cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Global Settlements: Promise and Peril

In 2010, Morrison v. National Australia Bank Ltd. destabilized the world of securities litigation by denying those who purchased their securities outside the U.S. the ability to sue in the U.S. (as they had previously often done). Nature, however abhors a vacuum, and practitioners and other jurisdictions began to seek ways to regain access to U.S. courts. Several techniques have emerged: (1) expanding settlement classes so that they are broader than litigation classes and treating the location of the transaction as strictly a merits issue that defendants could waive; (2) adopting U.S. law as applicable to securities issued abroad by crosslisted companies (as Israel has done); (3) use of the Netherland’s WCAM statute to effect a global resolution of a settlement class; and (4) coordination between the courts in both jurisdictions in the case of a cross-listed stock. On the horizon is still a more ambitious technique: use of supplemental jurisdiction to permit a class of foreign claimants to be combined with a class of U.S. claimants. Early decisions have divided on this technique. This article suggests guidelines for courts to follow in whether to allow foreign claimants in securities actions to re-enter the U.S.
Hematopoietic stem cells: self-renewal and expansion.

: Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are a unique population of cells with the remarkable ability to replenish themselves through self-renewal and to give rise to differentiated cell lineages. Though having been discovered more than 50 years ago, and having been widely used in bone marrow transplantation to treat blood disorders including leukemia, expansion of HSCs remains an unmet task, thus affecting its more effective usage in clinical practice. Purpose of review The purpose of this review article is to summarize past efforts in ex-vivo HSC expansion and to compare recent advances in expanding murine and human HSCs by targeting the N-methyladenosine (mA) pathway. Recent findings Unlike past many efforts that mainly target single or limited pathways and often lead to lineage bias or expansion of progenitor cells or limited long-term HSCs (LT-HSCs), the blocking the degradation of mA pathway has an advantage of stabilizing hundreds of key factors required for maintaining HSCs, thus resulting in expansion of functional LT-HSCs. Summary The new approach of targeting the mA pathway has a promising application in clinical HSC-based transplantation.
Distilling a Materials Synthesis Ontology

Methods sections adopt a common practice of past-tense narrative using passive voice. Here, we discuss issues with current and historical writing conventions in materials science literature and propose a structured way to facilitate reproducibility, clarity, and machine readability.
Accounting for Microdosing Classic Psychedelics

Microdosing classic psychedelics (e.g., LSD [lysergic acid diethylamide] and psilocybin) is the practice of taking small amounts of these substances to bring about various positive life changes. Li...
Enzymatic Labeling of Bacterial Proteins for Super-resolution Imaging in Live Cells

Methods that enable the super-resolution imaging of intracellular proteins in live bacterial cells provide powerful tools for the study of prokaryotic cell biology. Photoswitchable organic dyes exhibit many of the photophysical properties needed for super-resolution imaging, including high brightness, photostability, and photon output, but most such dyes require organisms to be fixed and permeabilized if intracellular targets are to be labeled. We recently reported a general strategy for the chemoenzymatic labeling of bacterial proteins with azide-bearing fatty acids in live cells using the eukaryotic enzyme N-myristoyltransferase. Here we demonstrate the labeling of proteins in live Escherichia coli using cell-permeant bicyclononyne-functionalized photoswitchable rhodamine spirolactams. Single-molecule fluorescence measurements on model rhodamine spirolactam salts show that these dyes emit hundreds of photons per switching event. Super-resolution imaging was performed on bacterial chemotaxis proteins Tar and CheA and cell division proteins FtsZ and FtsA. High-resolution imaging of Tar revealed a helical pattern; imaging of FtsZ yielded banded patterns dispersed throughout the cell. The precision of radial and axial localization in reconstructed images approaches 15 and 30 nm, respectively. The simplicity of the method, which does not require redox imaging buffers, should make this approach broadly useful for imaging intracellular bacterial proteins in live cells with nanometer resolution.
Myosin 10 and a Cytoneme-Localized Ligand Complex Promote Morphogen Transport

Morphogens function in concentration-dependent manners to instruct cell fate during tissue patterning. Molecular mechanisms by which these signaling gradients are established and reinforced remain enigmatic. The cytoneme transport model posits that specialized filopodia extend between morphogen-sending and responding cells to ensure that appropriate signal activation thresholds are achieved across developing tissues. How morphogens are transported along and deployed from cytonemes is not known. Herein we show that the actin motor Myosin 10 promotes cytoneme-based transport of Sonic Hedgehog (SHH) morphogen to filopodial tips, and that SHH movement within cytonemes occurs by vesicular transport. We demonstrate that cytoneme-mediated deposition of SHH onto receiving cells induces a rapid signal response, and that SHH cytonemes are promoted by a complex containing a ligand-specific deployment protein and associated co-receptor.
Why N95 Should Be the Standard for All COVID-19 Inpatient Care.

Guidelines differ in their guidance on the use of N95 respirators versus medical masks for frontline health care workers working with patients with COVID-19, particularly when aerosolized procedure...
Neural correlates of sign language production revealed by electrocorticography

Objective: The combined spatiotemporal dynamics underlying sign language production remains largely unknown. To investigate these dynamics as compared to speech production we utilized intracranial electrocorticography during a battery of language tasks. Methods: We report a unique case of direct cortical surface recordings obtained from a neurosurgical patient with intact hearing and bilingual in English and American Sign Language. We designed a battery of cognitive tasks to capture multiple modalities of language processing and production. Results: We identified two spatially distinct cortical networks: ventral for speech and dorsal for sign production. Sign production recruited peri-rolandic, parietal and posterior temporal regions, while speech production recruited frontal, peri-sylvian and peri-rolandic regions. Electrical cortical stimulation confirmed this spatial segregation, identifying mouth areas for speech production and limb areas for sign production. The temporal dynamics revealed superior parietal cortex activity immediately before sign production, suggesting its role in planning and producing sign language. Conclusions: Our findings reveal a distinct network for sign language and detail the temporal propagation supporting sign production.
Use of 11 mm BrainPath endoport in minimally invasive hematoma evacuation: A case report

Abstract Background Intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) results in devastating neurological injury as a result of both mass effect and the pro-inflammatory response to erythrolysis. Minimally invasive surgical techniques for hematoma evacuation are promising for improving functional outcome. The NICO BrainPath 13.5 mm tubular retractor system has been used as a minimally invasive approach to subcortical intracranial hemorrhages. Here we report the first ever use of the novel 11 mm BrainPath retractor system to evacuate a subcortical intracerebral hematoma. Case Description: 52 year-old man presented to our hospital with expanding left basal ganglia hemorrhage and declining neurological exam. The patient underwent minimally invasive NICO (Indianapolis, IN) BrainPath evacuation using an 11 mm tubular retractor system. Near total evacuation was successfully achieved. The patient did well postoperatively, with a favorable 90-day functional outcome. Conclusion In this case, using an 11 mm NICO (Indianapolis, IN) BrainPath system for basal ganglia ICH provided early, near-total hematoma evacuation and favorable functional outcome at 90-day check-in. Here, we demonstrate the technical feasibility of utilizing an 11 mm BrainPath tubular retractor instead of the traditional 13.5 mm system for evacuating ICH. It is the hope that the smaller 11 mm access port more closely matches endoscopic evacuation access techniques and could potentially mitigate the impact of a MIS approach on surrounding parenchyma while still achieving optimal evacuation.
Topology and –regularity theorems on collapsed manifolds with Ricci curvature bounds

In this paper we discuss and prove ϵ–regularity theorems for Einstein manifolds (Mn,g), and more generally manifolds with just bounded Ricci curvature, in the collapsed setting. A key tool in the regularity theory of noncollapsed Einstein manifolds is the following. If x ∈ Mn is such that V ol(B1(x)) > v > 0 and that B2(x) is sufficiently Gromov–Hausdorff close to a cone space B2(0n−l,y∗) ⊂ ℝn−l × C(Y l−1) for l ≤ 3, then in fact |Rm|≤ 1 on B1(x). No such results are known in the collapsed setting, and in fact it is easy to see that without further assumptions such results are false. It turns out that the failure of such an estimate is related to topology. Our main theorem is that for the above setting in the collapsed context, either the curvature is bounded, or there are topological constraints on B1(x). More precisely, using established techniques one can see there exists ϵ(n) such that if (Mn,g) is an Einstein manifold and B2(x) is ϵ–Gromov–Hausdorff close to ball in B2(0k−l,z∗) ⊂ ℝk−l × Zl, then the fibered fundamental group Γϵ(x) ≡ Image[π1(Bϵ(x)) → π1(B2(x))] is almost nilpotent with rank(Γϵ(x)) ≤ n − k. The main result of the this paper states that if rank(Γϵ(x)) = n − k is maximal, then |Rm|≤ C on B1(x). In the case when the ball is close to Euclidean, this is both a necessary and sufficient condition. There are generalizations of this result to bounded Ricci curvature and even just lower Ricci curvature.
Women in hepatopancreaticobiliary surgery: is there a pipeline problem?

Abstract Background Women are underrepresented in hepatopancreatobiliary (HPB) surgery. We investigated whether this is a pipeline problem by looking at the percentage of women trainees presenting at Americas Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association (AHPBA) and then determining their ultimate career path. Methods We extracted gender, level of training, and career path of first authors of abstracts presented at the 2007 and 2012 AHPBA conferences. Chi-square analysis and Fisher's exact test were used to examine gender trends. Results 85 authors in 2007 and 109 in 2012 met inclusion criteria. 16.5% of presenters were female in 2007 compared to 22.9% in 2012. Just over 50% of authors went into academic medicine in 2007 (55%) and 2012 (59%) which did not differ by gender (p = 0.868 in 2007, p = 0.174 in 2012). 41.2% of first authors from 2007 to 2012 went into an HPB related field which did not differ significantly by gender (p = 0.450 for 2007, p = 0.626 for 2012). Conclusion Similar percentages of men and women who present at AHPBA ultimately obtain an HPB related job, however, more men than women trainees present at AHPBA. More efforts to encourage women to go into HPB surgery early may help eliminate this gender gap.
On the Reversal of Star formation Rate-Density Relation at z = 1: Insights from Simulations

Recent surveys have found a reversal of the star formation rate (SFR)-density relation at z = 1 from that at z = 0, while the sign of the slope of the color-density relation remains unchanged. We use adaptive mesh refinement cosmological hydrodynamic simulations of a 21 × 24 × 20 h {sup –3} Mpc{sup 3} region to examine the SFR-density and color-density relations of galaxies at z = 0 and z = 1. The local environmental density is defined by the dark matter mass in spheres of radius 1 h {sup –1} Mpc, and we probe two decades of environmental densities. Our simulations produce a large increase of SFR with density at z = 1, as in the Elbaz et al. observations. We also find a significant evolution to z = 0, where the SFR-density relation is much flatter. The simulated color-density relation is consistent from z = 1 to z = 0, in agreement with observations. We find that the increase in SFR with local density at z = 1 is due to a growing population of star-forming galaxies in higher-density environments. At z = 0 and z = 1 both the SFR and cold gas mass are correlatedmore » with the galaxy halo mass, and therefore the correlation between median halo mass and local density is an important cause of the SFR-density relation at both redshifts. However, at z = 0 the local density on 1 h {sup –1} Mpc scales affects galaxy SFRs as much as halo mass. Finally, we find indications that while at z = 0 high-density environments depress galaxy SFRs, at z = 1 high-density environments tend to increase SFRs.« less
The N501Y spike substitution enhances SARS-CoV-2 transmission

Beginning in the summer of 2020, a variant of SARS-CoV-2, the cause of the COVID-19 pandemic, emerged in the United Kingdom (UK). This B.1.1.7 variant increased rapidly in prevalence among sequenced strains, attributed to an increase in infection and/or transmission efficiency. The UK variant has 19 nonsynonymous mutations across its viral genome including 8 substitutions or deletions in the spike protein, which interacts with cellular receptors to mediate infection and tropism. Here, using a reverse genetics approach, we show that, of the 8 individual spike protein substitutions, only N501Y exhibited consistent fitness gains for replication in the upper airway in the hamster model as well as primary human airway epithelial cells. The N501Y substitution recapitulated the phenotype of enhanced viral transmission seen with the combined 8 UK spike mutations, suggesting it is a major determinant responsible for increased transmission of this variant. Mechanistically, the N501Y substitution improved the affinity of the viral spike protein for cellular receptors. As suggested by its convergent evolution in Brazil and South Africa, our results indicate that N501Y substitution is a major adaptive spike mutation of major concern.
Regulatory Arbitrage and Global Push Factors

This paper identifies two theoretical mechanisms that relate the regulatory arbitrage behavior of internationally active banks (IABs) to global financial conditions. According to the first mechanism, regulation becomes more binding during adverse financial conditions. Under these conditions, IABs face higher compliance costs in more regulated markets. According to the second mechanism, higher regulation suppresses the degree of risk-taking and asset returns so that highly-regulated nations are more insulated from global financial risk. These results are reversed in less-regulated nations. We use a panel of bilateral BIS banking statistics and a unique empirical strategy to find that the first of the two theoretical mechanisms above is more prevalent. Specifically, IABs expand their claims more rapidly in less-regulated nations when global perception of financial risk is higher. The direction of arbitrage is reversed under loose conditions. This evidence is corroborated by the inferences from a structural vector autoregressive model fitted to data from individual countries.
THE UNITY OF THE GOSPEL OF MARK

About two decades ago Eric Dinkler and Ferdinand Hahn came up with almost identical conclusions concerning the tradition and redaction of Mark 8:27-33. What made this similarity of their conclusions particularly remarkable was the fact that they had worked completely independent of each other. The agreement between them reinforced their conclusions. Along with many other New Testament scholars I accepted that the correctness of their conclusions had been established in this way, until recently when I had to discuss the passage in a book intended for intelligent lay persons not versed in New Testament scholarship. It was clear to me that I could not present the Dinkler/Hahn argument persuasively to such readers. Furthermore, I was convinced that this was not because they did not have the expertise to follow the argument. In the context of such readers, the Dinkler/Hahn argument appeared contrived, but not only that argument; I came to the conclusion that much of what we as New Testament scholars do is contrived’ that much of what we do is more concerned with erudition that with understanding. The reason why we come up with similar conclusions in our research is simply because we use the same methods, not because we succeed in uncovering the truth. If we were to use different methods, we would come up with different results. In the present case, if we continue to sue the same method the results would remain the same, whoever does the research. It is the method itself which needs to be questioned. In the following I propose a different method, and even if the results were not to be more convincing, it should at least show that a change of the method reveals that the Dinkler/Hahn results are not as self-evident as it may seem.
The Legal Ethics of Lying About American Democracy

Numerous lawyers contributed to the disinformation campaign that led to the storming of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. Some of the lawyers filed lawsuits that questioned the legitimacy of the presidential election, and others spread falsehoods while acting as legislators or in similar high profile roles. This chapter explores the potential disciplinary consequences of their behavior and the larger implications of their conduct for American democracy. One theme of this chapter is that, when lawyers make claims about elections, the consequences of misinformation are severe and threaten to undermine trust in our democratic institutions. Given the stakes, the legal profession should apply well-established procedures and rules to discipline lawyers who cross ethical lines in the context of election-related litigation. In contrast, discipline is far more complex, both legally and politically, for lawyers who serve in public roles and do not represent clients, such as lawyer-legislators who lied about the election. Rather than seeking to discipline these lawyers with traditional sanctions, the profession should speak with one voice and across the political spectrum to condemn them for lying about core features of our democracy. The risks here are enormous. Lawyers play a critical role in supporting and lending legitimacy to bedrock political institutions, such as the judiciary and the electoral system. When lawyers lie or offer misleading information about those institutions, they create an existential threat to democracy itself. The disciplinary system can help to encourage appropriate behavior at the margins, but even with these professional guardrails, it is an open question whether lawyers will exercise the kind of professional integrity that democratic institutions need.
A passive sampler based on solid phase microextraction (SPME) for sediment-associated organic pollutants: Comparing freely-dissolved concentration with bioaccumulation

The elevated occurrence of hydrophobic organic chemicals (HOCs) such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and legacy organchlorine pesticides (e.g. chlordane and DDT) in estuarine sediments continues to poses challenges for maintaining the health of aquatic ecosystems. Current efforts to develop and apply protective, science-based sediment quality regulations for impaired waterbodies are hampered by non-concordance between model predictions and measured bioaccumulation and toxicity. A passive sampler incorporating commercially available solid phase microextraction (SPME) fibers was employed in lab and field studies to measure the freely dissolved concentration of target HOCs (Cfree) and determine its suitability as a proxy for bioaccumulation. SPME deduced Cfree for organochlorines was highly correlated with tissue concentrations (Cb) of Macoma and Nereis spp. co-exposed in laboratory microcosms containing both spiked and naturally contaminated sediments. This positive association was also observed in situ for endemic bivalves, where SPME samplers were deployed for up to 1 month at an estuarine field site. The concordance between Cb and Cfree for PAH was more variable, in part due to likely biotransformation by model invertebrates. These results indicate that SPME passive samplers can serve as a proxy for bioaccumulation of sediment-associated organochlorines in both lab and field studies, reducing the uncertainty associated with model predictions that do not adequately account for differential bioavailability.
Fuzzy Logic Controller to a Steam Generator Feedwater Flow

Since the pioneering works of Zadeh and Mamdani and Assilian the conventional fuzzy logic controller has been successfully implemented in many industrial applications As the number of system variables increase, the number of rules in a conventional complete rule set increases exponentially The concept of hierarchical rule set is proposed here such that the number of rules constituting the fuzzy controller will increase linearly (not exponentially) with the number of system variables The purpose of this paper is two fold: (1) to summarize some of the recent and relevant results of the hierarchical rule set and (2) to describe the application of this hierarchical structure for the design of a fuzzy logic controller to a steam generator feedwater flow. 5 refs., 2 figs.
Comparative analysis of frequency selective surface geometry effect in Fabry-Perot Cavity antenna design

Fabry-Perot Cavity (FPC) antenna using a single radiating element with different frequency selective surface (FSS) is presented. The FSS designs are rectangular and square unit cells with rectangular and circular openings, respectively. A slot antenna is used as a primary source in the FPC antenna and the system is designed to operate in X-band. The effect of each FSS geometry on the radiation pattern of the source is investigated.
Games and Simulation: DS Online's Newest Topic Area

Over the past few years, we've all witnessed the hacker community's growing impact on both the IT industry and academia. Host and network exploitation techniques that used to be discussed in "underground" forums are now featured in book series from No Starch Press, Syngress, and other publishers. Furthermore, they've become standard training for security practitioners - see, for example, the SANS Institute's Security 504: Hacker Techniques, Exploits, and Incident Handling course (http://www.sans.org/training/courses.php). It is now beyond doubt that the hacker community has developed efficient techniques for analyzing, reverse engineering, testing, and modifying software and hardware that challenge their college and graduate-school-educated peers. These techniques have let the community substantially contribute to the state of the art of practical computer security. Many academic researchers recognize that marginalizing the hacker community would be a mistake, and increasing numbers of industry and government security practitioners attend hacker conferences such as DefCon (http://www.defcon.org) and Black Hat (http://www.blackhat.com). In fact, the US Military Academy and the US Naval Academy supported their students' participation in computer-security-related competitions at ShmooCon (http://www.shmoocon.org) and DefCon, respectively.
Parent and Peer Restrictions of Opportunities Attenuate the Link between Low Self‐control and Antisocial Behavior

Focusing on parents and peers as restrictors of opportunities, this study tested whether restricted opportunities attenuate the link between low self-control and antisocial behavior as hypothesized by the General Theory of Crime. Early adolescents (N = 180, M age = 12.04 years, 49.4 percent female, 49 percent European American, 45 percent African American) reported their levels of self-control, antisocial peer involvement, unsupervised time, parental solicitation, family rules, and involvement in antisocial behavior. Low levels of antisocial peer involvement and high levels of parental supervision, solicitation, and family rules were conceptualized as restricted opportunities for antisocial behavior. Opportunity restrictions attenuated the association between low self-control and antisocial behavior such that low self-control was less strongly associated with antisocial behavior when youth experienced less antisocial peer involvement, less unsupervised time, more parental solicitation, and more family rules than when youth experienced more antisocial peer involvement, more unsupervised time, less parental solicitation, and fewer family rules. Results clarify and extend our understanding of the role of restricted opportunities for low self-control youth in the General Theory of Crime.
Fractionation in Radiobiology: Classical Concepts and Recent Developments

Well-focused radiation treatments such as the one utilizing stereotactic guidance for both benign and malignant tumors have gained significant popularity over the recent decades. Historically, executing the treatment course over several weeks with daily fraction of relatively low dose (termed conventional or standard fractionation) has been established as the norm for major portion of the past century. This has largely been guided by the established quantitative doctrines of clinical or classical radiation biology. However, a new trend has apparently emerged to deliver significantly fewer fractions of treatment (called hypofractionation) or even single-dose irradiation. That one can now seemingly violate the long-held tenet of fractionation radiobiology results largely from the physical advantage of ultra-precision-oriented technology, made possible by more sophisticated computerized treatment planning. Nevertheless, some new biological insights have been offered by recent investigators with renewed quantitative theories, in order to account for the observed clinical efficacy of hypofractionation. The synopsis below aims to present the shifting development in fractionation practice from the classical radiobiology viewpoints, with the emphasis on the evolution of mathematical modeling so pervasive in the clinical application of the biological principles. Readers interested in a more in-depth coverage of the background information are urged to first browse through the author’s earlier review on the subject, which followed a thread of synthesis of central ideas behind quantitative radiobiology (Lee et al. 2006). In order to maintain a self-sufficient amount of information, however, much of the previously presented exposition is summarized and at times included verbatim here for the reader’s convenience. The main addition to the antecedent discussion is the presentation of recent development of theoretical models designed to quantify more accurately the observed efficacy of hypofractionation and thus justify its clinical practice.
Origin of the dorsal surface of the neural tube by progressive delamination of epidermal ectoderm and neuroepithelium: implications for neurulation and neural tube defects

Knowledge of the morphogenetic events involved in the development of the dorsal portion of the neural tube is important for understanding neural tube closure, neural crest cell formation and emigration, and the origin of neural tube defects. Here, I characterize the progressive development of the tips of the neural folds during fold elevation in the trunk of mouse and chick embryos and the events leading to formation of the dorsal portion of the neural tube as the epidermal ectoderm (EE) and neuroepithelium (NE) separate from each other. The nature and timing of appearance of collagen IV, laminin and fibronectin were analysed by immunofluorescent and immunogold labelling, and ruthenium red and tannic acid were used to enhance staining for proteoglycans and glycosaminoglycans. As the neural folds elevate, the NE and EE delaminate progressively beginning at the basal surface of the lateral extremes of the neural plate. Nevertheless, the two epithelia remain connected across the zone of delamination by their previously existing basal laminae. In each fold, proteoglycan granules appear at the interface between the NE and EE before delamination begins, and then an (interepithelial) space begins to open and propagate dorsally. Other extracellular matrix (ECM) molecules appear within the space a short distance behind its tip and basal lamina deposition begins shortly thereafter. As fusion occurs, the interepithelial spaces of the two folds coalesce and the final separation of the EE from the NE is accomplished. These observations suggest that the previously recognized delay in deposition of ECM and basal lamina on the dorsal portion of the neural tube and on the overlying EE is a direct consequence of the delamination of the two epithelia and the establishment of two new basal surfaces. The observation that the surface of the dorsal third of the neural tube forms by delamination rather than by juxtaposition of previously existing basal surfaces of the two epithelial is discussed in terms of possible implications for models of neurulation and the origin of neural tube defects.
Projection space denoising with bilateral filtering and CT noise modeling for dose reduction in CT

Purpose: To investigate a novel locally adaptive projection space denoising algorithm for low-dose CT data. Methods: The denoising algorithm is based on bilateral filtering, which smooths values using a weighted average in a local neighborhood, with weights determined according to both spatial proximity and intensity similarity between the center pixel and the neighboring pixels. This filtering is locally adaptive and can preserve important edge information in the sinogram, thus maintaining high spatial resolution. A CTnoise model that takes into account the bowtie filter and patient-specific automatic exposure control effects is also incorporated into the denoising process. The authors evaluated the noise-resolution properties of bilateral filtering incorporating such a CTnoise model in phantom studies and preliminary patient studies with contrast-enhanced abdominal CT exams. Results: On a thin wire phantom, the noise-resolution properties were significantly improved with the denoising algorithm compared to commercial reconstruction kernels. The noise-resolution properties on low-dose (40 mA s) data after denoising approximated those of conventional reconstructions at twice the dose level. A separate contrast plate phantom showed improved depiction of low-contrast plates with the denoising algorithm over conventional reconstructions when noise levels were matched. Similar improvement in noise-resolution properties was found on CT colonography data and on five abdominal low-energy (80 kV) CT exams. In each abdominal case, a board-certified subspecialized radiologist rated the denoised 80 kV images markedly superior in image quality compared to the commercially available reconstructions, and denoising improved the image quality to the point where the 80 kV images alone were considered to be of diagnostic quality. Conclusions: The results demonstrate that bilateral filtering incorporating a CTnoise model can achieve a significantly better noise-resolution trade-off than a series of commercial reconstruction kernels. This improvement in noise-resolution properties can be used for improving image quality in CT and can be translated into substantial dose reduction.
Moving to CC2001 at a small college

In this paper, we describe the process, problems, and successes of moving a Computer Science major at a small liberal arts college from CC1991[1] to CC2001[3]. Our current computer science major is largely based on CC1991 and on A Revised Model Curriculum for a Liberal Arts Degree in Computer Science[2]. We discuss issues with the number of required courses, the mathematics requirement, staffing, and transitioning to the new curricular model within a small department.
Chlorine stable isotope composition of the oceanic crust: Implications for Earth's distribution of chlorine

Abstract This first investigation of the Cl stable isotope composition of seafloor rocks reveals systematic variations in 37 Cl 35 Cl of the oceanic crust and its mantle source(s) relative to seawater. Chlorine isotopic measurements (expressed as δ 37 Cl relative to the seawater 37 Cl 35 Cl ratio) of fresh MORB glass, hydrothermally produced amphibole-containing whole rocks and smectite veins are presented. All the samples analyzed are isotopically enriched (0.2–7.5‰) relative to seawater (0‰). Uptake of Cl into amphibole during axial hydrothermal alteration fractionates Cl relative to seawater. The isotopic compositions of MORB glasses are between 0.2 and 7.2‰. This range appears to be partially due to the assimilation of Cl from hydrothermally altered wallrock into MORB magmas. Samples which are unaffected by assimilation have δ 37 Cl between 3 and 7.2‰. Overall, the data imply that Cl is isotopically fractionated between the surface and mantle reservoirs of Earth. Calculations based on the degree of fractionation suggest that approximately 40% of the Cl originally in the degassed mantle now resides on Earth's surface.
Dependence of NO 2 degenerate four-wave-mixing signals on buffer gas pressure

Measurements of degenerate four-wave mixing (DFWM) from NO2 are presented as a function of buffer gas pressure and laser power. The signal strength first decreases and then increases with increasing buffer gas pressure. This dependence on buffer gas pressure is apparently due to the onset of thermal gratings. In the regime where thermal gratings are the dominant source of DFWM signals, the DFWM signal intensity increases as the square of the laser power until saturation.© (1993) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Anti-tumor effects of tumor necrosis factor alone or combined with radiotherapy

Recombinant human tumor necrosis factor (rHuTNF) was investigated for its ability to increase the response of murine tumors to ionizing radiation. Both multiple i.v. administrations of rHuTNF and local tumor irradiation caused a significant delay in tumor growth. The effect of treatment with both agents combined was greater than the additive effect of the individual treatments. Furthermore, rHuTNF significantly increased tumor radiocurability, as assessed by the TCD50 assay. rHuTNF was not cytotoxic to tumor cells, nor did it affect their radiosensitivity. The in vivo anti-tumor effect of rHuTNF and its augmentation of tumor radioresponse were mediated through indirect mechanisms, either immunological or non-immunological. rHuTNF was also effective in reducing the damaging effect of ionizing radiation on bone-marrow progenitor cells, which could increase the therapeutic advantage of the rHuTNF-radiotherapy combination. These experiments suggest that rHuTNF is potentially beneficial in combination with radiotherapy.
The Legitimization of Marriage and Family Therapy in the United States: Implications for International Recognition

With approximately 50,000 practicing clinicians and regulation in every state and the District of Columbia, marriage and family therapy is firmly established in the United States. This article traces the development of the regulation of the profession, considers the key players in the establishment of the field, and differentiates between the practice and the profession with implications for the expansion of such recognition internationally. Specifically, this article describes the current practices of marriage and family therapists in the United States and briefly discusses some of the research that has been generated to understand the practice of marriage and family therapy. Finally, an exploration of the consequences of the legitimization of marriage and family therapy for organizations and governments seeking the recognition and regulation of the practice are considered.
‘All they do is pray’: Community labour and the narrowing of ‘care’ during Mozambique's HIV scale-up

This paper tracks the intertwined biographies of a community home-based care (CHBC) volunteer, Arminda, the community-based organisation she worked for, Mufudzi, and the HIV scale-up in Mozambique. The focus is on Arminda – the experiences, aspirations, skills, and values she brought to her work as a volunteer, and the ways her own life converged with the rise and fall of the organisation that pioneered CHBC in this region. CHBC began in Mozambique in the mid-1990s as a community-level response to the AIDS epidemic at a time when there were few such organised efforts. The rapid pace and technical orientation of the scale-up as well as the influx of funding altered the practice of CHBC by expanding the scope of the work to become more technically comprehensive, but at the same time more narrowly defining ‘care’ as clinically-oriented work. Over the course of the scale-up, Arminda and her colleagues felt exploited and ultimately abandoned, despite their work having served as the vanguard and national model ...
Correlation between pretreatment FDG-PET biological target volume and anatomical location of failure after radiation therapy for head and neck cancers.

Abstract Background and purpose To assess whether the pretreatment FDG-PET-defined biologic target volume (PET-BTV) correlates with the anatomical sites of loco-regional failure (LRF) after RT for head and neck cancer (HNC). Materials and methods We retrospectively identified 61 HNC patients treated definitively with either 3-D CRT or IMRT who had a pre-therapy PET/CT. The GTV and high-risk CTV 1 definitions included composite data obtained from diagnostic CT, PET/CT, physical examination, and MRI when available. The median CTV 1 dose was 70Gy. 95% received chemotherapy. For patients with LRF, a recurrence volume ( V r ) was identified and was mapped to the pretreatment planning CT and pretreatment PET scan. Results At a median follow-up of 22 months, 15% (9/61) patients had LRF. For patients with a LRF, 100% (9/9) of failures were inside the GTV. One of nine [11% (95% CI: 3–45%)] had V r which mapped outside of the pretreatment PET-BTV, while 8/9 patients had V r within the PET-BTV. Predictors of LRF in our series included GTV volume ( p =0.003), but not mean SUV ( p =0.13) or max SUV ( p =0.25). Conclusions Following treatment in which the GTV was defined based on the composite of imaging and physical examination, the majority, but not all, LRF occurred within the PET-BTV. These results support an important, but not exclusive, role of FDG-PET in defining the GTV.
A Regional Burn Center’s Response to a Disaster: September 11, 2001, and the Days Beyond

This report reviews the response of a regional burn center to the disaster that occurred in New York City at the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. In addition, it assesses that response in the context of other medical institutions in the region. There were facilities in the region that had 120 burn care beds; only two-thirds of the burn-injured patients who required hospital admission were admitted to designated burn centers, and only 28% of burn-injured victims initially were triaged to regional burn centers. The care rendered at this center was made possible by a "disaster-ready" facility and supplementation of personnel from the resources provided by The National Disaster Medical System. The patient outcomes at this center exceeded that as predicted by logistic regression analysis.
Birefringence Measurements In Single Mode Optical Fiber

Because their cores are not perfectly circular or because of stress, inherent to the structure or externally applied, practical single mode fibers are birefringent. These sources of birefringence are reviewed briefly. A simple model for the fiber consists of a combination of one linearly birefringent element and one circularly birefringent element. Depending on the magnitude of the birefringence, different techniques of evaluating the parameters of the model may be suitable. Several methods appropriate for low and high birefringence fiber are described and some of their advantages and disadvantages outlined. In an idealized single mode optical fiber, in which none of the structural or optical parameters varies with the azimuthal coordinate, all polarization states within the fundamental mode are degenerate; that is, neither the phase nor group velocity depends on polarization. In practice, however, this degeneracy is usually lifted by non-circularity of the core, by inherent stress in the guiding structure, or by stress resulting from bending, pressure, or twisting. Light entering the fiber with an arbitrary polarization state will then be resolved into a pair of orthogonal polarization states that propagate with different velocities. As a phase shift develops between them, the state of polarization will vary periodically along the fiber. The orthogonal states may be linear, circular, or in general elliptical, depending on the specific mechanisms involved.
AN EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION OF THE DECOMPOSITION OF CARBON MONOXIDE AND FORMATION ROUTES TO CARBON DIOXIDE IN INTERSTELLAR ICES

The formation of carbon dioxide from the processing of carbon monoxide (CO) and molecular oxygen (18O2) via radiolysis is studied within the context of its formation in interstellar ices in quiescent clouds. With the help of isotopic labeling, we were able to ''trace'' the atoms and provide mechanistical information on how carbon monoxide is decomposed, and carbon dioxide is formed in interstellar ices. Here, we quantify the production of 18O3, O18O2, 18OO18O, C18O, CO2, 18OCO, and C18O2. In contrast to experiments using ultraviolet irradiation, we find that upon exposure to energetic electrons, isolated carbon monoxide molecules are able to undergo unimolecular decomposition to give suprathermal carbon (C) and oxygen (O) atoms. Molecular oxygen decomposes to two oxygen atoms. The free oxygen atoms can react with carbon monoxide via addition to form the carbon dioxide isotopomers as observed experimentally. This mechanism to form carbon dioxide is distinctly different to the one observed in pure carbon monoxide ices where electronically excited carbon monoxide reacts with a neighboring carbon monoxide molecule to form solely carbon dioxide and a carbon atom.
The Arabidopsis Group 1 LATE EMBRYOGENESIS ABUNDANT Protein ATEM6 Is Required for Normal Seed Development

As part of the embryo maturation process, orthodox seeds undergo a developmentally regulated dehydration period. The LATE EMBRYOGENESIS ABUNDANT (LEA) genes encode a large and diverse family of proteins expressed during this time. Many hypothesize that LEA proteins act by mitigating water loss and maintaining cellular stability within the desiccated seed, although the mechanisms of their actions remain largely unknown. The model plant Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) contains two genes belonging to the group 1 LEA family, ATEM1 and ATEM6, and knockout mutations in these genes are being sought as a means to better understand group 1 LEA protein function during embryo maturation. We have identified a T-DNA insertion allele of the ATEM6 gene in which the T-DNA is present just downstream of the protein coding region. While this gene is transcriptionally active and encodes a wild-type protein, there is no detectable ATEM6 protein in mature seeds. Mutant seeds display premature seed dehydration and maturation at the distal end of siliques, demonstrating that this protein is required for normal seed development. We propose that one function for group 1 LEA proteins in seed development is to buffer the water loss that occurs during embryo maturation and that loss of ATEM6 expression results in the mutant phenotype.
Characteristics of ionospheric thermal radiation

Abstract A theoretical observation of the characteristics of ionospheric thermal radiation is made using a linear theory, based on a macroscopic concept with the aid of fluctuating electromagnetic field theory. The thermal noise power generated in the ionosphere per unit volume, per unit frequency bandwidth, and the available thermal noise power at a receiving antenna per unit frequency bandwidth are calculated. The spectral distributions of ionospheric thermal radiation are obtained and discussed in detail. A study of the calculated power level of the thermal noise generated in the ionosphere shows that it is exceedingly low and decreases rather rapidly with an increase of frequency ƒ. A large portion of the noise signal generated appears to be in the frequency range of ƒ 7 c/s , with the microwave noise signal being negligible, and appears to come mainly from the region between 60 km and 100 km of the ionosphere. Furthermore, the study reveals that the available noise power at a receiving antenna depends upon the geographical location of the antenna in general and that the power level is higher in the equatorial zone than in the polar cap zone. For a noise signal frequency of less than 108 c/s, the power level increases monotonically with an increase of polar angle θ from θ = 0 and reaches its maximum value at θ = 90°, where it is at least a hundred times greater than at θ = 0. For a noise signal with a frequency of 109 c/s, the available noise power has its maximum at θ ⋍ 50° , where the power level is comparable to that of a noise signal with a frequency of 106 c/s. For a noise signal of a frequency above 5 × 109c/s, the angular dependence disappears.
A mechanically stabilized receptor–ligand flex-bond important in the vasculature

Haemostasis in the arteriolar circulation mediated by von Willebrand factor (VWF) binding to platelets is an example of an adhesive interaction that must withstand strong hydrodynamic forces acting on cells. VWF is a concatenated, multifunctional protein that has binding sites for platelets as well as subendothelial collagen. Binding of the A1 domain in VWF to the glycoprotein Ib alpha subunit (GPIbalpha) on the surface of platelets mediates crosslinking of platelets to one another and the formation of a platelet plug for arterioles. The importance of VWF is illustrated by its mutation in von Willebrand disease, a bleeding diathesis. Here, we describe a novel mechanochemical specialization of the A1-GPIbalpha bond for force-resistance. We have developed a method that enables, for the first time, repeated measurements of the binding and unbinding of a receptor and ligand in a single molecule (ReaLiSM). We demonstrate two states of the receptor-ligand bond, that is, a flex-bond. One state is seen at low force; a second state begins to engage at 10 pN with a approximately 20-fold longer lifetime and greater force resistance. The lifetimes of the two states, how force exponentiates lifetime, and the kinetics of switching between the two states are all measured. For the first time, single-molecule measurements on this system are in agreement with bulk phase measurements. The results have important implications not only for how platelets bound to VWF are able to resist force to plug arterioles, but also how increased flow activates platelet plug formation.