cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A rare case of primary EBV infection causing acute acalculous cholecystitis

Abstract Primary Epstein–Barr Virus (EBV) infection in children is common and frequently asymptomatic. While symptomatic patients typically present with features of infectious mononucleosis, a rare complication of primary EBV is acute acalculous cholecystitis. A 6 year old previously healthy boy presented with 6 days of low-grade fevers, non-bloody non-bilious vomiting, and periumbilical pain. Based on clinical, laboratory, and radiographic evidence, the patient was diagnosed with acute acalculous cholecystitis due to a primary EBV infection. The patient improved with supportive therapy and remained asymptomatic at follow-up. Overall, clinicians should consider EBV infection in the setting of multi-organ disease and blood dyscrasia. Furthermore, while the pathogenesis of EBV cholecystitis is still unclear, it is important to note that these patients may improve with supportive treatment and do not require surgical intervention.
Distribution of global health measures from routinely collected PROMIS surveys in patients with breast cancer or prostate cancer.

BACKGROUND The collection of patient-reported outcomes (PROs) is an emerging priority internationally, guiding clinical care, quality improvement projects and research studies. After the deployment of Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) surveys in routine outpatient workflows at an academic cancer center, electronic health record data were used to evaluate survey completion rates and self-reported global health measures across 2 tumor types: breast and prostate cancer. METHODS This study retrospectively analyzed 11,657 PROMIS surveys from patients with breast cancer and 4411 surveys from patients with prostate cancer, and it calculated survey completion rates and global physical health (GPH) and global mental health (GMH) scores between 2013 and 2018. RESULTS A total of 36.6% of eligible patients with breast cancer and 23.7% of patients with prostate cancer completed at least 1 survey, with completion rates lower among black patients for both tumor types (P < .05). The mean T scores (calibrated to a general population mean of 50) for GPH were 48.4 ± 9 for breast cancer and 50.6 ± 9 for prostate cancer, and the GMH scores were 52.7 ± 8 and 52.1 ± 9, respectively. GPH and GMH were frequently lower among ethnic minorities, patients without private health insurance, and those with advanced disease. CONCLUSIONS This analysis provides important baseline data on patient-reported global health in breast and prostate cancer. Demonstrating that PROs can be integrated into clinical workflows, this study shows that supportive efforts may be needed to improve PRO collection and global health endpoints in vulnerable populations.
Difficult TEE Probe Placement: The Evidence, Troubleshooting Techniques, and a Guide to Alternative Monitoring Options for Intraoperative Physicians:

Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) imaging has become an essential component of many open and interventional cardiac procedures and has increasing use in monitoring for noncardiac procedures, partly because of an aging population. Whether expected or not, encountering difficulty when inserting the TEE probe presents the anesthesiologist with a conundrum. Repeated insertion attempts increase the risk of a serious complication; however, proceeding without TEE may be unacceptable to the proceduralist or surgeon. The aim of this review is to present the spectrum of complications possible with TEE, propose several evidence-based insertion tips, examine potential alternative cardiac imaging options, and finally, propose a roadmap for providers who encounter difficulty when placing a TEE probe.
Intrinsic limits of leakage current in self-heating-triggered threshold switches

Threshold switches, which typically exhibit an abrupt increase in current at an onset voltage, have been used as selector devices to suppress leakage current in crosspoint arrays of two-terminal resistive switching memory devices. One of the most important metrics for selector devices is the leakage or low-voltage current, which limits the maximum achievable size of the crosspoint memory array. Here, we show that for self-heating-triggered threshold switches, there is an intrinsic lower limit to the leakage current resulting from the need to avoid an electric field-induced breakdown of the active material. We provide a quantitative theoretical estimate of this limit for NbOx threshold switches, one of the most widely studied selectors, and provide a plausible explanation for the experimentally observed leakage currents in NbOx. Our results provide some guidelines for achieving minimum leakage currents in threshold switches.
Measurement and exponential model of ferromagnetic hysteresis

Abstract The cooperative anisotropic hysteresis model of ferromagnetic susceptibility has been recast in exponential form. After field reversals, susceptibility increases cooperatively with magnetization change and then decreases toward saturation until it becomes reversible again. The proposed exponential decrease in susceptibility agrees with measurements and with the Jiles-Atherton Langevin anhysteretic model; our model also accurately represents virgin, minor and first order reversals to saturation. The model is validated experimentally using a thin steel ring and pipe and a thin disk in a vibrating sample magnetometer, all isolated from stress and thermal effects by applying half cycles of sinusoidal magnetic field or using quasistatic field steps to remove eddy currents and stabilize viscosity. Precisely calibrated field and magnetization changes M(H) are controlled and measured with a National Instrument data acquisition system and custom LabView software, and differential susceptibilities X(M) are computed. The proposed model is a function of measurable physical constants including initial susceptibility, Xi, anhysteretic field, Hanh, saturation magnetization, Ms, and normalized symmetric crystalline and domain coupling anisotropy functions, Xr and Xc.
Correlates of non-random patterns of capsule switching in pneumococcus

ABSTRACT Background Pneumococcus is a diverse pathogen, with >90 serotypes, each of which has a distinct polysaccharide capsule. Pneumococci can switch capsules, evading vaccine pressure. Certain serotype pairs are more likely to switch, but the drivers of these patterns are not well understood. Methods We used the PubMLST and Global Pneumococcal Sequencing (GPS) databases to quantify the number of genetic lineages on which different serotype pairs co-occur. We also quantified the genetic diversity of each serotype. Regression models evaluated the relationship between shared polysaccharide structural components and the frequency of serotype switching and diversity. Results A number of serotype pairs co-occurred on the same genetic lineage more commonly than expected. Co-occurrence of between-serogroup pairs was more common when both serotypes had glucose as a component of the capsule (and, potentially, glucuronic acid). Diversity also varied markedly by serotype and was lower for serotypes with glucuronic acid in the capsule and higher for those with galactose in the capsule. Conclusions Certain pairs of serotypes are more likely to occur on the same genetic background, and these patterns were correlated with shared polysaccharide components. This might indicate adaptation of strains to produce capsules with particular characteristics.
Caffeine Impacts the Critical Thinking Skills in Employees A Practice and Limited Quantitative Descriptive Comparative Research Study

The research study addresses the problem of identifying how caffeine dramatically affects the brain by increasing mental alertness, memory, energy, and concentration. The problem is researched through the use of scholarly and empirical sources prior to conducting a limited quantitative descriptive comparative research study. The solution to the problem will help organization manage the job-related work performance concerns, supervisor issues of employees sleeping at work, and enhanced favorable performance the different areas of industry could experience during day-to-day encounters with employees. Areas of interest include the types of caffeine intake, when caffeine intake is needed, and how high amounts of caffeine impacts employee performance. The literature review illustrates analytically and epically the prevalence of caffeine has on employees and how relates to organizational leadership and identifies unique challenges employers face proven to build awareness to improve job related performance and health.
The Joint Safety Team at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities: A Model for Student-Led Safety

The Joint Safety Team (JST) was conceived in 2012 by the Departments of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science and Chemistry at the University of Minnesota and the Dow Chemical Company as a model student-led safety organization. The JST initiative was aimed at improving academic safety through four core areas: compliance, awareness, resources, and education. Since its inception, the JST has taken great strides to develop a culture of peer-led safety at Minnesota. We describe the evolution of the structure of the organization over the last 8 years and the innovative methodologies employed by the JST to educate and evaluate safety in academic laboratories. The continuous efforts of the student members of the JST have enabled the organization to be recognized as a leader in peer-to-peer safety. The Minnesota model of “inform and reform” is now being adopted at other academic institutions to develop safety organizations emulating the JST.
La Araña roja, Tetranychus urticae: Ciclo de vida

La arana roja, Tetranychus urticae Koch, morfologia general, biologia general, espectro de hospederos de la plaga, enemigos naturales, y sintomas y danos. This is the Spanish translation of ENY-880/IN1059, Pest Identification Guide: Two-spotted Spider Mite, Tetranychus urticae Koch. It was written by Nicole Casuso and Hugh Smith, translated by Lorena Lopez, and published by the UF/IFAS Entomology and Nematology Department. https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/in1287
P78. Spinopelvic sagittal imbalance as a risk factor for fracture type of proximal junctional failure after posterior instrumented fusion

BACKGROUND CONTEXT Postoperative fracture of the upper instrumented vertebrae (UIV) is thought to be a fracture type of proximal junctional failure (PJF), which usually needs for proximal extension of the fusion. Global sagittal imbalance has been considered as a potential risk factor to develop PJF. Spinopelvic parameters, such as the pelvic incidence (PI) angles, sacral slope (SS) angles, and pelvic tilt (PT) angles have been recognized to affect overall sagittal balance. PURPOSE To investigate the influence of spinopevic parameters including pelvic incidence (PI), pelvic tilt (PT), sacral slope (SS), lumbar lordosis (LL), and proximal local kyphosis (PLK) angle on the development of fracture type of PJF after posterior instrumentation for degenerative lumbar diseases. STUDY DESIGN/SETTING A retrospective case-control cohort study. PATIENT SAMPLE Ninety-six patients. OUTCOME MEASURES Clinical outcomes were evaluated with Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and the visual analogue scale (VAS) for leg and back pain. The medical conditions were reviewed using the weighted Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI), bone mineral density (BMD) with T score, and body mass index (BMI). Radiographic parameters such as coronal Cobb's angle, PI, SS, PT, LL, and PLK were measured for comparison. The prevalence of osteoporotic compression fractures (OVFx), PI-LL, and score for spinopelvic realignment achievement were calculated. METHODS Between January 2007 and December 2017, patients underwent posterior instrumented fusion were reviewed. This was a retrospective 1:3 matched case-control study. Twenty-four patients who had undergone revision surgery for UIV fracture of PJF after posterior instrumented fusion were categorized as the study group. As a control group, 72 age-, sex-, and surgical level- matched patients who had undergone posterior instrumented fusion during the same period, had no development of UIV fracture of PJF for more than two years. RESULTS Before surgery, the study group already had more comorbidities (CCI: 1.75 ± 0.90 vs 1.22± 0.61, p= 0.002), poorer bone density (T score: -3.41 ± 1.12 vs -1.81± 0.83, p= 0.001), significant higher prevalence of OVFx (46% vs 18%, p = 0.006) than the control group. In terms of preoperative radiographic parameters, the study group had significantly lower LL (22.85o ± 17.15o vs 31.66o ± 15.10o, p= 0.030), SS (22.69o ± 10.69o vs 28.34o ± 12.66o, p= 0.043), and significantly higher PLK (2.98o ± 9.23ovs -9.20o ± 12.89o, p CONCLUSIONS In addition to osteoporoitc bone quality, pre- and postoperative lower LL, and higher PI-LL/PLK were also significantly associated with development of UIV fracture in PJF. Therefore, obtaining appropriate LL and correcting PLK should be done at surgery to improve spinopelvic sagittal imbalance. The results suggest that the achievement of appropriate LL and PI-LL prevents instrumented fracture of PJF after posterior instrumented fusion. FDA DEVICE/DRUG STATUS This abstract does not discuss or include any applicable devices or drugs.
Trauma Care and Coronavirus Disease

The impact of the novel coronavirus (SARS-nCoV-2) on trauma care extends far beyond the direct consequences of an infection in an individual. The presence of this contagious disease in our society presents unprecedented challenges for healthcare systems, impacting the care for trauma patients on a system-wide level. The COVID-19 pandemic demands unseen system-wide measures by healthcare authorities to protect the public from this disease. Societal measures and restrictions change the epidemiology of trauma, prompting trauma care networks to adjust their operation. Ensuring continued access to trauma care aside navigating the local healthcare response to an expanding number of COVID-19 patients demands additional resources and updated standard protocols. On an individual level, all emergent admissions to trauma hospitals are to be considered cases to keep healthcare workers safe. Lastly, a trauma in a patient with COVID-19 can present with unique challenges.
Resilience as an Incomplete Strategy for Coping With Moral Distress in Critical Care Nurses.

Topic Moral distress is receiving increasing attention in health care. The theoretical value of resilience as a strategy for coping with moral distress is prominent in the literature. Clinical relevance The potential negative consequences of moral distress for nurses are indisputable, driving a push to identify interventions to help nurses deal with the experience. The evidence that resilience is an important quality and skill for maintaining wellness is equally clear. Purpose To review moral distress and resilience and examine the evidence for the new focus on resilience. Content covered The complexity of both moral distress and resilience suggests that resilience by itself is an incomplete strategy for coping with and addressing moral distress.
Stratix 10 NX Architecture and Applications

The advent of AI has driven the adoption of high density low precision arithmetic on FPGAs. This has resulted in new methods in mapping both arithmetic functions as well as dataflows onto the fabric, as well as some changes to the embedded DSP Blocks. Technologies outside of the FPGA realm have also evolved, such as the addition of tensor structures for GPUs, and also the introduction of numerous AI ASSPs, all of which have a higher claimed performance and efficiency than current FPGAs. In this paper we will introduce the Stratix 10 NX device (NX), which is a variant of FPGA specifically optimized for the AI application space. In addition to the computational capabilities of the standard programmable soft logic fabric, a new type of DSP Block provides the dense arrays of low precision multipliers typically used in AI implementations. The architecture of the block is tuned for the common matrix-matrix or vector-matrix multiplications in AI, with capabilities designed to work efficiently for both small and large matrix sizes. The base precisions are INT8 and INT4, along with shared exponent support for support block floating point FP16 and FP12 numerics. All additions/accumulations can be done in INT32 or IEEE754 single precision floating point (FP32), and multiple blocks can be cascaded together to support larger matrices. We will also describe methods by which the smaller precision multipliers can be aggregated to create larger multiplier that are more applicable to standard signal processing requirements. In terms of overall compute throughput, Stratix 10 NX achieves 143 INT8/FP16 TOPs/FLOPs, or 286 INT4/FP12 TOPS/FLOPs at 600MHz. Depending on the configuration, power efficiency is in the range of 1-4 TOPs or TFLOPs/W.
Physical Health and Delinquency

While physical health can impact a variety of outcomes, little research has looked at health and delinquency. Through a lens of GST, this study examines whether health moderates the relationships b...
Portugal VS Poland

This article analyses and compares different aspects between the countries of Portugal and Poland. It focuses on geographic and demographic data, the differences in climate, compares each country’s national cuisine and lastly, the culture of both countries.
Teaching the HCI component of computing curriculum 2001 with KlassroomSwing

Computing Curriculum 2001 recommends that eight hours of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) content be included in the computer science core. There is a common perception that HCI is too difficult for beginning programmers. Our experience demonstrates otherwise. This paper describes KlassroomSwing and the way that it has been used to incorporate the HCI component of Computing Curriculum 2001 into the first two programming courses. KlassroomSwing is a Java package that allows beginning programmers to construct graphical user interfaces and to incorporate various media into their programs. KlassroomSwing is available at www.nwmissouri.edu/~sanders/KlassroomSwing/KlassroomSwing.html.
Faster, cleaner bisulfite conversion that yields more intact DNA for downstream analysis

Performing DNA purification, bisulfite conversion and amplification are crucial steps in DNA methylation analysis, especially when working with difficult sample types like formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue. The MethylEdge™ Bisulfite Conversion System provides a rapid, efficient method for bisulfite conversion with minimal DNA fragmentation in less than 2 h. Coupled with purification chemistries optimized for FFPE tissue and flexible, robust amplification technologies for detection, the MethylEdge™ Bisulfite Conversion System delivers high-quality converted DNA for downstream analysis.
Dynamic Tracking of Facial Expressions Using Adaptive, Overlapping Subspaces

We present a Dynamic Data Driven Application System (DDDAS)to track 2D shapes across large pose variations by learning non-linear shape manifold as overlapping, piecewise linear subspaces. The learned subspaces adaptively adjust to the subject by tracking the shapes independently using Kanade Lucas Tomasi(KLT) point tracker. The novelty of our approach is that the tracking of feature points is used to generate independent training examples for updating the learned shape manifold and the appearance model. We use landmark based shape analysis to train a Gaussian mixture model over the aligned shapes and learn a Point Distribution Model(PDM) for each of the mixture components. The target 2D shape is searched by first maximizing the mixture probability density for the local feature intensity profiles along the normal followed by constraining the global shape using the most probable PDM cluster. The feature shapes are robustly tracked across multiple frames by dynamically switching between the PDMs. The tracked 2D facial features are used deform the 3D face mask.The main advantage of the 3D deformable face models is the reduced dimensionality. The smaller number of degree of freedom makes the system more robust and enables capturing subtle facial expressions as change of only a few parameters. We demonstrate the results on tracking facial features and provide several empirical results to validate our approach. Our framework runs close to real time at 25 frames per second.
Characterization of Rhodobacter sphaeroides Gene RSP1977

Rhodobacter sphaeroides is a purple, non-sulfur, photosynthetic bacterium whose entire genomic DNA has been sequenced, however, many of the genes in its genome have not been characterized in order to determine their function in the bacterium. Furthermore, many of the genes in R. sphaeroides are very similar to gene sequences in other organisms. Therefore, upon determining the functions of R. sphaeroides genes, it will help lead to a better understanding of the functions of genes in other organisms. This research is an attempt to isolate, purify and characterize proteins from R. sphaeroides using techniques in biochemistry, molecular biology, informatics, and genetics. To date, the gene RSP1977 has been successfully isolate, cloned, and analyzed. It has been attempted to insert the gene into the pSC-B-amp/kan cloning vector, to transform the vector into competent cells, then re-isolate the vector and confirm the insertion of RSP1977. However, confirmation has not yet been obtained of successful insertion and re-purification. The next steps, after confirmation would be to insert the gene into the pET-21b(+) expression vector and express the protein. Once the protein is expressed, its functions will be studied and determined.
Antigens of Leptotrichia buccalis II. Their reaction with complement fixing IgM in human sera.

A soluble antigen preparation (SALB), a water soluble lipopolysaccharide preparation, and a phenol soluble lipopolysaccharide preparation of Leptotrichia buccalis were used in a variety of serologic tests with human sera from periodontal patients. Sera from five of six periodontal patients reacted in hemolysis and indirect passive hemagglutination tests using SALB or water soluble lipopolysaccharide treated sheep red blood cells (SRBC). Only one of six individuals showed a titer to the phenol soluble lipopolysaccharide preparation in the same tests. The sera and antigens that gave positive results in the hemolysis test did not react in standard complement fixation or immunodiffusion tests. Using an indirect passive hemagglutination test with SALB treated tanned sheep red blood cells, five of six sera were again positive, however the titers were two to three fold lower. Adsorption of the SALB with SRBC removed the antigen reactive in the untanned cell test but had no effect on the antigen in the tanned cell test. On the basis of different antigen absorption characteristics to SRBC, these results suggest humans produce antibody reactive with both protein and lipopolysaccharide antigens of L. buccalis.
Near-optimal user-cell association schemes for real-world networks

The growing demand for wireless bandwidth makes WiFi deployments denser and pushes cellular networks to adopt a denser, small-cell architecture. In such dense environments, users have multiple options when it comes to selecting an access point (AP) to associate with the network, and the user-cell association scheme that is used has a large impact on overall network performance. Industry is currently using simplistic, sub-optimal approaches to select an AP for each user, while academia has produced optimal schemes under unrealistic assumptions, which prevents them from ever being used in practice. In this paper we design high-performance user-cell association schemes which can be deployed in real-world networks. The performance of the proposed schemes is shown to be near-optimal via both formal performance bounds under realistic assumptions, and simulation results under real-world setups.
Adenovirus-mediated gene transfer to renal glomeruli in rodents

Adenovirus-mediated gene transfer to renal glomeruli in rodents. Background The expression of foreign genes into renal glomerular cells holds enormous potential to modulate the outcome of renal diseases. Recombinant adenoviruses (rAds) are promising gene transfer vectors because they have the ability to infect a wide range of nondividing cells. However, despite the fact that renal glomeruli are easily accessible via the renal circulation, adenovirus-mediated gene transfer into rodent glomeruli has been problematic. Here, we described our experience using rAd vectors to express foreign genes in rodent renal glomeruli in vivo and in cultured human renal glomerular cells. Methods We developed two techniques—the "portal clamping" and "prolonged renal infusion"—to infect mouse and rat renal glomeruli in vivo, respectively. We used E-1-deleted rAd vectors carrying the lacZ gene encoding β-galactosidase (Ad. CBlacZ) under the control of the cytomegalovirus enhancer and chicken β-actin promoter. Cultured human renal glomerular podocytes, endothelial and mesangial cells were grown following standard techniques. Transgene expression was evaluated by doing β-galactosidase staining and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction studies. Results We found that both a prolonged exposure and a high concentration of circulating adenoviral vectors were required to achieve efficient gene transfer to renal glomerular cells in rodents. The virus-mediated transgene expression in renal glomeruli lasted for at least 42 days in mice and 21 days in rats without causing significant renal injury. Conclusions These data demonstrate the feasibility of using rAd vectors as a tool to express foreign genes in rodent renal glomerular cells and suggest that all types of human renal glomerular cells are equally susceptible to rAd infection.
The Impact of Convection on ENSO: From a Delayed Oscillator to a Series of Events

Abstract The NCAR Community Climate System Model, version 3 (CCSM3) exhibits persistent errors in its simulation of the El Nino–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) mode of coupled variability. The amplitude of the oscillation is too strong, the dominant 2-yr period too regular, and the width of the sea surface temperature response in the Pacific too narrow, with positive anomalies extending too far into the western Pacific. Two changes in the parameterization of deep convection result in a significant improvement to many aspects of the ENSO simulation. The inclusion of convective momentum transport (CMT) and a dilution approximation for the calculation of convective available potential energy (CAPE) are used in development integrations, and a striking improvement in ENSO characteristics is seen. An increase in the periodicity of ENSO is achieved by a reduction in the strength of the existing “short-circuited” delayed-oscillator mode. The off-equatorial response is weaker and less tropically confined, largely as a...
Propagation velocities of laser‐produced plasmas from copper wire targets and water droplets

Experiments were performed to determine the plasma propagation velocities resulting from KrF laser irradiation of copper wire target (75 microns diameter) and water droplets (75 microns diameter) at irradiance levels ranging from 25 to 150 GW/sq cm. Plasma propagation velocities were measured using a streak camera system oriented orthogonally to the high-energy laser propagation axis. Plasma velocities were studied as a function of position in the focused beam. Results show that both the shape of the plasma formation and material removal from the copper wire are different and depend on whether the targets are focused or slightly defocused (approximately = 0.5 mm movement in the beam axis). Plasma formation and its position relative to the target is an important factor in determining the practical focal point during high-energy laser interaction with materials. At irradiance of 100 GW/sq cm, the air plasma has two weak-velocity components which propagate toward and away from the incident laser while a strong-velocity component propagates away from the laser beam as a detonation wave. Comparison of the measured breakdown velocities (in the range of 2.22-2.27 x 10(exp 5) m/s) for air and the value calculated by the nonlinear breakdown wave theory at irradiance of 100 GW/sq cm showed a quantitative agreement within approximately 50% while the linear theory and Gaussian pulse theory failed. The detonation wave velocities of plasma generated from water droplets and copper wire targets for different focused cases were measured and analyzed theoretically. The propagation velocities of laser-induced plasma liquid droplets obtained by previous research are compared with current work.
Artificial meteor ablation studies: Iron oxides

Artificial meteor ablation was performed on natural minerals composed predominantly of magnetite and hematite by using an arc-heated plasma stream of air. Analysis indicates that most of the ablated debris was composed of two or more minerals. Wustite, a metastable mineral, was found to occur as a common product. The 'magnetite' sample, which was 80% magnetite, 14% hematite, 4% apatite, and 2% quartz, yielded ablated products consisting of more than 12 different minerals. Magnetite occurred in 91% of the specimens examined, hematite in 16%, and wustite in 30%. The 'hematite' sample, which was 96% hematite and 3% quartz, yielded ablated products consisting of more than 13 different minerals. Hematite occurred in 47% of the specimens examined, magnetite in 60%, and wustite in 28%. The more volatile elements (Si, P, and Cl) were depleted by about 50%. This study has shown that artificially created ablation products from iron oxides exhibit unique properties that can be used for identification.
Pioneer Venus Sounder Probe Neutral Gas Mass Spectrometer

A neutral gas mass spectrometer was flown to Venus as part of the Pioneer Venus Multiprobe to measure the composition of its lower atmosphere. Encounter occurred on December 9, 1978. The instrument, mounted in the Sounder Probe, was activated after the probe entered the top of the atmosphere, and it obtained data during the descent from 62 km to the surface. Atmospheric gases were sampled through a pair of microleaks, the effluent from which was pumped by a combination of ion and getter pumping. A pneumatically operated valve, controlled by the ambient atmospheric pressure, maintained the ion source pressure at a nearly constant value during descent while the atmospheric pressure varied by 3 orders of magnitude. This action preserved the more than 6-decade dynamic range of the instrument throughout the descent. A single focusing magnetic sector field mass spectrometer with mass resolution sufficient to reasonably separate argon from C3H4 at 40 amu provided the mass analysis and relative abundance measurements. A microprocessor controlled the operation of the mass spectrometer through a highly efficient peak-top stepping routine and data compression algorithm that effected a scan of the mass spectrum from 1 to 208 amu in 64 s while requiring an information rate of only 40 b/s to return the data to earth. A subscale height altitude resolution was thus obtained. Weight, size, and power requirements were minimized to be consistent with interplanetary flight constraints.
Application of 19F NMR spectroscopy to a study of carbon monoxide binding to human hemoglobin modified at cys-β93 with the S-trifluoroethyl residue

Abstract The S-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl residue (-SCH2CF3) has been incorporated into human hemoglobin, Hb4(SH)2, as a reporter group at Cys-β93 using a sequence of disulfide interchange reactions [F. C. Knowles (1981) Anal. Biochem.110,19–26]. The 19F NMR spectrum at 235.2 MHz of carboxyhemoglobin (COHb)4(SSCH2CF3)2 was a band 50 Hz wide at half peak height. Conversion of the carbon monoxide derivative to the ligand-free form was accompanied by a downfield shift of 125 Hz (0.53 ppm). Weighed aliquots of solutions of Hb4(SSCH2CF3)2 and (COHb)4(SSCH2CF3)2 were mixed, yielding solutions of known fractional saturation with carbon monoxide. An independent estimate of F of these samples was derived from the amplitudes of the resonance intensities in the 19F NMR spectra. These independent methods for determination of the value of F were not uniformly in agreement. In the presence of inositol hexaphosphate the estimate of F derived from 19F NMR spectra was considerably less than the actual value. The discrepancies between the two independent methods for determining F can be explained by a preferred order of binding of carbon monoxide to the α-chains. The preference for binding to the α-chains was abolished by removing phosphates. A model for transmission of cooperative effects in hemoglobin was presented which accounted for the characteristic shape of the hemoglobin-oxygen dissociation curves as well as the chain heterogeneity revealed by 19F NMR experiments.
Buffer conditions and non‐tubulin factors critically affect the microtubule dynamic instability of sea urchin egg tubulin

The dynamic instability of individual microtubules (Mts) in cytoplasmic extracts or assembled from highly purified sea urchin egg tubulin was examined using video-enhanced, differential-interference contrast (VE-DIC) light microscopy. Extract Mts (endogenous tubulin = 12.1 microM) displayed only plus-ended growth. The elongation velocity was 7.8 microns/min for an average duration of 1.3 min before switching (catastrophe) to rapid shortening, which occurred at 13.0 microns/min for an average duration of 0.5 min before switching (rescue) back to the elongation phase. These parameters are typical of interphase Mt dynamic instability. Surprisingly, Mts assembled from purified urchin egg tubulin in standard buffers were less dynamic that those reported for purified brain tubulin or Mts in the extract. Buffer parameters were changed in an attempt to mimic the extract Mt results. The pH buffer itself, Hepes or Pipes, drastically altered Mt dynamics but could not achieve high elongation velocity with high catastrophe frequencies. Calcium at 1 microM had negligible effects, while increasing pH from 6.9 to 7.2 stimulated elongation velocity. Finally, Mt dynamics of purified egg tubulin (11.9 microM) were assayed in ultrafiltrates (MW cut-off less than 30 kD) of the cytoplasmic extracts. Mts elongated slowly at 1.2 microns/min for 26 min before a catastrophe and rapid shortening at 11.8 microns/min. Rescue was less frequent than unfiltered extracts, minus-ended growth was observed, and self-assembly occurred at slightly higher tubulin concentrations. Therefore, the egg extracts and cytoplasm must contain non-buffer factors which stimulate elongation velocity by 6.5-fold without self-assembly, increase catastrophe frequency by 20-fold, and block minus-ended growth.
Radon and lung cancer: Incremental risks associated with residential weatherization

Abstract Energy conservation measures for residences that decrease air-exchange rates between the indoors and outdoors are shown, in the absence of substantial pressure-driven sources of radon, to increase substantially the concentrations of short-lived radionuclides in indoor air that are produced by the decay of naturally occurring radon. The associated incremental risk of lung cancer, although small compared to the risk attributable to tobacco smoking, is probably large enough to concern a substantial fraction of the population. For an average location in the U.S., the risk of fatal lung cancer attributable to radon may be increased by 115% by retrofitting that reduces the air-exchange rate from 1 to 1 2 air changes per hour. The model used in this study to estimate risk includes the relationship between removal processes and deviations from radioactive equilibrium. Results are given for selected changes in the air-exchange rate resulting from weatherization for several representative situations that are characterized by outdoor conditions, mineral content of the soil, and indoor radon source strength.
Genotype-Based Matching to Correct for Population Stratification in Large-Scale Case-Control Genetic Association Studies

Genome-wide association studies are helping to dissect the etiology of complex diseases. Although case-control association tests are generally more powerful than family-based association tests, population stratification can lead to spurious diseasemarker association or mask a true association. Several methods have been proposed to match cases and controls prior to genotyping, using family information or epidemiological data, or using genotype data for a modest number of genetic markers. Here, we describe a genetic similarity score matching (GSM) method for efficient matched analysis of cases and controls in a genome-wide or large-scale candidate gene association study. GSM comprises three steps: (1) calculating similarity scores for pairs of individuals using the genotype data; (2) matching sets of cases and controls based on the similarity scores so that matched cases and controls have similar genetic background; and (3) using conditional logistic regression to perform association tests. Through computer simulation we show that GSM correctly controls false-positive rates and improves power to detect true disease predisposing variants. We compare GSM to genomic control using computer simulations, and find improved power using GSM. We suggest that initial matching of cases and controls prior to genotyping combined with careful re-matching after genotyping is a method of choice for genome-wide association studies. Genet. Epidemiol. 33:508–517, 2009. r 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Diallel and generation means analyses for the components of resistance to Cercospora arachidicola in peanut

The inheritance of the components of partial resistance to Cercospora arachidicola Hori in peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) was examined in two five-parent diallels and in the six generations of two single crosses in greenhouse tests. The Griffing (1956) analysis indicated general combining ability (GCA) to be of most importance, yet large ratios of SCA/GCA sum of squares suggested nonadditive genetic variance as well. Reciprocal effects were found for lesion area and lesion number/10 cm2 leaf area. The importance of nonadditive genetic variance was substantiated by the lack of fit for the additive-dominance model in the Hayman's analysis (1954 a, b). Further evidence from the Hayman's analysis indicated that epistasis may be important in determining the inheritance of some of the components of resistance. Additive gene effects alone accounted for the genetic variability observed among the generation means from two single crosses for all components of resistance except latent period. There was evidence that epistasis was an important mode of gene action for the inheritance of latent period.
A fast directional filter set for pyramidal image-based robotic systems

Abstract In seeking to develop a real-time, pyramidal imaging system for tracking and robotic visual servoing applications, inadequacies in the standard, commonly available kernels for directional filtering have led to the implementation of an alternative set of simple filters that combine to act as oriented edge-contrast operators fulfilling the familiar requirements for both speed and a highly localized response pattern. Although numerous edge operators, kernels and directional filters have been proposed, and low-level filtering is a well-established and mature area of computer vision, within the application described here, this operator set is proving superior to more established methods in efficiently preserving the response localization requirement while propagating the oriented gradient energies through multichannel resolution pyramids for further recursive processing. This paper provides a detailed discussion of the technique, the context of its development, and supporting empirical tests and statistical results. The evidence presented shows that the scheme provides a unified response to both step and line edge types, with acceptable performance in the presence of anticipated noise levels. The approach is pragmatic, of low complexity, and of general utility.
Depressed Affect and Male Sexual Arousal

We investigated the effects of elated and depressed affect on sexual arousal in 15 sexually functional males. Subjects received elation and depression mood inductions in a repeated-measures design. Immediately following each induction, subjects viewed a brief erotic film during which penile tumescence and subjective sexual arousal were recorded continuously. Following depression induction there was a trend toward diminished subjective sexual arousal in the early portion of erotic exposure, and achievement of maximum subjective arousal was delayed; however, penile tumescence was unaffected. Multiple regression analysis indicated that tumescence during erotica was predictive of posterotica affect, independent of pre-erotica effect. The findings of delayed subjective arousal with no diminution in tumescence, although contrary to predictions, are consistent with previous research with sexually dysfunctional men. The study provides partial support for the role of depressed affect in the etiology of erectile dysfunction.
Effect of chiral end group variation on the properties of ferroelectric copolymers

Abstract The effect of changing the chiral end chain on the phase behavior and physical properties of some lactate-based side-chain copolymers are reported. Two classes of polymers have been studied, one with hydrocarbon groups and the other with fluorocarbon groups as terminal chains attached to the chiral center through an ester linkage. While the hydrocarbon materials exhibit larger range of the ferroelectric smectic-C* phase than the corresponding fluorocarbon analogs, the spontaneous polarization of the copolymers with fluorocarbon tails are found to be substantially larger than the corresponding hydrocarbon derivatives. The phase behavior of the copolymers is also compared with that of the corresponding unattached low molar mass side-group mesogens.
Photoabsorption of small metal clusters: Surface and volume modes.

The size-dependent dynamic polarizability of small clusters of simple metals is calculated analytically. It is predicted that the photoabsorption spectrum should consist of two peaks, one corresponding to surface, and the other to volume collective excitations. Unlike the case of bulk matter, the volume mode in small clusters can be excited by photons; its oscillator strength decreases with increasing cluster size. The derived oscillator-strength distribution is shown to satisfy exact energy-weighted sum rules. The results are used to explain experimental photoabsorption data.
C.S. O’Brien: Founder of the Department of Ophthalmology, the University of Iowa

Cecil Starling O’Brien, M.D. (1889–1977), was the founder (1927) of the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Iowa, and he is credited with the establishment of a strong department that has made many important contributions to ophthalmology. The surviving O’Brien residents were interviewed on videotape, and this article is a composite of their memories together with a brief biographical sketch of Dr. O’Brien.
Formal model of single agent planning situations

Planning is perhaps the single most important activity in any domain, be it a business enterprise, academics or personal life. However most efforts in a Artificial Intelligence to provideintelligent planners have met with a very limited success. Successful, non-trivial applications are limited to very domain and situation specific cases. A generic component which can serve as a schema or template from which planning aids to any specific domain can be instantiated would be very much useful in building specific planning applications. A formal method for characterizing the needed capabilities of a generic component is required. In this paper we present such a method and illustrate its use through analysis of simple agent planiing situations. The result of this analysis is presented in the form of an ontology, and a formal languags with an associated model theoretic semantics. The results presented can be used as a framework for benchmarking to compare and discriminate between the knowledge/information representation capabilites of different software systems. The results also serve as a model for formalizing the description of a particular class of engineering, business or manufacturing planning activities. The focus of this paper is on thekowledge andinformation that must berepresented rather than onplan generation strategies.
Patronizing speech to the elderly as a function of stereotyping

This study tested the predictions of a model of the role of the stereotypes of the elderly in interaction. Young adult subjects participated in a role playing task with two elderly targets, one representing a negative stereotype and one a positive stereotype. Their beliefs about their own and the targets’ vocal characteristics were assessed. Persuasive messages subjects delivered to targets were audiotaped. Results supported the predictions of the model. First, subjects rated the voice of the negative target as qualitatively older than the voice of the positive target. Second, ratings of subjects’ own vocal characteristics varied with the target, showing that they believed they would use a patronizing speech style with the negative target, but not with the positive one. Third, messages to the negative target contained more characteristics of the patronizing style than did messages to positive targets. Messages to negative targets contained fewer arguments, shorter utterances and were more demeaning in emo...
Causal modeling in communication research: Use, disuse, and misuse

The logic and procedures of causal modeling can help researchers avoid errors arising in more traditional analyses in a number of commonly occurring cases. A table of cases requiring causal modeling, or an equivalent technique, is presented. Nine years of published research in communication journals are reviewed to assess the adequacy of analysis in these situations. Standards for the conduct and reporting of causal modeling are also offered along with a review of their use in published causal modeling. These reviews indicate a number of areas demanding increased methodological rigor and sophistication in communication research.
PSMAC: Polling Service-based Medium Access Control for Wireless Networks

It has been shown in the literature that many MAC protocols for wireless networks, such as the IEEE 802.11 MAC, have a considerable control overhead, which limits their achievable throughput and delay performance. In this paper, we study the problem of improving the efficiency of MAC protocols. We first analyze the popular p-persistent CSMA scheme which does not achieve 100% throughput. Motivated by insights from polling system theory, we then present three polling service-based MAC schemes, termed PSMAC, for improved performance. The main idea is to serve multiple data frames after a successful contention resolution, thus amortizing the high control overhead and making the protocols more efficient. We present analysis and simulation studies of the proposed schemes. Our results show that the proposed algorithms can effectively improve the throughput and delay performance of p-persistent CSMA, as well as providing energy savings. The proposed schemes are more efficient for handling bursty traffic typically found in wireless networks. Finally, we observe that the proposed PSMAC schemes significantly outperform p-persistent CSMA with respect to fairness.