cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Endoscopic drainage of the pancreatic pseudocyst.

Abstract Background: Pancreatic pseudocyst is a common complication of chronic pancreatitis occurring in 20% to 40% of cases. Pseudocysts can be treated by endoscopic cystenterostomy or transpapillary drainage, percutaneously with computed tomography guidance or operatively. Methods: A total of 36 endoscopic pancreatic pseudocyst drainage procedures were performed in 29 patients with 34 pseudocysts. Eighty percent presented with chronic pain, 25% had recurrent pancreatitis, and approximately one half of the patients had either gastric outlet obstruction or a palpable abdominal mass. Results: Thirty-six endoscopic drainage procedures were performed, 27 cystenterostomies and 9 transpapillary drainages. Endoscopic treatment achieved complete resolution of the pseudocyst in 24 of 29 patients (83%), and the other 5 (17%) eventually required surgery. Two patients required distal pancreatectomy because of their pancreatic pathology, 2 cystgastrostomies for persistence of the pseudocyst, and 1 external drainage of an infected pancreatic cyst. The mean follow-up after the initial drainage was 16 months. There were no deaths attributed to the procedures and no complication that required surgery. Only 1 nonadherent pseudocyst (cystadenoma) required immediate operation after attempted endoscopic drainage. Conclusions: We conclude that endoscopic drainage of pancreatic pseudocysts can be both safe and effective, and definitive treatment. It should be considered as an alternative option before standard surgical drainage in selected patients. (Surgery 1999;126:616-23.)
Precision Finishing Of Ceramics

The manufacture of advanced ceramic components requires high accuracy and repeatibility in the control of the fabrication process. Surface finish in the nanometer range and excellent figure accuracy can be achieved if material can be removed from the surface without causing brittle fracture. To define the mechanism of "ductile" material removal, a series of experiments were initiated involving two processes: single-point diamond turning and diamond-wheel grinding. The results indicate that at small depths of cut, using stiff, well controlled machine tools, ceramic materials like silicon, silicon carbide, and germanium can be machined in a ductile regime.
The influence of environmental context on women in the IT workforce

In an effort to better understand the under representation of women in the IT field, the focus of research has been on the collection and analysis of empirical data. However, there is also a need for appropriate theory to understand and explain that data. Toward this end, Trauth has engaged in a program of research directed at the articulation of an empirically-grounded theory to explain and predict the under representation of women in the IT field. Called The Individual Differences Theory of Gender and IT, this theory argues that the under representation of women in IT is better accounted for by understanding the variation across women than by focusing on ascribed differences between men and women in stereotype. To this end, a set of constructs has been identified, including: personal data, shaping and influencing factors and environmental context. This set of constructs is being used as the interpretive vehicle in a multi-year study of the life histories of women IT professionals. The results, to date, have addressed the personal data, and shaping and influencing factors. The purpose of this paper is to examine the construct: environmental context. The results suggest that economic factors such as size of the information economy, household income and cost of living, and cultural factors such as attitudes and values regarding women, women working and women working in IT do exert an influence on the experience of women in the IT workforce. Thus, the data analysis presented in this paper serves to further supports this emerging theory of individual differences of gender and IT and its constructs.
Body size, estrogen use and thiazide diuretic use affect 5-year radial bone loss in postmenopausal women.

Understanding factors associated with more rapid bone mineral loss among aging women is important for establishing preventive strategies for intervention. This study reports factors associated with the 5-year change in radial bone mineral density (BMD) determined prospectively in 435 women aged 55–80 years at baseline. The baseline study included measurement of radial BMD (gm/cm2) by single photon densitometry and personal interview. The baseline protocol was replicated 5 years later in a follow-up study. Women with a lower baseline weight or Quetelet index, smaller triceps skinfold and less arm muscle area had significantly greater 5-year bone loss (p=0.001). Current users of estrogens had less radial bone loss (2.8% vs 7.3%,p=0.0005) than women not currently using estrogens. Current users of estrogen had significantly less 5-year loss if use had been for 5 years or longer (−1.0% vs −6.9%,p=0.05). Current users of the thiazide class of medications had less 5-year radial bone loss (5.0% vs 7.4%,p=0.0035) than women without current thiazide use. Baseline dietary calcium, alcohol consumption and smoking were not associated with BMD change. This suggests that greater body size, and current use of estrogens or thiazide antihypertensives are associated with less radial bone mass loss in a 5-year period among postmenopausal women.
Fast multiplier design using redundant signed-digit numbers

A high speed multiplier design is presented using redundant binary signed-digit number representation internally while the input operands and the output product are in two's complement form. The design of a carry free redundant binary signed-digit (RBSD) adder cell is presented. The multiplication algorithm uses bit-pair recording to generate the partial products. The partial products are added in the form of a binary tree using carry free RBSD adder cells. The regular structure of these adder cells results in a multiplier design that is suitable for VLSI implementation. The increased speed is achieved through the carry free addition of partial products using redundant signed-digit numbers. The use of a recoding scheme will reduce the number of rows of partial products by a factor of two. The proposed multiplier design has a multiplication time of order O(log2 n) and area-time complexity of order O(n2 log2 n) for a word length of n.
Diagnostic Terminology: Report of an Online Survey

Abstract Introduction Diagnostic terminology used in endodontics has been based on historical use, textbook and glossary terms, best-available science, and personal conviction. There is minimal evidence that establishes an absolute set of terms that can be used to make a definitive diagnosis. As a component of the Consensus Conference on Diagnostic Terminology held in October 2008, an online survey was conducted to invitees to assess their opinions on diagnosis. Methods Thirty-six questions were developed by the oversight committee and chairs of the subcommittees. Most questions used a modified Likert scale to generate a response. At least a 51% agreement or disagreement to the statement was considered a consensus, and a response greater than 25% but less than 51% generated a minority report. Results Thirty-one of the 36 questions were designed to determine consensus. All 31 generated a consensus response, with 14 of those generating a minority report. Minority reports suggest that there was still greater than 25% of the respondents who did not follow consensus. Possible explanations were provided for those statements that generated a minority report. Conclusions Data from the online survey provided trends and preferences toward particular diagnostic terms and beliefs. The limitations of such a survey are multiple including the limited size and nature of the respondent group, responses based on opinion, and question design. The online survey results suggest an awareness for the specialty to develop better diagnostic tools and terminology that are biologically and metric based.
The building of the American and European empires

The processes of building the United States of America (US) during the nineteenth century and the European Union (EU) since the mid-twentieth century are among the major claims for the possibility of a vast, ‘imperial’-size political unit based on democratic principles. Although the American Union was designed by the late eighteenth century, the crucial period for its consolidation was between the Civil War and the World War I, when it established clear territorial limits and completed its internal institutionalization as a federal democratic union. After more than 50 years of increasing integration, the EU has achieved higher levels of economic integration on some issues than the US did 100 years ago, but it still recognizes a number of additional candidates to become member-states and has not attained a stable constitutional framework. In both cases putting an end to the process of territorial expansion and fixing neat external frontiers seems to be a necessary condition to achieve internal institutiona...
Chromosomal repatterning and linkage group conservation in mosquito karyotypic evolution

Chromosome number and morphology in mosquitoes is remarkably uniform: virtually all mosquitoes have a diploid chromosome number of six (2N = 6), and their chromosomes are invariably metacentric or submetacentric. Numerical changes obviously have not been important in mosquito chromosomal evolution, and because of the morphological similarity of their chromosomes, it appears that structural changes have played little or no role in mosquito karyotypic evolution. The goal of the present study was to identify the types and relative numbers of chromosomal changes in mosquito evolution and to extend the comparison where possible to the higher diptera. To do this, we compared the enzyme linkage maps of six species of Aedes to each other and to enzyme maps of seven other mosquito species and to Drosophila melanogaster. Our results indicate that Aedes chromosomes have been modified by inversions, most which were paracentric, and by translocations, most which were Robertsonian. Intrageneric comparison of Aedes enzyme maps also revealed groups of linked enzyme loci whose integrity has been maintained throughout Aedes evolution (conserved linkages/syntenies). Intergeneric comparisons of Aedes enzyme maps with those of species in the genera Culex, Anopheles, and Toxorhynchites disclosed conserved associations of enzyme loci between mosquito genera. These findings lead us to postulate that the ancestral mosquito karyotype consisted of six chromosomal elements which, other than being combined in different ways in various mosquito groups, have remained essentially intact during mosquito evolution. Furthermore, the identification of groups of linked enzyme loci common to mosquitoes and to D. melanogaster indicates that linkage group conservation may characterize the karyotypic evolution of all dipteran insects.
Kaempferol (rhamnosyl) glucoside, a new flavonol from Erythroxylum coca. var.ipadu

Abstract A new flavonol, kaempferol rhamnosyl diglycoside, was isolated from leaf tissue of Amazonian field-grown coca Erythroxylum coca var. ipadu Plowman. The structure of the flavonol has been determined as kaempferol 4′- O -(rhamnosyl)glucoside by spectral analyses. The array of flavonoids present in E. c . var. ipadu currently under cultivation in Colombian fields is indicative of a recent cross, consistent with ancestralship to E. c. var. coca and the flavonol is useful as a chemotaxonomic marker for the taxon.
Endoscopic ultrasound is inadequate to determine which T1/T2 esophageal tumors are candidates for endoluminal therapies.

Objectives Esophageal endoscopic ultrasound is now regarded as essential in the staging of esophageal carcinoma. There is an increasing trend toward endoluminal therapies (ie, endoscopic mucosal resection and radiofrequency ablation) for pre-cancer or early-stage cancers because of concerns of high morbidity associated with esophagectomy. This study reviews our institutional experience with preoperative endoscopic ultrasound staging of early esophageal cancers in patients who underwent an esophagectomy to evaluate the accuracy of staging by endoscopic ultrasound and how this affects treatment recommendations. Methods A prospective esophagectomy database of all patients undergoing an esophagectomy for esophageal cancer at a single high-volume institution was retrospectively reviewed for patients with early-stage esophageal cancer. This study analyzed patients with clinical Tis to T1 disease, as predicted by preoperative endoscopic ultrasound, and correlated this with the pathologic stages after esophagectomy. The surgical outcomes were evaluated to assess the safety of esophagectomy as a treatment modality. Results From 2005 to 2011, 107 patients (93 male, 14 female) with a mean age of 66 years (range, 39-91 years) were staged by preoperative endoscopic ultrasound to have esophageal high-grade dysplasia, carcinoma in situ, or T1 cancer and underwent an esophagectomy. Tumor depth was correctly staged by endoscopic ultrasound in only 39% (23/59) of pT1a tumors (invading into the lamina propria or muscularis mucosa) and 51% (18/35) of pT1b tumors (submucosal). Of the endoscopic ultrasound–staged cT1a-lpN0 lesions, there were positive lymph nodes in 15% of pathologic specimens (2/13). Patients with pT1a-mm lesions had a 9% rate of pathologic lymph node involvement (1/11), and those with pT1b tumors had a 17% rate of lymph node spread (6/35). Esophagectomy was performed in all 107 patients with a 30-day mortality rate of less than 1% (1/107). Conclusions The sensitivity and specificity of endoscopic ultrasound for determining true pathologic staging are poor for early-stage esophageal cancers. Lesions thought to be cT1a-lpN0 by endoscopic ultrasound have at least pN1 disease in 15% of cases. Endoluminal therapy of these lesions based on endoscopic ultrasound undertreats a significant number of patients. Esophagectomy is still the standard therapy for early-stage esophageal cancers in the majority of patients.
Saccadic head movements in mantids

1. Mantids visually orient to prey objects by means of rapid saccadic head movements which serve to image the target on the anterior regions of the large compound eyes. Small stationary flashes of light subtending 30′ of arc were used to elicit head movements. The topography of the saccade was studied by photographic and optoelectronic analysis. 2. High speed photography was utilized to study the temporal properties of individual saccades. The latency of the response ranged from a minimum of 0.15 s to a maximum of 1.0 s. Maximum angular velocities of 400 deg/s were achieved with large amplitude saccades. 3. Single stationary flashes produced saccades with latencies ranging from 0.30 to 1.0 s. When a saccade was not elicited by a single flash, a subsequent flash in an area 1.8° removed from the first would often evoke a response. The saccades produced by such multiple flashes yielded latency values ranging from 0.15 to 0.30 s. It, therefore, appears that a single stationary flash may potentiate the effects of subsequent stimulation. 4. The head orientation following a saccade is linearly related to the position of the stimulus. As previously described by Mittelstaedt (1957), the slope of the function relating head position to stimulus angle is less than unity. Slope values ranging from 0.65 to 0.83 were obtained in this study. 5. Orientation is dependent on the direction of the head movement. Large amplitude saccades directed laterally to a given stimulus location produce final head orientations which differ from those produced by saccades elicited to the same location but from the opposite direction. 6. For saccades proceeding in the same direction, final head orientation is independent of prior head orientation. 7. Visual feedback is unimportant in determining the final head position. Saccades elicited by stimuli whose duration was shorter than the mantid's reaction time produced the same final head angle as those saccades elicited by long duration stimuli. 8. After an initial large amplitude saccade was elicited, a small amplitude correction saccade often could be obtained by a second flash in the same location. Correction saccades were equally likely to occur following saccades elicited by long duration stimuli or short duration stimuli. Since reorienting saccades did occur following initial saccades produced by long duration stimuli, it must be concluded that visual feedback is not utilized to “home-inon” the target.
QRS Voltage Criteria for Posterior Unipolar Chest Leads in a Normal Population

1)The range and upper limit of normal QRS voltage criteria for posterior chest leads (V 7 , V 8 and V 9 ) were derived from 50 normal subjects. 2)One third of the study group had a significant Q wave in V e . 3)The mean height of the R wave in V 7 , V 8 and V 9 was 7.2 mm, 5.7 mm and 4.1 mm, respectively.
Retinotopic organization in the cat lateral posterior-pulvinar complex.

Abstract Multiple unit mapping experiments revealed three orderly representations of the visual field in the extrageniculate visual thalamus. These three maps correspond to subdivisions of the lateral posterior-pulvinar complex based on connectional and histological criteria.
The Declining Significance of Race or the Persistent Racialization of Blacks? A Conceptual, Empirical, and Methodological Review of Today’s Race Debate in America:

The sociological literature of the past several decades has emphasized two apparently contradictory perspectives—the “declining significance of race” and persistent racialization of Blacks. This ar...
Comparative susceptibility to hyperparasitism of Binodoxys communis and Aphidius colemani, primary aphid parasitoids introduced to Hawaii.

Abstract Improving the success rate of introduced biological control agents requires analysis of possible causes when a new natural enemy fails to thrive. For aphid parasitoids, the impact of hyperparasites is a potential obstacle to establishment and reproductive success. We analyzed Binodoxys communis (Gahan), an aphid parasitoid newly introduced to Hawaii, and Aphidius colemani (Viereck), a previously introduced, well established parasitoid for their comparative susceptibility to attack by the established hyperparasitoid Syrphophagus aphidovorus (Mayr). Our objective was to help explain the relatively low abundance of B. communis in the field in the months following its initial release, in contrast to the greater abundance of A. colemani, as a possible result of apparent competition mediated by the hyperparasitoid. Mummies of the two primary parasitoid species were exposed to adult female S. aphidovorus under both choice and no-choice conditions. B. communis was susceptible to S. aphidovorus attack, but A. colemani was the more suitable host, as evidenced by higher rates of hyperparasitism in choice tests, and more female-biased sex ratios among the resulting progeny. The greater suitability of A. colemani for hyperparasitoid development was likely due to its larger size, providing more resources for growth and development. Contrary to expectation, we found no evidence that apparent competition was unfavorably skewed against B. communis.
PHYLOGENETIC SYSTEMATICS FOR PHYCOLOGY

This brief review of phylogenetic systematics introduces basic terminology but concentrates on actively debated issues in the theory of phylogenetic systematics
The demo-economic impact of the AIDS pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa.

Abstract This paper examines the available data on the incidence and spread of AIDS and the associated human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in Africa. Assessments of the impact of the spread of AIDS on African population growth and economic performance are then offered. The interactions with present economic and public health policy receive particular attention. The paper stresses continued emphasis on rural development and greater efforts to control other sexually transmitted diseases along with increased promotion of condoms as means of slowing the spread of AIDS.
Socioeconomic Determinants of Cardiovascular Disease: Recent Findings and Future Directions

Socioeconomic advantage predicts lower risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), but the magnitude of socioeconomic inequalities changes over time and differs between countries. The malleability of socioeconomic inequalities suggests that closing the socioeconomic status (SES) gap in CVD may be a powerful avenue for reducing the global CVD burden. Current evidence indicates that effects of socioeconomic disadvantage accumulate across the life course, with each additional period of disadvantage increasing later CVD risk. Individual, community, and national socioeconomic conditions appear to independently predict development of conventional risk factors and CVD. To translate this evidence into effective public-health interventions, we need more conclusive evidence on the causal components of highly correlated socioeconomic measures and on the major mediators of inequalities.
Perturbation of target-directed neurite outgrowth in embryonic CNS co-cultures grown in the presence of ethanol.

Abstract Studies were conducted to determine the influence of ethanol on target-directed fiber outgrowth in culture, using embryonic chick spinal cord-muscle, and fetal rat septal-hippocampal co-cultured explants. Process extension from the spinal cord and septal explants in control cultures was selectively oriented toward the appropriate target tissue. Ethanol in the culture medium (500 mg/dl) eliminated this target-oriented outgrowth in both systems, although the overall extent of neurite outgrowth was not affected. In an effort to further characterize the source of this disruption, target explants were grown alone, with and without ethanol, and the target-conditioned culture media was subsequently harvested and placed on newly plated spinal cord or septal explants, to determine whether ethanol decreased the target production of soluble substances. To determine whether deposition of substrate-bound materials by the target tissue was affected by ethanol, spinal cord or septal explants were plated in wells which had previously been occupied by the appropriate target tissue. These studies revealed that ethanol significantly inhibited production of soluble and substrate-bound materials by muscle explants, but not by hippocampal explants. It was concluded that the ethanol-induced loss of target-directed neurite outgrowth in the spinal cord explants could be accounted for primarily by the attenuated production of neurotrophic/neurotropic substances by the muscle tissue. The loss of target-directionality in the septal explants appeared to be due to other factors, possibly related to ethanol-induced compromise of the capacity of the septal neurons to respond appropriately to target-derived neurotrophic/neurotropic substances. The implications of these results for the fetal alcohol syndrome are considered.
Location of enzymatic and DNA-binding domains on E. coli protease La.

Escherichiu coli protease La is an ATP-dependent enzyme that has a DNA-binding site. The locations of the enzymatic and DNA-binding sites are not known. We report that a 75-residue segment at the carboxy-terminus of the protease La is similar to part of Bacillus licheniformis /I?-lactamase, a serine enzyme. The comparison score is 8.2 standard deviations higher than that obtained with 10000 comparisons of randomized sequences of these segments. The probability of obtaining such a score by chance is 1.2 x lo-r6. We also find that a 107-residue segment in the amino-terminus half of protease La is similar to part of the sopB protein, a DNA-binding protein of the plasmid F of E. coli. The comparison score for these segments is 8 standard deviations (P= 6 x 10-16). These strong amino acid sequence similarities suggest the locations of the catalytic serine and the DNA-binding domains of protease La. Protease La; ATP-dependent protease; DNA-binding protease
‘CLAP IF YOU BELIEVE IN SHERLOCK HOLMES’: MASS CULTURE AND THE RE-ENCHANTMENT OF MODERNITY, c. 1890–c. 1940

Since the late nineteenth century, Western intellectuals have tended to depict ‘modernity’ as being incompatible with ‘enchantment’. Thus Max Weber argued that two aspects intrinsic to modernity, rationalization and bureaucratization, were inimical to the magical attitudes toward human existence that characterized medieval and early modern thought. His gloomy image of the ‘iron cage’ of reason echoed the fears of earlier romantics and was to be repeated by later cultural pessimists through the twentieth century. This article recovers a different outlook that emerged during the fin-de-siecle, one that reconciled the rational and secular tenets of modernity with enchantment and that underlies many forms of contemporary cultural practice. The popularity of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes is taken as an exemplary instance of a specifically modern form of enchantment. First, Holmes's own form of rationalism, ‘animistic reason’, offered an alternative to the narrower instrumental reason that cultural pessimists claimed as a defining element of modernity. Second, many adult readers at the turn of the century and beyond were able to pretend that Holmes was real, and his creator fictitious, through the ‘ironic imagination’, a more capacious and playful understanding of the imagination than that held by the early Victorians. Both animistic reason and the ironic imagination made Holmes an iconic figure who enacted and represented the reconciliation of modernity and enchantment, whereas Doyle, unable to accept this reconciliation, resorted to spiritualism, a holdover of ‘premodern’ enchantment.
A Conserved Internal Hydrophobic Domain Mediates the Stable Membrane Integration of the Dengue Virus Capsid Protein

The mature flavivirus capsid protein (virion C) is commonly thought to be free in the cytoplasm of infected cells and to form a nucleocapsid-like complex with genomic RNA in mature virus particles. There is little sequence conservation among flavivirus virion C proteins, but they are similar in size (e.g., 99 amino acids [aa] for the dengue-4 [DEN4] C) and in bearing a net positive charge. In addition, we noted that C contained a conserved internal hydrophobic segment (spanning aa 45-65 in the DEN4 C). Results of in vivo expression and in vitro translation of wt and mutant forms of the DEN4 virion C demonstrated that the conserved internal hydrophobic segment in the DEN C functioned as a membrane anchor domain. Signal peptide function of this segment was also suggested by its requirement for the entry of C into membranes. Virion C was integrated in membranes in a "hairpin" conformation; positively charged segments amino- and carboxy-terminal to the hydrophobic signal-anchor segment were accessible to protease digestion in the "cytoplasm." The net positive charge in the amino-terminal extramembraneous portion of C (aa 1-44) was one determinant of the hairpin membrane orientation; a conserved positively charged residue within the hydrophobic segment (Arg-54 in the DEN4 C) was not.
Marine bio adhesive: Role for chemosensory recognition in a marine invertebrate

The bioadhesive material secreted by some species in the family Sabellariidae (Polychaeta) serves two functions. The cement attaches hard particles together to form the tube in which the animal lives. Tube‐associated material also provides the chemical signal that is recognized by the planktonic larvae, inducing them to attach and metamorphose, and thus extend the aggregative concretion. A review of the factors affecting larval attachment and metamorphosis and the dynamics of reef formation in the Sabellariidae is presented, with emphasis on Phragmatopoma californica (Fewkes). Data also are presented showing that the ability to initiate a new protective casing is terminated after the first occasion. The bioadhesive secreted by P. californica is a silk‐like protein containing 3,4‐dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA) residues. Unlike the stability exhibited by tube‐associated adhesive secretions, the metamorphosis‐inducing stimulus is labile.
The influence of ammonia-induced cellulardiscoloration within cotton leaves (Gossypium hirsutum L.) on light reflectance, transmittance, and absorptance

Abstract Cellular discoloration within cotton leaves, caused by ammoniatreatment, reduced spectrophotometrically measured near-infrared light reflectance over the wavelength interval 750–900 mμ, where rounding of the plateau occurred. Results with ammonia-treated leaves are compared with other studies in which reduced reflectance occurred over the 750–900 mμ wavelength interval. It is possible that this rounding of the plateau caused by internal cellular discoloration may become useful in remote sensing for identifying certain nonvisual symptoms of plant leaf stresses caused by cellular discoloration.
Equally spaced polynomials, dual bases, and multiplication in F(2/sup n/)

A proposed multiplier for finite fields given by equally spaced polynomials is based on the transformation from the polynomial basis to its dual basis, combined with multiplication by a constant. We classify the constants that are optimal regarding the cost of this operation and investigate the cost of the inverse transformation.
Activation of Defense Pathways: Synergism between Reactive Oxygen Species and Salicylic Acid and Consideration of Field Applicability

Treatment of tobacco with a mixture containing reactive oxygen species (ROS) and salicylic acid (SA) provided greater protection of tobacco against infection by Pseudomonas syringae pv. tabaci than either treatment alone. Synergism in expression from the promoter of the defense gene PR-1a was also observed. Although the ROS hydrogen peroxide and peracetic acid were poor inducers alone, they enhanced the level of β-glucuronidase (GUS) activity expressed from the PR-1a promoter when applied with SA to a transgenic plant bearing a PR-1a::GUS fusion. PR-1a expression was not correlated with increased cell death as determined by Evans blue staining. There was no effect on the timing at which expression was increased by the mixture compared with the separate treatments. The mixture of hydrogen peroxide and SA partially mimicked the effect of a commercial product Oxycom™ that has field efficacy in improving plant performance. Repetitive applications of Oxycom™ enhanced expression from the PR-1a promoter and the production of the PR-1 protein. Enhanced activity occurred systemically both from aerial applications to single leaves and from root drenches. Root application strongly promoted veinal expression for the PR-1a promoter compared with confluent production in leaves of sprayed seedlings. Application methods and timing may aid in the success of activators of systemic acquired resistance in field conditions.
CLOSED MINIMAL HYPERSURFACES IN COMPACT SYMMETRIC SPACES

W.Y. Hsiang, W.T. Hsiang and P. Tomter conjectured that every simply-connected, compact symmetric space of dimension ≥4 must contain some minimal hypersurfaces of sphere type. With the aid of equivariant differential geometry, they showed that this is in fact the case for many symmetric spaces of rank one and two. Let M be one of the symmetric spaces: Sn(1)×Sn(1)(n≥4), SU(6)/Sp(3), E6/F4, ℍP2 (quaternionic proj. plane) or CaP2 (Cayley proj. plane). We prove the existence of infmitely many immersed, minimal hypersurfaces of sphere type in M which are invariant under a certain group G of isometries of M. Following Hsiang and the others, the equivariant method is also used here to reduce the problem to an investigation of geodesics in M/G equipped with a metric (with singularities) depending only on the orbital geometry of the transformation group (G, M). However, our constructions are based on area minimizing homogeneous cones, corresponding to a corner singularity of M/G with the local geometry of nodal type; this can be viewed as a variation of some of their constructions which depended on some unstable minimal cones of focal type. We further apply the equivariant method to construct a minimal embedding of S1×Sn−1×Sn−1 into Sn(1)×Sn(1)(n≥2) and a minimal, embedded hypersurface of sphere type in , ℍPn×ℍPn (n≥2) and CaP2×CaP2.
Separating Sub-Ensembles on Ultrafast Timescales: Multiple-Population Period Transient Spectroscopy (MUPPETS)

Multidimensional incoherent spectroscopy has analogs of echoes, stimulated echoes, hole-burning and correlation spectroscopy. These MUPPETS methods disentangle complex, nonexponential kinetics. A pathway formulation extends MUPPETS to many processes and systematically treats high-order transient gratings.
Invariants of vector-valued bilinear and sesquilinear forms

Abstract First steps in the algebraic invariant theory of vector-valued bilinear and sesquilinear forms are made. In particular, explicit formulas for generators of all invariant rational functions for such forms are derived. These formulas, and certain analogues, have applications to the geometry of Riemannian submanifolds, distributions, and CR structures.
The President's Page: Solid-Earth geophysics in Latin America

Because of their topography, the regular occurrence of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions within their boundaries, and their location around the geomagnetic equator, the Andean countries have long been of worldwide interest to geophysicists. In earlier years most of the studies of the region were carried out by U.S. geophysicists, local scientists having only a minor role. The situation has changed, and now Andean geophysicists can operate independently or as partners in major undertakings. This new circumstance is of sufficient significance to merit examination of its origins and development. One factor has been the influence of major international programs, including the International Geophysical Year (IGY), the International Upper Mantle Program (IUMP), and the International Geodynamics Project. The IGY in 1957 stimulated geoscientists to go to the area. U.S. participation in the IUMP led to research activities that in turn fostered development of critical capabilities among geoscientists of the region through education and active participation in research and also led to a recognition on the part of these scientists of their common problems. The meeting in 1970 in Buenos Aires promoted by the IUMP provided one of the first international forums at which the extent of the collaboration and the development of geophysical ‘muscle’ among our Latin American neighbors was made evident.
On the determination of free energy in linear viscoelastic solids

Der Artikel behandelt die isotherme Verformung eines linear-viskoelastischen Stoffes im einachsigen Spannungszustand. Ein Integralgesetz fur die Spannungs-Dehnungsbeziehung wird aufgestellt, in dem der Relaxationsmodul als Summe von Exponentialfunktionen angesetzt wird. Die Moglichkeit, die freie Energie und die Entropieproduktion aus der Kenntnis des Relaxationsmoduls zu bestimmen, wird diskutiert. Im Gegensatz zu fruheren Untersuchungen dieses Problems macht der vorliegende Artikel keinen Gebrauch von Modellvorstellungen und stutzt sich ausschliesslich auf thermodynamische Uberlegungen.
Currents induced in anatomic models of the human for uniform and nonuniform power frequency magnetic fields.

We have used the quasi-static impedance method to calculate the currents induced in the nominal 2 × 2 × 3 and 6 mm resolution anatomically based models of the human body for exposure to magnetic fields at 60 Hz. Uniform magnetic fields of various orientations and magnitudes 1 or 0.417 mT suggested in the ACGIH and ICNIRP safety guidelines are used to calculate induced electric fields or current densities for the various glands and organs of the body including the pineal gland. The maximum 1 cm2 area-averaged induced current densities for the central nervous system tissues, such as the brain and the spinal cord, were within the reference level of 10 mA/m2 as suggested in the ICNIRP guidelines for magnetic fields (0.417 mT at 60 Hz). Tissue conductivities were found to play an important role and higher assumed tissue conductivities gave higher induced current densities. We have also determined the induced current density distributions for nonuniform magnetic fields associated with two commonly used electrical appliances, namely a hair dryer and a hair clipper. Because of considerably higher magnetic fields for the latter device, higher induced electric fields and current densities were calculated. Bioelectromagnetics 22:112–121, 2001. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Status Report on Oral Isotretinoin in the Management of Acne Vulgaris: Why All the Discussion about Drug Absorption and Relapse Rates?

Oral isotretinoin is a highly successful therapy for severe, refractory inflammatory acne vulgaris (AV) that is indicated especially for patients with multiple nodulocystic lesions. After over 30 years of clinical use, it is apparent that the majority of patients experience clearing of AV with prolonged remission after a course of oral isotretinoin therapy is completed. Multiple reports have shown that recurrence of AV occurs in some patients and is more likely in those who had not achieved adequate cumulative exposure to a total dose of drug, which has been defined as 120 – 150 mg/kg. As the pharmacokinetic profile of orally administered isotretinoin shows that gastrointestinal absorption is highly dependent on administration with a high calorie-high fat meal, it is has been considered that patients who ingest a conventional formulation of oral isotretinoin without an adequate meal or without food at all may be predisposed to a higher rate and earlier onset of recurrence of AV as their cumulative systemic exposure is effectively reduced by up to 60 %. A new formulation of oral isotretinoin uses a technology where isotretinoin is pre-solubilized in a lipid matrix so absorption is not markedly diminished if the patient does not ingest the drug with an adequate meal. As the data analysis on recurrence of AV in patients treated with conventional formulations of oral isotretinoin are retrospective, additional research and vigilant observation are needed to determine if the new formulation will provide better long term outcomes.
Bond dissociation energy determinations for MOC(CH3)2+ and MOC(CD3)2+, (MCr, Mn), using the continuous ejection and radiative association methods

The gas-phase ion-molecule reactions of Cr+ and Mn+ with acetone and acetone-d6 are studied with a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer. Unimolecular dissociation rates of chemically activated complexes, (M(acetone)+)∗, are obtained using the continuous ejection method. An inverse isotope effect is found for the Cr+/acetone/acetone-d6 system with kuniHkuniD∼0.5, while the unimolecular dissociation rates are about the same for [MnOC(CH3)2+]∗ and [MnOC(CD3)2+]∗. The bond dissociation energies, D°(Cr+−OC(CH3)2) = 1.82 ± 0.15 eV, D°(Cr+−OC(CD3)2) = 1.62 ± 0.15 eV, D°(Mn+−OC(CH3)2) = 1.65 ± 0.15 eV and D°(Mn+−OC(CD3)2) = 1.49 ± 0.15 eV, are derived from RRKM modeling with input parameters obtained from ab initio calculations. The radiative association reactions of Cr+ with acetone are also examined. The unimolecular dissociation rate constant of (Cr+−OC(CH3)2)∗, derived from the RA kinetics, is compared with the CE measurement.
Water permeation of polymer films. II. Dual‐mode absorption in teflon FEP

DuPont Teflon FEP has been shown to permeate water vapor through a dual-mode process: adsorption followed by permeation. A model is proposed for this process based on the interactions of condensible gas molecules with themselves and with the polymer surface. This model appears to have general applicability.
Traditional And Virtual Performance Management Functions In The Age Of Information Technology

The effects of information technology developments on the traditional roles of managers over the past decades have been extraordinary, especially when we consider the numerous changes these developments have brought to the global environment of business. The paper examines these effects by examining the changing nature of managerial roles in historical and contemporary contexts. The paper briefly describes managerial roles and functions dating back to the Industrial Revolution and Scientific Management era, with transitions up to the present technological and service-oriented market economies in which the use of information technology (IT) and knowledge have become vital tools for survival, growth, the building of competitive advantage, and success in achieving organizational goals. The paper examines the effects of information technology (IT) developments on the role of managers using the four fundamental functions of management theory: planning, organizing, controlling, and leading. The paper concludes with an examination of information technology developments on the roles of managers from a Mintzbergian viewpoint.
Molecular properties of CD133+ glioblastoma stem cells derived from treatment-refractory recurrent brain tumors

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) remains refractory to conventional therapy. CD133+ GBM cells have been recently isolated and characterized as chemo-/radio-resistant tumor-initiating cells and are hypothesized to be responsible for post-treatment recurrence. In order to explore the molecular properties of tumorigenic CD133+ GBM cells that resist treatment, we isolated CD133+ GBM cells from tumors that are recurrent and have previously received chemo-/radio-therapy. We found that the purified CD133+ GBM cells sorted from the CD133+ GBM spheres express SOX2 and CD44 and are capable of clonal self-renewal and dividing to produce fast-growing CD133− progeny, which form the major cell population within GBM spheres. Intracranial injection of purified CD133+, not CD133− GBM daughter cells, can lead to the development of YKL-40+ infiltrating tumors that display hypervascularity and pseudopalisading necrosis-like features in mouse brain. The molecular profile of purified CD133+ GBM cells revealed characteristics of neuroectoderm-like cells, expressing both radial glial and neural crest cell developmental genes, and portraying a slow-growing, non-differentiated, polarized/migratory, astrogliogenic, and chondrogenic phenotype. These data suggest that at least a subset of treated and recurrent GBM tumors may be seeded by CD133+ GBM cells with neural and mesenchymal properties. The data also imply that CD133+ GBM cells may be clinically indolent/quiescent prior to undergoing proliferative cell division (PCD) to produce CD133− GBM effector progeny. Identifying intrinsic and extrinsic cues, which promote CD133+ GBM cell self-renewal and PCD to support ongoing tumor regeneration may highlight novel therapeutic strategies to greatly diminish the recurrence rate of GBM.
A recursive clustering technique for color picture segmentation

A recursive cluster detection technique is described for segmenting the color pictures. The proposed method operates in the (L*,a*,b*)-uniform color space and detects image cluster by fitting them some circular-cylindrical decision volumes. This estimates the clusters' distributions in the uniform color space without imposing any constraints on their forms. Boundaries of the decision elements consists of two planes of constant lightness, two cylinders of constant chroma, and two planes of constant hue. They are determined using 1-D histograms of the L*,H/sup 0/,C* cylindrical coordinates of the space. The detected clusters are then correctly isolated from their neighbors by projecting their estimated color distributions onto the Fisher linear discriminant function for 1-D thresholding. >
Deterministic Sampling Algorithms for Network Design

For several NP-hard network design problems, the best known approximation algorithms are remarkably simple randomized algorithms called Sample-Augment algorithms in Gupta et al. (J. ACM 54(3):11, 2007). The algorithms draw a random sample from the input, solve a certain subproblem on the random sample, and augment the solution for the subproblem to a solution for the original problem. We give a general framework that allows us to derandomize most Sample-Augment algorithms, i.e. to specify a specific sample for which the cost of the solution created by the Sample-Augment algorithm is at most a constant factor away from optimal. Our approach allows us to give deterministic versions of the Sample-Augment algorithms for the connected facility location problem, in which the open facilities need to be connected by either a tree or a tour, the virtual private network design problem, 2-stage rooted stochastic Steiner tree problem with independent decisions, the a priori traveling salesman problem and the single sink buy-at-bulk problem. This partially answers an open question posed in Gupta et al. (J. ACM 54(3):11, 2007).
School policy: implications of recent research for human capital investments in South Asia and other developing countries

Concentration on school attainment goals without close attention to school quality has hurt developing countries. Recent evidence shows that individual incomes, the distribution of income, and economic growth rates are all closely related to the cognitive skills of the population. While direct evidence from developing countries is thin, the evidence from developed countries points to the central importance of improving teacher quality in any reform strategies.
Building a Mobile Collaborative Learning Environment for the Identification and Classification of Real World Objects

This paper describes the theoretical framework and in-progress implementation of the Collaborative Identification, Retrieval, and Classification Learning Environment (CIRCLE). CIRCLE uses recent research findings in collaboration, constructivism, mobile development, and retrieval learning to develop a multi-user tool for the identification and classification of real world objects. CIRCLE supports group efforts at taxonomy building by providing a framework for data gathering in the field and scientific hypothesizing and debate in a virtual laboratory. Future plans include a pilot usability study and classroom experiments to determine the effectiveness of the approach towards learning the identification of rocks and minerals (in a geology lab), weeds (in a weed identification course), and animals (in an ecology class).
Experimental tests of the Münch-Horwitz theory of phloem transport: effects of loading rates

Abstract Extended square-wave tracer kinetics using 11CO2 were used to measure the speed of transport and activity level (proportional to concentration) in the phloem at high and low loading rates in six species of plants. In all cases, increased loading rates resulted in increased concentration. In most cases speed also increased, however, in two cases speed was lower and tracer activity was much higher at the higher loading rate. All the responses are consistent with the Munch Horwitz theory of phloem transport, depending upon the equation used to represent the unloading mechanism as described in a previous paper (Goeschl & Magnuson, 1986). For example, the latter two cases are consistent with the assumption that the unloading rate was limited by a process with saturable kinetics (enzyme-like).
High Selectivity for Ethylene from Carbon Dioxide Reduction over Copper Nanocube Electrocatalysts

Nanostructured surfaces have been shown to greatly enhance the activity and selectivity of many different catalysts. Here we report a nanostructured copper surface that gives high selectivity for ethylene formation from electrocatalytic CO2 reduction. The nanostructured copper is easily formed in situ during the CO2 reduction reaction, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) shows the surface to be dominated by cubic structures. Using online electrochemical mass spectrometry (OLEMS), the onset potentials and relative selectivity toward the volatile products (ethylene and methane) were measured for several different copper surfaces and single crystals, relating the cubic shape of the copper surface to the greatly enhanced ethylene selectivity. The ability of the cubic nanostructure to so strongly favor multicarbon product formation from CO2 reduction, and in particular ethylene over methane, is unique to this surface and is an important step toward developing a catalyst that has exclusive selectivity for multicarbon products.