cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Racial Self-Identification: The Effects of Social History and Gender1

Dark and Clark's pioneering study in 1947 demonstrated that Black children were ambivalent about racial self-identification. Subsequent research indicates that during the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, Black children were increasingly likely to demonstrate a commitment to identifying with a Black stimulus. The present study investigates the extent to which this trend persists in the 1980s and how gender of the child affects her/his racial identification. The results indicate that the 1980s may be a time in history when Black children are growing more ambivalent about racial self-identification, and that Black boys are significantly more likely than Black girls to identify with the white doll. The findings suggest that the current political climate which places Blacks at a significant social and economic disadvantage may reduce children's willingness to identify with a Black stimulus. The gender differences are explored in terms of Black boys' greater likelihood psychologically to try to identify away from Blackness.
Tonic support of luteinizing hormone secretion by adrenal progesterone in the ovariectomized monkey replaced with midfollicular phase levels of estradiol

Although it is known that progesterone facilitates the estradiol-induced gonadotropin surge at midcycle, its effect on LH secretion at other times of the follicular phase remains to be investigated. In this study, we investigate the role of progesterone on tonic LH secretion in the ovariectomized primate replaced with estradiol at levels representative of the follicular phase. The experiments were performed in nine ovariectomized rhesus monkeys, either unreplaced with estradiol or after a 5-day estradiol therapy to mimic early follicular (10–36 pg/mL; low dose) and midfollicular (medium dose; 40–75 pg/mL) concentrations. We used two antiprogesterone compounds, RU-486 (5 mg) and ORG-31806 (1 mg), to antagonize endogenous progesterone activity and studied their acute effects on LH secretion in each group. LH concentrations were measured at 15-min intervals for a 3-h baseline period and during a 5-h period after antagonist administration. LH concentrations remained unchanged after either antiprogesterone com...
PIP Processing, Microstructure and Properties of Si3N4 Fiber and Al2O3 Fiber Reinforced Silicon Nitride

Polymer infiltration/pyrolysis (PIP) processing has the potential to become an affordable means of manufacturing continuous fiber-reinforced ceramic-matrix components. The PIP method is very similar to the well-known polymer-matrix and carbon-carbon composite manufacturing techniques, the major difference being the use of a preceramic polymer in place of the organic polymer or carbon precursor. To date, the majority of research in the field of preceramic polymers has centered on precursors to silicon carbide (SiC). The Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has focused on the development of polymeric precursors to silicon nitride (Si3N4) because its high-temperature strength, resistance to oxidation, and other properties make it an attractive candidate for many advanced high-temperature structural applications. PIP Si3N4 composites with NICALON SiC fiber reinforcement have exhibited good fracture toughness (KIC ∼ 16MPa·m1/ 2). We report here processing, microstructure and preliminary mechanical properties of two new PIP Si3N4 composites. One is reinforced with Tonen Si3N4 fiber (plain weave) while the other is reinforced with Almax Al2O3 fiber (8 Harness satin weave).
Non-governmental organizations in international health: past successes, future challenges

Non-governmental organizations, or NGOs, are increasingly instrumental to the implementation of international health programs. Following an overview of current conditions in global health and the problems that could be targeted by NGOs, this article describes the activities and philosophies of several representative approaches in this sector. The attributes of NGOs that increase their potential effectiveness are discussed, including ability to reach areas of severe need, promotion of local involvement, low cost of operations, adaptiveness and innovation, independence, and sustainability. A summary is provided of major future challenges in international health that may be addressed by NGOs, with particular emphasis on tobacco-related disease, communicable diseases and the AIDS epidemic, maternal mortality and women's health, injury prevention and control, and the need to secure durable financial support.
Functional and Mechanical Evaluation of Nerve Stretch Injury

Peripheral nerves undergo tensile loading in common physiological conditions, but stretch can also induce nerve pathology, impairing electrophysiological conduction. The level of strain nerves can tolerate and the functional deficits which result from exceeding this threshold are not thoroughly understood. To examine these phenomena, a novel system for tensile electrophysiology was created using a grease gap-recording chamber paired with a computerized micromanipulator and load cell. Guinea pig sciatic nerves were stretched beyond their maximum physiologic length to examine the effects of tension on signal conduction. Mechanical and electrophysiological data such as load, position, compound action potential amplitude, and signal latency were recorded in real-time. While 5% strain did not affect conduction, further elongation decreased amplitude approximately linearly with strain. These experiments verify the findings of prior studies into nerve stretch, and demonstrate the utility of this apparatus for investigating the mechanical and electrophysiological properties of nerves undergoing strain.
Identification of multiple proteins whose synthetic rates are enhanced by high amino acid levels in rat hepatocytes.

Amino acids are key regulators of protein synthesis in liver. However, it remains to be determined whether amino acids stimulate synthesis of all or certain specific liver proteins. No techniques a...
A theory-ridden, computerless, impersonal vocational guidance system

Abstract The Self-Directed Search for Educational and Vocational Planning (SDS) is a self-administered, self-scored, and self-interpreted vocational counseling tool. It is inexpensive, practical, and has a high degree of scientific validity and client effectiveness. The SDS includes two booklets. To use the SDS, a person fills out the assessment booklet and obtains a three-letter code. He then uses the code to find suitable occupations in the occupational classification booklet. The SDS is based on Holland's theory of personality types. It is expected to provide helpful vocational counseling service at a low cost.
An exercise in political economy of tax reform

Abstract If the tax rate is endogenously determined by majority voting, then a fully effective and costless reform resulting in full tax compliance may not be supported by a majority even when the evaders (or, avoiders) are only a minority.
Luminescence monitoring of oil or tar contamination for industrial hygiene

Abstract Synfuel plants produce potentially carcinogenic oils and tars. Exposure of workers to these tars and oils is difficult to avoid completely and occurs via direct contact with dirty surfaces or condensation of escaped fumes onto or within the body. Surface skin measurements are made directly with a near-ultraviolet luminoscope employing a fiber optics lightguide and a stethoscopic cap pressed against the skin. This instrument is especially suitable for measuring ng to μg/cm2 amounts of residual contamination remaining on the surface of the skin after washing. To minimize the potential for carcinogenicity, the excitating ultraviolet light intensity is only 1/100 th that of sunlight.
DNA Segments Sensitive to Single-Strand-Specific Nucleases Are Present in Chromatin of Mitotic Cells

It was observed before that DNAin situin chromatin of mitotic cells is more sensitive to denaturation than DNA in chromatin of interphase cells. DNA sensitivity to denaturation, in these studies, was analyzed by exposing cells to heat or acid and using acridine orange (AO), the metachromatic fluorochrome which can differentially stain double-stranded (ds) vs single-stranded (ss) nucleic acids, as a marker of the degree of DNA denaturation. However, without prior cell treatment with heat or acid no presence of single-stranded DNA in either mitotic or interphase cells was detected by this assay. In the present experiments we demonstrate that DNAin situin mitotic cells, without any prior treatment that can induce DNA denaturation, is sensitive to ss-specific S1 and mung bean nucleases. Incubation of permeabilized human T cell leukemic MOLT-4, promyelocytic HL-60, histiomonocytic lymphoma U937 cells, or normal PHA-stimulated lymphocytes with S1 or mung bean nucleases generated extensive DNA breakage in mitotic cells. DNA strand breaks were detected using fluorochrome-labeled triphosphonucleotides in the reaction catalyzed by exogenous terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase. Under identical conditions of the cells’ exposure to ss-specific nucleases, DNA breakage in interphase cells was of an order of magnitude less extensive compared to mitotic cells. The data indicate that segments of DNA in mitotic chromosomes, in contrast to interphase cells, may be in a conformation which is sensitive to ss nucleases. This may be a reflection of the differences in the torsional stress of DNA loops between interphase and mitotic chromatin. Namely, greater stress in mitotic loops may lead to formation of the hairpin-loop structures by inverted repeats; such structures are sensitive to ss nucleases. The present method of detection of such segments appears to be more sensitive than the use of AO. The identification of mitotic cells based on sensitivity of their DNA to ss nucleases provides an additional method for their quantification by flow cytometry.
A Comparison of the Effects of the Inhalation of 4% and 8% Fluroxene in the Pregnant Primate

A comparison was made of the effects of inhalation of 4% fluroxene (n = 5) and 8% fluroxene (n = 5) in pregnant monkeys. Measurements of maternal arterial blood pressure, heart rate, cardiac output, total peripheral resistance, uterine blood flow, fetal heart rate and arterial blood pressure, and maternal and fetal blood gas levels were made. Inhalation of 4% fluroxene for 20 minutes produced little change in maternal hemodynamics and was well tolerated by the fetus. Fluroxene 8% inhaled for a similar 20-minute-period produced a significant decrease in maternal blood pressure (--27%), total peripheral resistance (--32%), and uterine blood flow (--27%) and lowered the level of maternal fetal exchange.
Digital Enhancement of the Peripheral Admittance Plethysmogram

Limb segment pulse volume (PV) is the maximum change in the volume (V) of a limb segment during the cardiac cycle. Peak net inflow (PNI) is the maximum value of dV/dt during the cardiac cycle. These parameters are difficult to measure because they are so small (PV is approximately 0.0003 ×V). As a result, conventional analog plethysmographic measurements of PV and PNI are inherently inaccurate and difficult to reproduce. A digital enhancement (DE) technique using selective signal averaging to improve PV and PNI reproducibility is described.
Model characterization curves for federated search using click-logs: predicting user engagement metrics for the span of feasible operating points

Modern day federated search engines aggregate heterogeneous types of results from multiple vertical search engines and compose a single search engine result page (SERP). The search engine aggregates the results and produces one ranked list, constraining the vertical results to specific slots on the SERP.The usual way to compare two ranking algorithms is to first fix their operating points (internal thresholds), and then run an online experiment that lasts multiple weeks. Online user engagement metrics are then compared to decide which algorithm is better. However, this method does not characterize and compare the behavior over the entire span of operating points. Furthermore, this time-consuming approach is not practical if we have to conduct the experiment over numerous operating points.In this paper we propose a method of characterizing the performance of models that allows us to predict answers to "what if" questions about online user engagement using click-logs over the entire span of feasible operating points. We audition verticals at various slots on the SERP and generate click-logs. This log is then used to create operating curves between variables of interest (for example between result quality and click-through). The operating point for the system then can be chosen to achieve a specific trade-off between the variables. We apply this methodology to predict i) the online performance of two different models, ii) the impact of changing internal quality thresholds on clickthrough, iii) the behavior of introducing a new feature, iv) which machine learning loss function will give better online engagement, v) the impact of sampling distribution of head and tail queries in the training process. The results are reported on a well-known federated search engine. We validate the predictions with online experiments.
Weinberg's syndrome: a disorder of attention and behavior problems needing further research.

A subset of inattentive children have an underlying problem in sustaining wakefulness ("vigilance"). This disorder of vigilance, termed Weinberg's syndrome, is characterized by difficulty in mainta...
Effect of CO on hydrogen thermal desorption from Fe(100)

The adsorption and coadsorption of H and CO was studied in order to illuminate the enhanced reactivity of H toward olefin hydrogenation induced by coadsorbed CO. The hydrogen saturation coverage on clean Fe(100) is 1.0 ± 0.1 ML, and H2 desorbs in two states, β1 and β2, with activation energies of 17 and 23 kcalmol, respectively. Low coverages of CO adsorbed on hydrogen-presaturated Fe(100) broaden and reduce the peak temperatures of the β1 and β2 desorption states. The dominant effect of coadsorbed CO is to weaken Fe-H bonds, and three new H2 desorption states are induced below 260 K at higher coverages of CO. No displacement of H2 by coadsorption of CO is apparent. The CO saturation coverage is uneffected by preadsorbed hydrogen, but the CO desorption features below 350 K are distinctly different than those for the clean surface. Desorption of CO above 350 K resembles that for CO adsorbed on the H-free surface. When H2 is adsorbed onto a CO-precovered surface at 100 K. the saturation coverage of hydrogen is reduced, and at the CO saturation coverage of 0.58 ML hydrogen adsorption is blocked. H2 desorption from surfaces precovered with a subsaturated adlayer of CO adsorbed at 100 K display only perturbed β1 and β2 states. CO apparently induces low temperature desorption of H2 only when it is adsorbed on top of a locally saturated H adlayer.
Yield Model for Planning and Controlling the Manufacture of VLSI Memory Chips

The subject of this paper is a yield model that has been used for optimizing chip productivity, planning, manufacturing, learning, and controlling the manufacture of VLSI memory chips. Examples of the use of this model and results are described.
Carleton’s HAL System

The HAL (Hardware Allocator) system was Paulin’s thesis work at Carleton University. HAL includes scheduling, data path synthesis, and design iteration.
Risk perception and risk communication for cancer screening behaviors: a review.

This review summarizes and synthesizes research findings on risk perception and risk communication related to cancer screening behaviors. The focus is on cancers for which there is evidence that screening reduces mortality, i.e., cervical, breast, and colorectal cancers. The following questions are addressed: 1) Is perceived risk associated with relevant cancer screening behaviors? 2) What factors are associated with perceived risk? 3) Is the relationship between perceived risk and cancer screening behaviors modified by other factors? 4) Have interventions to change perceived risk been effective in modifying risk perceptions? 5) Are these changes related to subsequent cancer screening behaviors? Methodologic issues are discussed, and future research needs are identified. There was consistent evidence that perceived risk was associated with mammography screening, but there were insufficient data on these associations for cervical or colorectal cancer screening behaviors. There was some evidence that perceived risk mediated the association between other variables and screening behaviors; however, because of the small number of studies, the findings are best viewed as hypothesis generating. Studies of interventions to modify risk perceptions provided some support for the view that they are modifiable, but there was conflicting evidence that these changes were related to subsequent cancer screening. Methodologic studies of how best to measure perceived risk are needed. Because most data on the correlates of perceived risk were cross-sectional, it is difficult to determine whether perceived risk is a cause or an effect in relation to cancer screening. Longitudinal studies that measure perceived risk in defined populations with different cancer screening histories and that include follow-up for screening and repeated measurements of risk perception are needed to clarify this relationship. [Monogr J Natl Cancer Inst 1999;25:101‐19]
Factors Associated with a History of Childhood Sexual Experience in a Nonclinical Female Population

A nonclinical population of college women was surveyed concerning their history of childhood sexual experience, current symptoms, and demographic background. Sixteen percent of the 301 women in the sample reported a history of childhood sexual experience, and while they were not distinguishable demographically from their peers, they were distinguishable in reports of symptoms. Adults who had been victims of abuse as children reported significantly greater symptoms, generally indicative of depression, anxiety, and self-abusive behavior. Women whose experiences occurred within the family were at greater risk for disturbance than women whose experiences occurred outside the family. Clinical implications for children and adults are considered.
Psychological processes underlying literary impact

Most psychological researchers now accept the premise that literary narra- tives have an effect on people's everyday lives. Contemporary research examines the types of psychological processes that give rise to literary impact. The article describes experiments in two broad areas. First, it supports a position called the willing construc- tion of disbelief and relates that to readers' feelings of having been transported to nar- rative worlds. The data suggest that readers must expend strategic effort to reject the information they acquire from literary narratives. Second, the article discusses the ways in which the unfolding of causes and consequences in literary narratives affect readers' judgments and understanding of characters and outcomes. These experi- ments support the claim that readers may derive bodies of evidence from their literary experiences that they apply to their own life experiences.
A poroelastic model for evolution of fractured reservoirs during gas production

Abstract Coupled processes between matrix deformation and fluid flow in fractured reservoirs such as gas shale are important for predicting fracture permeability change and reservoir production behavior. In contrast to sandstone reservoirs, the coupling between gas desorption and rock matrix/fracture deformation must be accounted for in poroelastic response of gas shale. For this purpose, a constitutive relation is developed and used in this work. The continuity equation of dry gas considers the mass conservation including both free and absorbed phases. The absorbed gas content and the sorption-induced volumetric strain are described through a Langmiur-type equation. A porosity model is developed and utilized in the governing equations, and a discrete system of fractures is included in flow and rock deformation analysis. The resulting field equations are solved using a finite element model based on the dual permeability method (DPM). The model is then used to investigate coupled desorption/diffusion-rock deformation phenomena including fracture deformation (both normal and shear deformation with dilation), and its impact on gas flow in naturally fractured reservoir. Simulation results show that the time evolution of gas pressure, effective stresses, fracture aperture, and permeability are strongly affected by gas desorption during production, especially in the near-wellbore region. Gas desorption retards the influence of the effective stress increase associated with pore pressure reduction during production. The combination of in-situ stress condition and gas desorption mechanism governs the fracture deformation behavior in fractured gas shale reservoirs.
Speed Estimation from Single Loop Data Using an Unscented Particle Filter

This article presents a hybrid method, the Unscented Particle Filter (UPF), for traffic flow speed estimation using single loop outputs. The Kalman filters used in past speed estimation studies employ a Gaussian assumption that is hardly satisfied. The hybrid method that combines a parametric filter (Unscented Kalman Filter) and a nonparametric filter (Particle Filter) is thus proposed to overcome the limitations of the existing methods. To illustrate the advantage of the proposed approach, 2 data sets collected from field detectors along with a simulated data set are utilized for performance evaluation and comparison with the Extended Kalman Filter and the Unscented Kalman Filter. It is found that the proposed method outperforms the evaluated Kalman filter methods. The UPF method produces accurate speed estimation even for congested flow conditions in which many other methods have significant accuracy problems.
ZF-DFE transceiver for time-varying MIMO channels with channel-independent temporal precoder

This paper considers the DFE transceiver optimization for time-varying memoryless MIMO channels under zero-forcing (ZF) constraint. For time-varying channels, the uncoded average BER of the conventional geometric mean decomposition (GMD) based systems is not minimized because of the diverse arithmetic MSEs at different block times. To minimize the BER, a new GMD transceiver is proposed, in which the data vectors are grouped into space-time blocks (ST-blocks). A channel independent-temporal precoder is superimposed on the conventional blockwise GMD for the equalization of arithmetic MSEs across different blocks. So, the proposed system can take advantage of both the temporal and spatial diversity offered by time-varying MIMO channels. At moderate high SNR, corresponding to reasonable BER, there exists a class of optimal channel-independent temporal precoders, e.g., DFT and Hadamard matrices, for the minimization of average BER. Furthermore, simulation results show that the average BER performance of the proposed system improves with ST-block size and converges at moderate ST-block size.1
Curli production and genetic relationships among Escherichia coli from cases of bovine mastitis

Curli are adhesive surface structures produced by some Escherichia coli and Salmonella strains that bind host proteins and activate inflammatory mediators. In this study, 61 E. coli isolates from 36 clinical cases of bovine mastitis were characterized using enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus-PCR and screened for their ability to produce curli. Effect of curli production on case recovery, based on a return to precase milk yield, was investigated for a subset of 43 isolates from 20 quarters of 19 cows. Thirty-five (57%) of 61 isolates were curli positive. Fifty-eight of the 61 isolates clustered into 2 clonal groups at 52% genetic similarity. Genetically diverse E. coli isolates were simultaneously cultured from individual cases. Twenty-three isolates from 13 cows were clustered in clonal group I, of which 5 cases (38%) were curli positive; 35 isolates from 22 cows were clustered in clonal group II, of which 15 cases (68%) were curli positive. No association was found between genetic similarity and phenotypic curli expression of isolates from cows with clinical E. coli mastitis cases. Phenotypic curli expression in isolates did not affect recovery of cows' milk yield to premastitis production levels.
Population biology and estimates of abundance of fruit bats (Pteropodidae) in Philippine submontane rainforest

Thirteen species of megachiropteran bats were captured in primary forest at 830-1000 m on Negros Island in the central Phillippines; 1229 individuals were marked and released. Individuals of six species were recaptured, for an overall recapture rate of 13%. For these six species, mean movement distance ranged from 0.16 to 0.75 km. For the two species with larger sample sizes, HaplonycterisJischeri Lawrence and Ptenochirus jagori Peters, adult males moved only one-half as far as females or subadult males. For three species, Cynopterus brachyotis Muller, H.fischeri and P. jagori, minimum longevities in the wild of four or five years were documented. For the same species, estimates ofcombined subadult and adult annual survival were 60 to 80%. Density estimates for six species ranged from 0.2 to 3.7 individuals per hectare, with a cumulative density of about 10 bats per hectare. Considerable differences in proportional abundance were found between different subsamples of netted bats, but most of this variation could be accounted for by variation between habitats. Four species (Cynopterus brachyotis, Eonycteris spelaea Dobson, Macroglossus minimus Geoffroy, and Rousettus arnplexicaudatus Geoffroy) that were common in agricultural habitats distant from forest were strongly associated with clearings and rare in forest; three species (Harpyionycteris whiteheadi Thomas, Nyctimene rabori Heaney and Peterson, and Ptenochirusjagori) that were as common in clearings as in forest, or slightly more common in clearings, are absent from sites more than a kilometre from forest or forest patches, and appear to use clearings principally as flyways; and one species (Haplonycterisfischerr3 that was much more common in forest than in the adjacent clearings is elsewhere present only in or very near forest or in forest patches. Estimates of density of small subcanopy fruit bats that are derived from recapture data were found to be correlated with rank-order abundance in moderate (c. 100 fruit bats) net-samples in forest, and directly proportional to abundance of fruit bats in large (c. 300500) samples in forest. This indicates that large netting samples can provide meaningful estimates of relative abundance for these species.
Ajuba Functions as a Histone Deacetylase-dependent Co-repressor for Autoregulation of the Growth Factor-independent-1 Transcription Factor

Growth factor independent-1 (Gfi1) is a zinc finger protein with a SNAG-transcriptional repressor domain. Ajuba is a LIM domain protein that shuttles between the cytoplasm and the nucleus. Ajuba functions as a co-repressor for synthetic Gfi1 SNAG-repressor domain-containing constructs, but a role for Ajuba co-repression of the cognate DNA bound Gfi1 protein has not been defined. Co-immunoprecipitation of synthetic and endogenous proteins and co-elution with gel filtration suggest that an endogenous Ajuba·Gfi1·HDAC multiprotein complex is possible. Active histone deacetylase activity co-immunoprecipitates with Ajuba or Gfi1, and both proteins depend upon histone deacetylases for full transcriptional repression activity. Ajuba LIM domains directly bind to Gfi1, but the association is not SNAG domain-dependent. ChIP analysis and reciprocal knockdown experiments suggest that Ajuba selectively functions as a co-repressor for Gfi1 autoregulation. The data suggest that Ajuba is utilized as a corepressor selectively on Gfi1 target genes.
Learning Maximum Lag for Grouped Graphical Granger Models

Temporal causal modeling has been a highly active research area in the last few decades. Temporal or time series data arises in a wide array of application domains ranging from medicine to finance. Deciphering the causal relationships between the various time series can be critical in understanding and consequently, enhancing the efficacy of the underlying processes in these domains. Grouped graphical modeling methods such as Granger methods provide an efficient alternative for finding out such dependencies. A key parameter which affects the performance of these methods is the maximum lag. The maximum lag specifies the extent to which one has to look into the past to predict the future. A smaller than required value of the lag will result in missing important dependencies while an excessively large value of the lag will increase the computational complexity along with the addition of noisy dependencies. In this paper, we propose a novel approach for estimating this key parameter efficiently. One of the primary advantages of this approach is that it can, in a principled manner, incorporate prior knowledge of dependencies that are known to exist between certain pairs of time series out of the entire set and use this information to estimate the lag for the entire set. This ability to extrapolate the lag from a known subset to the entire set, in order to get better estimates of the overall lag efficiently, makes such an approach attractive in practice.
Electronic Health Records (EHRs) in the Oncology Clinic: How Clinician Interaction With EHRs Can Improve Communication With the Patient

Electronic health records pose a particularly difficult problem in the oncology clinic, where difficult topics require much time and attention to address. But with careful attention, they might actually enhance communication in the clinic.
Preventive Services by Medical and Dental Providers and Treatment Outcomes

Objective: Nearly all state Medicaid programs reimburse nondental primary care providers (PCPs) for providing preventive oral health services to young children; yet, little is known about how treatment outcomes compare with children visiting dentists. This study compared the association between the provider of preventive services (PCP, dentist, or both) with Medicaid-enrolled children before their third birthday and subsequent dental caries-related treatment (CRT) and CRT payment. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of young children enrolled in North Carolina Medicaid during 2000 to 2006. The annual number of CRT and CRT payments per child between the ages of 3 and 5 yr were estimated with a zero-inflated negative binomial regression and a hurdle model, respectively. Models were adjusted for relevant child- and county-level characteristics and used propensity score weighting to address observed confounding. Results: We examined 41,453 children with > 1 preventive oral health visit from a PCP, dentist, or both before their third birthday. Unadjusted annual mean CRT and payments were lowest among children who had only PCP visits (CRT = 0.87, payment = $172) and higher among children with only dentist visits (CRT = 1.48, payment = $234) and both PCP and dentist visits (CRT = 1.52, payment = $273). Adjusted results indicated that children who had dentist visits (with or without PCP visits) had significantly more CRT and higher CRT payments per year during the ages of 3 and 4 yr than children who had only PCP visits. However, these differences attenuated each year after age 3 yr. Conclusions: Because of children’s increased opportunity to receive multiple visits in medical offices during well-child visits, preventive oral health services provided by PCPs may lead to a greater reduction in CRT than dentist visits alone. This study supports guidelines and reimbursement policies that allow preventive dental visits based on individual needs.
Semi-automatic range to range registration: a feature-based method

Our goal is the production of highly accurate photorealistic descriptions of the 3D world with a minimum of human interaction and increased computational efficiency. Our input is a large number of unregistered 3D and 2D photographs of an urban site. The generated 3D representations, after automated registration, are useful for urban planning, historical preservation, or virtual reality (entertainment) applications. A major bottleneck in the process of 3D scene acquisition is the automated registration of a large number of geometrically complex 3D range scans in a common frame of reference. We have developed novel methods for the accurate and efficient registration of a large number of 3D range scans. The methods utilize range segmentation and feature extraction algorithms. We have also developed a context-sensitive user interface to overcome problems emerging from scene symmetry.
Prolonged Triglyceride Storage in Macrophages: pHo Trumps pO2 and TLR4

Lipid-laden macrophages contribute to pathologies as diverse as atherosclerosis and tuberculosis. Three common stimuli are known to promote macrophage lipid storage: low tissue oxygen tension (pO2), low extracellular pH (pHo), and exposure to agonists such as bacterial LPS. Noting that cells responding to low pO2 or agonistic bacterial molecules often decrease pHo by secreting lactic and other carboxylic acids, we studied how pHo influences the stimulation of triacylglycerol (TAG) storage by low pO2 and LPS. We found that TAG retention after incubation for 48-72 h was inversely related to pHo when primary macrophages were cultured in 21% oxygen, 4% oxygen, or with LPS at either oxygen concentration. Maintaining pHo at ~7.4 was sufficient to prevent the increase in prolonged TAG storage induced by either low pO2 or LPS. The strong influence of pHo on TAG retention may explain why lipid-laden macrophages are found in some tissue environments and not in others. It is also possible that other long-term cellular changes currently attributed to low pO2 or bacterial agonists may be promoted, at least in part, by the decrease in pHo that these stimuli induce.
Accuracy and Precision of Low-Dose Insulin Administration Using Syringes, Pen Injectors, and a Pump

We compared the accuracy and precision of low-dose insulin administration using various devices including, for the first time, an insulin pump. We dispensed 1, 2, and 5 unit(s) of soluble insulin (100 units/mL) 15 times each from a NovoPen (3.0 mL), a BD-Mini Pen (1.5 mL), a Humalog Pen (100 units/mL), 30G Precision Sure-Dose Insulin Syringes, 30G BD Ultra-Fine II Short Needle Syringes, and a H-TRON-plus V100 insulin pump. Each dose was weighed on an analytical scale, and the delivered and target doses were compared. Accuracy was defined by the absolute percent difference from the target dose. Precision was defined as the absolute percent difference from the group sample mean. Overall, we found that the pen and pump devices were more accurate, and the pump more precise, than the syringes at the 1- and 2-unit doses. Syringes were dangerously inaccurate, clinically, at the 1-unit dose. The use of pens and syringes with very fine increment markings (1/2 unit) did not improve accuracy or precision. Earlier researchers used multiple individuals to draw and weigh the samples. In an effort to eliminate the potential introduction of significant error; our study used only 2 investigators: 1 to draw up the doses and another to weigh them. The conclusions in our study were similar to prior studies.
Binding of the Sulfates of Estradiol-17β to Human Serum Albumin and Plasma

The binding of the 3 estradiol-17β sulfates in solutions of human serum albumin (HSA) and in plasma has been studied by the method of centrifugal ultrafiltration. HSA has one binding site for the 17-sulfate with association constants of about 105 to 106M−1 at either 4° or 37° and several sites with association constants of 103 to 104M−1. HSA has 3 groups of binding sites for estradiol-17β disulfate, one binding site with association constants of about 106M−1 at either 4 C or 37 C, about 2 binding sites with association constants of about 104M−1 and several sites with association constants of about 103M−1. The binding data of the 3-sulfate of estradiol-17β are best interpreted by the postulate of the existence of a tetramer in addition to the monomer of the sulfate in solution. With this postulate, HSA has one binding site with an association constant of about 5 · 105M−1 and seven binding sites with association constants of about 103M−1 at either 4 C or 37 C. More than 99% of the 17-sulfate or the disulfat...
Incidence and Substitution in Enterprise Zone Programs: The Case of Colorado

Among 53,334 urban Colorado establishments, geographic information systems (GIS) techniques identify those that are and are not in enterprise zones (EZs). EZs have no effect on payroll per worker. Therefore, subsidy incidence is not on labor. Urban EZs do not increase employment per establishment, implying that subsidies induce net substitution effects for capital that counteract scale effects on labor. Rural EZs increase employment in the smallest of 13,278 establishments, implying that capital is less substitutable for labor with rural production functions and subsidy mixes. Employment effects differ across EZs. Equilibrium incidence of subsidies is probably on immobile factors such as commercial real estate.
StructView: A Vehicle-Based Laser Scanning System for Roadway Structure Profile Assessment

This paper presents STRUCTVIEW, a vehicle-based system for the measurement of roadway structure profiles, which uses a scanning laser rangefinder to measure various structure and roadway features while traveling at highway speed. Measurement capabilities include horizontal and vertical clearances which can be used to support oversize vehicle permitting
Ecology of Metarhizium anisopliae in soilless potting media and the rhizosphere: implications for pest management

Wholesale container-grown ornamentals are often maintained at the nursery for at least two growing seasons and are subject to infestation by black vine weevil (BVW), Otiorhynchus sulcatus F., for several months each year. Therefore, a potting media amendment aimed at controlling BVW needs to persist for an extended period of time. These studies were conducted to determine the persistence and ecology of Metarhizium anisopliae (MetchnikoV) Sorokin incorporated into peat and bark-based potting media with and without a crab meal amendment in container-grown Picea abies ‘Nidiformis.’ Rooted cuttings of P. abies were planted into potting media amended with M. anisopliae (1 g of formulated product/L; »6 log10 CFU/g dry potting media). The fungal population in bulk potting media was quantitatively determined using selective media at 14, 21, 28, 35, 49, 63, 77, 91, 105, 119, 143, 175, 203, 231, 258, 287 and 342 days. The fungal population in the rhizosphere was quantitatively determined at 203, 231, 258, 287, and 342 days. M. anisopliae colonized the rhizosphere of P. abies and the fungal population in the rhizosphere was signiWcantly greater than in the surrounding bulk media. M. anisopliae persisted in the peat and bark-based potting media at 6.22 and 5.74 log10 CFU/g dry potting media for 342 days, respectively. Bioassays using bark and peat-based potting media inoculated with M. anisopliae at 6 log 10 CFU/g dry potting media resulted in 93.5% and 97.5% infection of last instar BVW, respectively. P. abies roots inoculated with M. anisopliae infected 76% of 2nd–3rd instar BVW. Inoculation of roots with M. anisopliae represents a novel method for delivering entomopathogenic fungi and would greatly reduce application costs. Factors associated with fungal biology outside the host may be more important than virulence in a laboratory bioassay.
AN EDRIOASTEROID-DOMINATED ECHINODERM ASSEMBLAGE FROM A LOWER PENNSYLVANIAN MARINE CONGLOMERATE IN OKLAHOMA

Abstract Four species of isorophinid edrioasteroids, Ulrichidiscus forbesi n. sp., Neoisorophusella whitesidei n. sp., Postibulla westergaardi n. sp., and Parapostibulla graysoni n. sp., are described from unnamed unit 1 of the Golf Course Formation, Dornick Hills Group, Lower Pennsylvanian (Morrowan), at Forbes Ranch, north of Marietta, southern Oklahoma. This locality is the first report of edrioasteroids attached to extraformational clasts, and they exhibit extremely high specimen density and the highest taxonomic diversity known from the post-Ordovician. The associated fauna consists of the stemless crinoid Paragassizocrinus tarri, serpulid worm tubes, and the acrothoracic barnacle boring, Rogerella, along with a few brachiopods, rugose corals, and other open marine organisms. Edrioasteroids show no preference for clast type, size, or shape. Intraspecific spatial competition is shown by polygonal specimen outlines in highly crowded conditions, whereas interspecific competition results in specimen over...
Assessing the risk of incident hypertension and chronic kidney disease after exposure to shock wave lithotripsy and ureteroscopy

In this study we sought to determine if among individuals with urolithiasis, extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (SWL) and ureteroscopy are associated with a higher risk of incident arterial hypertension (HTN) and/or chronic kidney disease (CKD). This was measured in a population-based retrospective study of 11,570 participants with incident urolithiasis and 127,464 without urolithiasis in The Health Improvement Network. Patients with pre-existing HTN and CKD were excluded. The study included 1319 and 919 urolithiasis patients with at least one SWL or URS procedure, respectively. Multivariable Cox regression was used to estimate the hazard ratio for incident CKD stage 3–5 and HTN in separate analyses. Over a median of 3.7 and 4.1 years, 1423 and 595 of urolithiasis participants developed HTN and CKD, respectively. Urolithiasis was associated with a significant hazard ratio each for HTN of 1.42 (95% CI: 1.35, 1.51) and for CKD of 1.82 (1.67, 1.98). SWL was associated with a significant increased risk of HTN 1.34 (1.15, 1.57), while ureteroscopy was not. When further stratified as SWL to the kidney or ureter, only SWL to the kidney was significantly and independently associated with HTN 1.40 (1.19, 1.66). Neither SWL nor ureteroscopy was associated with incident CKD. Since urolithiasis itself was associated with a hazard ratio of 1.42 for HTN, an individual who undergoes SWL to the kidney can be expected to have a significantly increased hazard ratio for HTN of 1.96 (1.67, 2.29) compared with an individual without urolithiasis.
The Le Chatelier Principle in the Markowitz Quadratic Programming Investment Model: A Case of World Equity Fund Market

Due to limited numbers of reliable international equity funds, the Markowitz investment model is ideal in constructing an international portfolio. Overinvestment in one or several fast-growing markets can be disastrous as political instability and exchange rate fluctuations reign supreme. We apply the Le Châtelier principle to the international equity fund market with a set of upper limits. Tracing out a set of efficient frontiers, we inspect the shifting phenomenon in the mean–variance space. The optimum investment policy can be easily implemented and risk minimized.
Aggregating Opinions to Design Energy-Efficient Buildings.

In this research-in-progress paper we present a new real world domain for studying the aggregation of different opinions: early stage architectural design of buildings. This is an important real world application, not only because building design and construction is one of the world's largest industries measured by global expenditures, but also because the early stage design decision making has a significant impact on the energy consumption of buildings. We present a mapping between the domain of architecture and engineering research and that of the agent models present in the literature. We study the importance of forming diverse teams when aggregating the opinions of different agents for architectural design, and also the effect of having agents optimizing for different factors of a multi-objective optimization design problem. We find that a diverse team of agents is able to provide a higher number of top ranked solutions for the early stage designer to choose from. Finally, we present the next steps for a deeper exploration of our questions.
Enacted Assessment of Disability Support: A “Lived” Method for Assessing Student Life

How does an institution assess the experiences of only one one-thousandth of its overall population? And how does it assess something as non-discrete as “student experience”? In the on-going efforts to assess the quality of life for mobility-impaired students on a mid-sized residential campus, the authors built upon focus group research that identified areas of both success and shared concern by developing a novel form of video-based assessment utilizing split-screen analysis. This analysis was neither especially time-consuming, nor especially expensive, nor particularly difficult to conduct, yet produced immediate, valuable, and useful data. To view supplemental material that accompanies this article, the video, "Enacted Assessment of Disability Support: A "Lived" Method for Assessing Student Life," click here .
Minoru Yamasaki: Contradictions of Scale in the Career of the Nisei Architect of the World's Largest Building

(2000). Minoru Yamasaki: Contradictions of Scale in the Career of the Nisei Architect of the World's Largest Building. Amerasia Journal: Vol. 26, No. 3, pp. 162-188.
Neuroethics: the pursuit of transforming medical ethics in scientific ethics

Ethical problems resulting from brain research have given rise to a new discipline termed neuroethics, representing a new kind of knowledge capable of discovering the neural basis for universal ethics. The article (1) tries to evaluate the contributions of neuroethics to medical ethics and its suitability to outline the foundations of universal ethics, (2) critically analyses the process of founding this universal ethic. The potential benefits of applying neuroimaging, psychopharmacology and neurotechnology have to be carefully weighed against their potential harm. In view of these questions, an intensive dialogue between neuroscience and the humanities is more necessary than ever.
Antibodies against a secreted product of Staphylococcus aureus trigger phagocytic killing

Host immunity against bacteria typically involves antibodies that recognize the microbial surface and promote phagocytic killing. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a frequent cause of lethal bloodstream infection; however, vaccines and antibody therapeutics targeting staphylococcal surface molecules have thus far failed to achieve clinical efficacy. S. aureus secretes coagulase (Coa), which activates host prothrombin and generates fibrin fibrils that protect the pathogen against phagocytosis by immune cells. Because of negative selection, the coding sequence for the prothrombin-binding D1-D2 domain is highly variable and does not elicit cross-protective immune responses. The R domain, tandem repeats of a 27-residue peptide that bind fibrinogen, is conserved at the C terminus of all Coa molecules, but its functional significance is not known. We show here that the R domain enables bloodstream infections by directing fibrinogen to the staphylococcal surface, generating a protective fibrin shield that inhibits phagocytosis. The fibrin shield can be marked with R-specific antibodies, which trigger phagocytic killing of staphylococci and protect mice against lethal bloodstream infections caused by a broad spectrum of MRSA isolates. These findings emphasize the critical role of coagulase in staphylococcal escape from opsonophagocytic killing and as a protective antigen for S. aureus vaccines.
Pulsed, Room Temperature Operation of a Tunable NaCl Color Center Laser

We report pulsed operation of a tunable color center laser based on the F2+ defect in NaCl. The laser has produced output energies exceeding 8 mJ in 20 nsec pulses. These energies are 4 times greater than those generated by previously reported pulsed color center lasers.1 More significantly, this performance has been achieved with a room temperature crystal. The laser has been operated for up to 40 hours but displays a fading of output power with time.