4–7 c/sec bilateralement dans le cortex somatosensoriel pour tous les composes sauf le pentobarbital. Le pentobarbital n'ayant qu'une faible action anticonvulsivante, ces donnees suggerent un effet commun des drogues anticonvulsivantes sur les structures centrales a l'origine de l'EEG cortical. D'autres donnees neurophysiologiques sont reexaminees qui suggerent que cet effet pourrait provenir d'une alteration de la reponse corticale provenant du systeme thalamique somatosensitif intrinseque, ceci pendant le sommeil, et qui resulterait de la diminution de l'excitabilite neuronale.
Diagnosis of patent foramen ovale with multiplane transesophageal echocardiography in adult cardiac surgical patients.

Abstract Objective : To evaluate multiplane transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) for detection of patent foramen ovale (PFO) and to compare multiplane TEE with visual inspection (VI) for PFO detection. Design : A prospective observational study. Setting : University hospital (single institution). Participants : Patients presenting for cardiac surgery requiring TEE. Interventions : Multiplane TEE including 2 atrial views with color-flow Doppler (CFD) and contrast echocardiography (CE) with a provocative respiratory maneuver (PRM) and comparison of multiplane TEE and VI with respect to PFO detection. Measurements and Main Results : The cohort size was 187. PFO prevalence was 27.3%. CFD with serial decrease of the Nyquist limit detected 51% of all PFO: 41.2% in the bicaval view alone, 27.5% in the 4-chamber view alone, and 9.8% in both views. CE detected 78.4% of all PFO: 72.5% with PRM, 45.1% with no PRM, and 27.4% with/without PRM. PFO detection by multiplane TEE and visual inspection were correlated in 41 subjects. TEE diagnosed 11 PFO (26.8% prevalence, 3 missed by VI). VI diagnosed 12 PFO (29.3% prevalence, 4 missed by TEE). Conclusions : Multiplane TEE is a gold standard for detection of PFO. Despite advances in TEE technology, 2-dimensional imaging does not detect all PFO. To maximize PFO detection, multiple TEE modalities are required in multiple views, despite a low Nyquist limit for CFD or a PRM for CE. Even though multiplane TEE is equivalent to VI for PFO detection, the discrepancy rate may be an important consideration in the individual case.
Perspectives on interrruptible electric tariffs

Abstract Interruptible-service tariffs are significant sources of revenue transfer from electric utilities to large industrial and commercial customers, bringing potential benefits to electric utility planning and operations. To design interruptible tariffs well requires an understanding of the perspectives of customers, utilities and regulators. These three different perspectives are examined here. The objectives and information requirements of each party are considered. Issues of equity and efficiency and concepts of tariff design are discussed from these perspectives. Examples are drawn from California conditions.
A note on partial content

It is shown that certain natural constraints trivialize the concept of partial content and it is suggested, in the light of this difficulty, that the principle that partial content is preserved under the substitution of logical equivalents 5 should be given up.
Allosteric Effect of 0-Iodobenzoate on Hemoglobin

o-lodobenzoate interacts non-covalently with hemoglobin and lowers the oxygen affinity of the protein. In contrast to 2,3 diphosphoglycerate or inositol hexaphosphate, its interaction does not depend upon the presence of free amino groups at the β-chain amino terminals. Lysine β82 is one of its oxygenation linked binding sites. As with the organic phosphates, the halogenated benzoate reacts preferentially with deoxy-hemoglobin to shift the allosteric equilibrium from R to T.
A reanalysis of the observed interplanetary hydrogen L alpha emission profiles and the derived local interstellar gas temperature and velocity

An improved model of the interplanetary emission profile is presented. In this model we utilize a new version of the modified Danby-Camm velocity distribution function to calculate emission profiles, and it appears to be very efficient. Using this model, the hydrogen L..cap alpha.. profiles are determined for various viewing directions, and at a solar distance of 1 AU. It is found that the linewidth of the emission profiles and their Doppler shifts depend strongly on the viewing direction, as well as the assumed interstellar temperature. Previous determinations of the interstellar temperature T/sub 0/ and the inflow velocity V/sub b/, using approximate theoretical hydrogen profiles, are found to be inadequate. These values are recalculated and are determined to be T/sub 0/=7000 +- 1200 K and V/sub b/=19 +- 3 km s/sup -1/.
Structure of an unusual tilted state of CO on Fe(001) from x-ray photoelectron diffraction.

The highly tilted ${\ensuremath{\alpha}}_{3}$ state of Co on Fe(001) has been studied using combined polar and azimuthal x-ray photoelectron diffraction. A more accurate structural picture is derived, with the molecule being tilted at an angle of 55\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}2\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{} with respect to the surface normal along 〈100〉 azimuths and probably occupying fourfold hollows. An estimate is also made of the vertical C distance above the Fe surface. The utility of combined \ensuremath{\theta}/\ensuremath{\varphi} x-ray photoelectron diffraction measurements for such unusual adsorbate structures is demonstrated.
Lupus Anticoagulant in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Clinical and Renal Pathological Study

Circulating lupus anticoagulant (LA) is associated with thrombosis in large and small vessels. To determine how often the presence of LA is associated with thrombosis within the renal microcirculation, 33 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), renal dysfunction, and LA were identified over a 25-year period (LA group) and 32 patients with renal SLE but with normal gross coagulation screen were matched for age, sex, and biopsy timing (C group). Prevalences of serositis, neuropsychiatric illness, leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, hemolysis, anti-DS-DNA elevation, and complement reduction were similar. Arthritis was less and biologic false-positive (BFP) syphilis serology more common in LA. More LA patients had thrombotic events (LA 39% v C 13%; P = 0.014); bleeding episodes, including postbiopsy, were similar. At biopsy, hypertension (LA 55%, C 41%), serum creatinine (mean +/- SD: LA 186 +/- 168 mumol/L [2.1 +/- 1.9 mg/dL] v C 150 +/- 168 mumol/L [1.7 +/- 1.9 mg/dL]) and proteinuria (LA 2.6 +/- 3.1 g/24 h v C 3.1 +/- 2.7) were similar. Lesions by World Health Organization (WHO) class, activity, and chronicity indices, as well as immunofluorescence (IF) and electron microscopy (EM) findings, were not significantly different. Occlusive glomerular, arteriolar, and arterial fibrin thrombi, along with varying degrees of renal thrombotic microangiopathy, were seen in five of 33 patients with LA, but zero of 32 C patients (P = 0.053); three of these five patients died soon after biopsy. Overall, mortality was not different between LA and C. We conclude that the majority of patients with SLE, renal dysfunction, and LA exhibit renal morphologic findings indistinguishable from patients without LA. However, a significant minority of LA patients have thrombotic microangiopathy in their biopsy, which is accompanied by a worse prognosis.
Can a single-pulse standing wave induce chaos in atomic motion?

Time-dependent Hamiltonian dynamics exhibit a wide range of novel effects in both classical and quantum domains [1,2]. Possibly the simplest time-dependent potential is the turning on and off of an interaction, though even here our intuition is clear only for the two extreme cases of fast passage and adiabatic interactions. Since the majority of cases fall between these two limits, it is important to develop a clear understanding and simple physical pictures at intermediate time scales. We show that when the interaction is nonlinear, the mere act of turning on and off a potential in this intermediate regime can lead to classical chaos. Further, we provide a clean experimental demonstration of the classical mechanism of resonance overlap [3 ‐ 5] which leads to classically diffusive growth. This general problem is posed in the context of atom optics with ultracold atoms. The nonlinear interaction is a single pulse of a one-dimensional standing wave of light. This type of time-dependent interaction is ubiquitous and occurs, for example, whenever an atomic beam passes through a standing wave of light. The starting point for this discussion is the model of a two level atom (transition frequency v0) interacting with a standing wave of near-resonant light (frequency vL) which is turned on and off with a time-dependent function fstd. For sufficiently large detuning dL › v0 2v L(relative to the natural linewidth), the excited state amplitude can be adiabatically eliminated [6], leading to a Hamiltonian for the ground state H › p 2 y2M 2 s ¯ hVeffy8df std cos2kLx.
Processing Yields as Affected by Dietary Potassium Chloride Concentration and Energy Level in Summer and Winter

Abstract Equal numbers of male and female Cobb color-sexed broilers (28 days of age) were fed finisher diets containing 2665, 3056, or 3335 kcal ME/kg of diet. One-half of the birds on each dietary energy treatment were fed .75% potassium chloride (KCl) the last 5 days prior to slaughter. The experiments were conducted in winter (Feb to Mar) and in summer (Jul to Aug). Birds were processed and various yield parameters calculated. Raw ready-to-cook carcass composition was also determined. During winter, decreasing dietary energy level significantly decreased percent yield due to increased shrink. The addition of KCl to the diet in winter had no effect on yield characteristics and composition was affected only slightly by KCl treatment. In summer, percent shrink was significantly decreased as dietary energy level was decreased, whereas water uptake was significantly increased. This resulted in no dietary energy effect on ready-to-cook yield. Adding KCl to the diet in summer increased ready-to-cook yield by decreasing shrink. Fat was increased as dietary energy level was increased in both summer and winter. Moisture was inversely related to fat.
Exploring the Helix-Coil Transition via All-Atom Equilibrium Ensemble Simulations

The ensemble folding of two 21-residue alpha-helical peptides has been studied using all-atom simulations under several variants of the AMBER potential in explicit solvent using a global distributed computing network. Our extensive sampling, orders of magnitude greater than the experimental folding time, results in complete convergence to ensemble equilibrium. This allows for a quantitative assessment of these potentials, including a new variant of the AMBER-99 force field, denoted AMBER-99 phi, which shows improved agreement with experimental kinetic and thermodynamic measurements. From bulk analysis of the simulated AMBER-99 phi equilibrium, we find that the folding landscape is pseudo-two-state, with complexity arising from the broad, shallow character of the "native" and "unfolded" regions of the phase space. Each of these macrostates allows for configurational diffusion among a diverse ensemble of conformational microstates with greatly varying helical content and molecular size. Indeed, the observed structural dynamics are better represented as a conformational diffusion than as a simple exponential process, and equilibrium transition rates spanning several orders of magnitude are reported. After multiple nucleation steps, on average, helix formation proceeds via a kinetic "alignment" phase in which two or more short, low-entropy helical segments form a more ideal, single-helix structure.
Is the PSA Era Over

Tom Stamey has recently challenged the utilization of PSA in the management of prostate cancer. According to Stamey, PSA remains a surrogate for BPH and prostate size and with little impact on prostate cancer volume (Stamey, J Urol 154:1418, 1995). Stamey’s explanation for increasing positive biopsy rates in men with increasing PSA levels is secondary to the many years required for BPH to produce increase in PSA, years that allow the presence of microscopically small cancers to grow enough to be detected by the ever-increasing number of performed prostate biopsies (Stamey, Clin Chem 47:631, 2001). These concepts are supported, according to Stamey, by autopsy studies documenting prostate cancer incidence in men dying of accidental causes, correlating the critical relationship of prostate cancer with age (Sakr et al. In Vivo 8:439, 1994). Stamey has stressed the urgency for the identification of superior molecular markers to better select the presence of clinically significant disease in this large cohort of men forced to bear the burden of their diagnosis.
Comparison of four methods for calculating diffusing capacity by the single breath method

In 283 patients referred for testing in an outpatient pulmonary function laboratory, we studied the single-breath diffusing capacity of the lungs for carbon monoxide (Dco) using the Ogilvie (Og), Jones-Meade (JM), Epidemiological Standardization Project (ESP), and three-phase iterative methods (3PIT, similar to the three equation method). The Dco maneuvers were performed using automated equipment and American Thoracic Society (ATS) recommended procedures. There were small but significant differences in mean Dco, the ESP method yielding the largest, followed in order by JM, 3PIT, and Og methods. The 3PIT and JM Dcos were in close agreement in all degrees and patterns of pulmonary function abnormality. The Og Dco method was 6 percent less than JM in patients with normal pulmonary function, although the difference was less in patients with expiratory flow limitation, restriction, or reduced Dco. There were no differences in the reproducibility of Dco measurements among the methods. Based on these results and a review of the literature, we conclude the following: (1) when measuring single-breath Dco using automated equipment that follows ATS recommended procedures for collecting a single expired gas sample of 500-ml volume, calculated Dco is largest using ESP method, following by JM, 3PIT, and Og methods; (2) in patients with reduced Dco associated with obstructive or restrictive abnormalities, the Og, 3PIT, and JM timing methods are nearly equivalent; and (3) reproducibility of Dco is the same by all methods.
De nuevo sobre la 'literariedad' de Teresa de Jesús

Varios son los criticos que durante los ultimos anos han defendido la "literariedad" de los escritos de Teresa de Jesus. El libro de Victor G. de la Concha El arte literario de SantaTeresa senala de diversas maneras este aspecto de la obra teresiana. Demuestra, por ejemplo, que cuando la escritora abulense utiliza una figura divulgada, muy raras veces ofrece atribucion formal (p. 248), prefiriendo la "apretada mencion" de la imagen. De forma similar, el libro de Rosa Rossi examina la biografia de Teresa de Cepeda desde la perspectiva de su creacion literaria.
Electron microscope measurements: a digital read-out across the intermediate lens.

SUMMARY In order to ensure reproducibility of magnification and to determine the accuracy of figures taken from the magnification meter on the side of a Siemens electron microscope, a sensitive voltmeter with a digital read-out was put in the intermediate as well as the objective and projector lens circuits. The microscope was calibrated on different days and the results of the magnification measurements taken from the scale were compared with the results obtained using the read-out system. The conclusions underline the necessity for exercising caution in interpreting magnification figures and suggest a relatively inexpensive method of improving reproducibility.
Undergraduate Music Education Majors' Perceptions of Their Development as Conductors: Insights from a Basic Conducting Course.

This multiple case study examined undergraduate music majors’ perceptions of their experiences while enrolled in a basic conducting course. During the semester, three sophomore music majors with an...
Influence of antibiotic selection on genetic composition of Escherichia coli populations from conventional and organic dairy farms.

The widespread agricultural use of antimicrobials has long been considered a crucial influence on the prevalence of resistant genes and bacterial strains. It has been suggested that antibiotic applications in agricultural settings are a driving force for the development of antimicrobial resistance, and epidemiologic evidence supports the view that there is a direct link between resistant human pathogens, retail produce, farm animals, and farm environments. Despite such concerns, little is understood about the population processes underlying the emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance and the reversibility of resistance when antibiotic selective pressure is removed. In this study, hierarchical log-linear modeling was used to assess the association between farm type (conventional versus organic), age of cattle (calf versus cow), bacterial phenotype (resistant versus susceptible), and the genetic composition of Escherichia coli populations (E. coli Reference Collection [ECOR] phylogroup A, B1, B2, or D) among 678 susceptible and resistant strains from a previously published study of 60 matched dairy farms (30 conventional and 30 organic) in Wisconsin. The analysis provides evidence for clonal resistance (ampicillin resistance) and genetic hitchhiking (tetracycline resistance [Tetr]), estimated the rate of compositional change from conventional farming to organic farming (mean, 8 years; range, 3 to 15 years), and discovered a significant association between low multidrug resistance, organic farms, and strains of the numerically dominant phylogroup B1. These data suggest that organic farming practices not only change the frequency of resistant strains but also impact the overall population genetic composition of the resident E. coli flora. In addition, the results support the hypothesis that the current prevalence of Tetr loci on dairy farms has little to do with the use of this antibiotic.
A prediction model for superimposed preeclampsia in women with chronic hypertension during pregnancy

Abstract Objective Women with chronic hypertension are at increased risk for superimposed preeclampsia. We developed a prediction algorithm for superimposed preeclampsia using clinical and laboratory information that were measured early in pregnancy. Study design A secondary analysis of data that were collected from 110 women with chronic hypertension who were enrolled in a trial of calcium supplementation was performed. Blood pressure, the renin-angiotensin system, and calcium metabolism were assessed at 12, 20, 28, and 36 weeks of gestation and 6 weeks after delivery. Multivariable logistic regression was used to develop the predictive model. Results Thirty-seven women had superimposed preeclampsia. The final model included systolic blood pressure, serum uric acid, and plasma renin activity, which were all measured at 20 weeks of gestation. Women with high systolic blood pressure (>140 mm Hg), elevated uric acid (>3.6 mg/dL), and low plasma renin activity ( Conclusion We developed a prediction algorithm that can be validated in future studies for superimposed preeclampsia for women with chronic hypertension.
Dimensional Changes of a High-tin Content Amalgam

Amalgam made with Brewster Alloy (62% Ag, 33% Sn, 5% Cu, and 0.2% Zn) had little or no dimensional change during 24 h at 23°C.Brewster amalgam stored for five yr in air expanded 186, 68, and 14 μm/cm at 60, 37, and 23°C, respectively.Nearly "stable" conditions were approached at about 50 mo.
ANGIOCARDIOGRAPHY OF THE DUCK DURING SUBMERSION ASPHYXIA.

Angiocardiography with simultaneous recording of arterial blood pressure has been done on unanesthetized ducks during submersion. The contrast density was increased in the inflow veins to the right atrium during submersion. Variable degrees of reflux and a delayed passage were commonly observed in the veins. The circulation time through the lungs was prolonged by a factor of 4–5 depending on the degree of bradycardia developed during submersion. The duration of the capillary phase was similarly 7 times longer during submersion. A smaller number of heart beats sufficed to propagate the contrast through the pulmonary circuit during submersion. The total size of the heart was always increased in corresponding phases of the cardiac cycle during submersion. The increase of the heart contour was most prominent on the right side of the heart. The changes in size of the left ventricle were more moderate, but disclosed a tendency towards an increased volume and a larger systolic residue during submersion. The pulmonary arteries showed far smaller vessel diameters in the submerged condition. The diameter reduction was most marked before the vessels entered the pulmonary parenchyma. The larger systemic arteries showed no apparent dimensional changes going from presubmerged to submerged condition. The results indicate an increased resistance to flow in the pulmonary vascular bed. The large increase in the size of the heart and an increased central venous pressure in the presence of an unaltered arterial pressure are strongly suggestive that neural and/or humoral factors are playing an important part in the instantaneous regulation of stroke volume during submersion.
Experimental progress in deep and broadband infrared nulling for TPF-I

Our activities are focused upon the experimental demonstration of deep nulling in the mid-IR over a wide bandpass. Specifically, our near-term goal is demonstrating a contrast of 10^-6 at 10 um with a 25% spectral bandwidth.
Tractable analysis of a finite capacity polling system under bursty and correlated ATM arrivals

The authors consider the mean delay and the cell loss probability that bursty and correlated arrivals incur in an ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) switching module which can be modeled as a finite-capacity polling system with nonexhaustive cyclic service. The arrival process to each input port of the system is modeled by a Markov modulated Bernoulli process (MMBP) which is able to describe the bursty and correlated nature of the ATM traffic. A practical polling system with finite capacity does not lend itself to an exact solution. The authors introduce a tractable approach to providing an analytical approximation. It is shown that both the mean delays and the cell loss probabilities obtained from this analysis provide accurate estimates. >
Real Time Traffic Light Recognition System for Color Vision Deficiencies

Color blindness can be challenging as well as cumbersome for a person especially when driving a vehicle. In this paper, a real time traffic light recognition system based on computer vision will be described that improves the safety of drivers who are color-blind. The system consists of a digital video camera and a portable PC that helps the system to detect and track red, green, and yellow traffic lights. The paper will explain how the RGB component adjustment, thresholding algorithm, and median filter are used to recognize traffic lights. In order for the system to handle illumination changes by weather and time, a simple adaptation method has been developed. For future use, the portable system has been simplified since audio has been added to the current system, which helps to inform the traffic light the driver is color-blind.
Viscoelastic Properties of Entangled Polymer. IV. Binary Blends of Monodisperse Homopolymers

In a previous publication from this laboratory, the Rouse‐Bueche‐Zimm molecular theory of viscoelasticity has been extended by using a transient network model to apply to monodisperse polymers with chain entanglements. Effects of the entanglements were modeled both by the enhanced frictional coefficients and by the additional elastic couplings resulting from the transient entanglement network. For binary blends consisting of two monodisperse polymers with different molecular weights, additional modifications are now required to predict their linear viscoelastic behavior. It is recognized that entanglements not only may form between chains of the same length, but also between those of different lengths. For the latter case, the longer chain will in fact have the frictional coefficient of the shorter chain at the point of entanglement. The frequency of such interactions is assumed to be proportional to the weight ratio of the respective component chains in the blend. Equations of motion are formulated for e...
Large eddy simulation and zonal modeling of human-induced contaminant transport.

UNLABELLED An immersed boundary method for particulate flow in an Eulerian framework is utilized to examine the effects of complex human motion on the transport of trace contaminants. The moving human object is rendered as a level set in the computational domain, and realistic human walking motion is implemented using a human kinematics model. A large eddy simulation (LES) technique is used to simulate the fluid and particle dynamics induced by human activity. Parametric studies are conducted within a Room-Room and a Room-Hall configuration, each separated by an open doorway. The effects of the average walking speed, initial proximity from the doorway, and the initial mass loading on room-to-room contaminant transport are examined. The rate of mass transport increases as the walking speed increases, but the total amount of material transported is more influenced by the initial proximity of the human from the doorway. The Room-Hall simulations show that the human wake transports material over a distance of about 8 m. Time-dependent data extracted from the simulations is used to develop a room-averaged zonal model for contaminant transport due to human walking motion. The model shows good agreement with the LES results. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS The effect of human activity on contaminant transport may be important in applications such as clean or isolation room design for biochemical production lines, in airborne infection control, and in entry/exit into collective protection or decontamination systems. The large eddy simulations (LES) performed in this work allow precise capturing of the local wakes generated by time-dependent human motion and thus provide a means of quantifying contaminant transport due to wake effects. The LES database can be used to develop zonal models for the bulk effects of human-induced contaminant transport. These may be incorporated into multi-zone infiltration models for use in threat-response and exposure mitigation studies.
Gingival State and Dental Calculus in Early-Onset Periodontitis

This study was undertaken to 1) compare the prevalence of gingival inflammation and dental calculus in adolescents with early-onset periodontitis and their matched controls and 2) assess and compare the relationship between the presence of dental calculus and the extent of gingival bleeding and attachment loss in these subjects. The study group consisted of 1,285 13 to 20 year-old individuals, 651 males and 634 females, selected from a national survey of the oral health of U.S. adolescents in 1986/1987. It included 709 (55.2%) Blacks, 224 (17.4%) Hispanics, and 352 (27.4%) Whites. Eighty-nine subjects had localized or generalized juvenile periodontitis (JP), 218 had incidental attachment loss (IAL), and 978 were without clinical attachment loss (controls). The controls were matched to cases on gender, race, age, and geographic location. The subjects were examined clinically to assess the percentage of sites with gingival bleeding and supragingival calculus only and subgingival calculus with or without supragingival calculus. The IAL and JP groups had significantly more gingival bleeding and subgingival calculus than the controls. Also, the JP group had significantly higher prevalence of both conditions than the IAL group. The percentage of sites with supragingival calculus was not different between the groups, but varied by ethnicity. Hispanics with JP had the highest percentage of sites with gingival bleeding and subgingival calculus, and the lowest percentage of sites with only supragingival calculus. The results demonstrate that gingival inflammation and subgingival calculus are associated with early periodontal breakdown, and contradict earlier reports of early-onset periodontitis not being associated with these factors.
Desperately seeking difference

Critics from a variety of camps have argued that bioethics has suffered an indifference to “difference.” Cases have been described as thin and the selves inhabiting them hollow. This criticism has been driven at least in part by a reworked conception of the self. The rational and autonomous self that once dominated bioethics discourse has been replaced with a more “textured” self, a self embedded in stories, relationships, families, communities, cultures, and other “thick” particularity—such as race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, and experience generally. The import of such a self is not simply descriptive accuracy; these contextual details—these differences—matter. They matter because they figure importantly into our ethical analyses of cases, affecting, for example, how we interact with and treat patients. And with this shift has come increasing attention to the processes of moral inquiry that enable inquirers to gather all of this moral information and find their way from complex cases to context-sensitive responses.
Description of the JHU System Combination Scheme for WMT 2011

This paper describes the JHU system combination scheme used in WMT-11. The JHU system combination is based on confusion network alignment, and inherited the framework developed by (Karakos et al., 2008). We improved our core system combination algorithm by making use of TER-plus, which was originally designed for string alignment, for alignment of confusion networks. Experimental results on French-English, German-English, Czech-English and Spanish-English combination tasks show significant improvements on BLEU and TER by up to 2 points on average, compared to the best individual system output, and improvements compared with the results produced by ITG which we used in WMT-10.
Culture, attribution and automaticity: a social cognitive neuroscience view

A fundamental challenge facing social perceivers is identifying the cause underlying other people’s behavior. Evidence indicates that East Asian perceivers are more likely than Western perceivers to reference the social context when attributing a cause to a target person’s actions. One outstanding question is whether this reflects a culture’s influence on automatic or on controlled components of causal attribution. After reviewing behavioral evidence that culture can shape automatic mental processes as well as controlled reasoning, we discuss the evidence in favor of cultural differences in automatic and controlled components of causal attribution more specifically. We contend that insights emerging from social cognitive neuroscience research can inform this debate. After introducing an attribution framework popular among social neuroscientists, we consider findings relevant to the automaticity of attribution, before speculating how one could use a social neuroscience approach to clarify whether culture affects automatic, controlled or both types of attribution processes.
Cumene hydroperoxide‐initiated radical polymerization

The initial rates of solution polymerization of styrene and methyl methacrylate initiated by cumene hydroperoxide were determined at several temperatures. A new method of analysis of the kinetic data is presented. The results led us to conclude that the radicals which initiate polymerization are produced exclusively by bimolecular reactions, namely, a bimolecular reaction between hydroperoxide and solvent. For the latter reaction, benzene can be classified as very inert, but dimethylaniline, pyridine, and benzyl alcohol are quite active. Rate constants for the various initiating reactions are tabulated.
Crowdsourcing Music Similarity Judgments using Mechanical Turk

Collecting human judgments for music similarity evaluation has always been a difficult and time consuming task. This paper explores the viability of Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) for collecting human judgments for audio music similarity evaluation tasks. We compared the similarity judgments collected from Evalutron6000 (E6K) and MTurk using the Music Information Retrieval Evaluation eXchange 2009 Audio Music Similarity and Retrieval task dataset. Our data show that the results are highly comparable, and MTurk may be a useful method for collecting subjective ground truth data. Furthermore, there are several benefits to using MTurk over the traditional E6K infrastructure. We conclude that using MTurk is a practical alternative of music similarity when it is used with some precautions.
Arctic Futures: The Power of Ideas

That the Arctic is experiencing transformative change is no longer news. But what are the implications of this development with regard to matters of governance and policy? This article makes the case that the answer to this question depends on the paradigm or discourse we employ as a conceptual framework for interpreting the meaning and significance of changes in the circumpolar Arctic. It contrasts interpretations produced by observers whose thinking is rooted in the neo-realist/geopolitical paradigm with those offered by others whose thinking rests on a socio-ecological systems paradigm. Although journalists and popular writers tend to gravitate toward the neo-realist/geopolitical paradigm, those who possess a more intimate knowledge of recent developments in the Arctic are inclined to base their thinking on the socio-ecological systems paradigm. Because the assumptions and precepts of paradigms or discourses are not falsifiable, it is fruitless to try to demonstrate that one of the two paradigms is somehow superior to the other. Nevertheless, for those dedicated to preserving the Arctic as a zone of peace, the socio-ecological systems paradigm has strong attractions.
THE IMPACT OF MACROECONOMIC CONDITIONS IN CHILDHOOD ON ADULT LABOR MARKET OUTCOMES

This study examines the influence of business cycles in childhood on economic performance later in life. I relate unemployment rates between the year before one's birth and the year of one's 15th birthday to schooling, employment, and income as an adult. The analysis exploits variation in macroeconomic conditions across states over time. I address a number of identification challenges related to cohort effects, linear trends, current events, and economic persistence. The caregiving behaviors and background characteristics of parents are also studied. The average unemployment rate in childhood normally has a negative effect on human capital in adulthood. (JEL J11, J24, J31)