cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of a technical and nontechnical skills curriculum for students entering surgery

Abstract Background Prior interventions to address declining interest in surgical careers have focused on creating early exposure and fostering mentorship at the preclinical medical student level. Navigating the surgical environment can be challenging, however, and preclinical students may be more likely to pursue a surgical career if they are given the tools to function optimally. Materials and methods We designed a 10-wk technical and nontechnical skills curriculum to provide preclinical students with knowledge and skills necessary to successfully navigate the surgical learning environment, followed by placement in high-fidelity surgical simulations and scrubbing in on operative cases with attending surgeons. We administered pre-post surveys to assess student confidence levels in operative skills, self-perceptions of having a mentor, overall course efficacy, and interest in a career in surgery. Results The overall response rates presurvey and postsurvey were 100% (30 of 30) and 93.3% (28 of 30), respectively. Confidence levels across all operative skills increased significantly after completing the course. Faculty mentorship increased significantly from 30.0% before to 61.5% after the course. Overall effectiveness of the course was 4.00 of 5 (4 = “very effective”), and although insignificant, overall interest in a career in surgery increased at the completion of the course from 3.77 (standard deviation = 1.01) to 4.17 (standard deviation = 0.94). Conclusions Our curriculum was effective in teaching the skills necessary to enjoy positive experiences in planned early exposure and mentorship activities. Further study is warranted to determine if this intervention leads to an increase in students who formally commit to a career in surgery.
Automated subdural hematoma segmentation for traumatic brain injured (TBI) patients

Traumatic brain injury is a serious public health problem in the U.S. contributing to a large portion of permanent disability. However, its early management and treatment could limit the impact of the injury, save lives and reduce the burden of cost for patients as well as healthcare systems. Subdural hematoma is one of the most common types of TBI, which its visual detection and quantitative evaluation are time consuming and prone to error. In this study, we propose a fully auto-mated machine learning based approach for 3D segmentation of convexity subdural hematomas. Textural, statistical and geometrical features of sample points from intracranial region are extracted based on head Computed Tomography (CT) images. Then, a tree bagger classifier is implemented to classify each pixel as hematoma or no-hematoma. Our method yields sensitivity, specificity and area under the receiver operating curve (AUC) of 85:02%, 73:74% and 0:87 respectively.
General Medicine and Hospital Medicine: The Janus of Internal Medicine

In this issue of JGIM, Miller and colleagues draw attention to important trends in the evolution of academic general internal medicine.1 By examining the membership of the Society of General Internal Medicine (SGIM), they provide a snapshot not only of the Society, but also the trajectory of academic internal medicine. While one can belabor methodological concerns such as response rate and generalizability of the results, the overarching portrait of academic general medicine rings true: a growing proportion of SGIM members identify as hospitalists. Compared to non-hospitalists, Miller et al. found that hospitalists were younger, more junior in academic rank, and more often engaged in medical education roles. Additional noteworthy differences included the fact that hospitalists reported greater interest in developing clinical skills and less interest in advocacy than their non-hospitalist peers, and (somewhat surprisingly) they were more focused on research. Finally, hospitalist respondents were less likely to identify SGIM as their “professional home.”
Headphone Evaluation for App-Based Automated Mobile Hearing Screening

Introduction With the need for hearing screenings increasing across multiple populations, a need for automated options has been identified. This research seeks to evaluate the hardware requirements for automated hearing screenings using a mobile application. Objective Evaluation of headphone hardware for use with an app-based mobile screening application. Methods For the purposes of this study, hEAR, a Bekesy-based mobile application designed by the research team, was compared with pure tone audiometric tests administered by an audiologist. Both hEAR and the audiologist's test used 7 frequencies (125 Hz, 250 Hz, 500 Hz, 1,000 Hz, 2000 Hz, 4,000 Hz and 8,000 Hz) adopting four different sets of commercially available headphones. The frequencies were regarded as the independent variable, whereas the sound pressure level (in decibels) was the dependent variable. Thirty participants from a university in Texas were recruited and randomly assigned to one of two groups, whose only difference was the order in which the tests were performed. Data were analyzed using a generalized estimating equation model at α = 0.05. Results Findings showed that, when used to collect data with the mobile app, both the Pioneer HDJ-2000 (Pioneer, Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan) (p > 0.05) and the Sennheiser HD280 Pro (Sennheiser, Wedemark, Hanover, Germany) (p > 0.05) headphones presented results that were not statistically different from the audiologist's data across all test frequencies. Analyses indicated that both headphones had decreased detection probability at 4kHz and 8kHz, but the differences were not statistically significant. Conclusion Data indicate that a mobile application, when paired with appropriate headphones, is capable of reproducing audiologist-quality data.
The rotational elements of Mars and its satellites

Abstract The International Astronomical Union (IAU) defines planet and satellite coordinate systems relative to their axis of rotation and the angle about that axis. The rotational elements of the bodies are the right ascension and declination of the rotation axis in the International Celestial Reference Frame and the rotation angle, W, measured easterly along the body's equator. The IAU specifies the location of the body's prime meridian by providing a value for W at epoch J2000. We provide new trigonometric series representations of the rotational elements of Mars and its satellites, Phobos and Deimos. The series for Mars are from a least squares fit to the rotation model used to orient the Martian gravity field. The series for the satellites are from a least squares fit to rotation models developed in accordance with IAU conventions from recent ephemerides.
Poetic Existential: A Lyrical Autoethnography of Self, Others, and World

“Poetic Existential” is a collection of lyrical autoethnography. This body of work explores existential themes relating to globalization and the immigration/refugee humanitarian crisis, “freedom” as personal/political/geographical ideology, and my own experiences of being a situated self alongside others. Lyrical poetry coaxes a person to embody and present experience through restrained (Faulkner 52), yet evocative descriptions – without the neat folds and contextual blanketing common to many narrative approaches. The challenge of autoethnographic poetry is to perform a focused crystallization of experience via lyrical aesthetics (arrangement, word choice, rhythm, rhyme, phrase and line structure, etc.). In the accompanying artist statement, I theorize my poetic engagement with attention paid to what the lyric facilitates in my scholarly work. In this exploratory fusion of lyrical expression, autoethnography, and existentialism, I hope to summon the aesthetic powers of poetry in the service of self-reflexivity, and in relation to the plight of millions of disenfranchised others.
Genetic Exchanges Induced by Structural Damage in Nonreplicating Phage λ DNA

Genetic recombination between irradiated λ phage and the unirradiated λ prophage in homoimmune lysogens has been studied under conditions in which phage DNA replication and repair were controlled. The λ phage were exposed to one of three treatments before infecting the lysogens: (a) 254-nm light, which produces pyrimidine dimers and other photoproducts; (b) 313-nm light with acetopheneone D, which produces thymine dimers and a different spectrum of other photoproducts; (c) 360-nm light with trimethylpsoralen, which produces monoadducts and cross-links. With both replication and excision-repair of the damaged phage DNA blocked, treatment b (acetophenone D) caused no significant increase in recombination, indicating that thymine dimers do not cause recombination if the DNA in which they are contained is not replicated. Treatment a (254 nm), producing the same total number of pyrimidine dimers, caused a marked increase in recombination. This indicates that photoproducts other than pyrimidine dimers produced by 254-nm light can cause recombination in the absence of replication. Treatment c (psoralen) caused a marked increase in recombination in wild type but not in uvrA and uvrB mutants. The frequency of recombination in two-factor crosses varied with marker separation in such a way as to suggest that cross-links can act over distances of at least 5% of the λ genome to cause exchanges between pairs of relatively closely spaced markers. The psoralen photo cross-links and monoadducts initiate recombination only following the action of excision enzymes, which appear to release one arm of each cross-link, producing a gap with free strand ends. It may be these strand ends which induce recombination. The action at a distance of 5% of the λ genome may reflect heteroduplex formation and the subsequent reduction to homozygosity of mismatched base pairs at genetic markers. Recombination between closely spaced markers in the P gene is reduced in strains carrying polA.
Part II. Discontinuous Galerkin method applied to a single phase flow in porous media

Discontinuous Galerkin numerical simulations of single phase flow problem are described in this paper. The simulations show the advantages of using discontinuous approximation spaces. hp convergence results are obtained for smooth solutions. Unstructured meshes and unsmooth solutions are also considered.
Physical Growth of Adolescent Girls: Patterns and Sequence

Growth is a universal characteristic of living things; human beings, unlike other living things, have the capacity to reflect on what it means to “grow up.” The increase in bodily size of growing children is so inescapable and obvious that by the time youngsters reach adolescence, they have become inured to the common greeting, “My, how you have grown!” To both the observer and the observed, growth in physical size has a tangibility and an apparent realism that other kinds of growth lack. This is both an advantage and a disadvantage for researchers in the area of physical growth. It is an advantage because the referent of a physical growth measure (e.g., standing height) is clearer and more specific than that in other domains (e.g., self-concept); not only does this enable us to communicate more precisely about dimensions of physical development than about other kinds of development, but we usually are able to assess somatic development more reliably. The relative concreteness, on the other hand, is a disadvantage because sometimes we forget that physical growth, like other developmental processes, is an abstract concept, inferred from differences between measurements taken at two or more different points in time.
An Experimental Method to Induce and Measure Crack Propagation in Brittle Polymers with Heterogeneities

Facture mechanics of heterogeneous brittle solids is a field of active research due to the recent developments in additive manufacturing to fabricate components with complex engineered microstructures. The majority of experimental work in crack propagation uses data from a single plane, usually on free surfaces, to measure the displacement field around the crack and the crack tip location. These measurements are used to determine the crack tip fields and fracture toughness which provides insights about the failure of a material. However, it is well known from three dimensional theory and experiments that the crack front shape and stress distribution is not constant through the thickness of a specimen. When toughening heterogeneities are added to a material, the theories and mechanics become significantly more complex. To better understand these stresses and shapes for both homogeneous and heterogeneous materials, an experimental method has been developed to induce steady-state crack propagation in thin, brittle hydrogel polymers. A microfilament needle inserted into the specimens allows for fluid to enter the crack and exert pressure on the crack surface, which effectively wedges the crack open. Distributed fluorescent microspheres serve as a speckle pattern for Digital Volume Correlation (DVC) of volumetric images captured using confocal microscopy. The DVC displacement field allows for determination of the 3D crack tip fields. This study seeks to provide an enhanced understanding of the three dimensional nature of crack interactions with heterogeneities and renucleation events, which can significantly improve our ability to design material toughness.
A decade of incurred sample reanalysis: failures, investigations and impact.

Incurred sample reanalysis (ISR) is used to ensure the validity and reliability of bioanalytical data. Additionally, ISR results also help identify issues that could influence or bias the data. Ove...
Evaluating Measures of Hospital Quality: Evidence from Ambulance Referral Patterns

Hospital quality measures are crucial to a key idea behind health care payment reforms: “paying for quality” instead of quantity. Nevertheless, such measures face major criticisms largely over the ...
Universal Early Home Visiting: A Strategy for Reaching All Postpartum Women.

Objective The objective of this study is to consider the role of universal nurse home visiting in the postpartum period as a potential strategy to promote women’s postnatal health. This study was derived from a formative research project aimed at understanding the early implementation of the Illinois Family Connects (IFC) universal postpartum home visiting program as perceived by key informants. Methods Data from eighteen key informant (KI) interviews conducted between January and February 2018 and quantitative data extracted from reports from two IFC pilot counties were analyzed. Qualitative data were analyzed using Dedoose Version 8.0. Results Data suggest that universal postpartum nurse home visiting has appeal as a postpartum women’s health strategy. The data also suggest that the success of such a strategy likely depends on: the value women, families, and community stakeholders attach to the program; the appeal of its universality and the support for home visiting by nurses in particular; the processes adopted by the hospitals and agencies implementing the program; strategies for engaging women after leaving the hospital; and, the initial and ongoing marketing of the program, which ultimately may affect women’s willingness to participate. Conclusions for Practice Universal early postpartum home visiting is not a substitute for a woman’s visit with a medical provider; however, it should be viewed not only as an early childhood program but an important strategy for improving the delivery of postpartum care for women.
A computer forensics minor curriculum proposal

Computer and network security is a growing concern to all organizations and individuals worldwide. Information security is a critical part of information and communication technology infrastructure. Computer forensics can play an indispensable role in computer and network security, information assurance, law enforcement, national defense, etc. Computer forensics courses are a necessary addition to computer and network security education. This paper presents a proposal for a computer forensics minor curriculum, the rational behind the proposal and the course descriptions.
LSTM Networks to Evaluate Composite Power System Reliability Evaluation with Injected Wind Power

This paper introduces a new method for evaluation reliability composite of power systems with renewable sources based on sequential Monte Carlo Simulation (MCS) and Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) neural networks. LSTM is used for accurately pre-classifying overall system operating states as success or failure within MCS process. Later, the states classified as failure are characterized through optimal power flow (OPF) analysis to evaluate reliability indices. As a result, the computational burden of the reliability evaluation analysis to perform OPF for success states are eliminated. For illustration, the proposed method is applied to the IEEE Reliability Test System (IEEE-RTS-79). The obtained results demonstrate that proposed method can accurately evaluate system reliability indices while reducing computation time dramatically.
Clean Energy Manufacturing: Renewable Energy Technology Benchmarks

The manufacturing of clean energy technologies has become a global enterprise. An analysis of four clean energy technology manufacturing processes—wind turbine components, crystalline silicon solar photovoltaic modules, light-duty vehicle lithium-ion battery cells, and light-emitting diodes—was conducted to provide a reference point for comparison over time as this sector evolves. The manufacturing supply chain analysis included processing of raw materials, making required subcomponents, and assembling final products, using benchmarks that crossed 12 economies: Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, India, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, South Korea, Republic of China (Taiwan), the United Kingdom, and the United States. Larger economies, with extensive manufacturing supply chains and high prevailing wages, tend to retain more value added from clean energy manufacturing than small economies. Manufacturing of clean energy technologies drives extensive trade among economies to support the widely distributed supply chain links. Production of wind turbine components and photovoltaic modules is more centralized than production of light-emitting diodes and lithium-ion battery cells. Across the four clean energy technologies evaluated, there was generally an excess of manufacturing capacity relative to global supply.
Identification of the toxic 6mer seed consensus in human cancer cells

6mer seed toxicity is a novel anti-cancer mechanism that kills cancer cells by triggering death induced by survival gene elimination (DISE). It is based on si- or shRNAs with a specific G-rich nucleotide composition in position 2-7 of their guide strand. An arrayed screen of 4096 6mer seeds on two human and two mouse cell lines identified a consensus GGGGGC as the most toxic seed. After testing two more cell lines, one human and one mouse, we found that the GGGGGC seed while also toxic to murine cells, is more toxic to human cells, suggesting that the evolution to use of Gs as part of the toxic seeds is still slowly evolving, with Gs more common in the human toxic seeds. While new RNA Seq and bioinformatics analyses suggest that the GGGGGC seed is toxic to cancer cells by targeting GCCCCC seed matches in the 39 UTR of a set of genes critical for cell survival, we now directly confirm this by identifying a number of genes targeted by this seed. Furthermore, by using a luciferase reporter fused to the 39 UTR of these genes we confirm direct and specific on-targeting of GCCCCC seed matches. Targeting is strongly attenuated after mutating the GCCCCC seed matches in these 39 UTRs. Our data confirm that an siRNA containing the GGGGGC seed kills cancer cells through its miRNA like activity and points at artificial miRNAs, si- or shRNAs containing this seed as a potential new cancer therapeutics.
A 9-Month-Old with Skeletal Abnormalities and a Consanguineous Sibling with Mucopolysaccharidosis IVA: The Role of Urinary Glycosaminoglycan Testing in Disease Diagnosis and Treatment Monitoring.

Mucopolysaccharidosis IVA (MPS IVA) is a rare autosomal recessive lysosomal storage disorder resulting from N-acetylgalactosamine-6-sulfatase (GALNS) deficiency that occurs in approximately 1 in 76...
Time-Resolved Dynamics for Ultrashort Pulse Damage of Single-Crystal YAG in the Near-Infrared

We investigate time-resolved dynamics of single-shot laser damage on YAG for ~9fs pulses near 760nm and compare to damage thresholds of ~264fs pulses at 1025nm. Results are benchmarked against a modified Keldysh photoionization model.
Reaching 95%: decision support tools are the surest way to improve diagnosis now.

Rory Staunton, a 12 year-old boy, presented with fever, vomiting and mottled skin. Was this gastroenteritis? Thomas Duncan’s symptoms were headache, dizziness, nausea, abdominal pain and fever after recent travel from West Africa. Was this sinusitis? These two classic cases of diagnostic error beg the question of why the correct diagnosis was missed, and in his classic paper, George Bordage provided a very plausible answer: ‘I just didn’t think of it.’1 That is where clinical decision support tools for diagnosis (CDS-Dx), the so-called ‘symptom checkers’, come in. They work, and would likely have helped the clinicians consider the correct diagnosis in these cases: Rory Staunton’s streptococcal sepsis2 or Thomas Duncan’s Ebola infection,3 both of which had a fatal outcome. The report by Sibbald et al published in this issue of BMJ Quality & Safety adds to the growing evidence that decision support can improve the diagnostic process.4 This study was conducted at six different schools, and asked trainees and staff in internal medicine or emergency medicine to diagnose a series of challenging cases using the ‘Isabel’ CDS-Dx platform either early (right after the chief complaint) or later (after reviewing all of the relevant clinical information) in the diagnostic process. Students and residents included more diseases in their consideration with early use of the ‘Isabel’ CDS-Dx platform, a finding that could be important in improving diagnosis education. The most dramatic finding in the study was that later use, which is likely how it will be used in practice, improved the likelihood that the correct diagnosis would be included in the differential by 8%. Moreover, physicians said that using the software was easy and relatively fast. To put this result in context, the incidence of diagnostic error in primary care practice is roughly 10%; we get it right …
Rethinking Search and Seizure in a Post-9/11 World

In “Rethinking Search and Seizure in a Post-9/11 World”, author Arnold Loewy discusses whether 9/11 has truly had an impact on the way that courts decide Fourth Amendment cases. In a previous article, he argued that 9/11 was largely responsible for a shift in Fourth Amendment case outcomes but now reconsiders these views. Professor Loewy begins by juxtaposing pre-9/11 Fourth Amendment court decisions with post-9/11 Fourth Amendment decisions. He concludes that 9/11 may not have actually played a significant role in the decisions. Professor Loewy also discusses pre- and post-9/11 decisions in the context of airports. He believes that 9/11 has had more impact on these decisions than on decisions relating to situations outside of the airport. Professor Loewy examines the issue of whether consent to be searched is withdrawable and whether once a desire to withdraw is expressed if the person is free to leave with no consequence. He finishes by questioning whether the increased amount of searches and seizures at airports is a step in the right direction or an opportunity for TSA to take advantage of their authority.
CRITIQUE OF: “MEASUREMENT AND PREDICTION OF ANAEROBIOSIS IN SOILS”

Soil anaerobiosis has been examined by Stolzy and Fluhler from a number of viewpoints. Unlike many earlier reviews, recognition has been made of the fact that it is necessary to examine the redox reactions that take place after oxygen has been depleted in order to properly understand the effect of restricted soil aeration. More redox reactions take place in oxygen-depleted soils than in oxygenated soils, and the authors properly look at the reduction of nitrate, manganese, iron, and sulfate as constituting important reactions in determining the anaerobic-aerobic nature of soils. Even in soils that are apparently well supplied with oxygen, microsite conditions may be such that the reduction intensity is great enough for reduction reactions as difficult as sulfate reduction to sulfide to take place. Their quantitative evaluation of the factors affecting microsite anaerobiosis is particularly significant and is a worthwhile contribution to a better understanding of the true nature of soil anaerobiosis.
Rate- and resolution-scalable video and image compression with subband coding

Proposes a full colour video compression strategy, based on 3D subband coding with camera pan compensation, to generate a single embedded bit stream supporting multiple decoder display formats and a wide, finely gradated range of bit rates. An experimental implementation of the algorithm produces a single bit stream, from which suitable subsets are extracted to be compatible with many useful decoder frame sizes and frame rates and to satisfy transmission bandwidth constraints ranging from several tens of kilobits per second to several megabits per second. Reconstructed video quality from any of these bit stream subsets is often found to exceed that obtained from an MPEG-1 implementation, operated with equivalent bit rate constraints, in both perceptual quality and mean squared error. In addition, when restricted to two dimensions, the algorithm produces some of the best results available in still image compression. >
Chromodynamic Lensing and $\perp$ Single Spin Asymmetries

The physical interpretation of generalized parton distributions (in the limit $\xi=0$) as Fourier transforms of impact parameter dependent parton distributions is discussed. Particular emphasis is put on the role of the target polarization. For transversely polarized targets we expect a significant deviation from axial symmetry for the distribution in the transverse plane. We conjecture that this transverse distortion, in combination with the final state provides a natural explanation for the sign of the Sivers contribution to semi-inclusive single-spin asymmetries.
Interaction of frog virus 3 with the cytomatrix. III: Role of microfilaments in virus release

Abstract The role of microfilaments in the release of frog virus 3 (FV3) from the plasma membrane was studied. Scanning electron microscopic study of FV3-infected baby hamster kidney (BHK) cells showed that late in infection (15 hr), numerous microvillus-like projections containing virions and microfilaments occur on the cell surface. Two microfilament-disrupting drugs, cytochalasin B and cytochalasin D, inhibited both the formation of microvillus-like projections and virus release. In the drug-treated cells, the virions accumulated in large numbers beneath the plasma membrane (transmission electron microscopy), suggesting that both drugs affected the release of the virus at the level of plasma membrane rather than the traverse of the virus to the plasma membrane. Two-dimensional gel analysis of actin from FV3-infected and uninfected cells revealed the following. There was no difference in the synthesis of actin in infected versus uninfected cells. However, the actin of infected cells is more acidic than its counterpart in uninfected cells. Temporally, the change in actin preceded the formation of microvilli-like projections involved in virus release. The change in actin is virus induced and is linked to virus maturation since a is mutant of FV3 (ts9467), which is deficient in virus production at the restrictive temperature (30°), did not modify actin. The mutant, at the permissive temperature (25°), produced virions and altered the actin. Together, the above results attribute an active role for microfilaments in virus release.
A Consumer Protection Approach to Mutual Fund Disclosure and the Limits of Simplification

The SEC’s recently adopted summary disclosure initiative for mutual funds improves disclosure for average investors by making fund disclosure more understandable and accessible, but it also reveals a fundamental defect in the SEC’s entire approach to policy in this area. The initiative - the latest in a series of fund disclosure initiatives stretching over a 30 year period - seeks to improve the quality of fund offering disclosure for average investors by embracing what the SEC has dubbed a “layered disclosure” approach. The key elements of this approach are: (i) funds may use a radically simplified and standardized offering document in lieu of a statutory prospectus; and (ii) investors obtain enhanced electronic access to a full range of more comprehensive fund disclosure documents. The goal is to reduce disclosure costs for funds and enable each investor to choose the level of disclosure detail that best suits his or her inclinations. While these changes will undoubtedly provide some benefits for average investors, it is doubtful that these refinements will produce dramatic improvements in the quality of investor’s investment decisions. This article instead advances an alternative approach toward fund disclosure policy that embraces a more assertive consumer protection orientation. This approach differs from the SEC’s in giving priority to strategies designed to improve the quality of average investors’ fund investment decisions rather than merely making disclosure more understandable. The assertive consumer protection approach advocated in this article seeks regulatory policies to change investor behavior by counteracting known behavioral biases of average investors (a policy goal sometimes knows as “debiasing”), including policies aimed directly at investor decision-making and other policies aimed at enhancing the utility of third parties who are in a position to influence investors (a form of structural debiasing). The article presents several concrete recommendations for implementing such an approach: (i) the SEC should impose tighter content restrictions on Internet sales literature and supplement existing content requirements for summary disclosure; (ii) the SEC should rethink its approach to layered disclosure (i.e., the current scheme that requires average investors to choose their desired level of disclosure detail) and instead move toward a scheme tailored to the distinct information needs of two different end-user constituencies: average investors and investment professionals; and (iii) the SEC should impose heightened procedural accountability standards for investment professionals to improve the advice received by clients regarding fund selection recommendations and to promote competition among funds based on investment merit.
Digital magnetic recording theory

A brief review of digital magnetic recording theory is given with emphasis on the analysis of ferrite, inductive thin film, and magnetoresistive heads. The utility of several approaches is demonstrated by three calculations: (1) resolution and signal amplitude of a shielded magnetoresistive head, (2) readback properties of a single sheet of permalloy with adjacent current conductor, and (3) analysis of spurious pulses generated by outside corners of ferrite heads. A discussion of high density digital recording is given, and it is concluded that the magnetoresistive head offers the greatest possible areal density of information. This density is conservatively estimated to be 1.6×107flux reversals per cm2(108per in2) at a head-medium separation of 0.125μm. Experimental data in support of this conclusion are given.
Nitric oxide and adenosine mediate vasodilation during functional activation in cerebellar cortex.

Activation of the cerebellar parallel fibers (PF) releases glutamate and leads to depolarization of Purkinje cells and interneurons. These cells, in turn, release GABA. We have studied the role of glutamate, GABA, nitric oxide (NO) and adenosine in the increases in cerebellar cortex blood flow (BFcrb) elicited by PF stimulation. In anesthetized rats (halothane 1%) the cerebellar vermis was exposed and the site was superfused with Ringer (37°C, pH 7.4). The PF were stimulated electrically (50–100 μA; 30 Hz) and the increases in BFcrb were recorded using a laser-Doppler flowmeter. Field potentials were recorded using glass microelectrodes. During Ringer superfusion, PF stimulation increased BFcrb by 58 ± 5% (P 0.05 from Ringer; n = 6). In contrast, Kyn did not influence the increase in BFcrb evoked by hypercapnia (pCO2 55.4 ± 1.1 mmHg) or by superfusion with the NO donor SIN-1 (0.1, 1 mM; P > 0.05; n = 6). Superfusion with the adenosine receptor antagonist 8-sulphophenyltheophylline (8-SPT; 100 μM) reduced the elevation in BFcrb by 45 ± 4% (P < 0.05; n = 6) and co-application of 8-SPT and of the NO synthase inhibitor nitro-l-arginine (l-NA; 1 mM) attenuated the vasodilation further (−82 ± 4% from Ringer; P < 0.01 from 8-SPT alone). The vasodilation elicited by SIN-1 (n = 6) and the field potentials evoked by PF stimulation (n = 4) were not affected by 8-SPT or by 8-SPT plus l-NA. The GABA receptor antagonist bicuculline (300 μM) produced the expected changes in the field potentials (n = 4) but did not affect the vascular response to PF stimulation (P . 0.05; n = 5). The data suggest that release of glutamate from PF leads to production of NO and adenosine in Purkinje cells and/or interneurons. NO and adenosine may mediate the vasodilation by diffusing toward resistance arterioles and producing smooth muscle relaxation.
Optimization of nanoparticle core size for magnetic particle imaging.

Magnetic particle imaging (MPI) is a powerful new research and diagnostic imaging platform that is designed to image the amount and location of superparamagnetic nanoparticles in biological tissue. Here, we present mathematical modeling results that show how MPI sensitivity and spatial resolution both depend on the size of the nanoparticle core and its other physical properties, and how imaging performance can be effectively optimized through rational core design. Modeling is performed using the properties of magnetite cores, since these are readily produced with a controllable size that facilitates quantitative imaging. Results show that very low detection thresholds (of a few nanograms Fe3O4) and sub-millimeter spatial resolution are possible with MPI.
Laser-phase transition analogy: II☆

Abstract A dynamical theory of an Ising ferromagnet coupled to a thermal reservoir is presented. Beginning with microscopic, reversible Hamiltonian dynamics, we proceed to an irreversible equation of motion for the magnetization probability density P(m, t), in analogy with the laser analysis.
The Semantic Production of Space: Pervasive Computing and the Urban Landscape

This paper suggests that as pervasive computing technologies have gained purchase in urban space they have also become more implicitly blended with everyday life and more contingent on information that is inductively compiled from Internet-based data services. It is argued that existing theorizations of the technologically mediated production of urban must engage with the increasingly implicit nature of informational transactions as well as the emergent semantic structuring of information. Drawing on examples of ongoing pervasive computing projects, implicit computing procedures are explored in relation to the mediation of everyday urban life. Literatures from computing science and geographical theory are brought into conversation in order to examine the consequences of a convergence between implicit pervasive technologies and the spaces of everyday life.
Impaired attention and synaptic senescence of the prefrontal cortex involves redox regulation of NMDA receptors.

Young (3–6 months) and middle-age (10–14 months) rats were trained on the five-choice serial reaction time task. Attention and executive function deficits were apparent in middle-age animals observed as a decrease in choice accuracy, increase in omissions, and increased response latency. The behavioral differences were not due to alterations in sensorimotor function or a diminished motivational state. Electrophysiological characterization of synaptic transmission in slices from the mPFC indicated an age-related decrease in glutamatergic transmission. In particular, a robust decrease in N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR)-mediated synaptic responses in the mPFC was correlated with several measures of attention. The decrease in NMDAR function was due in part to an altered redox state as bath application of the reducing agent, dithiothreitol, increased the NMDAR component of the synaptic response to a greater extent in middle-age animals. Together with previous work indicating that redox state mediates senescent physiology in the hippocampus, the results indicate that redox changes contribute to senescent synaptic function in vulnerable brain regions involved in age-related cognitive decline.
Inhibitor of differentiation 1 (Id1) promotes cell survival and proliferation of prostate epithelial cells

Id1 (inhibitor of differentiation 1) is a member of the bHLH protein family. Consistent with its role in promoting proliferation and inhibiting differentiation, Id1 expression is low or negligible in normal prostate epithelial cells but is high in prostate cancer. Ectopic expression of Id1 in normal prostate epithelial cells could therefore provide a model for understanding early events involved in initiation of prostate cancer. Over-expression of Id1 immortalized but did not transform ventral prostate epithelial cells (Id1-RPE). Immortalization was associated with decreased Cdkn2a, Cdkn1a, androgen receptor and increased Tert expression. Gene expression profiling over successive doublings was used to identify transcriptomic changes involved during immortalization (Tieg, Jun, alpha actin, Klf10, Id2) and in maintaining the immortalized phenotype (Igfbp3, Igfbp5, Mmp2, Tgfb3). Network analysis indicated that Id1 promotes cancer/tumor morphology, cell cycle and epithelial to mesenchymal transition by influencing AP1, tnf, tgfβ, PdgfBB and estradiol pathways. During immortalization, the expression of majority of differentially expressed genes reduced over progressive doublings suggesting a decline in transcriptional regulatory mechanisms. The associated molecular/gene expression profile of Id1-RPE cells provides an opportunity to understand the molecular pathways associated with prostate epithelial cell survival and proliferation.
The simulation of logical networks (SLN)

SLN (Simulation of Logical Networks) is a new simulation language designed specifically to provide concepts and facilities needed to model and simulate logical networks. Logical networks provide a convenient and natural means of expressing decision processes when a general-purpose discrete-event simulation facil ity is unnecessary. SLN accepts a node and branch description of a logical network and automatically handles the construction and execution of the simulation. FORTRAN can be mixed with the SLN statements with few restrictions. SLN is highly efficient, simulating only logical networks and working as a preprocessor generating FORTRAN source which can be compiled, linked, and executed. The SLN library includes facilities for generating random variates, collecting and reporting statistics, monitoring simulation execution, and tailoring the simulation output. SLN is portable and designed for use in an environment lacking a modeling tradition.
Molecular effects in carbon K-shell Auger-electron production by 0.6–2.0 MeV protons and extraction of an atomic cross section

Abstract Carbon K-shell Auger-electron production cross sections are reported for 0.6–2.0 MeV protons incident on CH 4 (methane), C 2 H 2 (acetylene), C 2 H 4 (ethylene), C 2 H 6 (ethane), nC 4 H 10 (normal butane), i-C 4 H 10 (isobutane), C 6 H 6 (b monoxide), and CO 2 (carbon dioxide). A constant-energy mode 45° parallel-plate electrostatic analyzer was used for detection of Auger electrons. The carbon KLL Auger-electron cross sections for all molecules were found to be lower than that found for CH 4 by 9–23%. All carbon KLL Auger-electron data could be brought into agreement when corrected for the chemical shift of the carbon K-shell binding energy in molecules and for intramolecular scattering. KLL Auger-electron production cross sections are compared to first Born and ECPSSR theories and show good agreement with both after the chemical shift of the carbon K-shell binding energy in molecules and the effects of intramolecular scattering are considered.
Desulfurization of coal by oxidation in alkaline solutions

Abstract Bituminous coals were desulfurized by leaching in a small, stirred autoclave with hot, dilute solutions of alkali containing dissolved oxygen under pressure. Most of the inorganic sulfur and a significant portion of the organic sulfur were removed. The effect of process conditions such as temperature, pressure, oxygen partial pressure, and alkalinity on the degree of desulfurization was studied. Under alkaline conditions more sulfur was removed than under acidic conditions. Among different alkalis tested, sodium carbonate or bicarbonate were among the most effective and lowest in cost. At a moderate temperature of about 150° C, the total amount of sulfur extracted in a given period of time increased with increasing oxygen partial pressure, while the heating value was not significantly affected. The effect of temperature on sulfur removal was complex. For coal with a high proportion of pyritic sulfur, the total sulfur reduction was maximum at 120–160° C, depending on the oxygen pressure. For coal with a high proportion of organic sulfur, the total sulfur reduction increased continuously with increasing temperature. With increasing temperature, the heating value recovery decreased gradually at low oxygen partial pressures. However, at higher oxygen partial pressures, the heating value recovery decreased rapidly above 150° C.
Structural characterization of Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 9A capsule polysaccharide reveals role of glycosyl 6-O-acetyltransferase wcjE in serotype 9V capsule biosynthesis and immunogenicity

The putative capsule O-acetyltransferase gene wcjE is highly conserved across various Streptococcus pneumoniae serotypes, but the role of the gene in capsule biosynthesis and bacterial fitness remains largely unclear. Isolates expressing pneumococcal serotype 9A arise from precursors expressing wcjE-associated serotype 9V through loss-of-function mutation to wcjE. To define the biosynthetic role of 9V wcjE, we characterized the structure and serological properties of serotype 9V and 9A capsule polysaccharide (PS). NMR data revealed that both 9V and 9A PS are composed of an identical pentasaccharide repeat unit, as reported previously. However, in sharp contrast to previous studies on 9A PS being devoid of any O-acetylation, we identified O-acetylation of α-glucuronic acid and α-glucose in 9A PS. In addition, 9V PS also contained –CH2 O-acetylation of β-N-acetylmannosamine, a modification that disappeared following in vitro recombinatorial deletion of wcjE. We also show that serotyping sera and monoclonal antibodies specific for 9V and 9A bound capsule PS in an O-acetate-dependent manner. Furthermore, IgG and to a lesser extent IgM from human donors immunized with serotype 9V PS displayed stronger binding to 9V compared with 9A PS. We conclude that serotype 9V wcjE mediates 6-O-acetylation of β-N-acetylmannosamine. This PS modification can be selectively targeted by antibodies in immunized individuals, identifying a potential selective advantage for wcjE inactivation and serotype 9A emergence.
Birth spacing dynamics in China: The cases of Hebei and Shaanxi provinces

Even as fertility has declined in China in the last several decades, the first and second birth intervals have become shorter over time and the probability of having a second child has increased since the late 1970s. This increase in the probability of conception seems to be contradictory to the Chinese government's birth planning strategy which explicitly stresses timing and parity. Using retrospective survey reports from 1985 in Hebei and Shaanxi provinces, the study explored this paradox. The study revealed several findings: (1) government intervention, especially the ‘one-child’ policy of the late 1970s, had a strong, unexpected influence on early conception in China; (2) the timing and probability of having a first birth were associated with macrosocial forces and familial relationships; and (3) the timing and probability of having a second birth were associated with biosocial, familial as well as macro-social characteristics.
An Experimental Infectious Bronchitis Virus Vaccine Inactivated with Beta-propiolactone

ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION IN THE past few years several effective infectious bronchitis virus vaccines have become available. These vaccines given at the proper time and under proper conditions usually give adequate protection through the first production year. Unfortunately, they all contain live viruses and exhibit the following limitations: (1) a spread of the virus to susceptible flocks in the area, (2) a vaccine reaction which might serve as a stress factor predisposing the birds to other infections, especially respiratory infections, (3) a depression of egg production, (4) possible contamination with other pathogens. The classical physical and chemical virus inactivating agents have not been effective when applied to IBV. These agents (phenol, formalin, ultraviolet irradiation, etc.) destroy the antigenicity of the virus as well as the pathogenicity. Recently a new compound, beta-propiolactone (BPL), has been reported for sterilization of blood plasma and for the inactivation of viruses (Hartman et al., 1951, 1954). Mack . . .
Fair Seeding in Knockout Tournaments

We investigated the existence of fair seeding in knockout tournaments. We define two fairness criteria, both adapted from the literature: envy-freeness and order preservation. We show how to achieve the first criterion in tournaments whose structure is unconstrained, and prove an impossibility result for balanced tournaments. For the second criterion we have a similar result for unconstrained tournaments, but not for the balanced case. We provide instead a heuristic algorithm which we show through experiments to be efficient and effective. This suggests that the criterion is achievable also in balanced tournaments. However, we prove that it again becomes impossible to achieve when we add a weak condition guarding against the phenomenon of tournament dropout.
“Rib-Hooks”, “Pressure Points,” and “Hugs”: Technical Hints for Improving Two-dimensional Echocardiographic Imaging

Summary The two-dimensional echocardiographic image has improved greatly over the past decade due in great part to improved technology. Yet it should be remembered that the skill of the cardiac sonographer is still an important factor in acquiring an adequate echocardiographic examination. This article has presented new approaches and adjustments to the standard approaches in acquiring routine two-dimensional images. It is the belief of the authors that the cardiac sonographers may improve their two-dimensional imaging by using the rib hooks, pressure points, and hugs described.
A new reaction of fluorinated phosphites: the preparation of η5-cyclopentadienylbis[tris(2,2,2-trifluoroethyl)phosphito]iodoiron(II)

Abstract The partially fluorinated phosphite, P(OCH2CF3)3, has been found to replace carbon monoxide from certain metallocarbonyls and their derivatives under gentle reaction conditions with illumination. The preparation of the title compound is described as an example for this new usage for fluorinated phosphites.