cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Simulation of Unsteady Nano-particle Heat Transfer in a One-Dimensional Slot

Unsteady heat transfer in a nano-fluid is modeled using a computational scheme that includes 1) a semi-analytic model for heat transfer between the fluid and the nano-particles, 2) a model based on kinetic theory that calculates the flux of nano-particles between cells, 3) use of the continuity equation to determine the movement of fluid , and 4) conduction within the fluid. The computational method is used to study heat transfer in a 1-dimensional slot, with a width of 50 μm, with an unsteady temperature at one wall, and a constant temperature at the other wall, for aluminum nano-particles in water. The results show an increase in heat transfer due to the addition of nano-particles, and a movement of nano-particles within the slot as the temperature changes. The results show that the impact of nano-particles varies with particle concentration, fluid temperature, and the particle size.
Rapidity evolution of Wilson lines at the next-to-leading order

At high energies particles move very fast so the proper degrees of freedom for the fast gluons moving along the straight lines are Wilson-line operators - infinite gauge factors ordered along the line. In the framework of operator expansion in Wilson lines the energy dependence of the amplitudes is determined by the rapidity evolution of Wilson lines. We present the next-to-leading order hierarchy of the evolution equations for Wilson-line operators.
The best practice for rehabilitation after flexor tendon repair remains elusive: commentary on an article by Jan-Wiebe H. Korstanje, MSc, PhD, et al.: "Ultrasonographic assessment of flexor tendon mobilization: effect of different protocols on tendon excursion".

This study, “Ultrasonographic Assessment of Flexor Tendon Mobilization: Effect of Different Protocols on Tendon Excursion,” is an important contribution to our understanding of flexor tendon excursion in the hand. In spite of advances in the surgical repair of lacerated flexor tendons and different modifications of both active and passive motion postoperative treatment programs, “the optimal rehabilitation program after flexor tendon repair is yet to be determined.”1 After surgical repair and healing, the goal of restoring maximum flexor tendon excursion (normally approximately 28 mm for the flexor digitorum superficialis tendon and 33 mm for the flexor digitorum profundus tendon) would allow full motion and normal function2. In this study, Korstanje et al. evaluated three currently used clinical rehabilitation protocols and two experimental models. The following are important strengths of their research. The authors studied the effects of surrounding tissues and the effects of motion or position of adjacent fingers on …
Fabry–Perot Open Resonator Technique for Dielectric Permittivity and Loss Tangent Measurements of Yttrium Iron Garnet

This paper presents a Fabry-Perot open resonator system for the precision measurement of real part of permittivity and loss tangent of yttrium iron garnet specimens at 60 GHz. This system allows us to vary the cavity length at 10-nm step size to study the resonance profile of each excited fundamental mode with great stability and reproducibility. The obtained highly symmetrical, fully resolved Gaussian resonance profile results in a significantly high Q factor for the overall system. It enables us to determine the dielectric permittivity and loss tangent of ferrite materials accurately and reliably for the first time. Measurements have been performed on a 99.9% pure yttrium iron garnet and a gadolinium substituted yttrium iron garnet specimen at 60 GHz. A temperature dependence study has also been conducted at a limited temperature range near room temperature
A System for Single-trial Analysis of Simultaneously Acquired EEG and fMRI

In this paper we describe a system for simultaneously acquiring EEG and fMRI and evaluate it in terms of discriminating, single-trial, task-related neural components in the EEG. Using an auditory oddball stimulus paradigm, we acquire EEG data both inside and outside a 1.5T MR scanner and compare both power spectra and single-trial discrimination performance for both conditions. We find that EEG activity acquired inside the MR scanner during echo planer image acquisition is of high enough quality to enable single-trial discrimination performance that is 95 % of that acquired outside the scanner. We conclude that EEG acquired simultaneously with fMRI is of high enough fidelity to permit single-trial analysis.
Bridging the computer mediated communication gap

Online learners utilise sophisticated electronic communication systems and methods to engage in current distance learning environments. This paper has outlined literature discussing various CMC styles as they exist within current CMC tools, particularly in gender-related communication style differences indicated that the current 'lean' text-based electronic communication systems tend to promote a more direct 'report' communication style. Because a learner's CMC style may influence or impact the recipient's view of the message and/or the sender, and with so many online learners now utilising computer mediated communication for personal and group communication, it would seem prudent for learners to be aware of, monitor, and perhaps strategically utilise their communication styles that benefit them in being more effective in their CMC. It is concluded that learners should be familiar with the communication styles that best convey their message with the current electronic communication tools to their intended audience for their intended purpose.
Next-generation clinical sequencing in a children’s hospital

Next-generation sequencing and analysis tools are reaching the mature stage at which mentioning their usefulness for clinical testing is not an oxymoron. Indeed, next-generation clinical sequencing has the potential to transform children’s health care, because inherited illnesses account for much of the childhood disease burden. I will discuss the first year of the integration of genomic medicine for Mendelian diseases at Children’s Mercy Hospital.
Mechanisms underlying oocyte activation and postovulatory ageing

Mammalian oocytes undergo significant growth during oogenesis and experience extensive cytoplasmic and nuclear modifications immediately before ovulation in a process commonly referred to as oocyte maturation. These changes are intended to maximize the developmental success after fertilization. Entry of a spermatozoon into the oocyte, which occurs a few hours after ovulation, initiates long-lasting oscillations in the free intracellular calcium ([Ca 2+ ] i ) that are responsible for all events of oocyte activation and the initiation of the developmental programme that often culminates in the birth of young. Nevertheless, the cellular and molecular changes that occur during maturation to optimize development are transient, and exhibit rapid deterioration. Moreover, fertilization of oocytes after an extended residence in the oviduct (or in culture) initiates a different developmental programme, one that is characterized by fragmentation, programmed cell death, and abnormal development. Inasmuch as [Ca 2+ ] i oscillations can trigger both developmental programmes in mammalian oocytes, this review addresses one of the mechanism(s) possibly used by spermatozoa to initiate these persistent [Ca 2+ ] i responses, and the cellular and molecular changes that may underlie the postovulatory cellular fragmentation of ageing mammalian oocytes.
Scope Inversion under the Rise-Fall Contour in German

A well-known but ill-explained fact about German is scope inversion under a rise-fall accent contour. The scope inversion in this reading can be derived from general principles of scope assignment and focus marking in German. In particular, focus is assigned to preverbal constituents, leading to syntactic configurations that result in ambiguous interpretations. This explanation must be couched in a framework of derivational economy that favors shorter derivations. The relevant comparison class is defined with respect to phonological form, not, as has been suggested for English, with respect to identity of semantic interpretation; this may be a general property of “free” word order languages.
Velocity judgments of continuously moving and stroboscopically presented stimuli using magnitude and category scaling

Abstract An experiment was conducted to determine whether perceived velocities of continuously moving targets and stimuli presented stroboscopically (in successively different positions) are processed by two different motion-sensitive mechanisms: one substitutive (metathetic), the other additive (prothetic). Male subjects made category scale and magnitude scale judgments of targets presented continously and stroboscopically at five different velocities. When the magnitude scale data were plotted against the category scale data, linear relationships emerged, suggesting that in both conditions velocity perception is due to a substitutive process. The results are discussed in view of previous research and theoretical implications.
Characterizing Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus Strains with Various Mechanisms of Daptomycin Resistance Developed in an In Vitro Pharmacokinetic/Pharmacodynamic Model

Two daptomycin (DAP) regimens were evaluated in a pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) model, and the mutants recovered were examined for changes in phenotypic characteristics. Three Enterococcus faecium strains (vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus [VRE] ATCC 51559, VRE 12311, and VRE SF 12047) were utilized in a 7-day, 1-compartment in vitro PK/PD model. The simulated dosing regimens were DAP at 6 mg/kg/day (free C(max) [fC(max)] = 7.9 μg/ml, half-life [t(1/2)] = 8 h) and DAP at 10 mg/kg/day (fC(max) = 13.17 μg/ml, t(1/2) = 8 h). Samples were plated daily on Mueller-Hinton agar containing DAP at 16 μg/ml and 50 mg/liter Ca(2+) to assess the emergence of DAP resistance. For each strain, the mutant with the highest DAP MIC was then evaluated for changes in relative surface charge, cell wall thickness, and cytoplasmic membrane depolarization induced by DAP. The initial DAP MICs were 4 μg/ml for all 3 strains. A dose-dependent response and regrowth were observed for DAP 6 mg/kg/day and DAP 10 mg/kg/day against all 3 strains. Mutants of VRE ATCC 51559 (MIC = 128 and 64 μg/ml) and VRE 12311 (MIC = 256 and 32 μg/ml) were recovered from the DAP 6 mg and DAP 10 mg regimen, respectively. For VRE SF 12047, a mutant (MIC = 64 μg/ml) was recovered from the DAP 6 mg model. All mutants displayed an increase in relative surface charge compared to those of their respective parent strains. The DAP-resistant mutants displayed a 43 to 58% increase in cell wall thickness (P < 0.0001), while DAP membrane depolarization decreased by 53 to 65% compared to that of the susceptible strains. VRE with DAP resistance displayed increased surface charge, increased cell wall thickness, and decreased depolarization induced by DAP, consistent with previous observations in Staphylococcus aureus with reduced DAP susceptibility. Further characterization of DAP-resistant VRE is warranted.
The Service Configurator framework: an extensible architecture for dynamically configuring concurrent, multi-service network daemons

Developing extensible, robust, and efficient network daemons is a challenging task. The authors describe a daemon control framework consisting of automated tools and reusable components that simplify the task of developing, configuring, and reconfiguring concurrent, multi-service network daemons. These daemons contain multiple communication-related services that execute in one or more processes or threads. This framework uses object-oriented design techniques and C++ language features to enhance operating system mechanisms that provide inter-process communication, communication port demultiplexing, explicit dynamic linking, and concurrency. In addition to describing the object-oriented architecture of the daemon control framework, the authors also present an example that illustrates how the framework supports the development of network daemons whose services may be updated and extended without modifying, recompiling, relinking, or restarting existing daemons. >
Mitigating error propagation in decision-feedback equalization for multiuser CDMA

This letter presents a robust decision-feedback equalization design that mitigates the error-propagation problem for multiuser direct-sequence code-division multiple-access systems under multipath fading. Explicit constraints for signal energy preservation are imposed on the filter weight vector to monitor and maintain the quality of the hard decisions in the nonlinear feedback loop. Such a measure protects the desired signal power against the detrimental effect of erroneous past decisions, thus providing the leverage to curb error propagation.
Teaching in South America: Some Generalities:

Based upon his own experience, the author presents ten cogent observations for the guidance of visiting psychologists, or for just extending our horizons.
The effectiveness of organisational information systems: perceptions of non-IT executives and IT-executives on IS contributions to strategic development

Information technology professionals develop procedures that the information systems are based on and the end-users are trained to use the information systems. There is often great tension between information technology professionals and the end-user population. Sometimes users do not understand IT, and IT professionals feel relegated to the background. This study is to examine the relationships of non-IT executives, end-users and IT executives and their staff, and the attitudes of both groups that affect the corporate environment within which IS contributes to the strategic development of the organisation.
A COMPUTERIZED BIBLIOGRAPHY OF RESEARCH ON MEDICATION USE STUDIES (MUST)

A computerized database containing classified citations of the world literature on determinants of medication use has been developed. It contains materials from the medical, pharmaceutical, economics, and social science literature.
Presurgical nasoalveolar molding therapy in cleft lip and palate individuals: Case series and review

The nasoalveolar molding (NAM) therapy is advocated to reduce the severity of alveolar cleft and nasal deformity. NAM therapy has demonstrated to be an effective method for reducing cleft and improve nose anatomy. This paper presents a case report of three cleft lip and palate individuals treated with NAM therapy. Furthermore, the paper highlights the advantages of NAM therapy along with an enumeration of literature suggesting in favor of NAM therapy and otherwise. Regardless of controversies and divergent views involved with NAM therapy, the immediate success of NAM therapy facilitating primary lip repair surgery cannot be under-emphasized.
Homocysteine and Cognitive Function in Very Elderly Nondemented Subjects

Objectives: To examine the association of homocysteine with cognitive functioning in very elderly community-dwelling individuals (80 years or older). Methods: Two hundred twenty-eight nondemented community-dwelling individuals were assessed with a broad neuropsychological battery. Bloods were drawn to measure homocysteine, serum vitamin B 12 , and folate levels and APOE genotype. Results: Higher homocysteine levels were associated with poorer executive-language functioning scores (r = −0.311). The association persisted when serum B 12 and folate levels were controlled for (r = −0.308). Homocysteine levels were not associated with memory score (r = 0.120). Conclusions: In very elderly, nondemented community dwellers, high homocysteine levels are associated with poorer executive-language functioning but not with memory. This possible differential effect of homocysteine on cognitive functions suggests that it may affect only specific brain regions or mechanisms underlying healthy executive functioning.
Homocysteine Upregulates Vascular Cell Adhesion Molecule-1 Expression in Cultured Human Aortic Endothelial Cells and Enhances Monocyte Adhesion

Elevated plasma homocysteine is an independent risk factor for atherosclerosis. We hypothesized that homocysteine enhances monocyte/human aortic endothelial cell (HAEC) interactions, a pivotal early event in atherogenesis, by upregulating endothelial adhesion molecules. After incubation of cultured HAECs with reduced dl-homocysteine for up to 24 hours, adhesion of human monocytes to homocysteine-stimulated HAECs was significantly upregulated in a time- and dose-dependent fashion. Pretreatment of HAECs with 100 μmol/L homocysteine caused a 4.5-fold increase in the adhesion of normal human monocytes ( P <0.001). Similarly, adhesion of monocytic U937 cells was maximally elevated by 3.5-fold at 100 μmol/L homocysteine ( P <0.001). In support of our hypothesis, vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM)-1 mRNA expression increased 5-fold in HAECs after 3 hours of treatment with 100 μ mol/L homocysteine, as assessed by quantitative reverse transcription– polymerase chain reaction. Neutralizing antibody studies confirmed the involvement of VCAM-1 in mediating monocyte adhesion to homocysteine-stimulated HAECs. Coincubation of HAECs with homocysteine and tumor necrosis factor-α synergistically elevated monocyte adhesion as well as VCAM-1 protein expression, with the latter evaluated by flow cytometry. Preincubation of HAECs with cyclooxygenase inhibitors completely abrogated homocysteine-induced monocyte adhesion, whereas scavenging reactive oxygen species and the elevation of NO caused partial inhibition only. These data support the notion that the proinflammatory effects of homocysteine may have important implications in atherogenesis.
Nuisance parameter elimination for proportional likelihood ratio models with nonignorable missingness and random truncation

We show that the proportional likelihood ratio model proposed recently by Luo & Tsai (2012) enjoys model-invariant properties under certain forms of nonignorable missing mechanisms and randomly double-truncated data, so that target parameters in the population can be estimated consistently from those biased samples. We also construct an alternative estimator for the target parameters by maximizing a pseudo-likelihood that eliminates a functional nuisance parameter in the model. The corresponding estimating equation has a U-statistic structure. As an added advantage of the proposed method, a simple score-type test is developed to test a null hypothesis on the regression coefficients. Simulations show that the proposed estimator has a small-sample efficiency similar to that of the nonparametric likelihood estimator and performs well for certain nonignorable missing data problems.
Is Socrates Dying

As an educator during my entire medical career, I have tried to use the Socratic method of teaching, in which questions, rather than pronouncements, fill the time. I have found this approach rewarding, as I suspected that controversy would have a more lasting effect. Three episodes, separated from each other by time and place, have made me question whether the Hegelian dialectic approach I had considered most appropriate is of value today with the current generation of residents. These individuals were born and nurtured in a society in which information regarding virtually all events is obtained mainly from television, either as sound bites or in neatly packaged discussions among talking heads who claim Panglossian pedantic wisdom in all topics. The three unrelated events all involved the unexpected reactions I received after making presentations to groups of residents on subjects I had long considered important to the basic education of fledging surgeons. The first episode, which I have described previously in writing as well as during verbal presentations, occurred during my tenure as chair of the Department of Orthopaedics at the University of Southern California. I was in the process of delivering a lecture entitled “The Effects of the Environment on Fracture-Healing” to a large number of orthopaedic residents in the program. During the course of the lecture, I noticed that a resident, who was soon to become a senior, was in the back row of the conference room reading the newspaper. His efforts to hide his action did not escape me. At the end of the session, I approached the young man and expressed my displeasure with his behavior. I said to him that it was not only disrespectful to be reading a newspaper while the “chief” was talking, but that it also set a bad example for his peers. …
A Westward-Intensified Decadal Change in the North Pacific Thermocline and Gyre-Scale Circulation

Abstract From the early 1970s to the mid-1980s, the main thermocline of the subarctic gyre of the North Pacific Ocean shoaled with temperatures at 200–400-m depth cooling by 1°–4°C over the region. The gyre-scale structure of the shoaling is quasi-stationary and intensified in the western part of the basin north of 30°N, suggesting concurrent changes in gyre-scale transport. A similar quasi-stationary cooling in the subtropical gyre south of 25°N is also observed but lags the subpolar change by several years. To explore the physics of these changes, the authors examine an ocean model forced by observed wind stress and heat flux anomalies from 1970–88 in which they find similar changes in gyre-scale thermocline structure. The model current fields reveal that the North Pacific subpolar and subtropical gyres strengthened by roughly 10% from the 1970s to the 1980s. The bulk of the eastward flow of the model Kuroshio–Oyashio Extension returned westward via the subpolar gyre circuit, while the subtropical gyre ...
Using Student-Centered Projects To Teach Mathematics Content Standards

Teaching and learning standards across the country are becoming more content driven, especially in mathematics. As such, it is essential to develop substantive college level math courses for pre-service and in-service teachers. These courses should deliver mathematical content in a relevant way. Teachers must not only be proficient in their subject, but also recognize how to apply content meaningfully to student’s lives. As part of a grant funded through the Department of Education in coordination with the Clark County School District, I have designed two college level courses that will deliver mathematical content standards to middle school teachers. These courses will help prepare teachers at the middle school level by focusing on mathematical content, making connections within the curriculum, using technology, and enhancing the role of mathematics in everyday life and problem solving. The primary purpose of this paper is to share with the academic community the projects used to develop content understanding in mathematics topics such as: mathematical notation, proportion, computation, estimation, linear regression, reflections, translations, finding relationships, and analyzing data. This paper will present these projects, and tie them to mathematics standards outlined in the Clark County School District (and Nevada State) Standards.
Wilson’s Renormalization Scheme

At present there is a diversity of formulations for the Renormalization Group (RG) approach to the theory of critical behavior. Analysis of different methods can be found in the review articles by Fisher (1974), Bresin et al (1976), Di Castro and Jona-Lasinio (1976), Wegner (1976) and in the books by Ma (1976), Patashinskii and Pokrovskii (1979), Amit (1984), Baker (1990), Zinn-Justin (1989), and others. From the variety of different formulations one needs to conceive only two disparate approaches in order to be able to grasp any other approach. The first approach, which has been successfully applied to the theory of phase transitions in the critical region, is Wilson’s RG formulation (1971). In this approach the scaling hypothesis in Kadanoff’s formulation (see Chapter 1) has been exploited to the fullest extent. Kadanoff (1966) substantially developed the intuitive idea of the scaling invariance of thermodynamic functions in the vicinity of the critical point. He showed that this invariance can be explained on the basis of a simple assumption. The essence of this assumption can be formulated as follows. The experimentally-seen scaling invariance is a direct consequence of some coarsened “dynamical” invariance of the Ginzburg-Landau functional in the critical region. The latter in turn is an intuitively-logical consequence of the existence of a single characteristic length — correlation radius ξ. In reality, this is a very restrictive condition and this condition is the origin of invariance of the Ginzburg-Landau functional under very unusual transformations at the critical point.
The Quantitative Significance of Gelatinous Zooplankton as Pelagic Consumers

Gelatinous Zooplankton, including the planktonic coelenterates, ctenophores, molluscs and tunicates are ubiquitous and often abundant members of both neritic and oceanic communities. The quantitative impact of these primary and secondary consumers on their food stocks has been estimated in previous studies by calculating the proportion of the prey standing stock consumed per day. In general, gelatinous Zooplankton usually consume less than 10% of their food populations per day although consumption is occasionally greater than 50%. Thus, gelatinous consumers may periodically decimate their food populations. Our understanding of the quantitative significance of gelatinous Zooplankton is constrained by the relatively few studies which integrate consumption rates with information on the growth rates and population dynamics of either the Zooplankton or their prey. These few studies suggest that gelatinous consumers have the greatest affect on food populations which are already limited by other environmental requirements. Attributes shared by many gelatinous consumers including high ingestion rates at high food abundances, and the potential for high growth rates, high fecundity and short generation time enable many gelatinous consumers to reach high population densities rapidly when food resources increase or when rich patches of food are encountered. Moreover, these attributes may enable some gelatinous Zooplankton to overwhelm other, more slowly growing planktonic consumers when food densities are high. Preliminary data on excretion and on the production and sinking rates of fecal material suggest that gelatinous consumers may also contribute significantly to particulate flux and nutrient recycling. Almost all of our knowledge of the quantitative significance of gelatinous Zooplankton is based on studies of neritic forms.
Clinical Decision Support Reduces Overuse of Red Blood Cell Transfusions: Interrupted Time Series Analysis

Abstract Background Red blood cell transfusion is the most common procedure in hospitalized patients in the US. Growing evidence suggests that a sizeable percentage of these transfusions are inappropriate, putting patients at significant risk and increasing costs to the health care system. Methods We performed a retrospective quasi-experimental study from November 2008 until November 2014 in a 576-bed tertiary care hospital. The intervention consisted of an interruptive clinical decision support alert shown to a provider when a red blood cell transfusion was ordered in a patient whose most recent hematocrit was ≥21%. We used interrupted time series analysis to determine whether our primary outcome of interest, rate of red blood cell transfusion in patients with hematocrit ≥21% per 100 patient (pt) days, was reduced by the implementation of the clinical decision support tool. The rate of platelet transfusions was used as a nonequivalent dependent control variable. Results A total of 143,000 hospital admissions were included in our analysis. Red blood cell transfusions decreased from 9.4 to 7.8 per 100 pt days after the clinical decision support intervention was implemented. Interrupted time series analysis showed that significant decline of 0.05 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.03-0.07; P P Conclusions The implementation of an evidence-based clinical decision support tool was associated with a significant decline in the overuse of red blood cell transfusion. We believe this intervention could be easily replicated in other hospitals using commercial electronic health records and a similar reduction in overuse of red blood cell transfusions achieved.
Computational adaptive optics for broadband interferometric tomography of tissues and cells

Adaptive optics (AO) can shape aberrated optical wavefronts to physically restore the constructive interference needed for high-resolution imaging. With access to the complex optical field, however, many functions of optical hardware can be achieved computationally, including focusing and the compensation of optical aberrations to restore the constructive interference required for diffraction-limited imaging performance. Holography, which employs interferometric detection of the complex optical field, was developed based on this connection between hardware and computational image formation, although this link has only recently been exploited for 3D tomographic imaging in scattering biological tissues. This talk will present the underlying imaging science behind computational image formation with optical coherence tomography (OCT) — a beam-scanned version of broadband digital holography. Analogous to hardware AO (HAO), we demonstrate computational adaptive optics (CAO) and optimization of the computed pupil correction in 'sensorless mode' (Zernike polynomial corrections with feedback from image metrics) or with the use of 'guide-stars' in the sample. We discuss the concept of an 'isotomic volume' as the volumetric extension of the 'isoplanatic patch' introduced in astronomical AO. Recent CAO results and ongoing work is highlighted to point to the potential biomedical impact of computed broadband interferometric tomography. We also discuss the advantages and disadvantages of HAO vs. CAO for the effective shaping of optical wavefronts, and highlight opportunities for hybrid approaches that synergistically combine the unique advantages of hardware and computational methods for rapid volumetric tomography with cellular resolution.
Structure analysis of terbium aluminosilicate glass

Glasses rich in rare-earth ions have attracted a lot of interest due to their applications in optical isolators and optical amplifiers. Integrating optical isolators with various optoelectronic devices allows sources to be integrated with lower costs, easier alignment and longer lifetimes. Glasses rich in rare-earth ions have large Verdet constants, so large Faraday rotations. Among the rare-earth ions used in paramagnetic glasses, Tb3+ ions have largest Faraday rotation per ion and the glasses are transparent down to 1.6um. These glasses can also avoid the temperature incompatibility and lattice match problems which are encountered when magneto-optical garnets mare used for integration. The Tb3+doping is also widely used in optical amplifiers. In this paper we have explored the metastable phases present in the sputtered Tb-Al-Si-O system in order to fabricate paramagnetic films with the highest possible Faraday rotations, lowest optical losses and that are easily integrated with semiconductors. A broad peak was observed in the microdiffraction pattern around 2θ= 30deg. This peak corresponded with the close-packed Tb-O plane spacing (111 for FCC Tb4O7 or 002 for HCP Tb2O3), but it was an “amorphous” peak with a 5 deg FWHM. Amorphous films were obtained even when the Tb concentrations were very high. Since high concentrations of Tb are known to devitrify glasses, the discovery of a high-Tb concentrated glass is exciting. This project was supported by the National Science Foundation under the CAREER program (ECS-0134544).bl]References
Leaf mass per area, nitrogen content and photosynthetic carbon gain in Acer saccharum seedlings in contrasting forest light environments

Total daily photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) varied by two orders of magnitude across forest understorey, gap and clearing habitats for sugar maple (Acer saccharum) seedlings in south-western Wisconsin, USA. Area-based photosynthetic capacity (A max /area) was greater in clearing or gap than in understorey seedlings, but little photosynthetic acclimation was observed between gap and clearing seedlings. We observed significant correlations between A max and leaf nitrogen content (N) among seedling populations from the three habitats when expressed on an area basis, but not on a mass basis because of scaling of leaf mass per unit area (LMA) with N (...)
The turbulence transport properties of a supersonic boundary layer on a sharp cone at angle-of-attack

Ev 2 =eddy v i s c o s f t y = 11 ( ) u ay Three-dimensional boundary laver measure=eddy viscositq , * w % (cay' 4. model circmuferential angle measured from windward ray
Do community-level models account for the effects of biotic interactions? A comparison of community-level and species distribution modeling of Rocky Mountain conifers

Community-level models (CLMs) aim to improve species distribution modeling (SDM) methods by attempting to explicitly incorporate the influences of interacting species. However, the ability of CLMs to appropriately account for biotic interactions is unclear. We applied CLM and SDM methods to predict the distributions of three dominant conifer tree species in the U.S. Rocky Mountains and compared CLM and SDM predictive accuracy as well as the ability of each approach to accurately reproduce species co-occurrence patterns. We specifically evaluated the performance of two statistical algorithms, MARS and CForest, within both CLM and SDM frameworks. Across all species, differences in SDM and CLM predictive accuracy were slight and can be attributed to differences in model structure rather than accounting for the effects of biotic interactions. In addition, CLMs generally over-predicted species co-occurrence, while SDMs under-predicted co-occurrence. Our results demonstrate no real improvement in the ability of CLMs to account for biotic interactions relative to SDMs. We conclude that alternative modeling approaches are needed in order to accurately account for the effects of biotic interactions on species distributions.
Technologist radiation exposure and patient safety improved with automated FDG dosage preparation and injection system

2655 Objectives Assess technologist radiation dose benefit using a Trasis Unidose system. Evaluate system USP 797 compliance, patient / technologist safety and overall institutional satisfaction. Methods Real-time radiation exposure was measured with RadEye G [1] personal detectors worn by 6 technologists during preparation and administration of FDG dosages first without and subsequently with benefit of a Unidose system. Detectors recorded exposure data every 25 seconds throughout the monitored work days. Technologists logged their activities into categories: dosage draw/injection, patient positioning, patient transport, patient care or non-specific. A detector also monitored Unidose surface radiation exposure during dosage preparation. Patient, technologist and radiation safety staff satisfaction was assessed. Results Average radiation dose decreased 75% for dose draw and 70% for dose injection. Qualitatively, instead of dosage draw/injection, patient positioning became the most significant contributing factor to overall dose. Average daily dose was ≈ 0.03 mSv; an average 36% reduction [2, 3]. Staff typically received 0.007 mSv from dose draw/injection, 0.005 mSv from patient transport, 0.013 mSv from patient positioning, 0.001 mSv from patient care, and 0.003 mSv from non-specific per working day. This correlates to 8 mSv annually; ≈16% of the 50 mSv occupational dose limit. Measured dose indicates a single or fewer technologists could easily handle all daily FDG dosage preparation and injection activities. Unidose assured USP 797 compliance and is a highly portable extremely efficient easy to use system. Patient and technologist safety was greatly enhanced with a high level of patient, technologist and institutional satisfaction. Conclusions Unidose dramatically reduced technologist radiation exposure to levels well below annual occupational radiation worker limits. Patients, technologists and radiation safety personnel are highly satisfied with this approach to preparing and administering patient specific FDG dosages in a busy PET imaging clinic. Research Support The Trasis Unidose system was purchased by the hospital. This study was supported internally solely by the hospital and radiation safety services.
Comparison of mechanical procedure and enzymatic digestion methods in isolating spermatogenic cells from rat testes

AIM:To compare the cell number,cell purity and livability of rat spermatogenic cells isolated by mechanical procedure and combination of enzymatic digestion methods. METHODS:The experiment was carried out in the Medical Research Center of Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital from March to May 2007.Two kinds of cell isolation methods,namely,mechanical procedure and combination of enzymatic digestion,were used to obtain spermatogenic cells from rat testicular tissues.Mechanical procedure was a method,by which Leydig cells,blood cells and fibrocytes were removed,spermatogenic cells were filtered and the purer spermatogenic cells could be gained;the combination of enzymatic digestion was a way of the combination of many kinds of enzymes in which mesenchymal cells were separated by collagenaseⅣ,then digested into a single cell.The total number of cell,the cell purity and the cell livability were measured and compared. RESULTS:There was no significance in the number of cells obtained by combination of enzymatic digestion and mechanical procedure(P0.05).But the cell purity and the survival rate by mechanical procedure were significantly higher than that by combination of enzymatic digestion(P0.05).Spermatogenic cell suspension insolated by mechanical procedure were mixed by Sertoli cells,but by combination of enzymatic digestion were mixed by many Sertoli cells and Leydig cells. CONCLUSION:The spermatogenic cell is of high purity and survival rate by mechanical procedure,it is a simple, economic and effective method to isolate spermatogenic cells from rat testicular tissues.
Therapeutic effect of oral ibuprofen for patent ductus arteriosus in premature infants

【Objective】To study the therapeutic effect of oral ibuprofen for patent ductus arteriosus(PDA) in premature infants.【Methods】Eighty-six preterm infants diagnosed as having symptomatic PDA confirmed by echocardiography were administrated with oral doses of ibuprofen.To observe the therapeutic effect of oral ibuprofen and calendar relative factors such as sex,weight,age,arterial diameter before treatment,et al.【Results】The ductus were closed in 67 patients(78.0%) after the treatment of oral ibuprofen.Birth weight of patients and ibuprofen application time for the first time had a significant effect on the closure of PDA(P 0.05),while the other factors have no significant effects.【Conclusion】 Ibuprofen has a good effect on the closure of PDA.There is enhanced therapeutic effects with the increased birth weight and early first-dose application of ibuprofen.
The oncologist as the patient with cancer or relative.

Overview:To an extent, physicians are familiar with the consequences of illness through their interactions with patients. However, when cancer becomes personal, the physician has an opportunity to ...
Evaluation of portal circulation in hepatic cirrhosis. A new method using xenon.

A method for estimating portal circulation using xenon133 given rectally with monitoring of radioactivity over the precordium is presented. This test is easily performed and provides a reproducible objective end point. The portal circulation time can be estimated “visually” from the initial tracing, or can be “calculated” from a semilogarithmic plot of precordial radioactivity against time. The slope of appearance of precordial radioactivity is also obtained by the latter method. Xenon133 portal circulation time studies were performed in 39 cirrhotic patients. Values obtained in 11 patients with portacaval shunts were significantly different from values obtained in 28 nonshunted cirrhotics by each of three methods of evaluation. The possibility that this test can identify patients having an occluded portacaval shunt is suggested by the results obtained in 1 patient showing a marked difference before and after a shunt and the discovery of a thrombosed shunt in another patient initially studied because of a prolonged xenon133 circulation time.
A comparative study of simulation software for modeling stability operations

There are several software tools available for modeling combat and social phenomena. With more emphasis being shifted to the study of Irregular Warfare from Traditional Warfare it is important to evaluate current combat models to see if they can effectively model the complex situations that are faced by today's war fighters. This study evaluates three simulation software products: Map Aware Non-uniform Automata (MANA), Pythagoras, and NetLogo. An attempt to model a civil violence scenario and a segregation scenario is made using each software model. Then each system is evaluated for ease of use and functionality for modeling stability operations.
Robust Identification Using Semiquantitative Methods

Abstract While model-based process monitoring and system identification share the common goal of describing the behavior of a physical system based on a mathematical model, the assumptions made by system identification are typically too strong to apply it directly to monitoring problems. This article describes SQUID, a new system identification method that uses refutation rather than search to identify a model of a physical system. By ruling out implausible models rather than searching for the best model that fits the data, SQUID is more robust in the face of uninformative data and structural model uncertainty than are traditional identification methods.
Oscillatory lower body negative pressure impairs working memory task-related functional hyperemia in healthy volunteers.

We show that induced cerebral blood flow oscillations suppress functional hyperemia produced by a working memory task as well as memory task performance. We conclude that oscillatory cerebral blood...
Isomerization of N-Allyl Amides To Form Geometrically Defined Di-, Tri-, and Tetrasubstituted Enamides

Enamides represent bioactive pharmacophores in various natural products, and have become increasingly common reagents for asymmetric incorporation of nitrogen functionality. Yet the synthesis of the requisite geometrically defined enamides remains problematic, especially for highly substituted and Z-enamides. Herein we wish to report a general atom economic method for the isomerization of a broad range of N-allyl amides to form Z-di-, tri-, and tetrasubstituted enamides with exceptional geometric selectivity. This report represents the first examples of a catalytic isomerization of N-allyl amides to form nonpropenyl disubstituted, tri- and tetrasubstituted enamides with excellent geometric control. Applications of these geometrically defined enamides toward the synthesis of cis vicinal amino alcohols and tetrasubstituted α-borylamido complexes are discussed.
A phosphorylation-wide sncRNA screen reveals Protein Functional Effector sncRNAs (pfeRNAs) in human lung somatic cells

We recently reported that PIWI-interacting RNAs likes (piR-Ls) could regulate functions of the interacting phosphorylated proteins (p-Proteins). In addition, except for writers and erasers, functional efficacy of p-Proteins on their readers still remains unknown. We, therefore, reasoned there was a type of sncRNAs which could regulate functional efficacy of p-Proteins. Here, we profiled sncRNAs interacting with phosphorylated -Ser, -Thr and -Tyr residues in 3 HBE and 4 lung SCC cell lines, investigated effects and mechanisms of phosphorylated-residue-interacting sncRNAs. Our results demonstrated sncRNAs regulating functional efficacy of p-Proteins and we thus referred them as Protein Functional Effector sncRNAs (pfeRNAs). pfeRNAs were distributed among 26 to 50 nucleotides, shared some core sequences and showed distinctive expression patterns between HBE and SCC cells. Core sequences 417 (CS417), showing consistent upregulation in all 4 SCC cells, bound directly to p-Nucleolin (NCL), which was dependent on the key elements CGCG of CS417 and p-Ser619 of NCL. The CS417/p-NCL interaction was critical for functional efficacy of p-NCL in basic activities of lung normal and cancer cells. Thus, we revealed a novel type of pfeRNAs controlling functional efficacy of p-Proteins in lung somatic cells.
First Report of Leaf Spot of Barley Caused by Drechslera gigantea in the United States

In December 2016 in Texas, extensive leaf spots (50% incidence with 2 to 8% leaf area affected) occurred on an experimental trial of barley (Hordeum secale var. ‘Wintmalt’) in Burleson county. The leaf spots were oval to elongated, 5 to 15 mm long, with a white to light brown center and a dark brown margin. Dematiaceous conidia 150 to 550 μm long × 15 to 18 μm wide with 3 to 12 septa, borne singly on unbranched conidiophores were observed in these lesions. Conidia had bipolar germination with multiple germ tubes. These features were consistent with the description of Drechslera gigantea (Drechsler 1923). Leaf pieces were placed in 10% NaOCl for 30 seconds, washed twice with sterile, distilled water and immediately blotted dry with a paper towel. The margins of lesions (2 mm2) were excised with a scalpel, placed onto water agar with streptomycin (WA), and incubated at 25oC. Dematiaceous mycelia were consistently isolated from plated lesions. Sporulation did not occur on V8 agar transfers, but did occur on ...
Water-Deficit Stress Tolerance Differs between Two Locoweed Genera (Astragalus and Oxytropis) with Fungal Endophytes

Locoweeds are plants of the genera Astragalus and Oxytropis (Fabaceae family) and are toxic to cattle, sheep, and horses. The toxic property of locoweeds is due to the alkaloid swainsonine (SWA), which is synthesized by an endophytic fungus Alternaria spp. section Undifilum. Although the endophyte–locoweed complex is often considered mutualistic, empirical evidence for benefits to host plants is lacking. This study: 1) compared the growth, photosynthesis, and leaf pigment and antioxidant concentrations between endophyte-infected and endophyte-free plants under well-watered and water-deficit conditions; and 2) measured SWA to determine whether SWA concentrations are attenuated by water deficit and leaf age. Locoweed species in this study were woolly loco and silky crazyweed. Endophyte-infected and endophyte-free (by removal of seed coat) seedlings, as confirmed by DNA analyses, were grown under greenhouse conditions for 6 mo, after which plants were subjected to three 12- to 15-d water-deficit periods that created sublethal drought conditions. Results suggest that the endophyte did not influence photosynthetic gas exchange and leaf pigment concentrations. Under well-watered conditions only, endophyte-infected woolly loco plants had lower shoot and root biomass and higher concentrations of α-tocopherol than endophyte-free plants. SWA analyses revealed taxon-specific effects of water deficit, with water deficit increasing SWA concentrations in young leaves of woolly loco but not affecting SWA concentration in silky crazyweed. These results suggest that the endophyte behaves as a parasite in woolly loco plants grown under optimal but not under water-limited conditions. Further, results indicate that drought conditions elevate the toxicity of woolly loco plants. Improved understanding of endophyte-locoweed interactions and factors influencing SWA levels will contribute to the development of livestock management strategies to predict toxicity in particular locoweed populations.Nomenclature: Silky crazyweed, Oxytropis sericea Nutt.; woolly loco, Astragalus mollissimus Torr.