cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
INAPPROPRIATE SINUS TACHYCARDIA : DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT

The syndrome of inappropriate sinus tachycardia was initially described by Bauernfeind and colleagues. 2 The disorder was described as a chronic nonparoxysmal sinus tachycardia in otherwise healthy individuals. The arrhythmia is characterized by consistently elevated heart rates and exaggerated responses to minimal physiologic activity. Inappropriate sinus tachycardia was initially thought to be a relatively uncommon disorder that could lead to total disability. 2 The syndrome has been diagnosed with increasing frequencyin recent years, however, highlighting the importance for improved clinical characterization and optimization of therapy.
Visualization of the Expression of HMGN Nucleosomal Binding Proteins in the Developing Mouse Embryo and in Adult Mouse Tissues

Visualization of the expression pattern of specific proteins during development and in adult tissues provides important clues as to their possible role in various cellular processes. Mouse is the organism of choice for obtaining information on gene expression patterns in higher eukaryotes. This chapter describes the protocols we utilized to visualize Hmgn transcripts and HMGN proteins in mouse tissues. HMGN are chromatin-binding proteins that affect chromatin structure and function and play a role in cellular differentiation.
In‐vitro evaluation of a ciprofloxacin‐ and ivacaftor‐coated sinus stent against Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms

Background We recently developed a novel ciprofloxacin-coated sinus stent capable of releasing antibiotics over a sustained period of time. Ivacaftor is a cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) potentiator that has synergistic bactericidal activity with ciprofloxacin and also enhances sinus mucociliary clearance. The objective of this study was to optimize and evaluate the efficacy of a ciprofloxacin- and ivacaftor-releasing biodegradable sinus stent (CISS) in vitro. Methods A CISS was created by coating ciprofloxacin/ivacaftor-embedded nanoparticles with an acrylate and ammonium methacrylate copolymer onto a biodegradable poly-L-lactic acid stent. In-vitro evaluation of the CISS included: (1) assessment of drug stability in nanoparticles by zeta potential, and drug-coating stability within the CISS using scanning electron microscopy (SEM); (2) determination of ciprofloxacin- and ivacaftor-release kinetics; and (3) assessment of anti-Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm formation by calculating relative optical density units (RODUs) compared with control stents at 590-nm optical density. Results The presence of drugs and a uniform coating on the stent were confirmed by zeta potential and SEM. Sustained drug release was observed through 21 days without an initial burst release. Anti-biofilm formation was observed after placing the CISS for 3 days onto a preformed 1-day P aeruginosa biofilm. The CISS significantly reduced biofilm mass compared with bare stents and controls (RODUs at 590-nm optical density; CISS, 0.31 ± 0.01; bare stent, 0.78 ± 0.12; control, 1.0 ± 0.00; p = 0.001; n = 3). Conclusion The CISS maintains a uniform coating and sustained delivery of drugs providing a marked reduction in P aeruginosa biofilm formation. Further studies evaluating the efficacy of CISS in a preclinical model are planned.
Active learning through community outreach: A case study of service-learning in a natural hazard, vulnerability and risk class

The popularity of service-learning is increasing, especially at a time where college students want to make a greater impact in their communities. One place we found that students can make a meaningful impact in their communities is promoting community resiliency to natural hazard events through a community outreach project. This article provides a case study of how incorporating service-learning through a community outreach project can increase student engagement, enhance the depth of understanding of a given topic, build communication and teamwork skills, and contribute meaningfully to the students’ community. This article shares how the instructor of a Natural Hazards, Vulnerability and Risk course implement service-learning through a community outreach project, and provides evidence for how such outreach can enhance student learning and address the common problem of student apathy and disengagement. We also discuss the transferability of our approach to other STEM and social science related courses.
Mechanism of radiation carcinogenesis: role of the TGFBI gene and the inflammatory signaling cascade.

Using an immortalized human bronchial epithelial cell line, we showed previously that the transforming growth factor beta-induced (TGFBI) gene was consistently downregulated by six- to sevenfold among radiation-induced tumorigenic human cells when compared with controls. Trans-fection of TGFBI gene into tumor cells resulted in a significant reduction in tumor growth as well as in vitro anchorage independent growth. The observations that TGFBI knock-out animals showed increased spontaneous tumor incidence and chemically induced tumors highlight the suppressive nature of the gene. There is evidence that extranuclear/extracellular targets are important in low-dose radiation response and that the cyclo-oxygenase-2 signaling pathway mediates the process. The involvement of NFκB-dependent cytokines and the resultant inflammatory response works in concert with in modulating radiation-induced bronchial carcinogenesis.
Older Adults Can Successfully Monitor Symptoms Using an Inclusively Designed Mobile Application.

Objectives Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) measures can monitor patients with chronic illnesses outside of healthcare settings. Unfortunately, few applications that collect electronic PROMIS measures are designed using inclusive design principles that ensure wide accessibility and usability, thus limiting use by older adults with chronic illnesses. Our aim was to establish the feasibility of using an inclusively designed mobile application tailored to older adults to report PROMIS measures by examining (1) PROMIS scores collected with the application, (2) patient-reported usability of the application, and (3) differences in usability by age. Design Cross-sectional feasibility study. Setting Inpatient and outpatient cardiac units at an urban academic medical center. Participants A total of 168 English- and Spanish-speaking older adults with heart failure. Intervention Participants used an inclusively designed mobile application to self-report PROMIS measures. Measurements Eleven PROMIS Short-Form questionnaires (Anxiety, Ability to Participate in Social Roles and Activities, Applied Cognition-Abilities, Depression, Emotional Distress-Anger, Fatigue, Global Mental Health, Global Physical Health; Pain Interference, Physical Function, Sleep Disturbance), and a validated health technology usability survey measuring Perceived Ease-of-Use and Usefulness of the application. Results Overall, 27% of participants were between 65 and 74 years of age, 10% were 75 years or older, 63% were male, 32% were white, and 96% had two or more medical conditions. There was no missing PROMIS data, and mean PROMIS scores showed the greatest burden of pain, fatigue, and physical function in the sample. Usability scores were high and not associated with age (Perceived Ease-of-Use P = .77; Perceived Usefulness P = .91). Conclusion It is feasible for older adults to use an inclusively designed application to report complete PROMIS data with high perceived usability. To ensure data completeness and the opportunity to study multiple domains of physical, mental, and social health, future work should use inclusive design principles for applications collecting PROMIS measures among older adults. J Am Geriatr Soc 68:1313-1318, 2020.
Theoretical estimates of equilibrium chromium-isotope fractionations

Equilibrium chlorine-isotope (^(37)Cl/^(35)Cl) fractionations have been determined by using published vibrational spectra and force-field modeling to calculate reduced partition function ratios for Cl-isotope exchange. Ab initio force fields calculated at the HF/6-31G(d) level are used to estimate unknown vibrational frequencies of ^(37)Cl-bearing molecules, whereas crystalline phases are modeled by published lattice-dynamics models. Calculated fractionations are principally controlled by the oxidation state of Cl and its bond partners. Molecular mass (or the absence of C-H bonds) also appears to play a role in determining relative fractionations among simple Cl-bearing organic species. Molecules and complexes with oxidized Cl (i.e., Cl^0, Cl^+, etc.) will concentrate ^(37)Cl relative to chlorides (substances with Cl^−). At 298 K, ClO_2 (containing Cl^(4+)) and [ClO_4]^− (containing Cl^(7+)) will concentrate ^(37)Cl relative to chlorides by as much as 27‰ and 73‰, respectively, in rough agreement with earlier calculations. Among chlorides, ^(37)Cl will be concentrated in substances where Cl is bonded to +2 cations (i.e., FeCl_2, MnCl_2, micas, and amphiboles) relative to substances where Cl is bonded to +1 cations (such as NaCl) by ∼2 to 3‰ at 298 K; organic molecules with C-Cl bonds will be even richer in ^(37)Cl (∼5 to 9‰ at 298 K). Precipitation experiments, in combination with our results, provide an estimate for Cl-isotope partitioning in brines and suggest that silicates (to the extent that their Cl atoms are associated with nearest-neighbor +2 cations analogous with FeCl_2 and MnCl_2) will have higher ^(37)Cl/^(35)Cl ratios than coexisting brine (by ∼2 to 3‰ at room temperature). Calculated fractionations between HCl and Cl_2, and between brines and such alteration minerals, are in qualitative agreement with both experimental results and systematics observed in natural samples. Our results suggest that Cl-bearing organic molecules will have markedly higher ^(37)Cl/^(35)Cl ratios (by 5.8‰ to 8.5‰ at 295 K) than coexisting aqueous solutions at equilibrium. Predicted fractionations are consistent with the presence of an isotopically heavy reservoir of HCl that is in exchange equilibrium with Cl^−_(aq) in large marine aerosols.
Margarites Demitsas (1830–1902) und die Anfänge der griechischen Erforschung der Inschriftenkunde Makedoniens in ihrem Verhältnis zur makedonischen Frage

Margarites Demitsas was one of the pioneers on the field of Ancient Macedonian epigraphy in the 19th century and the editor of its first corpus containing all hitherto known inscriptions of the region. His life and scholarly activities have been fundamentally influenced by contemporary political events and his active participation in the Greek national struggle. By discussing the case of Demitsas this paper seeks to shed light on how the Ancient Macedonian inscriptions were during the 19th century utilized to benefit the Greek national interests in the region.
PubMed-Indexed Research Productivity of Students Matching at Top Urology Programs: 2017-2020.

Objective To evaluate the number of PubMed-indexed research projects of medical students matching at top-ranked urology programs as compared to the average publications reported in the Electronic Residency Applicant Service (ERAS). Methods Doximity Residency Navigator was used to generate the top 50 residency programs when sorted by reputation. Residents were then found using program websites. PubMed was queried for peer-reviewed publications of incoming interns through post graduate year 3 residents as of February 2020. All PubMed-indexed research was recorded before September 15th of the residents’ fourth year of medical school. We recorded the number of publications, first/last author publications, and urology-specific publications. Results The average number of publications across all 4 years was 2.38 ± 4.19. The average for urology-specific publications was 1.05 ± 3.19 and for first/last author publications was 0.80 ± 1.77. Most matched applicants had at least one PubMed-indexed publication (61.2%) and having over 3 placed them in the 75th percentile. It is uncommon for students to have urology specific or first/last author publications (34.0%, 36.5%). Top 10 programs matched applicants with significantly more research in each of the aforementioned categories and as program reputation declined, so did the publications of the applicants they matched. Conclusion Most research that matched urology applicant's report in ERAS is not PubMed Indexed. Most had at least one PubMed-indexed publication by the time they submitted ERAS and those at top programs had more. It would be helpful to students and faculty advisors if ERAS published research metrics for matched and unmatched applicants separating PubMed-indexed work from posters and presentations.
A Review of Patisiran (ONPATTRO®) for the Treatment of Polyneuropathy in People with Hereditary Transthyretin Amyloidosis

Hereditary variant transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTRv) is a rare genetic defect that affects about 5000-10,000 people worldwide, causing amyloidosis secondary to misfolding of mutant transthyretin (TTR) protein fibrils. TTR mutations can cause protein deposits in many extracellular regions of organs, but those deposits in cardiac and axonal cells are the primary cause of this clinical syndrome. Treatment options are limited, but new drugs are being developed. Patisiran, a novel drug, is a liposomal siRNA against TTR that specifically targets this protein, reducing the accumulation of TTR in tissues, with subsequent improvement in both neuropathy and cardiac function. Patisiran is likely to serve as a prototype for the development of further intelligent drug solutions for use in targeted therapy. In this review we summarize the evidence currently available on the treatment of polyneuropathy in people with ATTRv with patisiran. We review the evidence on its efficacy, safety, and indications of use, citing novel and seminal papers on these subjects.
Recognizing Team Science Contributions in Academic Hiring, Promotion, and Tenure

The vision of a scientist as a lone investigator reaching an epiphany is a widely cherished narrative. Consistent with this ideal, single-author papers were frequent 50 years ago, when the Society for Neuroscience started. However, the basic and translational questions and the public health
Conversations with a killer: the Ted Bundy tapes and affective responses to the true crime documentary

Joe Berlinger’s docu-series Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes (2019) explores the violence, victims, and social context of Ted Bundy’s crimes. The documentary critiques the ‘handsome...
Synthetic Studies on the Indane SHIP1 Agonist AQX-1125.

A new synthetic route to the SHIP1 agonist AQX-1125 has been developed. This sequence utilizes a hydroxy-acid intermediate which allows for ready differentiation of the C6 and C7 positions. The role of the C17 alkene in the biological activity of the system is also investigated, and this functional group is not required for SHIP1 agonist activity.
Endoscope-Assisted Superior Semicircular Canal Dehiscence Repair: Single Institution Outcomes:

Objective:To compare outcomes of endoscope-assisted middle cranial fossa MCF) repair of superior semicircular canal dehiscence (SSCD) compared to microscopic MCF repair.Study design:Retrospective c...
Spacing of point counts for grassland bird surveys in small geographical areas: Biases and tradeoffs

Point counts are the most commonly employed methodology in bird surveys. Survey points are usually spaced ≥250 m apart to prevent double counting. In cases where they are used in small (<200 ha) geographic areas, this spacing results in a very small sample size, which may substantially underestimate species richness. Alternatively, locating survey points closer together may produce more complete species lists, but result in excessive double counting of individuals, yielding biased population estimates. We investigated this tradeoff in surveys of breeding birds in predominantly grassland habitats in 5 small (73–114 ha) national park units with survey points spaced at 100 m intervals. Sampling at this distance captured 70–90% of the estimated species richness at 4 of the 5 parks. Approximately half of the species observed were rare, occurring at ≤3 sites. Approximately one-third of all birds were observed far enough from the survey point to be counted at another point. Based on rarefaction curves, increasing the distance between survey points from 100 m to 200 m would result in a 27–48% reduction of observed species. Conducting multi-species bird surveys in small geographic areas using single-visit point counts that are widely spaced (e.g., ≥250 m) will likely underestimate species richness, even with the use of statistical species richness estimators. As a result, rare species will be undersampled.
Facilitating Major Choice with and Without Typology Assessments: An Action Research Project in an Introduction to Business Classroom

Research suggests that student confidence in their choice of major, especially when it is made early in their undergraduate career, is positively related to student retention and persistence (Cuseo, 2010; Shaw and Barbuti, 2010). As such, institutions of higher education have a vested interest in helping students to make major choices early in their college careers. One method for helping students to determine which career, and therefore college major, they should choose are typology assessments. However, the use of typology assessments to aid students in academic and vocational choice is problematic, especially as those typologies are reductionistic and replicate societal inequities. In this chapter, we review the use of typologies as a tool to direct major choice through a critical lens. Second, we discuss the results of an action research project in an introductory business classroom that implemented and assessed student experiences with alternative activities to help students identify career and major interests. Finally, we conclude with recommendations for instructional activities that can help students make a major choice.
Dispersoid Distribution and Microstructure in Fe-Cr-Al Ferritic Oxide Dispersion-Strengthened Alloy Prepared by Friction Consolidation

INCOLOY® MA956 is a ferritic oxide dispersion-strengthened alloy manufactured by mechanical alloying followed by hot extrusion in vacuum-sealed cans or by degassing and hot isostatic pressing. This could be followed by a tailored heat treatment sequence in order to obtain a desired microstructure and to allow the oxide dispersion to precipitate. Three different oxides, responsible for the high-temperature mechanical strength, have been observed in this alloy: Y4Al2O9, YAlO3, and Y3Al5O12. Their sizes range from just a few to hundreds of nanometers. In this work, mechanically alloyed MA956 powder was consolidated via friction consolidation, a single-step and potentially cheaper processing alternative. Three fully dense compacts were produced. The compacts exhibited a refined, equiaxed grain structure with grain sizes smaller than 10 µm and the desired oxide dispersion. YAlO3 and Y3Al5O12 were identified by scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), and X-ray diffraction. The size distribution of precipitates above 50 nm showed a direct proportionality between average precipitate size and grain size. The total energy input during processing was correlated with the relative amount of each of the oxides in the disks: the higher the total processing energy input, the higher the relative amount of Y3Al5O12 precipitates. The elemental composition of the oxide precipitates was also probed individually by EDS, showing an aluminum enrichment trend as precipitates grew in size.
Labor Market Structure and Wage Differences in New York City

The question of the differences between the average wages received by Hispanic workers and average wages received by their white counterparts has received extensive attention during the last decade.1 Previous studies have found that differences in human capital, immigrants’ ability to adapt to new labor markets, and discrimination are important factors in explaining low wages for Hispanics. In contrast to findings regarding black men’s earnings, differences in measurable characteristics, particularly in education, explain the largest proportion of wage differences for Hispanics. On this account, a lower proportion of the wage gap is attributable to discrimination. Such findings, however, are based on the assumption of a competitive labor market in which there are no barriers to worker mobility and in which market forces therefore tend to eliminate wage or employment differences as Hispanic workers adapt to their new working environment. To the extent that labor markets are noncompetitive and workers’ attributes contribute to the support of industrial dualism and segmentation, however, there could be a premium attached to labor-market location, that is, to the sector or segment of the labor market in which a particular worker is employed. Despite the growing research measuring the effects of human capital and immigrant background, very few studies have measured the relative effect of labor-market location on earnings for Hispanics.
Genesis of antibiotic resistance (AR) I: monitoring of microbial pathogens with AR by Texas Clean Water Program in Rio Grande Basin including Amistad Reservoir (986.1)

Water-related (borne) diseases are categorized into four different classes: waterborne, water-washed, water-based, and water-related insect vectors. The Pacific Institute Research Report (http://www.pacinst.org/) speculates that by 2020 a global mortality rate of 34-76 million people will be observed due to water related diseases. One of the main sources for water in Southwest Texas is the Rio Grande River which receives its water influx from Las Vacas, Rio Conchos, Rio Rodrigo, and Rio Salado tributaries from Mexico. The Rio Grande River flows through the southwest border and is stored in the Amistad Reservoir located in Del Rio, Texas. The “Texas Clean Rivers Program” a collaborative program operated by The Amistad Reservoir - International Boundary and Water Commission, US section(USIBWC) - The Rio Grande Basin and The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality(TCEQ) monitor the microbial and water quality issues in Texas. As per the 2012 Basin Highlights Report for the Rio Grande Basin in Texas show th...
Measurement of high-energy charged particles from laser-produced plasmas

High-energy charged particles are copiously produced from the interactions of high power laser beams and matter. These particles may carry with them the bulk of the energy involved as well as the relevant information concerning the mechanisms and the history of the interaction processes.
Mobility and cognition: End points for dietary interventions in aging

BACKGROUND: Healthy aging is associated with functional declines in mobility and cognition among both humans and non-human animals. OBJECTIVE: This study combines human measures of mobility and cognition to develop a test battery for evaluating the effects of dietary supplements among older adults. Selected measures parallel behavior tasks used to assess the efficacy of dietary interventions in rodent models of aging. METHODS: Seventy six healthy adults, between the ages of 21 and 75, completed a 1 hour mobility and cognition assessment. Postural sway and spatiotemporal gait parameters were measured using a Zebris ™ instrumented treadmill system. A computerbased virtual water maze and the trail-making test were used to assess spatial memory and executive function, respectively. RESULTS: Sway velocity during quiet standing increased with age. Preferred gait speed declined with age and changes in the gait cycle reveal an age-related increase in total double support during normal walking. In the virtual water maze, latency to locate a hidden or visible platform increased with age; meanwhile, probe test performance declined with age. CONCLUSIONS: Healthy adults show age-related declines in measures of mobility and cognition. These measures are a useful tool for translating research on dietary interventions to older adults.
Incorporating human relationships into path planning

While pathfinding is ubiquitous in games, it is most often abstracted away from everything else that is going on in the game and viewed as a simple point-to-point shortest path problem. The notable exception to this is work on tactical pathfinding. Tactical pathfinding incorporates tactical elements, most often for battle simulations, into the pathfinding engine in order to improve high-level behavior. This paper looks at how the relationship between characters in a game should influence the paths that are taken through the game. We suggest a simple model of character relationships and show how this can be used to influence the paths that are taken through the world. Finally, we discuss design-related issues of how this could be incorporated into games.
Secure optical communications using wavelength tunable optical filters

This report presents several conceptual designs for all-optical implementations to enhance the security of optical communications links. The method takes advantage of technology which uses the wavelength selective filtering properties of electronically tunable high finesse Fabry-Perot interferometers (FPIs). For the application under consideration the FPI would physically separate from a broad band (e.g., >20 nm) optical source, such as superluminescent LED, a narrow band (e.g., <0.1 nm) of wavelengths and the latter would be modulated with the information signal of interest. The modulated optical signal is combined with the unmodulated part of the broadband signal prior to transmission. The decoding process at the receiver would require an identical FPI tuned to the same narrow band of wavelengths in order to selectively extract the modulated narrowband signal carrying the information transmitted. Robustness of the security is enhanced by the electronic tunability of the FPIs which could potentially lead to a wavelength-hopped transmission and tracking communication system.
Electronic medical records, nurse staffing, and nurse-sensitive patient outcomes: evidence from California hospitals, 1998-2007.

Objective. To estimate the effects of electronic medical records (EMR) implementation on medical-surgical acute unit costs, length of stay, nurse staffing levels, nursing skill mix, nurse cost per hour, and nurse-sensitive patient outcomes. Data Sources. Data on EMR implementation came from the 1998–2007 HIMSS Analytics Databases. Data on nurse staffing and patient outcomes came from the 1998–2007 Annual Financial Disclosure Reports and Patient Discharge Databases of the California Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development (OSHPD). Methods. Longitudinal analysis of an unbalanced panel of 326 short-term, general acute care hospitals in California. Marginal effects estimated using fixed effects (within-hospital) OLS regression. Principal Findings. EMR implementation was associated with 6–10 percent higher cost per discharge in medical-surgical acute units. EMR stage 2 increased registered nurse hours per patient day by 15–26 percent and reduced licensed vocational nurse cost per hour by 2–4 percent. EMR stage 3 was associated with 3–4 percent lower rates of in-hospital mortality for conditions. Conclusions. Our results suggest that advanced EMR applications may increase hospital costs and nurse staffing levels, as well as increase complications and decrease mortality for some conditions. Contrary to expectation, we found no support for the proposition that EMR reduced length of stay or decreased the demand for nurses.
Image segmentation based on a dynamically coupled neural oscillator network

In this paper, a dynamically coupled neural oscillator network is proposed for image segmentation. Instead of pair-wise coupling, an ensemble of oscillators coupled in a local region is used for grouping. We introduce a set of neighborhoods to generate dynamical coupling structures associated with a specific oscillator. Based on the proximity and similarity principles, two grouping rules are proposed to explicitly consider the distinct cases of whether an oscillator is inside a homogeneous image region or near a boundary between different regions. The use of dynamical coupling makes our segmentation network robust to noise on an image. For fast computation, a segmentation algorithm is abstracted from the underlying oscillatory dynamics and has been applied to synthetic and real images. Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of our oscillator network in image segmentation.
A resolution with the congruence principle of viscosity in mixtures of n-hexadecane and l-n-chloroalkanes at 25°C

The viscosity of binary mixtures of n-hexadecane with nine normal 1-chloroalkanes from butyl through octadecyl at 25°C. is considered. This includes a range in kinematic viscosities from less than 0.5 to more than 8.5 centistokes. Resolution of departures from ideal flow, as defined with the Eyring viscosity equation, into homogeneous and heterogeneous aspects is described in terms of the restricted principle of congruence. Experimental viscosity values agree within about 1% with those calculated through the relationships obtained by the resolution. The method is also considered for the estimation of viscosities of mixtures of the present systems. On etudie a 25°C la viscosite de melanges binaires d'hexadecane normal avec neuf 1-chloroalcanes normaux (allant du butyle a l'octodecyle; ce travail a compris une echelle de viscosites cinematiques variant entre 8.5 centistokes. On decrit, d'apres le principe restreint de la congruence, la resolution en aspects homogene et heterogene des ecarts de l'ecoulement ideal, tel que defini par l'equation de viscosite d'Erying. Les valeurs experimentales de viscosite concordent a 1% pres avec celles qu'on a calculees au moyen des relations obtenues par la resolution.
Interface roughening in the three-dimensional Ising model.

Using Monte Carlo simulations, we determine the roughening temperature of a (100) interface in the three-dimensional Ising model to be at about 0.542\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.005 in units of the critical temperature. For higher temperatures, the squared interface thickness is found to increase logarithmically with system size. These results agree well with theoretical predictions as well as previous numerical determinations.
New reports of cyanolipids from sapindaceous plants

Abstract Several previously uninvestigated species of the Sapindaceae were examined and found to contain cyanolipids and cyanogenic compounds. Several species from the Melianthaceae, Meliosmaceae and Hippocastanaceae were devoid of these substances.
Transnational Protection of U. S. Expatriate Employees Under the Civil Rights Act of l991 The Potential

This paper examines the applicable scope of United States employment discrimination law to “American” employers of U.S. citizens abroad. Through an analysis of the extraterritorial dimension of American anti‐bias, it is demonstrated that over time, it has become accepted that the full‐range of U.S. anti‐bias law applies transnationally. However, just who is considered an “American” firm is an open‐ended question under the Mas Marques test codified in the Civil Rights Act of 1991. The implications of this ambiguity could well lead to potential legal conflicts in the area of employment discrimination for a multitude of firms worldwide who may not consider themselves presently to be bound by United States employment law.
If bears eat in the woods

‘If’ is the most problematical two-letter word in the language. And conditional assertions, which it forms, have been a headache for analysts for over 2000 years. Children know what the word means, and so do you – until I ask you to tell me. Jonathan Evans, a psychologist, and David Over, a philosopher, are a long-standing team of experts on reasoning, and they have joined forces again to try to crack this puzzle. Following Edgington [1], they distinguish three sorts of theory about the meaning of ‘if’, and they try to decide which of them is best.
Civil society and democratic progression in postcolonial Nigeria: The role of non-governmental organizations

Abstract With the ever increasing demands of market forces via globalization on governments, the parallel requests from citizens to fill the gap often left open by states have become just as prevalent in the modern era. Governments have become ill-equipped to handle such citizen demands or simply unwilling, thus civil society agents in the form of Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) are attempting to fill those gaps. Ideally, civil society actors like NGOs collectively mobilize and advocate more political openness, in the form of civil liberties and civil rights. However, NGOs can stymie democracy-building as well. Demands for more democratization are increasing precipitously, and seem to be coinciding with the rising tide of globalization, even in nascent democracies such as Nigeria. However, the idealism of the 1990s, that NGOs would be the panacea for democratic limitations, are not revealing themselves as once anticipated for a plethora of reasons. This paper will investigate the impact of NGO effor...
Teaching a Personality Course in Vienna

This article describes a course, Vienna's Psychologists: Freud, Adler, and Frankl, taught in Vienna to American college students during the summer of 1995. Students read the original works of Freud...
Minimax linear observers and regulators for stochastic systems with uncertain second-order statistics

The problem of minimax design of linear observers and regulators for linear time-varying multivariable stochastic systems with uncertain models of their second-order statistics is treated in this paper. General classes of allowable covariance matrices and means of the process and observation noises and of the random initial condition are considered. A game formulation of the problem is adopted and it is shown that the optimal filter for the least favorable set of covariances is minimax robust for each of the filtering situations analyzed. Conditions satisfied by the saddle-point solutions are given, and their utility for finding the worst case covariances is illustrated by way of several examples of uncertainty classes of practical interest.
Cortical atrophy and white matter hyperintensities in HIV: the Hawaii Aging with HIV Cohort Study.

Background As many human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-seropositive individuals are now living longer after infection because of highly active antiretroviral therapy, aging-related manifestations of cerebral small-vessel ischemic vascular disease, such as brain white matter hyperintensities (WMHs), are becoming increasingly important in this population. Goals This study was designed to determine the relationship between WMHs and cortical volumes in HIV-seropositive individuals. Materials and Methods Voxel-based morphometry was used to compare cortical volumes among 62 HIV-seropositive individuals participating in the Hawaii Aging with HIV Cohort Study, 30 with moderate WMHs and 32 with minimal or no WMHs. Results Presence of moderate WMHs was associated with decreased cortical volumes in the frontal lobes bilaterally. Conclusion These findings suggest that age-related WMHs are associated with reduced frontal gray matter volumes in HIV-seropositive individuals, supporting the hypothesis that the frontal lobes may have greater susceptibility to the effects of small-vessel ischemic vascular disease.
Characterization of i−d repressor mutations of the lactose operon

A set of dominant mutations in the lacI gene (iq–d mutants) has been obtained and characterized as to repression of the lactose operon in vivo. Studies of inducer and operator binding in vitro have been done on repressors from representative mutants. Several types of mutations are experimentally distinguished, including one which affects both operator and inducer affinities of the repressor. Another type appears to affect the stability of the repressor in vivo. Operator binding studies in vitro demonstrate the presence of mixed (iq+/iq–d) repressor tetramers in extracts of cells carrying both alleles of the i gene.
Obesity Epidemic: Overview, Pathophysiology, and the Intensive Care Unit Conundrum

Obesity is one of the leading causes of preventable death in the United States, second only to smoking. The annual number of deaths attributed to obesity is estimated to be as high as 400,000. Nearly 70% of the adult U.S. population is overweight or obese. The historical viewpoint toward obesity has deemed it to be a lifestyle choice or characterological flaw. However, given the emerging research into the development of obesity and its related complications, our perspective is changing. It is now clear that obesity is a heterogeneous disease with many different subtypes, which involves an interplay between genetic and environmental factors. The current epidemic of obesity is the result of an obesogenic environment (which includes energy-dense foods and a lack of physical activity) in individuals who have a genetic susceptibility for developing obesity. The pathophysiology associated with weight gain is much more complex than originally thought. The heterogeneous nature of the disease makes the development of treatment strategies for obesity difficult. Obesity in general is associated with increased all-cause mortality and cause-specific mortality (from cardiovascular, diabetic, hepatic, and neoplastic causes). Yet despite increased overall mortality rates, current evidence suggests that when these same patients are admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU), the obesity provides some protection against mortality. At present, there is no clear explanation for this obesity conundrum in critical illness.
Pediatric Resuscitation and Cardiac Arrest

Cardiac arrest in children is, fortunately, a relatively infrequent event. Mortality rate after cardiac arrest is greater than 50%. This article discusses strategies to increase the chance of survival to discharge. These strategies focus on suggestions for organizing a system prepared to care for critically ill children, incorporating the 2010 American Heart Association resuscitation guidelines into clinical practice, and encouraging physicians to become advocates of decreasing the occurrence of pediatric cardiac arrest. Providing the best-prepared system available to care for critically ill children will, it is hoped, decrease the number of preventable deaths in children.
Magnetic resonance imaging of focal liver lesions: Approach to imaging diagnosis

This article is a review of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of incidental focal liver lesions. This review provides an overview of liver MRI protocol, diffusion-weighted imaging, and contrast agents. Additionally, the most commonly encountered benign and malignant lesions are discussed with emphasis on imaging appearance and the diagnostic performance of MRI based on a review of the literature.
Learning and task interference by corpse-removal specialists in honey bee colonies

Undertakers are considered to be among the most specialized of pre-foraging honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) workers. In this study we examined a possible benefit and a cost of the corpse-rem oval specialty, the improvement in performance with experience, and interference by individuals attempting to perform the same task in the same location, respectively. Experienced bees removed corpses significantly faster than less experienced bees and also were less likely to drop corpses while exiting the hive (5.5% vs. 14.3% of attempts). Superior performance by experienced undertakers might occur as a consequence of learning, or by greater ability from the outset. Because active undertakers (≥ 3 corpse removals) did not improve with experience over their own careers, learning was not demonstrated. An extreme specialist, Yellow 54, removed a total of 114 corpses (33.8% of experimentally introduced dead bees) from the hive over a 13-day period. This is the longest recorded tenure of undertaking to date and demonstrates how a few individuals can dominate this task in a honey bee colony-Yellow 54 removed corpses significantly faster than other active bees, but she demonstrated no obvious improvement in performance over her undertaking career. This suggests the possibility that active undertakers were more talented than less active undertakers, irrespective of learning. When two undertakers worked together to remove a corpse from the hive, they took longer to complete the task than did single individuals. When multiple undertakers flew together from the hive, they were less likely to clear a nearby obstruction than single undertakers and were more likely to drop the corpse within 1 m of the hive. Thus, mutual interference exacted a measurable cost as a result of the undertaking specialization while learning provided few benefits.
Peer-to-peer model for the area coverage and cooperative control of mobile sensor networks

This paper presents a novel model and distributed algorithms for the cooperation and redeployment of mobile sensor networks. A mobile sensor network composes of a collection of wireless connected mobile robots equipped with a variety of sensors. In such a sensor network, each mobile node has sensing, computation, communication, and locomotion capabilities. The locomotion ability enhances the autonomous deployment of the system. The system can be rapidly deployed to hostile environment, inaccessible terrains or disaster relief operations. The mobile sensor network is essentially a cooperative multiple robot system. This paper first presents a peer-to-peer model to define the relationship between neighboring communicating robots. Delaunay Triangulation and Voronoi diagrams are used to define the geometrical relationship between sensor nodes. This distributed model allows formal analysis for the fusion of spatio-temporal sensory information of the network. Based on the distributed model, this paper discusses a fault tolerant algorithm for autonomous self-deployment of the mobile robots. The algorithm considers the environment constraints, the presence of obstacles and the nonholonomic constraints of the robots. The distributed algorithm enables the system to reconfigure itself such that the area covered by the system can be enlarged. Simulation results have shown the effectiveness of the distributed model and deployment algorithms.
ECONOMIC POLICY ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH BEACH RENOURISHMENT

Coastal beaches are a source of considerable recreational activity, but are also eroding at a rapid rate. Since beach resources are common property, there is no organized market to determine economic benefits from recreational use. Through a willingness to pay equation for beach use, this article demonstrates how proposed beach renourishment policy can be evaluated within a benefit-cost analysis framework. Benefits are estimated as the incremental willingness to pay per day for a larger beach width which is translated into annualized benefits. Annualize cost of achieving maximum benefits are calculated from a cost function. Given the existing cost of beach renourishment, it was found that all beaches in Florida that are overcrowded (i.e., had less than 112 square feet per person/day) could be renourished at a benefit-cost ratio greater than unity. In Florida, beach renourishment policy for overcrowded beaches yields more economic benefits than costs. However, this technique does not lend itself to policy analyses of uncrowded beaches that are undergoing considerable erosion.
Experiments using laser-triggered electrical discharges to generate electromagnetic missiles

A design for a launcher of electromagnetic missiles for a target 100 km distant is discussed in terms of the time dependence of a current pulse over an aperture. Two issues in implementing this design are: (1) to provide the required current distribution over a small surface element; and (2) to coordinate many such elements in an array. We consider an energy flux per pulse at the pulse launcher on the order of 3 x 10 exp -8 J/sq cm for a pulse duration of 100 fs. If this pulse generation can be synchronized over a surface aperture of 6-m radius, for a train of 10 exp 6 pulses, one transmits a flux to a target at 100 km on the order of 10 mJ/sq cm per pulse train.© (1992) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Polynomial expansions for spectral densities

Abstract Modified moments and polynomial expansions are employed in imaging the spectral densities that arise in electron-scattering and photoionization calculations.
Carbon monoxide emissions from turbulent nonpremixed jet flames

Abstract Carbon monoxide emission indices were measured for turbulent jet flames produced by burning either methane, propane, ethylene, or a carbon monoxidehydrogen mixture in air. Flame conditions were varied by changing the initial jet velocity or diluting the fuel with N2. The CO emissions correlate strongly with flame luminosity, and ostensibly, with in-flame soot, consistent with CO/soot measurements in laminar flames, low-Reynolds number turbulent jet flames, pool fires, and other fire-related flame environments. The present measurements indicate that the physical and chemical processes controlling CO emissions from diffusion flames are similar over a wide range of flow conditions.
Corneal endothelial transplantation.

Abstract Patients with visually significant corneal edema, secondary to endothelial dysfunction, before the development of scarring or vascularization, need only have the corneal endothelium replaced to restore corneal clarity. This fact, plus the lack of consistently available donor material, prompted us to evaluate tissue cultured corneal endothelium (TCCE) as a donor source. We have shown that TCCE, when transplanted, can regain normal morphology and physiologic function. To accomplish practical use of autologous stroma, a transparent gelatin membrane which can serve as substrate for endothelial growth in tissue culture, has been developed. This cellular membrane has been transplanted successfully in rabbits with good functional results. It is hoped that ultimately this technique can be developed for routine use in man.
AUGMENTED FIFO CACHE REPLACEMENT POLICIES FOR LOW-POWER EMBEDDED PROCESSORS

This paper explores a family of augmented FIFO replacement policies for highly setassociative caches that are common in low-power embedded processors. In such processors, the implementation cost and complexity of the replacement policy is as important as the cache hit rate. By exploiting the cache hit way information between two replacements, the proposed replacement schemes reduce cache misses by 1% to 18% on average depending on the cache configuration, compared with the conventional FIFO policy. The proposed schemes come at a small implementation cost of additional state bits and control logic. The reduction in cache misses directly translates into data access energy savings of 1% to 15% on average, depending on the cache configuration. Our work suggests that there is room for improving the popular FIFO policy at a small cost.