cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Phase II study of neoadjuvant cemiplimab prior to surgery in patients with stage III/IV (M0) cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (CSCC-HN)

Abstract Background Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC) harbors a high tumor mutation burden (TMB) due to ultraviolet light-mediated DNA damage, and are highly immune-responsive. Cemiplimab, a monoclonal antibody directed against programmed death 1 (PD-1), is approved by the FDA and EMA as treatment for advanced CSCC patients who are not candidates for curative surgery. Here we explore the efficacy of neoadjuvant cemiplimab in CSCC- head and neck (HN) patients for whom surgery and radiation was planned. Methods Patients with stage III/IV (M0) (AJCC 8th Ed) CSCC-HN were treated with 2 doses of cemiplimab 350 mg intravenously every 3 weeks prior to surgery. The primary endpoint was overall response rate (ORR) per RECIST v1.1. Secondary endpoints included pathologic response rate, safety and tolerability, and analysis of candidate biomarkers from pre- and post-treatment blood and tumor specimens. Results Twenty patients (18M, 2F) enrolled with median age 69 years (range: 42-88) and stage III (n = 8) or IV (n = 12) disease. Seven (35%) patients experienced grade 1 or 2 adverse events (AEs); 6 (30%) grade 1 rash/pruritis, 1 (5%) grade 2 myalgia, and 1 (5%) grade 2 fatigue. There were no grade ≥ 3 AEs and no surgical delays. ORR by RECIST was 30% (6 partial response, 12 stable disease, 2 progressive disease). Pathologic complete response (pCR) was observed in 11 (55%) patients and major pathology response (MPR, ≤ 10% viable tumor) in an additional 3 (15%) patients. TMB and PD-L1 expression analyses in pre-treatment samples are in process. Eleven (55%) patients did not receive planned radiotherapy after surgery based on the pathologic responses. No recurrences have been observed with a median follow up of 3.8 months (range: 1.5-11.2). Conclusions Neoadjuvant cemiplimab was well-tolerated and induced a pCR or MPR in 70% of stage III/IV (M0) CSCC patients. A multicenter phase II study is planned to confirm these results and to describe the ability of neoadjuvant cemiplimab to allow less extensive treatment. Clinical trial identification NCT03565783. Legal entity responsible for the study The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Funding Regeneron. Disclosure N. Gross: Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (self): Regeneron; Advisory / Consultancy: PDS Biotechnology; Advisory / Consultancy: Intuitive Surgical. B.S. Glisson: Research grant / Funding (institution): Pfizer; Research grant / Funding (self): ISA Pharmaceuticals. All other authors have declared no conflicts of interest.
The Mars Helicopter Telecommunication Link: Antennas, Propagation, and Link Analysis

This article presents the progress in the development of the telecommunication subsystem for the Mars Helicopter. The antenna performance on the rover and the helicopter are assessed. An in-depth analysis of the link between the Mars Helicopter and the Mars 2020 (M2020) rover is presented in detail, including the impact of polarization loss, multipath, and antenna performance. The antenna designs and analyses are described as they play a critical role in the link assessment. The analysis is verified through a field test which included a proxy rover and helicopter with engineering model antennas.
Longitudinal Research on Music Education and Child Development: Contributions and Challenges:

Based on a comprehensive analysis of 39 studies published in academic journals in the past decade (2010–2020), this article discusses the strengths of current research and the challenges that lie a...
Available Sensory Input Determines Motor Performance and Strategy in Early Blind and Sighted Short-Tailed Opossums.

Summary The early loss of vision results in a reorganized neocortex, affecting areas of the brain that process both the spared and lost senses, and leads to heightened abilities on discrimination tasks involving the spared senses. Here, we used performance measures and machine learning algorithms that quantify behavioral strategy to determine if and how early vision loss alters adaptive sensorimotor behavior. We tested opossums on a motor task involving somatosensation and found that early blind animals had increased limb placement accuracy compared with sighted controls, while showing similarities in crossing strategy. However, increased reliance on tactile inputs in early blind animals resulted in greater deficits in limb placement and behavioral flexibility when the whiskers were trimmed. These data show that compensatory cross-modal plasticity extends beyond sensory discrimination tasks to motor tasks involving the spared senses and highlights the importance of whiskers in guiding forelimb control.
Continuity and Change in U.S. Foreign Policy toward Southern Africa

This paper analyses the foreign policy of the Clinton (1993-2001) administration toward Southern Africa building on field interviews conducted with U.S. diplomats in Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe. The paper is divided into five sections, each of which highlights a specific trend in U.S. foreign policy toward Southern Africa: the centrality of trade in U.S. foreign policy; the 'regionalization' of foreign policy initiatives; bureaucratic dominance of the U.S. policymaking process; reassessments of direct U.S. involvement in African conflicts; and an uneven approach to democracy promotion. These trends are principally highlighted by drawing on the case studies of Botswana, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, although reference is also made to Angola, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, and Zambia. A final section offers general conclusions, including what one can expect from the newly inaugurated administration of President George W. Bush (2001-present).
Long-Term Care Options in Florida: Their Availability by County Demographics

Older people express a preference for home and community-based care over skilled nursing, realizing that preference, however, is dependent upon having those options available. The present exploratory study uses publicly available data to understand if the geographic availability of long-term care options—skilled nursing, assisted living, home health, and homemaker/companion services—are equally distributed by demographics in Florida. Regression analyses showed that the percent 65 and older and the percent in poverty in a county were not related to long-term care availability or quality. Findings indicate that Hispanic older people have less access to nursing home beds, greater access to home health and homemaker/companion agencies, and tend to live in counties with a greater number of assisted living facility (ALF) deficiencies while Black older people have greater access to homemaker services. Rural counties had lower rates of home health and homemaker/companion agencies and fewer ALF deficiencies. The 65 and older population would benefit from the increased availability of long-term care options near the communities in which they live.
The three-dimensional arrangement of intergranal lamellae in chloroplasts.

The intergranal lamellae, or frets, are helically arranged around each granum. All helices within a plastid are co-directional. The helices wind in the same direction from plastid to plastid, from cell to cell, and from species to species, and are right-handed. The continuity of the intergranal membranes in 3-dimensional space is facilitated by the fact that all the helices within a plastid wind in the same direction. Because there are multiple frets around each granum, the fretwork consists of a highly interlocked series of membranes. The incompleteness of the integration of the fretwork suggests that continuity of the membranes from granum to granum is obtained, to a large degree, by fusions of membranes rather than by continuous growth and ramification of a simpler membrane system.
Constrained Voronoi models for interpreting surface microstructural measurements

Abstract Measurement and analysis of microstructures is an essential aspect of materials design and structural performance. In the case of surface experimental measurements such as digital image correlation (DIC), it is beneficial to know the subsurface microstructure to interpret the surface observations accurately. However, subsurface microstructures are expensive to obtain through three-dimensional (3D) tomography. Hence, it is of interest to generate these structures computationally. In this work, a generalized inverse Voronoi problem is used to grow an approximate representation of the 3D microstructure from a surface electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) image. The novelty of the approach is that the surface microstructure is retained during the simulation. This technique is employed for the reconstruction of a recrystallized magnesium alloy microstructure. Crystal plasticity finite element modeling (CPFEM) was employed for comparing the predicted surface strains in the reconstructed 3D microstructures against experimentally measured data. It is observed that the surface strains of different 3D reconstructions are qualitatively similar to the experiment. However, strong basal slip activation in some subsurface grains can influence the choice of activated slip systems on surface microstructures. The results show the implications of performing a full 3D crystal plasticity analysis of measured surface data as compared to only analyzing a two-dimensional extruded microstructure.
The Pandemic is a Mirror: Decolonizing Psychology and Racism in Times of COVID-19 Crisis

In this paper, I draw on decolonial and decolonizing frameworks to understand how COVID-19 is disproportionately devastating Black communities in the United States. I show how COVID-19 continues to harm Black people and their health due to colorblind racism and policies that reinforce structural racism. The paper is organized around three themes. First, I speak about my positionality or where my body/self stands in relation to the COVID-19 crisis. Second, I draw on decolonizing and decolonial theory as a framework to help us understand the psychology of the COVID-19 global crises. Third, I use the concept of coloniality to understand the psychology of racism that is revealed in the pandemic within the United States. I specifically show how Black communities living in St. Louis, Missouri, are carrying the burden of COVID-19 in greater numbers than the White community due to the historically racist policies of the city and municipality. This new crisis of health disparity is a manifestation of an old crisis that has roots in coloniality of racism. Finally, I conclude by offering some brief thoughts about how the decolonial turn offers us an opportunity to reimagine the discipline of psychology.
Drug Interactions Update: Drugs, Herbs, and Oral Anticoagulation

Management of warfarin drug interactions is often complicated by lack of information regarding interactions with new drugs and with herbal medicinals. The pharmaceutical industry has increased both the number and quality of drug interaction studies prior to marketing new agents. Interactions may still occur in patients, however, despite negative pre-marketing studies in healthy volunteers. The clinical significance and intensity of warfarin interactions with prescription drugs (e.g., celecoxib, proton pump inhibitors, and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) can often be predicted on the basis of known metabolic characteristics of the drugs and warfarin enantiomers. Drug interactions with herbal medicinals are much more difficult to characterize and predict because of the lack of federal regulations regarding safety, efficacy, and manufacturing standards. Published case reports of interactions between warfarin and even the most widely used herbal medicinals are limited. Practitioners are encouraged to report such interactions through the FDA MedWatch program.
Symposium – Eminent Domain: In the Aftermath of Kelo v. New London, a Resurrection in Norwood: One Public Interest Attorney's View

Three months before residents of New London, Connecticut, went to court in Kelo v. City of New London, I recall reading a side note about a family distraught in a different town. The family-friendly restaurant named Orlissie's, located in Oak Park, Illinois, had succumbed to the threat of eminent domain. The unfortunate news of a restaurant closing was more common, partly because of the continued and disturbing increase in the number of eminent-domain acquisitions occurring across the country. As a public-interest attorney employed by one of the leading defenders of entrepreneurs, small businesses, and homeowners, and as former corporate counsel to a multinational corporation, I knew that this would not be the last time a business or homeowner would lose his or her property because of eminent domain. At the same time, I believed that this was yet another horrific example of a business owner losing the battle over developing property to run a business, in the manner and in the location he or she chose. Property owners, in dilemmas similar to that of the Oak Park business owner, are not typically in a position to successfully defend the taking of their private property. The cause is as much a function of the property owner's financial and political wherewithal to challenge even the threat of eminent domain, as it is the contemporary presumption that eminent domain is, overall, beneficial.
What should the government do to encourage technical change in the energy sector

Government support of innovation – both technology creation and technology demonstration – is desirable to encourage private investors to adopt new technology. In this paper, I review the government role in encouraging technology innovation and the success of the Department of Energy (DOE) and its predecessor agencies in advancing technology in the energy sector. The DOE has had better success in the first stage of innovation (sponsoring R&D to create new technology options) than in the second stage (demonstrating technologies with the objective of encouraging adoption by the private sector). I argue that the DOE does not have the expertise, policy instruments, or contracting flexibility to manage successfully technology demonstration, and that consideration should be given to establishing a new mechanism for this purpose. The ill-fated 1980 Synthetic Fuels Corporation offers an interesting model for such a mechanism.
Reputation Dynamics in Networks: Application to Cyber Security of Wind Farms

Wind power is becoming an increasingly important technology for electric power generation in many power systems around the world. A typical wind farm consists of a relatively large number of turbines under some form of decentralized control. In this context, a cyber-attack to wind power infrastructure may not only cause immediate physical damage to the facility in question, but may also threaten the stability of the power system in which this facility operates. In this paper, we present a novel distributed algorithm aimed at detecting cyber-attacks in a wind farm. The cyber-attacks considered take the form of adversarial manipulation of different turbine-specific control logic parameters. The proposed algorithm relies on the operational dynamics specific to wind farms namely that turbines that are relatively close are subject to similar wind patterns and hence must be in similar control "states" most of the time. This can be seen as a "wisdom of the crowd" effect: the "true" state is the state of the majority of turbines in physical proximity when only a few have been compromised. In the proposed algorithm, each turbine in the farm periodically shares information regarding their own control "state" with neighboring turbines through a dedicated wireless channel. We test the performance of the proposed algorithm in a simulation test-bed based on Denmark's Horns Rev wind farm. The results indicate that iterative reputation or trust re-allocation enables a distributed identification of affected turbines under a wide array of cyber-attack scenarios.
Hydration effects in quaternary amine extraction systems

The extraction of Al+++, Cd++, Co++, Cu+, Cu++, Fe++, Fe+++, In+++, Ni++, and Zn++ with quaternary amine was studied using chloride and sulfate as ligands. On the basis of loading experiments and slope analyses, the species extracted were: CdCl 4 = , CoCl 4 = , CuCl 2 − , CuCl 4 = , FeCl 4 − , and ZnCl 4 = . Water content of the organic phase was analyzed as a function of loading by Karl Fischer titration. These experiments indicate that unhydrated complex ions are extracted by amine.
Assessing the Nature of Science: What is the Nature of Our Assessments?

This paper discusses the nature of the instruments used to assess students' and teachers' conceptions of the nature of science during the last four decades. Two salient points emerge from critically reviewing the various research emphases and associated assessment instruments specifically related to the nature of science. The first is to question the validity of much of the research presented on the grounds that (a) assessment instruments are interpreted in a biased manner, and (b) some assessment instruments appear to be poorly constructed. Although such comments are well founded, it is important to note that the research conclusions were unusually uniform regardless of the particular instrument used in an investigation. The second point is a more critical concern about the “traditional” paper and pencil approach to the assessment of an individual's understanding of the nature of science. Although not a new insight, discrepancies between the interpretation of a written response to a “traditional” instrument (e.g., multiple choice assessment) and the intent of the respondent have been well documented. It is suggested that the current educational research shift toward more qualitative, open-ended approaches to assessment of individuals' understanding (of any concept) be applied to the assessment of individuals' nature of science conceptions.
Blazar Discoveries with VERITAS

Blazars are among the most energetic and violent objects in the universe. By observing blazars at very high energies (VHE, E > 100 GeV) we can better understand blazar emission mechanisms, jet structure, black hole accretion and the extragalactic background light (EBL). VERITAS, an array of four 12-meter diameter imaging atmospheric-Cherenkov telescopes, performs VHE studies of blazars through intense monitoring and discovery campaigns. Most blazars known to emit VHE gamma rays are high-frequency-peaked BL Lacertae (HBL) objects, and VERITAS has discovered VHE emission from two of these: 1ES 0806+524 and RGB J0710+591. VERITAS has also discovered VHE gamma rays from two intermediate-frequency-peaked BL Lacertae (IBL) objects: W Com and 3C 66A. The expansion of the VHE catalog to include IBL objects enables a better understanding of the AGN population as a whole. This contribution presents recent results from the VERITAS blazar discovery program.
Effects of Class Size on Course and Professor Evaluations Across Disciplines

This is the first study to use self-reported ratings of student learning, instructor recommendations, and course recommendations as the outcome measure to estimate class size effects, doing so across 24 disciplines. Fixed-effects models controlling for heterogeneous courses and instructors reveal that increasing enrollment has negative and significant effects on student satisfaction in Sociology, Political Science, Computer Science and Engineering, and Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Educational outcomes in Linguistics, Psychology, Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Math, Physics Cognitive Sciences, Visual Arts, History, and Philosophy are unaffected by class size. Other disciplines, including Economics, have inconclusive findings. No discipline benefits from increasing enrollment.
Electrophoresis on Cellulose Acetate and Chromatography on DEAE-Sephadex A-50 Compared in the Estimation of Creatine Kinase Isoenzymes

We have compared two methods for separating the isoenzymes of creatine kinase in serum and measuring their activity: chromatography on diethylaminoethyl-. Sephadex A-50, with both continuous and discontinuous gradient elution, and electrophoresis on cellulose acetate. Results by continuous and discontinuous gradient elution correlated well both for tissue extracts and sera. Electrophoresis on cellulose acetate is evidently less sensitive than the chromatographic method for detecting and measuring low activities of the isoenzyme designated MB. We describe how the isoenzymes may be separated by discontinuous gradient elution from microcolumns of the Sephadex and their activity rapidly quantitated by the Rosalki method [ J. Lab. Clin. Med. 69, 696 (1967)], with a centrifugal analyzer.
Synthetic biology in cell-based cancer immunotherapy

The adoptive transfer of genetically engineered T cells with cancer-targeting receptors has shown tremendous promise for eradicating tumors in clinical trials. This form of cellular immunotherapy presents a unique opportunity to incorporate advanced systems and synthetic biology approaches to create cancer therapeutics with novel functions. We first review the development of synthetic receptors, switches, and circuits to control the location, duration, and strength of T cell activity against tumors. In addition, we discuss the cellular engineering and genome editing of host cells (or the chassis) to improve the efficacy of cell-based cancer therapeutics, and to reduce the time and cost of manufacturing.
Fuel use in flight and its dependence on nectar feeding in the hawkmoth Amphion floridensis

Fuel use varies widely among insects; however, the potential determinants of variation in fuel use have not been explored experimentally. This study examines whether fuel use during tethered flight depends upon feeding status in the nectarivorous hawkmoth Amphion floridensis. Fuel use in this study is characterized by the respiratory quotient, measured at intervals during a flight using modified closed-chamber respirometry. Moths were either fed twice daily to satiation with 30 % sucrose or unfed, and their fuel use was measured during flights on the first, third and fifth day after eclosion. Flights lasted up to 30 min, with measurements taken at their onset and at 10 min intervals thereafter. Nectar feeding greatly affected fuel use in A. floridensis: fed moths relied primarily on carbohydrate, whereas unfed moths relied almost exclusively on fat reserves. Fuel use did not change during a flight, even when flights lasted 30 min or more. Males were initially more extreme than females in their response to feeding treatment: they burned more carbohydrate when fed and more fat when unfed. By the third day after eclosion, however, fuel use in males and females became identical. Rates of oxygen consumption were uncorrelated with respiratory quotient, were higher in fed moths and declined during a flight. These data indicate that fuel use in this nectarivorous hawkmoth is flexible, that carbohydrate is important as a primary flight fuel and that an understanding of ecological factors, particularly foraging habit, is critical to understanding fuel use in insects.
Marital status improves survival after orthotopic heart transplantation.

Background Large national registries lack information on social support, which is increasingly recognized as an important factor associated with improved outcomes after solid-organ transplantation. We examined our institutional database to identify social factors associated with improved outcomes after orthotopic heart transplantation (OHT). Methods Outcomes of OHT patients from 1995 to 2010 at our institution were retrospectively reviewed. Clinical data and social information were extracted from medical records. Patients were stratified by marital status at time of OHT listing. The examined outcome was 5-year survival, excluding deaths within 60 days, modeled using the Kaplan-Meier method. A Cox multivariable hazard regression model was constructed to assess the effect on 5-year survival. Results Of 260 OHT recipients, 176 (68%) were men. Mean age was 49 ± 12 years and mean body mass index was 26.8 ± 5.0 kg/m 2 . At the time of OHT listing, 175 patients (68%) were married. Before OHT, 25% were supported with ventricular assist devices and 17% were in the intensive care unit. Conditional Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed improved 5-year survival for married patients (84%) compared with unmarried patients (69%). After risk-adjustment with Cox analysis, being married improved 5-year survival (hazard ratio [HR], 0.47; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.23–0.97; p = 0.042) and also improved 1-year survival ( p = 0.02). Other social support variables (children, grandchildren, living arrangements, education, race, employment status) were not associated with mortality. Conclusions Married patients have improved survival after OHT compared with unmarried patients. Being married confers a powerful 5-year survival advantage after OHT. This benefit appears mediated by an improvement in survival during the first post-transplant year.
Antibodies to dehistonized chromatin of normal and fetal rat liver

Antisera to dehistonized adult or fetal rat liver chromatin were treated with electrophoretically separated chromosomal proteins of adult and fetal liver, Novikoff hepatoma and adult rat kidney. Both types of antisera reacted with numerous antigens in both tissue chromatins. However, immunoabsorption experiments have shown that while adult rat liver shared most of its nuclear antigens with other tissues, antisera to dehistonized fetal liver chromatins were more specific. In terms of antigenic specificity, the fetal rat liver and Novikoff hepatoma chromatins were similar; however, the former contained several antigens which could not be absorbed with Novikoff hepatoma chromatin.
Distribution of immunoreactive vasotocin and mesotocin in the chicken gastrointestinal tract

Immunoreactive arginine vasotocin (AVT) and mesotocin (MT) were measured in heart, breast muscle, adrenals, testes, and different parts of the gastrointestinal tract in adult male chickens. Neither of the peptides were detected in liver, testis, heart and breast muscle. The amounts of AVT and MT in the adrenals were 167 +/- 25 and 669 +/- 198 pg/gland, respectively. Considerable amounts of immunoreactive peptides were found in the gastrointestinal tract with the highest concentration in the proventriculus (4.18 +/- 0.31 ng AVT and 16.58 +/- 0.86 ng MT per organ). Dose-response curves of duodenal and proventriculus extracts were parallel with synthetic AVT and MT standards.
Effect of 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) on the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor in Hepatic Plasma Membranes of Rainbow Trout

Time- and dose-dependent alterations in epidermal growth factor receptor (EGF-R) ligand binding and protein kinase activity were observed in hepatic plasma membranes of TCDD-treated rainbow trout. Trout were dosed by a single ip injection of TCDD in a corn oil vehicle. A single ip injection of TCDD (10 micrograms TCDD/kg body weight) caused a maximal reduction of EGF binding to hepatic plasma membranes by 10 days posttreatment which remained reduced until Day 40. EROD activity in the liver microsomes of TCDD-treated trout increased relative to untreated fish over the course of the study. Protein kinase C and tyrosine kinase activity as well as EGF receptor phosphorylation was greater in livers of treated than in those of control fish within 5 days but returned to control levels by 40 days postinjection. In a dose-response study, EGF binding was reduced in a dose-dependent manner with an ED50 of 0.17 micrograms TCDD/kg wet weight while EROD activity was induced with an ED50 of 0.79 micrograms TCDD/kg. The reduction in EGF binding was correlated to an increase in EROD activity, protein kinase C activity, and tyrosine kinase activity but was negatively correlated to EGF receptor phosphorylation. Of the parameters examined in both the time course and dose studies, protein kinase C was the best predictor of the reduction of EGF binding to hepatic plasma membranes of rainbow trout. The results from this study are consistent with the hypothesis that the mode of action of TCDD on the EGF receptor is in part mediated through the protein kinase C activity. It also suggests that the toxic mode of action of TCDD is similar in rainbow trout and mammals.
Symmetrical peripheral gangrene in four pediatric cardiac surgery patients receiving extracorporeal membrane oxygenation

Symmetrical peripheral gangrene (multilimb ischemia without large artery occlusion) is a rare condition usually associated with disseminated intravascular coagulation, hemodynamic compromise, and/or sepsis. However, it has not been described in patients on extracorporal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). Over a 5 year period, four pediatric patients developed symmetrical peripheral gangrene on ECMO after cardiac surgery. They subsequently died and came to autopsy. History, physical examination, and laboratory studies were examined. Gross and microscopic autopsy material was reviewed. Patients were 11 days to 13 years old. Extracorporal membrane oxygenation duration was 11-22 days, and limb ischemia began 2-4 days before death. Three patients had rapid onset, with ischemia developing in <48 hours. In the fourth, ischemic changes began as focal lesions and gradually spread. Two patients were septic. Three had evidence of other end-organ damage. Pressors were used in 3 patients before the limb ischemia. Autopsies disclosed ischemic changes involving all limbs, with confluent ecchymoses. In a detailed examination in 1 case, large arteries of the extremities were patent. Involved skin and soft tissue showed bland fibrin thrombi in the microcirculation, with tissue necrosis and hemorrhage. This report describes the first 4 cases of symmetrical peripheral gangrene complicating ECMO. The 4 pediatric patients all had recent surgery for congenital cardiac disease, and all had significant exposure to ECMO prior to developing limb ischemia. Symmetrical peripheral gangrene is an unusual complication of ECMO that may arise in the setting of disseminated intravascular coagulation, sepsis, or other hemostatic and/or hemodynamic imbalance.
Shortnose Sturgeon in the Santee–Cooper Reservoir System, South Carolina

Abstract The Santee–Cooper system in South Carolina, USA, is a complex of reservoirs, rivers, and canals. The endangered shortnose sturgeon Acipenser brevirostrum inhabits the rivers below the reservoirs and has also occasionally been reported anecdotally in the reservoirs themselves. During 1998–1999, we conducted a study to determine whether shortnose sturgeon were reproducing in the reservoirs, and if so, to evaluate habitat use and degree of separation from the riverine groups. Fourteen shortnose sturgeon were captured from the reservoirs, and all (even gravid females) appeared qualitatively less robust than riverine fish previously captured below one of the dams. Ten of the fish were implanted with transmitters and tracked at least once per week. Fish tracked in the upper reservoir, Lake Marion, stayed in the upper portion of that lake or in tributary streams flowing into it. We documented seasonal movements among four primary areas of upper Lake Marion and its tributaries. A spawning site on one of ...
The year in heart failure.

Heart failure (HF) has been the subject of a number of important published clinical and translational investigations over the past year. We also anticipate that updates of the American professional societies' major clinical guidelines will be published later this year. In this article, we summarize
Sensitivity of Response Spectra to ARMA Model Process

The sensitivity analysis in this study focuses on the sensitivity of response spectra to the number of peaks in the envelope function and the order of the Autoregressive Moving Average of order p, q (ARMA( p,q)) process used to represent an earthquake time series. Results consist of two sets of response spectra: one set corresponds to the one peak for envelope function and ARMA(2,1), the second set involves a change in the number of peaks assumed and the order p, q of fitted ARMA(2,1) models. For comparison purposes, response data were normalized by dividing all spectral ordinates by the corresponding ordinates for the one peak, ARMA(2,1) models for the same earthquake. It was conclude that, models of order (2,1) are sufficient to estimate the damage effect of an earthquake with relatively few parameters.Copyright © 2008 by ASME
Streaming potential and electroviscous effect in heterogeneous microchannels

This communication presents a theoretical analysis of the streaming potential and the electroviscous effect on pressure-driven flow in heterogeneous microchannels. Compact formulae in terms of phenomenological coefficients are derived for the streaming potential and the apparent viscosity ratio in channels with surface charge variations perpendicular and parallel to the applied pressure gradient. In the latter case, the streaming potential per unit liquid flow in a multi-section channel is found to be simply the summation of that in each homogeneous section. The apparent viscosity ratio is a weighted average of each section where the hydrodynamic resistance serves as the weighting factor. The phenomenological coefficients are specified using electrokinetic flow analysis, through which the streaming potential and electroviscous effect in a two-section slit channel are examined. It is found that they both depend on the arrangement of surface heterogeneity in small microchannels. This dependence, however, gets weak in large microchannels, which is consistent with the prediction of thin double layer approximation.
Continuous Phencyclidine Treatment Induces Schizophrenia-Like Hyperreactivity of Striatal Dopamine Release

Functional dopaminergic hyperactivity is a key feature of schizophrenia. Recent in vivo imaging studies have demonstrated greater striatal dopamine release in response to amphetamine challenge in schizophrenia subjects than in normal controls. N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors are known to play a prominent role in regulation of striatal dopamine release. In humans, NMDA antagonists induce a psychotic state that closely resembles schizophrenia. The present study investigates the degree to which chronic continuous administration of the NMDA antagonist phencyclidine (PCP) induces schizophrenia-like hyperreactivity of striatal dopamine release to amphetamine in rodents. Rats were treated with 10 or 15 mg/kg/d PCP for two weeks by osmotic minipump, and striatal dopamine release to amphetamine challenge (1 mg/kg) was monitored by microdialysis. PCP-treated rats showed significant enhancement in amphetamine-induced dopamine release, along with significantly enhanced locomotor activity. These findings support the concept that NMDA receptor dysfunction may contribute to dopaminergic dysfunction in schizophrenia.
Whisker-related neuronal patterns fail to develop in the trigeminal brainstem nuclei of NMDAR1 knockout mice

Sensory pathways of the brain generally develop from crudely wired networks to precisely organized systems. Several studies have implicated neural activity-dependent mechanisms, including N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors, in this refinement process. We applied the gene targeting to the NMDAR1 gene and created a mutant mouse that lacks functional NMDA receptors. The development of whisker-related patterns in the trigeminal nuclei of the mutant mice and their normal littermates was compared. We show that in the mutant mice pathfinding, initial targeting, and crude topographic projection of trigeminal axons in the brainstem are unaffected, but that whisker-specific patches fail to form. Our results provide a direct demonstration of the involvement of the NMDA receptor in the formation of periphery-related neural patterns in the mammalian brain.
Hypergraph based reorderings of outer join queries with complex predicates

Complex queries containing outer joins are, for the most part, executed by commercial DBMS products in an "as written" manner. Only a very few reorderings of the operations are considered and the benefits of considering comprehensive reordering schemes are not exploited. This is largely due to the fact there are no readily usable results for reordering such operations for relations with duplicates and/or outer join predicates that are other than "simple." Most previous approaches have ignored duplicates and complex predicates; the very few that have considered these aspects have suggested approaches that lead to a possibly exponential number of, and redundant intermediate joins. Since traditional query graph models are inadequate for modeling outer join queries with complex predicates, we present the needed hypergraph abstraction and algorithms for reordering such queries with joins and outer joins. As a result, the query optimizer can explore a significantly larger space of execution plans, and choose one with a low cost. Further, these algorithms are easily incorporated into well known and widely used enumeration methods such as dynamic programming.
AN ALGORITHM FOR DIRECT SIMULATION OF LINEAR WAVE PROPAGATION IN IRREGULAR REGIONS

A numerical algorithm has been developed to simulate linear wave propagation in media containing irregular inhomogeneities, especially irregular voids in fluids. The computational domain is extended to include the regions occupied by the inhomogeneities through replacing the boundaries with properly chosen sources. The solution corresponding to Dirichlet boundary conditions on the inhomogeneities is presented. This algorithm can be used to calculate linear wave propagation in a fluid medium with multiple bubbles.
Aspects of dramatic and musical unity in Berlioz's Les Troyens

Abstract Berlioz's Les Troyens is considered an “episodic” opera, with scenes unified by the listeners’ knowledge of its literary source, the Aeneid. The author shows that there is a tripartite dramatic structure underlying the work. Each section builds to a climax, and within each of the three sections many events are parallel to those in other sections. Musical recurrences underscore the tripartite structure; in addition, there are many other musical preparations and recalls throughout the work. These all provide a strong organizing factor for the seemingly disjunct scenes of the opera.
Image content engine (ICE): a system for fast image database searches

The Image Content Engine (ICE) is being developed to provide cueing assistance to human image analysts faced with increasingly large and intractable amounts of image data. The ICE architecture includes user configurable feature extraction pipelines which produce intermediate feature vector and match surface files which can then be accessed by interactive relational queries. Application of the feature extraction algorithms to large collections of images may be extremely time consuming and is launched as a batch job on a Linux cluster. The query interface accesses only the intermediate files and returns candidate hits nearly instantaneously. Queries may be posed for individual objects or collections. The query interface prompts the user for feedback, and applies relevance feedback algorithms to revise the feature vector weighting and focus on relevant search results. Examples of feature extraction and both model-based and search-by-example queries are presented.
Going beyond tests of significance: Is psychology ready?

A criticism is offered for the recent efforts to encourage psychologists to report the proportion of variance accounted for (ω2 ) by analysis of variance effects. Few psychological experiments employ designs that allow legitimate inferences as to the strength of particular effects. As such, ω2 is a descriptive statistic that is extremely limited in its usefulness. It is suggested that a widespread reporting of ω2 in psychology is not only unnecessary, but could also be misleading.
Ultrastructure and development of iron mineralization in the radular teeth of Cryptochiton stelleri (mollusca)

A study of the mineralization processes of the radular teeth in Cryptochiton stelleri shows that the iron minerals are precipitated inside an organic matrix which forms an open-mesh framework. In the immature teeth, the earliest detected phase of mineralization consists of a new ferric compound whose structure remains to be determined. In the mature teeth phase, transformation leads to a change from the ferric mineral to magnetite (Fe2O3 · FeO). Crystalline and paracrystalline ferritin granules occur within the epithelial cells associated with the immature teeth.
Gaseous dry deposition of atmospheric mercury: A comparison of two surface resistance models for deposition to semiarid vegetation

In the United States, atmospheric mercury (Hg) deposition, from regional and international sources, is the largest contributor to increased Hg concentrations in bodies of water leading to bioaccumulation of methyl mercury in fish. In this work, modeled dry deposition velocities (vd) for gaseous Hg are calculated using two surface resistance parameterizations found in the literature. The flux is then estimated as the product of the species concentration and modeled vd. The calculations utilize speciated atmospheric mercury concentrations measured during an annual monitoring campaign in southern Idaho. Gaseous elemental mercury (GEM) and reactive gaseous mercury (RGM) were monitored with Tekran models 2537A and 1130, respectively. Two anemometers collected meteorological data, including one fast-response three-dimensional sonic anemometer to measure turbulence parameters. For the flux calculation, three resistances are required to model the mechanisms that transport gaseous Hg from the atmosphere to the surface, with the surface resistance being the largest source of error. Results from two surface resistance models are presented. In particular, the downward flux is sensitive to the choice of model and input parameters such as seasonal category and mesophyll resistance. A comparison of annual GEM and RGM fluxes calculated using the two models shows good agreement for RGM (3.2%more » difference for annual deposition); however, for the low-solubility species of GEM, the models show a 64% difference in annual fluxes, with a range of 32% to 200% in seasonal fluxes. Results indicate the importance of understanding the diurnal variation of the physical processes modeled in the surface resistance parameterization for vd.« less
Separation of nucleic acid components on polyacrylamide gel columns.

Abstract The exclusion and sorptive properties of the polyacrylamide gel Bio-Gel P-2 for low-molecular-weight anionic species allows separations of nucleic acid components to be effected in dilute alkaline borate buffer at pH 8.8. The degree of ionization, determined by pH, fixes the elution position of the compounds chromatographed in this system. Optimum conditions are given for making group separations as well as many other useful separations of nucleic acid components and related compounds.
Management reporting incentives and classification credibility: The effects of reporting discretion and reputation

Abstract In this study we investigate how the level of discretion in the reporting environment and management’s reporting reputation influence the extent to which management’s reporting incentives are important in determining the perceived credibility of management’s classification choices. Consistent with prior research, we show that users view incentive-inconsistent classifications as more credible than incentive-consistent classifications. We extend this finding by showing that the strength of this relationship (i.e., the extent to which users consider the consistency between the classification and management’s reporting incentives) depends on the level of discretion in the reporting environment and management’s reporting reputation. We find that users rely less (more) on the consistency between management’s reporting incentives and the classification in a mandated (discretionary) reporting environment and when managers have a good (poor) reporting reputation. We conclude by discussing the implications of our findings and potential future research.
Tissue-specific expression of a plant turgor-responsive gene with amino acid sequence homology to transport-facilitating proteins.

We report the isolation of a turgor-responsive gene of pea, trg-31, whose transcription induced within 30 min after the loss of leaf turgor. Structure of the coding region and 1.4 kb of 5′ untranslated region was determined by DNA sequencing. A 3 kb promoter fragment from trg-31 was fused to a β-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene in pBI101, tobacco leaf disks and mature plants analyzed for turgor-responsive induction of GUS mRNA. Significant amino acid sequence homology exists between trg-31 and putative transport proteins of bovine, Phaseolus, soybean and Escherichia coli membranes.
Nicotine and Resting-State Functional Connectivity: Effects of Intermittent Doses.

Introduction: It is unknown how the timing between doses might affect nicotine's impact on neu- ral activity. Our objective was to examine how the interdose interval affects nicotine's impact on resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC). Materials and Methods: Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were administered nicotine daily (0.4 mg/ kg) o ver 6 days while control animals received saline vehicle. Functional magnetic resonance imag- ing was used to measure rsFC before and after a challenge dose of nicotine (0.4 mg/kg) deli vered for the first time and 3, 6, 12, or 24 hr after the previous dose. Results: As the interval between nicotine doses increased from 3 to 24 hr, the strength of r sFC increased in some circuits, particularly the nucleus accumbens and prefrontal circuits, and decreased in others, namely the interpeduncular nucleus, hippocampus, caudoputamen, retros- plenial cortex, ventral tegmental, and the insular circuits. Conclusions: These data indicate that the effect that nicotine has on the brain is affected by the amount of time that has passed since the previous dose. The effect on rsFC of cumulative doses is not additive. This may have important implications for the study of nicotine addiction as it implies that the same dose of nicotine might have a different impact on the brain depending on the time elapsed from the previous exposure.
An Environmental Approach to Combat Binge Drinking on College Campuses

Abstract In 1996, the University of Delaware was chosen as one of six universities to receive a five-year grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to combat binge or high-risk drinking on college campuses by using an environmental or public health perspective. This paper identifies the major features of such an approach. Specific strategies which are being employed at the University of Delaware are described, as well as some of the lessons that have been learned. Outcomes that have been achieved are also presented.
Heavy quark fragmentation to baryons containing two heavy quarks.

We discuss the fragmentation of a heavy quark to a baryon containing two heavy quarks of mass ${m}_{Q}gg{\ensuremath{\Lambda}}_{\mathrm{QCD}}$. In this limit the heavy quarks first combine perturbatively into a compact diquark with a radius small compared to $\frac{1}{{\ensuremath{\Lambda}}_{\mathrm{QCD}}}$, which interacts with the light hadronic degrees of freedom exactly as does a heavy antiquark. The subsequent evolution of this $\mathrm{QQ}$ diquark to a $\mathrm{QQq}$ baryon is identical to the fragmentation of a heavy antiquark to a meson. We apply this analysis to the production of baryons of the form $\mathrm{ccq}$, $\mathrm{bbq}$, and $\mathrm{bcq}$.