cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Acute effects of dietary caffeine and sucrose on urinary mineral excretion of healthy adolescents

Abstract Eighteen adolescents (nine males and nine females, ages 13–18), on four separate mornings drank, in a caffeine-free soft drink, 0 and 3 mg/kg caffeine and 0 and 30 g of sucrose in a two by two factorial experiment. Caffeine increased total three hour post treatment urinary calcium from 16.0 mg to 20 mg (without sucrose) and 29.6 mg (with sucrose). Sodium, chloride and potassium excretion were also increased after caffeine ingestion, but not phosphorus and magnesium. Sucrose ingestion reduced total sodium and potassium excretion, but did not affect calcium, magnesium or phosphorus. After caffeine consumption, sodium and chloride concentrations increased. A sex/caffeine interaction was apparant in calcium concentration after caffeine consumption, as only females exhibited an increased concentration. After sucrose, calcium concentration increased. Sucrose and caffeine did not interact in this study, except on the excretion of potassium. The presence of caffeine and sucrose in a soft drink increased the 3 hour total urinary calcium excretion compared to a caffeine-free drink with a non-nutritive sweetener.
Anti-U3 RNP Autoantibodies in Systemic Sclerosis

Objective To describe the classification, demographic and clinical features, and survival in anti–U3 RNP autoantibody–positive patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc). Methods Medical records of 108 anti–U3 RNP–positive and 2,471 anti–U3 RNP–negative SSc patients first evaluated during 1985–2003 were reviewed. Anti–U3 RNP antibody was detected by protein and RNA immunoprecipitation. Disease classification, demographic and clinical features, organ system involvement, and survival were compared between the 2 patient groups, by Student's t-test, chi-square analysis, and Mantel-Haenszel test. Results The anti–U3 RNP–positive group had a higher proportion of African American patients (27% versus 5%; P < 0.001) and male patients (29% versus 19%; P = 0.021), and was younger at the time of first physician diagnosis (mean age 42.8 years versus 47.4 years; P = 0.001). The 2 groups had similar proportions of patients with diffuse cutaneous involvement (47% and 45% in those with and those without anti–U3 RNP, respectively). However, among patients with diffuse cutaneous involvement, the mean maximum modified Rodnan skin score was significantly lower in the anti–U3 RNP group (22.3 versus 27.9; P < 0.001). Skeletal muscle involvement was more frequent in anti–U3 RNP–positive patients (25% versus 14%; P = 0.002), as was “intrinsic” pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) (31% versus 13%; P < 0.001). The frequency of gastrointestinal involvement, cardiac involvement, pulmonary fibrosis, and “renal crisis” did not differ significantly between the 2 groups. Survival was worse in the anti–U3 RNP–positive group (hazard ratio 1.38 [95% confidence interval 1.05–1.82]). PAH was the most common known cause of death in patients with anti–U3 RNP (30%, versus 10% in the anti–U3 RNP–negative group; P < 0.001). Conclusion The present findings demonstrate that the frequencies of African American race and male sex are greater among SSc patients with anti–U3 RNP antibody than those without, and the former group is younger at SSc diagnosis. Anti–U3 RNP–positive patients have more frequent skeletal muscle involvement and PAH, the latter being the most common cause of death.
Submicrometer Interdigital Silicon Detectors For The Measurement Of Picosecond Optical Pulses

Interdigital silicon Schottky barrier diodes have been evaluated for picosecond pulse measurements. Structures with clearly defined receiving apertures and submicrometer contact spacings were created with electron beam lithography. The detectors exhibit saturation currents corresponding to the absorbed optical power. Impulse response widths were less than 50 ps, and response maps yielded uniform patterns. A peak quantum efficiency of over 30 percent was obtained, and the usable spectral responsivity extends beyond 2 μm.© (1983) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Therapeutic aspects of chaperones/heat-shock proteins in neuro-oncology

Tumors of the CNS frequently have devastating consequences in terms of cognitive and motor function, personality and mortality. Despite decades of work, current therapies have done little to alter the course of these deadly diseases. The discovery that chaperones/heat-shock proteins play an important role in tumor biology and immunology have sparked much interest in utilizing these proteins as targets of therapeutics, or as therapeutics themselves, in the treatments of a variety of cancers. Neuro-oncology has only recently taken notice of these entities, and the purpose of this review is to provide a background, an update and a view to the future for the roles of chaperones/heat-shock proteins in the treatment of brain tumors.
Spatially regularized logistic regression for disease mapping on large moving populations

Spatial analysis of disease risk, or disease mapping, typically relies on information about the residence and health status of individuals from population under study. However, residence information has its limitations because people are exposed to numerous disease risks as they spend time outside of their residences. Thanks to the wide-spread use of mobile phones and GPS-enabled devices, it is becoming possible to obtain a detailed record about the movement of human populations. Availability of movement information opens up an opportunity to improve the accuracy of disease mapping. Starting with an assumption that an individual's disease risk is a weighted average of risks at the locations which were visited, we show that disease mapping can be accomplished by spatially regularized logistic regression. Due to the inherent sparsity of movement data, the proposed approach can be applied to large populations and over large spatial grids. In our experiments, we were able to map disease for a simulated population with 1.6 million people and a spatial grid with 65 thousand locations in several minutes. The results indicate that movement information can improve the accuracy of disease mapping as compared to residential data only. We also studied a privacy-preserving scenario in which only the aggregate statistics are available about the movement of the overall population, while detailed movement information is available only for individuals with disease. The results indicate that the accuracy of disease mapping remains satisfactory when learning from movement data sanitized in this way.
Sulphatide synthesis in isolated oligodendroglial and neuronal cells.

—Cerebroside sulphotransferase activity in oligodendroglia from calf brain is 8-fold greater per cell than in calf neurons isolated at the same time under similar conditions. However, neuronal cell fractions from calf or rat brain have significant sulphotransferase activity, and in neurons isolated from rat brain at various ages, the capacity to synthesize sulphatide increases during myelination. The neuronal and oligodendroglial enzymes have similar substrate specificities and pH optima. Less of the enzyme could be extracted with Triton X-100 from the isolated cells than from microsomes prepared from whole brain.
The impacts of changing transport and precipitation on pollutant distributions in a future climate

[1] Air pollution (ozone and particulate matter in surface air) is strongly linked to synoptic weather and thus is likely sensitive to climate change. In order to isolate the responses of air pollutant transport and wet removal to a warming climate, we examine a simple carbon monoxide–like (CO) tracer (COt) and a soluble version (SAt), both with the 2001 CO emissions, in simulations with the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory chemistry-climate model (AM3) for present (1981–2000) and future (2081–2100) climates. In 2081–2100, projected reductions in lower-tropospheric ventilation and wet deposition exacerbate surface air pollution as evidenced by higher surface COt and SAt concentrations. However, the average horizontal general circulation patterns in 2081–2100 are similar to 1981–2000, so the spatial distribution of COt changes little. Precipitation is an important factor controlling soluble pollutant wet removal, but the total global precipitation change alone does not necessarily indicate the sign of the soluble pollutant response to climate change. Over certain latitudinal bands, however, the annual wet deposition change can be explained mainly by the simulated changes in large-scale (LS) precipitation. In regions such as North America, differences in the seasonality of LS precipitation and tracer burdens contribute to an apparent inconsistency of changes in annual wet deposition versus annual precipitation. As a step toward an ultimate goal of developing a simple index that can be applied to infer changes in soluble pollutants directly from changes in precipitation fields as projected by physical climate models, we explore here a “Diagnosed Precipitation Impact” (DPI) index. This index captures the sign and magnitude (within 50%) of the relative annual mean changes in the global wet deposition of the soluble pollutant. DPI can only be usefully applied in climate models in which LS precipitation dominates wet deposition and horizontal transport patterns change little as climate warms. Our findings support the need for tighter emission regulations, for both soluble and insoluble pollutants, to obtain a desired level of air quality as climate warms.
GURU: a multimedia distance-learning framework for users with disabilities

GURU is a distance-learning environment that renders multimedia information to users with disabilities in an accessible manner. It is an implementation framework developed as part of an effort to provide accessible multimedia information to end users with perceptual (visual and auditory), cognitive or motor impairments. GURU is based on the MPEG-4 standard, and it modifies MP4 content and the presentation of the different objects in the scene dynamically based on users' visual, auditory and motor abilities. This paper briefly describes the implementation of the prototype framework and illustrates sample adaptations as implemented in this framework.
Reclaimed sewage water: a hydroponic growth medium for plants

Abstract Reclaimed water from a sewage plant at Calabasas, California was a satisfactory source of nutrients, except for iron, for growing crop plants in hydroponic culture under pilot plant commercial conditions. When solutions were renewed and adequate nutrients were present, commercial culture of a number of glasshouse crop plants could be grown without toxicity from salt or other materials. The crops were grown at energy savings compared with standard crop culture in that it was not necessary to use manufactured fertilizers. To avoid adding additional soluble nutrients to the sewage water, iron was supplied either as foliar spray or as insoluble iron oxide applied to plant roots before transplanting. The latter procedure was most satisfactory. Acidification of the water to pH 5 with sulfuric acid also overcame the iron deficiency, but failed to make the plants grow because the sulfuric acid increased the availability of other trace metals to the point of excess. After the water had been used in the hydroponic tanks, much of the copper, zinc, manganese, iron, nickel, lead, and some of the nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium had been stripped from the water.
Pain Management in Anorectal Surgery

Abstract Pain is often viewed as an inevitable experience following anorectal surgery. While this may be true, great strides have been made in managing postoperative pain following anorectal operations. The recognition that preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative issues affect postoperative pain is important in improving outcomes. Additionally, the concept of multimodal analgesia and the use of parenteral nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID's) have allowed the performance of most anorectal operations in the ambulatory setting. © 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Treatment of inherited coagulation disorders.

Inherited coagulation protein deficiencies associated with bleeding diatheses may present with spontaneous bleeding early in life, or may not be recognized until the development of hemorrhage after trauma or surgery. Diagnostic evaluation with coagulation screening tests, followed by confirmation with coagulation factor assays, is essential for appropriate management. For moderate-to-severe hemophilia, treatment includes coagulation factor replacement with purified, plasma-derived coagulation factor, or in the case of hemophilia A, factor VIII concentrate produced with recombinant techniques. Increased use of pharmacologic agents such as desmopressin acetate for patients with mild hemophilia A or type 1 von Willebrand's disease has allowed physicians to treat patients without the risk of infectious complications from plasma-derived factor concentrates. In addition to the management of the inherited bleeding disorders, patients may also require management of human immunodeficiency virus infection, hepatitis, and coagulation factor inhibitors. Issues for the coming years will include continued work to ensure product safety, the role of prophylactic treatment to prevent long-term disabilities, and the application of gene therapy to the management of bleeding disorders.
Clicks or commitment: activism in the age of social media

Purpose – The paper aims to discuss recent attempts at creating metrics on this issue and examine some historical precedents. What kinds of social activism in the social media generate real commitment or behavior change and which simply pile up likes and shares? This essay discusses recent attempts at creating metrics on this issue and examines some historical precedents. Design/methodology/approach – We compare modern activism with such historical figures as prohibitionist Carrie Nation and birth control advocate Margaret Sanger. Findings – Our analysis suggests that identifying what makes a social campaign successful in changing behavior may be more difficult than it, at first, appears. Originality/value – The essay suggests some new approaches to what makes social media activism successful.
A multiobjective optimization model for water resources planning

Abstract A technique is developed for solving multiple objective optimization programs. The approach decomposes the system into groups of objectives according to their priority in the model. A lexicographic ordering (goal programming) approach is used to analyse this system of groups, while the solution structure of each individual group is developed using the method of constraints. The technique is applied to a planning model for river basins.
Evaluation criteria for logical database design methodologies

Abstract The increasing acceptance of database systems has shown the need for logical database design methodologies and evaluation criteria to select the one most appropriate for a particular task. Application of currently existing methodologies to a portion of the data handled during chemical process plant design has highlighted strengths and shortcomings of the methodologies analysed. Using these results, evaluation criteria are established and synthesis of a methodology which is responsive to the identified criteria is proposed.
Modelling of metal clusters as fragments of crystalline solids

The structural and electronic properties of pure and hydrogenated Li metal have been calculated by modelling the crystalline solid in terms of small clusters of constituent atoms. Using the self-consistent molecular orbital method in the Hartree-Fock approximation, the authors have investigated the minimum number of atoms necessary to distinguish among various crystalline phases. They find that with as few as three atoms in the molecular cluster, the BCC phase can be shown to be the most stable structure. They have calculated the dependence of the optimised lattice parameter as a function of cluster size for both FCC and BCC phases of Li. While the calculated lattice constants converge to the bulk value with only about 20 atoms in the cluster, the binding energy per atom shows no sign of saturation. Thus how well the properties of molecular clusters represent bulk characteristics depends on the properties being investigated. This aspect is further illustrated by calculating the equilibrium site of hydrogen in Li. It is shown that for small clusters consisting of less than 20 atoms, the preferential site of hydrogen depends not only on the cluster size, but also on the way the cluster is constructed. The distortion of the nearest neighbour atoms around the hydrogen atom is studied by minimising the total energy with respect to the nearest-neighbour Li-hydrogen distance. Contrary to the conventional wisdom, they find that the metal atoms surrounding hydrogen are not always displaced outward. For example, the Li atoms around an octahedral hydrogen atom relax outward, while those around a tetrahedral hydrogen atom relax inward. In both cases, the equilibrium distance between hydrogen and nearest Li atom is 3.48 au. This is comparable with the corresponding distance of 3.6 au in stoichiometric lithium hydride. They have also calculated the charge transfer between Li and hydrogen atoms and the population of various orbital states for all the Li atoms. The results are used to analyse the screening of impurities in the metallic environment and to shed light on Mossbauer isomer shifts in metal-hydrogen systems.
Spontaneous immortalization of human epidermal cells with naturally elevated telomerase.

This work explores spontaneous immortalization in keratinocytes, derived from two skin samples, that display naturally elevated telomerase activity. Serially passaged with 3T3 feeder layer support, the keratinocytes were examined for colony-forming ability, telomerase activity, telomere length, and finally gene expression using Affymetrix DNA microarrays. The cells initially exhibited normal karyotypes and low colony-forming efficiencies typical of normal epidermal cells, but after 40 passages (≈400 generations) colony-forming ability increased markedly, yielding immortalized lines exhibiting a small number of chromosomal aberrations and functionally normal p53. An improved protocol for analysis of microarray data permitted detection of 707 transcriptional changes accompanying immortalization including reduced p16 INK4A mRNA. Telomerase activity was clearly elevated in cells even at low passage from both samples, and telomerase catalytic subunit mRNA was greatly elevated in those with elevated colony-forming ability. The data raise the possibility of an unusual natural phenotype in which aberrant telomerase regulation extends keratinocyte lifespan until rare variants evade senescence. In addition to revealing a potential tumor-prone syndrome, the findings emphasize the desirability of carefully minimizing the degree or timing of elevated expression of telomerase used to immortalize cells for therapeutic purposes.
Reversible Data Embedding Using Reduced Difference Expansion

The general difference expansion method uses reversible integer transform to embed information into a digital image and perfectly restores the original image after removing the hidden data. In multilayer embedding applications, the operation of difference expansion may seriously degrade the visual quality of the embedded image. In this paper, we propose a reduced difference expansion method to solve this problem. Theoretically, in the worst case, the proposed method gains 6-dB improvement in visual quality of the embedded image compared with the general difference expansion method. Therefore, the proposed method is suitable for multilayer data embedding.
Temperature-sensitive mutant rho-115 rho-RNA binary complexes, and stabilization by substrates and analogues.

To determine the molecular basis for the temperature-sensitivity of pure rho RNA-dependent ATPase from Escherichia coli mutant rho-115 cells, we investigated mutant rho binding to [3H] polyC as measured by retention on nitrocellulose filters. Complexes of wild-type rho and polyC incubated at 37°C and 45°C were similarly stable. At 37°C mutant rho-polyC binary complexes were inactivated at a slightly faster rate than complexes with wild-type rho. Upon shift to 45°C the quantity of rho-115 bound to polyC declined immediately, resulting in one-fifth of the quantity of complexes observed at 37°C. Shift back to 37°C restored the level of observed complexes by two-fold. The inclusion of ATP or the analogue β-γ methylene ATP during 45°C incubation resulted in stable mutant rho-polyC complexes. The hydrolysis product ADP was also effective in stabilizing binary complexes at 45°C but this effect was observed with an order of magnitude more ADP than ATP. Adenine, adenosine, AMP or Pi had no stabilizing effect. We conclude that the mutant rho-115 protein exhibits a structural instability as a result of binding RNA. Furthermore ATP confers a wild-type phenotype upon rho-115 protein, probably as a result of conformational change due to binding of this compound. The effect of ATP on the stability of mutant rho-polyC binary complexes supports the model of ATP modulation of rho-RNA interaction proposed by Galluppi and Richardson (1980).
Correlates of Leisure-Time Physical Activity Participation Among Latino Children and Adolescents with Acanthosis Nigricans

Little is known about leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) correlates in high-risk youth prone to obesity, insulin resistance, and associated morbidities. This study examined LTPA correlates among Latino youth identified with acanthosis nigricans (AN), a skin condition typically caused by metabolic impairment. Data were collected on 305 AN-positive Latino youth of ages 5-15 and one of their biological parents in 2012 from Texas. Ordinal logit regression was performed to analyze the data. Five health and behavioral LTPA correlates were identified, including child time spent in TV watching or videogame playing (OR of highest quartile vs. lowest quartile = 0.45; p = 0.01), child fair/poor health (OR 0.42; p = 0.01), parent obesity (OR 0.63; p = 0.06), parent daily physical exercise for more than 30 min (OR 2.20; p < 0.01), and parent housework time (OR 0.76; p < 0.05). Parent socioeconomic status was insignificant. For at-risk Latino youth, physical activity intervention strategies should take both behavioral and health factors into account.
Comparison of photometry and conductometry for the determination of total carbonate by gas permeation flow injection analysis.

Abstract The experimental system involves the permeative preconcentration of CO2 from an acidified sample through a tubular silicone rubber membrane into a suitable receptor. Procedures for measuring the CO2 collected in the receptor by the absorbance change of an acid—base indicator incorporated in the receptor or by the conductance change of the receptor are compared. Previous theoretical considerations of the photometric system are augmented for numerical modeling and the theoretical behavior of the conductometric system is considered in detail. Experimental data generally conform to theoretical expectations. Based on either reproducibility or sensitivity, the conductometric measurement method using a solution of 1–10mM tris(hydroxymethylamino)methane as receptor is recommended. The interference from sulfite or sulfide can be eliminated by adding acidic permanganate to the sample; considerably more involved arrangements are necessary to eliminate interferences from cyanide.
Polygon-Based Query Evaluation over Geospatial Data Using Distributed Hash Tables

Data volumes in the geosciences and related domains have grown significantly as sensing equipment designed to continuously gather readings and produce data streams for geographic regions have proliferated. The storage requirements imposed by these datasets vastly outstrip the capabilities of a single computing resource, leading to the use and development of distributed storage frameworks composed of commodity hardware. In this paper, we explore the challenges associated with supporting geospatial retrievals constrained by arbitrary polygonal bounds on a distributed hash table architecture. Our solution involves novel distribution and partitioning of these voluminous datasets, thus enabling the use of a lightweight, distributed spatial indexing structure, the geoavailability grid. Geoavailability grids provide global, coarse-grained representations of the spatial information stored within these ever-expanding datasets, allowing the search space of distributed queries to be reduced by eliminating storage resources that do not hold relevant information. This results in improved response times and more effective utilization of available resources. Geoavailability grids are also applicable in non-distributed settings for local lookup functionality, performing competitively with other leading spatial indexing technology.
An Introduction to Chinese Early Childhood Inclusion

Jiangmei’s experience at the regular preschool is a beautiful fairy tale. She was not allowed to enroll at the preschool in our neighborhood because of her disability (cerebral palsy). We then tried a special education school for a short period of time. In the special class, Jiangmei was always distracted by other studentswhowereolderthanherwhentheteacherpatientlyreadtoher.Nonstop cries of children at the school were much more unforgettable to her than special education teachers’ loving voices. … Finally we decided to home school her… Fortunately, Jiangmei’s father found out about an inclusion program and now Jiangmei walks into the preschool with a big smile on her face every day. As soon as she sees the front gate of the school, she starts to clap and jump while getting off her father’s bicycle. I feel that this program is so beneficial to her development both physically and emotionally… My daughter is not mistreated or discriminated here like an ugly duckling. Instead she was embraced with friendship, respect, and equality. I see how happy she is every day and how the program has helped her…I sincerely appreciate the civilization of our society becauseany life isrespected and valued and everychild might beable toreceive equal education… Every time the phone rings in our house, the first thing Jiangmei says on the phone is ‘I went to school today’. To her, nothing is more important than that…So thank you from the bottom of my heart! A letter from a mother of child with cerebral palsy to an inclusion pilot preschool in Beijing
Dual-metal gate CMOS technology with ultrathin silicon nitride gate dielectric

We report the first demonstration of a dual-metal gate complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology using titanium (Ti) and molybdenum (Mo) as the gate electrodes for the N-metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (N-MOSFETs) and P-metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (P-MOSFETs), respectively. The gate dielectric stack consists of a silicon oxy-nitride interfacial layer and a silicon nitride (Si/sub 3/N/sub 4/) dielectric layer formed by a rapid-thermal chemical vapor deposition (RTCVD) process. C-V characteristics show negligible gate depletion. Carrier mobilities comparable to that predicted by the universal mobility model for silicon dioxide (SiO/sub 2/) are observed.
Eradication versus control for poliomyelitis: an economic analysis

Summary Background Worldwide eradication of wild polioviruses is likely to yield substantial health and financial benefits, provided we finish the job. Challenges in the four endemic areas combined with continuing demands for financial resources for eradication have led some to question the goal of eradication and to suggest switching to a policy of control. Methods We developed a dynamic model, based on modelling of the currently endemic areas in India, to show the importance of maintaining and increasing the immunisation intensity to complete eradication and to illustrate how policies based on perception about high short-term costs or cost-effectiveness ratios without consideration of long-term benefits could undermine any eradication effort. An extended model assesses the economic implications and disease burden of a change in policy from eradication to control. Findings Our results suggest that the intensity of immunisation must be increased to achieve eradication, and that even small decreases in intensity could lead to large outbreaks. This finding implies the need to pay even higher short-run costs than are currently being spent, which will further exacerbate concerns about continued investment in interventions with high perceived cost-effectiveness ratios. We show that a wavering commitment leads to a failure to eradicate, greater cumulative costs, and a much larger number of cases. We further show that as long as it is technically achievable, eradication offers both lower cumulative costs and cases than control, even with the costs of achieving eradication exceeding several billion dollars more. A low-cost control policy that relies only on routine immunisation for 20 years with discounted costs of more than $3500 million could lead to roughly 200 000 expected paralytic poliomyelitis cases every year in low-income countries, whereas a low-case control policy that keeps the number of cases at about 1500 per year could cost around $10 000 million discounted over the 20 years. Interpretation Focusing on the large costs for poliomyelitis eradication, without assessing the even larger potential benefits of eradication and the enormous long-term costs of effective control, might inappropriately affect commitments to the goal of eradication, and thus debate should include careful consideration of the options.
The role of bacterially mediated precipitation in the permineralization of bone

Bone fossilization is generally thought to be predominantly slow and geochemically controlled, whereas soft-tissue preservation is rapid and microbially enhanced. Microbial destruction of bone has been well researched, but potential preservational influences of microbes on bone are relatively unstudied. Building on previous work, this study examined evidence for microbially induced mineralization of bone buried in a simulated terrestrial setting using an actualistic, experimental approach designed to allow both biotic and abiotic precipitation to occur. Four trials were conducted in 2002 by burying bleached fresh bone cubes in river sand through which calcium carbonate saturated water was percolated. A “natural” trial used unmodified river sediment with natural bacterial populations. Two trials were run with bleach or sodium azide to reduce or eliminate bacterial populations. A fourth trial used washed, bleached sediment with reintroduced bacteria. After one week, the natural trial showed signs of mineral precipitation that cemented sand grains to the bone cubes. Bones from both the natural and washed trials were completely covered by adherent sediment after six weeks. After twelve weeks, cancellous bone in the nonsterile trials was permineralized while antiseptic trials and compact bone showed no indications of permineralization. Nonsterile trials also exhibited partially calcified fungal hyphae and possible lithified bacteria. This study provides additional experimental evidence that microbes are important agents of fossilization for bone as well as soft tissue. It also supports the inference that microbially induced mineral precipitation can play a significant role in bone fossilization by enhancing bone survival through early permineralization until apatite recrystallization occurs.
In vitro production of testosterone in a human adrenal homogenate.

ABSTRACT. Testosterone and androst-4-ene-3,17-dione have been isolated and identified by isotope dilution techniques from an incubation of progesterone-7-H3 and 17αhydroxyprogesterone-4-C14 with a homogenate of a normal human adrenal gland. This study offers substantial proof that the production by the adrenal of this highly active androgen, testosterone, is possible under normal physiologic circumstances. In addition, the steroid conversions performed by the adrenal homogenate are in accordance with the biosynthetic pathway described in both normal human testis and ovary for C19 androgen elaboration.
Estimating genetic association parameters from family data

SUMMARY We consider the problem of estimating a parameter 0 -reflecting association between a disease and genotypes of a genetic polymorphism, using nuclear family data. In many applications, some parental genotypes are missing, and the distribution of these genotypes is unknown. Since misspecification of this distribution can bias estimators for 0, we consider estimating functions that are unbiased, regardless of how the distribution is specified. We call the resulting estimators parental-genotype robust. Rabinowitz (2002) has proposed a constrained optimisation method for obtaining locally optimal unbiased tests of the null hypothesis of no association. We use a similar method to derive estimating functions that yield parental-genotype-robust estimators with minimum variance in the class of all such estimators. We extend the estimating functions to obtain parental-genotype-robust estimators when 0 is a vector of unknown parameters, and show that the estimating functions enjoy a certain optimality property.
Global 3-D land-ocean-atmosphere model for mercury: Present-day versus preindustrial cycles and anthropogenic enrichment factors for deposition

We develop a mechanistic representation of land-atmosphere cycling in a global 3-D ocean-atmosphere model of mercury (GEOS-Chem). The resulting land-ocean-atmosphere model is used to construct preindustrial and present biogeochemical cycles of mercury, to examine the legacy of past anthropogenic emissions, to map anthropogenic enrichment factors for deposition, and to attribute mercury deposition in the United States. Land emission in the model includes prompt recycling of recently deposited mercury (600 Mg a -1 for present day), soil volatilization (550 Mg a -1 ), and evapotranspiration (550 Mg a -1 ). The spatial distribution of soil concentrations is derived from local steady state between land emission and deposition in the preindustrial simulation, augmented for the present day by a 15% increase in the soil reservoir distributed following the pattern of anthropogenic deposition. Mercury deposition and hence emission are predicted to be highest in the subtropics. Our atmospheric lifetime of mercury against deposition (0.50 year) is shorter than past estimates because of our accounting of Hg(0) dry deposition, but recycling from surface reservoirs results in an effective lifetime of 1.6 years against transfer to long-lived reservoirs in the soil and deep ocean. Present-day anthropogenic enrichment of mercury deposition exceeds a factor of 5 in continental source regions. We estimate that 68% of the deposition over the United States is anthropogenic, including 20% from North American emissions (20% primary and <1% recycled through surface reservoirs), 31% from emissions outside North America (22% primary and 9% recycled), and 16% from the legacy of anthropogenic mercury accumulated in soils and the deep ocean.
Nerve entrapment in the lateral pterygoid muscle

The posterior trunk of the mandibular division of the trigeminal nerve normally descends deep to the lateral pterygoid muscle. In three of 52 dissections the three main branches of the posterior trunk (lingual, inferior alveolar, and auriculotemporal nerves) were observed to pass through the medial fibers of the lower belly of the lateral pterygoid muscle. The mylohyoid and anterior deep temporal nerves also were observed to pass through the lateral pterygoid muscle in other specimens. These nerve entrapments in the infratemporal fossa provide new information concerning the anatomic and clinical relationships between the mandibular nerve and the lateral pterygoid muscle. These findings support the hypothesis that a spastic condition of the lateral pterygoid muscle may be causally related to compression of an entrapped nerve that lead to numbness, pain, or both in the respective areas of nerve distribution.
Preliminary Study of the Effects of Water Vapor Pressure on Thermograms of Kaolinitic Soils

Kaolinites found in soils generally give poorer thermograms than commercial kaolins. When run under dynamic steam atmospheres up to 90 psi, the endothermic peaks are sharpened and moved upward; the exotherm is made less intense and moved downward. Because of the effects observed, the method promises to be of interest in theoretical studies of hydrates and hydroxides.
17 Progesterone for preterm birth prevention: a potential $2 billion opportunity

Preterm birth: a public health emergency The health and economic toll of preterm birth on the United States healthcare system is large, and rising. In 2004, 12.5% of all births in the United States, more than half a million infants, were born preterm ( 37 weeks’ gestation), the majority (85%) of whom were born moderately preterm (32-36 weeks’ gestation). Among African American women, almost 1 in every 5 births is preterm. The national preterm birth rate climbed 30% between 1980 and 2004, with most of the recent rate increase occurring in the gestational age group of 32-36 weeks. The health consequences of prematurity are considerable. In the United States, preterm birth is the leading cause of neonatal deaths and the leading cause of pediatric neurodevelopmental disability, including cerebral palsy and mental retardation. It is also an important cause of chronic lung disease, visual impairment, and other chronic illness in children. Prematurityassociated medical complications experienced in the neonatal period portend future health, educational, and occupational impairment that extend into late childhood and beyond. Although mortality and serious morbidity are concentrated in the group of infants born very preterm or less than 32 weeks’ gestation, infants born between 32 and 36 weeks are at greater risk for adverse health and developmental problems compared with term infants.
Power rail logic: a low power logic style for digital GaAs circuits

This paper describes a new logic style called Power Rail Logic (PRL), which is compatible with direct-coupled FET logic (DCFL) circuits. Multiplexors, latches, flip-flops, and exclusive-OR gates can be built using this logic style. Compared to DCFL, PRL uses fewer transistors, has larger noise margins, and up to 40% lower power-delay products. A test chip containing 32-b barrel shifters designed in DCFL and in PRL was successfully fabricated and tested. Test results are given for both circuits. >
Automatic adaptive remeshing for finite element simulation of forming processes

An automatic remeshing scheme has been developed to enable finite element simulation of even complicated forming processes. It has been demonstrated that for many practical applications the incorporation of this technique in the existing computer codes is indispensable not only for more accurate solutions but sometimes just for striving to obtain solutions. In order to avoid the tedious procedures of, e.g. interrupting the analysis, performing rediscretization, mapping of current state variables and preparing the new set of boundary conditions, methods for automating the remeshing procedures and the related accuracy problems have been presented. Several examples, such as a heading process, an extrusion process through a square die, and a one-blow impression-die forging process with flash have been successfully tested out with this automatic remeshing scheme.
Modeling smart sensor integrated manufacturing systems

Smart sensors and their networking technology when applied in manufacturing environment for monitoring, diagnostics, and control and for data/information collection could dwarf all the advances made so far by the manufacturing community through traditional sensors. Smart sensors can significantly contribute to improving automation and reliability through high sensitivity, self-calibration and compensation of non-linearity, low-power operation, digital preprocessed output, self-checking and diagnostic modes, and compatibility with computers and other subsystem blocks. There is a huge gulf between the existing models of manufacturing systems and the computational models that are required to correctly characterize manufacturing systems integrated with smart sensor networks. This paper proposes a multi-agent model for S 2 IM system. The agent characteristics and the expected model behavior are presented.
Computerized Testing in the United States Air Force

Computerized testing in the United States Air Force finds its historical beginnings in apparatus tests developed during World War II. The advent of fast, small, and inexpensive computers led to the establishment of a research program to use computers in pilot selection. Later, computerized tests were demonstrated for more familiar aptitude measures such as verbal and quantitative ability. Several large-scale efforts to implement computerized testing have proved informative. Many Air Force tests are routinely administered by computer. Continued advances in computer technology promise to make computerized testing more common and more commonplace. Computer use in measuring physiological correlates of human ability is discussed.
Antiperovskite Li3OCl Superionic Conductor Films for Solid-State Li-Ion Batteries.

Antiperovskite Li3OCl superionic conductor films are prepared via pulsed laser deposition using a composite target. A significantly enhanced ionic conductivity of 2.0 × 10-4 S cm-1 at room temperature is achieved, and this value is more than two orders of magnitude higher than that of its bulk counterpart. The applicability of Li3OCl as a solid electrolyte for Li-ion batteries is demonstrated.
Novel proteasome inhibitors show potent anti-tumor efficacy

Proc Amer Assoc Cancer Res, Volume 45, 2004 4004 The 26S proteasome is an important contributor to cell cycle regulation. Proteasome inhibitors have recently shown potential as novel anti-tumor agents. We synthesized a series of analogs based on the natural product eponemycin, and evaluated them for their ability to inhibit proteasome activity, cancer cell growth, and growth of human tumor xenografts in nude mice. From this series of analogs, we found that ER-807446 is a potent new proteasome inihibitor with clear in vivo antitumor efficacy. The in vitro activities of ER-807446 included both potent in vitro 20S proteasome inhibition and human cancer cell growth inhibition (IC50 values in the 1-20 nM range.) Pharmacodynamic studies using murine splenocyte proteasome activity as a surrogate marker revealed that ER-807446 displays long-lasting proteasome inhibition for 72 hours. The effect was reversible, since mice treated with ER-807446 on a Q3D repeated dosing schedule did not show an accumulation of proteasome inhibition. These ex vivo pharmacodynamic results suggest that ER-807446 may generate long-lasting proteasome inhibition in patients. In monotherapy in vivo studies against MDA-MB-435 human breast cancer xenografts, ER-807446 resulted in significant tumor growth inhibition in a dose-dependent manner. Treatment with 7.0 mg/kg ER-807446 (its MTD) resulted in 84% xenograft growth inhibition. In this MDA-MB-435 model, monotherapy treatment with irinotecan (CPT-11) at its MTD resulted in tumor growth inhibition, but not tumor regression. Interestingly, treatment with the combination of ER-807446 plus CPT-11 generated tumor regression. This combination of ER-807446 and 45 mg/kg CPT-11 was tolerated well with reversible toxicity. Most interesting of all, this effect is more pronounced with larger tumors: treating mice with small tumors (∼200 μl) led to 25 % regression, while treating mice with large tumors (∼500 μl) led to ∼60% tumor regression. This finding suggests that combination therapies containing ER-807446 may be particularly effective in patients with large tumors. Further experiments will be needed to determine the cause of this enhanced effectiveness against large tumors.
ECOLOGICAL GENETICS OF GYNODIOECY IN SILENE VULGARIS: RELATIVE FITNESS OF FEMALES AND HERMAPHRODITES DURING THE COLONIZATION PROCESS.

Recent theoretical models have addressed the influence of metapopulation dynamics on the fitness of females and hermaphrodites in gynodioecious plants. In particular, selection is thought to favor hermaphrodites during pop- ulation establishment because that sex should be less prone to pollen limitation, especially if self-fertilization is possible. However, inbreeding depression could limit this advantage. In this experimental study of Silene vulgaris, a weedy gynodioecious plant, the fitness of females and hermaphrodites was estimated from seed production in both mixed-sex populations and for individuals isolated from these populations by 20, 40, 80, or 160 m. In mixed populations females display statistically significant greater per capita seed production owing to higher capsule production and higher rates of seed germination. The fitness of both sexes declines with increasing isolation, but at different rates, such that in the 160-m treatment hermaphrodites are by far the more fit sex. Allozyme studies suggest that this differential decline is because the selling rate in hermaphrodites increases as a function of isolation, at least partially compensating for a decline in the availability of outcross pollen. Overall, the negative effects of pollen limitation on females far outweighs the negative effects of inbreeding depression following selling in hermaphrodites. Thus, ex- tinction/recolonization dynamics would appear to favor hermaphrodites as long as seed dispersal events exceed some critical distance.
Mesocaval shunts for the control of bleeding esophageal varices

Results in 44 patients with esophageal bleeding who underwent a mesocaval shunt utilizing a prosthetic graft are presented. Portal hypertension was secondary to alcoholic cirrhosis in 30 patients, to chronic active hepatitis in eight, to primary biliary cirrhosis in four, to cirrhosis secondary to inflammatory bowel disease in one, and to portal vein thrombosis following splenectomy in one. Thirty-six shunts were performed during the emergent or semiemergent time period, and only eight were performed electively. Sixteen of the patients were Child's class A, 16 were class B, and 12 were class C. There were no hospital deaths in the emergency shunt group (of eight patients); there was a 12% mortality rate for patients undergoing semiemergency shunts (two of 17 patients) and a 42% mortality rate for patients who had emergency shunts (eight of 19 patients). Death was related more closely to hepatic reserve, however, than to timing of the shunt. Among the 32 class A and B patients, there were only three deaths in hospital (9%), as compared with seven deaths among the 12 class C patients (58%). Portal-systemic encephalopathy was high in the period immediately after operation (13 of 34 patients, 38%), but it was a chronic problem following discharge from the hospital in only three of 34 patients (9%). The mesocaval shunt is a safe, effective procedure for the control of variceal bleeding in class A and class B patients in any time period, but it carries a high operative mortality risk in the class C patient when it is performed as an emergency operation.
Performance Management Under George W. Bush

This paper examines the performance management practices of the George W. Bush administration, including the President's Management Agenda, the Program Assessment Rating Tool, and efforts to link performance data to the budget process. Such efforts have struggled to succeed. Congress has resisted these initiatives, and Democrats view them as a partisan tool. Instead of relying on performance data from the executive branch, Congress directly asks agencies to measure indicators. This paper is a draft of chapter 7 of The Dynamics of Performance Management: Constructing Information and Reform, published by Georgetown University Press.