cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Toward a Multidimensional Model of Personality Disorder Diagnosis: Implications for DSM–5

This article outlines a model of personality disorder (PD) diagnosis that combines clinically useful constructs from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) with assessment procedures that maximize reliability and clinical utility while minimizing problems associated with threshold-based PD classification. I begin by addressing limitations in the current DSM conceptualization of PDs: excessive comorbidity, use of arbitrary cutoffs to distinguish normal from pathological functioning, failure to capture variations in the adaptive value of PD symptoms, and inattention to situational influences that shape PD-related behaviors. The revisions proposed by the DSM-5 Personality and Personality Disorders Work Group help resolve some of these issues, but create new problems in other areas. A better solution would be to employ a multidimensional model of PD diagnosis in which clinicians (a) assign a single dimensional rating of overall level of personality dysfunction, (b) provide separate intensity and impairment ratings for each PD dimension, and (c) list those personality traits-including PD-related traits-that enhance adaptation and functioning. Preliminary evidence bearing on the multidimensional model is reviewed, and broader clinical and empirical implications of the model are discussed.
Microfluidic investigation of the deposition of asphaltenes in porous media

The deposition of asphaltenes in porous media, an important problem in science and macromolecular engineering, was for the first time investigated in a transparent packed-bed microreactor (μPBR) with online analytics to generate high-throughput information. Residence time distributions of the μPBR before and after loading with ~29 μm quartz particles were measured using inline UV-Vis spectroscopy. Stable packings of quartz particles with porosity of ~40% and permeability of ~500 mD were obtained. The presence of the packing materials reduced dispersion under the same velocity via estimation of dispersion coefficients and the Bodenstein number. Reynolds number was observed to influence the asphaltene deposition mechanism. For larger Reynolds numbers, mechanical entrapment likely resulted in significant pressure drops for less pore volumes injected and less mass of asphaltenes being retained under the same maximum dimensionless pressure drop. The innovation of packed-bed microfluidics for investigations on asphaltene deposition mechanisms could contribute to society by bridging macromolecular science with microsystems.
The Age–Crime Curve in Adolescence and Early Adulthood is Not Due to Age Differences in Economic Status

One of the most consistent findings in developmental criminology is the "age-crime curve"-the observation that criminal behavior increases in adolescence and decreases in adulthood. Recently, Brown and Males (Justice policy J 8:1-30, 2011) conducted an analysis of aggregate arrest, poverty, and population data from California and concluded that the widely-observed adolescent peak in rates of offending is not a consequence of developmental factors, but rather an artifact of age differences in economic status. Youngsters, they argue, offend more than adults because they are poorer than adults. The present study challenges Brown and Males' proposition by analyzing data from the National Longitudinal Study of Youth (NLSY97; N = 8,984; 51% female; 26% Black, 21% Hispanic, 52% non-Black, non-Hispanic; ages 12-18 at Wave 1), which collected measures of criminal behavior and economic status at multiple time points. Consistent with scores of other studies, we find that criminal offending peaks in adolescence, even after controlling for variation in economic status. Our findings both counter Brown and Males' claim that the age-crime curve is illusory and underscore the danger of drawing inferences about individual behavior from analysis of aggregated data.
Interim analysis of clinical trials based on urn models

Clinical trials usually involve efficient and ethical objectives such as maximizing the power and minimizing the total failure number. Interim analysis is now a standard technique in practice to achieve these objectives. Randomized urn models have been extensively studied in the literature. In this paper, we propose to perform interim analysis on clinical trials based on urn models and study its properties. We show that the urn composition, allocation of patients and parameter estimators can be approximated by a joint Gaussian process. Consequently, sequential test statistics of the proposed procedure converge to a Brownian motion in distribution and the sequential test statistics asymptotically satisfy the canonical joint distribution defined in Jennison & Turnbull (Jennison & Turnbull 2000. Group Sequential Methods with Applications to Clinical Trials, Chapman and Hall/CRC). These results provide a solid foundation and open a door to perform the interim analysis on randomized clinical trials with urn models in practice. Furthermore, we demonstrate our proposal through examples and simulations by applying sequential monitoring and stochastic curtailment techniques. The Canadian Journal of Statistics 40: 550–568; 2012 © 2012 Statistical Society of Canada Les essais cliniques ont habituellememt des objectifs d'efficacite et d'ethique tels que maximiser la puissance et minimiser le nombre total de defaillances. En pratique, l'analyse interimaire est maintenant devenue une technique standard pour atteindre ces objectifs. Les modeles d'urne aleatoire ont ete etudies de facon exhaustive dans la litterature. Dans cet article, nous proposons d'utiliser l'analyse interimaire sur des essais cliniques bases sur les modeles d'urne et d'etudier ses proprietes. Nous avons montre que la composition de l'urne, l'allocation des patients et les estimateurs des parametres peuvent etre approches par un processus gaussien conjoint. Par consequent, les statistiques de test sequentielles de la procedure proposee convergent en distribution vers un mouvement brownien et asymptotiquement, elles satisfont la distribution jointe canonique definie dans Jennison et Turnbull (2000). Ces resultats donnent une solide base et permettent l'application en pratique de l'analyse interimaire pour les essais cliniques randomises avec urne aleatoire. De plus, des exemples et des simulations appliquant le controle sequentiel et les techniques de compression stochastique permettent d'illustrer notre procedure. La revue canadienne de statistique 40: 550–568; 2012 © 2012 Societe statistique du Canada
The crystal structure of adenylosuccinate lyase from Pyrobaculum aerophilum reveals an intracellular protein with three disulfide bonds.

Abstract Adenylosuccinate lyase catalyzes two separate reactions in the de novo purine biosynthetic pathway. Through its dual action in this pathway, adenylosuccinate lyase plays an integral part in cellular replication and metabolism. Mutations in the human enzyme can result in severe neurological disorders, including mental retardation with autistic features. The crystal structure of adenylosuccinate lyase from the hyperthermophilic archaebacterium Pyrobaculum aerophilum has been determined to 2.1 A resolution. Although both the fold of the monomer and the architecture of the tetrameric asssembly are similar to adenylosuccinate lyase from the thermophilic eubacterium Thermotoga maritima , the archaebacterial lyase contains unique features. Surprisingly, the structure of adenylosuccinate lyase from P. aerophilum reveals that this intracellular protein contains three disulfide bonds that contribute significantly to its stability against thermal and chemical denaturation. The observation of multiple disulfide bonds in the recombinant form of the enzyme suggests the need for further investigations into whether the intracellular environment of P. aerophilum , and possibly other hyperthermophiles, may be compatible with protein disulfide bond formation. In addition, the protein is shorter in P. aerophilum than it is in other organisms. This abbreviation results from an internal excision of a cluster of helices that may be involved in protein-protein interactions in other organisms and may relate to the observed clinical effects of human mutations in that region.
CH3NH3PbI3 from non-iodide lead salts for perovskite solar cells via the formation of PbI2

We report the formation of CH3NH3PbI3 from more soluble, non-iodide lead salts like Pb(SCN)2 and Pb(NO3)2. When exposed to CH3NH3I vapours, the colourless lead salts turned yellow before the formation of the black perovskite. Investigation of this yellow intermediate suggests that anion exchange (converting lead salts to PbI2) precedes the perovskite formation. PCEs of 7.6% and 8.4% were achieved for the devices formed from Pb(SCN)2 and Pb(NO3)2, respectively.
Migrating tremors illuminate complex deformation beneath the seismogenic San Andreas fault.

Despite extensive studies, there is still much to be discovered about the deformation process below the seismogenic zone of the San Andreas fault. David Shelly of the US Geological Survey now reports an analysis of seismic tremor observed from mid-2001 to 2008 using a technique that provides greater spatial and temporal resolution than has previously been possible in this area. The analysis reveals the San Andreas fault near Parkfield as a continuous structure at the base of the crust, and it unveils previously unknown and complex patterns of deformation on the portion of the fault below the seismogenic zone, including tremor sequences that migrate at rates of up to 80 kilometres per hour. Despite extensive study of the San Andreas fault, its physical character and deformation mode beneath the relatively shallow earthquake-generating portion remain largely unconstrained. Here, continuous seismic data from mid-2001 to 2008 is examined, using an approach that allows differentiation between activities from nearby patches of the deep fault and begins to unveil rich and complex patterns of tremor occurrence, in particular, constant motion of the tremor source. The San Andreas fault is one of the most extensively studied faults in the world, yet its physical character and deformation mode beneath the relatively shallow earthquake-generating portion remain largely unconstrained. Tectonic ‘non-volcanic’ tremor, a recently discovered seismic signal1 probably generated by shear slip on the deep extension of some major faults2,3,4, can provide new insight into the deep fate of such faults, including that of the San Andreas fault near Parkfield, California5. Here I examine continuous seismic data from mid-2001 to 2008, identifying tremor and decomposing the signal into different families of activity based on the shape and timing of the waveforms at multiple stations6. This approach allows differentiation between activities from nearby patches of the deep fault and begins to unveil rich and complex patterns of tremor occurrence. I find that tremor exhibits nearly continuous migration, with the most extensive episodes propagating more than 20 kilometres along fault strike at rates of 15–80 kilometres per hour. This suggests that the San Andreas fault remains a localized through-going structure, at least to the base of the crust, in this area. Tremor rates and recurrence behaviour changed markedly in the wake of the 2004 magnitude-6.0 Parkfield earthquake6,7, but these changes were far from uniform within the tremor zone, probably reflecting heterogeneous fault properties and static and dynamic stresses decaying away from the rupture. The systematic recurrence of tremor demonstrated here suggests the potential to monitor detailed time-varying deformation on this portion of the deep San Andreas fault, deformation which unsteadily loads the shallower zone that last ruptured in the 1857 magnitude-7.9 Fort Tejon earthquake8.
The Gpx1 gene encodes mitochondrial glutathione peroxidase in the mouse liver.

Abstract Mitochondria have GPX and PHGPX activity. It has been an unsettled issue whether mitochondrial GPX is encoded byGpx1.Unlike theGpx4gene which encodes PHGPX with alternative transcription and translation start sites determining the subcellular localization of PHGPX, theGpx1gene appears to have a single translation start site. Additionally, mitochondrial GPX has been shown to have different chromatographic and kinetic properties from the cytosolic GPX1. We studied mouse liver mitochondrial GPX activity in homozygousGpx1-knockout mice. Mitochondria were enriched at the density of 1.10 g/ml in the Percoll gradients as shown by electron microscopy. The H2O2-reducing GPX activity in the highly enriched mitochondrial fraction of wild-type mouse liver is 2700 mU/mg which is about one-half of specific activity found in cytosol. There is less than 0.5% GPX activity in the cytosol and no GPX activity in the mitochondria ofGpx1-knockout mouse liver compared to the cytosol of wild-type mouse liver using H2O2or cumene hydroperoxide as the substrate. The fact that the knockout mice express normal levels of plasma GPX as well as testis and liver PHGPX activity indicates that animals are not selenium-deficient. Based on these observations, we concluded that mitochondrial GPX is the product of theGpx1gene.
Large fetal congenital cystic adenomatoid malformations: growth trends and patient survival

Abstract Purpose The prognosis for fetuses with large congenital cystic adenomatoid malformations (CCAMs) remains uncertain. This study examined the natural history of large fetal CCAMs managed expectantly at a major referral center. Methods A 5-year retrospective review was conducted on fetuses diagnosed with a thoracic lesion (n = 59). Large CCAMs were identified on prenatal imaging and followed longitudinally. Perinatal outcomes were assessed. Results Twelve (20.3%) fetuses had large CCAMs in the absence of other congenital anomalies. Peak CCAM size occurred at 25.3 ± 3.6 weeks' gestation. Serial magnetic resonance volumetry demonstrated a trend toward decreasing CCAM mass volume relative to thoracic cavity volume over time. Overall, 6 patients, including 3 with signs of early hydrops, showed a marked regression of their lesions relative to estimated fetal weight. Five fetuses required an emergent intervention postnatally, including extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support (n = 1), cyst aspiration (n = 1), and lung resection (n = 5). Overall survival was 75%, with severe hydrops before 30 weeks seen in all 3 deaths. Conclusion Large fetal CCAMs tend to peak in size at 25 weeks' gestation and are characterized by in utero diminution relative to overall fetal growth. The prognosis for most fetuses with large CCAMs remains quite favorable under careful perinatal management.
A generalized emissivity problem

Abstract The emissivity problem involving specular and diffuse reflection at the surface is considered. A variational principle is derived to estimate both the hemispherical and angular emissivities. Asymptotic and once iterated asymptotic angular distributions are used as trial functions to produce numerical results.
Environmental predictability and control of gonadal cycles in birds

In most vertebrates, information from the external environment is used to regulate secretion of gonadotropins and thus time gonadal maturation in anticipation of the breeding season. These environmental factors provide “predictive” information in both the long term (initial predictive) and short term (supplementary), are integrated by the central nervous system, and are then transduced into neuroendocrine and endocrine control components. We apply the constancy/contingency model of predictability to breeding data from several avian species to derive a potential unifying hypothesis to explain how these environmental factors are integrated to regulate gonadal maturation. Predictability (Pr) is a function of varying degrees of constancy (C, the habitat is predictable because it is always the same) or contingency (M, the habitat is predictable in the degree of change from season to season). Thus, although variations in Pr provide useful information for timing gonadal maturation and regression, changes in the contributions of C and M to Pr (i. e., the ratio, M/C) provide even more useful information. It is proposed that the degree to which individuals integrate initial predictive and supplementary information to regulate secretion of gonadotropins, and thus time gonadal maturation and onset of breeding, is a function of the ratio of M to C for any given Pr value. When Pr is not significant (i. e., the environment is unpredictable), then only supplementary factors may be useful for timing breeding. Hypotheses generated by this approach are easily testable. Furthermore, this method could be applied to all vertebrates, and perhaps other organisms, and may provide a unifying framework to investigate the mechanisms by which proximate environmental factors regulate reproductive function in general.
The relative efficacy of monopolar vs. bipolar electrodes in stimulation-produced analgesia.

Focal brain stimulation (FBS) of the periaqueductal gray (PAG) produces reliable anti-nociception. The use of different electrode configurations alters the distribution of excitation as well as the locus of cells being stimulated, making it difficult to compare results across laboratories. This study compared the analgesic properties of bipolar electrodes delivering biphasic current and monopolar electrodes delivering either a biphasic or a monophasic current to the ventral PAG. Naloxone reversibility of the analgesia was also tested. Results indicate that biphasic current with either monopolar or bipolar electrodes is more likely to elicit analgesia than monophasic current using monopolar electrodes. Naloxone reversed the analgesia produced by the monopolar/monophasic model, but only attenuated the monopolar/biphasic FBS and did not affect the analgesia produced by the bipolar/biphasic configuration. Biphasic current delivered through bipolar electrodes results in the sequential activation of different cell populations. Use of bipolar electrodes may widen the distribution of excitation beyond that of either monopolar configuration. Thus, a wider neural field of excitation may cause a bleedover of the field of stimulation into two systems (one opiate and one nonopiate).
Electrochemically assisted photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange using anodized titanium dioxide nanotubes

Abstract The TiO 2 nanotubes have demonstrated potential in the photoelectrocatalytic degradation of methyl orange dye (MO). TiO 2 nanotubes were prepared using anodization of titanium foils in phosphoric acid (PA) and ethylene glycol (EG) by mechanical stirring and ultrasonic method. The TiO 2 nanotubes prepared in EG under ultrasound followed by annealing in nitrogen atmosphere showed higher activity towards dye degradation as compared to the stirring method. Dye degradation shows improved activity under an external bias compared to degradation performed in the absence of an external bias. An increase in the external bias from +0.0 to +0.1 V versus calomel electrode (SCE) is sufficient to improve the degradation rates of MO from 22% to 57% within the first 10 min. At +0.1 V, a complete degradation of 40 μM MO is observed within 30 min. The addition of oxidants such as oxygen and hydrogen peroxide demonstrate improvement in the MO degradation.
Integrated premission planning and execution for unmanned ground vehicles

Fielding robots in complex applications can stress the human operators responsible for supervising them, particularly because the operators might understand the applications but not the details of the robots. Our answer to this problem has been to insert agent technology between the operator and the robotic platforms. In this paper, we motivate the challenges in defining, developing, and deploying the agent technology that provides the glue in the application of tasking unmanned ground vehicles in a military setting. We describe how a particular suite of architectural components serves equally well to support the interactions between the operator, planning agents, and robotic agents, and how our approach allows autonomy during planning and execution of a mission to be allocated among the human and artificial agents. Our implementation and demonstrations (in real robots and simulations) of our multi-agent system shows significant promise for the integration of unmanned vehicles in military applications.
Cost of cone coupling to trichromacy in primate fovea.

Cone synaptic terminals couple electrically to their neighbors. This reduces the amplitude of temporally uncorrelated voltage differences between neighbors. For an achromatic stimulus coarser than the cone mosaic, the uncorrelated voltage difference between neighbors represents mostly noise; so noise is reduced more than the signal. Here coupling improves signal-to-noise ratio and enhances contrast sensitivity. But for a chromatic stimulus the uncorrelated voltage difference between neighbors of different spectral type represents mostly signal; so signal would be reduced more than the noise. This cost of cone coupling to encoding chromatic signals was evaluated using a compartmental model of the foveal cone array. When cones sensitive to middle (M) and long (L) wavelengths alternated regularly, and the conductance between a cone and all of its immediate neighbors was 1000 pS (∼2 connexons/cone pair), coupling reduced the difference between the L and M action spectra by nearly fivefold, from about 38% to 8%. However, L and M cones distribute randomly in the mosaic, forming small patches of like type, and within a patch the responses to a chromatic stimulus are correlated. In such a mosaic, coupling still reduced the difference between the L and M action spectra, but only by 2.4-fold, to about 18%. This result is independent of the L/M ratio. Thus “patchiness” of the L/M mosaic allows cone coupling to improve achromatic contrast sensitivity while minimizing the cost to chromatic sensitivity.
Aromatic Character of Tria- and Pentafulvene and Their Exocyclic Si, Ge, and Sn Derivatives. An ab initio Study

The structures and dipole moments have been calculated for both methylenecyclopropene (triafulvene) and pentafulvene and their exocyclic Si, Ge, and Sn analogues 1a−d and 2a−d, respectively. Ab initio calculations employing the HF, DFT, and MP2 methods, each using split valence plus polarization and triple split valence with two sets of polarization functions basis sets, have been performed. The results of these six levels of theory on each of the eight molecules were compared, and the aromatic character of these systems was examined. The structures 1a−d exhibited pronounced bond alternation in the ring suggesting the existence of only weak cyclopropenyl cation-like resonance contribution. However, very large dipole moments were predicted in the direction that would be expected from an aromaticity contribution. Since Si, Ge, and Sn are less electronegative than C, the large dipole moments in the direction of the exocyclic heteroatom were surprising. The most striking finding was that, while 1a is planar, ...
First-principles simulations of CaO and CaSiO 3 liquids: structure, thermodynamics and diffusion

We have performed first-principles molecular dynamics simulations of CaO and CaSiO3 liquids over broad ranges of pressure (0–150 GPa) and temperature (2,500–8,000 K) within density-functional theory. The simulated liquid structure changes considerably on compression with the mean cation–anion coordination numbers increasing nearly linearly with volume. The Ca–O coordination number increases from 5 (7) near the ambient pressure to 8 (10) at high pressure for CaO (CaSiO3) liquid. The Si–O coordination number increases from 4 to 6 over the same pressure regime. Our results show that both liquids are much more compressible than their solid counterparts implying the possibility of liquid–solid density crossovers at high pressure. The Gruneisen parameter of both the liquids increases with pressure, which is opposite in case of crystalline phases. The calculated self-diffusion coefficients strongly depend on temperature and pressure, thereby requiring non-Arrhenian representation with variable activation volume. The diffusivity differences between the two liquids tend to be large at low-temperature and low-pressure regime. Also, comparisons with MgSiO3 liquid suggest that network modifier cations Ca and Mg behave similarly though Ca is more coordinated and more mobile as compared to Mg.
Effect of nicardipine on basilar artery vasoactive responses after subarachnoid hemorrhage.

The effect of the dihydropyridine calcium antagonist, nicardipine, on the vasoactive responses of the basilar artery was investigated after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). Forty-five rabbits were separated into one control group and four groups receiving SAH (nine animals each). The SAH was induced by injecting 5 ml of autologous arterial blood into the cisterna magna. SAH animals were subjected to one of the following: 1) no treatment; 2) intravenous (i.v.) saline infusion (vehicle); 3) i.v. infusion of low-dose nicardipine (0.01 mg/kg/hr), or 4) i.v. infusion of high-dose nicardipine (0.15 mg/kg/hr). The i.v. infusions were started immediately after SAH and continued for 48 hours. Serotonin (5-HT) (10(-8) to 10(-5) mol/L) was used to evoke dose-dependent vasoconstriction of isolated rings of the basilar artery 2 days after SAH. Acetylcholine (ACh) (10(-8) to 10(-4)) and adenosine-triphosphate (ATP) (10(-8) to 10(-4) mol/L) were applied after maximal contraction with 5-HT, evoke a dose-dependent vasodilatation. Compared with controls, in animals subjected to SAH serotonin caused similar or slightly larger contractions; nicardipine infusion did not decrease the amount of contraction observed after SAH. ACh and ATP caused significantly less dilatation in animals submitted to SAH than in controls. After high-dose nicardipine, ACh- and ATP-induced dilatations were significantly more pronounced (57% and 68% of initial contractile tone) than in the other animals receiving SAH (36%-39% and 45%-55%, respectively).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Is the Gepner three generation model phenomenologically viable

The low-energy spectrum of the Gepner three generation model constructed from the discrete series of the [ital N]=2 superconformal theory below the intermediate scale is studied. It is found that, aside from the usual standard model leptons and quarks, there appear four Higgs doublets, six exotic light neutral particles, and a pair of light color Higgs triplets. Although the proton is stable, the presence of these new particles and the difficulty for the up and down quarks and the first two lepton generations to grow nonzero masses may rule out this model phenomenologically. Despite this discouraging result we do find that the nonrenormalizable interactions can provide a viable mechanism to solve the lepton-quark mass hierarchy problem, due to the large VEV growth of the standard model singlet fields at the intermediate symmetry-breaking scale.
Incorporating Phase Information for Source Separation via Spectrogram Factorization

Spectrogram factorization methods have been proposed for single channel source separation and audio analysis. Typically, the mixture signal is first converted into a time-frequency representation such as the short-time Fourier transform (STFT). The phase information is thrown away and this spectrogram matrix is then factored into the sum of rank-one source spectrograms. This approach incorrectly assumes the mixture spectrogram is the sum of the source spectrograms. In fact, the mixture spectrogram depends on the phase of the source STFTs. We investigate the consequences of this common assumption and introduce an approach that leverages a probabilistic representation of phase to improve the separation results.
Promoting Cognitive Complexity in Graduate Written Work: Using Bloom's Taxonomy as a Pedagogical Tool to Improve Literature Reviews

The article applies Bloom's (B. S. Bloom, M. D. Engelhart, F. J. Furst, W. H. Hill, & D. R. Krathwohl, 1956) Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, Handbook I: Cognitive Domain to the process of graduate-level writing in counselor education. Bloom's Taxonomy is provided as a mechanism to help students develop and demonstrate cognitive complexity when writing comprehensive literature reviews. The article outlines common assumptions held by students operating at each level of the Taxonomy, typical organizational structure and content of papers at each level of the Taxonomy, and tips to move writing to more cognitively advanced levels.
Modification of Loblolly Pine Chips with Ceriporiopsis subvermispora Part 1: Effect of Fungal Treatment

Abstract The effect of treating loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) chips with the fungus Ceriporiopsis subvermispora was investigated by assessing the wood changes at 2 and 4 weeks incubation relative to a control (no fungal treatment). Scanning electron microscopy indicated that during the first 2 weeks of colonization, C. subvermispora had grown over the surface of the chips and also within ray cells. A mass loss of 5% occurred after 2 weeks, 6% after four weeks. The extractives were reduced 23% in the first 2 weeks of fungal treatment and 32% after 4 weeks. Lignin loss was statistically insignificant at 2 weeks but reached 8% of the original lignin after 4 weeks. The carbohydrate content of the treated wood showed no significant differences from the control after 2 weeks and only minor losses after 4 weeks. The fraction of the wood soluble in 1% NaOH was 14.9% at 2 weeks compared to 11.5% for the control chips and increased to 18.8% after 4 weeks. This indicated only a mild decay due to the fungal treatment. ...
Asymptotic Stability of a Class of Non-linear Singularly Perturbed Systems†

Abstract Sufficient conditions are obtained to guarantee the asymptotic stability of a class of non-linear singularly perturbed systems. A procedure for constructing a Lyapunov function for such a class of systems is given, and a clearly defined domain of attraction of the equilibrium is obtained. A stabilizing feedback control for such systems is also proposed.
The fate of indefinite and low‐grade dysplasia in ulcerative colitis and primary sclerosing cholangitis colitis before and after liver transplantation

Summary Background Patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) and ulcerative colitis (UC) are at an increased risk of colorectal neoplasia, but it is unknown if liver transplantation (LT) alters neoplasia progression. Aim To examine the natural history of indefinite dysplasia (IND) and low-grade dysplasia (LGD) that develop in patients with PSC-UC with and without LT. Methods We performed a retrospective review of patients with PSC and UC evaluated at our institution between 1993 and 2011 who were diagnosed with IND or LGD before or after LT for PSC. The primary end point was neoplasia progression or persistent LGD. Results Ninety-six patients (non-LT n = 63, LT n = 33) were examined. For the IND group, multifocal lesions were significantly associated with time to neoplasia progression [hazard ratio (HR), 3.5; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.3–9.7], while 5-aminosalicylate (5-ASA) use was protective (HR, 0.2; 95% CI, 0.1–0.6). For patients with LGD, multifocal lesions were significantly associated with the primary end point (HR, 7.1; 95% CI, 1.7–28.3), while LT was protective (HR, 0.3; 95% CI, 0.1–0.9). Conclusions In PSC-UC patients with IND, 5-ASA use was associated with a decreased the risk of neoplasia progression, regardless of transplant status. In contrast, multifocal IND and LGD were associated with neoplasia progression or persistent LGD. Patients who developed LGD following LT for PSC were less likely to have progressive neoplasia or persistent LGD, compared with those who had not been transplanted.
Is visual estimation of passive range of motion in the pediatric lower limb valid and reliable

Visual estimation (VE) is an essential tool for evaluation of range of motion. Few papers discussed its validity in children orthopedics' practice. The purpose of our study was to assess validity and reliability of VE for passive range of motions (PROMs) of children's lower limbs. Fifty typically developing children (100 lower limbs) were examined. Visual estimations for PROMs of hip (flexion, adduction, abduction, internal and external rotations), knee (flexion and popliteal angle) and ankle (dorsiflexion and plantarflexion) were made by a pediatric orthopaedic surgeon (POS) and a 5th year resident in orthopaedics. A last year medical student did goniometric measurements. Three weeks later, same measurements were performed to assess reliability of visual estimation for each examiner. Visual estimations of the POS were highly reliable for hip flexion, hip rotations and popliteal angle (ρc ≥ 0.8). Reliability was good for hip abduction, knee flexion, ankle dorsiflexion and plantarflexion (ρc ≥ 0.7) but poor for hip adduction (ρc = 0.5). Reproducibility for all PROMs was verified. Resident's VE showed high reliability (ρc ≥ 0.8) for hip flexion and popliteal angle. Good correlation was found for hip rotations and knee flexion (ρc ≥ 0.7). Poor results were obtained for ankle PROMs (ρc < 0.6) as well as hip adduction and abduction, the results of which not being reproducible. Influence of experience was clearly demonstrated for PROMs of hip rotations, adduction and abduction as well as ankle plantarflexion. Accuracy of VE of passive hip flexion and knee PROMs is high regardless of the examiner's experience. Same accuracy can be found for hip rotations and abduction whenever VE is performed by an experienced examiner. Goniometric evaluation is recommended for passive hip adduction and for ankle PROMs.
Characterization of a 54K dalton cellular SV40 tumor antigen present in SV40-transformed cells and uninfected embryonal carcinoma cells.

Abstract SV40 infection or transformation of murine cells stimulated the production of a 54K dalton protein that was specifically immunoprecipitated, along with SV40 large T and small t antigens, with sera from mice or hamsters bearing SV40-induced tumors. The same SV40 anti-T sera immunoprecipitated a 54K dalton protein from two different, uninfected murine embryonal carcinoma cell lines. These 54K proteins from SV40-transformed mouse cells and the uninfected embryonal carcinoma cells had identical partial peptide maps which were completely different from the partial peptide map of SV40 large T antigen. An Ad2 + ND4-transformed hamster cell line also expressed a 54K protein that was specifically immunoprecipitated by SV40 T sera. The partial peptide maps of the mouse and hamster 54K protein were different, showing the host cell species specificity of these proteins. The 54K hamster protein was also unrelated to the Ad2 + ND4 SV40 T antigen. Analogous proteins immunoprecipitated by SV40 T sera, ranging in molecular weight from 44K to 60K, were detected in human and monkey SV40-infected or -transformed cells. A wide variety of sera from hamsters and mice bearing SV40-induced tumors immunoprecipitated the 54K protein of SV40-transformed cells and murine embryonal carcinoma cells. Antibody produced by somatic cell hybrids between a B cell and a myeloma cell (hybridoma) against SV40 large T antigen also immunoprecipitated the 54K protein in virus-infected and -transformed cells, but did not do so in the embryonal carcinoma cell lines. We conclude that SV40 infection or transformation of mouse cells stimulates the synthesis or enhances the stability of a 54K protein. This protein appears to be associated with SV40 T antigen in SV40-infected and -transformed cells, and is co-immunoprecipitated by hybridoma sera to SV40 large T antigen. The 54K protein either shares antigenic determinants with SV40 T antigen or is itself immunogenic when in association with SV40 large T antigen. The protein varies with host cell species, and analogous proteins were observed in hamster, monkey and human cells. The role of this protein in transformation is unclear at present.
Application of fuzzy decision making: An evaluation

Abstract Many decisions require the application of subjective judgment. Two methods of modelling such decision behaviour by using fuzzy set theory are considered here. Yager (1 978) uses a method based on a maximin criterion, while Tsukamoto and Terano (1975) base their method on multivalued logic operations. In this paper sets of decision maker's evaluation of decision problems are compared with each of the two fuzzy set evaluations. The ability of the fuzzy set methods to replicate decision behaviour is measured by the rank correlation between orderings of alternatives obtained from the decision makers and those obtained from the. methods. Analysis of the experiment indicated that for the sample used, the methods generated very few correlations that were significantly greater than zero. These results appear to contradict claims for the methods made in the literature.
The impact of cultural characteristics on colorectal cancer screening adherence among Filipinos in the United States: a pilot study

Objectives: Studies on colorectal cancer screening among specific Asian American groups are limited despite the fact that Asians are comprised of culturally distinct subgroups. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of cultural characteristics on colorectal cancer screening adherence among Filipinos in the United States. Methods: One hundred and seventeen Filipino men and women aged 50 years or older participated in the cross-section research design. Lifetime proportion of immigration, language preference and cultural beliefs of personal control regarding health outcomes measured cultural characteristics. Demographic and healthcare variables were also measured to describe the study sample. Participant recruitment employed culturally responsive sampling methods. Results: There was no significant association between language preference and screening. Likewise, perceived personal internal control of health outcome was not related to screening. However, personal external control revealed a marginally significant association. The percent of lifetime residence in the United States was significantly greater among those who were adherent to screening than those who were not adherent. After adjusting for demographic and healthcare variables, the relationship between length of immigration and screening adherence was no longer significant. Finally, age and doctor's recommendation showed significant impact on colorectal cancer screening adherence. Discussion: This pilot study adds to the knowledge regarding cultural factors associated with colorectal cancer screening behaviors among Filipino Americans. Future research is needed to confirm findings that will be useful in developing culturally appropriate strategies to increase screening adherence. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Evidence-based Nursing Practice: Why Is It Important?

Evidence-based practice has gained momentum in nursing, and definitions vary widely. Research findings, knowledge from basic science, clinical knowledge, and expert opinion are all considered "evidence"; however, practices based on research findings are more likely to result in the desired patient outcomes across various settings and geographic locations. The impetus for evidence-based practice comes from payor and healthcare facility pressures for cost containment, greater availability of information, and greater consumer savvy about treatment and care options. Evidence-based practice demands changes in education of students, more practice-relevant research, and closer working relationships between clinicians and researchers. Evidence-based practice also provides opportunities for nursing care to be more individualized, more effective, streamlined, and dynamic, and to maximize effects of clinical judgment. When evidence is used to define best practices rather than to support existing practices, nursing care keeps pace with the latest technological advances and takes advantage of new knowledge developments.
Synthetic macrolides that inhibit breast cancer cell migration in vitro.

The design and synthesis of a series of natural product-like synthetic macrolides built upon a quinic acid-containing scaffold are described. Three of the macrolides (1, 3, and 6) have been shown to inhibit 4T1 breast cancer cell migration with low nanomolar to sub-micromolar IC50 values (77, 525, and 550 nM, respectively) in complementary assays including a quantitative cell migration assay and a semiquantitative wound healing assay.
Androgens induce dopaminergic neurotoxicity via caspase-3-dependent activation of protein kinase Cδ

Aged men have a greater incidence of Parkinson’s disease (PD) than women. PD is a neurodegenerative condition associated with the loss of dopamine neurons in the nigrostriatal pathway. This study examined the neurotoxic effects of androgens in a dopaminergic cell line (N27 cells) and the downstream signaling pathways activated by androgens. Treatment of N27 cells with testosterone- and dihydrotestosterone-induced mitochondrial dysfunction, protein kinase C (PKC)-δ cleavage, and apoptosis in dopaminergic neuronal cells. Inhibition of caspase-3 prevented the cleavage of PKCδ from the full-length element to the catalytic fragment and apoptosis in N27 cells, suggesting that androgen-induced apoptosis is mediated by caspase-3-dependent activation of PKCδ. Androgen-induced apoptosis may be specific to dopamine neurons as evidenced by a lack of testosterone-induced apoptosis in GnRH neurons. These results support a neurotoxic consequence of testosterone on dopaminergic neurons and may provide insight into the ge...
Cumulant-based subspace tracking

Abstract We have developed a cumulant-based preprocessing method that can be combined with any fast rank and subspace tracking algorithm to achieve low computational complexity. We applied this method to Virtual-ESPRIT to track moving targets; its generalizations to other applications of array signal processing are straightforward. Our algorithm is suitable for a slowly time-varying environment. Although it has slower convergence than a correlation-based tracker, due to the nature of cumulants, it preserves all advantages of cumulant-based array signal processing methods. Simulation results show this method works well for both rank and target tracking in the presence of Gaussian noise.
GaAs single-drift flat-profile IMPATT diodes for CW operation at D band

Single-drift flat-profile GaAs IMPATT diodes were designed for CW operation in the 140 GHz range. The diodes were fabricated from MBE grown material, mounted on diamond heatsinks, and tested in a radial line full height waveguide cavity. An RF output power of 15 mW with a corresponding DC to RF conversion efficiency of 1.5 percent was obtained at 135.3 GHz.
Electing a leader in a synchronous ring

The problem of electing a leader in a synchronous ring of n processors is considered. Both positive and negative results are obtained. On the one hand, if processor IDS are chosen from some countable set, then there is an algorithm that uses only O(n) messages in the worst case. On the other hand, any algorithm that is restricted to use only comparisons of IDs requires O(n log n) messages in the worst case. Alternatively, if the number of rounds is required to be bounded by some t in the worst case, and IDs are chosen from any set having at least ƒ(n, t) elements, for a certain very fast-growing function ƒ, then any algorithm requires O(n log n) messages in the worst case.
Molecular and genetic markers in thoracic surgery.

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THE POPULATION ECOLOGY OF A DUNE THISTLE, CIRSIUM RHOTHOPHILUM (ASTERACEAE)

A population study of a thistle, Cirsium rhothophilum, was carried out in the coastal dunes of northern Santa Barbara County, California during 1978 and 1979. Seedling establishment, growth, flowering, and fruiting were observed in permanently marked transects. A total of 1,041 individuals were recorded. Despite 41% mortality during the year of study, the average population features changed remarkably little. Cirsium rhothophilum was found to be monocarpic but relatively long-lived. Extrapolations from rosette size growth and proportions of rosettes in different size classes giving rise to flowering individuals suggest that the average plant may have a vegetative stage of more than 5 years. Growth analysis of C. rhothophilum is complicated by the subsurlace branching of stems, presumed to be the result of insect damage and sand burial. Dissection of fruiting heads showed that sound achenes were only about 22% of the total number of potential achenes. Insect damage was evident on about 20% of the unsound achenes. Considering both the loss of achenes within heads and of entire heads which failed to mature, insects are estimated to destroy at least 25% of the achenes. Achenes germinate readily and do not appear to have more than mild dormancy. A burial experiment showed that emergence declined sharply with depth of burial to zero at 8 cm. Despite the dynamic nature of the dune habitat, C. rhothophilum populations appear stable. The relatively large size and ability to grow rapidly and adapt to burial allow C. rhothophilum to average out environmental vicissitudes.