cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
High temperature and dehydration tolerance of the red velvet mite, Balaustium sp. (Erythraeidae), permit the exploitation of extremely hot, dry microhabitats

Red velvet mites Balaustium sp. nr. putmani, a mite commonly associated with landscaping projects throughout the Midwestern United States, show a particular affinity for warm, sunny locations. Adults display a remarkable tolerance for high temperature, capable of actively crawling on extremely hot surfaces for extended periods. To determine the upper thermal tolerance of this mite, we compared short-term 1-hour heat-shock responses, coupled with a behavioural scoring system, among all mobile instars (larva, deutonymph and adult) that occur on hot surfaces. Maximum heat shock for 50% survival was 48°C for larvae, 52°C for deutonymphs and 52–54°C for adults, which is high for an acarine and indicates that the active instars of this mite are generally resistant to heat stress. Larvae experienced their first major drop in survival of ≥20% between 42°C and 44°C; this drop occurred at 48–50°C for deutonymphs and 50–52°C for adults. A distinguishing feature of deutonymphs and adults is their ability to recover f...
Mice expressing activated PI3K rapidly develop advanced colon cancer

Aberrations in the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) signaling pathway play a key role in the pathogenesis of numerous cancers by altering cellular growth, metabolism, proliferation, and apoptosis. Mutations in the catalytic domain of PI3K that generate a dominantly active kinase are commonly found in human colorectal cancers and have been thought to drive tumor progression but not initiation. However, the effects of constitutively activated PI3K upon the intestinal mucosa have not been previously studied in animal models. Here, we show that the expression of a dominantly active form of the PI3K protein in the mouse intestine results in hyperplasia and advanced neoplasia. Mice expressing constitutively active PI3K in the epithelial cells of the distal small bowel and colon rapidly developed invasive adenocarcinomas in the colon that spread into the mesentery and adjacent organs. The histologic characteristics of these tumors were strikingly similar to invasive mucinous colon cancers in humans. Interestingly, these tumors formed without a benign polypoid intermediary, consistent with the lack of aberrant WNT signaling observed. Together, our findings indicate a noncanonical mechanism of colon tumor initiation that is mediated through activation of PI3K. This unique model has the potential to further our understanding of human disease and facilitate the development of therapeutics through pharmacologic screening and biomarker identification.
Preparation and biological activity of taxol acetates

Synthesis and biological activity of 2'-acetyltaxol and 7-acetyltaxol are reported. Activity is measured in vivo by cytotoxicity toward the macrophage-like cell line J774.2, and in vitro by promotion of microtubule assembly in the absence of exogenous GTP. Addition of an acetyl moiety at C-2' results in loss of in vitro activity but not cytotoxicity. The properties of 7-acetyltaxol are similar to those of taxol in its effects on cell replication and on in vitro microtubule polymerization. Therefore a free hydroxyl group at C-7 is not required for in vitro activity and this position is available for structural modifications.
Electrical impedance measurements of polymer light-emitting diodes

We report electrical impedance measurements of polymer light‐emitting diodes employing the soluble, conjugated polymer poly[2‐methoxy, 5‐(2’‐ethyl‐hexyloxy)‐1,4‐phenylene vinylene] (MEH‐PPV) as the light‐emitting layer. The diode structures were metal‐polymer‐metal structures utilizing thin gold as the transparent, positive contact, and calcium as the negative contact. The devices were fabricated using undoped, polymer active layers ∼40 nm thick. The polymer light‐emitting diodes are accurately modeled as a resistor and capacitor in parallel for frequencies from 100 Hz to 1 MHz and for bias conditions from reverse bias to forward current densities of 0.1 A/cm2. The diode capacitance as a function of bias voltage is qualitatively different from conventional Schottky or p‐n junction diodes; in reverse bias, the polymer layer is fully depleted and the capacitance is independent of bias; at small forward bias, traps are charged near the metallic contacts and the capacitance increases; under large forward bias, with significant electron and hole injection, the traps are neutralized and the capacitance decreases. From the magnitude of the initial increase in capacitance with forward bias the trap density is estimated to be only a few times 1016 cm−3.
Effects of endotoxin on regulation of intestinal smooth muscle nitric oxide synthase and intestinal transit.

Background: The disrupted intestinal transit during endotoxemia may be mediated by nitric oxide (NO). We hypothesized that the isoforms of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) are up-regulated in intestinal smooth muscle during endotoxemia and that the scavenging of NO will normalize transit. Methods: Rats were given Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS) 10 mg/kg intravenously and were killed 4 hours later. To determine the activity of NOS isoforms in the jejunum and ileum, the conversion of tritiated L -arginine to tritiated L -citrulline was measured. Western immunoblots were performed by incubating the extracted protein with specific polyclonal antibodies. To determine intestinal transit, rats were divided into 4 groups: 0.9% sodium chloride 1 mL/h intravenously for 5 hours, LPS 10 mg/kg intravenous bolus plus 1 mL/h 0.9% sodium chloride intravenously, LPS plus oxyhemoglobin 0.5 g/kg/h intravenously, and oxyhemoglobin 0.5 g/kg/h intravenously. Results: LPS increased the constitutive and inducible NOS enzyme activities in the jejunum and ileum. Western blots demonstrated that LPS up-regulates both the NOS1 and NOS2 isoforms in jejunal and ileal smooth muscle. Oxyhemoglobin alone increased intestinal transit compared with controls, whereas endotoxemia increased intestinal transit, which was ameliorated with infusions of oxyhemoglobin. Conclusions: NO may play a major role in mediating the rapid intestinal transit induced by endotoxemia. (Surgery 1999;125:339-44.)
Primate Cognition: Putting Two and Two Together

The human mind has the capacity for abstract numerical representations that cut across different sensory modalities. New research with monkeys shows that this mathematical achievement is not unique to our species.
Visualizing the dose distribution and linear energy transfer by 1D and 2D ESR imaging: a potassium dithionate dosimeter irradiated with C6+ and N7+ ions.

We report the application of one- and two-dimensional (1D and 2D) spectral-spatial electron spin resonance imaging (ESRI) for visualizing the dose distribution and linear energy transfer (LET) in a potassium dithionate, K 2S2O6 (PDT), dosimeter irradiated with the heavy ions C6+ and N7+. The ESR spectrum in the irradiated PDT consists of a superposition of two isotropic signals assigned to two ·SO3- radicals, R1 and R2, with no hyperfine splittings and slightly different g values. The ID ESRI profiles clearly indicate the spatial penetration of the beams and the location of the sharp maximum dose, the "Bragg peak", detected for each beam. The depth penetrations are different: ≈2.3 mm for C6+ and ≈1.8 mm for N7+ beams, ±0.1 mm, beyond these limits, no radicals were detected. 2D spectral-spatial ESRI images reflect both the dose distribution and the spatial dependence of the relative intensities of radicals R1 and R2, an effect that is assigned to the depth variation of the LET. This study has demonstrated that ESRI is a promising new method for dose and LET determination. Of particular interest are applications in the field of radiotherapy with heavy ions, because in this case the Bragg peak is pronounced and the dose can be focused at specific depths while the surrounding areas are protected. © 2008 American Chemical Society.
Implementation of federal education programs: Implications for future federal policy

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965 was built mainly on aspirations. Experience with intergovernmental politics and management in education was not abundant before the mid-1960s, and, even if it had been, there is reason to doubt that it would have affected the aspirations of reformers. Now, with more than 15 years of experience in these matters, it is possible for federal action to reflect thoughtful assessment, since the federal role has been subject to close scrutiny for virtually the whole period. The purpose of this paper is to supply some of the analysis that might have occurred when Congress passed the Educational Consolidation and Improvement Act (ECIA) of 1981. We draw upon the major findings of research on the implementation of federal education policy to suggest some principles that might apply in the development of policy in future years. Before considering the conclusions of implementation studies, it is important to make explicit some relatively stable parameters of the federal role in education. First, the Federal Government has, and will continue to have, policy objectives different from those pursued by many states and localities. To assume otherwise is to misunderstand both the nature of the federal system and the differences in political incentives that operate at the national, state, and local levels. The Federal Government tends to pursue equity-producing policies more than states and localities, not because national politicians and bureaucrats are inherently more
Spectrum of endocrine abnormalities associated with acanthosis nigricans

Acanthosis nigricans is a marker for disorders of insulin action, endocrine abnormalities, and cancer of internal organs. To evaluate the clinical significance of this marker the systemic alterations and clinical features of 26 patients with acanthosis nigricans seen at two institutions were reviewed. Most subjects affected by acanthosis nigricans were female (20 patients), Caucasian (22 patients), in the third decade of life (13 patients), and overweight (24 patients greater than 120 percent ideal body weight). Gonadal disease, present in 17 patients, was expressed as polycystic ovary syndrome (11 cases), disorders of prolactin secretion (two cases, one with polycystic ovary syndrome), streak gonads (one case), and hypogonadism of the male (four cases). Thyroid disease and tinea versicolor were present in four patients each. Three patients were receiving insulin therapy for diabetes mellitus, and in two additional patients diabetes mellitus was detected during the diagnostic workup. All patients had elevated fasting insulin levels; most of them also had an exaggerated insulin response to a glucose load. Two of 18 patients tested had antibodies against the insulin receptor in the circulation. Skin biopsy of acanthosis nigricans lesions from all 26 patients showed a typical pattern of hyperkeratosis, acanthosis, and epidermal papillomatosis. Colloidal iron staining showed glycosaminoglycan infiltration of the papillary dermis (21 of 21 cases), consisting mainly of hyaluronic acid. It is concluded that: (1) hyperinsulinenemia and local dermal glycosaminoglycan deposition are regular features in acanthosis nigricans and (2) patients with acanthosis nigricans should be screened for diabetes mellitus, gonadal disease, and hypothyroidism.
Coordination synthesis on organomagnesium centers: octaphenylcubane

Abstract Diphenylacetylene is tetramerized uniquely by arylmagnesium to a C 56 H 40 hvdrocarbon for which the octaphenylcubane structure has been proposed. Synthesis of the cubane ring system cannot be duplicated when methyl or methyl-phenyl substituents are present on acetylene or various other organic groups on magnesium. The singular character of cubane synthesis on magnesium centers is related in a peculiar manner to an environment of aryl groups.
Pain management as triadic interaction: shifting alliances in nurse-patient-family-member communication

Throughout an individual's life, family exerts a major influence on his or her healthcare choices and behavior. Families often act as surrogates for the patient by providing information to nurses and other healthcare providers regarding a patient's pain and illness symptoms. Viewing the pain-management process as triadic interaction, researchers used in-depth interviews with 21 nurses to investigate nurses' perceptions of the role families have in assessing and managing a patient's pain. Participants in this study described situations where patient-family member alliances formed in opposition to the attending nurse. Attempts at providing social support to the patient resulted in interference with nurse-patient communication, negative effects on the patient's healthcare, and damaging, or even life-threatening, impacts on the patient's health.
Description and recognition of curved objects

Analysis of scenes of three-dimensional objects has, in the past, been largely limited to the world of polyhedra. Techniques for generating structured, symbolic descriptions of complex curved objects by segmenting them into simpler sub-parts are presented here. The complexity of objects used is that of toy animals and hand tools. Recognition is performed by matching these descriptions with stored descriptions of models. A laser ranging techniques is used to acquire three-dimensional position of points on the visible surfaces. Successful segmentation and recognition results have been obtained for scenes with multiple, occluding objects in various orientations and with a variety of articulations of sub-parts.
The self‐limiting success of Iran sanctions

Economic sanctions have often been considered an important tool for disciplining adversaries and compelling them to offer important concessions. History, however, suggests otherwise. Economic penalties rarely cause states to abandon important national assets. After decades of struggling under punitive financial measures, Iran has persisted with its objectionable policies ranging from terrorism to proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. All this suggests that ideological regimes that put a premium on their political priorities and which are seemingly insensitive to the mounting costs of their belligerence may not be suitable candidates for the type of cost-benefit analysis that sanctions diplomacy invites.
The time course of pacemaker inhibition in the hydroid Tubularia.

1. Stimulating the DOS, a conducting system in Tubularia , inhibits spontaneous firing of the principal pacemaker systems of the polyp, the NP and HP systems. 2. The overall inhibition is greater the greater the stimulus frequency and there rebound from inhibition at the end of the stimulation period. 3. The latent period for NP inhibition is 0.4-0.6 sec and the duration of inhibition 4-5 sec. 4. The time course and extent of NP inhibition is independent of stimulus frequency except at high frequency where there is diminishing effectiveness of inhibition with time. 5. HP inhibition has a similarly long latent period and even longer duration, lasting 15-20 sec. 6. HP inhibition from successive stimuli can sum to produce a more intense effect. 7. The behavioural significance of the inhibition seems to be to reduce spontaneous polyp movements during food capture and ingestion.
Aerobic biodegradation of [14C]3-chloro-P-toluidine hydrochloride in a loam soil

Degradation of the pesticide 3-chloro-p-toluidine hydrochloride (CPTH) occurred in a loam soil when applied at concentrations of 3.5 and 35 μg/g. The compound degraded according to pseudo-first-order kinetics, with a calculated rate constant of 2.74 X 10 -2 h -1 , at a soil temperature of 22°C ; this rate constant yielded a half-life of 25 h. The loss of radiolabeled CPTH from soil was suggested to be controlled by both irreversible binding to the soil colloids and microbial transformation. Mineralization of the radiolabeled CPTH was interpreted as involving two zero-order kinetic rates ; an initial rate of carbon dioxide release was estimated to be 0.33% d-' (half-life of 152 d), followed by a slower rate of 0.07% d-', which resulted in a half-life of 718 d. Approximately 13% of the radiolabeled CPTH that was applied to soil at 3.5 μg/g was mineralized to [ 14 C] carbon dioxide during the 99-d incubation period. A primary metabolite was identified as N-acetyl-3-chloro-p-toluidine (ACPTH) ; this metabolite reached a maximum concentration at the 1-d sampling period, and degraded with a pseudo-first-order rate constant of 2.67 x 10 -2 h -1 ; the half-life for ACPTH was calculated to be 26 h. When CPTH was applied to soil at 35 μg/g, the compound was also mineralized in soil by a similar metabolic pathway to that observed at the lower concentration. However, the rate of mineralization was slower, which suggests that elevated soil concentrations of CPTH may affect the viability of certain microorganisms.
A signal acquisition and management system for bioelectrical signals

A signal acquisition and management system (SAMS) that provides a unified environment for analog signal acquisition, signal data preprocessing, detection of characteristic waveforms of interest (events), and management of the signal database and the event database is described. The data acquisition takes place on a DEC Micro/PDP-11 computer, while the remaining functions are performed on the DEC VAXstation. While at present the use of SAMS is for bioelectrical signal analysis, it should be suitable for other application areas of multichannel signal processing. Additions being considered to enhance the system include frequency-domain operators and other time-domain operators such as multichannel adaptive filtering. >
Functional Connectivity of Substantia Nigra and Ventral Tegmental Area: Maturation During Adolescence and Effects of ADHD

Dopaminergic (DArgic) pathways play crucial roles in brain function and their disruption is implicated in various neuropsychiatric diseases. Here, we demonstrate in 402 healthy children/adolescents (12 ± 3 years) and 704 healthy young adults (23 ± 5 years) that the functional connectivity of DA pathways matures significantly from childhood to adulthood and is different for healthy children and children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; N = 203; 12 ± 3 years). This transition is characterized by age-related increases in the functional connectivity of the ventral tegmental area (VTA) with limbic regions and with the default mode network and by decreases in the connectivity of the substantia nigra (SN) with motor and medial temporal cortices. The changes from a predominant influence of SN in childhood/adolescence to a combined influence of SN and VTA in young adulthood might explain the increased vulnerability to psychiatric disorders, such as ADHD, early in life. We also show that VTA and SN connectivity networks were highly reproducible, which highlights their potential value as biomarkers for evaluating DArgic dysfunction in neuropsychiatric disorders.
Is Democracy an Ethical Standard

This article explores the Western cultural traditions of democracy and freedom which form a political ethic deeply rooted in the underlying philosophical and theological American heritage. Theories of Machiavelli, Montesqieu, and Niebuhr support the notion that the potential for virtue is found in all individuals, who, through their undeniable freedoms, responsibilities, and participation, have the capability to establish a political community based on democracy, justice, and respect for human rights. Virtue, justice, morality, ethics, freedom, and democracy are all necessary elements for establishing and maintaining the political community. Can history serve to uphold democracy as an ethical standard of governance? The author suggests that the basic and cross-temporal cornerstones of morality; the family and religion serve as “intermediate” social structures in attaining the central virtues of a moral democracy.
Shopping for Colleges When What We Know Ain’t

The cost of attending a 4-yr. private university can easily top $150,000, making education one of the most expensive purchases we make. Unfortunately, the sorts of informed opinions and objective comparisons that are widely available for other large consumer purchases, like automobiles, are lacking in education. Instead we must make due with ad hoc indexes like that published annually by U.S. News and World Report . A recent alternative to this index using preference rankings was proposed. In this essay I discuss the challenges facing this index, and other survey instruments, caused by nonignorable missing data. My conclusion is not optimistic.
Rapid and Specific Method for Evaluating Streptomyces Competitive Dynamics in Complex Soil Communities

Quantifying target microbial populations in complex communities remains a barrier to studying species interactions in soil environments. Quantitative PCR (qPCR) assays were developed for quantifying pathogenic Streptomyces scabiei and antibiotic-producing Streptomyces lavendulae strains in complex soil communities. This assay will be useful for evaluating the competitive dynamics of streptomycetes in soil.
Laser irradiated nano-architectured undoped tin oxide arrays: mechanism of ultrasensitive room temperature hydrogen sensing.

Undoped nanostructured tin oxide (SnO2) arrays were prepared on oxidized Si substrates by nanosecond pulsed laser interference irradiation for hydrogen gas sensing applications. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), in combination with Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), showed that the SnO2 surface consisted of periodic features of ∼130 nm width, ∼228 nm spacing, an average height of ∼8 nm along the periodicity and tens of microns length. The SnO2 nanostructured arrays and precursor thin films were tested by cyclic exposure under dynamic conditions of hydrogen in the concentration range of 300–9000 ppm. The observed electrical response of SnO2 towards hydrogen at low concentrations and room temperature drastically improved in the nanostructured array as compared to the thin film. The results suggest that this method to fabricate SnO2 nanostructured arrays has the potential to produce nanodevices that have ultra-low detection limits, and fast response and recovery times, which are suited for practical hydrogen sensing applications.
Inappropriate Reference Intervals for Carboxyhemoglobin at Some Florida Hospitals

We recently conducted an investigation of unintentional carbon monoxide (CO) poisonings in hurricane-affected areas of Florida during the 2004 hurricane season (1). During this process, we reviewed the medical records of 167 persons treated for CO poisoning at 10 hospitals around the state, including 2 with hyperbaric oxygen chambers. Blood carboxyhemoglobin (HbCO) concentrations are used to confirm the diagnosis of CO poisoning, although these concentrations are not always well correlated with clinical manifestation or outcome. However, a 1995 survey of 23 hospitals and laboratories in the Boston area …
A novel low-loss slow-wave microstrip structure

A low-loss slow-wave microstrip line using a periodic structure in the ground plane is presented. The periodic structure is realized with metal pads etched in the ground plane connected by thin lines to form a distributed LC network. The slow-wave factor is demonstrated to be 1.2-2.4 times larger than that of conventional microstrip lines over a wide frequency range. Due to the unique design of the structure, low insertion loss comparable to conventional microstrips has been achieved. The proposed structure is easier to fabricate than other slow-wave devices which require multilayer substrates or very fine features.
The dimensions effect of FAM rule table in fuzzy PID logic control systems

To choose the proper number of generic elements in the universe of discourse in the design of a fuzzy logic controller (FLC) is always arbitrary and obscure. The authors examine the effects of the table dimensions when a domain expert does not exist. They test the proportional-integral-derivative (PID) FLC with a three-dimensional fuzzy associated memory (FAM) rule table whose entries are obtained from fuzzy addition on a dynamic second-order tracking problem. The objective is to examine and compare the effect of the types of tables through the transient response of a second-order system. Simulation results show that a fuzzy system which uses an even type of FAM rule table is more suitable for controlling a second-order plant which demands slightly underdamped response. >
Overcoming the Response Plateau in Multiple Myeloma: A Novel Bortezomib-Based Strategy for Secondary Induction and High-Yield CD34+ Stem Cell Mobilization

Purpose: This phase II study evaluated bortezomib-based secondary induction and stem cell mobilization in 38 transplant-eligible patients with myeloma who had an incomplete and stalled response to, or had relapsed after, previous immunomodulatory drug-based induction. Experimental Design: Patients received up to six 21-day cycles of bortezomib plus dexamethasone, with added liposomal doxorubicin for patients not achieving partial response or better by cycle 2 or very good partial response or better (≥VGPR) by cycle 4 (DoVeD), followed by bortezomib, high-dose cyclophosphamide, and filgrastim mobilization. Gene expression/signaling pathway analyses were conducted in purified CD34+ cells after bortezomib-based mobilization and compared against patients who received only filgrastim ± cyclophosphamide. Plasma samples were similarly analyzed for quantification of associated protein markers. Results: The response rate to DoVeD relative to the pre-DoVeD baseline was 61%, including 39% ≥VGPR. Deeper responses were achieved in 10 of 27 patients who received bortezomib-based mobilization; postmobilization response rate was 96%, including 48% ≥VGPR, relative to the pre-DoVeD baseline. Median CD34+ cell yield was 23.2 × 10 6 cells/kg (median of 1 apheresis session). After a median follow-up of 46.6 months, median progression-free survival was 47.1 months from DoVeD initiation; 5-year overall survival rate was 76.4%. Grade ≥3 adverse events included thrombocytopenia (13%), hand–foot syndrome (11%), peripheral neuropathy (8%), and neutropenia (5%). Bortezomib-based mobilization was associated with modulated expression of genes involved in stem cell migration. Conclusion: Bortezomib-based secondary induction and mobilization could represent an alternative strategy for elimination of tumor burden in immunomodulatory drug-resistant patients that does not impact stem cell yield. Clin Cancer Res; 19(6); 1534–46. ©2013 AACR .
Cultural Production of a Decolonial Imaginary for a Young Chicana: Lessons from Mexican Immigrant Working-Class Woman's Culture

Chicanas and Mexican women share a history of colonialism that has (a) sustained oppressive constructions of gender roles and sexuality, (b) produced and reproduced them as racially inferior and as able to be silenced, conquered, and dominated physically and mentally, and (c) contributed to the exploitation of their labor. Given that colonialism has also come to shape the way young women of Mexican heritage learn in mainstream US schools, informal education from everyday women's conviviality and solidarity becomes a pivotal context in which they can learn how to reconstitute colonial legacies. We examine how a group of Mexican working-class immigrant women at home and in a sweatshop fashion a girl named Ana, the main character in the popular film Real Women Have Curves, into a confident young woman who engages in what Perez (1999, 2003) refers to as empowering and dynamic decolonial ways of seeing, knowing, doing, being, and reconstituting. In spite of its contradictions that, at times, assist in reproduc...
The Retired Nurses Working in Neighborhoods (RN+WIN) Program: An Approach Toward Sustainability of an Academic Nurse—Managed Wellness Center

Obtaining resources for sustainability of academic nursing centers is an ongoing challenge. Academic wellness centers face challenges related to the limited availability of insurance to meet demand and resources for state and local contracts or fee for service. Traditionally, state and local contracts and fee-for-service insurance plans do not cover preventive or wellness-related health services. In addition, third party reimbursement for wellness, disease prevention and health promotion, and health education services may be limited because of Current Procedural Terminology codes. An approach toward sustainability of the Duquesne University School of Nursing Nurse-Managed Wellness Center was to build on the human resources of volunteer retired nurses residing in the neighboring communities of the university.This article describes the RN+WIN program as a creative approach toward sustainability of an academic nurse—managed wellness center.
The Manifestations of Schizophrenia in Late Life: A Dearth of Data

Published data about the course of schizophrenia in late life are very limited. Overall, elderly patients with schizophrenia appear to suffer less from active or positive symptoms and more from residual or negative symptoms than they did when they were younger; therefore, older patients usually require a different type of management. There exists strong evidence that deterioration in schizophrenia generally occurs earlier rather than later in the disorder's natural history and is typically not relentlessly progressive. Nonetheless, schizophrenia remains a severe disorder that can be chronic and, in a proportion of patients, unremitting throughout life. Few studies have outlined which factors are associated with a more positive outcome.
Bregman bubble clustering: A robust framework for mining dense clusters

In classical clustering, each data point is assigned to at least one cluster. However, in many applications only a small subset of the available data is relevant for the problem and the rest needs to be ignored in order to obtain good clusters. Certain nonparametric density-based clustering methods find the most relevant data as multiple dense regions, but such methods are generally limited to low-dimensional data and do not scale well to large, high-dimensional datasets. Also, they use a specific notion of “distance”, typically Euclidean or Mahalanobis distance, which further limits their applicability. On the other hand, the recent One Class Information Bottleneck (OC-IB) method is fast and works on a large class of distortion measures known as Bregman Divergences, but can only find a single dense region. This article presents a broad framework for finding k dense clusters while ignoring the rest of the data. It includes a seeding algorithm that can automatically determine a suitable value for k. When k is forced to 1, our method gives rise to an improved version of OC-IB with optimality guarantees. We provide a generative model that yields the proposed iterative algorithm for finding k dense regions as a special case. Our analysis reveals an interesting and novel connection between the problem of finding dense regions and exponential mixture models; a hard model corresponding to k exponential mixtures with a uniform background results in a set of k dense clusters. The proposed method describes a highly scalable algorithm for finding multiple dense regions that works with any Bregman Divergence, thus extending density based clustering to a variety of non-Euclidean problems not addressable by earlier methods. We present empirical results on three artificial, two microarray and one text dataset to show the relevance and effectiveness of our methods.
Uncertainty in Minimum Lifetime Predictions

The uncertainty in minimum lifetime predictions based on crack velocity, static fatigue, and dynamic fatigue data is estimated by both a Monte Carlo simulation technique and the law of propagation of errors. The statistical analysis of typical data for glass shows that the 2 techniques give similar estimates for the uncertainty in minimum lifetime predictions as long as the coefficient of variation of the experimental parameters does not exceed ∼10%. The estimated uncertainty in the minimum lifetime is used to place confidence limits on failure predictions.
Recognition of electrocardiographic lead misplacements.

Abstract Improper placement of recording electrodes on the skin can generate misleading patterns on the electrocardiogram (ECG). The alterations in the normal ECG caused by lead misplacement were reviewed. Although mest clinicians can recognize the common right arm/left arm lead switch that imitates a nonsinus atrial rhythm with high anterolateral myocardial infarction, many other errors are possible. Less common lead placement errors are often difficult to detect. Exchanging the right arm and left leg leads creates what seems to be an inferior wall myocardial infarction and a nonsinus atrial rhythm in normal patients. Reversal of the right arm and right leg connections creates a unique pattern of diffuse low voltage in the limb leads. Precordial lead switches are common and can be recognized by the abnormal R wave progression that is created.
ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF TEMPERATURE AND WIND IN THE UPPER WESTERLIES

Abstract Systematic studies of certain meridional cross sections carried out at the University of Chicago indicate that the westerlies in the upper troposphere and at the level of the tropopause often show a very narrow zone with extremely strong winds in the region above the frontal layer between the subtropical and the polar air. An example showing the method of analysis and its principal results is given. The stability of the strong westerly current (the “jet stream”) in this type of zonal air flow and the corresponding temperature distribution at the level of 200 mb are discussed.
Comment—A New Angle on Strophomenid Paleoecology: Trace-Fossil Evidence of an Escape Response for the Plectambonitoid Brachiopod Sowerbyella rugosa from a Tempestite in the Upper Ordovician Kope Formation (Edenian) of Northern Kentucky (Dattilo, 2004)

In his recent article, Dattilo (2004) suggested that strophomenide brachiopods, in particular the plectambonitoid Sowerbyella , were capable of active locomotion, and even burrowing. The article argues that Sowerbyella was capable of living quasi-infaunally and upright, with the shell edgewise—a position that could be obtained by burrowing. As Dattilo summarizes, the consensus view (Rudwick, 1970; Richards, 1972; Alexander, 1975; Alexander and Scharpf, 1990; Leighton and Savarese, 1996; Leighton, 1998) of strophomenide life-position is that relatively immobile strophomenides lived convex-valve down. Dattilo notes that the primary argument of these studies was based on functional tests and conclusions, but that these studies assumed that the free-lying strophomenides were incapable of extensive movement. Dattilo, however, points out that if this assumption of relative immobility is incorrect, then strophomenides would be capable of achieving any orientation. As such, hypotheses that concavo-convex brachiopods lived with the convex-valve up (Lescinsky, 1995) would be plausible, and Dattilo argued that the epibiont-distribution data presented by Lescinsky, supporting a convex-valve up orientation, has not been refuted. Dattilo further suggests that Lescinsky's data were dismissed (Leighton, 1998) on the grounds of functional considerations (i.e., strophomenide immobility) that are not necessarily valid. This brings up an important point about the nature of functional evidence. Functional morphology has a poor reputation because many functional studies have been relatively sparse in data; functional hypotheses were often analogous to Kiplingesque “just-so” stories (Gould and Lewontin, 1979). It is interesting that the convex-up versus convex-down debate seemed to be indicative of a more modern approach to functional morphology in paleontology. For the past 35 years there has been a series of studies using two primary approaches for addressing orientation questions in the fossil record: epibiont distribution and biomechanical experiments. Both approaches aim to test functional plausibility. Both methods are valid. …
Perspectives on Establishing the Relationship between Acidic Deposition and Vegetation Responses

In order to understand the response of vegetation to an air pollutant, definite cause and effect relationships must be established. Survey methods which document only the mutual occurrence of two events will not provide adequate information on which to base a cause and effect relationship. To administer experimental treatments, knowledge of the spatial, temporal, and other characteristics of ambient precipitation must be understood and technical equipment must be available to administer such treatments. For acidic deposition studies, exclusion of ambient acidic deposition must be accomplished so that the effects of administered treatments can be separated from the effects of ambient precipitation. Previous experience has demonstrated that the exclusion of ambient deposition and administration of experimental treatments should be accomplished under conditions which most closely approximate natural environments because vegetation responses have been shown to differ under controlled environmental conditions compared with field conditions. In experiments performed under natural field conditions, many plants per replicate and a large number of treatment replicates are necessary in order to separate treatment effects from random environmental variables. The following factors may make a linkage between acidic deposition and forest decline difficult to establish. The chemical, physiological, and episodic nature of acidic deposition exposures at either low or high elevation sites are not well documented. Visible symptoms exhibited by needles or trees in decline are not well characterized. The decline in forest growth does not appear to be of recent origin. Visible foliar symptoms which are directly attributable to ambient acidic deposition have rarely been observed. Environmental factors other than acidic deposition may be concurrently influencing these tree species. Consideration of these aspects is necessary to establish a relationship between acidic deposition and forest decline in the northern Appalachians.
Basu’s Work on Likelihood and Information

It has been a joy learning from Dev Basu’s work on aspects of statistical inference, and especially his deep and often provocative essays on fallacies of common statistical principles. I will limit myself to his epic paper Statistical Information and Likelihood.
Bis(tripyrazol-1-ylmethane)nickel(II) tetra-cyanidonickelate(II) dihydrate.

The title complex, [Ni(C10H10N6)2][Ni(CN)4]·2H2O, contains an octa­hedral nickel(II) cation and a square-planar nickel(II) anion. Both the cation and the anion reside on a crystallographic center of inversion. The NiII center in the cation is coordinated by six pyrazol-1-yl rings of two chelating tripyrazol-1-ylmethane [HC(pz)3] ligands, with Ni—N distances that range between 2.0647 (19) and 2.0828 (19) A. The NiII center in the anion is coordinated by four cyanide ligands, with Ni—C distances in the range 1.869 (2)–1.869 (3) A. The [Ni(CN)4]2− anions are linked by inversion-related water mol­ecules into extended chains that run parallel to the a axis.
Love Has No End: Ghada Amer

Art, like psychoanalysis, is a site for cultural transmission and its critique. The work of Ghada Amer, an Egyptian living in New York, speaks to issues that beleaguer contemporary psychoanalysis, particularly the relationship between individuals and their cultural/political surrounds. Her gorgeous paintings, often combining brushwork and embroidery, are infused with concerns such as the submission of women to the tyranny of domestic life, sexuality and pleasure, and the incomprehensibility of love. Amer tackles in a candid and personal way the mystique and impasse between the Western gaze and Islam, inviting us to examine the foolishness of war and violence. The different elements in Amer's paintings speak to the multiplicity of identities that confuse our postmodern existence. They share a life on the canvas, creating a sequence of interpellations, each hailing a different self-state yet allowing us to examine how ideologies work to imprison us.
Obtaining well calibrated probabilities using bayesian binning

Learning probabilistic predictive models that are well calibrated is critical for many prediction and decision-making tasks in artificial intelligence. In this paper we present a new non-parametric calibration method called Bayesian Binning into Quantiles (BBQ) which addresses key limitations of existing calibration methods. The method post processes the output of a binary classification algorithm; thus, it can be readily combined with many existing classification algorithms. The method is computationally tractable, and empirically accurate, as evidenced by the set of experiments reported here on both real and simulated datasets.
Choosing an Advisor

You have decided the field you want to pursue and have begun to think about your chances of matching. You have a sense of what the steps are going to be and the timetable for them, but it all still seems daunting. This is where your residency advisor comes in. He or she will be the most useful tool you have at your disposal. It is your advisor who can act as a touchstone for your thoughts, point you in the right direction, and keep you on track for a match that is right for you. He or she provides moral support and is an endless source of information that is not readily available anywhere else. This person is different for any advisors you have had during medical school thus far; he or she will be a mentor. This mentor is specific and skilled in the process of getting you into the residency of your choice. Given the value of your advisor, how do you go about getting the right one and using him or her to best advantage?
Economic Ideology and Japanese Industrial Policy: Developmentalism from 1931 to 1965

1. Introduction 2. The ideology of Japanese developmentalism 3. The managed economy 4. Priority production 5. Promoting exports 6. High growth and liberalization 7. The institutional environment of economic reasoning References in English References in Japanese.
Femtosecond Laser Melting of Graphite and Diamond

Femtosecond time-resolved reflectivity measurements performed on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) and diamond elucidate the nature of the phase transition from solid to liquid carbon. In HOPG, we find that a high-reflectivity phase lasting as long as 10 ps appears when the surface is irradiated with pulse fluences in excess of 0.13 J/cm 2 , the critical fluence for melting. This transforms within 30 ps into an equilibrium low-reflectivity phase lasting hundreds of ps, similar to behavior observed in picosecond reflectivity experiments. The results suggest the occurrence of a two-step phase transition (graphite -> liquid metal -> liquid insulator) when HOPG is excited above the critical fluence. Similar results are obtained with diamond.
Aging Cohabiting Couples and Family Policy: Different-Sex and Same-Sex Couples.

Studies of family life among older Americans typically have focused on marital status categories including married, never married, divorced/separated, and widowed. The older adult population has experienced considerable changes in marriage and living arrangements with declines in marriage coupled with growth in divorce and living alone (Brown & Lin, 2012; Lin & Brown, 2012; Manning & Brown, 2011). The literature on family life among older Americans has struggled to keep paces with these changes. Comparatively few studies have considered the unique features of later life cohabitation.
Renal function during chronic anemia in the ovine fetus

Our purpose was to determine how prolonged anemia alters fetal renal function and acid-base balance. In seven ovine fetuses made progressively anemic over 1 wk by serial isovolemic hemorrhage, hematocrit was reduced from 33.3 +/- 4.5 to 14.0 +/- 1.0%. Femoral arterial oxygen content was less and renal plasma flow was greater in anemic fetuses (1.5 +/- 0.1 ml/dl and 339 +/- 58 ml.min-1.100 g kidney-1) than in 6 control fetuses (7.0 +/- 1.3 ml/dl and 160 +/- 34 ml.min-1.100 g kidney-1). Urine flow and sodium excretion were also greater in anemic fetuses (1.2 +/- 0.6 ml/min and 79 +/- 49.5 mumol/min) than in controls (0.5 +/- 0.2 ml/min and 16 +/- 9.8 mumol/min). This higher sodium excretion was apparently due to a lower fractional sodium reabsorption in anemic fetuses compared with controls (84.1 +/- 5.8 vs. 96.5 +/- 1.7%), rather than to differences in either glomerular filtration rate or amount of filtered sodium. In addition, the higher sodium excretion in anemic fetuses was associated with greater urinary lactate and inorganic phosphate excretions and larger amniotic fluid volumes than in controls. From these data we conclude that when fetal renal oxygen delivery is limited by a prolonged reduction in hematocrit, excretions of sodium and water, as well as other osmotically active solutes, increase, and this results in an increase in amniotic fluid volume.
Identification and Characterization of a Putative Manganese Export Protein in Vibrio cholerae.

ABSTRACT Manganese plays an important role in the cellular physiology and metabolism of bacterial species, including the human pathogen Vibrio cholerae. The intracellular level of manganese ions is controlled through coordinated regulation of the import and export of this element. We have identified a putative manganese exporter (VC0022), named mneA (manganese exporter A), which is highly conserved among Vibrio spp. An mneA mutant exhibited sensitivity to manganese but not to other cations. Under high-manganese conditions, the mneA mutant showed an almost 50-fold increase in intracellular manganese levels and reduced intracellular iron relative to those of its wild-type parent, suggesting that the mutant9s manganese sensitivity is due to the accumulation of toxic levels of manganese and reduced iron. Expression of mneA suppressed the manganese-sensitive phenotype of an Escherichia coli strain carrying a mutation in the nonhomologous manganese export gene, mntP, further supporting a manganese export function for V. cholerae MneA. The level of mneA mRNA was induced approximately 2.5-fold after addition of manganese to the medium, indicating regulation of this gene by manganese. This study offers the first insights into understanding manganese homeostasis in this important pathogen. IMPORTANCE Bacterial cells control intracellular metal concentrations by coordinating acquisition in metal-limited environments with export in metal-excess environments. We identified a putative manganese export protein, MneA, in Vibrio cholerae. An mneA mutant was sensitive to manganese, and this effect was specific to manganese. The mneA mutant accumulated high levels of intracellular manganese with a concomitant decrease in intracellular iron levels when grown in manganese-supplemented medium. Expression of mneA in trans suppressed the manganese sensitivity of an E. coli mntP mutant. This study is the first to investigate manganese export in V. cholerae.
Risk Preferences and Obesity: A Behavioral Economics Approach

Risk aversion has been shown to have a negative effect on adverse health behaviors such as smoking and heavy alcohol consumption. However, the significance and sign of the effect of risk aversion on the tendency to be obese has not been established in previous research. Additionally, the knowledge of specific health risks arising from obesity has been shown to have a significant negative effect on obesity, although the interaction between health risk awareness and risk aversion has not been studied. This paper fills this gap in the literature by studying the relationship between risk preferences, health risk knowledge and the occurrence of obesity within. In this paper, data from a nationally representative survey of adults in the United States is used to determine the significance of measures for both risk aversion and health risk knowledge on the likelihood of obesity, while controlling for the usual variables shown by previous research to be predictors for obesity. Risk aversion is found to have a positive and significant effect on obesity within the general population; however, this effect loses its significance within sub-populations who exhibit awareness of the health risk from obesity, as measured by two different proxy variables.