cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Robot assisted laparoscopic pyeloplasty: a review of the current status.

Background Over the last decade minimally invasive endourologic and laparoscopic techniques have become the first line therapies for primary UPJ obstruction. Robotic assisted laparoscopic pyeloplasty for the correction of ureteropelvic junction has achieved outcomes comparable to those of open and laparoscopic techniques. We present a comprehensive review of the current literature of robotic assisted pyeloplasty. Methods We performed a systemic review of all the current literature examining demographic data, intra operative parameters and post-operative outcomes. Results In most published series in the literature, the operative time ranges from 122 to 300 minutes and the operative time ranges from 27 to 77 ml. Most series considers subjective improvement in the symptoms and improved drainage on post-operative diuretic renal scan as the measures of success. The reported success rates vary from 89 to 100%. Conclusion Robotic pyeloplasty is a feasible alternative to laparoscopic pyeloplasty. Short-term results indicate equivalent outcomes with the laparoscopic procedure. Long-term studies are still needed to compare robotic and open pyeloplasty outcomes, and to define the role of robotic pyeloplasty in a cost prohibitive health care system. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Propagation of spreading depression among dendrites and somata of the same cell population

The propagation of sustained potential shifts associated with spreading depression (SD) was studied by microelectrodes placed in diverse layers at different locations in hippocampus of anesthetized rats. SD was induced by raising interstitial potassium concentration ([K+]0) focally in the CA1 region of the dorsal hippocampus either by microdialysis or by microinjection. Recurrent waves of SD propagated from the dialysis site throughout the hippocampus. Potential shifts (delta V0) associated with SD usually began earlier and were always of larger amplitude and longer duration in stratum (st.) radiatum (layer of apical dendrites) than in st. pyramidale (layer of pyramidal cell somata). The velocity of propagation in the two layers differed and varied independently one from the other. When SD was provoked by orthodromic train stimuli, the apparent direction of propagation in st. pyramidale was opposite that in st. radiatum. Microinjection of high K+ solution was more likely to provoke SD when placed in the st. radiatum, 50-100 microns ventral to st. pyramidale, than in other cytoarchitectonic layers. In about half the trials after 30 to 90 min of high K+ dialysis, a prolonged depressed state developed during which the potential in st. radiatum shifted at irregular intervals between near-rest level and a strongly negative level, while delta V0 shifts in st. pyramidale were smaller and more irregular in amplitude. This state is termed prolonged unstable SD". When the NMDA receptor antagonist CPP was dialyzed together with high K+, the onset of SD was postponed and delta V0 waves propagated in st. pyramidale without corresponding waves in st. radiatum; less frequently the other way around.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Review: Enteral or parenteral nutrition reduces risk for mortality in acute pancreatitis

Source Citation Petrov MS, Pylypchuk RD, Emelyanov NV. Systematic review: nutritional support in acute pancreatitis. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2008;28:704-12. 18616520
Delayed-onset fungal keratitis after endophthalmitis

Purpose: This study aimed to present two patients with delayed-onset, endogenous fungal keratitis after treatment for fungal endophthalmitis after cataract surgery. Methods: The authors retrospectively reviewed the clinical course of two patients in whom deep stromal fungal keratitis developed 2 weeks and 3 months, respectively, after apparent successful aggressive therapy for fungal endophthalmitis. Before the onset of the keratitis, both patients underwent vitrectomies with intraocular injection of 7.5 to 10.0 mcg amphotericin B, as well as treatment with systemic fluconazole and topical antifungal therapy. In case 1, a pre-existing prosthetic intraocular lens and lens capsular bag were removed at the time of vitrectomy, whereas in case 2, the intraocular lens was left in place and a posterior capsulectomy was performed. Results: The keratitis worsened in both patients, despite intensive systemic and topical antifungal therapy. Both patients underwent therapeutic penetrating keratoplasties. In case 1, this resulted in successful resolution of the infection and no recurrences 3 months after the transplant. The corneal transplant was complicated by an expulsive choroidal hemorrhage in the other patient. Fusarium solani was cultured from the initial vitrectomy specimen in patient 1, and although it was not cultured from the keratitis, septate hyphal elements were present on histopathologic examination. The causative organism in case 2 was Acremonium kiliense , which was cultured from both the original vitrectomy specimen and the deep corneal stromal infiltrate. Conclusions: Fungal organisms may not be eradicated completely from eyes with endophthalmitis despite aggressive therapy and apparent initial successful treatment. These patients need to be monitored for prolonged periods, and treatment should be reinitiated at the earliest sign of recrudescence of infection.
Suppression of juvenile hormone esterase in Heliothis virescens by Microplitis demolitor calyx fluid

Abstract Microplitis demolitor is a polydnavirus-carrying braconid wasp that parasitizes the larval stage of Heliothis virescens . Previous studies indicated that parasitized hosts exhibit developmental arrest whereas larvae injected with either M. demolitor calyx fluid or polydnavirus (MdPDV) form larva-pupal intermediates. Here we investigated the role of teratocytes in altering host development and the effects of calyx fluid on juvenile hormone esterase activity in H. virescens . Injection of superphysiological doses of teratocytes or coinjection of a physiological dose of teratocytes and calyx fluid affected fourth-stadium host development similarly to parasitism, but parallel injections had lesser effects in fifth-stadium hosts. Juvenile hormone (JH) titers in parasitized, fifth-stadium H. virescens were 12-fold higher by 60 h post-parasitism than those in controls. Unparasitized H. virescens exhibited two peaks of JH metabolic activity in the last instar, one at 60 h after larval ecdysis and the other just before pupation (132 h post-ecdysis), whereas JH metabolism was completely suppressed in parasitized and calyx fluid-injected hosts. The effect of calyx fluid on JH metabolism was independent of the presence of teratocytes and, based on general esterase assays, was specific for JH esterase. Experiments using hemolymph from parasitized larvae suggested that the reduction in host JH esterase activity was not due to a factor in the hemolymph.
Synthesis of 10 stereochemically distinct bis-tetrahydrofuran intermediates for creating a library of 64 asimicin stereoisomers

Abstract Stereoselective synthesis of 10 unique bifunctional stereoisomeric adjacent bis-THF intermediates (R = Bz), including 5.1 – 5.4 , 5.7 – 5.9 , 5.11 , and 5.15 – 5.16 , of 16 possible compounds, is described. The key steps used in the synthesis of these compounds included the rhenium(VII) oxide-mediated and the Co(modp) 2 -catalyzed trans oxidative cyclizations (OCs), the OsO 4 -catalyzed cis OC, and the Williamson’s type etherification reactions. The remaining six bis-THF intermediates (R = Bn) can be prepared from 5.7 – 5.9 , 5.11 , and 5.15 – 5.1 6 (R = Bz) in two steps, including protection of the free alcohol as benzyl ether followed by the benzoate deprotection. These intermediates should provide access to all 64 asimicin stereoisomers and their analogs.
Epitaxial growth kinetics with interacting coherent islands

The Stranski-Krastanov growth kinetics of undislocated (coherent) 3-dimensional islands is studied with a self-consistent mean field rate theory that takes account of elastic interactions between the islands. The latter are presumed to facilitate the detachment of atoms from the islands with a consequent decrease in their average size. Semi-quantitative agreement with experiment is found for the time evolution of the total island density and the mean island size. When combined with scaling ideas, these results provide a natural way to understand the often-observed initial increase and subsequent decrease in the width of the coherent island size distribution.
SpriteCam: virtual camera control using sprite

Editing or browsing video based on spatial content without distortion or cropping has been challenging because of providing unavailable information (view) in a single frame. Virtual camera control enables the user to view the video from her perspective by using camera functions such as pan, tilt, and zoom on a recorded video. In this paper, we propose our SpriteCam system that provides virtual camera controls by first generating the background sprite or mosaic of the video. We provide the theoretical framework and then explain how pan, tilt, and zoom operations are applied using the sprite. SpriteCam allows centralizing objects, aspect ratio conversion, and fixing the camera view without distortion or information loss for videos which sprite can be generated.
Evidence for an abnormal profile of interleukin-4 (IL-4) IL-5, and γ-interferon (γ-IFN) in peripheral blood T cells from patients with allergic eosinophilic gastroenteritis

Allergic eosinophilic gastroenteritis is characterized by elevated total IgE, specific IgE to food antigens, and eosinophilia of tissue and blood. Because the lymphokines IL-4, IL-5, and gamma-interferon, regulate IgE synthesis, and eosinophilopoiesis in vitro, we examined whether there is an imbalance in their production in allergic eosinophilic gastroenteritis. To explore this hypothesis, three adult patients with allergic eosinophilic gastroenteritis were studied. Flow cytometric studies of peripheral blood mononuclear cells from these patients did not reveal evidence of T cell activation or disturbance of T cell numbers or subsets. T cells were capable of normal mitogenic activation in vitro. IL-4 and IL-5 production were markedly elevated with mitogenic stimulation. Most IL-4 and IL-5 production was by CD4+ T cells. Synthesis of IL-5 by CD4+ T lymphocytes in three patients and CD8+ T lymphocytes in two patients occurred in the absence of mitogen. Mitogen-stimulated GM-CSF and gamma-interferon synthesis by CD4+ T cells was normal. Lymphokine mRNA in total cellular RNA derived from endoscopic biopsies was examined by reverse transcription/polymerase chain reaction. Mucosal biopsies from control subjects and most biopsies from allergic eosinophilic gastroenteritis patients contained less than 10(-8) micrograms IL-5 mRNA/1 microgram total cellular mRNA. gamma-Interferon mRNA was not detected by reverse transcription/polymerase chain reaction in biopsies from patients with allergic eosinophilic gastroenteritis but was present in controls. These lymphokine abnormalities are consistent with the elevated IgE and eosinophilia seen in allergic eosinophilic gastroenteritis and suggest that strategies targeting T lymphocytes may be efficacious in treatment of this disease.
Eccentricity content of binary black hole initial data

Using a post-Newtonian diagnostic tool developed by Mora and Will, we examine numerically generated quasiequilibrium initial data sets that have been used in recently successful numerical evolutions of binary black holes through plunge, merger and ringdown. We show that a small but significant orbital eccentricity is required to match post-Newtonian and quasiequilibrium calculations. If this proves to be a real eccentricity, it could affect the fine details of the subsequent numerical evolutions and the predicted gravitational waveforms.
Engineering a new β-cell: a critical venture requiring special attention to constantly changing physiological needs

Abstract As both type 1 and type 2 diabetes are characterized by reduced islet β-cell mass and impaired insulin secretion, engineering new β-cells for replacement therapy is appealing. For this to be successful, the intricate peptide processing and secretory machinery of the β-cell must be duplicated. Further, the engineered β-cell must be capable of modulating its function in response to physiological changes such as puberty, pregnancy and aging, and to more short-term challenges such as infection, exercise and weight fluctuation. The new cell should have a low risk for recurrence of the primary disease and ensuring its survival should not be worse than diabetes itself.
Manualized Cognitive Behavioral Treatment for Physical Abuse-Related PTSD in an African American Child: A Case Example.

The present case study illustrates a modified version of a manualized cognitive behavioral treatment for physical abuse-related symptoms ( Swenson, 1996 ; Swenson & Brown, 1999 ). The case presented in this article illustrates the adaptation of a group intervention for physically abused 8- to 12-year-olds for use with a 5-year-old African American boy who had experienced chronic, severe physical and emotional abuse by his father. The course of treatment and treatment outcome are described and challenges in treatment are addressed.
QUASAR OPTICAL VARIABILITY IN THE PALOMAR-QUEST SURVEY

We study the ensemble optical variability of 276 flat-spectrum radio quasars (FSRQs) and 86 BL Lacs in the Palomar-QUEST Survey with the goal of searching for common fluctuation properties, examining the range of behavior across the sample, and characterizing the appearance of blazars in such a survey so that future work can more easily identify such objects. The survey, which covers 15,000 deg2 multiple times over 3.5 years, allows for the first ensemble blazar study of this scale. Variability amplitude distributions are shown for the FSRQ and BL Lac samples for numerous time lags, and also studied through structure function analyses. Individual blazars show a wide range of variability amplitudes, timescales, and duty cycles. Of the best-sampled objects, 35% are seen to vary by more than 0.4 mag; for these, the fraction of measurements contributing to the high-amplitude variability ranges constantly from about 5% to 80%. Blazar variability has some similarities to that of type I quasi-stellar objects (QSOs) but includes larger amplitude fluctuations on all timescales. FSRQ variability amplitudes are particularly similar to those of QSOs on timescales of several months, suggesting significant contributions from the accretion disk to the variable flux at these timescales. Optical variability amplitudes are correlated with the maximum apparent velocities of the radio jet for the subset of FSRQs with MOJAVE Very Long Baseline Array measurements, implying that the optically variable flux's strength is typically related to that of the radio emission. We also study CRATES radio-selected FSRQ candidates, which show similar variability characteristics to known FSRQs; this suggests a high purity for the CRATES sample.
Trifluralin soil behavior: Persistence, movement and weed control

Abstract Trifluralin (α,α,α‐trifluoro‐2, 4‐dinitro‐N, N‐dipropyl‐p‐toluidine) was applied in 1976 to Egam loam and Beason clay soils on the same field plots that were utilized in a 1973 study. The rates and methods of herbicide application, herbicide formulation and soil incorporation and plot size were also the same. Soybean (Glycine max L.) was seeded in both years with the same crop row‐width. Average herbicide residues, expressed as per cent of 0 day residues in 1976, were initially up to 7% higher in 1976 than in 1973, in both soils. The residues dissipated to about the same level, however, in both years starting 70 days after herbicide application, could be largely explained on the basis of rainfall distribution patterns in the two years. Less than 4% herbicide remained in 1976, 126 days after its application. The herbicide persistence was generally higher at higher herbicide rates in each soil, and could be described by first‐order kinetics. The herbicide moved downward below the depth of herbicide...
In vivo neutralization of P-selectin protects feline heart and endothelium in myocardial ischemia and reperfusion injury.

The cardioprotective effects of an mAb to P-selectin designated mAb PB1.3 was examined in a feline model of myocardial ischemia (MI) and reperfusion. PB1.3 (1 mg/kg), administered after 80 min of ischemia (i.e., 10 min before reperfusion), significantly attenuated myocardial necrosis compared to a non-blocking mAb (NBP1.6) for P-selectin (15 +/- 3 vs 35 +/- 3% of area at risk, P < 0.01). Moreover, endothelial release of endothelium derived relaxing factor, as assessed by relaxation to acetylcholine, was also significantly preserved in ischemic-reperfused coronary arteries isolated from cats treated with mAb PB1.3 compared to mAb NBP1.6 (67 +/- 6 vs 11 +/- 3, P < 0.01). This endothelial preservation was directly related to reduced endothelial adherence of PMNs in ischemic-reperfused coronary arteries. Immunohistochemical localization of P-selectin was significantly upregulated in the cytoplasm of endothelial cells that lined coronary arteries and veins after 90 min of ischemia and 20 min of reperfusion. The principal site of intracytoplasmic expression was in venous vessels. mAb PB1.3 significantly decreased (P < 0.01) adherence of unstimulated PMNs to thrombin and histamine stimulated endothelial cells in a concentration-dependent manner in vitro. These results demonstrate that PMN adherence to endothelium by P-selectin is an important early consequence of reperfusion injury, and a specific monoclonal antibody to P-selectin exerts significant endothelial preservation and cardioprotection in myocardial ischemia and reperfusion.
Chromatographic detection of scandium

Abstract Scandium was readily detected by paper chromatography using methyl acetate as the solvent and quinalizarin for the developer. The reddish-violet color formed with scandium resembled the colers obtained with thorium, titanium, zirconium and the rare earths, but the difference in RF values gave definite separation of these elements. Positive chromatographs were obtained by using 0.01 ml of solution 0.005M respect to scandium.
Increased susceptibility to retinoid-induced teratogenesis in TGF-β2 knockout mice

Abstract Transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) and retinoic acid (RA) have been implicated in normal and abnormal embryonic development. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of TGF-β2 gene deletion on susceptibility to RA-induced teratogenesis in a mouse model. TGF-β2 heterozygous or wild-type mice were mated and the dams dosed with a teratogenic dose of RA, or with control vehicle. The incidence of RA-induced cleft palate (CP) was 48% in wild-type embryos from wild-type dams, increasing to 71% in TGF-β2 heterozygous littermates. Wild-type and TGF-β2 heterozygous embryos from heterozygous dams exhibited a CP incidence of 74 and 77% respectively, following treatment with RA. Ninety-one percent of littermates nullizygous for TGF-β2 were dead when examined; the remainder exhibited a CP. We conclude that the genotype of the dam and embryo with respect to TGF-β2 affects the incidence of RA-induced teratogenesis.
Some Problems in Minimax Point Estimation

In the present paper the problem of point estimation is considered in terms of risk functions, without the customary restriction to unbiased estimates. It is shown that, whenever the loss is a convex function of the estimate, it suffices from the risk viewpoint to consider only nonrandomized estimates. For a number of specific problems the minimax estimates are found explicitly, using the squared error as loss. Certain minimax prediction problems are also solved.
Heterosexual Men’s Confrontation of Sexual Prejudice: The Role of Precarious Manhood

Prejudice and discrimination are unfortunate common realities for sexual minorities yet people rarely confront such behavior (Dickter 2012). This is especially problematic because confronting prejudice is one of the most effective weapons against it (e.g., Czopp and Monteith 2003). The present study explores whether men who perceive manhood to be an impermanent state easily taken away by engaging in gender role violations (i.e., precarious manhood; Vandello et al. 2008) are less likely to react negatively to sexually prejudiced interaction partners and therefore less likely to confront sexual prejudice. In addition, we tested whether non-confrontation serves to affirm meta-perceptions of heterosexuality. To test this hypothesis, 88 heterosexual, young adult males, drawn from the undergraduate population of a university in the northeastern U.S., were randomly assigned to either pair with a confederate who expressed blatant sexual prejudice or no blatant prejudice toward a gay applicant in a hiring discussion. Consistent with predictions, precarious manhood predicted lower rates of confronting sexual prejudice, and less negative responses to their interaction partner, while confronting prejudice was associated with believing one would be viewed as gay regardless of individual differences in precarious manhood.
Controlled Crystallization and Properties of Zirconium Fluoride-Based Glass-Ceramics

51ZrF{sub 4}{center_dot}16BaF{sub 2}{center_dot}5LaF{sub 3}{center_dot}20LiF{center_dot}5PbF{sub 2} glasses were prepared with CdF{sub 2} additions of 0, 2, 5, and 7.5 mol%. The glasses with 2 and 5 mol% exhibited controllable nucleation upon heat treatment above the glass transformation temperature. The nucleation and crystallization of glasses with 5 mol% CdF{sub 2} were characterized using bulk heat treatments, differential scanning calorimetry, and scanning electron microscopy. The isothermal crystallization of nucleated glasses resulted in the formation of a glass-ceramic that was transparent in the infrared (>70% transmission) and more resistant to fracture than typical fluoride glasses.
Density-dependent vital rates and their population dynamic consequences.

We explore a set of simple, nonlinear, two-stage models that allow us to compare the effects of density dependence on population dynamics among different kinds of life cycles. We characterize the behavior of these models in terms of their equilibria, bifurcations, and nonlinear dynamics, for a wide range of parameters. Our analyses lead to several generalizations about the effects of life history and density dependence on population dynamics. Among these are: (1) iteroparous life histories are more likely to be stable than semelparous life histories; (2) an increase in juvenile survivorship tends to be stabilizing; (3) density-dependent adult survival cannot control population growth when reproductive output is high; (4) density-dependent reproduction is more likely to cause chaotic dynamics than density dependence in other vital rates; and (5) changes in development rate have only small effects on bifurcation patterns.
Integration of deformable mirror devices with optical fibers and waveguides

Deformable Mirror Devices (DMDs) have been under development at Texas Instruments for several years, primarily as spatial light modulators for free-space optical applications such as analog phase modulation and digital projection imaging. A DMD consists of one or more electrostatically deflectable micromechanical aluminum mirror elements, including both micromirrors suspended from thin flexible hinges and membranes. These devices are fabricated using low temperature silicon-compatible semiconductor processing techniques, and thus can be monolithically fabricated over any addressing circuitry. In the last few years DMDs have been integrated into optical fiber switching systems, and efforts are underway to integrate them as routing switches onto optical waveguides. The DMDs used for optical fiber switching are torsion-hinged devices similar to those used for projection imaging. These devices have been integrated with multimode fibers to construct a 4 X 4 multimode optical fiber cross-bar switch with a 19 dB optical (80:1) extinction ratio for all 16 channels. Extinction ratios of 73 dB optical (20 X 106) have been achieved for single point single mode switches. The waveguide switches currently under development are deformable membranes which are monolithically fabricated on silicon wafers with phosphosilicate glass (PSG) waveguide directional couplers to form optical time delay path selection switches. In this paper we describe the fabrication of deformable mirrors, their integration with optical fibers and waveguides, and the resulting system performance.© (1993) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Screening Process for Identifying Potential Truck-Only Toll Lanes in a Metropolitan Area: The Atlanta, Georgia, Case

The growing number of trucks using urban freeways has caused transportation officials to seek innovative strategies for providing truck mobility in ways that do not add to freeway congestion. One strategy being considered is truck-only toll (TOT) lanes. This paper presents a methodology for identifying candidate TOT lanes in urban freeway corridors. The criteria used to select candidate freeway segments include freeway level of service, truck volumes, truck percentage of total freeway flow, crashes, and trucker willingness to pay. These criteria are applied to the Atlanta, Georgia, freeway system to illustrate the application of the screening approach. The paper also discusses the process for determining different toll rates for maximizing revenue generation, providing an acceptable level of service, achieving a TOT lane utilization of greater than 50%, and minimizing truck diversion to local roads.
Profile Recognition and Mensuration in Machine Vision

This paper presents a systematic profile recognition and mensuration approach in machine vision. It can be utilized to recognize and measure the profiles of industrial parts in an automated manufacturing process by machine vision systems. A new method of profile representation by sampling the data from the object boundary in a digital image is presented. Autoregressive (AR) models are used to code the sampled data of the profiles into AR coefficients for profile recognition. Characterization of the profiles is accomplished by the Data Dependent Systems (DDS) methodology. The AR coefficients and characteristic roots help construct the AR and DDS descriptors to characterize the signatures of the profiles. The frequency domain information about the profiles can be extracted by DDS analysis. The measurement of the profile variation is obtained from the DDS results using optical mensuration method. Neural network and feature weighting method are utilized as reasoning machines for recognition. The illustrative examples in which the profile sampled data are corrupted by noise show that the profile recognition and mensuration approach is very effective and robust in a typical noisy environment on the shop floor.
Approaching Psychotherapy of the Personality Disorders From the Millon Perspective

Millon's integrative model for a clinical science begins with a theory that is consistent with current knowledge, establishes a taxonomy for classification, develops a coordinated assessment system, and develops and implements interventions with the guidance of the preceding elements of the model. In recent years, work on the last step of the model, clinical interventions, has accelerated rapidly, and the model now permits the therapist to directly extrapolate specific treatment goals, objectives, and techniques to the practice of therapy with the individual patient. This article summarizes how treatment planning and implementation flows logically from the Millon model.
Echocardiographic diagnosis of pulmonary embolism in childhood

Pulmonary embolism is a rare problem in the pediatric age group. As in adults, symptoms include tachypnea, chest discomfort, and hypoxia, but the index of suspicion in making this diagnosis in children is low. This report confirms the usefulness of two-dimensional and Doppler echocardiography in the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism, regardless of patient age. Causes of hypercoagulable states in children are also briefly discussed.
On comparisons of time-domain scattering schemes

The purpose of this paper is to offer a way to present comparative error data so that the true cost of the schemes are apparent. First, we review some common ways to present data, and illustrate why they are insufficient for cost comparison. Second, we offer a new way to present data, which is easy to generate, and which reveals additional valuable information about the schemes being compared. As an example, we present a comparison of some new and some old schemes. By facilitating comparisons, we hope to generate more beneficial dialog among different disciplines, such as electromagnetic scattering, acoustic scattering, and numerical analysis.
Dry etch selectivity of Gd2O3 to GaN and AlN

Gd2O3 is a promising gate dielectric for GaN, but little is known of its dry etching characteristics. We achieved Gd2O3 etch rates up to ∼600 A · min−1 in high density Cl2-based discharges, with maximum selectivities of ∼15 over GaN and ∼4 over AlN. Pure Cl2 discharges produced reverse selectivities for both Gd2O3/GaN and Gd2O3/AlN, with typical values between 0.1–0.4. When a rare gas additive such as Ar or Xe was added to the plasma chemistry, the nitrides etched faster than the oxide. This indicates that volatile etch products (GaCl3, AlCl3, N2) form in Cl2-based plasmas once the GaN or AlN bonds are broken by ion bombardment, but that GdClx species are not volatile. In conjunction with the low efficiency for Gd2O3 bond-breaking at low ion energies, this leads to low selectivity.
An analysis of global edf schedulability for arbitrary-deadline sporadic task systems

Recent results on the global multiprocessor edf scheduling of sporadic task systems are, for the most part, applicable only to task systems in which each task's relative deadline parameter is constrained to be no larger than its minimum inter-arrival separation. This paper introduces new analysis techniques that allow for similar results to be derived for task systems in which individual tasks are not constrained in this manner. For tasks with deadlines greater than their minimum inter-arrival separation, two models are considered, with and without an implicit intra-task job precedence constraint. The new analyses yield schedulability conditions that strictly dominate some previously proposed tests that are generally accepted to represent the current state of the art in multiprocessor edf schedulability analysis, and permits the derivation of an improved speed-up bound.
Normative evaluation of an anti-drug abuse program

This paper examines the use of a normative evaluation to assess the implementation of an antidrug abuse program. This program attempts to provide drug abusing students with counseling services through school teachers. However, evaluation results indicate a large discrepancy between the program as planned and the program as delivered in such areas as coverage of the target group, the quality of treatment, the training provided to teachers, and mistrust between implementors and decision makers. The implications of this study for several issues in program planning and evaluation will be discussed in this paper.
Macroscopic minimodels of deforestation and diversity

Abstract Simulation models are constructed for the two main approaches of describing tropical deforestation and loss of diversity: the population-driven approach, and the nomographic-species area relation approach. Deforestation and loss of diversity are proportional to human population growth in the population-driven model, while in the nomothetic-species area relation model deforestation is proportional to a rate of habitat destruction, and diversity is calculated according to a species area function. Additional functions for describing linked extinctions and reforestation are added in versions of the models. Simulation models are constructed with data from the literature and their predictions are matched with historical examples of deforestation. These models are termed macroscopic minimodels because they present overviews of a complex system while utilizing a minimum amount of detail. They are most useful for examining the effects of assumptions and for communicating overall aspects of system behavior.
Pattern of birefringence in the giant amoeba, Chaos carolinensis

Abstract 1. 1. The giant amoeba, Chaos carolinensis, shows a dynamic but characteristic pattern of weak birefringence demonstrable in polarized light photomicrographs only after light scattering inclusions have been removed 2. 2. The plasmalemma, presumably because of its ‘fringe’ layer, has slightly stronger birefringence than the membranes of vesicles. The slow axis of transmission is parallel to the membrane surface. 3. 3. The streaming endoplasm always shows positive axial birefringence (slow axis parallel to the stream) along its entire length. When streaming stops, this birefringence decreases. 4. 4. The ectoplasmic tube has weaker birefringence and its sign varies locally. The peripheral region of the ectoplasmic tube is usually positively birefringent. Negativebirefringence, if observed, has a characteristic patchy distribution localized mostly adjacent to the endoplasmic stream. 5. 5. Formation of a new pseudopod results in the rapid establishment of the pattern of birefringence described above. When the pseudopod begins to retract, the entire pattern fades until it disappears in the light-scattering noise of remaining cytoplasmic inclusions. 6. 6. The pattern of birefringence is the only reliable evidence now available on the deployment and orientation of submicroscopic linear elements in the cell and their behavior during amoeboid movement. The results are entirely consistent with the frontal contraction theory of amoeboid movement.
Chinook Salmon Epizootics in Lake Michigan: Possible Contributing Factors and Management Implications

Abstract Stability of the Lake Michigan fishery for chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha at high levels became questionable after stocks declined dramatically following spring epizootics in which bacterial kidney disease (BKD) was a major factor. Initially stocked in 1967, favorable survival and growth of chinook salmon through the 1970s led to increases in abundance and in popularity with anglers. Returns of chinook salmon improved annually until the late–1980s, when, with little warning, spring epizootics reduced the abundance of adult salmon by 50% or more. Reduced abundance of alewives (Alosa pseudoharengus), coupled with an increase in chinook salmon density and heavy parasite infection rates were hypothesized to have reduced chinook salmon growth and fitness and to have increased their susceptibility to BKD. Evidence of slower growth exists and low food availability may be the stressor that triggered the epizootics. Chinook salmon were a major component of the economic development and subsequent ...
A simulator for airborne laser swath mapping via photon counting

Commercially marketed airborne laser swath mapping (ALSM) instruments currently use laser rangers with sufficient energy per pulse to work with return signals of thousands of photons per shot. The resulting high signal to noise level virtually eliminates spurious range values caused by noise, such as background solar radiation and sensor thermal noise. However, the high signal level approach requires laser repetition rates of hundreds of thousands of pulses per second to obtain contiguous coverage of the terrain at sub-meter spatial resolution, and with currently available technology, affords little scalability for significantly downsizing the hardware, or reducing the costs. A photon-counting ALSM sensor has been designed by the University of Florida and Sigma Space, Inc. for improved topographic mapping with lower power requirements and weight than traditional ALSM sensors. Major elements of the sensor design are presented along with preliminary simulation results. The simulator is being developed so that data phenomenology and target detection potential can be investigated before the system is completed. Early simulations suggest that precise estimates of terrain elevation and target detection will be possible with the sensor design.
An Analysis of Compositional Trends in Social Security Disability Insurance Awards, 1960-1991:

This paper analyzes historical trends in the demographic and health-related characteristics of disabled worker beneficiaries of the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program since 1960. Descriptive trend data show SSDI awards are increasingly made not only to younger persons, but also to persons with health impairments that at any age typically require longer durations of program entitlement. As a result, the expected number of years a new awardee stays on the rolls has risen over time, putting additional pressure on already strained program financing. A time-series regression analysis suggests that these compositional trends are shaped by a complex set of external and internal forces, not just a single source of change such as the growth in the population insured for work disability. Health status trends turn out to be especially significant determinants of awards to younger beneficiaries. Some policy implications of compositional changes and their determinants are discussed.
Inhibition of Serine β-Lactamases by Acyl Phosph(on)ates: A New Source of Inert Acyl [and Phosphyl] Enzymes

Acyl phosph(on)ates are shown to inhibit serine β-lactamases and provide a new source of relatively stable complexes. Thus, benzoyl phenyl phosphate, benzoyl phenylphosphonate, and dibenzoyl phosphate react with the class C β-lactamase of Enterobacter cloacae P99 at micromolar concentrations to form an acyl enzyme of half-life about 40 s. The phosphonate reacts further more slowly to produce a much more inert complex. Dibenzoyl phosphate reacts with the class A TEM β-lactamase to form an acyl enzyme of half-life about 8 s and, more slowly, reaching completion after an average of about 80 turnovers, a more inert complex, of half-life about 2 h. The acyl phosphonates thus represent a new starting point for the design of β-lactamase inhibitors and perhaps of antibacterial agents.
Humanization of immunotoxins.

Abstract The construction and expression of a chimeric gene encoding a mouse/human antibody to the human transferrin receptor fused to the gene for angiogenin, a human homolog of pancreatic RNase, are described. F(ab')2-like antibody-enzyme fusions were prepared by linking the gene for human angiogenin to a chimeric anti-transferrin receptor heavy chain gene. The antibody-enzyme fusion gene was introduced into a transfectoma that secretes the chimeric light chain of the same antibody, and cell lines were cloned that synthesize and secrete the antibody-enzyme fusion protein of the expected size at a concentration of 1-5 ng/ml. Culture supernatants from clones secreting the fusion protein caused inhibition of growth and protein synthesis of K562 cells that express the human transferrin receptor but not toward a non-human-derived cell line that lacks this receptor. Whereas excess antibody to the same receptor did not itself inhibit protein synthesis, it was able to completely prevent the protein synthesis inhibition caused by the fusion protein. These results indicate that the cytotoxicity is due to a transferrin receptor-mediated mechanism involving the angiogenin portion of the fusion protein and demonstrate the feasibility of constructing recombinant antibody-RNase molecules capable of killing tumor cells bearing the transferrin receptor. The significance of the acquired cytotoxicity of a mouse/human chimeric antibody linked to a human protein may bear importantly in human therapeutic strategies that use mouse antibodies linked to toxins from plants or bacteria to target tumor cells. It is expected that the humanization of immunotoxins will lead to less toxicity and immunogenicity than currently available reagents.
Posttreatment effects of topiramate treatment for heavy drinking.

Background We examined whether the effects of topiramate and a single nucleotide polymorphism (rs2832407) in GRIK1, which encodes a kainate receptor subunit, persisted following a 12-week, placebo-controlled trial in 138 heavy drinkers with a treatment goal of reduced drinking. During treatment, topiramate 200 mg/d significantly reduced heavy drinking days and increased the frequency of abstinent days (Am J Psychiatry, 2014, 171:445). In the European-American (EA) subsample (n = 122), rs2832407 moderated the treatment effect on heavy drinking. Methods Patients were re-interviewed 3 and 6 months after the end of treatment. During treatment, we obtained 92.4% of drinking data, with 89.1 and 85.5% complete data at the 3- and 6-month follow-up visits, respectively. We examined 4 outcomes over time in the overall sample and the EA subsample: percent heavy drinking days (PHDD), percent days abstinent (PDA), serum γ-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGTP) concentration, and a measure of alcohol-related problems. Results In the full sample, the lower PHDD and higher PDA seen with topiramate treatment were no longer significant during follow-up. Nonetheless, the topiramate-treated patients had lower alcohol-related problem scores during treatment and both follow-up periods. Further, in the EA subsample, the greater reduction in PHDD seen with topiramate treatment in rs2832407*C-allele homozygotes persisted throughout follow-up, with no significant effects in A-allele carriers. A reduction in GGTP concentration was consistent with the reduction in heavy drinking, but did not reach statistical significance. Conclusions There are persistent therapeutic effects of topiramate in heavy drinkers, principally in rs2832407*C-allele homozygotes.
Component architectures in the next generation of ultrascale scientific computing: challenges and opportunities

Component architectures for high-end scientific computing are still a relatively new idea, and their most effective use and benefits are active areas of research for both developers and users of such approaches. At the same time, however, the scale of both scientific simulations and the computer hardware on which they're run has been growing rapidly, generating an increasing desire for more complex software systems (such as coupled simulations), new programming models and languages, and more complex hardware environments. This paper presents the author's analysis of how these trends might interact with component-based software engineering (CBSE) for scientific computing, in some cases exacerbating existing challenges or posing new ones, or in other cases offering opportunities in which the component environment might be leveraged to give software developers new capabilities or simplify challenges they face.
Modulation of fluconazole sensitivity by the interaction of mitochondria and Erg3p in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

We studied the effects of fluconazole, an ergosterol-depleting agent, in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a genetically tractable fungus closely related to Candida albicans. The wild-type Saccharomyces strain was sensitive to fluconazole, but the isogenic cytoplasmic petite mutant (rho-) was resistant. The mechanism of resistance of rho- mutants appeared to involve uncoupling of oxidative phosphorylation. However, the petite strain with a mutation in cent5, 6 desaturase (erg3 rho-) was sensitive to fluconazole, in contrast to its erg3 rho+ counterpart. It is known that erg3 mutants are azole resistant through the accumulation of 14-methyl-fecosterol, a less toxic ergosterol intermediate. These results indicate that mitochondria function as important physiological partners with Erg3p in the accumulation of toxic sterol intermediates in the presence of azoles.
Graphical Analyses of a Two-Period Crossover Design

Abstract Rosenbaum developed the sliding-square plot to display simultaneously a scatterplot of paired data, a boxplot of their differences, and a boxplot of each marginal distribution. We extend the sliding-square plot to include the two-period, two-treatment crossover sum-difference plot, with corresponding boxplots of scaled sums and differences for each sequence. The plot is useful for displaying characteristics of the data together with evaluating carryover effects, treatment effects and the assumptions under which they are tested.
An International Study of Guarded Hot Plate Laboratories Using Fibrous Glass and Expanded Polystyrene Reference Materials

~a te ri ais," Itz s ii~r ti on icfufrrin (s : Testing u tit( ~pp(icu t tons: 4'" Vo Lurnr. A STM STP 14176. A. 0. Iksjarhis and R K. Zarr, tds.. ASI'M International, West Conshohocken, PA, 2002. Abstract: 'Thermal conductivity measurements of four thermal insulation reference inaterials arc presented. The measurements were obtained fiom an international study of guarded-hot-plate laboratorics in Canada, France, Japan, the IJnited Kmgdorn, and the llnited States. For each reference material, the study requires five independent replicate measurements at a fixed temperature of 297.15 K, and single-point measurements at 280 K, 290 K, 300 K, 310 K, and 320 K. An important finding kom the replicate arialysis is thc existence of a laboratory-material interaction: that is, there are laboratory- to-laboratory differences in both location and variation that change from inaterial to matenal. The major underlying source for the variability (both within- and between- laboratory) in the replicate data is discussed. The analysis of the multi-temperature (280 K to 320 K) data supports the laboratory-material interaction as exhibited in the tixed-temperature replicate data. The multi-temperature analysis also reveals an increasing ditference between laboratories as the temperature departs from 297.15 K
Massive Modularity and the Flexibility of Human Cognition

In The Architecture of the Mind, Carruthers proposes a new and detailed explanation for how human cognition could be both flexible and massively modular. The combinatorial nature of our linguistic faculty and our capacity to engage in inner speech are the cornerstones of this new explanation. Despite the ingenuity of this proposal, I argue that Carruthers has failed to explain how a massively modular mind could display the flexibility that is characteristic of human thought.
Low-cost multi-robot exploration and mapping

Mobile robots can perform some of the more dangerous and laborious human tasks on Earth and throughout the solar system, many times with greater efficiency and accuracy, saving both time and resources. As we explore further away from Earth, higher levels of autonomy are also becoming more desired in such applications, one of them being distributed mapping. Smaller, less expensive mobile robots are becoming more prevalent, which introduces unique challenges in terms of limited sensing accuracy and onboard computing resources. This paper presents a low-cost approach to autonomous multi-robot mapping and exploration for unstructured environments. Platform design and implementation details are discussed, along with results from a planetary style environment. Results demonstrate that mobile robots capable of SLAM can be constructed for less than $1250, and similar concepts could be used for planetary missions.