cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Rapid detection of antibiotic-resistant bacteria at the single-cell level using two-photon excitation fluorescence and coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering microscopy (Conference Presentation)

The current standard for antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST) is based on measuring bacterial growth after 10-24 hours of proliferation. Considering that many life-threatening conditions of infection exist, rapid AST techniques are urgently needed. We developed a rapid AST method based on two-photon fluorescence and coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering microscopy which can detect antibiotic responses of bacteria within one hour. We used Pseudomonas aeruginosa as a representative pathogen model, and found that antibiotic treatment greatly reduces nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (phosphate) levels in the bacteria. This enables rapid determination of bacterial susceptibility at the single cell level.
Turbulent boundary-layer flow beneath a vortex. Part 1. Turbulent Bödewadt flow

The equations governing the mean fluid motions within a turbulent boundary layer adjoining a stationary plane beneath an axisymmetric circumferential flow , where is cylindrical radius, are solved by assuming the eddy diffusivity is proportional to times a diffusivity function , where is axial distance from the plane. The boundary-layer shape and structure depend on the dimensionless vorticity , but are independent of the strength of the circumferential flow. This problem has been solved using a spectral method in the case of rigid-body motion ( and ) for two models of : constant (model A) and constant within a rough layer of thickness adjoining the boundary and increasing linearly with outside that layer (model B). The influence of the rough layer is quantified by the dimensionless radial coordinate , where . The boundary-layer thickness varies parabolically with for model A and nearly linearly with for model B. Inertial stability of the outer flow causes the velocity components to decay with axial distance as exponentially damped oscillations, with the radial flow consisting of a sequence of jets. Axial flow is positive (flowing out of the boundary layer). Outflow from the layer, velocity gradients at the bounding plane, meridional-plane circulation and oscillations all increase as radius decreases.
Classification of fish species from different ecosystems using the near infrared diffuse reflectance spectra of otoliths

Applications of Fourier transform near infrared (FT-NIR) spectroscopy in fisheries science are currently limited. This current analysis of otolith spectral data demonstrate the potential applicability of FT-NIR spectroscopy to otolith chemistry and spatial variability in fisheries science. The objective of this study was to examine the use of NIR spectroscopy as a tool to differentiate among marine fishes in four large marine ecosystems. We examined otoliths from 13 different species, with three of these species coming from different regions. Principal component analysis described the main directions along which the specimens were separated. The separation of species and their ecosystems may suggest interactions between fish phylogeny, ontogeny, and environmental conditions that can be evaluated using NIR spectroscopy. In order to discriminate spectra across ecosystems and species, four supervised classification model techniques were utilized: soft independent modelling of class analogies, support vector machine discriminant analysis, partial least squares discriminant analysis, and k-nearest neighbor analysis (KNN). This study showed that the best performing model to classify combined ecosystems, all four ecosystems, and species was the KNN model, which had an overall accuracy rate of 99.9%, 97.6%, and 91.5%, respectively. Results from this study suggest that further investigations are needed to determine applications of NIR spectroscopy to otolith chemistry and spatial variability.
Bilayer wound matrix dermal substitute allows survival of split-thickness skin graft in necrotizing fasciitis defects: A retrospective, uncontrolled case study

Abstract Background Necrotizing fasciitis (NF) is a rapid infectious process involving the fascia and subcutaneous tissue. Current standards of care rely on surgical debridement, resulting in large defects, with limited reconstructive options. Wound management has evolved over the last decade, including use of bilayer wound matrices (BWM). The authors sought to assess the use of collagen-GAG bilayer wound matrices on STSG take for NF wounds. Methods A qualitative clinical evaluation (2016–2018) was performed to analyze the efficacy of BWM to aide in STSG take. Primary outcomes were 180-day bilayer matrix success, defined by progressing to split-thickness skin graft (STSG) and STSG take, determined by clinical evaluation. Wounds without a diagnosis of NF or reconstruction with BWM were excluded. Results Ten patients with 11 NF wounds were identified. Average BMI was 32 kg/m2. Comorbidities included hypertension (70%), diabetes (40%), and peripheral vascular disease (40%). Average wound size was 542cm 2 (range: 49cm 2 -1050cm 2 ) and average wound age was 19 days at BWM placement. Matrices were applied to the lower extremity (64%), upper extremity (27%), and perineum (9%). One-hundred percent (n = 11) of wounds were deemed successful by receiving a STSG. Average time to STSG was 44 days (21d –108d). Complications consisted of delayed healing (n = 1, 8%) and partial necrosis (n = 1). No instances of infection or STSG graft loss occurred. Conclusion Complex defects caused by soft tissue necrotizing infections remain a reconstructive challenge. We highlight the benefit of a BWM as a treatment modality for reconstruction by priming the wound bed for a definitive STSG.
Modelling in cardiology: Finite element approximation of potential gradient in cardiac muscle undergoing stimulation

Depolarization and defibrillation events in cardiac muscle are considered to be closely related to the potential gradient existing in the myocardium during electrical shock. Therefore, a numerical technique of calculating the gradient from experimental data with minimal possible error is required. Simulation studies indicate that computing the gradient using the central difference formula or finite element approximation based on eight-node binomial elements is superior to other methods. However, if this method is used to calculate potential gradients from a 3$@?$5$@?$8 grid, large errors occur. A five-fold improvement has been achieved by taking advantage of the convergence resulting from decreasing mesh size and by identifying and eliminating gradients with excessive errors. The process outlined above is expected to calculate gradient values with root mean square error less than 10%.
Terrace formation and preservation: Santa Catalina Island and other California Channel Islands

Uplifted coastal terraces are present on Santa Catalina Island, but so poorly preserved that researchers have debated for more than a century whether they even exist. Morphometric analyses of LIDAR...
Neuroblastoma Shown on 18F-DOPA PET/CT Performed to Evaluate Congenital Hyperinsulinism.

ABSTRACT 18F-DOPA PET/CT was performed to evaluate congenital hyperinsulinism in a 55-day-old boy with hypoglycemia. The images revealed not only a focal 18F-DOPA-avid lesion in the pancreas but also in a left thoracic paraspinal neuroblastoma.
On the Ramsey Numbers of Odd-Linked Double Stars.

The linked double star $S_c(n,m)$, where $n \geq m \geq 0$, is the graph consisting of the union of two stars $K_{1,n}$ and $K_{1,m}$ with a path on $c$ vertices joining the centers. Its ramsey number $r(S_c(n,m))$ is the smallest integer $r$ such that every $2$-coloring of the edges of a $K_r$ admits a monochromatic $S_c(n,m)$. In this paper, we study the ramsey numbers of linked double stars when $c$ is odd. In particular, we establish bounds on the value of $r(S_c(n,m))$ and determine the exact value of $r(S_c(n,m))$ if $n \geq c$, or if $n \leq \lfloor \frac{c}{2} \rfloor - 2$ and $m = 2$.
Olivine dissolution in simulated lung and gastric fluid as an analog to the behavior of lunar particulate matter inside the human respiratory and gastrointestinal systems

With the Artemis III mission scheduled to land humans on the Moon in 2025, work must be done to understand the hazards lunar dust inhalation would pose to humans. In this study, San Carlos olivine was used as an analog of lunar olivine, a common component of lunar dust. Olivine was dissolved in a flow-through apparatus in both simulated lung fluid and 0.1 M HCl (simulated gastric fluid) over a period of approximately 2 weeks at physiological temperature, 37°C. Effluent samples were collected periodically and analyzed for pH, iron, silicon, and magnesium ion concentrations. The dissolution rate data derived from our measurements allow us to estimate that an inhaled 1.0 μm diameter olivine particle would take approximately 24 years to dissolve in the human lungs and approximately 3 weeks to dissolve in gastric fluid. Results revealed that inhaled olivine particles may generate the toxic chemical, hydroxyl radical, for up to 5-6 days in lung fluid. Olivine dissolved in 0.1 M HCl for 2 weeks transformed to an amorphous silica-rich solid plus the ferric iron oxy-hydroxide ferrihydrite. Olivine dissolved in simulated lung fluid shows no detectable change in composition or crystallinity. Equilibrium thermodynamic models indicate that olivine in the human lungs can precipitate secondary minerals with fibrous crystal structures that have the potential to induce detrimental health effects similar to asbestos exposure. Our work indicates that inhaled lunar dust containing olivine can settle in the human lungs for years and could induce long-term potential health effects like that of silicosis.
Chapter 11. Antibiotics and Related Compounds

Publisher Summary The use of antibiotics in the chemotherapy of infectious diseases is well established. New advances have been made in understanding the biosynthesis of some agents and experiments have been reported that are designed to understand the mode of action. This chapter includes a brief discussion of such research. New derivatives of 6-aminopenicillanic acid continue to find a place in both experimental work on infectious disease and in medical practice. Two derivatives closely related to oxacillin are cloxacillin and dicloxacillin. It has been foundthat cloxacillin is primarily useful in infections caused by penicillinase producing staphylococci. Blood levels after oral and intramuscular administration are slightly more delayed when compared with oxacillin, but have been found to last longer. A clinical study of cloxacillin showed good results in staphylococcal, pneumococcal, and streptococcal infections and consistently higher antibacterial blood levels after oral administration. Cloxacillin can substitute for methicillin when oral therapy is feasible. Dicloxaclllin appears to be absorbed extremely well, giving peak blood level twice those of cloxaclllin and four-fold greater than oxacillin.
An analysis of semi-finite linear diffusion in the long-time limit: A clarification of the response to periodic sinusoidal and square-wave perturbations

Abstract Low-frequency peturbation of the surface concentration in a system exhibiting semi-finite diffusion can be modeled by an equivalent circuit comprising a resistor ( R s ) and capacitor ( C s ) connected in series. Mathematical analyses of other workers (supported by our own computer simulations) of sinusoidal and square-wave perturbations show that the values of R s and C s , though frequency independent (in the low frequency domain), depend upon the nature of the perturbation. This apparent paradox is resolved by noting that even a low-frequency square wave has high frequency components which modify the composition of the system; a sine wave is pure frequency.
How latent is latent semantic analysis

Latent Semantic Analysis (LSA) is a statistical, corpus-based text comparison mechanism that was originally developed for the task of information retrieval, but in recent years has produced remarkably human-like abilities in a variety of language tasks. LSA has taken the Test of English as a Foreign Language and performed as well as non-native English speakers who were successful college applicants. It has shown an ability to learn words at a rate similar to humans. It has even graded papers as reliably as human graders. We have used LSA as a mechanism for evaluating the quality of student responses in an intelligent tutoring system, and its performance equals that of human raters with intermediate domain knowledge. It has been claimed that LSA's text-comparison abilities stem primarily from its use of a statistical technique called singular value decomposition (SVD) which compresses a large amount of term and document co-occurrence information into a smaller space. This compression is said to capture the semantic information that is latent in the corpus itself. We test this claim by comparing LSA to a version of LSA without SVD, as well as a simple keyword matching model.
Statistical Tests Based on Dea Efficiency Scores

This chapter is written for analysts and researchers who may use data envelopment analysis (DEA) to statistically evaluate hypotheses about characteristics of production correspondences and factors affecting productivity. Contrary to some characterizations, it is shown that DEA is a full-fledged statistical methodology, based on the characterization of DMU efficiency as a stochastic variable. The DEA estimator of the production frontier has desirable statistical properties, and provides a basis for the construction of a wide range of formal statistical tests (Banker RD Mgmt Sci. 1993;39(10):1265–73). Specific tests described here address issues such as comparisons of efficiency of groups of DMUs, existence of scale economies, existence of allocative inefficiency, separability and substitutability of inputs in production systems, analysis of technical change and productivity change, impact of contextual variables on productivity, and the adequacy of parametric functional forms in estimating monotone and concave production functions.
Audit Information Dissemination, Taxpayer Communication, and Compliance Behavior

Taxpayer audits are a central feature of the voluntary compliance system in the United States federal individual income tax. Audits are thought to have a direct deterrent effect on the individuals actually audited. Audits are also believed to have an indirect deterrent effect on individuals not audited, and in fact there is some empirical evidence that audit rates affect compliance beyond the audited individuals themselves. However, empirical studies cannot measure or control for taxpayer awareness of audit risk, and they also cannot uncover the behavioral channels through which the direct and indirect effects operate; that is, the ways in which taxpayers learn about - and communicate among themselves - audit rates, and the subsequent effects on compliance, are not known and cannot be discovered by empirical studies. In this study, we use laboratory experiments to examine several types of information dissemination and taxpayer communication about audit frequency and audit results. These experiments allow us to test hypotheses about the effects of two types of communication of audit policies and results, in order to explore the direct and the indirect effects of audits: "official" information disseminated by the "government" (e.g., the experimenter) and "unofficial", or informal, communications among "taxpayers" (e.g., the subjects). Our results indicate that "unofficial" communications have a strong indirect effect on compliance: messages that indicate that a subject was not audited or was able to cheat actually reduce compliance, while messages that a subject was audited or paid his or her taxes increase compliance. Also, "official" announcements of information may not always encourage voluntary compliance.
Marimastat as First-Line Therapy for Patients With Unresectable Pancreatic Cancer: A Randomized Trial

PURPOSE: The prognosis for unresectable pancreatic cancer remains dismal (1-year survival rate, < 10%; 5-year survival rate, < 5%). Recent advances in conventional chemotherapy and novel molecular treatment strategies warrant investigation. This, the largest randomized study in pancreatic cancer performed to date, compares marimastat, the first of a new class of agents, with gemcitabine. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Four hundred fourteen patients with unresectable pancreatic cancer were randomized to receive marimastat 5, 10, or 25 mg bid or gemcitabine 1,000 mg/m2. The primary end point was survival. Progression-free survival, patient benefit, and safety were also assessed. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in survival between 5, 10, or 25 mg of marimastat and gemcitabine (P = .19). Median survival times were 111, 105, 125, and 167 days, respectively, and 1-year survival rates were 14%, 14%, 20%, and 19%, respectively. There was a significant difference in survival rates between patients treated with...
The Vines of Complexity

The initial stages of the institutionalization of hierarchical social inequalities remain poorly understood. Recent models have added important perspectives to adaptationist approaches by centering on the agency of aggrandizers who alter egalitarian institutions to suit their own ends through debt, coercion, or marginalization. However, such approaches often fail to take the recursive interaction between agents and egalitarian structure seriously, regarding egalitarian structures as the products of simplicity or blank slates on which aggrandizers can make their marks. The approach here, drawing on insights from the work of Douglass North, views egalitarian structures as complex institutions which, together with their accompanying ideologies, have arisen to reduce the transaction costs of exchange in smallscale societies. It will be argued that egalitarian structures and the coalitions that maintain them vary as greatly in configuration, scope, and nature as do hierarchical structures of power, presenting ...
Learning 3D Object Templates by Quantizing Geometry and Appearance Spaces

While 3D object-centered shape-based models are appealing in comparison with 2D viewer-centered appearance-based models for their lower model complexities and potentially better view generalizabilities, the learning and inference of 3D models has been much less studied in the recent literature due to two factors: i) the enormous complexities of 3D shapes in geometric space; and ii) the gap between 3D shapes and their appearances in images. This paper aims at tackling the two problems by studying an And-Or Tree (AoT) representation that consists of two parts: i) a geometry-AoT quantizing the geometry space, i.e. the possible compositions of 3D volumetric parts and 2D surfaces within the volumes; and ii) an appearance-AoT quantizing the appearance space, i.e. the appearance variations of those shapes in different views. In this AoT, an And-node decomposes an entity into constituent parts, and an Or-node represents alternative ways of decompositions. Thus it can express a combinatorial number of geometry and appearance configurations through small dictionaries of 3D shape primitives and 2D image primitives. In the quantized space, the problem of learning a 3D object template is transformed to a structure search problem which can be efficiently solved in a dynamic programming algorithm by maximizing the information gain. We focus on learning 3D car templates from the AoT and collect a new car dataset featuring more diverse views. The learned car templates integrate both the shape-based model and the appearance-based model to combine the benefits of both. In experiments, we show three aspects: 1) the AoT is more efficient than the frequently used octree method in space representation; 2) the learned 3D car template matches the state-of-the art performances on car detection and pose estimation in a public multi-view car dataset; and 3) in our new dataset, the learned 3D template solves the joint task of simultaneous object detection, pose/view estimation, and part localization. It can generalize over unseen views and performs better than the version 5 of the DPM model in terms of object detection and semantic part localization.
A Validity and Reliability Study of the Slosson Intelligence Test and the Shipley Institute of Living Scale

The subjects used in the present study were undergraduate students enrolled in lower division psychology courses. The sample consisted of 40 students (25 females, 15 males). The SIT and the SILS were administered individually to each subject with a 45-day interval between the first test and the retest on both instruments. The correlation coefficients were computed by use of the Pearson product-moment technique. The correlation between SIT IQ scores and SILS raw scores derived from the initial testing was .46. An analysis of the results of the second testing between the same instruments revealed a coefficient of .54. Test-retest reliability coefficients of .83 and .80 were obtained for the SIT and SILS measures. All four coefficients were significant beyond the .01 level.
Sex Partners of Alaskan Drug Users: HIV Transmission Between White Men and Alaska Native Women

SUMMARY This study describes patterns of sexual behavior and condom use in a sample of 1125 Black, White, and Alaska Native drug users. Data are self-reports of recent sexual behavior, including descriptions of (up to) the five most recent sex partners. This provided information on 1116 sex partner pairs, of which at least one partner was a drug user. Sex partner pairs involving a white man and an Alaska Native woman were frequently reported. Level of condom use within these pairs was significantly lower than within all other pairs. The implications of a potential vector of HIV transmission from White, drug using men to Alaska Native women are discussed.
A Case of Huge Gastric Bezoar Removed by Endoscopic Combination Therapy with Coca-Cola Injection.

Gastric bezoars are concretion of undigested material in the gastrointestinal tract. In the past, gastric bezoars were generally treated with surgical management. Recently, the efficacy of oral intake or endoscopic injection therapy with Coca-Cola has been reported. We report a case of a 47-year-old-man with huge gastric bezoar (4×2.5 cm) that was successfully removed by endoscopic fragmentation with Coca-Cola injection. Compared with a single endoscopic fragmentation therapy, the combination therapy with Coca-Cola injection shortened the procedure time and reduced the complication associated with fragmented bezoar.
Distribution and Correlates of Lipoprotein-Associated Phospholipase A2 in an Elderly Cohort: The Cardiovascular Health Study

OBJECTIVES: To determine whether high levels of lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (Lp-PLA2) are associated with prevalent cardiovascular disease (CVD) and to evaluate factors most influencing Lp-PLA2 levels in a community-based cohort of older adults. DESIGN: Cross-sectional. SETTING: The Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS), a population-based cohort study of men and women aged 65 and older. PARTICIPANTS: Five thousand five hundred thirty-one CHS participants. MEASUREMENTS: Levels of Lp-PLA2 activity were determined using stored blood samples from the baseline examination. RESULTS: Mean Lp-PLA2 was higher in participants with electrocardiographically determined ventricular conduction defect and major Q-wave abnormality and was positively correlated with left ventricular (LV) mass. It was high in those with echocardiographically determined abnormal LV ejection fraction, which persisted after adjustment. Mean Lp-PLA2 was also higher in participants with mild renal insufficiency and kidney disease. After multivariable adjustment, there was a modest but significant 27% greater risk of prevalent CHF per standard deviation increment of Lp-PLA2 and a modest but significant 12% greater risk of prevalent myocardial infarction. Lp-PLA2 was weakly but mainly most strongly correlated with cholesterol and lipoproteins, but those correlations were not especially strong. Lp-PLA2 was weakly positively correlated with soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 but not interleukin-6. In total, all factors considered could explain only 29% of Lp-PLA2 activity. CONCLUSION: Novel findings in the study are the associations, in those aged 65 and older, between Lp-PLA2 activity and LV dysfunction, CHF, and renal disease. CVD risk factors only minimally explain levels of Lp-PLA2.
Protecting information security availability via self-adapting intelligent agents

The information security model is composed of confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Availability is the area of information security that requires services and components to be continuously available for the user community. If a service or component is unavailable, confidentiality and integrity are meaningless. Network availability is the underlining component that must be existent in order for services to be accessible for end users. Developers have used redundancy to assist in ensuring that an application or network is available; however, this is a costly solution if many network components and services are involved.
Invited talk: Resistive random access memory (RRAM): Materials and devices

Summary form only given. Nanoscale resistive memories (RRAMs) have generated extensive interest recently as a promising candidate for future non-volatile memory applications. In this talk, I will briefly summarize the current status of RRAM research, from the switching mechanism, modeling, material choice, performance metrics, to prototype memory demonstrations. Recently improved understanding of the resistance switching effects has led to improved device performance. However, challenges such as the tradeoff between programming current and retention still need to be overcome. Another major challenge for RRAM is the “sneak path” problem in the interconnected passive network, and proper “select” elements need to be developed to break the parasitic paths. Effective 3D integration techniques also need to be demonstrated. Different approaches to address these problems will be discussed.
The impact of geographic mobility on Jewish community participation: Disruptive or supportive?

Among two different subgroups of Jews, Reform/Nonaffiliated and Orthodox/ Conservative, geographic mobility has different implications For the former, evidence supported the older, “pessimistic” perspective—that mobility is linked to reduced ethnic identification and participation Among the latter group, evidence supported the more modern perspective, that mobility need not mean ethnic detachment and can even promote ethnic participation Important in determining the effects of geographic mobility may be the nature of ethnic community identity-commitment orientation There are several implications from this conclusion Sizable numbers of Chassidic Jews have recently moved from Brooklyn neighborhoods to Rockland and other upstate New York counties, settling in suburban communities What changes in their social life are consequences of this kind of residential shift, since the group clearly has a traditional Jewish identity-commitment orientation? The implication of this study is that their movement will not experience reduced levels of Jewish social participation, indeed, the amount of informal Jewish socializing, religiosity, and activism may well become even higher On the other hand, for most of America’s Jews, who fall into the Reform/Nonaffiliated category and possess the second of the two identity-commitment orientations, higher levels of residential mobility—other factors remaining constant—will probably lead to lower levels of Jewish social participation
28 NEONATAL TRANSPORT, MATERNAL ATTITUDES AND INFANT BEHAVIOR

Low birthweight infants have been shown to be at greater risk than full-term infants for problems in parent-child interaction. Whether or not transporting babies to neonatal centers might increase the risk has been questioned. This study evaluated the effects of early parent-child separation upon parental attitudes and neonatal behavior in the very low birthweight (VLBW) infant (< 1500 grams). During an 18 month period, 30 VLBW infant-mother pairs and 30 full-term controls (C) entered the study. They were matched by maternal age and parity, and sex of the infant. The VLBW cases consisted of 10 inborn (Gp. I), 10 transported (Gp. II) and 10 maternal/fetal transports (Gp. III). Parental visiting patterns and behavior were unobtrusively recorded by the nursing staff. The Michigan Screening Profile for Parenting (MSPP - Helfer, et al.) was administered to each mother, and the Brazelton Assessment Scale (BAS) was used to evaluate the newborn at the time of discharge and again one month later. There were no differences in parental attitudes between Groups I-III. However, there were differences between VLBW and C groups on a) emotional needs met and b) realistic expectations. When infants with intracranial hemorrhage were excluded, there were no differences on BAS between Groups I-III, or VLBW compared to C. Visiting patterns were variable. These findings support the concept of regionalized care.
MTI Target Visibility

The available target Doppler space over which the target-to-clutter lutter improvement factor is equal to or greater than a design value based on the conventional moving target indicator (MTI) improvement factor I is investigated. Quantitative results are given for case of a zero-mean Gaussian spectrum using binomial weighting.
THE IMPACT OF OWNERSHIP OF HOUSEHOLD CAPITAL ON TIME ALLOCATION: AN ESTIMATION

How does ownership of units of home capital affect time use? What are the determinants of ownership of home capital? The objective of this paper is to inquire into the nature of these relationships.
All-or-none transfer based on verbally mediated concepts ☆

Abstract The problem of generalization and transfer is discussed relative to all-or-none learning, and a theory is proposed which combines features of the selection-of-strategies theory and the pattern-conditioning theory. A question is raised whether transfer of training involves recognition that must occur when a new item is first presented, or continued opportunities for transfer as long as the new item remains unlearned. This question is seen to involve different hypotheses about the initial and transition parameters of the Markov chain which describes the learning of items during a transfer task. Data are presented from an experiment in which positive transfer of training occurred based on generalization among members of a verbal concept-category. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that transfer occurred on the first presentation of a new item or not at all. The data are adequately fit by a theory expressed as a Markov chain in which learning is an all-or-none event. Statistical tests indicate that the effect of transfer can be described as a change in the initial vector of the chain, but that the learning parameters in the transition matrix varied little or not at all among conditions which differed widely in amounts of transfer. Finally, the amounts of transfer in 12 conditions are analyzed in relation to assumptions about the acquisition of verbal concepts and the recognition of new instances after a concept has been acquired.
THE PIGLET AS A MODEL FOR CEFONICID PHARMACOKINETICS

The piglet is a useful pharmacodynamic model for the study of catecholamines and an acceptable pharmacokinetic (PK) model for methylxanthines. We evaluated the piglet as a model for the PK of cefonicid, a second generation cephalosporin. Cefonicid (C) PK were evaluated in 13 piglets at 3 (n=6) and 6 (n=7) days of age. Following a single I.V. dose of 50 mg/kg, blood samples (n=10) were obtained over 24 hr. Serum ultrafiltrate was prepared for determination of unbound C by membrane centrifugation, and C was quantitated by HPLC (LLD = 5 mg/L; C.V. <10%). ESTRIP was used to generate polyexponential parameter estimates necessary for PK calculations. No significant differences were found between the 3 and 6 day old animals with respect to T½ (1.4±0.1 vs. 1.04±0.07 hr), total clearance (CL; 0.39±0.03 vs. 0.31±0.07 L/hr/kg) or Vd(area) (0.3±0.04 vs. 0.28±0.06 L/kg). The PK parameters for C in the piglets were markedly different from those in young adult humans (T½=4.8 hr; Vd=0.12 L/kg), as was true for the free fraction of C from piglets (93.0%) vs. healthy adults (3.1%). Comparison of piglet serum to that from human neonates revealed a significant difference in the albumin concentration (1.5±0.2 gm% for piglet vs. 4.3±0.2 gm% for human) and the total protein:albumin ratio (2.7±0.3 for piglet vs. 1.5± 0.1 for human). The markedly increased CL of C in the piglet may be consequent to interspecies differences in C protein binding. Our data suggest that the piglet may not be an adequate model to evaluate the PK of C for extrapolation to the human infant.
Exegetical history: Nazis at the round table

Some might argue that when Nazis fantasize themselves as medieval knights, they debase a beautiful, noble and innocent past. They might insist that this fantasy, which feeds a desire to see the male body as larger than life, this fetishizing of the body as armor and muscle, may be perverse, but the ideal – the chivalrous knight who pledged himself to honor, loyalty and brotherhood – should not be tarnished by that perversion. This essay, however, explores the possibility that there is, in all imaginings of the knight, always the potential for fascist desire. It suggests that there may be an unsavory kinship between the armored warriors of medieval Europe – even the romanticized armored warriors of King Arthur’s court – and the armored divisions of Nazi blitzkrieg. A fascist aesthetic is the darkness at the heart of Arthurian history, especially as it celebrates aggressive hypermasculinity mobilized in the service of a persecuting society intent upon domination.
Audiences Can Inhibit or Facilitate Competitive Behavior

Individuals played a Prisoner's Dilemna Game against a confederate. Individuals with a dominant response of competition when playing under alone conditions were exposed to a Previous Winners, Human Relations, or No Audience condition. Results showed that compared to the No Audience, the Previous Winners audience facilitated and the Human Relations audience inhibited competition. Discussion suggested that cognitive and learning models could account for the findings and that more research should be devoted to inhibition effects. Examples were given of inhibition effects that may occur within and outside the laboratory.
Long-term culture change related to rapid response system implementation.

Objectives Increasing attention to patient safety in training hospitals may come at the expense of trainee autonomy and professional growth. This study sought to examine changes in medical trainees’ self-reported behaviour after the institution-wide implementation of a rapid response system. Methods We conducted a two-point cross-sectional survey of medical trainees in 2006, during the implementation of a rapid response system, and in 2010, in a single academic medical centre. A novel instrument was used to measure trainee likelihood of calling for supervisory assistance, perception of autonomy, and comfort in managing decompensating patients. Non-parametric tests to assess for change were used and year of training was evaluated as an effect modifier. Results Response rates were 38% in 2006 and 70% in 2010. After 5 years of the full implementation of the rapid response system, residents were significantly more likely to report calling their attending physicians for assistance (rising from 40% to 65% of relevant situations; p < 0.0001). Year of training was a significant effect modifier. Interns felt significantly more comfortable in managing acutely ill patients; juniors and seniors felt significantly less concerned about their autonomy at 5 years after the implementation of the rapid response system. These changes were mirrored in the actual use of the rapid response system, which increased by 41% during the 5-year period after adjustment for patient volume (p < 0.0001). Conclusions A primary team-focused implementation of a rapid response system was associated with durable changes in resident physicians’ reported behaviour, including increased comfort with involving more experienced physicians and managing unstable patients.
Chloroheptakis(dimethyl sulfoxide)uranium(IV) trichloride.

In the title complex, [UCl(C2H6OS)7]Cl3, the uranium metal center is coordinated in a distorted bicapped trigonal prism geometry by seven O atoms from di­methyl sulfoxide ligands and by a terminal chloride ligand. Charge balance is maintained by three outer-sphere chloride ions per uranium(IV) metal center. Principle bond lengths include U—O 2.391 (2)–2.315 (2) A, U—Cl 2.7207 (9) A, and average S—O 1.540 (5) A.
A trend analysis of breast cancer incidence rates in the United States from 2000 to 2009 shows a recent increase.

Recent reports have shown that the breast cancer incidence rate in the US stabilized after a sharp reduction in 2002 and 2003. It is important to continue monitoring breast cancer incidence rates according to age group, race/ethnicity, estrogen receptor (ER) status, and tumor stage. Age-standardized breast cancer incidence rates were calculated using data from the surveillance, epidemiology, and end results 18 registries from 2000 to 2009, for 677,774 female breast cancer patients aged 20 and above. Jointpoint regression models were used to fit a series of joined straight lines on a log scale to annual age-standardized rates. The incidence rates of all breast cancer significantly increased for non-Hispanic blacks from 2005 to 2009 (annual percentage change, APC = 2.0 %, p = 0.01) and Asian/Pacific Islanders from 2000 to 2009 (APC = 1.2 %, p = 0.02). Since 2004, incidence rates in women aged 40–49 years significantly increased for most racial/ethnic groups (overall APC = 1.1 %, p = 0.001). The incidence rate of carcinoma in situ significantly increased in all racial/ethnic groups, with an APC range from 2.3 to 3.0 % (p < 0.005). The localized breast cancer incidence significantly increased in non-Hispanic blacks (APC = 1.3 %, p = 0.004) and Asians (APC = 1.2 %, p = 0.03). ER-positive breast cancer significantly increased in almost all age/race sub-groups after 2005 (APC by race: non-Hispanic whites 1.5 %, non-Hispanic blacks 4.3 %, Asian/Pacific Islanders 1.7 %, and Hispanics 1.8 %; all p values <0.05), while ER-negative breast cancer decreased in most sub-groups (APC by race: non-Hispanic whites—3.9 %, non-Hispanic blacks—3.7 %, Asian/Pacific Islanders—1.5 %, and Hispanics—4.3 %; all p values <0.05). Recently the incidence of breast cancer appears to be increasing in certain subgroups, including ER-positive, early-stage breast cancers, in particular among non-Hispanic blacks and Asian/Pacific Islanders. Further studies are warranted to examine possible reasons for these changes, such as changes in mammography screening methods and risk factors prevalence.
Oil prices and the global economy : a general equilibrium analysis

A global computable general equilibrium model is used to analyze the economic impacts of rising oil prices with endogenously determined availability of biofuels to mitigate those impacts. The negative effects on the global economy are comparable to those found in other studies, but the impacts are unevenly distributed across countries/regions or sectors. The agricultural sectors of high-income countries, which are relatively energy intensive, will suffer more from a rising oil prices than that in lower-income countries, whereas the reverse is true for the impacts across manufacturing sectors. The impacts are especially strong for oil importers with relatively energy-intensive manufacturing and trade, such as India and China. While the availability of biofuels does mitigate some of the negative impacts of rising oil prices, the benefit is small because capacity of biofuels to economically substitute for fossil fuels on a large scale remains limited.
Calculation of angular correlation attenuation factors and efficiencies for lithium drifted germanium detectors

Abstract Angular correlation attenuation factors and efficiencies have been computed for eleven Ge(Li) detectors with sensitive volumes in the range 0.3 cm 3 to 8.0 cm 3 . The calculations were carried out for eight source-detector separations in the range 1.0 cm to 10.0 cm.
The cuticular purse string suture: a modified purse string suture for the partial closure of round postoperative wounds.

Background The purse string suture can be used to provide primary closure for small skin defects or as a partial closure for larger round wounds. The size of the defect is reduced secondary to the tension placed on the suture, which uniformly advances the skin from the entire periphery of the wound. Methods We reviewed retrospectively the features of 98 consecutive patients for whom a total of 100 cuticular purse string sutures were used to partially close their postoperative surgical defects. The location and types of the tumors removed were also summarized. Results Postoperative wounds were created following Mohs’ micrographic excision of nonmelanoma skin cancer (basal cell carcinoma, 44; squamous cell carcinoma, 25), wide local excision of melanoma (29), or conservative excision of benign cutaneous neoplasms (two). The incidence of purse string suture for partial closure of each tumor was 4.1% for basal cell carcinoma, 7.3% for squamous cell carcinoma, and 46.3% for melanoma. The tumors were equally distributed on the trunk, head and neck, and extremities; however, purse string closures for basal cell carcinomas were more frequent on the trunk, head, and neck, relative to squamous cell carcinomas and melanomas, which were more common on the extremities. Concurrent medical problems and/or the use of an agent with anticoagulant or antiplatelet effects were noted in more than 50% of patients. Absorbable material of thicker diameter was most frequently used for the suture, and the postoperative wound area decreased by 6–90% (mean, 60%) following purse string partial closure. The suture was usually removed after 3–4 weeks. Postoperative complications occurred in six patients: allergic contact dermatitis in two, wound infection in two, exuberant granulation tissue in one, and hypertrophic scar in one. All of the wounds healed completely with either a round or linear scar. Conclusion The cuticular purse string suture is a rapid and simple procedure that provides complete or partial closure of round skin defects and excellent long-term cosmetic and functional results. This closure provides uniform tension to the wound, enhances hemostasis at the tissue edge, and significantly decreases the size of the defect. Partial wound closure with the purse string suture may be advantageous following the local excision of melanoma, either as definitive surgical wound management or as a temporary partial wound closure prior to subsequent complete repair of the surgical defect. The purse string suture is also useful following nonmelanoma skin cancer removal in patients who insist on maintaining an active lifestyle in the immediate postoperative period, who are receiving one or more systemic anticoagulant and/or antiplatelet agents, and who have large surgical wounds that would require either a skin graft or a local cutaneous flap in order to close the postoperative defect.
Growth and body composition of juvenile red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus) fed diets containing lecithin and supplemental choline.

Two factorial experiments were conducted for 6 weeks each to determine the effects of supplemental choline and lecithin in the diet of juvenile red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus). Four isocaloric diets were formulated utilizing solvent-extracted menhaden fish meal which provided 744 mg choline kg−1 diet. Menhaden oil was added to provide a total of 7% lipid in the basal diet. In the first experiment, the basal diet also contained 3000 mg choline bitartrate kg−1 diet as part of a complete vitamin premix. Three other diets were formulated by the addition of either lecithin (soybean refined) at 4% of diet in place of menhaden oil, supplemental choline bitartrate at 3000 mg kg−1 diet, or a combination of 4% lecithin and 3000 mg choline bitartrate kg−1diet. The diets were fed to triplicate groups of juvenile red drum initially averaging 2.6 g per fish in aquaria containing brackish water (6‰). Factorial analysis of variance indicated no significant main effects on weight gain, although the lecithin effect approached significance (P = 0.07). Lecithin did significantly (P < 0.05) improve feed efficiency. Dietary effects on biological indices [muscle ratio (MR), hepatosomatic index (HSI), and intraperitoneal fat (IPF) ratio] were limited to significant effects of lecithin, choline and their interaction on lowering HSI. Fish fed the diets containing supplemental choline had significantly lower total lipid in liver compared with fish fed diets without supplemental choline, while fish fed supplemental lecithin had significantly higher lipid in the liver. Total lipid in muscle was significantly increased by supplemental choline. The second feeding trial was similar to the first except the vitamin premix contained no choline and supplemental choline was provided in the form of choline chloride. Weight gain and feed efficiency of juvenile red drum were significantly increased by lecithin. Dietary lecithin also had significant effects on MR, HSI and IPF ratio values, while supplemental choline had no effect on these indices. Dietary effects on muscle and liver lipid were similar to those observed in the first experiment with choline significantly increasing muscle lipid and lowering liver lipid. Lecithin significantly increased total lipid in liver of red drum. Thus, in these two experiments, the addition of lecithin generally improved weight gain and feed efficiency and increased liver lipid in juvenile red drum; whereas supplemental choline appeared to shift lipid towards the muscle and IPF and away from the liver.
Nutrition Knowledge and Milk Consumption Among Older Adults

Abstract Determining the impact of nutrition knowledge on specific dietary patterns is often difficult because some nutrition knowledge exams are too general and do not correlate with the behavior being assessed. Thus, it was hypothesized that nutrition knowledge about dairy products would be positively associated with milk consumption. An original nutrition knowledge instrument was pilot tested in a community wellness group and then utilized in a national probability sample of elders. Older adults in their 60s (n=132), 70s (n=157) and 80s (n=134) completed a telephone survey concerning nutrition knowledge, attitudes and behaviors, type of milk consumed, frequency of milk intake, lactose intolerance and demographics. On average, participants correctly answered 6 of the 11 nutrition knowledge items. Nutrition knowledge was significantly correlated with both the type (p≤.0001, r=.26) and frequency (p≤.01, r=.14) of milk consumption. Further, in multivariate regression analyses, nutrition knowledge, income, and trying to reduce fat or cholesterol intake were identified as the most important predictors of the type of milk consumed (p≤.0001, R 2 =.20). However, the most important predictors of frequency of milk intake were lactose intolerance, consumption patterns during adolescence, trying to get enough calcium from foods, following a diabetic diet and agreeing milk helps them sleep (p≤.0001, R 2 =.24). These results suggest that in the elderly: 1) consumption of lower fat milks could be enhanced by increasing nutrition knowledge and promoting low fat/low cholesterol diets, and 2) total milk intake could be improved by enhanced marketing of lactose free dairy products, emphasizing the importance of milk as a source of calcium, and increasing milk consumption in youth. (Funded by the National Dairy Promotion and Research Board in cooperation with the National Dairy Council and GA-AES Hatch #629.)