cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The alteration of molecular weight distributions of polymers by ultrasonic energy

Methods of producing selected monodispersed samples of addition polymers have gained importance in many phases of polymer research. The ability of cavitation resulting from intense ultrasonic energy selectively to degrade polymers by fracturing longer chains at a faster rate than shorter chains is investigated as a means of sharpening molecular weight distributions. Conflicting degradation theories and experimental findings are reviewed, and new degradation models based on reasonable degradation mechanisms are developed. An IBM 7040–1401 computer was used to simulate degradation for these models. The solutions show in detail how molecular weight distributions are shifted and altered, depending on the kinetic expression used. In all the cases investigated monodispersity is first seen to decrease and then increase as a function of time.
Early Cambrian biogeography in the North Atlantic region

A model of Early Cambrian trilobite biogeography in the North Atlantic region (Theokritoff 1979. Lethaia 12, 281–295) is reviewed and modified in the light of new data. The presence of Wanneria in conglomerates bearing the Elliptocephala asaphoides fauna strengthens correlation of the E. asaphoides fauna as well as, by implication, the upper part of the Calluvia Zone with the middle part of the Bonnia-Olenellus Zone. The faunas of the Bastion Formation of East Greenland and of the Devil's Cove Limestone of northern Newfoundland are reinterpreted as shelf faunas. Additional occurrences of Archaeocyatha are noted in Spain and northwest Scotland but reports of Archaeocyatha in northern Norway and East Germany are not authenticated. Neither Salterella nor ‘Volborthella’ are now recognized as characteristic of any trilobite province. Although Ordovician acritarch provinces show congruence with trilobite provinces, available data on Early Cambrian plankton are not sufficient to support algal provincialism. Interpretation of the geological record suggests that the Early Cambrian lapetus Ocean was stratified with a well-mixed oxygenated zone overlying a phosphate-rich oxygen minimum zone and that the Elliptocephala asaphoides fauna should be reinterpreted as a warm-water fauna.
219 EOSINOPHILIA IN PREMATURE INFANTS

Absolute eosinophilia is common in premature infants. No clear correlation or etiologies have been proposed for eosinophilia in the premature. This study correlates the onset and peak of eosinophilia with a positive nitrogen balance. Serial eosinophil counts (x = 8/pt) were determined in 38 hospitalized, appropriately grown premature infants whose gestational ages ranged from 27-35 weeks. Absolute eosinophilia (> 700/mm3) was documented in 76% (29/38). Eosinophilia was mild (700-999/mm3) in 9, moderate (1,000-2,999/mm3) in 17, and marked (≥ 3,000/mm3) in 3 patients. The average time of onset was day 21. Peak eosinophilia was usually seen within one week of onset and lasted an average of 16 days. A consistant relationship (r = 0.8) was found between the day of peak eosinophilia (x = da 24) and the day at which birthweight was regained (x = da 23). Eosinophilia seldom occured before steady weight gain began. No association was apparent between the occurrence or degree of eosinophilia and gestational age, birth stress, presence of umbilical catheters, hyperalimentation solution, time of beginning or type of oral feeds. The majority of infants had respiratory disease and received antibiotics and transfusion therapy. Since there is increasing evidence that eosinophilia is an immunologic response, it is possible that it represents the response of a maturing immune system to antigenic stimuli. The data suggest that eosinophilia does appear to be strongly associated with the establishment of an anabolic state.
Differing effects of the inhibition of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase on the course of oxidative cell injury in hepatocytes and fibroblasts.

Abstract The effects of the two inhibitors of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase, 3-aminobenzamide (ABA) and benzamide (BA), on the oxidative killing of L929 mouse fibroblasts and primary cultures of rat hepatocytes were studied. The killing of L929 cells by tert -butyl hydroperoxide (TBHP) occurred by two mechanisms, one sensitive and the other insensitive to the antioxidant N , N ′-diphenylphenylene diamine (DPPD). Cell killing by either mechanism was prevented by the ferric iron chelator deferoxamine. ABA and B A prevented the killing of L929 cells that occurred in the presence, but not in the absence, of DPPD. ABA and BA inhibited the activity of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase by 85%. Protection was accompanied by the sparing of the depletion of both NAD and ATP, but there was no effect of either ABA or BA on the iron-dependent appearance of single-strand breaks in DNA. Depletion of ATP by treating the fibroblasts with 2-deoxyglucose and sodium azide did not result in any loss of viability. H 2 O 2 similarly killed the L929 cells by a mechanism that depended on a source of ferric iron. However, DPPD had no effect on the cell killing, and ABA and BA completely protected the cells in the presence or absence of DPPD. H 2 O 2 caused the appearance of single-strand breaks that were prevented by deferoxamine, but again not by ABA or BA. ABA and deferoxamine reduced, but did not prevent, the depletion of both NAD and ATP occurring with H 2 O 2 . With the cultured hepatocytes, ABA and BA inhibited poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase at concentrations that were without effect on either the extent of cell killing or the depletion of NAD occurring with either TBHP, H 2 O 2 , or menadione. These data indicate that the relationship between oxidative DNA damage and the genesis of lethal injury is very different in the two types of cells. In the fibroblasts, the appearance of single strand breaks in DNA was accompanied by depletion of NAD and ATP and subsequently by the death of the cells. These events were mediated by the activity of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase, as inhibition of the enzyme prevented their development. In the hepatocytes, inhibition of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase was without effect on the oxidative death of the cells.
Laparoscopic cholecystectomy in patients with ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunts

Increased intracranial pressure is often relieved by a ventriculoperitoneal shunt. The shunt has a one-way valve which can withstand pressures of 300 mmHg and prevent reflux of intraabdominal fluid. We have utilized laparoscopy for cholecystectomy in four patients with VP shunts. In all patients the peritoneal cavity was free of adhesions. When CO2 insufflation pressure was as high as 10-15 mmHg cerebrospinal fluid was still noted to flow from the end of the shunts. In three patients the entire procedure was performed laparoscopically. In the fourth patient the procedure was converted to an open cholecystectomy because of extensive inflammation surrounding a gangrenous gallbladder. Postoperatively the shunts remained intact and functional. There were no central nervous system sequelae. None of the shunts became infected. Elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy in patients with VP shunts can be done safely without a need for clamping or other manipulation of the shunt.
The global burden of cancer

The global burden of cancer is increasing. By 2020, the global cancer burden is expected to rise by 50% owing to the increasingly elderly population. The delivery of cancer care is likely to increase the need for perioperative physicians for both operative procedures and pain management, offering new professional challenges. Specifically, these challenges will include volume and financial management, as well coordination of cancer treatment and pain management. Coordinated, team-based cancer care will be essential to ensure value-based care. Short and long-term outcome measurement is an integral part of the process.
Organo-bentonite for the adsorption of Pb(II) from aqueous solution: Temperature dependent parameters of several adsorption equations

The preparation of organo-bentonite was conducted using bentonite from Pacitan as the raw material. The modification of bentonite was conducted by microwave irradiation. The adsorption capability of natural and modified-bentonite was tested for the removal of lead metal from aqueous solution. The adsorption experiments were conducted isothermally in static mode at various temperatures. The temperature dependent forms of the Langmuir, Freundlich, Sips and Toth models were used to correlate equilibrium data. It was found that the temperature dependent forms of Sips model can correlate the experimental data better than other models. The pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order models were chosen to correlate the experimental kinetic data. The pseudo-second order correlated the experimental data fairly well.
An Introduction to the V-System

A distributed operating system runs on Sun and VAXstation-II workstations connected by an Ethernet. Its distributed kernel provides inexpensive processes and fast interprocess communication.
The performance of alternative valuation models in the OTC currency options market

Abstract We compare option valuation models based on regime-switching, GARCH, and jump-diffusion processes to a standard “smile” model, in which Black and Scholes (1973) implied volatilities are allowed to vary across strike prices. The regime-switching, GARCH, and jump-diffusion models provide significant improvement over a fixed smile model in fitting GBP and JPY option prices both in-sample and out-of-sample. The jump-diffusion model achieves the tightest fit. A time-varying smile model, however, provides hedging performance that is comparable to the other models for the GBP options. This result suggests that standard option valuation techniques may provide a reasonable basis for trading and hedging strategies.
An NMR Experiment Based on Off-the-Shelf Digital Data-Acquisition Equipment

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) poses significant challenges for teaching in the context of an undergraduate laboratory, foremost because of high equipment cost. Current off-the-shelf data-acquisition hardware, however, is sufficiently powerful to constitute the core of a fully digital NMR spectrometer operating at the earth’s field. We present an NMR experiment that we have developed on this basis for an upper-division laboratory in physical chemistry. Students utilize a spectrometer that is controlled by a program written in LabView to explore the fundamentals of NMR alongside modern techniques of digital data acquisition. An advantage of this approach is that all of the hardware and software components used in the experiment are transparent to the user, which fosters inquiry-based discovery of materials beyond the basic experiments described in the student manual.
UV-Vis. Spectroelectrochemical Study on Electron Blocking and Trapping Behaviors in Conducting Polymer Bilayers with Diphenylamine End Groups

Spectroelectrochemistry was used to study the electron trapping and rectifying behavior in several diphenylamine endgroup polymeric bilayers. Various combinations of the following monomers were pairwise sequentially electropolymerized onto ITO transparent electrodes: FD, DNTD, DPTD and Cl4DPTD. Poly(FD) is a p-type material while poly(DNTD), poly(DPTD) and poly(Cl4DPTD) are bipolar materials being both n-type and p-type. Bilayers of ITO|poly(FD)|poly (DNTD) or ITO|poly (FD)|poly (DPTD), block electrons from reducing the outer layer even at -1.0 V vs Ag/AgCl, yet holes effectively oxidize both layers. The LUMO differences between poly(DNTD) and poly(Cl4DPTD) or poly(DPTD) and poly(Cl4DPTD) provide a large enough electronic barrier that electron trapping can occur between these n-type materials. The visible spectra results imply that these polymers, poly(DPTD) or poly(Cl4DPTD) can be used as photovoltaic materials.
The kinetics of coarsening in the Al-Al 3 Ni System

The kinetics of coarsening of the Al-Al3Ni system during the stage of coarsening during which the microstructure is nearly representative of a random array of dispersed fibers is adequately expressed by conventional kinetics,i.e. Δr 3 ≅t wherer is average fiber radius andt coarsening time. The activation energy for the coarsening process is ∼315 kJ/mol and is composed of two terms: 1) the volume diffusion activation energy for nickel in the aluminum matrix and 2) the heat of solution of nickel in solid aluminum. It is pointed out that the conventional expressions for coarsening kinetics in this system can only be applied over a limited range of coarsening time since the microstructure is not generally representative of microstructures envisaged for coarsening process. Several comments and comparisons regarding the initiation of three-dimensional coarsening in this and other systems are made.
Safe Maritime Autonomous Navigation With COLREGS, Using Velocity Obstacles

This paper presents an autonomous motion planning algorithm for unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) to navigate safely in dynamic, cluttered environments. The algorithm not only addresses hazard avoidance (HA) for stationary and moving hazards, but also applies the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (known as COLREGS, for COLlision REGulationS). The COLREGS rules specify, for example, which vessel is responsible for giving way to the other and to which side of the “stand-on” vessel to maneuver. Three primary COLREGS rules are considered in this paper: crossing, overtaking, and head-on situations. For autonomous USVs to be safely deployed in environments with other traffic boats, it is imperative that the USV's navigation algorithm obeys COLREGS. Furthermore, when other boats disregard their responsibility under COLREGS, the USV must fall back to its HA algorithms to prevent a collision. The proposed approach is based on velocity obstacles (VO) method, which generates a cone-shaped obstacle in the velocity space. Because VOs also specify on which side of the obstacle the vehicle will pass during the avoidance maneuver, COLREGS are encoded in the velocity space in a natural way. Results from several experiments involving up to four vessels are presented, in what we believe is the first on-water demonstration of autonomous COLREGS maneuvers without explicit intervehicle communication. We also show an application of this motion planner to a target trailing task, where a strategic planner commands USV waypoints based on high-level objectives, and the local motion planner ensures hazard avoidance and compliance with COLREGS during a traverse.
Managerial behaviour of home buyers

The purpose of this study was to achieve a better understanding of the managerial behaviour of home buyers. Data for the study were obtained by means of a telephone interview with 152 households who had purchased a home during the first six months of 1981. Results report socio-economic characteristics associated with particular reasons for purchasing a home, with types of resources used, and with kinds and extent of life style and housing sacrifices experienced. The findings indicate that it is important the professionals dealing with families and individuals become sensitized to the types of reasons, resources, life-style and housing-feature sacrifices that families experience, and be familiar with the fact that different families, depending on their socio-economic characteristics, are likely to have somewhat different reasons, use somewhat different resources, and experience somewhat different sacrifices.
Performance-based design and analysis of flexible composite propulsors

Abstract Advanced composite propellers, turbines, and jet engines have become increasingly popular in part because of their ability to provide improved performance over traditional metallic rotors through exploitation of the intrinsic bend–twist coupling characteristics of anisotropic composite materials. While these performance improvements can be significant from a conceptual perspective, the load-dependent deformation responses of adaptive blades make the design of these structures highly non-trivial. Hence, it is necessary to understand and predict the dependence of the deformations on the geometry, material constitution, and fluid–structure interaction responses across the entire range of expected loading conditions. The objective of this work is to develop a probabilistic performance-based design and analysis methodology for flexible composite propulsors. To demonstrate the method, it is applied for the design and analysis of two (rigid) metallic and (flexible) composite propellers for a twin-shafted naval combatant craft. The probabilistic operational space is developed by considering the variation of vessel thrust requirements as a function of the vessel speed and wave conditions along with the probabilistic speed profiles. The performance of the metallic and composite propellers are compared and discussed. The implications of load-dependent deformations of the flexible composite propeller on the operating conditions and the resulting performance with respect to propeller efficiency, power demand, and fluid cavitation are presented for both spatially uniform and varying flows. While the proposed framework is demonstrated for marine propellers, the methodology can be generally applied for any marine, aerospace, or wind energy structure that must operate in a wide range of loading conditions over its expected life.
Overexpression of native human β-microglobulin in Escherichia coli and its purification

Abstract β 2 -Microglobulin ( β 2 M), the small subunit of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class-I proteins, has been synthesized in Escherichia coli and purified in mg amounts. A β 2 m cDNA clone was fused in-frame behind DNA encoding the signal sequence for the outer membrane protein, OmpA. Three different constructions were made, whose products differed by the insertion of either an extra Ala residue, the hexapeptide AEFLEA [single-letter amino acid (aa) code], or no aa between the OmpA signal sequence and β 2 M-coding sequence. All three protein products were correctly processed by bacterial signal peptidase, as determined by N-terminal sequencing, and all three were secreted as soluble proteins into the periplasmic space. However, the signal sequence of the preprotein with the inserted hexapeptide, AEFLEA, was cleaved to a much greater degree than the other two preproteins. When there was no insertion, the mature protein was identical to human β 2 M, as analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis, circular dichroism, and native isoelectric focusing. This ‘bacterial β 2 M’, radiolabeled with Bolton-Hunter reagent, was able to exchange into papain-solubilized HLA-B7, as determined by Sephadex G-75 chromatography and immune precipitation, indicating that bacterial β 2 M could complex with the heavy chain of HLA-B7.
The Response of the Surface Circulation of the Arabian Sea to Monsoonal Forcing

AbstractTwo decades of drifter and satellite data allow the authors to describe the seasonal evolution of the surface circulation of the Arabian Sea, which reverses annually with the Indian monsoon winds. This study finds several features that advance current understanding. Most significantly, northward flow appears along the length of the western boundary, together with a weak anticyclone at 6°N (a precursor to the Great Whirl) as early as March or April, one or two months before the southwest monsoon winds. This circulation is driven by planetary waves, which are initiated by wind curl forcing during the previous southwest monsoon, leading the authors to speculate that there is an oceanic mechanism through which one monsoon may precondition the next. Second, the authors find that the eastward South Equatorial Counter Current (SECC) is present year-round, fed by the northward East African Coastal Current (EACC). During the southwest monsoon the EACC overshoots the equator and splits, feeding both northwa...
Church and Empire: Free-Church Ecclesiology in a Global Era

Jesus was cruelly executed as the alleged "king of the Jews" because of his efforts for grassroots religious renewal and resistance to Roman rule in Palestine through local religious-political elites. By the fourth century CE, however, Christianity had become the official religion of the Roman imperium. An ambiguous account of both resisting and supporting imperialism has shaped all church history. Today the United States of America is widely recognized as the central power in a new global empire.
Chromatic dispersion estimation methods using polynomial fitting in PDM-QPSK or other multilevel-format coherent optical systems

Abstract We propose a polynomial fitting algorithm based method for non-data-aided chromatic dispersion (CD) estimation in single carrier (SC) coherent optical systems with arbitrary modulation formats, and compare it with our previously proposed CD estimation method which is also based on the polynomial fitting algorithm but requires special modulation formats thus is a data-aided CD estimation method for systems with PDM-QPSK or other multilevel modulation formats. For the data-aided CD estimation method, an extra chirp-free OOK signal is transmitted. The curve of the average phase at the frequency ± f as a function of the frequency f is measured at the coherent receiver. The accumulated CD is then estimated with a polynomial fitting algorithm. In the simulation of a 50 Gbaud 50%-RZ OOK system through 12.5 × 80 km standard single mode fiber (SSMF), the estimation errors are within ± 50 ps/nm in 20 tests when the launch power is from −5 dBm to −1 dBm. Non-data-aided CD estimation for arbitrary modulation formats is achieved by measuring the differential phase between frequency f ± fs/2 (fs is the symbol rate) in digital coherent receivers. The estimation errors are within ± 200 ps/nm, in a 50 Gbaud PDM-QPSK system through 10 × 80 km SSMF with the launch power from −3 dBm to −1 dBm. The estimation accuracy can be potentially improved by averaging multiple results. The data-aided CD estimation method has an inherently bigger estimation range than that of the newly proposed non-data-aided method, while the newly proposed non-data-aided method can tolerate a much larger frequency offset between the transmitter and the local oscillator. These methods are promising for future optical fiber networks with dynamic optical routing and coherent detection.
Mature Cinematic Content for Immature Minds: “Pushing the Envelope” versus “Toning it Down” in Family Films

How does a film's content influence its reception by moviegoers and critics? What movie qualities result in better reviews, a higher box office, and more awards? This study investigates these quest...
Effects of wave-current interaction on shear instabilities of longshore currents

[1] We examine the effects of wave-current interaction on the dynamics of instabilities of the surf zone longshore current. We utilize coupled models for the simulation of the incident waves and the wave-induced nearshore circulation. The coupling between the models occurs through radiation stress gradient terms (accounting for the generation of nearshore circulation) and through wave-current interaction terms (leading to the modification of the wave field by the generated circulation field). Simulations are carried out with a realistic barred beach configuration and obliquely incident waves for two frictional regimes. The results show that the shear instabilities of the longshore current have a significantly altered finite amplitude behavior when wave-current interaction effects are included for beaches with relatively high frictional damping. The primary effects are a reduction of the offshore extent of the motions and a delay of the onset of instabilities. In addition, the energy content of the motions within two surf zone widths is reduced, the propagation speed increases, and tendency to form offshore directed jets is reduced. The horizontal mixing induced by the instabilities is also reduced when wavecurrent interaction is considered, leading to a larger peak mean longshore current and a larger offshore current shear. These effects appear to be primarily linked to a feedback mechanism, whereby the incident wave field gains energy at locations of offshore directed currents. For more energetic shear instability fields that occur when frictional damping is small, this feedback affects the propagation speed and energy content of the instabilities near and onshore of the current peak only minimally. However, the offshore extent of the motions and the tendency to shed vortices offshore are still reduced. A reduction in the mixing due to the instabilities is evident offshore of the current peak, hence the mean longshore current profile is only affected offshore of the current peak. The inclusion of wave-current interaction significantly affects the shear instability signature observed in the shoreline runup for either frictional regime. These results indicate that the energy content and frequency extent of the shoreline response is increased markedly due to the wavecurrent interaction process. This effect appears to be related to variations in the forcing of the circulation that arise due to the refraction of the incident waves around offshore directed features of the circulation. INDEX TERMS: 4255 Oceanography: General: Numerical modeling; 4512 Oceanography: Physical: Currents; 4546 Oceanography: Physical: Nearshore processes;
The Degrees of Freedom Region and Interference Alignment for the MIMO Interference Channel With Delayed CSIT

The degrees of freedom (DoF) region of the two-user multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) interference channel (IC) is studied under the assumptions of fast fading and delayed channel state information (CSI) at the transmitters (CSIT). Under our fast fading assumption, the channel matrices vary independently across time, so that delayed CSIT is equivalent to outdated CSIT. In particular, the DoF region under delayed CSIT is established for the general MIMO IC with an arbitrary numbers of antennas at each of the four terminals. Toward this end, a set of outer bounds to the DoF region of the general MIMO IC is derived. These bounds are then shown to be tight by developing DoF-region-optimal interference alignment schemes. A comparison of the DoF region of the MIMO IC under the delayed CSIT assumption with those under the two extremes of instantaneous CSIT and no CSIT assumptions is made. This comparison reveals that there are nonempty classes of MIMO ICs, defined by certain relationships between the numbers of antennas at the four terminals, that correspond to each of the following four scenarios: the no CSIT DoF region is strictly contained by, or is equal to, the delayed CSIT DoF region, which in turn is strictly contained by, or is equal to, the instantaneous CSIT DoF region. It is notable that within the class of MIMO ICs for which the delayed CSIT DoF region is strictly larger than the no CSIT DoF region, there is a subclass for which the interference alignment scheme which uses just delayed CSIT achieves the entire DoF region previously known to be achievable only with instantaneous CSIT.
The promise of CaMKII inhibition for heart disease: preventing heart failure and arrhythmias.

Introduction: Calcium-calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) has emerged as a central mediator of cardiac stress responses which may serve several critical roles in the regulation of cardiac rhythm, cardiac contractility and growth. Sustained and excessive activation of CaMKII during cardiac disease has, however, been linked to arrhythmias, and maladaptive cardiac remodeling, eventually leading to heart failure (HF) and sudden cardiac death. Areas covered: In the current review, the authors describe the unique structural and biochemical properties of CaMKII and focus on its physiological effects in cardiomyocytes. Furthermore, they provide evidence for a role of CaMKII in cardiac pathologies, including arrhythmogenesis, myocardial ischemia and HF development. The authors conclude by discussing the potential for CaMKII as a target for inhibition in heart disease. Expert opinion: CaMKII provides a promising nodal point for intervention that may allow simultaneous prevention of HF progression and de...
The effect of different failure recovery procedures on the distribution of task completion times

For a system to be reliable, it must have one or more methods of dealing with failures. Distributed systems face both node failure and communication channel failure. Communication channels, in particular, may suffer failures at a very high rate. Different systems respond to task failure in different ways. The system may resume a failed task from the failure point (or a saved checkpoint shortly before the failure point), it may restart the task, or it may give up on the task and select a replacement task from the ready queue. These three responses to failure all change the distribution of task completion times. The distribution of completion times is important because it governs mean service time and queue length, and therefore quality of service and buffer size necessary to manage the risk of overflow. The changes to the distribution introduced by the failure response can even turn well behaved exponentially distributed times into powertail distributed times with infinite mean and variance. In this paper we examine the characteristics of distributions that result from restarting after each interrupt, with some discussion of resume and replace, for comparison. We provide analytic and simulation solutions.
4-bit rapid single-flux-quantum decoder

We describe the design of a fast single-flux-quantum decoder which can be used, e.g., in fast RAMs, general-purpose microprocessors, and communication channel switches. The core of the circuit is a tree of the single-bit SFQ demultiplexer with toggle (rather than the reset-set) control. Three new RSFQ cells: the demultiplexer, D flip-flop with complementary outputs, and serial XOR with large parameter tolerances (dc bias margins of /spl plusmn/25%, /spl plusmn/26%, and /spl plusmn/27%, respectively) have been developed for the decoder project. We have designed the first 16-bit prototype of the decoder for 1-kA/cm/sup 2/ niobium-trilayer technology and tested it at low frequencies. The circuit was completely operable except for 3 (of 16) output SFQ/DC converters. Simulations show that the circuit should allow data rate in excess of 60 Gbit/s and channel switching time below 20 ps. >
Complications of fillers: overview.

Background. Avoiding complications requires thorough training and medical, anatomic, and esthetic common sense. Complications can occur as a function of anatomic location, technique deficiencies, the type of defect treated, identifiable host factors, infectious processes, and allergies as a consequence of intrinsic characteristics of any particular filler. They can also occur in the absence of any identifiable host factors and flawless technique. Complications following temporary fillers often occur soon after augmentation, may resolve spontaneously, and are usually easy to treat. Conversely, complications that occur after using permanent or semipermanent fillers can appear months to years after augmentation and prove very difficult to treat. Objective. To analyze and describe complications that have occurred following soft tissue augmentation and to present strategies for avoiding, recognizing, and treating them. Methods. Protocols and observations derived from a 24-year experience using a wide variety of soft tissue augmenting agents are presented in association with pertinent clinical literature. Characteristic complications associated with specific types of soft tissue augmenting agents are presented in tabular form. Conclusion. Tissue fillers offer patients an opportunity for instant gratification with minimum downtime and, in general, an extremely favorable risk-to-benefit ratio. The best way to minimize complications in both your patients and yourself is to avoid them.
Effects of sorafenib on intra-tumoral interstitial fluid pressure and circulating biomarkers in patients with refractory sarcomas (NCI protocol 6948).

Purpose: Sorafenib is a multi-targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor with therapeutic efficacy in several malignancies. Sorafenib may exert its anti-neoplastic effect in part by altering vascular permeability and reducing intra-tumoral interstitial hypertension. As correlative science with a phase II study in patients with advanced soft-tissue sarcomas (STS), we evaluated the impact of this agent on intra-tumor interstitial fluid pressure (IFP), serum circulating biomarkers, and vascular density. Patients and Methods: Patients with advanced STS with measurable disease and at least one superficial lesion amenable to biopsy received sorafenib 400 mg twice daily. Intratumoral IFP and plasma and circulating cell biomarkers were measured before and after 1–2 months of sorafenib administration. Results were analyzed in the context of the primary clinical endpoint of time-to-progression (TTP). Results: In 15 patients accrued, the median TTP was 45 days (range 14–228). Intra-tumoral IFP measurements obtained in 6 patients at baseline showed a direct correlation with tumor size. Two patients with stable disease at two months had postsorafenib IFP evaluations and demonstrated a decline in IFP and vascular density. Sorafenib significantly increased plasma VEGF, PlGF, and SDF1a and decreased sVEGFR-2 levels. Increased plasma SDF1a and decreased sVEGFR-2 levels on day 28 correlated with disease progression. Conclusions: Pretreatment intra-tumoral IFP correlated with tumor size and decreased in two evaluable patients with SD on sorafenib. Sorafenib also induced changes in circulating biomarkers consistent with expected VEGF pathway blockade, despite the lack of more striking clinical activity in this small series. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00330421
Simultaneous Assessment of Perceived Global and Relationship-Specific Support:

Perceived global social support and support from specific relationships are not synonymous, yet existing measures typically assess only one or the other. However, it might be possible to simultaneously assess both using the same instrument. In two studies, the reliability and validity of scores derived for specific relationship categories from the Social Support Questionnaire were examined. Separate scores were developed for mother, father and a composite score for friends. Each score exhibited good internal consistency and correlational analyses revealed both convergent and discriminant validity for each of the scores. Support from friends tended to correlate more strongly with both received support and adjustment than did parental support. Support from friends and mother, but not father, predicted perceptions of support availability. Parental support was more predictive than support from friends of the self-perceived past and present quality of familial relationships. Regression analyses indicated that ...
Collaborative Drug Therapy Management: Case Studies of Three Community-Based Models of Care

Collaborative drug therapy management agreements are a strategy for expanding the role of pharmacists in team-based care with other providers. However, these agreements have not been widely implemented. This study describes the features of existing provider–pharmacist collaborative drug therapy management practices and identifies the facilitators and barriers to implementing such services in community settings. We conducted in-depth, qualitative interviews in 2012 in a federally qualified health center, an independent pharmacy, and a retail pharmacy chain. Facilitators included 1) ensuring pharmacists were adequately trained; 2) obtaining stakeholder (eg, physician) buy-in; and 3) leveraging academic partners. Barriers included 1) lack of pharmacist compensation; 2) hesitation among providers to trust pharmacists; 3) lack of time and resources; and 4) existing informal collaborations that resulted in reduced interest in formal agreements. The models described in this study could be used to strengthen clinical–community linkages through team-based care, particularly for chronic disease prevention and management.
Behavior Management A Nutritional Approach to the Behaviorally Disordered and Learning Disabled Child

This essay explores the potential use of nutrition therapy in behavior management programs. It is suggested that children possessing behavioral disorders will not be capable of learning according to their potential and that nutrition therapy should be considered, along with other behavior management strategies, in rehabilitative programs.
UTILIZATION OF IMPOSED STRUCTURE: THE IMPACT OF READING COMPETENCE AND GRADE LEVEL1

Fourth and sixth grade students grouped as good or poor readers were ask- ed to read a story from a certain perspective or with instructions to read carefully. The ability to take a perspective, as measured by skill in differentiati ng important material on a highlighting task or in reproducing it on a later recall test, was present in both age groups. Reading skill was found to produce significant differences on both types of dependent measures. Further analysis indicated that reading ability dif- ferences in recall were related to, but could not be totally accounted for, by the abili- ty to identify important material. A model is proposed claiming that poor readers are too overburdened by lower level reading skills to engage in this type of cognitive pro- cessing.
Rapid tracking of small displacements with ultrasound

Time-delay estimators, such as normalized cross correlation and phase-shift estimation, form the computational basis for elastography, blood flow measurements, and acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) imaging. This paper examines the performance of these algorithms for small displacements (less than half the ultrasound pulse wavelength). The effects of noise, bandwidth, stationary echoes, kernel size, downsampling, interpolation, and quadrature demodulation on the accuracy of the time delay estimates are measured in terms of bias and jitter. Particular attention is given to the accuracy and resolution of the displacement measurements and to the computational efficiency of the algorithms. In most cases, Loupas' two-dimensional (2-D) autocorrelator performs as well as the gold standard, normalized cross correlation. However, Loupas' algorithm's calculation time is significantly faster, and it is particularly suited to operate on the signal data format most commonly used in ultrasound scanners. These results are used to implement a real-time ARFI imaging system using a commercial ultrasound scanner and a computer cluster. Images processed with the algorithms are examined in an ex vivo liver ablation study.
Robust H Controller Design via Static Output Feedback of Uncertain Discrete-time T-S Fuzzy Systems

This paper is concerned with the problem of designing robust Hinfin static output feedback controllers for a class of nonlinear systems, which are represented by T-S fuzzy models. Sufficient conditions for static output feedback stabilizing controller design are given in terms of solutions to a set of linear matrix inequalities. It has shown that the new proposed design method is less conservative than the existing result in the literature. An example is given to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed design method.
A Compressed-Annealing Heuristic for the Traveling Salesman Problem with Time Windows

This paper describes a variant of simulated annealing incorporating a variable penalty method to solve the traveling-salesman problem with time windows (TSPTW). Augmenting temperature from traditional simulated annealing with the concept of pressure (analogous to the value of the penalty multiplier), compressed annealing relaxes the time-window constraints by integrating a penalty method within a stochastic search procedure. Computational results validate the value of a variable-penalty method versus a static-penalty approach. Compressed annealing compares favorably with benchmark results in the literature, obtaining best known results for numerous instances.
Effect of Subliminal Pictorial Stimulation on Skin Resistance

In a test of the hypothesis that a subliminally presented emotionally charged picture will elicit a greater deflection of skin resistance than a subliminally presented neutral picture, 24 subjects were stimulated subliminally at three standardized exposure times which were 3, 2, and 1 SDs shorter than their mean detection threshold. Mean deflections of skin resistance for 12 male and 12 female subjects, neutral and emotional stimuli, and the three exposure times were compared. The mean deflection for emotional stimuli was significantly larger than for neutral stimuli as hypothesized.
Buying Homes, Buying Schools: School Choice and the Social Construction of School Quality.

In this article, Jennifer Jellison Holme explores how parents who can afford to buy homes in areas known “for the schools” approach school choice in an effort to illuminate how the “unofficial” choice market works. Using qualitative methods, Holme finds that the beliefs that inform the choices of such parents are mediated by status ideologies that emphasize race and class. She concludes that school choice policies alone will not level the playing field for lower-status parents, as choice advocates often suggest. Suzanne Holland and I were scheduled to meet on a warm summer morning at a Starbucks coffee shop located in a shopping center near her suburban home. 1 I arrived early, and waited at a patio table shaded by a large green umbrella before Suzanne, a tall blond White woman in her early forties, pulled up in her sport utility vehicle. I introduced myself, and after we got our coffees we sat down to talk about why Suzanne had moved to the community of Rancho Vista, and what role schools had played in that decision. Before she and her husband moved to Rancho Vista, Suzanne informed me, they had lived for many years in a large home in a predominately White, upper-middle-class neighborhood. This neighborhood, however, was located within a large urban school district that had, according to Suzanne’s friends and acquaintances, low-quality public schools. In fact, these schools were considered of such poor quality that almost everyone Suzanne knew either sent their children to private schools or simply moved out of the area to one considered to be in a better school district. As the eldest of their three chil
High-Value Palliative Care for Cancer Patients.

Although palliative care is high-value because it reduces costs and improves the quality and quantity of life, its implementation is hampered by stigma, a shortage of palliative care specialists, and a lack of adequate palliative care education.
The Effect of Continental Slope on Buoyancy-Driven Circulation

Abstract The effect of continental slope on buoyancy-driven circulation has been studied using a two-layer quasigeostrophic model. In the model, buoyancy flux is incorporated as interfacial mass flux, which consists of narrow intense detrainment in the north and broad entrainment in the south. The model explicitly shows that, in the presence of the continental slope, a small amount of buoyancy flux can drive a strong barotropic flow. This flow develops because the beta effect of bottom topography either reduces or deflects the buoyancy-driven deep flow so that it cannot compensate its overlying counterflow, thus generating a net transport. As a result, in a double gyre circulation with a western continental slope, a small amount of detrainment/entrainment water mass can substantially enhance the transport of the western boundary current through southwestern deflection of the deep subpolar circulation. For example, with a reasonable western continental slope, a 10 Sv (Sv ≡ 106 m3 s−1) detrainment mass flux...
Circadian Rhythms of Crawling and Swimming in the Nudibranch Mollusc Melibe leonina

Daily rhythms of activity driven by circadian clocks are expressed by many organisms, including molluscs. We initiated this study, with the nudibranch Melibe leonina, with four goals in mind: (1) determine which behaviors are expressed with a daily rhythm; (2) investigate which of these rhythmic behaviors are controlled by a circadian clock; (3) determine if a circadian clock is associated with the eyes or optic ganglia of Melibe, as it is in several other gastropods; and (4) test the hypothesis that Melibe can use extraocular photoreceptors to synchronize its daily rhythms to natural light-dark cycles. To address these goals, we analyzed the behavior of 55 animals exposed to either artificial or natural light-dark cycles, followed by constant darkness. We also repeated this experiment using 10 animals that had their eyes removed. Individuals did not express daily rhythms of feeding, but they swam and crawled more at night. This pattern of locomotion persisted in constant darkness, indicating the presence...
Everyday aesthetics and world-making

The project of world-making is carried out not only by professional world-makers, such as designers, architects, and manufacturers. We are all participants in this project through various decisions and judgments we make in our everyday life. Aesthetics has a surprisingly significant role to play in this regard, though not sufficiently recognized by ourselves or aestheticians. This paper first illustrates how our seemingly innocuous and trivial everyday aesthetic considerations ha ve serious consequences which determine the quality of life and the state ofthe world, for better or worse. This power ofthe aesthetic should be harnessed to direct our cumulative and collective enterprise toward better world-making. Against objections to introducing a norma ti ve dimension to everyday aesthetics, 1 argue for the necessity of doing so and draw an analogy between everyday aesthetics and art-centered aesthetics which has dominated modern Western aesthetics discourse.
Milk–Alkali Syndrome and Pancreatitis

The relation between hypercalcemia and pancreatitis, first described in patients with hyperparathyroidism, is controversial. Other causes of hypercalcemia also have been associated with pancreatitis. In this report, the authors describe a patient with pancreatitis and the milk-alkali syndrome who had the classic triad of hypercalcemia, alkalosis, and renal insufficiency. The authors also review the literature for all the reported cases of pancreatitis associated with hypercalcemia.
Effect of Carbon Surface Modification with Dimethylamine on Reactive Adsorption of NOx

The wood-based activated carbon, either as received or oxidized with nitric acid, was exposed to dimethylamine vapors. This modification was expected to introduce nitrogen groups. Then, the modified samples were used as adsorbents of NO2 under dynamic conditions. Both NO2 breakthrough curves and the NO concentration curves were recorded. The samples before and after exposure to NO2 were characterized using adsorption of nitrogen, elemental analysis, potentiometric titration, FTIR, and thermal analysis. Modifications with amines resulted in an increase in NO2 adsorption and in a decrease in NO emission. The effects were more visible when oxidation was used as a pretreatment of the carbon surface. This process increased the incorporation of nitrogen to the carbon matrix via acid-based reactions resulting in the formation of amides and amine carboxylic salts. Besides this, dimethylamine was strongly adsorbed on the carbon surface via hydrogen bonding with oxygen-containing groups. When the samples were expos...
Behavior of a Liquid Drop between Two Nonparallel Plates

Liquid drops have shown interesting behaviors between two nonparallel plates. These plates may be fixed or movable relative to each other. In this work, we also explore these behaviors through a combination of theoretical and experimental investigations and obtain some new results. We show that when the two plates are fixed, different from the previous understanding, a lyophilic drop may not necessarily fill the corner of the two plates. We also demonstrate that it may fill the corner, when more liquid is added to the drop or when the top plate is lifted. Furthermore, we propose a physical model to interpret the shifting effect of a liquid drop. This effect appears when the drop is squeezed and relaxed between two nonparallel plates, and it has been used by some shorebirds to transport prey. On the basis of the proposed model, we have found three new phenomena related to the shifting effect.