cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Precision Ocular Drug Delivery Via Aerosol Ring Vortices

Despite being the most prominent dosage form for topical ocular delivery, eye-drops have several well-recognized drawbacks. Addressing these limitations, in this work we introduce a novel method to accurately deliver ophthalmic medications to the surface of the eye at relatively low volume and low velocity. By aerosolizing a medicament and dispensing it in the form of a toroidal vortex, commonly known as a “smoke ring”, several major drawbacks associated with topical drug delivery can be avoided. A device capable of emitting a toroidal vortex was developed such that actuation force and aerosol loading could be modulated. Different solution formulations were tested for deposited dose on an in vitro eye. It was found that the dose delivered to the surface of an in vitro eye was directly proportional to the velocity and the size of the droplets emitted from the device. With a dilute solution formulation (0.05% fluorescein sodium), doses could be reproducibly deposited by actuating the device at different velocities (from ~5 ng to ~18 ng per actuation). While a more concentrated solution of 0.5% fluorescein sodium, between 20 ng and 160 ng could be deposited depending on selected actuation velocity. And with the highest concentration, 5% fluorescein sodium, 1.15 +/− 0.075 μg was deposited. It was also shown that the amount of drug deposited onto the eye surface could be modulated by modulating the chamber fill time. Precise toroidal vortex based aerosol delivery may facilitate optimized administration of medicines to the surface of the eye.
Discriminatory Charitable Trusts: Time for a Legislative Solution

Despite society’s increasing intolerance of discrimination, courts have seldom invalidated charitable trusts which discriminate on the basis of race or sex in the selection of their beneficiaries. Courts’ failure in this respect is due to the inability of traditional legal principles – traditional trust law and equal protection – to deal effectively with discriminatory charitable trusts. In this article, Professor Swanson demonstrates that deciding whether to enforce a racially or sexually discriminatory trust necessitates balancing the creator’s interest in having the trust enforced against society’s interests in preventing discrimination. Neither traditional trust law nor equal protection law properly balances these interests and thus have led to inconsistent and erroneous decisions. To remedy the inadequacy of traditional law, legislatures must draft anti-discrimination statutes which articulate the states’ resolutions of this balancing process and license courts to modify discriminatory trust provisions when necessary. Towards this end, Professor Swanson proposes a model anti-discrimination statute designed to accommodate the creator’s and society’s interests by deleting sexually or racially discriminatory provisions of a charitable trust, but otherwise remaining the trust’s benefits.
Educating tomorrow’s reformists: factors affecting the development of undergraduates’ social progressivism

Researchers have unpacked the ways in which students participate in democracy through voting and other forms of civic engagement. However, very little empirical work has delved into how students develop socially progressive values, despite their unprecedented importance to young people during their years in higher education. Rooted in a rich historical context of campus demonstration spanning the past 75 years and current events in the United States, this inspection of college students’ social progressivism was grounded by Pascarella’s model of students’ learning and cognitive development, and uses OLS (ordinary least squares) regression to investigate the phenomenon. Analyzing data collected by the Cooperative and Institutional Research Program from 159 institutions across the United States, this study explored the predictive capacity of students’ interaction with influential agents of socialization and other variables central to undergraduates’ college experiences. Results indicate that socially...
Combined Effects of Noise and Reverberation on Sound Localization for Listeners With Normal Hearing and Bilateral Cochlear Implants.

Purpose This study examined the individual and combined effects of noise and reverberation on the ability of listeners with normal hearing (NH) and with bilateral cochlear implants (BCIs) to locali...
Muscle Quality Improves with Extended High-Intensity Resistance Training after Hip Fracture.

Muscle mass deficits endure after hip fracture. Strategies to improve muscle quality may improve mobility and physical function. It is unknown whether training after usual care yields muscle quality gains after hip fracture. To determine whether muscle quality improves after hip fracture with high-intensity resistance training and protein supplementation. Design: Case series. Setting: University of Utah Skeletal Muscle Exercise Research Facility. 17 community-dwelling older adults, 3.6+/-1.1 months post-hip fracture, recently discharged from usual-care physical therapy (mean age 77.0+/-12.0 years, 12 female), enrolled. Participants underwent 12 weeks (3x/week) of unilaterally-biased resistance training. Participants were measured via a 3.0 Tesla whole-body MR imager for muscle lean and intramuscular adipose tissue (IMAT) of the quadriceps before and after resistance training. Peak isometric knee extension force output was measured with an isokinetic dynamometer. Muscle quality was calculated by dividing peak isometric knee extension force (N) by quadriceps lean muscle mass (cm2). In addition, common physical function variables were measured before and after training. Surgical and nonsurgical lean quadriceps muscle mass improved among participants (mean change: 2.9 cm2+/-1.4 cm2, and 2.7 cm2+/-1.3 cm2, respectively), while IMAT remained unchanged. Peak force improved in the surgical limb by 43.1+/-23N, with no significant change in the nonsurgical limb. Significant gains in physical function were evident after training. Participants recovering from hip fracture demonstrated improvements in muscle mass, muscle strength, and muscle quality in the surgical limb after hip fracture. These were in addition to gains made in the first months after fracture with traditional care. Future studies should determine the impact that muscle quality has on long-term functional recovery in this population.
Functional analysis and treatment of problem behavior related to mands for rearrangement

This study is a systematic replication of a functional analysis (FA) of the relation between mands and problem behavior. We extended treatment approaches for this problem behavior function, and describe the treatment of problem behavior related to mands for rearrangement demonstrated by a 12-year-old girl with autism spectrum disorder and Smith-Magenis syndrome. The mands consisted of requests for others to change their body positioning or proximity, or rearrange items back to their original position. An FA confirmed the relation between problem behavior and mand compliance, and functional communication training with extinction decreased problem behavior and increased functional communication responses. Problem behavior remained low as gradually longer nonreinforcement periods were introduced using a multiple schedule.
Evaluating the cumulative impacts of a long range regional transportation plan: Particulate matter exposure, greenhouse gas emissions, and transportation system performance

Abstract Long range regional transportation plans (LRTPs) are typically evaluated with performance measures calculated for the first and final years of the planning period. We call this the endpoint modeling method. Planning periods span 20–30 or more years, and therefore the endpoint method can overlook important changes that occur during interim years as well as cumulative impacts. For example, the impact of GHG emissions accumulating in the atmosphere and chronic or deadly diseases caused by exposure to high concentrations of toxic vehicle emissions cannot be reversed by plans that only perform well in the distant future. In this study we evaluate the annual performance of a LRTP created for the Albuquerque, New Mexico metropolitan area over a 28-year period by modeling land-use, travel demand, vehicle emissions and emissions exposure using an incremental and highly integrated land-use and travel demand modeling method. We call this the annual modeling method. We find non-linear and sometimes complex changes in annual emission rates, pollution exposure and other performance measures, indicating that end of period performance metrics may not be robust indicators of average and overall plan performance, which we argue are important considerations. Furthermore, we find that the annual modeling method has a large effect on land-use, traffic and emission exposure forecasts. By the plan’s final year, the annual modeling method forecasts greater population and employment, and correspondingly greater traffic congestion and air pollutant concentrations in the region’s largest activity centers than the endpoint modeling method, which is used by most MPOs.
Are International Equity Market Returns Predictable

The slope coefficient estimator in predictive regressions for stock returns is biased by a lagged stochastic regressor. There is also a spurious regression if the underlying expected return is highly persistent. This paper studies how the interactions between the two biases affect inferences about the predictability in international equity market returns. The analysis considers how the biases work in the presence of data mining for the predictive variables. I find that the two biases can reinforce or offset each other, depending on the parameters of the model. I present a new correction for the bias in the presence of both effects and evaluate its economic significance. Adjusting for data mining associated with both effects, I find that many of the global predictors have a weak explanatory power when they are individually regressed against the world market returns. Using global and local predictors, we cannot reject the null hypothesis that the predictability is an outcome of data mining for 10 of the 18 national equity market returns once we account for the apparent number of searches.
Causality between Financial Inclusion and Agricultural Sector Output in Nigeria

This study examines the causality between financial inclusion and Nigeria’s agricultural sector output (AOG). Ex-post facto research design was used and the annual time series data for various years were obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Statistical Bulletin. The Unit Root Test, Engle –Granger Co- integration Test, Error correction Model (ECM) Test and Granger Causality Tests were used to analyse the data. Financial inclusion was proxied by the prime lending rate, the deposit rate, the agricultural credit guarantee scheme fund, the demand for deposits from rural areas and the deposits of bank loans to small scale enterprises as a percentage of total loan. The results revealed that financial inclusion explains 41% of the changes in the Nigerian agricultural sector output. Prob. (F-statistics) co-efficient of 0.070531 proved that the explanatory variables have an insignificant effect on the dependent variable and Granger Causality Test showed more support for the non-existence of a causal relationship between the variables of explanatory variables and the dependent variables. Hence, the study recommends that the agricultural and financial sectors operators be sensitized on the benefits of their services to each other through symposiums, lectures, seminars and workshops. The two sectors should be encouraged to depend on each other with the agricultural sector relying more on the services of conventional financial institutions than on unorganized or traditional financial bodies. Financial institutions should also concentrate more on rendering services to the agricultural sector.
Anatomic Magnetic Resonance Imaging Measurements in First-Time Patellar Dislocators by Sex and Age.

Context Anatomic differences of the knee in first-time patellar dislocators have not been clearly elucidated. Objective To compare structural differences of the knee in those who have sustained an ...
Evaluation of N-terminal labeling mass spectrometry for characterization of partially hydrolyzed gluten proteins.

Abstract Gluten, a group of proteins found in wheat, barley, and rye, is the trigger of celiac disease, an immune disorder that affects about 1% of people worldwide. The toxicity of partially hydrolyzed gluten (PHG) in fermented products is less well understood due to the significant analytical challenges in PHG characterization. In this project, an N-terminal labeling mass spectrometry method, terminal amine isotopic labeling of substrates (TAILS), was optimized for the in-depth analysis of PHG and validated using a test protease (trypsin) with known cleavage specificity. Gluten N-termini in test and control groups were labeled with heavy and light formaldehyde, respectively. Trypsin-generated neo N-termini were identified by exhibiting an MS1 Log2 H:L peak area ratio with a significant difference (p .01). Using this strategy, all abundant, theoretical, test protease-generated peptides in exemplar alpha/beta gliadins and gamma gliadins were identified. Significance This study is the first study that modified and evaluated TAILS analysis for the analysis of partially hydrolyzed gluten proteins. The evaluation indicated that the TAILS analysis could be modified and expanded to the identification of multiple protease cleavage sites in gluten proteins and is worth further evaluation as a novel strategy for the analysis of natural hydrolysis of gluten in food processes. This strategy also may be further applied to characterize a broader range of partially hydrolyzed allergens in foods and provide reference for their safety assessment to both industry and regulatory authorities.
Internet-Based Pain Self-Management for Veterans: Feasibility and Preliminary Efficacy of the Pain EASE Program

Objective To develop and test the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a cognitive behavioral therapy-based, internet-delivered self-management program for chronic low back pain (cLBP) in veterans. Methods Phase I included program development, involving expert panel and participant feedback. Phase II was a single-arm feasibility and preliminary efficacy study of the Pain e-health for Activity, Skills, and Education (Pain EASE) program. Feasibility (ie, website use, treatment credibility, satisfaction) was measured using descriptive methods. Mixed models were used to assess mean within-subject changes from baseline to 10 weeks post-baseline in pain interference (primary outcome, West Haven-Yale Multidimensional Pain Inventory, scale of 0 to 6), pain intensity, mood, fatigue, sleep, and depression. Results Phase I participants (n = 15) suggested modifications including style changes, content reduction, additional "Test Your Knowledge" quizzes, and cognitive behavioral therapy skill practice monitoring form revisions for enhanced usability. In Phase II, participants (n = 58) were mostly male (93%) and White (60%), and had an average age of 55 years (standard deviation [SD] = 12) and moderate pain (mean score 5.9/10); 41 (71%) completed the post-baseline assessment. Participants (N = 58) logged on 6.1 (SD = 8.6) times over 10 weeks, and 85% reported being very or moderately satisfied with Pain EASE. Pain interference improved from a mean of 3.8 at baseline to 3.3 at 10 weeks (difference 0.5 [95% confidence interval 0.1 to 0.9], P = 0.008). Within-subject improvement also occurred for some secondary outcomes, including mood and depression symptoms. Discussion Veterans with cLBP may benefit from technology-delivered interventions, which may also reduce pain interference. Overall, veterans found that Pain EASE, an internet-based self-management program, is feasible and satisfactory for cLBP.
Perioperative thrombelastography serves as an important assessment tool of transfusion requirements during liver transplantation.

Abstract Background Thrombelastography has become increasingly used in liver transplantation. The implications of thrombelastography at various stages of liver transplantation, however, remain poorly understood. Our goal was to examine thrombelastography-based coagulopathy profiles in liver transplantation and determine whether preoperative thrombelastography is predictive of transfusion requirements perioperatively. Methods A retrospective review of 364 liver transplantations from January 2013 to May 2017 at a single institution was performed. Patients were categorized as hypocoagulable or nonhypocoagulable based on their preoperative thrombelastography profile. The primary outcome was intraoperative transfusion requirements. Results Of patients undergoing liver transplantation, 47% (n = 170) were hypocoagulable and 53% (n = 194) were nonhypocoagulable preoperatively. Hypocoagulable patients had higher transfusion requirements compared to nonhypocoagulable patients, requiring more units of packed red blood cells (7 vs 4, P Conclusion Coagulation abnormalities are common among liver transplantation patients and can be identified using thrombelastography. Identification of a patient's coagulation state preoperatively aids in guiding transfusion during liver transplantation. This work serves to better direct clinicians during major surgery to improve perioperative resource utilization. Future prospective work should aim to identify specific thrombelastography values that may predict transfusion requirements.
Low-Dose Hypofractionated Total Skin Electron Beam Therapy for Adult Cutaneous T-Cell Lymphoma.

Abstract Purpose Historically, the standard of care for total skin electron beam therapy (TSEBT) delivered 30 to 36 Gy over 5 to 10 weeks. Given the high risk of relapse, a majority of patients require additional treatments. Therefore, attempts to use a shortened course of TSEBT have been investigated. Methods and Materials We conducted a single-institution retrospective review to evaluate disease response, control, and toxicity using a low-dose, hypofractionated course of TSEBT (HTSEBT) in patients with mycosis fungoides. Results Forty patients received 57 courses of HTSEBT. Median dose (Gy)/fractionation was 12/3, spanning a median time of 2.4 weeks. Overall response rate of patients assessed (n = 54) was 100%. Thirty-one courses (57.4%) resulted in a complete response and 23 courses (42.6%) resulted in a partial response. Cumulative incidence of progressive skin disease at 3 months was 37.2%, at 6 months, 56.9%, and at 1 year, 81.5%. Of the 40 patients treated with a first course of HTSEBT, 31 received subsequent courses of radiotherapy. Cumulative incidence of subsequent treatment was 28.0% at 3 months, 46.8% at 6 months, and 70.0% at 1 year. Patients who underwent repeat courses of HTSEBT continued to have similar treatment responses to repeat courses without increased toxicities. Toxicities from all courses were acceptable with the exception of 1 patient, who experienced grade 4 skin toxicity (moist desquamation requiring hospitalization). Conclusions Low-dose HTSEBT provides good palliation in patients with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma with a satisfactory response and toxicity profile. HTSEBT allows therapy to be completed in far fewer treatments. Low-dose HTSEBT is an appropriate treatment option for patients unable to come for daily treatment. HTSEBT provides a way to decrease exposure to other patients and staff during public health emergencies such as the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
CDROM catalogs—evaluating lepac and looking ahead

L'Universite de l'Illinois a mis a l'etude un projet de conversion d'une grande base de donnees bibliographiques (un catalogue collectif online de tout l'Etat) sur CD-ROM. Le projet a ete teste aupres de 3 bibliotheques publiques et d'une bibliotheque universitaire. Les reactions du personnel, l'interet du CD-ROM pour le pret interbibliotheques, la possibilite d'un acces direct par les utilisateurs et l'efficacite du systeme propose sont examines. Les implications qu'aurait pour l'Illinois la realisation d'un tel projet sont egalement discutees
Transforming Today’s Closed Communications Network to Tomorrow’s Cross-Domain Aviation Internet

Historically communications, navigation and surveillance (CNS) technologies were designed independently and operated in a siloed fashion. As 4D trajectory-based operations (TBO), connected aircraft, system wide information management (SWIM) systems, and unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) are fast becoming reality, an aviation internet, that will enable fast, safe, secure, and cost-effective information sharing across CNS and air traffic management (ATM) domains is emerging as a necessary approach to cope with the challenge of ATM in complex operational environments.The aviation internet will leverage commercial Internet Protocols (IP) and information security technologies to establish an internetworking capability across CNS functions for both manned and unmanned aircraft. Both United States and European Union have set the goal of implementing an interoperable IP-based aviation network around the 2028 timeframe. As more and more aviation stakeholders are eager to contribute to the aviation internet standardization and validation, a practical and systematic transition plan that will orchestrate aviation stakeholders’ efforts to achieve common mission objectives is crucial to the success of aviation internet transformation.In support of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) CNS strategy, we first take a systems engineering approach to investigate key practical aspects of the whole lifecycle of the aviation internet transition, including technical standards suitability, regulatory and policy support, acquisition and investment decision process, business model, cost/benefit, market offerings, necessary validation, and implementation activities. Based on the investigation, we then identify technical, regulatory, and programmatic risks and corresponding mitigations, and provide technical feedback to the standardization groups. Finally, we present an action plan for the aviation industry stakeholders to ensure a successful transition from today’s closed custom network to tomorrow’s IP-based aviation internet.
On the Effect of a Binary Treatment in the Presence of a Control Covariate

The nonparametric regression of a response variable on a binary treatment and a control covariate equals the nonparametric regression of the response on the control plus the conditional (given the ...
Personal, social and cultural factors affecting elders' transitions to long term care: Certified nursing assistant perspectives.

Abstract A focus group methodology was employed to elicit information from Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs) about their views of the personality, social, institutional and cultural factors that affect the success or failure of elders' adaptation to nursing home life. The focus group (N = 6) was conducted in one long-term care facility. CNAs identified three themes that represent the process of successful adaptation to the nursing home. Emotional displacement was followed by a period of assimilation and acceptance. Resident personality, social, institutional and cultural characteristics that may affect each stage of the process are described. This study supports previous findings regarding the contribution of social-environmental elements in the adjustment process. CNA perceptions of factors that assist elders during the transition process proved to be a valuable source of information.
Activation of the Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Signaling Pathway Is Instrumental in Determining the Ability of Mycobacterium avium to Grow in Murine Macrophages

Of the two common morphotypes of Mycobacterium avium , designated smooth transparent (SmT) or smooth opaque (SmO), the SmO morphotype is avirulent, whereas the SmT morphotype is virulent. The role of the host macrophage in determining these different virulence phenotypes was analyzed using an in vitro model of macrophage infection. Initial studies confirmed previous reports of the increased ability of the SmT bacteria to grow in macrophages; this increased virulence correlated with reduced induction of inflammatory cytokines. Examination of the response of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway following infection with either morphotype revealed that all three members of the MAPK pathway were activated. Pharmacologic inhibition of either the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) or p38 MAPK pathways resulted in distinct consequences for the growth of the two morphotypes. In particular, inhibition of the p38 MAPK resulted in attenuated growth of the SmT morphotype, which correlated with reduced PGE 2 production. Inhibition of cyclooxygenase 2 by indomethacin also inhibited growth of SmT, substantiating the role for PGE 2 in promoting the growth of SmT. In contrast, SmO induction of the ERK pathway was increased compared with the SmT morphotype, and inhibition of ERK resulted in decreased TNF-α synthesis and enhanced SmO growth. Pharmacologic inhibitors of the MAPK pathway were present for only the first 4 h of infection and yet had consequences for bacterial growth at 7 days. Therefore, the data suggest that induction of the MAPK pathway during uptake of bacteria is instrumental in determining the eventual fate of the bacteria.
Individualizing through Treatment Matching: A Necessary but Not Sufficient Approach.

The effects of various alternative treatments (modules), designed to compensate for student differences in precourse memory abilities (processing and retrieval skills) and motivation (anxiety, curiosity), were investigated for lessons differing in content and task requirements. Performance on each module was compared to performance on the original (mainline) instructional module for 63 to 171 students in the Air Force Advanced Instructional System’s inventory management course. Interaction analyses on lesson times-to-criterion and criterion test scores indicated that the compensating treatments were partially effective in improving the performance of low-memory or low-reading ability students, low-curious students, or high-anxious students. Additional benefits that may be expected from an individualization approach that attempts to modify students’ cognitive and affective learning strategies are discussed.
Euler–Poincaré Pairings and Elliptic Representations of Weyl Groups and p-Adic Groups

The space of elliptic virtual representations of a p-adic group is endowed with a natural inner product EP( , ), defined analytically by Kazhdan and homologically by Schneider–Stuhler. Arthur has computed EP in terms of analytic R-groups. For Iwahori spherical representations, we show that EP can also be expressed in terms of a corresponding inner product on space of elliptic virtual representations of Weyl groups. This leads to an explicit description of both elliptic representation theories, in terms of the Kazhdan–Lusztig and Springer correspondences
Aliphatic hydrocarbons in sediments of Lake Washington1

The distribution of aliphatic hydrocarbons in sediments from several locations in Lake Washington have been determined by gas chromatographic, radiocarbon, and stable carbon isotope analyses. Most surface sediments contain an average of about 1,400 µg g‒1 dry wt total aliphatic hydrocarbons, of which about 10 µg g‒1 are n-paraffins. Gas chromatograms of these hydrocarbons and radiocarbon ages of about 18,000 years B.P. for the aliphatic hydrocarbon fraction suggest the presence of a large component of petroleum hydrocarbons. By contrast, sediments at depth in the sediment column and deposited before about 1880 contain only about 30 µg g‒1 total aliphatics and about 5 µg g‒1 n-paraffins. These hydrocarbon levels are believed to represent the aged natural background concentrations in Lake Washington. A number of cores analyzed in detail show an increase in hydrocarbon levels after 1880, which corresponds to the start of a period of growth for the adjacent metropolitan area.
Hardening fingerprint Fuzzy vault using password

Security of stored templates is a critical issue in biometric systems because biometric templates are non-revocable. Fuzzy vault is a cryptographic framework that enables secure template storage by binding the template with a uniformly random key. Though the fuzzy vault framework has proven security properties, it does not provide privacy-enhancing features such as revocability and protection against cross-matching across different biometric systems. Furthermore, non-uniform nature of biometric data can decrease the vault security. To overcome these limitations, we propose a scheme for hardening a fingerprint minutiae-based fuzzy vault using password. Benefits of the proposed password-based hardening technique include template revocability, prevention of cross-matching, enhanced vault security and a reduction in the False Accept Rate of the system without significantly affecting the False Reject Rate. Since the hardening scheme utilizes password only as an additional authentication factor (independent of the key used in the vault), the security provided by the fuzzy vault framework is not affected even when the password is compromised.
A Liquid Helium Film Heat Pipe/Heat Switch

We report on the development of a compact, high conductance heat pipe/heat switch using liquid helium and a wick material. As a heat pipe its operation is similar to that of capillary pumped loop heat pipes except that it is very small. The device is also used as a heat switch by attaching a getter which can be heated. The helium is desorbed from the getter heating to ~35K by using a small (< 3mW) power and the switch is then on. The on state conductance of the first device tested was over 400 mW per Kelvin at 1.8K. Unheated, the getter quickly cools and adsorbs enough helium so that the heat switch turns off. For the first device tested the switch turned off at a getter temperature of 24K. The off conductance was 3.5 microwatts per Kelvin at 1.5K. This first version had a maximum heat flow capability of 4 mW. Future switches will be designed for a larger temperature and heat flow operating range and decreased off state conductance. This device was designed to replace gas-gap heat switches currently used in adiabatic demagnetization refrigerators.
A language for specifying and implementing the low-level functions of media access protocols

The programmable network prototyping system (PNPS) is a facility used for the rapid prototyping of communication network protocols. It consists of a collection of node emulators, a programmable channel that supports a transmission rate of 10 Mb/s, and a backbone system used for configuration, data collection, and data analysis. The authors describe PNPS in general and its network controller in particular. Then they describe LIFP, the language used to specify and implement the low-level functions of media access protocols. They illustrate its use with the CSMA/CD (carrier-sort multiple-access with collision detection) protocol and discuss the implementation of the compiler and debugger. >
Behavioral Studies of Sound Localization in the Cat

Using the magnetic search coil technique to measure eye and ear movements, we trained cats by operant conditioning to look in the direction of light and sound sources with their heads fixed. Cats were able to localize noise bursts, single clicks, or click trains presented from sources located on the horizontal and vertical meridians within their oculomotor range. Saccades to auditory targets were less accurate and more variable than saccades to visual targets at the same spatial positions. Localization accuracy of single clicks was diminished compared with the long-duration stimuli presented from the same sources. Control experiments with novel auditory targets, never associated with visual targets, demonstrated that the cats localized the sound sources using acoustic cues and not from memory. The role of spectral features imposed by the pinna for vertical sound localization was shown by the breakdown in localization of narrow-band (one-sixth of an octave) noise bursts presented from sources along the midsagittal plane. In addition, we show that cats experience summing localization, an illusion associated with the precedence effect. Pairs of clicks presented from speakers at (±18°,0°) with interclick delays of ±300 μsec were perceived by the cat as originating from phantom sources extending from the midline to approximately ±10°.
Vampires and Those Who Slay Them

Psychodynamic concepts are frequent themes throughout popular culture. For this reason, movies, books, and even television shows offer rich opportunities for the examination of important psychological constructs. Given the current popularity of vampire stories within adolescent groups, the psychodynamic themes woven throughout the vampire myth deserve special attention. In particular, the television program Buffy the Vampire Slayer uniquely displays key adolescent developmental challenges. In discussing the psychodynamic significance of vampires, with special attention to the characteristics of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, this article demonstrates both the use of displacement in adolescent therapy, as well the utilization of the Buffy’s story as a means of teaching important psychodynamic concepts.
Family Communication and Body Dissatisfaction among Young Adult Females: Mediating Effects of Social Competence

Although the link between family-of-origin environments and body dissatisfaction among daughters is well-documented, the mechanisms through which family factors influence daughters’ body image concerns have been relatively unexplored. To address this gap, we examine the association between parental communication and young adult females’ body dissatisfaction as mediated by social competence. Female college students (N = 375; M age = 20.19) participated in an online survey which asked them to assess their perception of their mothers’ and fathers’ family communication patterns (FCPs). The hypothesized model was partially supported. Mothers’ conversation orientation was positively associated with females’ social competence, which, in turn, was negatively related to their body dissatisfaction. Results also revealed an interaction effect between mothers’ conversation and conformity orientations. Fathers’ conversation orientation was negatively and directly related to females’ body dissatisfaction. Implications ...
Obesity and weight loss alter serum polyunsaturated lipids in humans.

Serum ω6 (n−6) fatty acids were assessed in 12 obese women during an outpatient very-low calorie diet (VLCD). Ten subjects (S10) achieved a mean weight loss of 17 kg over 3−5 mo (initial weight-for-height 157%). Serum was obtained before (baseline) and monthly during the VLCd and from five of them (S5) after 2−3 mo of weight stability (refed) at 21 kg of loss. At baseline for S10, the serum phospholipid (PL) 20: 4ω6 was 9.16 wt% and differed from normal (12.81 wt%) by P < 0.0001, but cholesterol ester (CE) 20:4ω6 did not differ from normal. During 3 mo of VLCD, the S10 serum PL and CE 18:2ω6 fell (P < 0.005 and 0.0001, respectively)
Electron microscopy of granule release in metrial gland cells of the pregnant rat.

The fate of the granulated metrial cell was studied with the electron microscope. In the degenerating areas of the metrial gland the granulated metrial cells undergo necrosis. The granules of the lysed cells are enclosed by a limiting membrane and their contents appear unaltered. The observations indicate that after the granules are free, the limiting membrane is lost and the contents released into the tissue space. Phagocytic cells are apparently involved in clearing the area of cellular debris. Metrial granules are sometimes engulfed by the phagocytic cells. The “lipid bearing” cells of the metrial gland were also investigated with the electron microscope. These cells contained few organelles, a flocculent cytoplasmic ground substance, lipid droplets, and large dense bodies. The membrane limited dense bodies resemble secondary lysosomes and contain multilaminated myelin whorls plus a variety of dense fibrous or homogeneous material. The release of metrial granules is discussed in relation to the possible secretion of relaxin by metrial cells. The role of the lipid bearing cells is also considered.
BRIEF INCUBATION OF GAMETANGIA‐BEARING CAPS IN ANTIBIOTICS ELIMINATES BRANCHING IN PROGENY OF ACETABULARIA ACETABULUM (CHLOROPHYTA)1

Branching of the stalk of Acetabularia acetabulum L. (Silva) was investigated by inbreeding and by a brief treatment of gametangia with a variety of antibiotics. The position of the branch along the stalk varied, implying that branching was not restricted to any one time in development (base is oldest and apex is youngest). The branching phenotype was not inherited in Mendelian fashion. Although three microscopic structures (“bubbles,”“pustules,” and “scars”) occurred on the stalks of cells that had branched, these structures were not statistically correlated with branching in the population (n=699 cells). However, brief treatment of gametangia with a new antibiotic mixture did eliminate all macro- and microscopic structures associated with branching of the stalk in the subsequent generation. We could not fulfill Koch's postulates or provide clear evidence for the pathogenic nature of cell branching. Our brief antibiotic treatment of gametangaa of Acetabularia acetabulum was rapid, had no adverse effects, and virtually eliminated branching (and any potential pathogens) from laboratory cultures in the subsequent generations. Our method allows biochemical and molecular analyses to proceed uncomplicated by the possible presence of other organisms and provides a clean baseline for the future selection of mutations that may induce heritable branching.
MECHANISMS OF UNILATERAL SPATIAL NEGLECT IN RELATION TO LATERALITY OF CEREBRAL LESIONS

SUMMARY An Overlapping Figures test, considered as appropriate to study focusing of attention on small but complex stimuli falling in the central parts of visual field and a Searching for Animals test, designed to study the exploration of large parts of extrapersonal space, were administered to 38 controls, and 90 nght and 82 left brain-damaged patients. The investigation was designed to test the hypothesis that the extent of space to be explored may have a different influence on unilateral spatial neglect of right and left brain-damaged patients. Both right and left brain-damaged patients showed an asymmetric exploration of space on the Searching for Animals test, making more omissions on the side contralateral to the damaged hemisphere than on the ipsilateral one. On the Overlapping Figures test, however, only nght brain-damaged patients showed a clear tendency to omit figures lying on the left side of the composite pattern. This finding suggests that inability to extract visual information from one side of the stimuli dunng single eye fixatisons may be the most charactenstic feature of unilateral spatial neglect resulting from right hemisphere lesions.
Motor but not sensory representation in motor cortex depends on postsynaptic activity during development and in maturity.

The movement representation in the primary motor cortex (M1) of the cat develops between postnatal weeks 7–12. The somatosensory representation in motor cortex is present by the age that the motor ...
Identification of nitrosophenols by mass spectrometry

Characteristic mass spectroscopic data for the identification of ten nitrosophenols is presented. The use of TMS derivatives for gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of 4-nitrosophenols is discussed, together with the use of copper chelates for obtaining direct insertion spectra of 2-nitrosophenols. The fragmentations of nitrosopher ols also show ions derived from their quinonemonoxime tautomers, even under gas chromatography-mass spectrometry conditions, indicating that isomerization occurs in the mass spectrometer. An anomalous elimination of nitrogen from these nitrosophenols has been shown to be a facile reduction of the nitroso moiety which takes place in the ion source of the mass spectrometer.
On the Stein factorization of resolutions of two-dimensional Keller maps

We study the resolutions of rational self-maps of the projective plane that come from hypothetical counterexamples to the two-dimensional Jacobian Conjecture and establish several strong restrictions on its structure, in particular, its Stein factorization. We prove that all curves at infinity there go through a single point, and that the di-critical log-ramification divisor is ample.
An ontology and constraint based approach to cache preloading

The verification of modern microprocessor-based systems requires stressing the cache hierarchy and effectively covering its huge state space. Cache hierarchy initialization (or preloading) is a technique that enables simulation to start from a rich, complex system-level setup, thereby simplifying the task of dynamically driving the hierarchy into the required corner cases. In this paper we introduce CacheLoader, a new, design-independent cache-preloading technology. The tool's architecture follows the principles of ontology-based software to achieve complete separation between the cache-preloading engine and design dependent knowledge. Constraint satisfaction techniques are used to generate valid, interesting system initialization, and to satisfy explicit user directives. CacheLoader is currently being used by verification teams of several large scale designs in IBM. Results show that this technique provides superior coverage and user controllability, speeds up the construction of mature verification environments, simplifies maintenance, encourages encapsulation of domain knowledge, and enables reuse across verification environments and cache hierarchy designs.
A compact beam stop for a rare kaon decay experiment

Abstract We describe the development and testing of a novel beam stop for use in a rare kaon decay experiment at the Brookhaven Alternating Gradient Synchrotron. The beam stop is located inside a dipole spectrometer magnet in close proximity to straw drift chambers and intercepts a high-intensity neutral hadron beam. The design process, involving both Monte Carlo simulations and beam tests of alternative beam-stop shielding arrangements, had the goal of minimizing the leakage of particles from the beam stop and the resulting hit rates in detectors, while preserving maximum acceptance for events of interest. The beam tests consisted of measurements of rates in drift chambers, scintillation counter hodoscopes, a gas threshold Cherenkov counter, and a lead glass array. Measurements were also made with a set of specialized detectors which were sensitive to low-energy neutrons, photons, and charged particles. Comparisons are made between these measurements and a detailed Monte Carlo simulation.
Lung Volume Reduction Surgery for Emphysema: Out on a Limb Without a NETT

Lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS) has recently been rediscovered and offers the potential of improving the quality of life of patients with advanced emphysema. In this article, we discuss the historical and contemporary versions of LVRS. Although initial enthusiasm has been substantial, existing data seem insufficient to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of the procedure in comparison with conventional medical therapy. Fundamental questions remain regarding the long-term effects of an operation versus medical therapy, the optimal selection criteria, the best measures of efficacy, the mechanisms of improvement, the cost-effectiveness of the procedure, and the optimal surgical technique. Until such questions are answered, advising patients about the best management of their emphysema will be difficult. The National Emphysema Treatment Trial will address many of these issues and should be embraced by both health-care providers and patients.
A SepPak unit for batch processing serial blood plasma samples for PET

A prototype blood plasma processor unit was designed and tested for generic PET-tracer metabolite analyses, using solid-phase-extraction cartridges (SepPaks). An assay method for FLT (3′-deoxy-3′-[F-18]fluorothymidine) and its blood metabolite: FLT-glucuronide, in serial, patient-derived samples was developed to evaluate the device. The unit is simple to construct from readily available components and can process up to six samples in parallel for high throughput. The precision of sample results was evaluated in a test–retest trial and was 98%. A syringe pump method for sample application and SepPak elution proved to be a reliable technique. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Review of adjuvant radiochemotherapy for resected pancreatic cancer and results from Mayo Clinic for the 5th JUCTS symposium.

Purpose: To present an overview of Phase III trials in adjuvant therapy for pancreatic cancer and review outcomes at the Mayo Clinic after adjuvant radiochemotherapy (RT/CT) for resected pancreatic cancer. Methods and Materials: A literature review and a retrospective review of 472 patients who underwent an R0 resection for T1-3N0-1M0 invasive carcinoma of the pancreas from 1975 to 2005 at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN. Patients with metastatic or unresectable disease at the time of surgery, positive surgical margins, or indolent tumors and those treated with intraoperative radiotherapy were excluded from the analysis. Median radiotherapy dose was 50.4Gy in 28 fractions, with 98% of patients receiving concurrent 5-fluorouracil- based chemotherapy. Results: Median follow-up was 2.7 years. Median overall survival (OS) was 1.8 years. Median OS after adjuvant RT/CT was 2.1 vs. 1.6 years for surgery alone (p = 0.001). The 2-y OS was 50% vs. 39%, and 5-y was 28% vs. 17% for patients receiving RT/CT vs. surgery alone. Univariate and multivariate analysis revealed that adverse prognostic factors were positive lymph nodes (risk ratio [RR] 1.3, p < 0.001) and high histologic grade (RR 1.2, p < 0.001). T3 tumor status was found significant on univariate analysis only (RR 1.1,more » p = 0.07). Conclusions: Results from recent clinical trials support the use of adjuvant chemotherapy in resected pancreatic cancer. The role of radiochemotherapy in adjuvant treatment of pancreatic cancer remains a topic of debate. Results from the Mayo Clinic suggest improved outcomes after the administration of adjuvant radiochemotherapy after a complete resection of invasive pancreatic malignancies.« less
Cryptorchidism in Florida panthers: prevalence, features, and influence of genetic restoration.

The overall prevalence of cryptorchidism in Florida panthers (Puma concolor coryi) from 1972–2001 was 49% (24/49), with a significant increase over time. The earliest age at which descent of both testicles was known to occur was 2 mo and the latest was 10–13 mo. Delayed testicular descent was documented in 23% (8/35) of juveniles examined. Most retained testicles were in the inguinal canal. There was no apparent difference in reproductive success between cryptorchid and normal panthers, although no bilaterally cryptorchid panthers were known to have sired litters. Cryptorchidism was thought to be a manifestation of inbreeding and was one of several factors that led to the development of a genetic restoration plan whereby eight female puma from Texas were released into the panther population in 1995. None of the progeny resulting from genetic restoration efforts has been cryptorchid. This report provides evidence that cryptorchidism in panthers is genetically rather than environmentally based, and demonstr...