cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A prospective randomized study of bovine carotid artery biologic graft and expanded polytetrafluoroethylene for permanent hemodialysis access.

Abstract Objective Arteriovenous grafts (AVGs) remain reliable substitutes for permanent hemodialysis access in scenarios that preclude the placement of native arteriovenous fistulas (AVFs). The majority of AVGs are constructed of expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE), which is relatively inexpensive and readily available, but synthetic AVGs have poor patency rates. On the other hand, biologic grafts confer an advantage by virtue of their inherent similarity to the native human vasculature. However, evidence to support the current preference of synthetic conduits over biologic grafts in clinical practice is scarce. The aim of this protocol is to propose a contemporary re-evaluation and comparison between ePTFE and bovine carotid artery (BCA) grafts. Methods This prospective randomized controlled trial is being conducted at an academic hospital center. A total of 100 patients at least 18 years of age and undergoing AVG placement will be recruited and prospectively randomized into two parallel groups with a 1:1 allocation ratio. Patients eligible to receive AVF and those with a known allergic reaction or history of intolerance to any ePTFE or BCA component will not be included in the study. Moreover, patients with a recent active infection at the site of previous AVG placement and patients with a bleeding disorder, an active malignant disease, or a life expectancy Results Once the study is completed, analysis of the data will be performed using univariate methods, and Kaplan-Meier and multivariate Cox proportional regression analyses will be employed to evaluate and to compare outcomes between BCA and ePTFE over time. Conclusions The creation of a functional and durable dialysis vascular access is crucial in the treatment of patients with end-stage renal disease and is a challenging quest for vascular surgeons. The proposed study compares the outcomes of synthetic and biologic AVG options in patients who are poor candidates for a native AVF. This will help derive contemporary evidence and improve the care of vascular access patients.
Phantom I/O projector: Entrapping malware on machines in production

We discuss the architecture of a defensive deception capability that we dubbed Phantom I/O Projector. The projector is made of kernel modules that project the existence and operation of I/O devices, which are in fact dynamic decoys. The projector can detect malware on the very first encounter with them, and can operate on machines in production. The projector is safe for users, and can coexist with production functions. We tested the projector's architecture by experimenting with a decoy webcam against notorious malware. Those malware have a long history of spying on users. They had caused serious cyber incidents, some of which were largely covered by the news media. The projector can detect those malware on the first contact, having 0-knowledge of their inner workings, and without the user's involvement or awareness of the decoy webcam.
Sleep duration and feeling rested are differentially associated with having children among men and women (P3.060)

Objective: To assess demographic predictors of short sleep duration and insufficient rest among adults. Background: Insufficient sleep or rest are risk factors for cognitive impairment, reduced quality of life, mood disorders, and impaired ability to fight infection. Design/Methods: A cross-sectional examination was conducted using data from the 2012 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), a nation-wide telephone-administered survey. Outcomes included sleep time as a continuous variable (total sleep hours/day) and categorized as optimum (7–9 hours/day) or insufficient ( Results: Among men (N=2,897), longer sleep duration was associated with higher education (p=0.0002) and snoring (p=0.02); among women (N=2,908), having children was inversely associated with sleep duration (p=0.002), while being unemployed (p=0.009) and having a higher household income (p=0.03) were associated with longer duration. Among participants aged ≤45 years, men with less than a high school education were more likely to report insufficient sleep compared to college graduates (OR=10.00, 95% CI=1.87, 53.42) and snoring was inversely associated with insufficient sleep (OR=0.31, 95% CI=0.11, 0.87). Among women aged ≤45 years, the only variable associated with insufficient sleep was having children in the household, with each child increasing the odds by nearly 50% (OR=1.46, 95% CI=1.14, 1.87). Children in the household were also associated with the frequency of feeling unrested among younger women (β= 1.76 ± 0.54, p=0.001), but not among younger men (β= 1.06 ± 0.64 (SE), p=0.10). Conclusions: Predictors of insufficient sleep and feeling unrested differed by sex, with children adversely impacting women, particularly those of childbearing age. Disclosure: Dr. Sullivan has nothing to disclose.
Bioinformatic analysis of the metal response element and zinc-dependent gene regulation via the metal response element-binding transcription factor 1 in Caco-2 cells.

The purpose of this study was to determine the correlation between the position or number of metal regulatory elements (MREs) near gene transcriptional or translational start sites, and the strength of metal response element-binding transcription factor 1 (MTF-1) regulation. A secondary analysis was performed in silico on published results measuring the effects of Zn and MTF-1 on transcriptional regulation of genes (n = 120) in the Caco-2 cell line. MRE sequence variations throughout the human genome were sorted using a position weight matrix. Three null hypotheses (H0) were tested: (1) there is no correlation between the number of MREs and MTF-1 transcriptional strength, (2) there is no correlation between the distance of the MRE upstream from the transcriptional start site (TSS) and MTF-1 transcriptional strength, and (3) there is no correlation between the distance of the MRE downstream from the translational start site (TrSS) and MTF-1 transcriptional strength. Spearman correlation was used to test for significance (p < 0.05). From our results we rejected the first H0; we observed a significant correlation between the total number of MRE sequences - 7Kbp upstream from the TSS, within the 5' untranslated region, and + 1Kbp downstream from the TrSS, versus the strength of MTF-1 regulation (r = 0.202; p = 0.027). The second and third H0 were accepted. These results expand our understanding of the role of the MRE in Zn-dependent gene regulation. The data indicate that Zn influences the transcriptional control of gene expression beyond maintaining intracellular Zn homeostasis.
Typical manifestations of post-radiotherapy tissue injury on FDG-PET/CT

1060 Learning Objectives 1. Briefly review the pathophysiology of radiation injury. 2. Familiarize physicians interpreting oncologic PET/CT scans with common manifestations of post-radiation changes, with an emphasis on CT findings. FDG-PET/CT has become instrumental in the initial and post-treatment evaluation of patients with numerous malignancies. For a large proportion of patients, external beam radiation therapy (XRT) is a component of the treatment regimen. However, in the course of irradiating the target lesion, adjacent non-target tissues often receive a substantial radiation dose, which can result in both functional and morphologic changes. The purpose of this exhibit is to familiarize interpreters of oncologic FDG-PET/CT scans with typical functional and anatomic changes that occur in the setting of radiotherapy. The exhibit will briefly review the pathophysiology and common underlying mechanisms mediating radiation injury to tissues. Thereafter the common CT and PET findings of radiation injury will be reviewed, including tissue injury within the lungs, bones and bone marrow, bowel, and brain, with discussion of the timing and evolution of these findings, where appropriate. After reviewing the exhibit, the attendee will be able to more confidently ascribe findings either on the PET or CT components of the exam as related to radiation effects. This should limit unnecessary imaging followup and perhaps avoid biopsy of incidental or otherwise uncertain findings, resulting in reduced medical system costs, patient inconvenience, and potential complications
Success for Half

When Dr. Martin Randolph came to Danbury, a small city in the southwestern corner of Connecticut, in 1948, the medical establishment there was ill prepared for this young, energetic, academic pediatrician. In this former “hat city”—so named because a large proportion of America’s hats were made there in the early twentieth century—general practitioners practiced everything from pediatrics to surgery. Randolph was a different breed—the first board certified pediatrician in Danbury—who continued his research on new treatments and vaccines while maintaining a busy private practice out of his home office [1].
Feasibility of optimizing intensity-modulated radiation therapy plans based on measured mucosal dose adjacent to dental fillings and toxicity outcomes

We prospectively investigated the feasibility of IMRT treatment plan optimization based on dosimeter measurements of lateral tongue mucosal dose adjacent to the dental fillings and evaluated dose-toxicity relationship and factors affecting oral mucositis (OM) in head and neck cancer patients. Twenty-nine head and neck cancer patients with metallic dental fillings who were scheduled to undergo fractionated external beam radiation therapy (RT) ± chemotherapy were enrolled. The lateral tongue dose was measured and if the calculated dose for the entire treatment was ≥35 Gy, a re-plan was generated to reduce the lateral tongue mucosal dose. OM was graded weekly according to Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events version 4.0 and the patients completed the Oral Mucositis Weekly Questionnaire-Head and Neck Cancer. The result showed that it was not feasible to optimize the IMRT plan based on measured tongue dose in most of the patients who needed re-plan as re-planning compromised the target coverage in 60% of these patients. The duration of grade (Gr) 2 OM was correlated with measured lateral tongue dose (P = 0.050). Concurrent cetuximab was significantly associated with faster onset of Gr2 OM than concurrent cisplatin (P = 0.006) and with longer duration of OM (P = 0.041) compared to concurrent cisplatin or IMRT-alone. The pattern of reported pain over time was significantly different for each treatment type (RT and cetuximab, RT and cisplatin and RT-alone) and depending on the dose level (P = 0.006). In conclusion, optimizing the IMRT plan based on measured lateral tongue dose was not feasible. Measured lateral tongue dose was significantly correlated with longer duration of OM ≥Gr2, and concurrent cetuximab was associated with earlier onset and longer duration of OM ≥Gr2.
Analysis of spatial distribution of trace metals, PCB, and PAH and their potential impact on human health in Virginian Counties and independent cities, USA

Increasing anthropogenic alteration has resulted in increased exposure to both point and nonpoint source pollution. These exposures are increasingly studied for their role in human diseases, including diseases with known genetic or lifestyle risk factors. This study analyzed associations between a variety of human diseases and trace metals, PCBs, and PAHs in soil, groundwater, sediment, and fish. Contaminant spatial data at the county level from Virginia were used in ArcGIS to identify these associations among socially vulnerable populations. The neurologic and psychiatric disorders and cognitive markers were associated with numerous metals in groundwater/soil and/or aquatic system contaminants. Cancer death rates, fetal deaths, and infant deaths were also related to multiple environmental exposures from both categories of exposure. In contrast, many of the chronic diseases which are primarily attributed to lifestyle showed little association with these exposures with the exception of COPD which did appear to be associated with multiple metal exposures. Asthma showed similar associations compared to COPD. Our data suggest that within the context of socially vulnerable populations, where disease burden is often highest, exposures to metals, PAHs, and PCBs may play a role in the development or exacerbation of several highly prevalent categories of disease. These environmental exposures likely act through a variety of pathways all generally leading to increased oxidative stress, inflammation, or interference with biological systems and a subsequent role in disease development.
Linguistic cues are privileged over non-linguistic cues in young children’s categorization

Abstract Language affects the way that humans build categories. When two objects share a verbal label, children and adults are encouraged to group them together. In the present study, we offer a stringent test of the potency of labels by comparing them to non-linguistic cues that have been matched in terms of critical properties. In Experiment 1, Four-year-old children were given two categorization tasks with novel natural kinds and artifacts. In both tasks, we compared the effectiveness of novel Labels like zeg and equally discriminable, intentionally introduced patterned Frames. In Experiment 2, we included pretest trials before each of the tasks to ensure children’s awareness of the cues. We observed a pervasive advantage of Labels over Frames in both experiments. Our results offer some of the strongest evidence to date for the conclusion that young children prioritize labels over superficially equipotent non-linguistic cues when drawing category boundaries.
Deep Inference for Covariance Estimation: Learning Gaussian Noise Models for State Estimation

We present a novel method of measurement covariance estimation that models measurement uncertainty as a function of the measurement itself. Existing work in predictive sensor modeling outperforms conventional fixed models, but requires domain knowledge of the sensors that heavily influences the accuracy and the computational cost of the models. In this work, we introduce Deep Inference for Covariance Estimation (DICE), which utilizes a deep neural network to predict the covariance of a sensor measurement from raw sensor data. We show that given pairs of raw sensor measurement and ground-truth measurement error, we can learn a representation of the measurement model via supervised regression on the prediction performance of the model, eliminating the need for hand-coded features and parametric forms. Our approach is sensor-agnostic, and we demonstrate improved covariance prediction on both simulated and real data.
Class capacities and climate politics: Coal and conflict in the United States energy policy-planning network

Abstract This article employs a power structure research approach and exploratory network analysis to describe the differing stances on climate action that existed within the United States elite energy policy-planning network during efforts to generate climate legislation in 2009. These divisions are explored in relation to the structural location of the coal industry, other energy sectors, and environmental organizations within the network of director interlocks. My key findings are that coal interests are well integrated into the policy-planning network with major coal producers and reserve holders most connected to ultra-conservative business policy groups and industry associations committed to climate denial while a “coal coalition” of coal-related interests provide linkages to influential moderate conservative groups and industry associations taking a conciliatory stance on climate action. The largest oil and gas firms vary more than the coal industry in their affiliations. In general, policy groups that support climate action are on average significantly less central within the overall EPPN compared to those that do not. I discuss the implications of these findings for understanding the boundaries of United States and global climate policy formation.
Non-concurrent Forces and the Funicular

The funicular is a central concept in graphic statics constructions. It is both abstract and concrete, it is visual and analytical. It has been studied for centuries, yet today, very few engineering or architecture students are familiar with its construction or its implications. In its most prosaic form, a funicular is the shape that a hanging chain or cable takes when it is subjected to loads. An infinite amount of funiculars exist for a given loading condition, because an infinite number of lengths of chain could be used to carry such loads.
Groundwater resources at salinisation risk: effects of climate and utilisation changes in the case of Apulian coastal aquifers (Southeastern Italy)

Seawater intrusion is the main cause of groundwater salinisation in Italy. The largest coastal aquifers, highly vulnerable to salinisation, are in Apulia. For these aquifers, main changes in terms of climate change and utilisation are discussed together with piezometric trends, as the latter are relevant triggering factors for upconing and lateral seawater intrusion. For this purpose, time series from 1921 to 2016 concerning climate (rainfall and temperature), from 1965 to 2016 concerning groundwater availability (piezometric values), and recent periodic data on potable utilisation are discussed. Climate and groundwater availability trends at 2016 are compared with trends previously assessed, using the same dataset (1921-2001 for rainfall and temperature). The negative characteristic of rainfall 1921-2001 trend improved in the next years up to disappear in the assessment of rainfall 1921-2016 trend. Notwithstanding the improving of rainfall trend and the reduction of groundwater utilisation, both observed at 2016, the improvement of piezometric trends at 2016 is not enough to remove a prevailing decreasing trend, previously observed. The increases of temperature and effective evapotranspiration should be considered a relevant explanation of groundwater availability reduction. The consequence of these results should be quickly considered in the management of groundwater resources.
Social Media and Forecasting Stock Price Change

The Stock Market is a big influence on both national and international economies. Stock prices are driven by a number of factors: industry performance, company news and performance, investor confidence, micro and macro economic factors like employment rates, wage rates, etc. Stock pricing trends can be gauged from the factors that drive it as well as from the stock's historical performance. As fluctuations in stock prices become more volatile and unpredictable, forecasting models help reduce some of the randomness involved in investing and financial decision making. Users on social media platforms like twitter, StockTwits, and eToro discuss issues related to the stock market. Can the analysis of posts on StockTwits add value to the existing features of stock price predicting models? An existing model that uses twits as features was extended to include sentiment analysis of the text referenced by the URL in the twits to see if the model accuracy did improve. Initial results indicate that the addition of sentiment analysis of the text referenced by the URL does not improve the performance of the model when all twits for a given day are taken into account since the model only identifies the direction of change and not the degree of change. The stock prediction model achieves 65% accuracy compared to the base case accuracy of 44% and augmenting the model with sentiment analysis did not change the accuracy. The study highlights some interesting observations regarding users on the StockTwits social media platform and proposes the need for a domain specific sentiment analyzer in future work.
Sex and Height Influence Neck Posture When Using Electronic Handheld Devices.

With increased tablet ownership in the United States comes increased levels of neck flexion compared to desktop or laptop computer use, and these neck postures have been linked to increases in neck pain. Importantly, tablet viewing postures can be achieved in multiple ways and could be determined by the morphology of the individual and/or other extraneous factors. In this study, we aim to preliminarily evaluate how neck postures vary during tablet use among individuals and link this variation to other factors such as sex, height, weight, presence/absence of temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD), and morphology of the head and neck. We analyzed two-dimensional landmarks placed on lateral-view radiographs of 22 participants (10 female and 12 male) seated in neutral, upright, fully flexed, semi-reclined, and reclined postures. We utilize geometric morphometric techniques, which are advantageous for evaluating shape variation and have not been extensively applied to biomechanical analyses. We found skeletal morphology to be significantly related to sex and height in all but the neutral posture (P < 0.05), and weight was marginally significantly related to shape in the semi-reclined posture (P = 0.047). Morphologically, male participants exhibited more flexion at the articulatio atlantooccipitalis than females, and females showed greater mandibular protrusion than males, although this result is likely related to height. No relationship was found between posture and TMD. This research establishes a framework for future work that uses geometric morphometric analyses to evaluate how neck postures vary in relation to TMD. Clin. Anat. 32:1061-1071, 2019. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
A methodological assessment of extreme heat mortality modeling and heat vulnerability mapping in Dallas, Texas

Abstract Extreme temperatures pose a significant risk to human health and are projected to worsen in a warming climate with increased intensity, duration, and frequency of heat waves in the coming decades. To mitigate heat exposure and protect sensitive populations, urban planners are increasingly using heat vulnerability indices (HVIs) to identify high priority areas for intervention and investment. Relative HVI scores help identify which areas are at greatest risk of heat-related morbidity and mortality. Public health researchers are also increasingly using observation-driven exposure-response functions to estimate heat-related mortality. In this paper, we estimate the number and spatial distribution of heat-related deaths in Dallas in 2011 employing an exposure-response function and then assess the performance of different HVI techniques in assigning vulnerability to zones of high heat mortality. Our approach estimates that 112 Dallas residents died from heat-related causes in the summer of 2011 and finds wide variability in the performance of different HVI techniques in assessing heat vulnerability by district. The HVI is found to retain more useful information mapped as separate components of vulnerability than as a single composite score. While the exposure-response function is preferred, the methods can be used in conjunction to assess appropriate heat management strategies.
Monitoreo de la Savia del Peciolo de Vegetales

A medida que los productores y consultores comienzan a usar la tecnologia de monitoreo de savia, surgen preguntas sobre los procedimientos del monitoreo de savia. Las siguientes guias deberian ayudar a las personas que actualmente usan o estan interesadas en usar el monitoreo de savia. La mayoria de estas guias se han desarrollado a traves de investigaciones en Florida, o se basan en la experiencia de campo. This is the Spanish translation of CIR1144/CV004, Plant Petiole Sap-Testing For Vegetable Crops. Written by George Hochmuth, translated by Maria Paz Kinslow, and published by the UF/IFAS Horticultural Sciences Department.
Probing fundamental physics with gravitational waves: The next generation

Gravitational wave observations of compact binary mergers are already providing stringent tests of general relativity and constraints on modified gravity. Ground-based interferometric detectors will soon reach design sensitivity, and they will be followed by third-generation upgrades, possibly operating in conjunction with space-based detectors. How will these improvements affect our ability to investigate fundamental physics with gravitational waves? The answer depends on the timeline for the sensitivity upgrades of the instruments, but also on astrophysical compact binary population uncertainties, which determine the number and signal-to-noise ratio of the observed sources. We consider several scenarios for the proposed timeline of detector upgrades and various astrophysical population models. Using a stacked Fisher matrix analysis of binary black hole merger observations, we thoroughly investigate future theory-agnostic bounds on modifications of general relativity as well as bounds on specific theories. For theory-agnostic bounds, we find that ground-based observations of stellar-mass black holes and LISA observations of massive black holes can each lead to improvements of 2--4 orders of magnitude with respect to present gravitational wave constraints, while multiband observations can yield improvements of 1--6 orders of magnitude. We also clarify how the relation between theory-agnostic and theory-specific bounds depends on the source properties.
Impact of spirituality on resilience and coping during the COVID-19 crisis: A mixed-method approach investigating the impact on women.

Spirituality has been known to have a positive correlation to resilience during disasters. This study investigated the impact of spirituality on resilience during our current pandemic. A mixed-method approach was used to analyze correlations between spirituality and resilience of women. Correlations were noted to be statistically significant with Pearson's correlation of -.450 at 0.001, CD-RISC (M = 77.94), and DSES (M = 39.74). Thematic analysis of six open-ended questions provide depth to quantitative findings supporting the positive influence of spirituality on resilience, hope, optimism, peace, and comfort suggesting that spirituality may be an important dimension as this pandemic continues to unfold across the globe.
Sustainable Beer: Testing the Effects of Water Conservation Messages and Brewery Type on Consumer Perceptions

Beer brewing is a water intensive industry, which has led breweries to adopt different water conservation practices such as buying water offsets or using reclaimed water. In order to encourage wide...
Techniques for Automated Drafting of Judicial Documents

Document drafting is an essential component of judicial problem solving. This paper distinguishes several classes of judicial documents based on (1) the stage of the judicial process in which they are created, (2) the complexity of the documents, and (3) the party who drafts the documents: a judge, judicial support personnel, or a litigant. Three approaches to automated document drafting are identified and the applicability of these approaches to each class of judicial document is described. The paper concludes with a description of several implemented prototype systems for drafting judicial documents at various stages of the judicial process.
Bible and Bedlam: Madness, Sanism, and New Testament Interpretation

The author sets out the three main goals of this book on the back cover. First, she discusses biblical characters and scholars perceived as mad, via “sanism,” looking at these characters through th...
Needle in the Haystack: Wire Bristle Foreign Body Presenting Deep Within the Tongue Base.

Objectives:To report a case of ingested wire bristle embedded within the extrinsic musculature of the tongue requiring a transcervical approach for removal and to provide a revised algorithm for th...
Influence of parent age and gender on anticipation in familial B-cell malignancies

Anticipation occurs when a disease manifests at an earlier age and/or with an increased clinical severity in the next generation. Its relationship with parental age and gender is relevant to the patterns of genetic transmission of familial B-cell neoplasms. One hundred and sixty pairs [44 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL), 38 Hodgkin’s disease (HD), 48 HD/NHL, and 30 CLL] were analyzed retrospectively for presence of anticipation in paternal (PT), maternal (MT), and overall transmission. Overall mean anticipation measured −23.0 yr, and varied between −18.93 and −26.46 yr with no significant difference among different diseases, except between CLL and mixed HD/NHL (mean difference −7.68 yr, p=0.03). A significant Pearson correlation (PC) between the parental age at conception and anticipation was found for all malignancies (PC=−0.339, p<0.0001), with the exception of mixed HD/NHL pairs of MT. Higher PCs were observed with PT than MT for all diseases. Anticipation manifests in all familial B-cell malignancies analyzed and it correlates with the parental age at conception. Although less prominent than with neurological disease, this phenomenon indicates a possible germline inheritance of B-cell malignancies and a common genetic basis for HD and NHL.
Additive operations between connective K-theory and Chow theory

Abstract We determine all additive operations, stable and unstable, between connective K-theory and Chow theory modulo a prime integer p. It is proved the module of all stable operations is free of rank p − 1 over the reduced Steenrod algebra.
Mesowestern Blot: Simultaneous Analysis of Hundreds of Sub-Microliter Lysates

Western blotting is a widely-used technique for molecular-weight-resolved analysis of proteins and their post-translational modifications, but has been refractory to affordable scale-up. Here, we report the Mesowestern blot, which uses a 3D-printable gel-casting mold to enable affordable, high-throughput Western blotting with standard sample preparation and small (
The Buried Penis in Adults

Adulthood buried penis is becoming an increasingly prevalent problem due to the rise in obesity. Weight loss and exercise may help overall health, but reconstructive surgery, especially in patients with scrotal lymphedema, cellulitis, abscess, or gangrene, is the primary treatment. We present a detailed description of our widely applicable surgical approach for management of these patients.
Primary Ewing sarcoma of the cavernous sinus.

Ewing sarcoma (ES) is a part of a larger family of round blue-cell tumors that occasionally manifest as osseous or extraosseous lesions adjacent to or within the central nervous system (CNS). Although a large body of literature exists on ES of bone, data are lacking on tumors with cranial or spinal components that affect the CNS. Moreover, primary intracranial ES has been uncommonly reported, and its location in the cavernous sinus is extremely rare, with only a few cases reported in literature. We describe a case of a 15-year-old boy who presented initially with a seizure along with acute abducens, trochlear, and oculomotor nerve pareses. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a cavernous sinus mass. Given the rapid growth and aggressive nature of the mass, a biopsy of the lesion was performed. Microscopic examination of the specimen showed immunohistological features consistent with ES. The patient was treated with multi-agent chemotherapy and fractionated radiation therapy. Clinical assessment 7 months after completion of chemotherapy and 4 months after completion of radiotherapy revealed that the patient’s ocular motility and alignment had improved significantly, and MRI showed almost complete disappearance of the tumor. This is one of only six cases of extraosseous primary intracranial ES of the cavernous sinus reported in literature to date. The availability of multi-agent chemotherapy and fractionated radiation therapy in this patient resulted in his marked clinical and imaging improvement. It remains to be seen if this therapy will result in long-term control or cure of the lesion in our patient. In the meantime, increasing awareness and identification of children primary intracranial ES will hopefully allow a better understanding of the molecular biology of this tumor and the development of standardized treatment regimens.
Phase Contrast MRA

The sections in this article are 1 Introduction 2 Principles of Phase Detection of Motion 3 Important Attributes of Phase Contrast MRA 4 Phase-Sensitive Flow Imaging Pulse Sequences 5 Postprocessing 6 Applications 7 Conclusions 8 Biographical Sketches Related Articles
Intergenerational Occupational Mobility in a Rural Economy

This paper presents evidence on intergenerational occupational mobility from agricul- ture to the nonfarm sector using survey data from Nepal. In the absence of credible instru- ments, the degree of selection on observables is used as a guide to the degree of selection on unobservablesla Altonji et. al. (2005) to address the unobserved genetic correlations relevant for occupation choice. The results show that a moderate ability correlation can easily explain away the observed partial correlation in non-farm participation between the father and a son. In contrast, the partial correlation in occupation choice between mother and daughter is much stronger, and is unlikely to be driven by genetic correlations alone. The results suggest that mother's nonfarm participation plays a causal role in daughter's choice of nonfarm occupation, possibly because of \cultural inheritance" through role model and learning efiects, and transfer of reputation and social capital.
Allogeneic Unrelated Donor Blood and Marrow Transplantation

Allogeneic stem cell transplantation can provide curative therapy for patients with hematologic malignancies, marrow failure states, severe immunodeficiencies, hemoglobinopathies and inherited metabolic diseases [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8]. Unfortunately, only approximately 25 to 30 percent of patients will have a suitable HLA genotypically identical sibling donor available to facilitate transplant therapy. An extensive family search may find a closely matched related donor for only 3 to 5 percent of patients and, thus, in the 1970s HLA-matched unrelated donors (URD) were considered as an alternative [1, 2, 3]. In the early 1980s, registries of volunteer marrow donors were established in Europe and North America, but the extreme polymorphism of the HLA system and the immu-nodominant gene products of the major histocompatibility complex, as well as differential frequencies of HLA phenotypes in different populations, indicated a need for volunteer donor registries of substantial size and great genetic diversity. Over 50 national registries exist in all continents including the National Marrow Donor Program in the United States and the Anthony Nolan Research Centre Registry in the United Kingdom which allow expedited searching for donors among well over 12 million registered volunteer donors.
Besondere Gebiete des Völkerrechts

Nach den Ausfuhrungen zu den allgemeinen Lehren und Grundbegriffen des Volkerrechts sollen jetzt die „besondere Gebiete“ des Volkerrechts erlautert werden. Was sind „besondere Gebiete“? Darunter sind die volkerrechtlichen Rechtsbereiche zu verstehen, in denen von den allgemeinen volkerrechtlichen Normen abweichende Sonderrechtssatze, sei es auf volkergewohnheitsrechtlicher, sei es auf vertraglicher Basis, bestehen. Der Ausdruck „besondere Gebiete“ soll folglich nicht abgelegene Randbereiche des Volkerrechts bezeichnen, sondern Sachgebiete, die einer gemeinsamen Normierung zugefuhrt wurden. Sie gehen dann als Spezialgesetze den allgemeinen volkerrechtlichen Regeln vor, denen nur eine luckenfullende Funktion zukommt. Die besonderen Gebiete konnen im Rahmen dieses Studienbuches nur uberblicksartig dargestellt werden, bei besonderem Interesse empfiehlt sich ein die jeweilige Materie vertiefend behandelndes Lehrbuch.
Stability and regulation of phosphoribosyl pyrophosphate synthetase from rat liver.

Abstract Phosphoribosyl pyrophosphate (PRPP) synthetase purified from rat liver loses activity when assayed at low protein concentrations, which results in a nonlinear relationship between velocity and enzyme concentration. A linear relationship is obtained at higher enzyme concentrations or in the presence of albumin, EDTA, or sulfhydryl compounds. Iodoacetamide and p-chloromercuribenzoate abolish the effect of these compounds, suggesting that stabilization of the enzyme results from the protection of an essential sulfhydryl group on the enzyme. Certain nucleotides and 2,3-diphosphoglycerate inhibit the unstabilized enzyme, but have no effect on the stabilized enzyme. When stabilized, the enzyme is inhibited by dATP, ADP, dADP, and AMP, and minor degrees of inhibition occur with several thiopurine compounds. Inhibition by ADP is competitive with respect to ATP, while AMP inhibition is noncompetitive with respect to both substrates. These findings are consistent with regulation of rat liver PRPP synthetase by cellular energy charge. The rat liver enzyme does not appear to respond to "general metabolic pool inhibition" as a regulatory parameter, as has been suggested for PRPP synthetase from other sources.
Two-Proton Correlations from Pb+Pb Central Collisions

The two-proton correlation function at midrapidity from Pb+Pb central collisions at 158 AGeV has been measured by the NA49 experiment. The preliminary results are compared to model predictions from proton source distributions of static thermal Gaussian sources and the transport models of rqmd and venus. We obtain an effective proton source size \( {\sigma _{{\mathbf{eff}}}} = 4.0 \pm 0.15({\mathbf{stat}}.)_{ - 0.18}^{ + 0.06}({\mathbf{syst}}.) \) fm. The rqmd model underpredicts the correlation function ( \( {\sigma _{{\mathbf{eff}}}} = 4.41 \) fm), while the venus model overpredicts the correlation function ( \( {\sigma _{{\mathbf{eff}}}} = 3.55 \) fm).
Transformation of “Masked” 1,3‐Diols of 1,2‐O‐Isopropylidene‐α‐D‐Erythro‐Hexofuranose into Acyclic Forms. Chirons for Amphotericin B

3,5-Dideoxy-1,2-O-isopropylidene-α-D-erythro-hexofuranose 1 was readily converted to dithianyl amide 8, which is a convenient acyclic form of 1,3-diol, in high yield.
Characterization and estimation of light rainfall using NASA D3R observations during GPM IFloodS and IPHEx field campaigns

The light rain and snow are critical to the Earth's ecosystem due to the high occurrence rate, especially in middle and high latitude. However, it is challenging to use rainfall gauge to measure light rain due to the limitations of sampling time and bucket volume resolution. This paper presents the characterization and estimation of light rainfall using National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Dual-frequency Dual-polarization Doppler Radar (D3R) observations collected during the NASA Iowa Flood Studies (IFoodS) and Integrated Precipitation and Hydrology Experiment (IPHEx) field campaigns. Sample rainfall products are shown. Comparisons are performed between radar rainfall products and ground rainfall measurements from rain gauge and disdrometers. It is shown that the radar rainfall measurements agree with the disdrometer observations very well. The excellent performance for light rainfall estimation demonstrates one aspect of the capability of D3R as a ground validation tool for the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) satellite precipitation product evaluations.
Historical legacies, clientelism and the capacity to fight: exploring pathways to regime tenure in Tanzania

While regimes in countries like Cameroon, Guinea, Togo and Tanzania have survived the transition from single to multiparty rule, this article suggests two unique characteristics for the case of regime tenure in Tanzania. First, while transitions in other cases were characterized by widespread protests and/or popular opposition movements, opposition in Tanzania's transition environment was minuscule by comparison. Secondly, while repression is still widespread in Tanzania, overt repression appears to be less prevalent in Tanzania when compared to most other strong tenure cases. This study first explores the comparative role of overt repression as a viable explanation for the strong tenure of the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM). Upon closer examination, however, the article argues that accounting for the structures and processes that shape the capacities of political actors to engage in political battles might provide for a more complete appreciation of the CCM's ability to remain the country's dominant political...
Past Activeness, Solidarity, and Local Development Efforts1

Actions by local groups and leaders constitute an essential but poorly understood element of many rural development strategies. Previous studies suggest that local development efforts can influence community change, but questions remain about why localities differ in mobilization to achieve development goals. Drawing upon community field theory and human ecology, this study uses data for rural school districts in Pennsylvania to examine the argument that activeness in the past and development of solidarity can contribute to a higher probability of local mobilization than would be predicted by ecological characteristics alone. Hierarchical regressions support this argument for some local actions, while canonical correlations show a generalized pattern strongly associated with past activeness and solidarity.
Prognostic Value of Treadmill Exercise Testing in Elderly Persons

In elderly patients, treadmill exercise testing provided prognostic information that was incremental to clinical data. After adjustment for clinical factors, workload was the only treadmill exercis...
Effects of (1→3)(1→4)‐β‐d‐Glucans of Wheat Flour on Breadmaking

ABSTRACT Water-soluble nonstarch polysaccharides were extracted from commercial hard red winter wheat flour and separated into three fractions by graded ethanol precipitation. The three fractions, F15, F40, and F60, varied in polysaccharide composition. Fraction F15 was rich in watersoluble (1→3)(1→4)-β-d-glucans, and fractions F40 and F60 were rich in arabinoxylans. Addition of individual fractions to a bread formula did not affect bread loaf volume. Addition of fraction F15 to the formula improved bread crumb grain. Treatment of (1→3)(1→4)-β-D-glucan-rich fraction F15 with lichenase before its addition to the bread formula resulted in bread with poor crumb grain. Treatment of the F15 fraction with β-xylanase before its addition to the bread formula resulted in bread with slightly improved crumb grain. Presumably, the (1→3)(1→4)-β-D-glucans in fraction F15 improved crumb grain by stabilizing air cells in the bread dough and preventing coalescence of the cells. Addition of pentosan-rich fractions F40 and ...
Nonlinear model and system identification of a capacitive dual-backplate MEMS microphone

This paper presents the nonlinear identification of a capacitive dual-backplate microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) microphone. First, a nonlinear lumped element model of the coupled electromechanical microphone dynamics is developed. Nonlinear finite element analyses are performed to verify the accuracy of the lumped linear and cubic stiffnesses of the diaphragm. In order to experimentally extract the system parameters, an approximate solution using the second-order multiple scales method is synthesized for a nonlinear microphone model, subject to an electrical step input. A nonlinear least-squares technique is then implemented to extract system parameters from laser vibrometry data of the diaphragm motion. The results indicate that the theoretical fundamental resonant frequency, damping ratio and nonlinear stiffness parameter agree with the corresponding extracted experimental parameters with 95% confidence interval estimates.
Performance and design concepts of a free electron laser operating in the x-ray region

We report on the Design Study of a Free-Electron-Laser experiment designed to produce coherent radiation at the wavelength of 1.5 {Angstrom} and longer. The proposed experiment utilizes 1/3 of the SLAC linac to accelerate electrons to 15 GeV. The high brightness electron beam interacts with the magnetic field of a long undulator and generates coherent radiation by self-amplified spontaneous emission (SASE). The projected output peak power is about, 10 GW. The project presents several challenges in the realization of a high brightness electron beam, in the construction and tolerances of the undulator and in the transport, of the x-ray radiation. The technical solutions adopted for the design are discussed. Numerical simulations are used to show the performance as a function of system parameters.
Capacity of irradiated echinostome sporocysts to protect Schistosoma mansoni in resistant Biomphalaria glabrata.

Abstract Three closely related species of Echinostoma flukes each has a distinctive pattern of protection of Schistosoma mansoni in schistosome-resistant Biomphalaria glabrata host snails. Protection of developing S. mansoni by irradiated E. paraensei sporocysts in the schistosome-resistant snail host was strong; protection induced by irradiated E. lindoense and E. liei sporocysts was weak or not measurable. The capacity of irradiated E. paraensei sporocysts to interfere with the host's innate anti-schistosome response also differed between strains of B. glabrata . Protection of S. mansoni strain Lc-1 was greater in B. glabrata strain 10-R2 than it was in strain M-RLc snails. Irradiated E. paraensei sporocysts also induced a different response to the two schistosome strains in a single host strain. Irradiated E. paraensei sporocysts induced in B. glabrata 10-R2 snails a stronger protection of S. mansoni strain PR-1 than of strain Lc-1. Exposure of each snail to the irradiated E. paraensei miracidia usually protected the following challenge schistosome infection better when 30 rather than 10 irradiated echinostome miracidia were used.
Birth of the Leviathan: Building States and Regimes in Medieval and Early Modern Europe

For many years scholars have sought to explain why the European states which emerged in the period before the French Revolution developed along such different lines. Why did some become absolutist and others constitutionalist? What enabled some to develop bureaucratic administrative systems, while others remained dependent upon patrimonial practices? This book presents a new theory of state-building in medieval and early modern Europe. Ertman argues that two factors - the organisation of local government at the time of state formation and the timing of sustained geo-military competition - can explain most of the variation in political regimes and in state infrastructures found across the continent during the second half of the eighteenth century. Drawing on insights developed in historical sociology, comparative politics, and economic history, this book makes a compelling case for the value of interdisciplinary approaches to the study of political development.
The millennium and international marketing

Reviews the status of international marketing as we enter the new millennium. Suggests that changes will take place, highlighting issues such as globalization, new technology, the aging of the population, the political arena, and market segments as variables. However, asserts that these changes are part of a gradual development and that the millennium per se will not bring any dramatic change to the environment and operations of international marketers.