cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Relationship of Socioeconomic, Demographic, and Behavioral Variables to Changes in Children's Fat Intakes Between 1989-91 and 1994

Abstract LEARNING OUTCOME: To better understand factors associated with the decline in fat intakes by children 2-17 years of age between 1989-91 and 1994. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals (CSFII) 1989-91 and 1994 data indicate that fat intakes by children 2-17 years of age declined from 34 percent of calories in 1989-91 to 33 percent of calories in 1994. This study investigated whether this decline was associated with specific socioeconomic, demographic, or behavioral characteristics. The sample included 3,025 children 2-17 years of age who provided one 24-hour recall in either CSFII 1989-91 or CSFII 1994. One child was randomly selected from each survey household to avoid household clustering effects. Multiple regression analysis was used to assess the effects of selected independent variables on children's fat intakes. These variables included socioeconomic status (SES) as defined by household income and educational level of the household meal planner, region and urbanization level of residence, age, sex, and race of the child, food stamp program participation, school food consumption, meal planner employment status, season and day of week of reported intake and survey time period (1989-91 vs. 1994). Interaction terms assessing differences in the effects of SES between the two time periods were also included. The interaction of time with higher SES (household income above 185 percent of the Federal poverty level and meal planner with at least some college education) was significant (p
SPORTS-RELATED FACIAL INJURIES

Facial injuries suffered by the athlete will range from very minor to extremely complex. Regardless, all injuries can be accurately diagnosed if one is familiar with normal anatomy and conducts a thorough physical examination. Radiographs are then obtained as directed by the physical examination. Specific and timely treatment directed at correcting functional and cosmetic deformities will help to avoid lifelong disability and deformity. With adherence to these guidelines, many of the injuries suffered by athletes can be safely treated by a variety of physicians. More complex soft-tissue and bone injuries should be referred to a surgeon familiar and comfortable with facial plastic and reconstructive surgery.
FLOW VISUALIZATION OF FOUR-INLET DUCTED ROCKET ENGINE CONFIGURATIONS

Abstract : A water flow visualization facility was constructed in order to investigate the mixing processes inside of four-inlet ducted rocket engines (DRE) with various flow rates and geometries. The observed flow fields were documented with video and conventional photography so that relationships between various geometric/flow parameters and the flow field behavior could be obtained.
Software process: the key to developing robust, reusable and maintainable open-source software

The practice of image processing inherently requires software development. Creating this technology requires designing, implementing, debugging and testing software applications on a continual basis. Furthermore current software development is typically performed in a distributed environment involving many developers. While the use of open-source software may create collaborative communities that enhance overall technology exchange, it does nothing directly to manage change nor does it address the quality of the underlying software. This paper describes a software development process that has proven vital to the success of the widely used open-source toolkits ITK (itk.org) and VTK (vtk.org). This process facilitates cross-platform development, includes automatic documentation generation, integrates continuous testing, and posts the results of the process on publicly accessible Web pages. The net result is that a responsive feedback loop is created between the developers in the community and automated processes to measure software quality. With this process software converges towards better software as long as the process is enforced. The tools described here are open-source and available for use in academic and commercial applications.
Wheat Bran Diet Reduces Tumor Incidence in a Rat Model of Colon Cancer Independent of Effects on Distal Luminal Butyrate Concentrations

To investigate the effects of dietary fibers in colonic luminal physiology and their role in the prevention of colon cancer, a study was conducted using two diet groups and two treatment groups in a 2 x 2 factorial design. The two diets differed only in the type of dietary fiber, wheat bran and oat bran, and the two treatments were injection with the colon-specific carcinogen azoxymethane, or saline, as a control. There were 34 rats in the carcinogen-injected groups and 11 saline-injected rats per diet group. The goal of the study was to determine if a moderate consumption (6 g/100 g diet) of wheat bran or oat bran would alter the development of colonic tumors in this rat model of colon cancer, and if the differences in tumor incidence were correlated to luminal butyrate concentrations, luminal pH or fecal bulk. Short-chain fatty acid concentrations (SCFA) were measured in feces during the first half of the study (the promotion phase of tumor development) and again at the end of the study. Rats consuming oat bran had greater body weights (P < 0. 002), produced much larger concentrations of all SCFA, including butyrate, in both the proximal and distal colon (P < 0.0001), had more acidic luminal pH values (P < 0.0001), but also had significantly more development of colon tumors (P < 0.03). Alternatively, rats consuming wheat bran produced more typical molar ratios of the SCFA (65:10:20), had a relatively greater concentration of butyrate than propionate, and produced a larger volume (P < 0.05) and more bulky stool than the rats fed oat bran. The results of this study support other evidence that an acidic luminal pH is not protective in and of itself, and that diets containing wheat bran are protective against colon cancer development. In addition, these data show that large luminal butyrate concentrations in the distal colon alone, as were present in the rats consuming oat bran diets, are not protective of tumor development.
Preparation of YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7− x using barium hydroxide flux

High quality bulk YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7− x was synthesized by fusing stoichiometric amounts of yttrium and copper nitrates and barium hydroxide in air, using an ordinary Bunsen burner. The starting materials go through a short-lived liquid phase yielding a solid black product which was subsequently heat treated (900 °C, 18–24 h in air, followed by 500 °C, 5 h in O 2 ). These materials were greater than 99% phase pure with CuO as the only other phase and they exhibited a transition temperature of 92 K, a 15.5% perfect diamagnet response (field cooled). This synthesis represents an improvement over the much more labor and time intensive conventional methods in that it allows high quality materials of various compositions to be prepared quickly.
Electrophysiological and Beta-Receptor Blocking Effects of MJ 1999 on Dog and Rabbit Cardiac Tissue

Effects of MJ 1999 (1 x 10 -9 M to 1 x10 -2 M) on rabbit right atrial and canine Purkinje fiber preparations were studied. MJ 1999 had a pA 2 of 6.1 against the chronotropic effect of isoproterenol on rabbit SA node. Significant slowing first occurred with MJ 1999 at 1 x 10 -4 M. The spontaneous firing rate of Purkinje fibers in vitro did not change significantly after exposure to MJ 1999 1 x 10 -4 M. Idioventricular rate was slowed and idioventricular escape time was prolonged in dogs with atrioventricular block after MJ 1999, 2.0 mg/kg. MJ 1999, 1 x 10 -7 M to 5 x 10 -4 M, had no effect on resting potential, overshoot and amplitude of phase 0 of transmembrane potentials (TMP) recorded from canine ventricular muscle, canine Purkinje fibers or rabbit atrial fibers nor did it affect phase 0 V · max of TMP recorded from the Purkinje or atrial fibers. Similar concentrations of MJ 1999 had no effect on membrane responsiveness in Purkinje fibers. In Purkinje fibers, control action potential duration (APD) was 325 msec and the effective refractory period (ERP) 277 msec. MJ 1999, 1 x 10 -3 M, increased the APD to 470 msec and ERP to 404 msec. In ventricular muscle fibers, APD was 230 msec and the ERP was 223 msec, under control conditions. MJ 1999, 1 x 10 -3 M, increased the APD to 281 msec and ERP to 267 msec. Changes in APD and ERP induced by MJ 1999 were magnified at slower rates of stimulation. The effects of MJ 1999 on both APD and ERP were more marked in Purkinje fibers than in ventricular muscle fibers. The effects of MJ 1999 on phase 0 of the TMP and on repolarization and refractoriness of the TMP differ markedly from those seen with quinidine, procainamide, and lidocaine.
Consideration of the bioavailability of iron in the North American Great Lakes: Development of novel approaches toward understanding iron biogeochemistry

There is increasing recognition that iron distribution and availability is significant in terms of global oceanic production. Low availability of iron and other nutritive trace metals may also constrain productivity in the North American Great Lakes. Despite its importance, the biogeochemistry of iron in the water column of lacustrine systems remains poorly characterized. In addressing the current state of iron biogeochemistry, a workshop organized a decade ago at the Bermuda Biological Station for Research brought together a cross-disciplinary team of chemists and biologists who sought to synthesize current knowledge and identify research priorities in this field. Key among goals identified during the workshop, and one that remains today for the most part unfulfilled, was to ‘develop techniques to quantify those fractions of Fe that are accessible to phytoplankton.’ Here we review recent progress toward meeting this objective, drawing on specific examples from Lake Superior where these approaches have be...
Bacterial population genomics and infectious disease diagnostics

New sequencing technologies have made the production of bacterial genome sequences increasingly easy, and it can be confidently forecasted that vast genomic databases will be generated in the next few years. Here, we detail how collections of bacterial genomes from a particular species (population genomics libraries) have already been used to improve the design of several diagnostic assays for bacterial pathogens. Genome sequencing itself is also becoming more commonly used for epidemiological, forensic and clinical investigations. There is an opportunity for the further development of bioinformatic tools to bring even further value to bacterial diagnostic genomics.
Data-path synthesis using path analysis

Although allocation in high-level synthesis is a relatively well understood topic, little has been written about the details of the actual hardware generation. This paper presents a general approach for allocation using path analysis, which handles in a transparent way arbitrary complex schedules, involving loops, conditionals, and mutually exclusive registers and functional units. Allocation for path-based As-Fast-As-Possible scheduling, which includes initial allocation and global optimizations, is described in detail. Some novel problems in register, interconnection and control generation, for designs that rely partially on combinational logic control within each cycle, are discussed.
Constituents of cannabis sativa L. VII: Use of silyl derivatives in routine analysis

Naturally occurring cannabinoids previously impossible to separate and analyze were quantitated on a routine basis using silylation. Relative retention times of many silylated cannabinoids are reported for the first time.
Speech Recognition System Based on Visual Feature for the Hearing Impaired

The movements of talkers' face, nose, mouth and throat are known to convey visual cues and represent several different kinds of informationl, and that can improve speech recognition rate, especially for persons with speech-impairments. We proposed a new speech recognition method using these visual features and hidden Markov model (HMM). Based on global optimisation, a new genetic algorithm (GA) for training HMM was proposed. Six chinese vowels were taken as the experimental data, ten handicapped speakers were taken as the testee. Recognition experiments show that the method is effective and high speed and accuracy for speech recognition. At present, the average recognition rate is 91.47% using improved HMM and 88.96% using the classic training HMM algorithm, So the features has very good robustness and the improved HMM is very good.
Adjunctive Medical Therapies for Acute Stroke Thrombolysis Is There a CLEAR-ER Choice?

See related article, p 2381 Beyond intravenous tissue-type plasminogen activator (IV-tPA), the field of acute ischemic stroke suffers from a lack of safe and effective treatments aimed at both proximal thrombus dissolution and return of flow to the microcirculation. Larger thrombi have notoriously proven to be resistant to IV-tPA lysis with recanalization rates in the range of only 13% to 20%.1,2 Even if endovascular treatment of ischemic stroke is proven to improve clinical outcomes, there will still be many patients with residual partial or complete occlusion after IV-tPA alone suffering ischemia, whereas waiting for catheter rescue. The lag between endovascular team activation and groin puncture requires precious minutes-to-hours for team assembly. For example, in the Interventional Management of Stroke-3 clinical trial, the average time from tPA bolus to intraarterial therapy was 2.2 hours.3 Therefore, development of combination therapies for acute ischemic stroke that can be delivered quickly in the emergency setting is crucial. Adjunctive therapies to IV-tPA can take many forms to include medical or mechanical, but any of these must be started early to augment the effect of IV-tPA.4 Ongoing strategies that are in either phase II or III clinical trials include thrombin-inhibition, sonothrombolysis, and platelet-inhibition. In this issue of Stroke , the results of the Combined Approach to Lysis Utilizing Eptifibatide and rt-PA in Acute Ischemic Stroke–Enhanced Regimen (CLEAR-ER) study are published.5 This is a multicenter, double-blind, randomized phase II safety trial of 0.9 mg/kg 0 to 3 hours IV-tPA versus 0.6 mg/kg 0 to 3 hours IV-tPA+IV eptifibatide (bolus 135 mcg/kg and 2-hour infusion at 0.75 mcg/kg per minute). CLEAR-ER sought to estimate the safety and efficacy of combination GP Ib/IIIa+reduced dose IV-tPA when delivered to hyperacute ischemic stroke. The trial was sponsored by the National Institutes of Health/National Institute of …
Development of an Aviation Safety Locus of control scale

Introduction: Individual differences in locus of control have been shown to be associated with differential risk for accident involvement among industrial and hospital workers. Previous research has also demonstrated that pilots are higher on internality than externality. Hypothesis: This study was performed to assess individual differences on a new scale developed to assess locus of control with respect to aviation safety. It was hypothesized that pilots would exhibit higher levels of internality than externality on this new scale. Methods: An existing safety locus of control scale was modified to place the items in an aviation context, and the items were administered to a sample of approximately 480 pilots. Internality and externality subscales were created, and construct validity was assessed by correlating these subscales with measures of resignation and involvement in hazardous aviation events. Results: The subscales exhibited acceptable internal consistency, and were negatively correlated (r = -0.419, p < 0.001). Consistent with previous research, pilots exhibited substantially higher internality than externality. Correlation of the subscales with the measures of resignation and involvement in hazardous events supported the construct validity of the scale. Discussion: Differences exist among pilots on the Aviation Safety Locus of Control scale that may be associated with increased accident risk. In its present form, the new scale might be employed as a self-awareness exercise for pilots or as a covariate in research investigating the effect of other factors on accident involvement.
Technologist viewpoint on PET/MR.

PET and MR are a good match for each other in some cases, but I do not think PET/MR will fully replace PET/CT. PET is well known for its use in metabolic and molecular imaging but has poor spatial resolution and lacks anatomic information. MR provides high resolution and good soft-tissue contrast but has poor sensitivity to molecular events. PET/MR causes less radiation exposure than PET/CT and allows for simultaneous acquisition of PET and MR data, eliminating the need to reposition the patient during the scan. The PET/MR system differs from a stand-alone PET or MR scanner in that the PET detectors are in the center of the bore of the MR scanner. Thus, the bore size is smaller than in most PET/CT systems but is about the same size as in a stand-alone MR scanner. In a PET/MR system, the PET component uses a solid-state detector—avalanche photodiodes—because photomultiplier tubes interfere with the magnetic field. There is a filter between the PET system and the MR system that does not cause any degradation in the MR images. In MR imaging, the body part being scanned must be in the center of the bore. Data must be simultaneously acquired in the same position in both PET and MR. In a multibed PET/MR study, the table will slowly move to allow the body part being scanned to remain in the center of the bore. PET/MR scans generally take longer than PET/CT scans. In PET/MR, it takes longer to position the patient on the table because coils have to be placed on top of the patient for the MR portion of the examination, whereas in PET/CT no extra equipment is needed. Patient comfort is key to a successful scan. MR imaging systems use coils to collect signal from the scanner to create images. The PET/MR system has 4 body coils that are placed on the anterior portion of the body. There is also a head and neck coil, as well as a spine coil on which the patient lies to receive signal from the posterior portion of the body. Flex coils are provided for imaging the extremities. Because MR imaging is sensitive to motion, it is important that patients remain still during the examination. Breathing artifacts can be significant in the chest and abdomen; therefore, some sequences are acquired while patients are holding their breath. Some patients may be claustrophobic because of the small bore size. The coils placed on top of the patient can sometimes exacerbate claustrophobia. Other factors that can limit a patient’s ability to undergo PET/MR are the presence of metal such as shrapnel or a bullet near the eyes or spine and the presence of a pacemaker, defibrillator, or aneurysm clips.
Iterative receiver design in Rayleigh fading using factor graph

In this paper we develop a novel approach for joint iterative channel estimation and LDPC decoding, based on the factor graph representation and sum-product algorithm. The fast flat fading channel is modeled as an AR process in order to characterize its temporal variation. By approximating the feedback message from the channel decoder as a Gaussian pdf, we show that Kalman smoothing can be employed for channel estimation. We further derive a new bit metric calculation method which consider both channel noise and channel estimation variance. Simulations confirm the effectiveness of our approach.
The effects of parents’ psychiatric disorders on children’s high school dropout

Abstract Mental illness is known to impose substantial direct costs on the ill. In this paper, we examine an indirect cost of mental illness. We investigate the effect of parents’ mental illnesses on the schooling of their children. Using data from the National Comorbidity Survey, we find that parents’ mental illnesses increase the probability of high school dropout of children, though these effects differ markedly with disease. We also find that parental mental illness has more consistently negative effects on girls than on boys. These findings indicate that parental mental illness can have a powerful impact on children’s schooling and subsequently on their adult lives. The larger impact on girls’ schooling compounds the greater earnings and employment losses due to mental illness borne by adult women. Our results suggest that policies designed to mitigate the effects of parental mental illness on children’s schooling attainment are potentially efficient uses of society’s resources.
Dacite Petrogenesis on Mid-Ocean Ridges: Evidence for Oceanic Crustal Melting and Assimilation

Whereas the majority of eruptions at oceanic spreading centers produce lavas with relatively homogeneous mid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB) compositions, the formation of tholeiitic andesites and dacites at mid-ocean ridges (MORs) is a petrological enigma. Eruptions of MOR high-silica lavas are typically associated with ridge discontinuities and have produced regionally significant volumes of lava. Andesites and dacites have been observed and sampled at several locations along the global MOR system; these include propagating ridge tips at ridge^transform intersections on the Juan de Fuca Ridge and eastern Gala¤ pagos spreading center, and at the 98N overlapping spreading center on the East Pacific Rise. Despite the formation of these lavas at various ridges, MOR dacites show remarkably similar major element trends and incompatible trace element enrichments, suggesting that similar processes are controlling their chemistry. Although most geochemical variability in MOR basalts is consistent with low-pressure fractional crystallization of various mantle-derived parental melts, our geochemical data for MOR dacitic glasses suggest that contamination from a seawater-altered component is important in their petrogenesis. MOR dacites are characterized by elevated U,Th, Zr, and Hf, low Nb andTa concentrations relative to rare earth elements (REE), and Al2O3, K2O, and Cl concentrations that are higher than expected from low-pressure fractional crystallization alone. Petrological modeling of MOR dacites suggests that partial melting and assimilation are both integral to their petrogenesis. Extensive fractional crystallization of a MORB parent combined with partial melting and assimilation of amphibole-bearing altered crust produces a magma with a geochemical signature similar to a MOR dacite.This supports the hypothesis that crustal assimilation is an important process in the formation of highly evolved MOR lavas and may be significant in the generation of evolved MORB in general. Additionally, these processes are likely to be more common in regions of episodic magma supply and enhanced magma^crust interaction such as at the ends of ridge segments.
Synthesis of shape-controlled La2NiO4+δ nanostructures and their anisotropic properties for oxygen diffusion

This study highlights the synthesis of shape-controlled La2NiO4+δ nanostructures using a reverse microemulsion method. We report that surfactant to water mass ratio plays a key role in controlling the shape of the nanostructures. These nanostructures show a strong dependence of their oxygen transport properties on their geometries.
RESEARCH FROM THE COASTAL PLAIN EXPERIMENT STATION, TIFTON, GEORGIA, TO MINIMIZE AFLATOXIN CONTAMINATION IN PEANUT

Scientists with the U.S. Department of Agriculture–Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) and scientists with the University of Georgia located at the Coastal Plain Experiment Station in Tifton, ...
Physicians' Responses to Marketing Strategies of Pharmaceutical Companies

ABSTRACTThis study investigates physicians' responses to different marketing media and promotional tactics typically used by the pharmaceutical industry. Results from a sample of 109 physicians show that pharmaceutical representatives were most useful, followed by drug samples and advertorials in medical journals. Direct mail, promotional faxes, and promotional products were used less by physicians. In addition, the investigation explored which sources of information physicians use in obtaining information about pharmaceuticals. Medical books, medical journals, and medical conferences and symposia were found to be the most useful. Secondary sources identified as being useful included free samples, other physicians, and pharmaceutical representatives. Managerial implications for marketing to physicians and ideas for future research are discussed.
Pediatric Bone Tumors

Primary bone tumors, benign and malignant, account for an important percentage of neoplasms in the pediatric population. According to the National Cancer Institute Surveillance Epidemiology and End Result 1975–1995 program, malignant bone tumors comprise approximately 6 % of childhood cancer, having an average annual incidence rate of 8.7 per million children younger than 20 years of age. According to the report, in the United States each year 650–700 children and adolescents younger than 20 years of age are diagnosed with malignant bone tumors.
Underprescription of Renin–Angiotensin System Blockers in Moderate to Severe Chronic Kidney Disease

Abstract Background Renin–angiotensin system (RAS) blockers slow the progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Despite this, up to 40% of patients with CKD and an indication for RAS blockade do not receive these medications. The purpose of this study was to examine variables associated with the prescription of RAS blockers in patients with CKD and to identify opportunities to increase their use. Methods The electronic medical records of patients with moderate to severe CKD and an indication for RAS blockade were reviewed. For patients with an indication for RAS blockade who were not prescribed these medications, previous notes were reviewed to ascertain reasons why RAS blockade was not prescribed. Results Six hundred twenty-seven patients with moderate to severe CKD and an indication for RAS blockade were identified. Of these patients, 225 (36%) were not prescribed RAS blockade. This group was found to have significantly less diabetes, to be significantly older and to have significantly lower estimated glomerular filtration rate and blood pressure than the group on RAS blockade. For the majority (59%), no documented reason for not being prescribed RAS blockade was found. Among documented reasons, hyperkalemia and a history of acute kidney injury were the most common. Conclusions The authors found that a large proportion of patients with CKD and an indication for RAS blockade were not prescribed these medications. For the majority, there was no provider-documented reason explaining why these medications were not prescribed, and the findings suggest that there may be opportunities to increase RAS blocker prescribing.
Rayuela : Chapter 55 as Take-(away)

In his "Tablero de Direccion" for the reading of Rayuela, Julio Cortâzar informs the reader that he can approach the novel in many ways, but mainly two. The first possibility, designed for the "traditional" or passive reader, allows a sequential perusal of the fifty-six chapters pertaining to the first two sections, "Del lado de alla" (Paris) and "Del lado de aqui" (Buenos Aires). The active, participating reader, on the other hand, will follow the alternate format suggested by the author—a reading that would insert chapters of a third section ("De otros lados") in apparently random order between the chapters comprising the first book, which retains its original configuration. There is, however, one notable exception: Chapter 55 is conspicuously absent from the second book. Generally critics of the novel have either disregarded this omission or noted it without further comment. However, it is my contention that elision constitutes an affirmative gesture. What Cortazar leaves out of the second book reveals as much about his philosophy of art as what he inserts, and asserts, through the Morelliana of the third section. Absence is, in fact, a kind of presence, like the silences of John Cage's "experimental" music: "For in this new music nothing takes place but sounds: those that are notated and those that are not." If anti-literature represents, as Ihab Hassan would have it, "will and energy turned inside out," silence becomes, as in Cage, both an aperture and a form of expression. I would first like to explore here what Cortazar may very well have expressed through the exclusion, which I believe to be intentional, of Chapter 55 from the second book of Rayuela. I will then attempt to clarify the often problematical relationship between the two books in light of the interdependence of "something and nothing" (Chapter 55 and the lack thereof), graphically illustrated by Cage in his "Lecture on Nothing":
The Fundamentals of Spectral Tetris Frame Constructions

In Casazza et al. (Appl. Comput. Harmon. Anal. 30(2), 175–187, 2011), Casazza, Fickus, Mixon, Wang and Zhou introduced a fundamental method for constructing unit norm tight frames, which they called Spectral Tetris. This was a significant advancement for finite frame theory - especially constructions of finite frames. This paper then generated a vast amount of literature as Spectral Tetris was steadily developed, refined, and generalized until today we have a complete picture of what are the broad applications as well as the limitations of Spectral Tetris. In this paper, we will put this vast body of literature into a coherent theory.
Increased “Pregnancy-Specific” Beta1-Glycoprotein in Certain Nonseminomatous Germ Cell Tumors

Schwangerschafts (pregnancy) protein No. 1 (SP1), a recently identified beta1-glycoprotein that occurs during pregnancy, was assayed in the sera of 97 men with germ cell tumors of the testis. SP1 was elevated at 11-440 ng/ml in 3 of 6 men with choriocarcinomas, in 5 of 17 men with teratomas or "teratocarcinomas" (embryonal carcinomas and teratomas), and in 5 of 50 men with embryonal carcinomas; the highest value in 143 patients with nonmalignant diseases was 9.1 ng/ml. None of 24 sera from men with seminomas and none of 5 sera from men with orchitis had elevated SP1. In the 1 patient examined, testicular choriocarcinoma SP1 had immunochemical and gel chromatographic properties similar to those of highly purified SP1 of placental origin.
Observations on the Biology of Sorex trowbridgei in the Sierra Nevada, California

Recent years have seen the publication of life history studies for several kinds of soricid shrews, and we now have some idea concerning some of the salient biological features of these animals. There is an abundance of species of shrews, sometimes several species living in one locality, and it is a reasonable assumption that their habits are different. Also, it is not unlikely that some geographically widespread species will differ within themselves ecologically as well as morphologically, such differences reflecting responses to variations in their environments. As natural history studies of shrews gradually become more extensive and detailed, it may be possible to discover discrete biological differences among the various kinds and also to learn to what degree the environment may alter the biology of any one kind. The data here are not extensive, but concern one species, Sorex trowbridgei , in the Sierra Nevada of California. In some respects, especially with regard to the reproduction, trowbridgei appears to vary from some species of Sorex studied by other investigators. It is hoped that this account may serve also to describe any biological characteristics of trowbridgei that may be different in other parts of its geographic range. Habitats .—The Trowbridge shrew is common in the coniferous woodlands of the Sierra Nevada up to elevations of 5000 feet in Plumas County and at least to 6000 feet in Tuolumne County to the south. This forest is comprised of large coniferous trees ( Pinus lambertiana, P. ponderosa, Pseudotsiiga menziesii, Abies concolor , and Libocedrus decurrens ); the less conspicuous woody plants are smaller deciduous trees ( Quercus kelloggii and Acer macrophyllum ) and shrubs ( Quercus vaccinifolia, Alnus rubra, Ceanothus spp. Cornus spp., and Ribes spp.). The ground litter is composed of the decaying debris from these plants and provides the home and hunting ground of trowbridgei . …
Comparative Studies of Histological Skin Changes Produced by X-Rays and by Lipoid Solvents

By varying the time period of exposure and transmitting the ray through an opening 1 cm. in diameter, we have produced various degrees of x-ray burns of the skin in a series of white rats. The quantity of x-rays used varied from 5 miliampere minutes to 50 miliampere minutes. Animals were placed on high vitamin A, low vitamin A, and balanced stock rations to determine if these dietaries would produce a difference in reaction to the x-rays. Our studies, thus far, have not shown any striking differences. The characteristic gross picture is depilation over the area of skin exposed, with the persistence of a roughened, scarred skin that appears from 14 to 21 days after the exposure to the x-rays. Five miliampere minutes and 10 miliampere minutes produce no effect grossly apparent.Microscopically the lesion is that of shrinking and edema of the epithelial layer, hyperplasia of the hair follicles, and in some cases a metaplasia of the basal layer of the skin. The subcutis shows varying degrees of hyalinization. ...
Density Functional Theory Study of the Adsorption of Nitrogen and Sulfur Atoms on Gold (111), (100), and (211) Surfaces

Nitrogen and sulfur atom adsorption on flat and stepped gold surfaces are examined by density functional theory. With detailed investigation of adatom location on the (111), (100), and (211) gold surfaces, nitrogen and sulfur atom adsorption are compared with reference to previous work on the oxygen/gold system. Sulfur adsorbed most strongly, followed by oxygen and nitrogen. The results demonstrate the preference for 3-fold over 2-fold and single-fold adatom coordination as well as the role of low coordinated gold surface atoms in increasing the adsorption energy for nitrogen, sulfur, and oxygen atoms. Pseudopotential curves, calculated adsorption energy as a function of surface position, and nudged-elastic band calculations explored adatom diffusion along the surface. The results indicated limited diffusion on the (111) and (211) surfaces. On the other hand, while nitrogen and sulfur atoms remained localized on the (100) surface, oxygen atoms showed facile diffusion. These results provide a reference for...
Controlling Microstructural Evolution in Pechini Gels through the Interplay between Precursor Complexation, Step-Growth Polymerization, and Template Confinement

The mechanisms driving microstructure formation in template-confined Pechini-type gel systems involving solid solutions of cerium oxide with alkaline earth metals are investigated. Three-dimensionally ordered macroporous microspheres and more extended bicontinuous networks with hierarchical porosity are synthesized directly from a Pechini sol–gel precursor within a colloidal crystal template. The type of morphology generated is related to the mechanisms of phase separation in the precursor, namely, nucleation and growth vs spinodal decomposition. These mechanisms are, in turn, determined by the citric acid concentration in the initial precursor solution and by electrostatic interactions of the precursor with the polymeric template. Microspheres generated by the nucleation-and-growth pathway can be produced between 1–3 μm in size, with polydispersities below 15%. They retain the ordered porous network left by removal of the template. The number of nucleation sites (i.e., oligomers and longer chains of comp...
Effect of Velvetleaf Competition and Defoliation Simulating a Green Cloverworm (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Outbreak in Iowa on Indeterminate Soybean Yield, Yield Components, and Economic Decision Levels

We evaluated the separate and combined effects of velvetleaf, Abutilon theophrasti (Medic), competition and simulated green cloverworm (GCW), Plathypena scabra (F), defoliation on soybean grain yield and components of yield in a 2-year study. Competition durations of velvetleaf were manipulated manually (roguing) and chemically (postemergence herbicide). A temperature-dependent developmental model was used to determine realistically the rate and intensity of simulated GCW defoliation (imposed by hole-punching). Velvetleaf stress was largely limited to soybeans near full-season weeds. As few as 4,386 velvetleaf plants per ha were capable of causing economic losses in soybeans. Increasing the intensity of defoliation resulted in a proportional linear reduction in grain yield. Under the conditions studied, 25 to 29 simulated GCW larvae equivalents per m of soybean row were required to cause economic loss in full-bloom soybeans. At the plot level, little definable evidence of velvetleaf and GCW interaction was detected. On a stratum basis, consistency in velvetleaf-induced yield reductions was observed in the upper two-thirds of the canopy, whereas 2-year consistency in simulated GCW-induced losses was restricted to the lower two-thirds of the canopy. Nonadditive treatment interactions were consistently evident only in the central canopy stratum of soybeans near weeds. This study indicates that knowledge of velvetleaf prevalence in a field probably is not a prerequisite for using conventional monospecific economic injury levels in managing the GCW on fullbloom soybeans, assuming that a runaway velvetleaf infestation is not present.
Protective Effects of Polydatin on Acute Lung Injury Following Endotoxic Shock in Rats

OBJECTIVE:To investigate the protective effect of Polydatin on acute lung injury following endotoxic shock in rats.METHODS:Using a rat endotoxic shock model,animals were randomly divided into4groups∶sham operation group,enˉdotoxic shock group,Polydatin treatment group and Polydatin pretreatment group.MAPs(mean artery pressures)were meaˉsured at given time points.At the end of the experiment,the serum,the lung tissue,and the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid(BALF)were collected.The levels of lung coefficient,lung penetrating index(LPI),the protein concentration of BALF and the content of NOS in the lung tissue were measured.Furthermore,the histologic changes of the lung were observed under light microˉscope.RESULTS:In addition to prohibiting the dropping of MAP,Polydatin could mitigate the acute lung injury induced by endotoxin which increased the levels of lung coefficient,LPI,the protein concentration of BALF and the content of NOS in lung tissue.Enough morphological evidence could be found in pathological sections.Especially,the protective effects were more obˉvious in Polydatin pretreatment group.CONCLUSION:Polydatin has prophylactic and therapeutical effects on acute lung injury following endotoxic shock and the prophylactic effect is more marked than the therapeutic one.
Study on the style of teaching

The paper analyzed the connotation and the features of the style of teaching,studied the main factors that formed the style of teaching and the course.
The Discourses in Practice: Four Case Studies

There is a certain danger in laying out these three discourses in an orderly fashion as I have in the last four chapters, because it might imply that these are static categories which can be ascribed to particular individuals or groups with predictable regularity. All of the discourses are fluid to a greater or lesser extent. It is also important to emphasize that they are not exclusively associated with specific individuals or groups, although certain individuals or groups may eventually be seen as representative of a particular discourse. While many people tend to favour one discourse over the others, most people draw creatively on two or even all three discourses, shifting and combining them to suit their purposes and needs at the time. The context in which a person is speaking, as well as the person’s own background and individual history, influence choice and use of discourse.
Spread spectrum signaling in wireless communications

Abstract Spread spectrum (SS) techniques are a family of modulation techniques whereby the transmitted signal occupies a much larger bandwidth than is typically needed in traditional narrowband communications. While initially designed for military applications, SS techniques have more recently enjoyed commercial applications as well. This chapter gives an overview of SS and code division multiple access (CDMA) and particularly focuses on their application to wireless communication channels. Spread spectrum’s ability to provide robustness to many forms of interference is demonstrated, details of typical implementations of SS systems are covered, and an overview is given of how SS is used in modern cellular communication systems.
Abstract WP281: Plasma Kallikrein Inhibition Reduces Tissue Plasminogen Activator-induced Stroke Damage and Hemorrhage Transformation

Introduction and Hypothesis: Tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) remains the only approved treatment for acute ischemic stroke, but its use is limited by serious risk of hemorrhage transformation over time resulting in enhanced brain injury. Plasma kallikrein (PK) has been implicated in both ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke, however its role during tPA-mediated thrombosis is not yet available. We hypothesized that plasma kallikrein inhibition could increase the safety of tPA thrombolysis in stroke. Methods: Male C57Bl6 mice were subjected to middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) by photothrombotic laser, and then treated with tPA (10 mg/kg; via jugular vein) at 2 h in the absence or presence of pretreatment with the selective PK inhibitor BCBPC (1-Benzyl-N-(4-carbamimidoylbenzyl)-1H-pyrazole-4-carboxamide) at doses of 1, 3, 10, 20 mg/kg administered for 15 min before tPA. Male PK-deficient (Klkb1-/-) mice were used to further evaluate the role of PK in tPA-induced brain injury following MCAO. Mice were sacrificed at 24 h post-stroke and brains perfused with saline for evaluation of infarct size, edema and cerebral hemorrhage. Western blot was used to evaluate levels and the cleavage of the PK substrate high molecular weight kininogen (HK). Results: Acute tPA administration at 2 hours post MCAO increased infarct volume (2.1 fold), edema (1.8 fold) and hemorrhage transformation (2.7 fold) when compared with the untreated stroke group (p Conclusions: Plasma kallikrein contributes to the adverse effects of thrombolytic therapy with tPA on infarct volume, edema, and hemorrhagic transformation during ischemic stroke. Co-administration of a plasma kallikrein inhibitor with tPA may improve safety and efficacy of thrombolysis.
Adaptive processing in the presence of near field scatterers

In practical situations, it is necessary to have a flexible methodology for adaptive processing that can deal with the effects of mutual coupling between the various antenna elements, the coupling between the antennas and the platform and. the effects of near-field scatterers. To merge the signal processing and the electromagnetics methodology with the goal to deploy it in a real system containing practical antenna elements, we propose to use a direct data domain approach for adaptive space-time processing which is quite amenable to real time processing. In this approach one adaptively minimizes the interference power while maintaining the gain of the antenna array along the direction of the signal. We illustrate the problem through an example and this also provides a cursory overview of the technique.
The Position of African American Men in the US Labor Market Prior to the Great Recession

This chapter examines the position of African American men in the labor market prior to the start of the Great Recession. In order to provide a multidimensional picture of the average African American male worker, descriptive statistics will be provided, which includes the occupations in which most African American men were employed, this demographic group’s average earnings, their average unemployment rate and labor force participation rate, and trend analyses for these statistics. Examination of the position of African American men in the workforce begins with the four- to five-year period that preceded the Great Recession. This chapter also includes a brief look at the role of the relatively higher incarceration rate of African American men in their labor market position.
Influence of hot-boning, cooking and method of reheating on product attributes of lamb roast

Ten lamb carcasses were used to evaluate the effects of hot-boning (HB), cooking, freezing and method of reheating upon cooking and palatability attributes of lamb roast. After slaughtering, the leg and loin were removed (30 min post-exsanguination) from the right side and cooked immediately (HB), while the left side was fabricated 5 d later (cold boned, CB) and cooked until the internal temperature reached 68°C. The roasts were frozen and stored for about 45 d. Roasts were thawed (2°C), and pre-cooked roasts were divided into similar portions and assigned to three reheating methods: (a) conventional electric oven (b) microwave oven and (c) a combination method where the first half of the cooking time was by conventional roasting and the second half by microwave oven. Results indicate HB roasts had higher (P .05) was found for the loin roasts. Convention...
Adaptation and synchronization over a network: Stabilization without a reference model

Fundamental properties such as learning and consensus have been studied both in the adaptive control and network control literature. The use of an error feedback is essential for the realization of both properties. In adaptive control, error feedback is used to update adaptive parameters in an effort to accomplish learning and tracking. In network control, error feedback is used to achieve consensus. The two types of error feedback are seldom studied in concert without a pinning trajectory. This paper explores the implications of concomitantly achieving consensus and learning in adaptive and networked systems. Conditions under which synchronous inputs can enhance adaptation and learning are analyzed. The tradeoff between synchronization and learning is explored both in the context of two interacting dynamical systems and a network of dynamical systems interacting over a graph.
Parent–Child Interaction Therapy With an Eight-Year-Old Child: A Case Study

ABSTRACTWe examined the outcome of Parent–Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) with an 8-year-old child diagnosed with oppositional defiant disorder. We presented a theoretical basis for the use of PCI...
Prevalence of false-positive hepatitis C antibody results, National Health and Nutrition Examination Study (NHANES) 2007–2012

Abstract Background Screening large numbers of persons in a population with low prevalence of a disease leads to many false-positives. However, populations with low HCV prevalence may sometimes be recommended for HCV screening, for instance patients or healthcare workers after a possible healthcare-related exposure. Objectives We determined the percentage of true vs false-positive HCV antibody (anti-HCV) test results among 2007–2012 participants in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Study (NHANES), a nationally representative study with approximately 1% HCV infection prevalence, much lower than in groups typically recommended for HCV screening. Study design Anti-HCV test confirmation was performed using a recombinant immunoblot assay (RIBA) test and follow-up HCV RNA testing. Results Overall, of 22,359 NHANES participants tested, 479 (2%) were anti-HCV screening reactive and 477 were tested for RIBA; of these 323 (68%) confirmed as true positive and 105 (22%) were false-positives. Many others (49, 10%) were RIBA indeterminate and likely false-positive. Because of these false positive tests, the overall prevalence of chronic infection among those testing anti-HCV screening reactive was much lower (218, 51%) than would be expected due to disease clearance alone (approximately 80%). Conclusions All screening anti-HCV positive tests should be followed by an HCV RNA test, in order to confirm whether the patient has current infection so that infected persons can be referred to care and treatment to avoid the significant morbidity and mortality associated with chronic HCV infection.