cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Snapshots of Replication through an Abasic Lesion; Structural Basis for Base Substitutions and Frameshifts.

Dpo4 from S. Solfataricus, a DinB-like Y family polymerase, efficiently replicates DNA past an abasic lesion. We have determined crystal structures of Dpo4 complexed with five different abasic site-containing DNA substrates and find that translesion synthesis is template directed with the abasic site looped out and the incoming nucleotide is opposite the base 5' to the lesion. The ensuing DNA synthesis generates a -1 frameshift when the abasic site remains extrahelical. Template realignment during primer extension is also observed, resulting in base substitutions or even +1 frameshifts. In the case of a +1 frameshift, the extra nucleotide is accommodated in the solvent-exposed minor groove. In addition, the structure of an unproductive Dpo4 ternary complex suggests that the flexible little finger domain facilitates DNA orientation and translocation during translesion synthesis.
Ética, asesoría económica y políticaeconómica

Over the last fifty years, crucial changes have occurred which have involved every country in the world, and which indicate that when there is growth, devel...
Prediction of gait recovery as a tool to rationalize locomotor training in spinal cord injury

Our objectives were to explore the effects of robotic-orthosis (LOKOMAT) training on walking impairment recovery in subjects with incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI), and to develop robust predictors of these recovery patterns. Twelve SCI subjects with different degrees of ankle spasticity participated in a 12-session LOKOMAT training regimen. One-hour gait training sessions were provided three times per week for four weeks. Subjects were evaluated at baseline, 1, 2 and 4 weeks after training. The 10-meter and 6-min walking tests and the Time-up-and-Go tests were used to evaluate gait speed and endurance, and functional ambulation and balance. A “growth mixture” model was used to characterize different recovery patterns of these measures. Logistic regression was further used to predict these recovery patterns based on the isometric voluntary contractions (MVC) of ankle flexors and extensors at the baseline. Our results showed that subjects were separable into two different classes of recovery based on severity of their baseline impairments; subjects with a higher walking capacity at the start of training showed significant improvement over four weeks of training. Our findings demonstrated that MVCs were able to predict recovery class membership and can potentially be used as significant predictors for therapeutic functional recovery after SCI.
Parameterization of electron beam output factor

Abstract Electron beam dose distribution is dependent on the beam energy and complicated trajectory of particles. Recent treatment planning systems using Monte Carlo calculation algorithm provide accurate dose calculation. However, double check of monitor units (MUs) based on an independent algorithm is still required. In this study, we have demonstrated single equation that reproduces the measured relative output factor (ROF) that can be used for MU calculation for electron radiotherapy. Electron beams generated by an iX (Varian Medical Systems) and a PRIMUS (Siemens) accelerator were investigated. For various energies of electron beams, the ROF at respective d max were measured using diode detector in a water phantom at SSD of 100 cm. Curve fitting was performed with an exponential generalized equation ROF = α(β – e −γR ) including three variables (α, β, γ) as a function of field radius and electron energy. The correlation coefficients between the ROF measured and that calculated by the equation were greater than 0.998. For ROF of Varian electron beams, the average values of all fitting formulas were applied for two of the constants; α and β. The parameter γ showed good agreement with the quadratic approximation as a function of mean energy at surface (E 0 ). The differences between measured and calculated ROF values were within ±3% for beams with cutout radius of ≥1.5 cm for electron beams with energies from 6 MeV to 15 MeV. The proposed formula will be helpful for double-check of MUs, as it requires minimal efforts for MU calculation.
Economic growth and the development of educational facilities—II

Abstract The present study provides several simple mathematical expressions which interrelate many of the more important factors associated with the planning of growth of educational facilities. The factors considered include rate of economic development, attrition in graduates available to the labor market due to dropouts, continuation of education, and those'entering the teaching profession. The rate of growth is discussed in terms of the use of teaching devices, on the job training, and the availability of supporting facilities. A linear and exponential phase of growth is recognized.
Clinical course of atrial ectopic tachycardia is age-dependent: results and treatment in children <3 or ≥3 years of age

Abstract Objectives We assessed the clinical presentation, natural history, and treatment response of atrial ectopic tachycardia (AET) in children Background Atrial ectopic tachycardia is a common cause of chronic supraventricular tachycardia in children and can be resistant to pharmacologic therapy. Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) can eliminate AET arising from a single focus. Methods A retrospective review identified all children at Texas Children's Hospital diagnosed with AET from March 1991 to November 2000. Data obtained included clinical presentation, echocardiographic evaluation, response to antiarrhythmic therapy, spontaneous resolution, and outcomes of radiofrequency and surgical ablation. Results Sixty-eight children were identified (22 children Conclusions Younger children respond to antiarrhythmic therapy and have a high incidence of AET resolution, thus warranting a trial of antiarrhythmic therapy. In children ≥3 years, AET is unlikely to resolve spontaneously, and antiarrhythmic medications are frequently ineffective. Thus, RFA should be considered early in the course of treatment for these children; however, surgical intervention may be necessary.
Interactive effects of flooding and forest gap formation on tree composition and abundance in the Peruvian Amazon

In order to better understand how flooding and gap formation affect Amazonian rainforests, I set up plots both in three major forest types that differed by flooding duration (referred to here as dry, wet, very wet) and in their respective gaps. Sampling of those plots after 4 years of regeneration showed: (1) common species exist between wet forests and their gaps and between wet and very wet gaps, (2) tree richness is maximum in dry forest and minimum in very wet gaps except in the wet gaps that show the second highest number of species, (3) there were less stems in gaps compared to forests and less stems in forests as flooding increased, except again in the wet gaps, and (4) dominance-diversity curves have more dominance by single species in the dry gap plots compared to other gaps and in dry forest compared to other forests. In general while some aspects of structure such as tree stem density is largely determined by tree-fall gap dynamics, tree composition is determined by flooding regime. Finally a jump in tree richness in wet forests and wet gaps compared to other plots suggests a "mass effects" hypothesis where species from dry and very wet forest and gaps have overlapping ranges in the wet forest and gap. This effect may help explain the high species diversity seen in this part of the Amazon.
Oxygen Consumption in Pelagic Marine Sediments

Measurements in the interstitial waters of pelagic red clay and carbonate ooze sediments in the central equatorial Pacific show that the dissolved oxygen content decreases with depth and levels off at nonzero values. The supply of reactive organic carbon introduced by bioturbation limits oxygen consumption at depth in the sediment. These gradients should produce diffusive fluxes across the sediment-water interface that average about 8.8 x 10(-14) mole per square centimeter per second or 0.08 milliliter per square meter per hour.
Coordinated regulation of caveolin-1 and Rab11a in apical recycling compartments of polarized epithelial cells

Recent studies have identified caveolin-1, a protein best known for its functions in caveolae, in apical endocytic recycling compartments in polarized epithelial cells. However, very little is known about the regulation of caveolin-1 in the endocytic recycling pathway. To address this question, in the current study we compared the relationship between compartments enriched in sub-apical caveolin-1 and Rab11a, a well-defined marker of apical recycling endosomes, using polarized MDCK cells as a model. We show that caveolin-1-containing vesicles define a compartment that partially overlaps with Rab11a, and that the distribution of subapical caveolin-1 and Rab11a shows a similar dependence on microtubule disruption. Mutants of the Rab11a effector, Rab11-FIP2 also altered the localization of caveolin-1. These findings indicate that caveolin-1 is coordinately regulated with Rab11a within the apical recycling system of polarized epithelial cells, suggesting that the two proteins are components of the same pathway.
Radionuclide migration in fractured media: Numerical studies of advection/diffusion in a fracture and diffusion in the surrounding rock matrix

Abstract In some approximations to the transport of radionuclides in geological media, it is assumed that the radionuclides are transported by advection-diffusion in a single fracture and diffusion in the surrounding rock-matrix. This paper explores explicit finite difference numerical techniques for solutions of problems that arise in considerations of the above nature. Two typical problems for which analytical solutions are available are considered. The first one is a single radionuclide flow with a flux type boundary condition and the second concerns migration of a radionuclide chain with a concentration type boundary condition. It is found that the numerical technique provides accurate solutions for both problems. The numerical technique is applicable to general problems in this area, and it should be particularly useful in circumstances when analytical solutions are not feasible.
Medial Prefrontal Cortex Processes Threatening Stimuli in Juvenile Rats

To survive, all mammalian species must recognize and respond appropriately to threatening stimuli. In adults, the prelimbic medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) appears to be involved in fear expression, whereas the infralimbic mPFC mediates fear extinction. In juvenile rats (PN26), the mPFC receives information on potential predators but does not act on it. To test whether the prefrontal cortex is capable of fear regulation in the young organism, we exposed juvenile rats to a threatening or nonthreatening stimulus and assessed fear and brain Fos activation of the mPFC subdivisions, amygdala and periaqueductal gray (PAG). In response to the threat, juveniles froze more, spent more time far from the threat, and had elevated numbers of Fos-positive cells in the prelimbic mPFC, the medial amygdala, and ventral PAG. To test the hypothesis that the mPFC has a dual role in modulating the amygdala and PAG in juveniles, we pharmacologically disinhibited each of the two subdivisions of the mPFC and assessed freezing and downstream activation to the threat. Juvenile rats infused with picrotoxin into the prelimbic mPFC and exposed to a threatening stimulus froze less, spent less time far from the threat, and increased Fos expression. Infusion of picrotoxin into the infralimbic mPFC also reduced fear responding to the threatening stimulus but had no effect on Fos expression. In sum, it appears that the mPFC can process threatening stimuli in juveniles at this age, even though it is normally not involved in the fear responses.
The critic and the advocate: contrasting British views on the state of endocrinology in the early 1920s.

Two papers published in 1923 in British medical journals by Swale Vincent and Ernest H. Starling give such different evaluations of endocrinology as a field that their juxtaposition requires some explanation. In that year, Starling delivered the famous Harveian Oration "On the Wisdom of the Body" to the Royal College of Physicians, in which he cited the "chemical correlation" of the parts of the body as a major example not only of that wisdom but of the power of the physician to control the "bodily processes" and hence disease;' and Swale Vincent gave a radically different analysis of "The Present Position of Organotherapy" to the Royal Society of Medicine, Section on Therapeutics and Pharmacology.2 To this audience Vincent spoke of a crisis in the field of endocrinology which threatened its existence as a respectable scientific and medical specialty. In this paper, I will compare these two definitions of endocrinology and of its crisis. We shall learn from this, first of all, that Vincent and Starling held strikingly different views on the content and context of endocrinology. In addition, we shall see that both men brought to their evaluation of the field their current involvement with the institutions of medical science. Vincent was concerned about the professional status of endocrinology; Starling saw the field as an instrument of reform in medical education.
Air-Water Distribution of the Endosulfan Isomers

The objective of this study was to experimentally characterize the air/water partitioning of the two major isomeric forms of commercially applied endosulfan. Henry's law constants (HLCs) or air/water partitioning constants for technical endosulfan (6,7,8,9,10-hexachloro-1,4,-5a,6,9,9a-hexahydro-6,9-methano-2,4,3-benzo-dioxathiepin-3-oxide) and its two major isomers, endosulfan I and endosulfan II, were experimentally determined using a wetted wall column (WWC) method. The HLC values for the isomers were significantly higher than their literature HLC values. The HLCs for salt water were higher than distilled water suggesting that the salt ions reduced the solubilities of the chemicals. The HLC of endosulfan I was log linearly related to change in temperature; however, no such relationship could be established for endosulfan II. When pure endosulfan II (99% endosulfan II and 1% endosulfan I) was allowed to equilibrate in the WWC apparatus, the ratio of endosulfan II to endosulfan I in the gas phase became 8:92 at 20°C. These results suggested that the II form of endosulfan was converting to the I form. This apparent conversion was observed to be temperature dependent. Air/water transfer of the endosulfan isomers was similar when either N or air was used as the gas phase. The ratio of endosulfan I to endosulfan II observed in the gas phase when HLC experiments with technical endosulfan were performed (91:9) were similar to ratios of the two isomers that are observed in field-collected air samples.
On the existence of chaos in a class of two-degree-of-freedom, damped, strongly parametrically forced mechanical systems with broken O (2) symmetry

In this paper we study some aspects of the global dynamics associated with a normal form that arises in the study of a class of two-degree-of-freedom, damped, parametrically forced mechanical systems. In our analysis the amplitude of the forcing is an ϕ(1) quantity, hence of the same order as the nonlinearity. The normal form is relevant to the study of modal interactions in parametrically excited surface waves in nearly square tanks, parametrically excited, nearly square plates, and parametrically excited beams with nearly square cross sections. These geometrical constraints result in a normal form with brokenO(2) symmetry and the two interacting modes have nearly equal frequencies. Our main result is a method for determining the parameter values for which a “Silnikov type” homoclinic orbit exists. Such a homoclinic orbit gives rise to a well-described type of chaos. In this problem chaos arises as a result of a balance between symmetry breaking and dissipative terms in the normal form. We use a new global perturbation technique developed by Kovacic and Wiggins that is a combination of higher dimensional Melnikov methods and geometrical singular perturbation methods.
An advertising evaluation system for retailers

Abstract Extant research on assessing advertising productivity has mostly focused on developing methodologies for capturing the longer-term effects of ‘theme’ advertising. Measuring advertising productivity in the retailing industry, however, poses different challenges. For instance, in many retailing firms, the primary role of advertising is to announce ‘limited-time price specials’ and thereby attract customers to the store. In the absence of store traffic information, in order to assess advertising effectiveness for these business, there is a need to relate advertising expenditures to short-term sales changes. In this study, we design a decision support system aimed at aiding retailers in budgeting, tracking and evaluating their advertising. The overall objective of this system is to recommend more productive spending of the advertising dollar by market and by media type. We demonstrate a real-life application of the system for a national retail organization that specializes in electronic goods. Using daily sales and advertising expenditure data, we estimate different models to assess advertising effectiveness for different days of the week. We discuss the model findings, their implications for advertising decision-making, and the next steps in improving this system.
A method for the fabrication of thin‐foil apertures for electron microscopy

SUMMARY A method is described for making thin foil apertures by piercing a plastic film with a heated microneedle and subsequently metallizing the plastic film by vacuum evaporation. Apertures can be made with diameters from 5 μm to 100 μm. They are round and very sharp-edged and can be made in various patterns and combinations of sizes.
Carotid-Subclavian Bypass for Brachiocephalic Occlusive Disease: Choice of Conduit and Long-term Follow-up

Background and Purpose Atherosclerotic disease of the proximal brachiocephalic circulation may produce disabling symptoms referable to cerebral or upper extremity hypoperfusion and embolization. Bypass of occlusive lesions can provide durable relief of symptoms with minimal complications. The ideal conduit for carotid-to-subclavian and subclavian-to-carotid bypass remains controversial, and it is not clear whether the outflow vessel influences patency and survival. Methods We performed a retrospective analysis of 60 consecutive carotid-to-subclavian and subclavian-to-carotid bypass procedures. Occlusive lesions were documented preoperatively by arteriography. Patency was determined during follow-up by ultrasound or duplex examination. Actuarial patency, symptom-free survival, and overall survival rates were calculated by the life-table method and analyzed by log-rank test. Results Arterial transposition demonstrated the highest long-term patency rate (100.0±0.0%). Polytetrafluoroethylene grafts demonstrat...
Phosphorylation of the liver X receptors.

The liver X receptors (LXRs) function as nutritional sensors for cholesterol and have important roles in lipid metabolism, glucose homeostasis, and inflammation. We provide the first evidence that LXRs are phosphorylated proteins. Mutational analysis and metabolic labeling indicate LXRα is phosphorylated on serine 198 in the hinge region. This is a consensus target for the MAPK family. A phosphorylation-deficient mutant, LXRα S198A, remains nuclear and responds to ligands like the wild-type protein. The biological significance of LXR phosphorylation remains to be elucidated but could provide a novel mechanism for the regulation of LXR signaling pathways and cellular metabolism.
Synergistic interactions of ethidium bromide and bleomycin on cellular DNA and growth inhibition

Abstract Bleomycin is an anti-tumor agent whose cytotoxicity is related to the introduction of both single-stranded and double-stranded breaks in cellular DNA. In an assay using isolated nuclei, low levels of ethidium bromide substantially increased bleomycin induced release of nuclear chromatin. Treatment of mouse L1210 leukemia cells in vitro with low levels of ethidium bromide followed 1 hr later by bleomycin produced a synergistic effect that was 8 fold greater than that expected from the additive cytotoxicity of each drug alone. Interestingly, when the order of drug addition was reversed the drug synergism was much reduced (2 fold). The combination of DNA unwinding and strand scission agents may represent a novel and rational approach to the chemotherapy of cancer.
The Interaction of the Carboxyl Terminus-binding Protein with the Smad Corepressor TGIF Is Disrupted by a Holoprosencephaly Mutation in TGIF

The homeodomain protein TGIF represses transcription in part by recruiting histone deacetylases. TGIF binds directly to DNA to repress transcription or interacts with TGF-β-activated Smads, thereby repressing genes normally activated by TGF-β. Loss of function mutations in TGIF result in holoprosencephaly (HPE) in humans. One HPE mutation in TGIFresults in a single amino acid substitution in a conserved PLDLS motif within the amino-terminal repression domain. We demonstrate that TGIF interacts with the corepressor carboxyl terminus-binding protein (CtBP) via this motif. CtBP, which was first identified by its ability to bind the adenovirus E1A protein, interacts both with gene-specific transcriptional repressors and with a subset of polycomb proteins. Efficient repression of TGF-β-activated gene responses by TGIF is dependent on interaction with CtBP, and we show that TGIF is able to recruit CtBP to a TGF-β-activated Smad complex. Disruption of the PLDLS motif in TGIF abolishes the interaction of CtBP with TGIF and compromises the ability of TGIF to repress transcription. Thus, at least one HPE mutation in TGIF appears to prevent CtBP-dependent transcriptional repression by TGIF, suggesting an important developmental role for the recruitment of CtBP by TGIF.
Measurement of photon dose fraction in a neutron radiotherapy beam.

Photondose fractions (PDFs) have been measured in and around a neutronradiotherapy beam with a tissue‐equivalent proportional counter (TEPC) and with paired ion chambers. The PDFs were found to increase linearly with increasing field size and width depth in phantom. PDFs were shown to decrease with decreasing phantom size and to be larger in the shielded region of the phantom than in the direct beam. Uncertainties in the PDF values were estimated to be 10%–15% for the TEPC measurements but about 50% for the measurement made with ion chambers.
Police and Community Perceptions of the Community Role in Policing: The Philadelphia Experience

Abstract: Police and community relations have long occupied the attention of the police and the public. The recent emergence of community policing philosophy emphasises closer involvement of police and community residents, yet to date has ignored the perceptions of the police and the public toward each other's role in affecting social control. Fifty Philadelphia police officers and 24 community residents, participating in a community/police educational programme called Project COPE, provide information on police and community attitudes toward responsibility for crime control, support for and antagonism toward police actions, and the quality of police citizen interactions. Preliminary findings from a before and after analysis of programme participants suggest that relations between these two groups may be strained by police officer and agency acceptance of public criticism.
A proposal for considering research integrity from the perspective of behavioral economics.

This paper proposes that theory and findings from behavioral economics may shed light on research integrity and misconduct. It suggests ways in which strategies based on behavioral theory and research might be used by principal investigators to support research integrity among their research teams.
The generality of learned helplessness in the rat

Abstract Two experiments were simultaneously conducted in which two different groups of 40 rats each were exposed to one of two different stressors. In both experiments half the subjects were pretreated with shock, half with underwater exposure. For each pretreatment stressor, half the subjects were allowed to escape, the other half were not. The experiments differed in the test task used. Approximately 24 hr after pretreatment, one-half the subjects from each pretreatment group received 20 water-escape trials in an underwater maze, the other half received 20 shock-escape trials in a two-way shuttle box. The subjects in each of the inescapable pretreatment conditions were slower to escape in the subsequent shock-escape and water-escape tasks when compared with subjects in the corresponding escapable pretreatment condition. The “learned helplessness” effect appeared to be no smaller when aversive stimuli were changed between pretreatment and test than when they remained the same.
Computational modelling and simulation of the immune system

We have developed a software system called SIMISYS that models and simulates aspects of the human immune system based on the computational framework of cellular automata. We model tens of thousands of cells as exemplars of the significant players in the functioning of the immune system, and simulate normal and simple disease situations by interpreting interactions among the cells. SIMISYS 0.3, the current version, models and simulates the innate and adaptive components of the immune system. The specific players we model are the macrophages, dendritic cells, neutrophils, natural killer cells, B cells, T helper cells, complement proteins and pathogenic bacteria.
Benefits of the Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator

The state-of-the-art review by Tung and colleagues provides a thoughtful perspective on balancing the benefits and risks of implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) therapy addressing the concerns of many caring physicians. In this response: 1) the clinical benefits of ICD therapy are reviewed using the evidence base resulting from controlled clinical trials; 2) untoward effects of ICDs on quality of life are acknowledged, and it is argued that they do not negate the results of studies in which the aggregate show benefit; and 3) cost-effectiveness of ICD therapy is considered. Although clinical trials evaluating ICD therapy have limitations, there are few interventions in which multiple trial settings have consistently over a >10-year period produced a 20% to 30% reduction in total mortality. Research to better identify patients expected to benefit from ICD therapy is ongoing, but at present we have the results of clinical trials that show improved survival in a broad selection of patients with left ventricular dysfunction and either demonstrated or anticipated risk for arrhythmic death. Evidence-based medicine; the rigorous process of guideline writing, review, and approval; and the ethical consideration of offering proven life-prolonging therapies to all patients provide a compelling rationale for clinicians to carefully consider guidelines in their clinical decision making. Updates in the new Device-Based Therapy Guidelines for the implantation of ICDs and pacemakers advance these goals.
Vineyard frost protection with upward-blowing wind machines

Abstract Upward-blowing wind machines have been commercialized for use in frost protection but little quantitative information exists regarding how their operation alters site temperatures. In particular, their performance relative to conventional wind machines has been debated. To address this need, experiments were conducted on 12 spring frost nights in 2010 and 2011 in a commercial winegrape vineyard where either two upward-blowing wind machines or a single conventional wind machine were operated. Comprehensive measurements of air temperature changes caused by wind machine operation were evaluated on multiple transects at heights of 1.1, 4, 7 and 10 m. All 12 frost nights were characterized by low wind and clear sky conditions, with temperature inversion strengths commonly associated with beneficial wind machine use occurring on 9 of the 12 nights. The operation of the conventional wind machine produced consistently larger and more statistically significant increases in temperature, particularly at the 1.1 m vine level, as compared to the operation of the upward-blowing wind machines which produced very minor increases in temperature at the 1.1 m level under strong inversion conditions and either no change or decreases in temperature under weaker inversion conditions. Based on the summary relationships between temperature changes as a function of inversion strength, under conditions of an inversion gradient of 0.2 °C m−1 the conventional wind machine would be expected to raise target area temperatures by 1.6 °C at the vine level, while the upward-blowing wind machines would have no net effect under the same inversion conditions. Smoke tracking of the air flow from the upward-blowing wind machines indicated that the air jet reached 25 m height, and then tended to slowly settle back towards the ground. These results indicate relatively poor performance of this type of low-powered (6.3 kW) upward-blowing wind machine compared to a conventional wind machine under the conditions of this study.
Evidence for membrane cholesterol as the common binding site for cereolysin, streptolysin O and saponin.

Addition of alfalfa saponin to osmotically prepared rabbit erythrocyte membranes resulted in formation of pits or holes as revealed by negative staining followed by electron microscopic examination. The effect on the membranes was quantitatively related to the saponin concentration. Alfalfa saponin also caused disruption of liposomes made of α-lecithin and cholesterol but not of liposomes made of α-lecithin alone. Pretreatment of osmotically prepared erythrocyte membranes with alfalfa saponin prevented ferritin labeling of the membranes by cereolysin-ferritin conjugate, and the degree of inhibition was a function of the concentration of saponin used in pretreatment. Liposomes composed of both lecithin and cholesterol inhibited the hemolytic activity of cereolysin and saponin whereas liposomes containing lecithin only did not. Incubation of cereolysin or streptolysin O with untreated erythrocyte membranes caused complete inhibition of hemolytic activity whereas incubation with erythrocyte membranes pretreated with cereolysin, streptolysin O, filipin or alfalfa saponin did not. Incubation of cereolysin or streptolysin O with erythrocyte membranes pretreated with soybean saponin resulted in complete inhibition of hemolysis. The results provide strong support for the idea that alfalfa saponin, filipin, cereolysin and streptolysin O share a common membrane binding site and the binding site is cholesterol.
Using social media for social activism

This paper uses qualitative research methods to analyze how members of the Seattle chapter of a social activist group, Asha for Education, use social media, such as Yahoo! Groups, Microsoft distribution lists, and Facebook to coordinate their organizational activities, fundraise, and build and strengthen community.
Longitudinal Prediction of Women's Careers: Psychological, Behavioral, and Social-Structural Influences.

Abstract Adult women's pursuit, attainment, and experiences of careers in college and noncollege teaching and entrepreneurial business were examined in a longitudinal sample of 111 women studied as college seniors in 1967 and again in 1981. Fifty-nine percent of seniors planning noncollege teaching careers changed fields, and 72% of businesswomen had planned other careers as seniors, supporting Harmon's 1981 opportunities dominance hypothesis. Women in different fields had similar family priorities in college, but 14 years later teachers were more involved with their (larger) families than businesswomen. Noncollege teachers made earlier career decisions and were highest on interpersonal job values and perceptions and lowest in career persistence and progressions. Professors and businesswomen valued and reported instrumental, advancement, and achievement satisfactions. Businesswomen experienced more field changes and longer career indecision than teachers. College faculty reported both interpersonal and instrumental career choice rationales in 1967, and later resembled businesswomen in most career features and noncollege teachers in interpersonal power job satisfactions.
Do celebrity cancer diagnoses promote primary cancer prevention

Abstract Objective Celebrity cancer diagnoses generate considerable media coverage of and increase interest in cancer screening, but do they also promote primary cancer prevention? Methods Daily trends for smoking cessation-related media (information-availability) and Google queries (information-seeking) around Brazilian President and smoker Lula da Silva's laryngeal cancer diagnosis announcements were compared to a typical period and several cessation awareness events. Results Cessation media coverage was 163% (95% confidence interval, 54–328) higher than expected the week after the announcement but returned to typical levels the second week. Cessation queries were 67% (95% confidence interval, 40–96) greater the week after Lula's announcement, remaining 153% (95% confidence interval, 121–188), 130% (95% confidence interval, 101–163) and 71% (95% confidence interval, 43–100) greater during the second, third, and fourth week after the announcement. There were 1.1 million excess cessation queries the month after Lula's announcement, eclipsing query volumes for the week around New Years Day, World No Tobacco Day, and Brazilian National No Smoking Day. Conclusion Just as celebrity diagnoses promote cancer screening, they may also promote primary prevention. Discovery of this dynamic suggests the public should be further encouraged to consider primary (in addition to the usual secondary) cancer prevention around celebrity diagnoses, though more cases, cancers, and prevention behaviors must be explored.
Brainstem infarcts as an early manifestation of Streptococcus anginosus meningitis.

Background and Purpose: Vasculitis and infarcts are well-established sequelae of bacterial meningitis. However, early large-vessel involvement is rare, particularly within the brainstem. There has been one previous case report of a young male who presented with pontine infarct as an early manifestation of Streptococcus milleri meningitis. We present another case of brainstem infarction associated with meningitis caused by Streptococcus anginosus (previously referred to as S. milleri group).
Current procedural terminology coding of nuclear medicine procedures.

The future of nuclear medicine is dependent on payment for new procedures. Today, the basis of payment by the federal government is a relative value unit (RVU) system; the RVUS employed in this system are for medical services and procedures listed and described in Physicians' Current Procedural Terminology , fourth edition. Current procedural terminology (CPT) is maintained by the AMA; annual revisions include adding new codes or revised or deleted old codes. This process involves all national medical specialty societies. Starting in 1992 a new process, the Relative Updating Committee, which was initiated by the AMA, organized medicine to formalize a method for recommending relative values for physician procedures and services. In this rapidly changing scenario, all nuclear medicine procedure codes are under review by the coding and nomenclature committees of the medical societies interested in imaging. Significant CPT changes and additions were made in the cardiovascular nuclear medicine codes in 1992, reflecting the current imaging protocols and pharmacological agents for performing cardiac stress testing and new codes that recognize combinations of ventricular function measurements in patients undergoing myocardial perfusion imaging with technetium-99m agents.
Meaningful Brands from Meaningless Differentiation: The Dependence on Irrelevant Attributes:

Conventional product differentiation strategies prescribe distinguishing a product or brand from competitors’ on the basis of an attribute that is relevant, meaningful, and valuable to consumers. H...
Abstract B35: Integrative nomination of prostate cancer driver genes from paired-end sequencing

Structural variation arising from genomic instability, a hallmark of cancer, contributes to tumor progression through loss of tumor suppressor genes and dysregulation of cancer drivers. Additionally, genomic rearrangements may result in the formation of chimeras, such as the TMPRSS2-ERG fusion, in a subset of prostate cancers. However, a complete catalog of structural variants (SVs) in prostate cancers has not yet been established. Using a genome-wide, paired-end approach with massively parallel sequencing, we mapped breakpoints and copy number variation (CNVs) in 8 prostate cancer cell lines (LNCaP, PC3, DU145, VCaP, MDA-PC2b, LNCaPC4-2, LAPC4, and 22RV1) and 2 non-tumorigenic immortalized prostate epithelial cell lines (PrEC and RWPE1). Because these are cell lines established without a germline reference, we utilized comparable sequencing data from the 1000 Genomes Project to remove structural rearrangements that are present in the normal population. In addition, we removed from the set of prostate cancer cell line variants all events that were found in either of the normal cell lines as a method of correcting for cell culture artifacts. These two approaches removed between 40 and 65% of the structural variant calls from the prostate cancer cell lines. After normalization, RWPE1 was the least rearranged cell line (129 variants) and VCaP was the most heavily rearranged (784 variants). More than 40% of these structural variants fall within 2kb of a known gene, a remarkable enrichment over the 1.5% coding rate of the human genome (approximately 1 gene per 100kb). Structural variants from these 8 cell lines nominated 436 recurrently disrupted genes, in which we find significant enrichment of known transcription factor motifs (NFAT, FOXO4, and others), epigenetic marks (H3K27me3), and cancer related pathways (differentiation and cell-cell adhesion). An integrative approach was employed to nominate potential cancer driver genes from the SV- and CNV-affected genes through extensive comparison with available gene expression, aCGH, and sequencing data from human prostate tumors, and network centrality modeling. As expected, known drivers of prostate cancer, such as PTEN, MYC, and AR were significantly disrupted across multiple data types and therefore ranked highly by our Nomination Index. However, we have also identified several genes that have not previously been implicated in prostate cancer and may represent novel drivers of the disease. Citation Format: Christina Stewart Pichot, Cristian Coarfa, Mark P. Hamilton, Sean M. Hartig, Caroline Schoenherr, Adrian V. Lee, Aleksander Milosavljevic, Sean E. McGuire. Integrative nomination of prostate cancer driver genes from paired-end sequencing [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Advances in Prostate Cancer Research; 2012 Feb 6-9; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(4 Suppl):Abstract nr B35.
Risk of bleeding and hypoprothrombinaemia associated with NMTT side chain antibiotics: using cefoperazone as a test case.

A retrospective cohort study was performed to determine the incidence of hypoprothrombinaemia and bleeding in patients receiving cefoperazone, a third-generation cephalosporin that contains an NMTT side chain. 374 patients receiving cefoperazone from February 1983 to March 1986 at a teaching hospital in Philadelphia were compared with 497 patients receiving either ceftizoxime or cefotaxime during the same period, and with 476 patients receiving ceftazidime from April 1985 to December 1987. Adverse events (any bleeding episodes, decrease in haemoglobin, prolongation of prothrombin time (PT), and prolongation of partial thromboplastin times (PTT)) were evaluated, if occurring during the period from the start of cephalosporin therapy, or the start of therapy with one of the two control drugs, for 14 days after the last date of the first course of therapy were recorded. An increased risk of hypoprothrombinaemia was associated with the use of cefoperazone: the prothrombin time was prolonged by 5 s or more in 12.3% of patients receiving cefoperazone vs. 5.8% of patients receiving ceftizoxime or cefotaxime, and vs. 5.8% receiving ceftazidime; the adjusted odds ratios (95% CIs) were 3.6 (1.7-7.4) and 3.8 (1.8-7.8), respectively, and these increased at higher doses of cephalosporin. No protection was apparent from the administration of vitamin K prior to or during the course of cephalosporin. No overall increased risks were observed for bleeding (adjusted odds ratios (95% CIs) were 1.1 (0.8-1.4) vs. ceftizoxime or cefotaxime, and 0.9 (0.6-1.2) vs. ceftazidime), decrease in haemoglobin, or increased partial thromboplastin time. In subgroup analyses, increased risks of bleeding were observed with high dose cefoperazone use [2.8 (1.5-5.5) vs. ceftizoxime or cefotaxime, and 2.3 (1.1-4.6) vs. ceftazidime]. Patients receiving NMTT side chain antibiotics should be monitored for hypoprothrombinaemia, but any increase in bleeding is likely to be small, and prophylactic vitamin K is probably not warranted.
Early feeding and the incidence of gastrointestinal symptoms after major gynecologic surgery.

Abstract Objective: To compare early feeding with traditional postoperative dietary management for development of postoperative gastrointestinal symptoms, including ileus after major gynecologic surgery for benign conditions. Methods: Women who had major gynecologic surgery for benign conditions were randomly allocated to early feeding of low residue diets 6 hours postoperatively or traditional dietary management of clear liquids with normal bowel sounds, and regular diet with passage of flatus. Demographic and perioperative data were collected, and patients answered questionnaires on their perception of bowel function and pain using the McGill Pain Scale. Power analysis found that 130 women were needed to find a twofold greater incidence of ileus in the early feeding group with 80% power and α = .05. Results: Complete data were available for 139 women, 67 allocated to the early feeding group and 72 to the late feeding group. The incidence of postoperative ileus for the study population was 4.4% and did not differ between groups (early 3% versus late 5.8%, P = .68). There were no differences in patient demographics, surgical procedures, anesthesia used, and intraoperative complications between groups. With the exception of more complaints of nausea in the late feeding group (23% versus 13%, P = .04), there were no differences in other postoperative variables, including other perioperative complications, pain medicine requirements, fluid and caloric intake, median pain scores, and gastrointestinal function. The low incidence of perioperative complications made the power to detect differences between groups low. Conclusion: Low residue diet 6 hours after major gynecologic surgery for benign indications was not associated with increased postoperative gastrointestinal complaints, including ileus.
Filling algorithms for raster graphics

Abstract Two algorithms for filling irregular polygons are presented. They are both oriented towards raster graphics devices and use the refresh memory for part of their working space. One of them always does the filling correctly, unless the contour has an “impossible” topology (e.g., similar to the letter θ), and even then does not produce any leaks outside the external part of the contour. The other algorithm does the filling correctly only if the contour has no triple points, i.e., pixels which are common to three arcs. The first algorithm can be implemented in practice only within the microprocessor controlling the display, while the second can be implemented easily in the host computer and can use the refresher memory only for storage. Some of the simpler (and obvious) algorithms are discussed for comparison. The proposed algorithms do not use decomposition into simpler polygons. They can easily be adapted for shading according to any preassigned rule.
Parameter identification for uncertain plants using H ∞ methods

Abstract We demonstrate the effective use of H ∞ filtering and cost-to-come methods for parameter identification in (deterministic) uncertain plants that are linear in the unknown parameters, but nonlinear otherwise. The cost-to-come method is an approach that has been used earlier to solve linear and nonlinear H ∞ optimal control and filtering problems. It consists of constructing a cost-to-come function, which assists in the design of an ‘optimal’ observer scheme. The method is used here in the design of a parameter identification scheme for uncertain plants, where measurements on the state of the system are available, but not on its derivative. Two approaches are adopted, in both of which the parameter estimation problem is formulated as an H ∞ filtering problem. One of the approaches uses a more standard prefiltering of the past states, input and disturbance signals. The other approach is a novel design method, which leads to a new class of identification schemes. It involves two subproblems: FSDI (full-state-derivative information) problem, where it is assumed that both the state and its derivative are available to the parameter estimator, and NPFSI (noise-perturbed FSI) problem, where the estimator is assumed to measure a noise-perturbed measurement of the state. In the latter problem we use singular perturbation methods to prove asymptotic convergence of the performance of the identifier to that of the unperturbed case, thus providing an asymptotically optimal solution to the FSI (full-state measurement) problem. To illustrate both approaches, several simulation studies on a numerical example are provided.
Denoising of electron beam Monte Carlo dose distributions using digital filtering techniques

The Monte Carlo (MC) method has long been viewed as the ultimate dose distribution computational technique. The inherent stochastic dose fluctuations (i.e. noise), however, have several important disadvantages: noise will affect estimates of all the relevant dosimetric and radiobiological indices, and noise will degrade the resulting dose contour visualizations. We suggest the use of a post-processing denoising step to reduce statistical fluctuations and also improve dose contour visualization. We report the results of applying four different two-dimensional digital smoothing filters to two-dimensional dose images. The Integrated Tiger Series MC code was used to generate 10 MeV electron beam dose distributions at various depths in two different phantoms. The observed qualitative effects of filtering include: (a) the suppression of voxel-to-voxel (high-frequency) noise and (b) the resulting contour plots are visually more comprehensible. Drawbacks include, in some cases, slight blurring of penumbra near the surface and slight blurring of other very sharp real dosimetric features. Of the four digital filters considered here, one, a filter based on a local least-squares principle, appears to suppress noise with negligible degradation of real dosimetric features. We conclude that denoising of electron beam MC dose distributions is feasible and will yield improved dosimetric reliability and improved visualization of dose distributions.