cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
From Tax Policy to Social Insurance (Presentation Slides)

This presentation was delivered to the Tax Section of the New York State Bar Association in January 2020. It first briefly reviews important current tax policy issues, and shows that the income tax has plenty of headroom to accommodate higher tax revenues: “Personal Income,” the government’s broadest measure of household income, is $6 trillion higher than aggregate Adjusted Gross Incomes. The presentation then pulls back its focus to poverty and middle class life. It argues that education is the engine of economic opportunity, but the United States dishonors the principle of equality of opportunity by its unique reliance on private (family) resources to fund education, particularly among the very young and post-secondary students. Doing more is feasible: the United States is a low-tax country to start, and investment in education yields “inclusive growth.” Efficiency concerns are systematically overstated in many instances, because those analyses do not consider the returns on government investment in education and other programs financed by taxes. Taxes may be carried in leaky buckets, but even a leaky bucket can put out a fire. Finally, the presentation pulls back still further to consider how one might reframe these issues around a unifying theme. It argues that existential bad luck — particularly, bad luck in the wealth of one’s parents — casts a disproportionately long shadow on American lives, and that insurance — understood as both product and metaphor — is the unifying theme that can tie together our responses. In this, the presentation hints at the agenda of my forthcoming book, What’s Luck Got To Do With It?
Diversification in the Middle East: From Crude Trends to Refined Policies

Abstract The paper takes stock of key trends in export diversification in MENA oil exporting countries. It concludes that since the early 1980s, diversification in goods exports has been limited, whereas in services, diversification has been more pronounced. GCC countries have diversified slightly better than other MENA oil exporters. Diversification has been largely based on exploiting existing comparative advantages in fuels with a number of recent attempts to develop comparative advantages in new areas. It has also been intensive within traditional product groups and forward-looking along the global value chains. The paper proposes a multidimensional framework for the macroeconomic assessment of diversification outcomes and policies.
Bladder and Urothelial Cancer

Urothelial Carcinoma is defined as the abnormal division of cells within the layers of tissue or urothelium of the renal pelvis, bladder, ureters, and the urethra. Cancer of the bladder, ureters, and urethra most commonly are missed diagnosed as urinary tract infections or nephrolithiasis. Patients may be given multiple courses of antibiotics and/or pain medication without resolution of their symptoms. Diagnosis and management of the disease is delayed, with risk of disease progression. This chapter presents the key point to evaluation and management of patients that present with known or suspected urothelial carcinoma, including identification of risk factors, diagnostic pathways, and guidelines for referral for surgical management.
Orientaciones transpacíficas: La modernidad mexicana y el espectro de Asia: Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2019. 262 pp., Paperback.

Laura Torres-Rodriguez’s study Orientaciones transpacificas: La modernidad mexicana y el espectro de Asia is a brilliant, interdisciplinary book that rewrites intellectual Mexican history by addres...
Metastatic Melanoma Presenting as a Gastric Mass.

Melanoma is the most deadly form of skin cancer. While the jejunum, ileum, colon, and rectum are common gastrointestinal sites of metastasis, metastatic melanoma to the stomach is rare and usually not discovered until late in the disease. We report a patient who presented with weight loss and hematemesis; on esophagogastroduodenoscopy, a gastric mass was found, and pathology was consistent with melanoma.
Behavioral Genetics: Dissecting a Supergene to Understand Behavior.

Summary New research shows how alternative ‘supergene’ alleles of Estrogen Receptor 1 are differentially expressed in specific brain nuclei causing aggressive behavior in the white-throated sparrow.
The relationship between accelerometer-measured sleep and next day ecological momentary assessment symptom report during sport-related concussion recovery.

Abstract Objectives Research examining sleep and concussion symptoms following sport-related concussion (SRC) is limited by retrospective self-report rather than objective data from wearable technology and real-time symptom report. The purpose of this study is to use actigraphy and ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to examine the relationship between sleep parameters and next day symptoms. Methods Seventeen athletes (47.1%F) aged 12-19 (15.35+/-2.09) years ( Results SE% (IRR .97, 95%CI: .95, .99, P= .009) and TST (IRR .91, 95%CI: .84, .999, P = .047) were negatively associated with next day night symptoms. The negative relationship between SE% and the cognitive-migraine-fatigue (CMF) factor was significant for next day/night symptoms (P = .01), while TST was associated with symptom severity for the affective symptom factor (P = .015). Sleep was negatively associated with total symptoms and afternoon symptoms in Week 1 and total, morning, afternoon, and night symptoms in Week 2 (ps=.001-.021) of recovery. Conclusion Sleep was negatively associated with symptoms the next day, especially late in the day and among CMF and emotional symptoms. The relationship between sleep and symptom burden was strongest in the subacute stage of concussion recovery, highlighting the potential importance of sleep intervention post-injury.
Sustaining redox-magnetohydrodynamics (R-MHD) microfluidics by switching oppositely-polarized permanent magnets: Synchronized activation and automation

Abstract A transformative advance in redox-magnetohydrodynamics (R-MHD) microfluidics is demonstrated that indefinitely extends its pumping duration with a miniaturizable approach, while preserving its uniqueness as an internal, self-contained, on-device, active and versatile pump that can also propel fluid in a loop. R-MHD can address the need for fine-tuning microfluidics in micro total analysis systems (μTAS) for multiple functions in an automated fashion that conventional external pumps with channels and/or valves that determine direction cannot fulfill. In MHD, a body force produced by the cross product of ionic current between strategically-activated electrodes and magnetic flux from a permanent magnet or electromagnet drives the fluid. Conducting-polymer-modified electrodes (e.g. with poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene), PEDOT), involve faradaic processes to convert electronic current in the external circuit to ionic current in solution, overcoming bubble generation and electrode corrosion that limited previous MHD microfluidic applications. PEDOT-R-MHD pumping operates with a wider variety of solution compositions and without redox additives. However, pumping stops after complete oxidation/reduction of redox sites in the PEDOT films. The new advance reverses current between PEDOT-modified electrodes to discharge/recharge the polymer while simultaneously swapping permanent magnets of opposite polarities to sustain a constant, unidirectional pumping speed interrupted with brief pauses and without inductive heating. Factors affecting fluid velocities are described, including positions across the magnet assembly, current magnitudes and synchrony with current reversal. A model system (microbeads in biologically-compatible phosphate-buffered saline) is used, which can be generalized more broadly to biological and environmental applications, where starting, stopping, and indefinitely sustaining pumping of a sample are important.
WTO Disciplines on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures: Balancing Policy Space and Legal Constraints

General introduction 1. Rationales for offering subsidies Part I. Legal Disciplines on Subsidization and the Imposition of Countervailing Measures: 2. Historical overview 3. Scope of the SCM Agreement 4. Disciplines on subsidies 5. Remedies 6. Differential treatment Part II. Case Study: WTO Disciplines on Export Credit Support: 7. Export credit support 8. Rationale for disciplining export credit support: historical context 9. Main elements of the OECD Arrangement 10. Disciplines on export credit support for non-agricultural products 11. Disciplines on export credit support for agricultural products 12. Export credit support in light of the GATS 13. Negotiations on export credit support disciplines in the Doha round 14. Conclusion: normative analysis of disciplines on export credit support Part III. Normative Analysis of Disciplines on Subsidization and the Imposition of Countervailing Measures: 15. The scope of the SCM Agreement: specific subsidies 16. Disciplines on subsidization by developed countries 17. Disciplines on subsidization by developing countries 18. Disciplines on countervailing measures 19. Disciplines on subsidies in light of policy responses to the economic crisis Overall conclusion.
A rational approach to pelvic trauma : resuscitation and early definitive stabilization

The patient with polytrauma and an unstable pelvic ring injury is a treatment challenge. The orthopaedic surgeon should be involved in the care when the patient is brought into the hospital. Rapid pelvic ring stability should diminish pelvic hemorrhage. Early treatment decisions have significant impact on subsequent options. A team approach using open communication among the various subspecialties allows coordinated care and optimizes outcome. Early, definitive pelvic internal fixation is difficult yet beneficial.
High- and low-cost realities for science and society

In this [Policy Forum][1], the author argues for greater awareness in the scientific community about where we stand in the tension between science and society, what has been achieved so far, and what is to be expected for the future. So far, in order to persuade the public of the need to support science, technology, and innovation, efforts have largely focused on communicating something of the beauty, the glamour, and the enthusiasm of science and technology. In the future, more must be done to explain how research is actually carried out. Simultaneously, society's expectations must be better incorporated into the process of research. [1]: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/308/5725/1117
Contaminant Sorbent Aggregation Index based on Cadmium Sorption Capacity

Mixture rules that enable the estimation of the characteristics of composite mixtures using data on the characteristics of their components are useful in reducing the frequency and cost of material testing for construction quality assurance prediction of barriers in waste containment systems. Different components of a mixture have characteristics that may not always be represented in direct proportion to their contents in the composite mixture. In this paper, the interaction effects of such mixtures are scaled in terms of an aggregation index. This index is formulated on the basis of metal sorption capacity measurements and used to investigate four mix designs, covering different weight proportions of four materials (Ottawa sand, fly ash, diatomaceous earth and Ca-montmorillonite). Computations using test data obtained through cadmium sorption tests indicate an increase in aggregation by up to 50% for mixtures with high clay content (10%). Also, values of aggregation index were found to be less than 1 for...
Improved methods for observing Earth's time variable mass distribution with GRACE using spherical cap mascons

We discuss several classes of improvements to gravity solutions from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) mission. These include both improvements in background geophysical models and orbital parameterization leading to the unconstrained spherical harmonic solution JPL RL05, and an alternate JPL RL05M mass concentration (mascon) solution benefitting from those same improvements but derived in surface spherical cap mascons. The mascon basis functions allow for convenient application of a priori information derived from near-global geophysical models to prevent striping in the solutions. The resulting mass flux solutions are shown to suffer less from leakage errors than harmonic solutions, and do not necessitate empirical filters to remove north-south stripes, lowering the dependence on using scale factors (the global mean scale factor decreases by 0.17) to gain accurate mass estimates. Ocean bottom pressure (OBP) time series derived from the mascon solutions are shown to have greater correlation with in situ data than do spherical harmonic solutions (increase in correlation coefficient of 0.08 globally), particularly in low-latitude regions with small signal power (increase in correlation coefficient of 0.35 regionally), in addition to reducing the error RMS with respect to the in situ data (reduction of 0.37 cm globally, and as much as 1 cm regionally). Greenland and Antarctica mass balance estimates derived from the mascon solutions agree within formal uncertainties with previously published results. Computing basin averages for hydrology applications shows general agreement between harmonic and mascon solutions for large basins; however, mascon solutions typically have greater resolution for smaller spatial regions, in particular when studying secular signals.
The Modern Day Gikuyun Farmer

The purpose of this research project is to study the economic and social implications of smallholder agriculture in Kenya. The shift of smallholders from subsistence farming to cash crop farming created significant changes in the standards of living, social security, reproduction, and the sexual division of labor. With the strong social impact of commercial farming, many Kenyans are wondering whether they are materially better or worse off than they were thirty five years ago.
The Changing Role and Responsibilities of a Chairman—Letters

In Reply.— I would like to thank the scores of readers who wrote and called to tell me how much they enjoyed and appreciated the article dealing with the role of academic clinical chairmen.1 Dr Strasburger emphasizes one of the points addressed in my article. As stated, this article "is directed toward deans and search committees, because they frequently have criteria for selecting chairmen that do not include the personal qualities discussed in this manuscript." If any changes are to be instituted in the charge to search committees they would have to be determined by the dean and faculty.
Structure Prediction of Protein Complexes

Protein-protein interactions are critical for biological function. They directly and indirectly influence the biological systems of which they are a part. Antibodies bind with antigens to detect and stop viruses and other infectious agents. Cell signaling is performed in many cases through the interactions between proteins. Many diseases involve protein-protein interactions on some level, including cancer and prion diseases.
The Limited Readability of Lansdell Numerals

In contrast with earlier research showing Lansdell numerals superior in legibility to conventional number shapes during brief exposure of single digits, the present study found that Lansdell numerals are read at least 15% more slowly than Mackworth or Elite numbers when groups of five symbols are scanned for a target digit, and are read 34% more slowly when the five digits in each group must be added. This lower readability indicates that Lansdell numerals should not be used in situations requiring interpretation of displayed numbers, i.e., should not be used for most display applications.
Programming models, languages, and compilers for manycore and heterogeneous architectures

Aim and Scope. Hardware is emerging rapidly, core count is increasing, and systems consist of large cluster of nodes. These nodes are becoming more heterogeneous, that is, multicore CPUs attached to accelerators meant to address specific needs of specific computations. The type of parallelism each accelerator offers is quite different from the other. On the other hand, software for such emerging parallel and heterogeneous computing systems is still catching up.The gap between hardware and software is growing; it is a challenge for the software developers to keep up with the hardware advancements. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop and maintain sophisticated software that can not only offer performance productive solutions but also be applicable to a wide range of hardware systems. Some of the promising and widely used programming solutions include directive-based programming models such as OpenMP, vendor-specific programming models such as NVIDIA’s CUDA, OpenCL, and recently emerging programming model, OpenACC. This special issue publishes papers on the evaluations of these models for parallel computing with respect to several factors including locality-aware scheduling, data transfer optimizations, SIMD vectorization on Phi coprocessors, and programming multi-GPU.
Text Message Service of Process - No LOL Matter: Whether Text Message Service of Process Comports with Due Process

This Note examines whether, in the wake of continuing technological advancements, text message service of process is constitutional. It argues that text message service of process is not per se unconstitutional. Nevertheless, given the current technological limitations of text messages, text message service of process should not be used. This Note also proposes a legal framework for permitting text message service of process should the limitations of text messages be fixed.
Determinants of Attendance in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League: Role of Winning, Scoring, and Fighting

Attendance in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League was studied for the 2009 to 2010 season. This junior league, part of the Canadian Hockey League system, serves as a development league for teenage players who attempt to parlay their participation in this league into a professional career. Fan demand for this level of hockey is found to be sensitive to the success of the home team and to exhibit normal consumer responses to weekday and monthly effects with weekends being more popular and attendance increasing throughout the season toward the playoffs. On-ice factors such as scoring, a proxy for excitement, and fighting are not shown to have a significant effect on attendance.
Faction and Ideology: Thomas Starkey's Dialogue

Thomas Starkey's (c. 1495–1538) Dialogue between Reginald Pole and Thomas Lupset is one of the most significant works of political thought written in English between Fortescue and Hooker, for several reasons. It gives insight into its author's intellectual background – Oxford, Paris, Avignon, Padua, Venice – which he shared with many of the other ideologues of the Henrician state. More than that, the Dialogue represents one of the first attempts to blend continental humanism of a Venetian variety, and perhaps Florentine as well, with native English traditions in the creation of a theoretical justification for what Starkey called a ‘mixed state’. In this and in the practical reform proposals which issued from it, Starkey went beyond Thomas More, however superior Utopia may be as a work of literature, or how much more directly it seems to speak to us. The work is also worthy of attention for Starkey's own standing, even if hisinfluence with Thomas Cromwell was shortlived. G. R. Elton has begun this sort of study by using Starkey'sreforms to explore the intellectual underpinnings of the Cromwellian reform. Aside from this effort, interpretation has not been very successful. The Dialogue is undoubtedly a daunting work, not because of the inherent difficulty of its arguments, but rather the extreme eclecticism of the author and his attempt to fulfil two apparently discrepant purposes. It is precisely on this last point that modern criticism has fallen down most seriously. I would like to suggest that placing the work in its proper context in Starkey's life allows not only the recovery of those two conflicting intentions, but also a sketch of the motives underlying them. This will involve an examination of the only surviving manuscript of the Dialogue.
Syntheses and structures of metal–metal triply bonded M2R6 compounds: consideration of starting materials, stability, and structural parameters

Abstract The syntheses and structures of four homoleptic metal–metal triply-bonded M2R6 compounds [Mo2(CH2CMe2Ph)6, 1; Mo2(CH2SiMe2Ph)6, 2; W2(CH2SiMe2Ph)6, 3; and W2(CH2Ph)6, 4] are reported. The synthetic effort suggests that ditungsten compounds are inherently more difficult to prepare and more thermally sensitive than dimolybdenum compounds, probably as a result of the larger dimetal core the ligands must protect. The structural data confirm that dimetal hexaalkyls exhibit shorter M≡M distances than do dimetal hexaalkoxides, even in a matched pair case where steric differences are minimal.
Clinical Significance of Quantitative Assessment of Rectoanal Inhibitory Reflex (RAIR) in Patients With Constipation

Background: Rectoanal inhibitory reflex (RAIR) is routinely assessed in anorectal manometry and is of clinical value in the diagnosis of patients with constipation. However, no quantitative analysis is currently available for the assessment of RAIR. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic value of quantitative assessment of RAIR in patients with constipation. Methods: Nine healthy subjects, 22 constipation patients (CO) and 26 fecal incontinence patients (FI) were enrolled in this study. RAIR was solicited by inflating the balloon with various volumes from 10 to 50 mL. The percentage of relaxation was determined on the basis of the rectal resting sphincter pressure and residual pressure with the balloon distention. Results: Percentage of internal sphincter relaxation induced by rectal distention in constipation patients was significantly lower with distention of 20, 30, 40, and 50 mL in comparison with that in healthy subjects (Mixed model, P<0.05). The volume of distention required to achieve a relaxation of 50% was significantly higher in patients with CO (37.3 ± 3.1 mL) than that in healthy subjects (27.8 ± 2.6 mL, P<0.03) or FI (26.3 ± 2.3 mL, P<0.05). It was also found that the percentage of relaxation could be used to differentiate the patients with constipation with a specificity of 64% and a sensitivity of 67%. Conclusions: Patients with CO have impaired RAIR in comparison with healthy subjects and patients with FI. Quantitative assessment of RAIR is valuable in the diagnosis of patients with CO and may be incorporated in the clinical anorectal manometric test.
Pink-pigmented Non-fermentative Gram-negative Rods Associated with Human Infections: a Clinical and Diagnostic Challenge

Over the past several decades, the appearance of pink-pigmented bacteria in clinical specimens has gone from being a microbiologic curiosity in the clinical laboratory to the recognition of these aerobic microorganisms as etiologic agents of human disease, most notably bloodstream infections. Advances in the fields of molecular taxonomy and phylogenetics indicate that at least four distinct genera and eight different species are associated with clinical infections in susceptible patient populations. However, these bacteria are slow growing and present multiple diagnostic challenges to the microbiology laboratory including culture, isolation, and identification to species rank. This article provides a current review of these unusual non-fermentative chromogenic bacteria including their disease spectrum, taxonomy, and laboratory identification. The review also highlights the pitfalls or shortcomings we currently have in our knowledge of these microbes and their disease-producing capabilities.
A systematic approach for predictive maintenance service design: methodology and applications

Maintenance has always been considered as a service required during the middle-of-life period of a product in order to sustain its working condition and to extend its functional life. The ongoing evolution of products into more complex systems, the increase in customer expectations, the abundance of data available for, and the increase of computational abilities in, products have lead to the realisation that maintenance is no longer an aftermarket service needed for product functionality but rather an inherent service function of the product. This paper addresses how maintenance can be transformed from pure 'strategies' into 'a service function'. A state-of-the-art review on maintenance design is conducted and then a methodology and tools for effect predictive maintenance service design are presented. Two applications in the areas of closed-loop product life cycle management, and factory energy management, are discussed.
Personalized Healthcare Recommender Based on Social Media

Social media is rapidly changing the nature and speed of healthcare interaction. As more and more people go online to search for their health-related issues, providing them with appropriate information would save them from being overwhelmed by mountains of information. For this purpose, in this paper we propose a personalized healthcare recommending system to recommend highly relevant and trustworthy healthcare-related information to users. The system identifies key factors impacting the recommendation in a healthcare social networking environment, and uses semantic web technology and fuzzy logic to represent and evaluate the recommendation. Experiments were conducted and demonstrated that our approach can generate good outcomes in making recommendation and predicting the scope and impact of different factors.
Left Coronary Artery Arising from the Non-Coronary Sinus: A Rare Congenital Coronary Anomaly

Anomalous origin of the left coronary artery is a cause of sudden death in adolescents and young adults. Most commonly, it originates from the right coronary sinus or the pulmonary artery. Origin of the left main coronary artery from the non-coronary sinus of Valsalva is extremely rare. We report a case of a child with anomalous origin of the left main coronary artery from the non-coronary sinus diagnosed during the evaluation of a ventricular arrhythmia.
Segmentation-based texture coding algorithm for packet video: a goal-oriented approach

ABSTRACT The design of an image codec for packet-switched transmission is formulated as a minimization problem. A general set of design requirements is derived and used to design a segmentation-based texture coding algorithm. The segmentation process is performed on a pyramid data structure and uses the just noticeable difference (JND) of thehuman visual system as the merge criterion. To reduce the bit-rate while maintaining image quality, each region isclassified as either texture or non-texture. Texture regions are approximated by a one-dimensional polynomial, while the non-texture regions are approximated by the region's mean intensity. A set of parameters for bit-rate/image quality tuning is identified and their effect evaluated on LENA and HOUSE. 1. INTRODUCTION If it is important to reduce the impact of a packet-switched network on the performance of an image coding system, then the system design criteria must be respecified. We accomplish this by formulating the design process as a
Balanced models in isentropic coordinates and the shallow water equations

It is shown that there is an appropriate family of three balanced models in isentropic coordinates and the shallow water equations. “Appropriate” means the equations include exact hydrostatic, continuity and heat equations and form a complete system; some family members are second-order accurate in a midlatitude Rossby number expansion; the models conserve at least one integral invariant analogous to the primitive equation energy and enstrophy invariants; and the terms retained in the vorticity and divergence equations are the minimum required for the accuracy of the model in an asymptotic scale analysis. We compare vorticity and divergence in physical and isentropic coordinates to illustrate an aspect of the difference in physical content between balanced models defined in the different coordinates. We show that the early balanced models of Bolin and Charney are similar to members of our family in isentropic coordinates, but fail some of our criteria for appropriateness. Finally, we discuss why we think the above criteria are the right ones for balanced model families, and compare and contrast similar criteria for other intermediate models . DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0870.1984.tb00236.x
Maximum entropy spectral analysis for circadian rhythms: theory, history and practice

There is an array of numerical techniques available to estimate the period of circadian and other biological rhythms. Criteria for choosing a method include accuracy of period measurement, resolution of signal embedded in noise or of multiple periodicities, and sensitivity to the presence of weak rhythms and robustness in the presence of stochastic noise. Maximum Entropy Spectral Analysis (MESA) has proven itself excellent in all regards. The MESA algorithm fits an autoregressive model to the data and extracts the spectrum from its coefficients. Entropy in this context refers to “ignorance” of the data and since this is formally maximized, no unwarranted assumptions are made. Computationally, the coefficients are calculated efficiently by solution of the Yule-Walker equations in an iterative algorithm. MESA is compared here to other common techniques. It is normal to remove high frequency noise from time series using digital filters before analysis. The Butterworth filter is demonstrated here and a danger inherent in multiple filtering passes is discussed.
State Deregulation and Medicare Costs for Acute Cardiac Care

Past literature suggests that Certificate of Need (CON) regulations for cardiac care were ineffective in improving quality, but less is known about the effect of CON on patient costs. We analyzed Medicare data for 1991-2002 to test whether states that dropped CON experienced changes in costs or reimbursements for coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery or percutaneous coronary interventions. We found that states that dropped CON experienced lower costs per patient for CABG but not for percutaneous coronary intervention. Average Medicare reimbursement was lower for both procedures in states that dropped CON. The cost savings from removing CON regulations slightly exceed the total fixed costs of new CABG facilities that entered after deregulation. Assuming continued cost savings past 2002, the savings from deregulating CABG surgery outweigh the fixed costs of new entry. Thus, CON regulations for CABG may not be justified in terms of either improving quality or controlling cost growth.
What is the origin of “glassy” behavior in the high-Tc oxides?

Abstract The anomalous low-field magnetic properties of the high-T c oxide crystals have been interpreted alternatively in terms of a superconductive glass state or, more recently, giant flux creep. The glass picture as proposed assumes the occurrence of intra granular Josephson junctions on a length scale small compared to the penetration depth, and has been used to explain the properties of both single-crystal and ceramic samples. The flux creep picture deals only with pinning forces and ignores weak links, and thus far has been applied only to single crystals. We show here that neither of these models adequately describes the behavior of ceramic materials. A physically accurate picture of such materials must take into account inter granular Josephson junctions and resultant grain decoupling at low magnetic fields.
Restenosis: A Guide to Therapy

David P. Faxon, ed. 279 pp. London: Martin Dunitz; 2001. $125.00. ISBN: 1-85317-897-7 Since Dr Andreas Gruntzig’s original coronary angioplasty was first performed more than 20 years ago, percutaneous coronary interventions have become the most common method of coronary revascularization in the United States. A broad variety of new, highly sophisticated technologies have evolved over the past 20 years to make this revolution possible. Despite these enormous advancements, however, the Achilles heel for all percutaneous coronary interventions remains restenosis. Although the concept of restenosis is simple — the artery re-closes over time after it is initially successfully opened — myriad challenging nuances exist that make this problem both complex and mystifying. Most importantly, no adequate and effective solution to the problem of restenosis has been …
(+)-Bufuralol 1′-hydroxylation activity in human and rhesus monkey intestine and liver

(+)-Bufuralol 1'-hydroxylation, a commonly used marker of hepatic CYP2D6 activity, was investigated in human and rhesus monkey intestinal microsomes and compared with that in hepatic microsomes. The cumene hydroperoxide (CuOOH)-mediated metabolism of (+)-bufuralol suggested that at least two enzymes were responsible for bufuralol 1'-hydroxylation in both human and monkey intestinal microsomes. In contrast, the kinetics of the CuOOH-mediated metabolism in human and monkey livers were monophasic. The Km values for the higher affinity component of the intestinal enzyme(s) of both species were similar to, while the corresponding Vmax values were much lower than, those obtained with the livers. Bufuralol metabolism mediated by NADPH exhibited biphasic kinetics and was less efficient than that observed in the presence of CuOOH in both human and monkey intestines, in agreement with the observations in the livers. Inhibition of bufuralol hydroxylase activity in the intestine and liver preparations from the same species by known CYP2D6 inhibitors/substrates was qualitatively similar. Quinidine was the most potent inhibitor of (+)-bufuralol 1'-hydroxylation in all tissues studied. Western immunoblots using anti-CYP2D6 peptide antibody revealed a protein band in human and monkey intestinal microsomes of the same molecular weight as that observed in the liver preparations. The intestinal CYP2D protein content appeared to be much less than that of liver, and correlated with the (+)-bufuralol hydroxylase activity. Immunoinhibition studies indicated significant (up to 50%) inhibition of the CuOOH-mediated (+)-bufuralol metabolism in human and monkey intestines only by anti-CYP2D6, and not by anti-CYP2A6, or anti-CYP2E1. Inhibition of the bufuralol 1'-hydroxylase activity by anti-rat CYP3A1 was only slight (20%) in human, but marked (60-65%) in monkey intestinal microsomes. The hepatic metabolism of (+)-bufuralol in humans and monkeys was only inhibited (75%) by anti-CYP2D6, but not by anti-CYP3A1. Overall, the results suggest that (1) tissue and species differences exist in the catalysis of (+)-bufuralol 1'-hydroxylation, and (2) CYP2D6-related enzymes are partially or primarily responsible for the bufuralol hydroxylase activity in human and monkey intestines or monkey liver.
Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott and Nicki Minaj Fashionistin’ Black Female Sexuality in Hip-Hop Culture—Girl Power or Overpowered?

Since the emergence of hip-hop in the early 1980s, African American women’s sexuality and its correlation to their search for self-identity and self-control have been at the forefront of the genre’...
Specific formulae for some success run distributions

Abstract Let N(k)n denote the number of success runs of length k (⩾ 1) in n Bernoulli trials. A specific formula is derived for P(N(k)n = x) which is alternative to the one established by Philippou and Makri (1986) and Hirano (1986) and which is in a form suitable for the computation of asymptotic distributions (as in Godbole, 1990a, b); recall that N(k)n is said to have a binomial distribution of order k. In a similar fashion, different formulae are obtained for the geometric, negative binomial and Poisson distributions of order k (introduced by Philippou, Georghiou and Philippou, 1983.
Mitigating West Germany's Strategic Dilemmas

This article identifies three strictly strategic dilemmas concerning West Germany's defense in the late eighties: the defense-protection dilemma, the arms control-security dilemma, and the strategy-resource dilemma. It briefly explains each dilemma and critically examines the major approaches to change under debate today, focusing on the contribution made by the "alternative defense" school. Concluding that none of these approaches can substantially alleviate West Germany's strategic dilemmas, the discussion turns to the idea of "structural incapability of attack," or "nonprovocative defense," as a possible basis for a solution. Having criticized this idea in its current form, the article ends by suggesting a strategically feasible way for both blocs to move toward force postures structurally incapable of attack at the conventional theater level in Europe.
Expression of the Ku protein during cell proliferation

The Ku protein is a DNA-binding nuclear protein complex composed of 86 kDA and 70 kDa subunits. Recently, in vitro studies suggested a role of the Ku protein in the activation of gene transcription. We studied the expression of these proteins during cell proliferation by Northern blot hybridizations using specific cDNA probes and by immunofluorescence and immunoblot analysis using specific monoclonal antibodies. The genes coding for both subunits were activated during late G1-phase in the transition of human PHA-stimulated lymphocytes from quiescent (G0 phase) to proliferative (S phase) state. These genes were inactivated when human leukemia cells HL60 were differentiated into monocytes upon treatment with the phorbol ester TPA. Changes at the protein level were significantly smaller than changes at the mRNA levels in both cell systems, suggesting a high stability of the Ku protein. Immunofluorescence studies demonstrated nucleolar as well as nuclear localization of the Ku protein in quiescent lymphocytes and during the early G1-phase; during the late G1, S and G2 phases, the Ku protein was only localized in discrete structures in the nucleoplasm. These results demonstrate that the gene expression for the Ku protein is associated with the proliferative state of the cells and that the nucleolar localization of the Ku protein is cell-cycle-dependent.
Functionalization of polymers prepared by ATRP using radical addition reactions

Low molecular weight linear poly(methyl acrylate), star and hyperbranched polymers were synthesized using atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and end-functionalized using radical addition reactions. By adding allyltri-n-butylstannane at the end of the polymerization of poly(methyl acrylate), the polymer was terminated by allyl groups. When at high conversions of the acrylate monomer, allyl alcohol or 1,2-epoxy-5-hexene, monomers which are not polymerizable by ATRP, were added, alcohol and epoxy functionalities respectively were incorporated at the polymer chain end. Functionalization by radical addition reactions was demonstrated to be applicable to multi-functional polymers such as hyperbranched and star polymers.
On Finite Basis Property for Joins of Varieties of Associative Rings

If all finitely generated rings in a variety of associative rings satisfy the ascending chain condition on two-sided ideals, the variety is called locally weak noetherian. If there is an upper bound on nilpotency indices of nilpotent rings in a variety, the variety is called a finite index variety. We prove that the join of a finitely based locally weak noetherian variety and a variety of finite index is also finitely based and locally weak noetherian. One consequence of this result is that if an associative ring variety is connected by a finite path in the lattice of all associative ring varieties to a finitely based locally weak noetherian variety then such variety is also finitely based and locally weak noetherian.
An optimal, potentially automatable ordering policy

Abstract Ramps in demand occur frequently in practice causing supply chain problems. We exactly solve the inventory and ordering equations reacting to a ramp. The ordering policy for the critically stable solution continuously returns the inventory to its desired level eliminating deficits and excesses. The policy is independent of the demand slope and so a single, easy to calculate policy may be effective for all ramps. Even in the presence of noise in the demand, this policy maintains the inventory close to the desired level. While the theory is complex, the ordering policy is simple and could be of significant practical value.
A study for sound wave scattering by corrugated ground with complex trench structures

Several trench structures in corrugated ground are investigated for the possibility of mitigating gun blast noise by numerical simulations. The blast noise usually includes large explosive energy with nonlinearity in the near field and exhibits a very low-frequency spectrum. In this study, the linearity approximation for the noise is taken because the nonlinearity of the wave reaching the scatterer is not serious for many proved guns and the low-frequency characteristic is concentrated. The structures are designed based on the surface impedance design approach proposed in our previous work and arbitrary three-dimensional (3D) geometries within a truncated ground are now assumed. The acoustic characteristic of the structures is evaluated by using a fast numerical solver. The solver employs the multilevel fast multipole algorithm (MLFMA) as an accelerator and can solve very large acoustic wave scattering problems with millions of unknowns on workstations within several days. This tool allows us to truncate ...
Endocrine-Disrupting Compounds and Mammary Gland Development: Early Exposure and Later Life Consequences

Breast cancer is the most common non-skin cancer among women in this country. Breast cancer risk is significantly influenced by genetics, but over 70% of the women that are diagnosed have noninherited or sporadic cancer. The risk of breast cancer is thought to be modified by lifestyle and environment. Exposures to certain chemicals and hormone-mimicking or endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) are suspected of contributing to increased breast cancer incidence as well as precocious puberty in the United States. Studies of EDC effects in rodents indicate that multiple toxicants can alter mammary gland development, with or without changing other markers of puberty. EDCs can cause transient and persistent effects on mammary gland development depending on dose, exposure parameters, and whether exposure was during critical periods of gland growth or differentiation. Adverse effects from these abnormal developmental patterns include the presence of carcinogen-sensitive structures in greater numbers or for longer periods in the gland and inhibited functional differentiation leading to malnutrition or increased mortality of their offspring. Developmental toxicants of the mammary gland could lead to an increase in the incidence of mammary tumors if they alter circulating or tissue-localized hormone levels, gland receptor expression patterns, hormone transport, or metabolism that results in altered response to endogenous hormones or growth factors. Environmental disruptors of rodent mammary gland development must be identified for informed decisions in epidemiological studies aimed at identification of environmental factors contributing to breast cancer risk, altered breast development during puberty, or inability to produce sufficient breast milk.
Biosynthesis of flavocytochrome b558 . gp91(phox) is synthesized as a 65-kDa precursor (p65) in the endoplasmic reticulum.

The redox center of the phagocyte NADPH oxidase is flavocytochrome b 558, a transmembrane protein with two subunits, gp91phox and p22phox. In this study we investigated the identity, subcellular localization, and maturation of a putative 65-kDa gp91phox precursor (p65). Expressing the gp91phox cDNA in an in vitrotranscription and translation system, we found that synthesis of p65 required endoplasmic reticulum (ER) microsomes. Sucrose density gradient centrifugation of postnuclear supernatants obtained from a PLB-985 derived cell line with a constitutively expressed gp91phox transgene demonstrated that p65 co-sedimented with the ER marker protein calreticulin and myeloperoxidase precursors. Unexpectedly, the majority of p22phox was found in subcellular compartments containing the mature 91-kDa form of gp91phox and not with p65, suggesting that heterodimer formation may occur in a post-ER compartment. The heme synthesis inhibitor, succinyl acetone, reduced the abundance of mature gp91phox and p22phoxbut had little or no impact on p65. These studies demonstrate (a) gp91phox is synthesized as a glycosylated 65-kDa precursor in the ER, (b) heterodimer formation is not a co-translational process, and (c) heme insertion is a determinant in the formation of a stable heterodimer but does not appear to affect the stability of p65.
New Directions for Studying Historical Understanding

Much of the research on historical understanding has been based on the Piagetian concept of global stage constraints on learning. Such research has led to arguments against teaching history at the elementary level and lent support to the traditional “expanding environments” curriculum. This paper contrasts Piagetian-based research with psychological work in the areas of script knowledge-based and domain-specific knowledge restructuring theories of development. Drawing on ideas from interpretive anthropology and semiotics, the authors then place this primarily psychological work in a cultural framework, and give consideration to the relevance of theories of narrative for studying historical understanding. Using this approach, the authors suggest both new directions for studying the development of historical understanding and implications for history instruction in the elementary years.
Effect of Whole Cellulase on the Supramolecular Structure of Cotton Cellulose

Cotton fabrics are treated with cellulolytic enzyme preparations to alter the appearance of their surfaces. Desired objectives can be to effect a washed appearance in denims. to impart a smooth appearance by removing surface fuzz fibers, or to remove tangled bundles of surface fibers that do not pick up dyes and thus result in white specks. Such treatments are very mild and have been commercially successful. This study elucidates the effect such treatments have on the molecular, supramolecular, and morphological structures of cotton cellulose. Desized, scoured, and bleached cotton fabric is treated with a commercial textile cellulase preparation for 10, 60, and 180 minutes at 50°C in a 0.05 M (pH 4.8) acetate buffer in stainless steel canisters in the presence of stainless steel ball bearings. Changes are reported in fabric weight, fabric strength, fiber cell walls. moisture regain, cellulose molecular weight distribution, fiber pore size distribution, and cellulose micro structure as revealed by hydrogen...