cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Degradation and mineralization of petroleum by two bacteria isolated from coastal waters

Within the framework of a study on the oil biodegradation potential of the sea the ability of a Flavobacterium sp. and Brevibacterium sp. to metabolize a paraffinic crude oil and a chemically defined hydrocarbon mixture was investigated. Major components of the crude oil were identified by combination gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. The rate and extent of total hydrocarbon biodegradation was measured. In addition, CO2 evolution from the crude oil was continuously monitored in a shaker-mounted gas train arrangement. Degradation started after a 2 to 4 day lag period, and reached its maximum within two weeks. At this time up to 60% of the crude oil and 75% of the model hydrocarbon mixture, each added at the level of 1 ml per 100 ml artificial sea water, were degraded. Mineralization(conversion to CO2) was slightly lower due to formation of products and bacterial cell material. n-Paraffins were preferentially degraded as compared to branched chain hydrocarbons. Biodegradation of n-paraffins in the range of C12 to C20 was simultaneous; no diauxie effects were observed.
Probabilistic Capacity Models and Fragility Estimates for Reinforced Concrete Columns Incorporating NDT Data

Knowing the ability of reinforced concrete (RC) bridges to withstand future seismic demands during their life-cycle can help bridge owners make rational decisions regarding optimal allocation of resources for maintenance, repair, and/or rehabilitation of bridge systems. The accuracy of a reliability assessment can be improved by incorporating information about the current aging and deterioration conditions of a bridge. Nondestructive testing (NDT) can be used to evaluate the actual conditions of a bridge, avoiding the use of deterioration models that bring additional uncertainties in the reliability assessment. This paper develops probabilistic deformation and shear capacity models for RC bridge columns that incorporate information obtained from NDT. The proposed models can be used when the flexural stiffness decays nonuniformly over a column height. The flexural stiffness of a column is estimated based on measured acceleration responses using a system identification method and the damage index method. As an application of the proposed models, a case study assesses the fragility (the conditional probability of attaining or exceeding a specified capacity level) of the column in the Lavic Road Overcrossing for a given deformation or shear demand. This two-span concrete box-girder bridge located in Southern California was subject to the Hector Mine Earthquake in 1999. Pre- and postearthquake estimates of the univariate shear and deformation fragilities and of the bivariate shear-deformation fragility are computed and compared. Both displacement and shear capacities are found to decrease after the earthquake event. Additionally, the results show that the damage due to the Hector Mine Earthquake has a larger impact on the shear capacity than the deformation capacity, leading to a more significant increment in the shear fragility than in the deformation fragility.
Mutation of the IFNAR-1 Receptor Binding Site of Human IFN-α2 Generates Type I IFN Competitive Antagonists

Type I interferons (IFNs) are multifunctional cytokines that activate cellular responses by binding a common receptor consisting of two subunits, IFNAR-1 and IFNAR-2. Although the binding of IFNs t...
Polarisation-holding in a high-birefringence fibre

The polarisation-holding ability of a 1 km length of high-birefringence fibre is reported. The fibre birefringence increases linearly with frequency and the polarisation-holding parameter h is independent of frequency with a value of 5.5 × 10?6 m?1, indicating average polarisation-holding to ?22 dB.
Wolman disease successfully treated by bone marrow transplantation

Wolman disease is characterized by severe diarrhea and malnutrition leading to death during infancy. Lysosomal acid lipase deficiency is the cause of the symptoms and signs. It is inherited in an autosomal recessive manner. All Wolman disease patients have adrenal gland calcification. Previous therapeutic attempts have failed to provide remission. We report successful long-term bone marrow engraftment in a patient with Wolman disease resulting in continued normalization of peripheral leukocyte lysosomal acid lipase enzyme activity. Diarrhea is no longer present. Now, at 4 years of age, this patient is gaining developmental milestones. Cholesterol and triglyceride levels are normal. Liver function is normal. This is the first long-term continued remission reported for Wolman disease.
Improving Mobile Web Search by Clustering and Visualizing Search Engine Results

The search engine makes vast amounts of information available to mobile users. Despite increasing use of mobile search engines, the mobile web search remains ineffective mainly due to the intensive scrolling inherent in the current presentation of search engine results (SERs) on the small screen of handheld devices. In this study, we proposed to improve the presentation of mobile SERs through clustering and visualization. Based on the cognitive load theory and information foraging theory, we proposed hypotheses about the possible effects of visualization and synchronous presentation of SERs and their clusters on user search performance. To test the hypotheses, we implemented five mobile web search prototypes, and evaluated the prototypes by conducting lab experiments.
Impact of zones on throughput and cycle times in warehouses with Autonomous Vehicles

Autonomous Vehicle based Storage and Retrieval System (AVS/RS) is a material handling technology, which has been proposed as an alternative to crane-based AS/RS. In AVS/RS, autonomous vehicles provide horizontal movement (x and y axis) within a tier whereas lifts provide vertical movement (z axis) between tiers. The transaction cycle time is composed of waiting time for vehicles and lifts, horizontal and vertical travel times, and load/unload times. In this research, we analyze the influence of multiple load/unload points on transaction cycle times and the design-tradeoffs involved in warehouse zoning. We model the system as a multi-class semiopen queuing network model with class switching and develop a decomposition based approach to evaluate system performance and obtain design insights. We validate the models using detailed simulation.
Heart Failure and Sudden Death

Syndrome of congestive heart failure is a clinical manifestation of many cardiac disease processes when the cardiovascular compensatory mechanisms are no longer able to maintain homeostasis. Approximately five million people in the United States have heart failure and over 550,000 of patients are diagnosed with heart failure for the first time each year. The Framingham heart study reported 62 and 42 % 5-year survival rates, respectively, for men and women with newly diagnosed congestive heart failure in the early 1970s. These mortality rates were six to seven times higher than that of age-matched general population. Of the total mortality, approximately 40–50 % were sudden deaths. The trending in the incidence and survival with heart failure among 11,311 subjects in the Framingham heart study during a 50-year interval has been updated. Heart failure occurred in 1,075 study participants between 1950 and 1999. The 5-year mortality rate among men declined from 70 % in the period from 1950 to 1969 to 59 % in the period from 1990 to 1999, whereas the respective rates among woman declined from 57 to 45 %. Although the relative declining of mortality is encouraging, likely a result of the better understanding of the disease patho-physiology and improvement of the medical and device therapy, the growing epidemics of heart failure has been increasingly recognized in the United States and around the globe.
Mothers' school-related identities and possible selves for their children

In this study, we explored how mothers' school-related identities influence their current expectations of school identities for their children using a possible selves framework. Forty-seven mothers of preschool-aged children participated in semi-structured interviews about their school-related histories and children's school preparation. A thematic analysis revealed two main themes: the feared self and the desired self. The feared self included maternal fears that their children would be an alternative learner, dropout or social outcast. The desired self included hopeful expectations that their children would become an honour roll or well-rounded student. This study suggests that mothers' recalled identities guide their expectations for the children's school identities as well as activities aimed at preparing children for the school setting. Implications for early childhood professionals and family outreach personnel are discussed.
Pregnancy related treatment disparities of acute asthma exacerbations in the emergency department.

Summary Objective Asthma is one of the most common medical conditions complicating pregnancy. Despite the presence of published guidelines outlining the care of the pregnant patient with asthma, disparities in the treatment of acute asthma exacerbations in the emergency department related to pregnancy status are known to exist. We sought to determine if pregnancy status affected the treatment of women presenting to a tertiary emergency department for care of acute asthma exacerbations. Methods We retrospectively compared the emergency department treatment of acute asthma exacerbations in 123 pregnant women to 123 non-pregnant controls. Asthma exacerbations were classified by severity according to pre-determined criteria. Results In the emergency department (ED), pregnant women were significantly less likely to be treated with systemic corticosteroids than non-pregnant controls (50.8% versus 72.4%, p = 0.001). Similarly, 41% of pregnant women received prescriptions for prednisone at the time of discharge from the ED compared to 69.2% of non-pregnant women ( p Conclusions In this population of asthmatics presenting to a tertiary emergency department with acute asthma exacerbations, pregnant women were less likely to receive appropriate therapy with systemic corticosteroids.
Disruption of the vastus medialis obliquus with medial knee ligament injuries

We reviewed the clinical records of 189 consecutive surgically treated acute ligamentous injuries of the me dial compartment of the knee to determine the preva lence of disruptions of the vastus medialis obliquus muscle and to document the results of simultaneous repair of the disruption. Forty knees (40 patients) dem onstrated a vastus medialis muscle disruption at the time of surgical repair for the medial ligamentous dis ruption. All were surgically corrected and the sites of tearing were documented. The vastus medialis obliquus muscle was ruptured from the adductor tubercle in 31 (78%) knees. Of these, the tibial collateral ligament was torn from its femoral attachment in 19 (61 %) knees and the meniscofemoral portion of the capsular ligament ligament was torn from its femoral attachment in 23 (74%) knees. The vastus medialis obliquus muscle was ruptured from the patella in seven (18%) knees and was ruptured interstitially in nine (23%) knees. Each of the 40 patients returned for objective, subjective...
The Political Economy of the Arab Spring

Arab political economies have not been conducive to democracy. As measured by comparative shares of employment, credit, fixed value added, total output and other relevant economic indicators, gover...
Time-to-detection, percent-growth-positive and maximum growth rate models for Clostridium botulinum 56A at multiple temperatures

We previously developed models for the influence of inoculum size on the growth kinetics (time-to-detection and maximum growth rate) and percent-growth-positive samples of Clostridium botulinum 56A with factors of inoculum size (1, 100, and 10,000 spores/sample). pH (5.5. 6.0 and 6.5) and sodium chloride concentration (0.5%, 2% and 4%) at 30 degrees C. In this present study, data were collected at two more temperatures (15 and 22 degrees C), making the final design a complete 3 X 3 X 3 X 3 factorial with a total of 81 conditions. Growth was followed hourly as change in A620. The Gompertz equation was fit to the growth data, and the parameters derived were used to calculate the maximum growth rate and time-to-detection. Linear regression with polynomial terms was used to analyze the effect of environmental factors on time-to-detection and maximum growth rate. Logistic regression with polynomial terms was used to analyze the data for percent-growth-positive. Despite the fact that the variance is larger in this extended data set (which includes two temperatures that are further away from the optimum), the inoculum size effect is clearly demonstrated. When inoculum size increased, the percent-growth-positive samples increased and the time-to-detection decreased. When the inoculum was 1000 spores/sample or higher, little additional effect on time-to-detection was observed. Inoculum size might influence results through simple probability or quorum sensing. Our results show that the observed effect of inoculum size from the previous report at a single temperature is not restricted to a specific growth condition, but rather a general phenomenon. The maximum growth rate was independent of inoculum levels, confirming our previous results.
Karyotype determination and gene mapping in two clinical isolates of Penicillium marneffei.

Electrophoretic karyotypes from two clinical isolates of Penicillium marneffei were derived using contoured-clamped homogeneous electric field (CHEF) gel electrophoresis. Five chromosome-sized DNA ...
Tuning of luminescent sensor response and degradation through manipulation of nanofilm coating properties

Enzymatic glucose sensors based on luminescent microparticles rely on the reaction of glucose and oxygen with glucose oxidase, where the internal oxygen level is transduced via oxygen-sensitive phosphors. These sensors utilize nanofilm coatings comprising polyelectrolyte multilayers deposited using self-assembly to control transport of glucose, enabling tuning of the range and sensitivity by changing the coating thickness. In this work, it was also found that salt concentrations, which influence thickness and density of nanofilm coatings during multilayer deposition, also influence range, sensitivity, and degradation rate of these sensors.
Life Forms: The Law and the Profits

W hile the purposeful creation of new life forms captures the public's imagination, the negligent destruction of existing forms continues steadily. A recent study of the Worldwatch Institute predicts that by the year 2000, thousands of unique life forms may be destroyed by pollution, destruction of natural habitats, excessive hunting, and population growth. The study notes that animals are becoming extinct at an alarming and accelerating rate. In prehistoric times a species became extinct about every 10,000 years. By 1600 the rate was one every 1,000 years; in 1978 it is one or more annually. The law's role in this process has usually been indirect and not carefully reasoned. Two recent judicial decisions, however, give the United States Congress an opportunity to consider the issue anew. Both cases involve the interpretation of statutes passed by Congress, and neither rests on constitutional issues. Thus, if Congress is not satisfied with the way the courts have decided these cases, it can amend the laws in question to nullify or alter the decisions. One case was recently decided by the United States Supreme Court, the other is pending before it.
Modernization and expansion of an existing electric power plant

When modernizing or expanding a power plant, a thorough review should be made of the entire system regarding present and future requirements. The focus should be on obtaining a more economical, flexible, and reliable system. In this paper, a comprehensive study to modernize and expand an existing power plant is presented. The study is based on: part of the system is relatively new and still has a long service life that doesn't need to be modernized, old and obsolete units to be replaced with new units that solves the problem of meeting the load demand and spinning reserve, higher level of voltages to be used in generation to reduce the short circuit currents and reduce expenditures on protection equipment, and new design is based on the possibility that there will be other future expansions. Computer programs are used to perform power flow studies, short circuit current calculation, system protection coordination, and stability analysis on the system before and after modifications. The results are analyzed and used to recommend a more economical, reliable, and safe system that can meet the load demand, provides the needed spinning reserve of the plant, and give the provision of future load increases.
Relief of feedback inhibition of HER3 transcription by RAF and MEK inhibitors attenuates their antitumor effects in BRAF mutant thyroid carcinomas

The RAF inhibitor vemurafenib (PLX4032) increases survival in patients with BRAF-mutant metastatic melanoma, but has limited efficacy in patients with colorectal cancers. Thyroid cancer cells are also comparatively refractory to RAF inhibitors. By contrast to melanomas, inhibition of MAPK signaling by vemurafenib is transient in thyroid and colorectal cancer cells. The rebound in ERK in thyroid cells is accompanied by increased HER3 signaling caused by induction of HER3 transcription through decreased promoter occupancy by the transcriptional repressors CtBP1 and 2, and by autocrine secretion of neuregulin-1. The HER kinase inhibitor lapatinib prevents MAPK rebound and sensitizes BRAF-mutant thyroid cancer cells to RAF or MEK inhibitors. This provides a rationale for combining ERK pathway antagonists with inhibitors of feedback-reactivated HER signaling in this disease. The determinants of primary resistance to MAPK inhibitors vary between cancer types, due to preferential upregulation of specific RTKs, and the abundance of their respective ligands.
An approach to constructing modular fault-tolerant protocols

Modularization is a well-known technique for simplifying complex software. An approach to modularizing fault-tolerant protocols such as reliable multicast and membership is described. The approach is based on implementing a protocol's individual properties as separate microprotocols and then combining selected microprotocols using an event-driven software framework. A system is constructed by composing these frameworks with traditional network protocols using standard hierarchical techniques. In addition to simplifying the software, this model helps clarify the dependencies among properties of fault-tolerant protocols and makes it possible to construct systems that are customized to the specifics of the application or underlying architecture. An example involving reliable group multicast is given, together with a description of a prototype implementation using the SR concurrent programming language. >
A Liar Paradox

It is widely supposed nowadays that, whatever the ‘right’ theory of truth may be, it needs to satisfy a principle sometimes known as ‘transparency’: Any sentence S must be replacable, salva veritate, with “S is true”, and conversely.1 But, whatever the merits of this principle, it is known to be incompatible with others we might also have wanted to affirm, for example, the law of excluded middle. For suppose there is a sentence Λ for which we have:
Reflex Activity in Spinal Cats with Postasphyxial Rigidity

AbstractThe reflex activity in three groups of cats in which the spinal cord had been asphyxiated for 30 to 55 min, and which had been kept from one day to 2 weeks afterwards was compared with that in acute and chronic spinal control animals. Asphyxiation tended to produce in addition to a slight and transient « initial » tone a more pronounced « secondary » tone which developed usually a few hours after asphyxiation and tended to decrease or disappear from a few hours to 3 days later. A permanent « late » tone often developed in the legs about one week after asphyxiations of 30 to 35 min.In preparations with secondary tone the post-activation depression was less pronounced than in the controls and there was during certain phases of the recovery cycle evidence of indirect, interneuronal facilitation. Inhibition of the responses caused by stimulation of the gastrocnemius nerve by stimulation of the sural nerve was absent and antidromic inhibition was less pronounced than in the controls. The spinal cords o...
The characterization of normal incidence Ge/Si avalanche photodiodes (APDs) at low temperatures

A normal incidence Ge/Si avalanche photodiode (APD) with the separate-absorption-charge-multiplication structure is characterized when the temperature ranges from 78K to 330K. At low temperature (78K), the dark current is depressed significantly as expected, which helps to detect a weak optical signal (as low as 1nW).
Ethanol Impairs Mucosal Immunity against Streptococcus pneumoniae Infection by Disrupting Interleukin 17 Gene Expression

ABSTRACT Acute ethanol intoxication suppresses the host immune responses against Streptococcus pneumoniae. As interleukin 17 (IL-17) is a critical cytokine in host defense against extracellular pathogens, including S. pneumoniae, we hypothesized that ethanol impairs mucosal immunity against this pathogen by disrupting IL-17 production or IL-17 receptor (IL-17R) signaling. A chronic ethanol feeding model in simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV)-infected rhesus macaques and acute ethanol intoxication in a murine model were used. Transcriptome analysis of bronchial brushes in the nonhuman primate model showed downregulation of the expression of IL-17-regulated chemokines in ethanol-fed animals, a finding also replicated in the murine model. Surprisingly, recombinant CXCL1 and CXCL5 but not IL-17 or IL-23 plus IL-1β rescued bacterial burden in the ethanol group to control levels. Taken together, the results of this study suggest that ethanol impairs IL-17-mediated chemokine production in the lung. Thus, exogenous luminal restoration of IL-17-related chemokines, CXCL1 and CXCL5, improves host defenses against S. pneumoniae.
Hurricane Degradation—Barrier Development Cycles, Northeastern Gulf of Mexico: Landform Evolution and Island Chain History

Abstract Before its western sector was stranded and/or buried ca. 4.0–3.8 ka BP (3.9–3.7 ka 14C), the Mississippi–Alabama chain of regressive barrier islands extended well into present southeastern Louisiana. Westward-directed net littoral drift, ebb-deltas, and microtidal inlet bypassing were instrumental in the formation of elongated, narrow, sandy barrier platform sectors on which these islands, mostly of strandplain topography, have originally emerged. The development of sizable subtidal–intertidal berm basins, ringed by swash and foreshore berm ridges that emerged after storms, then filled by storm-mobilized sand, has aided posthurricane recovery. These processes are linked to discrete stages in aggradational barrier genesis. Increasingly frequent and destructive cyclones reduced island areas to laterally extensive subtidal barrier platform intervals. Enhanced overwash across lengthened platform sectors reduced drift volumes and consequently island progradation. Deepened ship channels facilitated san...
The 4D Touchpad: Unencumbered HCI With VICs

We present a platform for human-machine interfaces that provides functionality for robust, unencumbered interaction: the 4D Touchpad (4DT). The goal is direct interaction with interface components through intuitive actions and gestures. The 4DT is based on the 3D-2D Projection-based mode of the VICs framework. The fundamental idea behind VICs is that expensive global image processing with user modeling and tracking is not necessary in general vision-based HCI. Instead, interface components operating under simple-to-complex rules in local image regions provide more robust and less costly functionality with 3 spatial dimensions and 1 temporal dimension. A prototype realization of the 4DT platform is presented; it operates through a set of planar homographies with uncalibrated cameras.
On the functional significance of soft modes predicted by coarse-grained models for membrane proteins

Recent years have seen an explosion in the number of studies that explore the collective dynamics of biomolecular systems using coarse-grained (CG) models along with methods based on principal component analysis (PCA). Among them, elastic network models (ENMs) and normal mode analyses (NMAs) have
Automated discovery and proof in three combinatorial problems

In this Ph.D. dissertation, I will go over advances I have made in three combinatorial problems. The running theme throughout these three problems is the novel use of computers to aid not only in the discovery of the theorems proved, but also in the proofs themselves. The first problem concerns the quantity fΔ(n), defined as the size of the largest subset of [n] avoiding differences in Δ. Originally motivated by the Triangle Conjecture of Schutzenberger and Perrin, we again define an enumeration scheme that will find, and prove automatically, the sequence fDn ∞n=1 for any prescribed Δ. Although the Triangle Conjecture has long been refuted, we present an asymptotic version of it and prove it. The second problem involves the enumeration of spanning trees in grid graphs—graphs of the form G × Pn (or Cn) for arbitrary G. An enumeration scheme is developed based on the partitions of [n], yielding an algorithmic method to completely solve the sequence for any G. These techniques yield a surprising consequence: sequences obtained in this manner are divisibility sequences. The final problem is the firefighter problem, a dynamic graph theory problem modeling the spread of diseases, information, etc. We will present the problem as it applies on the two-dimensional grid and prove new upper and lower bounds, found mainly through computer experimentation.
A Hospital-Based Interdisciplinary Model for Increasing Nurses’ Engagement in Legislative Advocacy

The Legislative Action Interest Group (LAIG) is a hospital-based health policy forum that engages nurses in exploring clinical implications of existing and pending health policies and regulations, while also creating a feedback loop to inform policy makers about the realities nursing practice and patient care. The LAIG is a collaborative effort between the hospital's Department of Nursing and Patient Care Services and the Office of Government Relations at an academic children's hospital. Nurses participating in the LAIG forums build a working knowledge of health policy and can articulate the practice realities for policy decision makers. Participants explore the political context of nursing and pediatric policies while learning about the state legislative process. Beyond the monthly meetings, members build policy advocacy skills and have testified at public hearings, met with state and federal legislators, and led tours for policy makers through the hospital. The LAIG model also benefits the government relations staff by providing time for them to discuss clinical implications of pending policies with nurses from practice settings in the hospital. Forum discussions enhance the ability of the hospital's lobbyists to articulate practice implications of health policy to lawmakers. This case study, describing the origin, structure, operations, and outcomes of the LAIG model, and has implications for nurses in hospitals and academic settings who are interested in engaging in policy work. Opportunities to research the sustainability, replicability, and patient-centered outcomes of LAIG forums represent future work needed to advance nursing's participation in policy.
What Can We Learn About Family-Based Obesity Treatment From Family Therapists?

The current gold standard of pediatric obesity treatment involves a family-based approach and behavioral modification, as posited by the 2007 American Academy of Pediatrics Expert Committee1 and others.2-4 However, pediatricians implementing family-based approaches typically have experience in dyadic interactions, with a child and a parent, and not entire families. Effective therapies, such as Motivational Interviewing,5 were initially utilized in areas outside of obesity, and adapted for use in weight management settings with families.6 Similarly, weight management clinicians could gain valuable insight from those experienced in family therapy, but not necessarily weight management. The goal of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of perceptions and methods of family therapists outside the field of weight management. We sought to determine which theoretical models guide their treatment and explore successful approaches to engage and retain patients to inform future interventions for pediatric obesity treatment.
Effect of minimal/mild hearing loss on children's speech understanding in a simulated classroom.

Objectives While classroom acoustics can affect educational performance for all students, the impact for children with minimal/mild hearing loss (MMHL) may be greater than for children with normal hearing (NH). The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of MMHL on children's speech recognition comprehension and looking behavior in a simulated classroom environment. It was hypothesized that children with MMHL would perform similarly to their peers with NH on the speech recognition task but would perform more poorly on the comprehension task. Children with MMHL also were expected to look toward talkers more often than children with NH. Design Eighteen children with MMHL and 18 age-matched children with NH participated. In a simulated classroom environment, children listened to lines from an elementary-age-appropriate play read by a teacher and four students reproduced over LCD monitors and loudspeakers located around the listener. A gyroscopic headtracking device was used to monitor looking behavior during the task. At the end of the play, comprehension was assessed by asking a series of 18 factual questions. Children also were asked to repeat 50 meaningful sentences with three key words each presented audio-only by a single talker either from the loudspeaker at 0 degree azimuth or randomly from the five loudspeakers. Results Both children with NH and those with MMHL performed at or near ceiling on the sentence recognition task. For the comprehension task, children with MMHL performed more poorly than those with NH. Assessment of looking behavior indicated that both groups of children looked at talkers while they were speaking less than 50% of the time. In addition, the pattern of overall looking behaviors suggested that, compared with older children with NH, a larger portion of older children with MMHL may demonstrate looking behaviors similar to younger children with or without MMHL. Conclusions The results of this study demonstrate that, under realistic acoustic conditions, it is difficult to differentiate performance among children with MMHL and children with NH using a sentence recognition task. The more cognitively demanding comprehension task identified performance differences between these two groups. The comprehension task represented a condition in which the persons talking change rapidly and are not readily visible to the listener. Examination of looking behavior suggested that, in this complex task, attempting to visualize the talker may inefficiently utilize cognitive resources that would otherwise be allocated for comprehension.
Study of coreless fibers for in-phase supermode selection in multicore fiber lasers

Coreless fibers as extra cavities for multicore fiber lasers are analyzed for their capabilities of mode selection. The difference between the mode-selection properties of coreless fibers and Talbot cavities is discussed and confirmed by experiments.
A case of tuberculous lymphadenitis in the submandibular and cervical regions

A case of tuberculous lymphadenitis in the left submandibular and cervical regions is presented.The patient was a 25-year-old female, with a chief complaint of swelling in the left submandibular region.It was diagnosed clinically as tuberculous cervical lymphadenitis or malignant neoplasm.The extirpation of the tumor was performed under general anesthesia, because the tumor had extended rapidly.Histopathologic examination revealed typical tuberculous lesions in the lymphnodes and chronic sialoadenitis.The patient is well without recurrence 9 years after operation.
Experimental study of engineered allo-islet transplantation for treating type 1 diabetes in mice

Objective To investigate the effect of treatment of type 1 diabetes by transplanting allo-islets decorated with exogenous FasL protein into diabetic mice. Methods Chimeric SA-FasL protein was decorated on cellular membrane of donor islets by ProtExTM technology and its expression was tested by flowcytometry.Allo-islet transplantation was performed from inbred BALB/c mice to C57BL/6 mice.Rapamycin(RPM) was administered for selected recipients for ten consecutive days from the day of surgery at dose of 0.2 mg/kg.According to the different perioperative treatments,recipients were divided into 5 groups: FasL group(n=33),FasL-RPM group(n=31),SA group(n=27),SA-RPM group(n=30) and islet group(n=20).Islet and SA groups were set as no treatment control and protein control respectively.Rejection was identified while urine test was positive and blood glucose value was over 250 mg/dL for two consecutive days.Urine test negative over 100 days was regarded as graft long-termed survival. Results Biotin(green) and FasL(red) were detected on the surface of islets by laser confocal microscopy.Flowcytometric study further indicated that the mean expression rate of biotin and FasL was(90.8±0.9)% and(82.6±2.2)% respectively.FasL engineered allo-islet achieved prolonged survival,with 28% survived above 100 days.When administered with rapamycin,92% of allo-islet in FasL-RPM group survived above 100 days(P0.05),exhibiting a synergistic effect on graft survival.SA engineered allo-islet grafts were all rejected within 25 days with mean survival time(MST) of(16±1.5) days.Concurrent RPM treatment failed to protect SA engineered islet from rejection,with a long-termed survival rate of 28%,which was significantly lower than the rate of FasL-RPM group(P0.05).All recipients in islet group were encountered rejection within 22 days postoperatively with a MST of(14±1.7) days. Conclusions FasL engineered allo-islets enjoyed indefinite survival under the transient cover of rapamycin,thereby providing strategic therapy for type 1 diabetes.
Hyperglycemia and hyponatremia during operative hysteroscopy with 5% dextrose in water distention

Operative hysteroscopy may result in profound hyperglycemia and hyponatremia when crystaloids containing glucose are used as a distention medium. Four patients undergoing operative hysteroscopy developed hyperglycemia in proportion to increasing operative time. None of five monitored patients undergoing diagnostic hysteroscopy developed clinically significant hyperglycemia.
Deep commoning: public folklore and environmental policy on a resource frontier

AbstractThis article explores the concept and practice of the commons as a holistic, multi-sectoral, cross-disciplinary framework for critical heritage work on resource frontiers. Drawing from my research on forest commoning in the Appalachian coalfields, I argue that land-based systems of commoning vital to communities in the path of resource extraction merit more attention from heritage workers. Commons tend to disappear through their atomization into siloed objects of study and stewardship. This disappearance, partly a function of reductionist, dualistic thinking, also signals a persistent colonialist myth of emptiness. I argue that the embodied, participatory field methods of public folklorists are particularly well-suited to the study and accreditation of land-based commons as heritage. Building on the idea of ‘deep ecology’, the notion of ‘deep commoning’ espouses our implication in worlds we bring into dialogue through the practice of public folklore as critical heritage work.
Complications of Digital Intravenous Angiography: Experience in 2488 Cervicocranial Examinations

All complications were recorded from the initial 2488 cases studied with digital intravenous angiography (DIVA) at New York University Medical Center. Mechanisms of producing these reactions were categorized into procedure-related, contrast-medium-related, or disease-related. The complications included extravasation of contrast material into the arm (11 patients) and mediastinum (two), acute pulmonary edema (four), hypotension (23), thrombophlebitis (two), and grand mal seizure (one). Recommendations are made that would allow DIVA to be performed more safely.
Evaluation of the Microstructure and Charpy Impact Toughness of Hot Worked Powder Ti-6Al-4V

Ti-6Al-4V powder, produced by the hydride-dehydride (HDH) process, was hot isostatically pressed (HIP) into three bars. The 10 cm (4 in) diameter bars were hot worked (HW) to three different diameters: 5.1 cm (2 in) (75% reduction in area), 3.8 cm (1.5 in) (86% reduction in area), and 2.5 cm (1 in) (94% reduction in area). Three samples were machined out of each bar along the end, middle and transverse orientations. These samples were ground, polished, and etched. The microstructure of the samples was evaluated at 100X and 200X magnifications. The objective of this experiment was to examine the effect of deformation on the microstructure and properties of hot rolled titanium alloy bar product. Charpy impact samples were also machined out of each of the various diameter bars. Impact testing was used to quantify toughness by correlating the microstructure to the energy absorbed. The tensile properties of the hot bars were determined as well as the crystallographic texture. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was performed on the fractured surface of the Charpy impact samples.
The career goals of non-tenure-track full-time engineering faculty

Roughly one in eleven engineering faculty members in the United States are full-time and are not in tenure-track positions. It has been established that non-tenure track faculty members can enrich an engineering program by bringing industry skills and practical career experience into the classroom. These full-time non-tenure track faculty members have varied experience and they have varied career goals. Some of them may desire tenure-track positions while others may not. In many engineering programs, there is no clear path for a full-time non-tenure-track faculty member to attain tenure. This study consists of interviews with ten full-time non-tenure-track electrical engineering faculty members who teach in eight large, public, research universities. The survey will explore the career goals of those faculty members including the desire for an electrical engineering tenure-track position as well as which aspects of a tenure-track position would be desirable, such as career stability, participation in departmental governance, and a greater voice in program decisions. We will also explore aspects of seeking a tenure-track position that may not be desirable, such as the increased workload involved in research and publishing, or a perceived necessity to teach fewer courses as more effort and time is given to research.
Abstract 183: School-Centered CPR Education to Improve Survival from Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest in High-Risk Neighborhoods

Background: Low-income and Latino neighborhoods are at high risk for having low provision of bystander CPR for victims of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). Novel community-based intervention i...
Chapter 19 – Remediation of Drinking Water for Rural Populations

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the remediation of drinking water for rural populations. Ammonia and nitrite can cause water quality problems but it is nitrate that is most often associated with the contamination of drinking water. Nitrate in rural drinking water supplies is a common and growing world-wide water quality problem. Natural sources of nitrate can contaminate groundwater sources but nitrate-N concentrations that exceed 2–3 mg/L usually indicate that the source is anthropogenic. Reverse osmosis, ion exchange, and distillation can be used in home systems to remove nitrate from raw water. Reverse osmosis and distillation are small point-of-use systems that provide water for cooking and drinking. With these systems the small volume of reject water generated would be flushed to the septic system and would not normally present a disposal problem. A more important concern might be the volume of water used by some of the systems. Some emerging systems might prove suitable for home or farm use in the future.
Structuring M&A Offers: Auctions, Negotiations and Go-Shop Provisions

An important yet understudied aspect of mergers and acquisitions is the selling procedure. This paper compares a seller’s revenue in a standard English ascending auction to that in a negotiation with a “go-shop” provision. In the latter, the target privately negotiates with a few bidders, signs a tentative merger agreement with one of them, and then publicly solicits additional bids during a “go-shop” period. Using a theoretical framework, I show that a “go-shop” negotiation generates higher seller revenue than does an auction, when first, the bidders’ costs of learning their valuations are sufficiently high, second, the bidders’ valuations are moderately correlated with each other, and third, the bidders’ prior probabilities of the existence of gains from trade are sufficiently low. The theoretical results are broadly consistent with empirical evidence, and they provide a novel explanation for the prevalence of “go-shop negotiations” in private equity deals.
Analysis of gallium arsenide deposition in a horizontal chemical vapor deposition reactor using massively parallel computations

Abstract A numerical analysis of the deposition of gallium arsenide from trimethylgallium (TMG) and arsine in a horizontal CVD reactor with tilted susceptor and a 3″ diameter rotating substrate is performed. The three-dimensional model includes complete coupling between fluid mechanics, heat transfer, and species transport, and is solved using an unstructured finite element discretization on a massively parallel computer. A reaction mechanism consisting of three surface and two bulk species, four surface reactions, and four gas phase species was used to model the deposition. The effects of three operating parameters (the disk rotation rate, inlet TMG fraction, and inlet velocity) and two design parameters (the tilt angle of the reactor base and the reactor width) on the growth rate and uniformity are presented. The nonlinear dependence of the growth rate uniformity on the key operating parameters is discussed in detail. Efficient and robust algorithms for massively parallel reacting flow simulations, as incorporated into our analysis code MPSalsa, make detailed analysis of this complicated system feasible.
1.17 Mass Spectrometry

This chapter discusses the application of mass spectrometry to functional and structural characterization of proteins. Mass spectrometry techniques commonly applied to both the functional proteomics (identity and expression level of the proteins) and the structural characterization of proteins (post-translational modifications, tertiary structure and stability, subunit composition, and molecular shape) are discussed. The chapter reviews the current and historical methodologies for these applications, provides an in-depth description of the instrumentation requirements, and highlights some of examples of the techniques used. Overall, the chapter reviews biophysical, biochemical, analytical, and biological aspects of the structural and functional protein mass spectrometry.
A population-based human enCYCLOPedia for circadian medicine

The discovery that half of the mammalian protein-coding genome is clock-regulated has clear implications for medicine. Indeed, recent studies demonstrate time-of-day impact on therapeutic outcomes in human heart disease and cancer. Yet biological time is rarely given clinical consideration. A key barrier is the absence of information on the what and where of molecular rhythms in the human body. Here, we have applied CYCLOPS, an algorithm designed to reconstruct sample order in the absence of time-of-day information, to the GTEx collection of 632 human donors contributing 4,292 RNA-seq samples from 13 distinct human tissue types. We identify rhythms in expression across the body that persist at the population-level. This includes a set of ubiquitous cyclers comprised of well-established circadian clock factors but also many genes without prior circadian context. Among thousands of tissue-divergent rhythms, we discover a set of genes robustly oscillating in cardiovascular tissue, including key drug targets relevant to heart disease. These results also have implications for genetic studies where circadian variability may have masked genetic influence. It is our hope that the human enCYCLOPedia helps drive the translation of circadian biology into prospective clinical trials in cardiology and many other therapeutic areas.
The symbolic interactionist perspective and identity theory.

Symbolic interactionist perspectives or frames underlie most sociological interest in identity. We focus first on the presentation of these perspectives, beginning with the eighteenth-century Scottish moral philosophers and the later work of the philosopher-psychologist George Herbert Mead, tracing their influence on current sociological thinking about social psychology and identity. Two important variants in symbolic interactionist thinking, “traditional symbolic interactionism” and “structural symbolic interactionism,” share fundamentals but exhibit significant variation making for differences in utilities. The essay then focuses on a structural interactionist frame and issues of identity emergent from that frame. The evaluation of a frame rests traditionally on its capacity to serve as supplier of images, assumptions, and concepts used to develop testable theories. That structural symbolic interactionism has this capacity is evidenced in discussions of identity theory, affect control theory, and identity control theory incorporating empirical tests. A second criterion for judging the utility of a frame rests on its capacity to bridge to alternative frames. Discussions of the reciprocal relation of structural symbolic interaction and frames and theories in cognitive social psychology, personality psychology, self-esteem theory, and the social psychology of organizations illustrate that value.
Being a Doctor and Being a Hospital.

In his excellent piece, “Provider Conscientious Refusal of Abortion, Obstetrical Emergencies, and Criminal Homicide Law,” Lawrence Nelson makes a compelling legal argument against physicians’ refus...
Approval of New Opioid Raises Concerns.

A new form of the opioid sufentanil has been approved under the trade name Dsuvia. It is administered sublingually using a special applicator. The drug can only be sold and administered in certified medically supervised health care settings.Dsuvia carries a black box warning that it may cause respir
The role of platelet-derived growth factor in prostate cancer development and progression depends on organ site of involvement in an orthotopic mouse model

4203 Platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) promotes cancer development and progression by stimulating cell division, migration and angiogenesis. However, in clinical trials targeting the PDGF receptor pathway, responses vary widely among patients and within patients depending on the location of metastases. We utilized an orthotopic human prostate cancer animal model to investigate these differences in response to therapy. Single clones were isolated from the human prostate cancer cell line PC-3P. Basal levels of PDGF A/B and production in response to exogenous TGF-β were determined by ELISA. Three clones producing low and high basal levels of PDGF A/B were mixed to produce PC-3P-L and PC-3P-H, respectively. PC-3P-H showed significant response to exogenous TGF-β compared with PC-3P-L (p