cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Good Migrations: Finding New Home for Support Articles, Done with Minimum Resources

Is it possible to plan, schedule, and execute a document migration of over 350 support articles in a six-month timeframe with one dedicated full-time staff and a part-time student worker assigned to the task? And is it possible to do the migration work while encountering a pandemic situation which no one had planned for in our lifetime? The Help and How articles at Oregon Health and Science University's Information Technology Group were migrated from an aging Content Management System (CMS) into a modern platform. This migration was completed with minimal allocated resources. This presentation covers the importance of planning, placing trust in colleagues, adopting a Skunkworks mindset, and staying resilient for ensuring a successful project outcome.
Arc tempos, tectonic styles, and sedimentation patterns during evolution of the North American Cordillera: Constraints from the retroarc detrital zircon archive

Abstract The North American Cordillera orogenic system experienced interrelated cycles of magmatic arc lulls and flare-ups with associated shifts in isotopic signatures, varying extensional to contractional deformation, and changing basin sedimentation patterns during protracted (>100 Myr) subduction and terrane accretion. Here we evaluate the retroarc sedimentary archive of arc magmatism using integrated U-Pb geochronologic and Hf isotopic analysis of arc-derived zircon grains from Triassic to Cretaceous foreland basin strata spanning southern Nevada to Montana. Zircon U-Pb age data record early arc magmatism from ca. 260–210 Ma with a Late Triassic flare-up, a 205–180 Ma lull, a 175–145 Ma Jurassic flare-up, a 140–125 Ma lull, and a 120–85 Ma Cretaceous flare-up, consistent with pluton age patterns in the arc. Triassic age zircon grains have a wide range of eHf values that reflect varying depleted mantle to evolved crustal components during early arc growth. Jurassic-age grains have overall evolved eHf in the southern Nevada and Utah regions, to mostly juvenile values in the Montana region, consistent with a Jurassic arc system built on variably evolved to more juvenile crust going northward. Zircon eHf values show a distinct pulldown from 120–85 Ma, with median eHf decreasing from about +10 to -10, consistent with isotopic shifts in the Sierra Nevada and Idaho plutonic complexes that migrated inboard and interacted with thickened continental crust. A compilation of zircon data from forearc strata shows broadly similar age and isotopic patterns, although the 140–125 Ma lull is better recorded and the Cretaceous flare-up less well recorded compared to the retroarc. The Jurassic and Cretaceous flare-ups and associated shifts in isotopic signatures occurred during episodes of increasing plate convergence rates and terrane accretion, decreasing dip of subducting slabs, intraplate shortening, and enhanced foreland subsidence. Paleo-tectonic reconstructions highlight spatial and temporal interconnections among arc tempo, deformation styles, and sedimentation in forearc and retroarc basins, linked to both subduction dynamics and feedbacks among crustal thickening, migration of arcs into more fertile host crust, formation and removal of eclogitic arc roots, and magmatic flare-ups within the orogenic system.
ZnS x Se 1–x Carrier-Selective Contacts for Silicon Photovoltaics

The wide bandgaps and superior conductivity of ZnS x Se 1–x semiconductors to amorphous Si suggest an alternative carrier-selective contact in silicon heterojunction solar cells. Electron-selective ZnS x Se 1–x front contacts on p-type c-Si solar cells are explored by simulating in Sentaurus TCAD a large design parameter space informed by experimentally determined optoelectronic properties. Comparable performance to experimental and simulated p-SHJ reference devices is shown, with a champion simulated device efficiency of 20.8%.
Brief Note: Exploratory Examination of How Race and Criminal Record Relate to Housing Instability Among Domestic Violence Survivors.

Housing instability is a critical concern in the United States, and domestic violence (DV) survivors are a group at high risk for experiencing housing instability or of becoming unhoused. Prior res...
Development of a murine iliac arteriovenous fistula model for examination of hemodialysis access-related limb pathophysiology

Objective Hemodialysis access-related hand dysfunction is a common clinical feature of patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) after arteriovenous fistula (AVF) placement. The heterogeneity in symptoms and the lack of a predictive association with changes in hemodynamic alterations precipitated by the AVF suggest that other factors are involved in the mechanisms responsible for causing hand and limb dysfunction postoperatively. To the best of our knowledge, no suitable animal models have provided a platform for performing preclinical experiments designed to elucidate the biologic drivers of access-related hand dysfunction. Therefore, our objective was to develop a novel murine AVF model that could be used to study dialysis access-related limb dysfunction. Methods Male 8-week-old C57BL/6J mice (n = 15/group) were exposed to either an adenine-supplemented diet to induce CKD or casein-based chow (control). Four weeks after the diet intervention, the mice were randomly assigned to receive an iliac AVF (n = 10/group) or sham surgery (n = 5/group) on the left hindlimb. The mice were sacrificed 2 weeks after surgery, and AVF specimens and hindlimb skeletal muscles were collected for further analysis. Results Before AVF or sham surgery, the glomerular filtration rates were significantly reduced and the blood urea nitrogen levels were significantly elevated in the CKD groups compared with the controls (P < .05). AVF surgery was associated with an ∼80% patency rate among the survivors (four control and three CKD mice died postoperatively). Patency was verified by changes in hemodynamics using Doppler ultrasound imaging and altered histologic morphology. Compared with sham surgery, AVF surgery reduced ipsilateral hindlimb perfusion to the tibialis anterior muscle (20%-40%) and paw (40%-50%), which remained stable until euthanasia. Analysis of gastrocnemius muscle mitochondrial respiratory function uncovered a significant decrease (40%-50%) in mitochondrial function in the AVF mice. No changes were found in the muscle mass, myofiber cross-sectional area, or centrally nucleated fiber proportion in the extensor digitorum longus and soleus muscles between the sham and AVF mice. Conclusions The results from the present study have demonstrated that iliac AVF formation is a practical animal model that facilitates examination of hemodialysis access-related limb dysfunction. AVF surgery produced the expected hemodynamic changes, and evaluation of the limb muscle revealed a substantial mitochondrial impairment that was present without changes in muscle size.
Multimerization and tubulin binding are required for the SPIRAL2 protein to localize to and stabilize microtubule minus ends

ABSTRACT Accruing evidence points to the control of microtubule minus-end dynamics as being crucial for the spatial arrangement and function of the microtubule cytoskeleton. In plants, the SPIRAL2 (SPR2) protein has emerged as a microtubule minus-end regulator that is structurally distinct from the animal minus-end regulators. Previously, SPR2 was shown to autonomously localize to microtubule minus ends and decrease their depolymerization rate. Here, we used in vitro and in planta experiments to identify the structural determinants required for SPR2 to recognize and stabilize microtubule minus ends. We show that SPR2 contains a single N-terminal TOG domain that binds to soluble tubulin. The TOG domain, a basic region, and coiled-coil domain are necessary and sufficient to target and stabilize microtubule minus ends. We demonstrate that the coiled-coil domain mediates multimerization of SPR2 that provides avidity for microtubule binding and is essential for binding to soluble tubulin. While TOG domain-containing proteins are traditionally thought to function as microtubule plus-end regulators, our results reveal that nature has repurposed the TOG domain of SPR2 to regulate microtubule minus ends.
The C. albicans virulence factor Candidalysin polymerizes in solution to form membrane pores and damage epithelial cells.

The pathogenic fungus Candida albicans causes severe invasive candidiasis. C. albicans infection requires the action of the virulence factor Candidalysin (CL), which damages the plasma membrane of the target human cells. However, the molecular mechanism that CL uses to permeabilize membranes is poorly understood. We employed complementary biophysical, modeling, microscopy, and cell biology methods to reveal that CL forms membrane pores using a unique molecular mechanism. Unexpectedly, it was observed that CL readily assembles into linear polymers in solution. The basic structural unit in polymer formation is a CL 8-mer, which is sequentially added into a string configuration. Finally, the linear polymers can close into a loop. Our data indicate that CL loops spontaneously insert into the membrane to become membrane pores. We identified a CL mutation (G4W) that inhibited the formation of polymers in solution and prevented formation of pores in different synthetic lipid membranes systems. Studies in epithelial cells showed that G4W CL failed to activate the danger response signaling pathway, a hallmark of the pathogenic effect of CL. These results indicate that CL polymerization in solution is a necessary step for the damage of cellular membranes. Analysis of thousands of CL pores by atomic force microscopy revealed the co existence of simple depressions and complex pores decorated with protrusions. Imaging and modeling indicate that the two types of pores are formed by CL molecules assembled into alternate orientations. We propose that this structural rearrangement represents a maturation mechanism that might stabilize pore formation to achieve more robust cellular damage. Taken together, the data show that CL uses a previously unknown mechanism to damage membranes, whereby pre-assembly of CL loops in solution directly leads to formation of membrane pores. Our investigation not only unravels a new paradigm for the formation of membrane pores, but additionally identifies CL polymerization as a novel therapeutic target to treat candidiasis.
Evaluation of Automatic Cartographic Systems for Engineering Mapping Functions

The application of automatic cartography to engineering mapping functions is technically and economically possible today because of the recent development of compact, small, interactive computer graphic systems. This paper presents a brief description of the history of automatic cartography, and the description, general configuration, general use, and advantages of the available interactive computer graphic systems. Finally, the paper takes a look at the future trends of automatic cartography as applied to engineering mapping functions and their effective use on a total interactive graphic system for engineering design.
Industrial Versus Consumer Sales Promotion

One of the basic problems in understanding sales promotion is trying to get consensus on a list of sales promotion media. Part of this problem is that marketers to organizational buyers see sales promotion media in a different way than marketers to final consumers. This is a report on a research project on sales promotion media that addresses these issues. What are industrial sales promotion media? What are consumer sales promotion media?
Upper Sanger Site (32OL12), North Dakota

The excavation of a refuse midden at the Upper Sanger site in the Knife-Heart region of the Middle Missouri sub-area, North Dakota, is detailed here. Artifacts suggest its tentative ascription to the Heart River phase of the Post-Contact variant of the Coales cent tradition.
Measuring the impact of information systems

For the last 35 years, the business strategy of corporate America has been to equate infor­ mation services (IS) spending with business growth, increased re\'enue, and overall business success. This logic was based on the premise that productivity gains can be realized through efficient and effective delivery of business transactions and decision support. Yet, after signifi­ cant financial resources have been invested in IS technology, the relationship between IS in­ vestments and business outcomes is still supported largely with anecdotal evidence and pro­ ductivity measurements that mainly emphasize technical benchmarks. Such productivity criteria as volume throughput, shorter response time, and decreased processing costs, while useful measurements, do not capture or assess the newer value-added services that drive business in the 1990s. In a downturned economy, financial investments at all levels are questioned and there is a need to demonstrate a payback in terms of quality management, reduced risk and the ability to respond to rapidly changing customer needs. This paper analyzes both traditional benchmarks and new methodologies of IS productivity and investment payback.
Solar simulated hydrogen evolution using cobalt oxide nanoclusters deposited on titanium dioxide mesoporous materials prepared by evaporation induced self-assembly process

Abstract Cobalt containing TiO2 mesoporous materials were prepared by Evaporation-Induced Self-Assembly (EISA) process. The resulting mesoporous materials were characterized using powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), nitrogen physisorption, Raman spectroscopy, diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL). The photocatalytic activities of the mesoporous materials were investigated for hydrogen production under solar simulated conditions. The non-modified TiO2 sample produced only 4 μmole H2/g catalyst after 4 h of irradiation. In contrast, the Co containing mesoporous materials produced significantly higher amounts of hydrogen under identical conditions. The highest solar hydrogen evolution (634 μmole H2/g catalyst after 4 h of irradiation) was from the Co-TiO2-0.5 material. The physico-chemical characterization results indicate that the Co2+ ions are dispersed as oxide species on the surface of the mesoporous titania. These cobalt surface species act as trap sites preventing recombination of the charge carriers as shown by PL measurements. The addition of Co2+ ions to the synthesis mixture prevents the formation of anatase-to-rutile which favorably permits more solar hydrogen production.
Toward a People's Constitution

Robert Dahl's marvelous little book, "How Democratic Is the American Constitution?" (Yale U. Press 2001) explores one of the clearest distinctions between the real and the imagined in American constitutionalism. He easily concludes that our purported democratic cornerstone - the constitutional charter itself - is not unabashedly democratic. Rather, it cabins and disables majority sentiment as it embraces it. It restricts the implementation of public preference as it nods to it. It retains antiquated compromises and processes that inappropriately thwart majority will. Applying democratic standards, Dahl concludes that our constitution is not the best that we can design to enable "politically equal citizens" to govern themselves. Thus, he calls for invigorated "public discussion that penetrates beyond the Constitution as a national icon." In this essay I take Dahl's challenge to offer a Populist Bill of Rights. Some of the proffered amendments seek to eliminate privileges bestowed on entrenched economic interests - corporations, wealthy political financiers, international commercial enterprises, and the like. Others seek to carry forward and energize existing principles of democratic participation and constitutional accountability. Still others seek to assure, in positive terms, fundamental components of human dignity; or to modify the rankest forms of discrimination against the most vulnerable members of society. As a package, they would take a significant step toward placing the United States government more profoundly on the side of the bottom third. They would adopt a different theory of political power: government exists primarily for those who need it most.
Online social network flu tracker: a novel sensory approach to predict flu trends

Seasonal influenza epidemics cause several million cases of illnesses cases and about 250,000 to 500,000 deaths worldwide each year. Other pandemics like the 1918 "Spanish Flu" may change into devastating event. Reducing the impact of these threats is of paramount importance for health authorities, and studies have shown that effective interventions can be taken to contain the epidemics, if early detection can be made. In this thesis, we introduce Social Network Enabled Flu Trends (SNEFT), a continuous data collection framework which monitors flu related messages on online social networks (OSN's) such as Twitter and Facebook and track the emergence and spread of influenza within United States across different regions and among different age groups. We expect these flu related messages posted by OSN users to be highly correlated to the number of Influenza like Illness (ILI) cases provided by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). We attempt to validate our model by measuring how well it fits the CDC ILI rates over a course of two years from 2009 to 2011. We show that text mining significantly enhances the correlation between OSN data and the ILI rates. For accurate prediction, we implemented an auto-regression with exogenous input (ARX) model which uses current OSN data and CDC ILI rates from previous weeks to predict current influenza statistics. Our results show that, while previous ILI data from the CDC offer a true (but delayed) assessment of a flu epidemic, OSN data provides a real-time assessment of the current epidemic condition and can be used to compensate for the lack of current ILI data. We observe that the OSN data is highly correlated with the ILI rates across different regions within USA and can be used to effectively improve the accuracy of our prediction. Therefore, OSN data can act as supplementary indicator to gauge influenza levels within the population and helps to discover flu trends ahead of CDC. Using our approach to achieve faster, near real time prediction of the emergence and spread of influenza epidemic, through continuous tracking of flu related OSN messages originating within United States, we intend to provide a snapshot of the current epidemic condition and a preview of what to expect, on a daily basis. This would significantly enhances public health awareness and preparedness against the influenza epidemic and other large scale pandemics.
Sunspot Oscillations: Observations and Implications

This review summarizes the current state of observational knowledge of oscillations within sunspots. Three classes of oscillations are discussed: (1) oscillations measured in the photosphere of sunspot umbrae which are dominated by the apparent response of the umbral photosphere to the 5-minute p-mode oscillations, (2) the energetic oscillations in the umbral chromosphere, and (3) oscillations observed in the penumbral chromosphere. Observational results are critically examined. The theory of sunspot oscillations is discussed in light of the observations, and new observational tests are proposed.
Art Review: Kiki Smith at the Neuberger Museum of Art, New York

Her father Tony Smith, a minimalist sculptor, exposed Kiki to art materials and art-making early in her life. She developed a distinctive style that expresses and comments on her worldview. She related in a 2003 PBS Art 21 interview that as a child she made cardboard models for her father. She adopted his work ethic and explained that “90 percent of my time is spent doing what my intuition tells me to do in the studio.” Artwork and her life as an artist are confluent. Kiki’s works are not minimalistic in her father’s style but at times their simple presentation belies complex feminist political, social, and mythological issues. Her home life close to her father’s studio environment, combined with devout Irish Roman Catholic beliefs, had a great impact on her messages of spirituality. Ms. Smith’s works reflect recurrent themes and iconic motifs associated with spirituality, mythology, creation, life, death, animals, birds, insects, and flowers.
Intra-Arterial Thrombolysis for Acute Ischemic Stroke

Intra-arterial thrombolysis, administered within six hours of symptoms onset, has been shown in a randomized, prospective, multicenter trial and in several nonrandomized case series to be beneficial in acute ischemic stroke caused by occlusion of the middle cerebral artery or its major divisions. Benefit has been reported in a relatively small number of nonrandomized case series beyond the six-hour time window in basilar artery occlusion. Although intra-arterial thrombolysis appears to be an effective and relatively safe form of therapy for certain patients with acute ischemic stroke, better outcomes and fewer side effects than currently reported are to be desired. Whether this will be achieved in part by a better selection of patients based on physiologic rather than chronologic criteria, by achieving higher and faster recanalization rates (through combined use of intra-arterial and intravenous therapy or through use of mechanical clot-dissolution devices), or by combining thrombolysis with neuroprotectant strategies remains to be established by future trials.
Long-term effects of UV and visible irradiance on natural populations of a scytonemin-containing cyanobacterium (Calothrix sp.)

A natural warm spring stream with a cyanobacterial biofilm community composed almost entirely of Calothrix sp., a species rich in the UV-absorbing sheath pigment scytonemin, was used for 3 month summer experiments to test the following hypotheses: (1) UV radiation is necessary for the synthesis of high scytonemin content in sheaths. (2) High scytonemin content is required for uninhibited photosynthesis under high UV flux. Both of these hypotheses were answered affirmatively in earlier experiments with laboratory cultures of other cyanobacterial species. However, the tests of these hypotheses under natural conditions were necessary to confirm these conclusions, mainly because fluxes of UV and visible radiation and their ratios are very different under field conditions. Intact mats of Calothrix, siliceous substrate cleared of Calothrix, and artificial foam were treated for 3 months under filters transparent to UV radiation and visible light, and under filters that excluded only UV radiation. Neutral density screens were used in combination with filters to reduce the total irradiance over some sections of the stream. After 3 months, under all treatments, the predominant organism was still the same morphotype of Calothrix. Intact Calothrix mats produced high levels of scytonemin over the summer, except under low UV and low visible irradiance, while chlorophyll-a values per unit area remained relatively low and showed little change under all treatments. After 3 months, intact Calothrix mat and colonized mat with substantial scytonemin were not inhibited photosynthetically by UV irradiance. Only colonized populations exposed to ∼12% UV and ∼12% visible irradiance, and with very low scytonemin content, showed significant UV-inhibition. Thus, the correlation between UV protection and scytonemin presence was established experimentally for the first time under solar irradiance in a natural, essentially monospecific population of a cyanobacterium.
Exogenous 14C-urea distribution in selected marine fishes—especially two species of salmon, and resultant alteration in sera and gill enzyme levels

Abstract 1. 1. 14C-urea decay patterns in the pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) both oceanic and late summer pre-spawning stream-entering adults, and the adult dog salmon (0. keta) were observed to be similar. These two patterns were compared to the previously reported patterns of selected marine teleosts. 2. 2. In the pink salmon, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) values were 10 fold lower than serum levels. Oceanic pink salmon exhibited the same patterns in cisternal and ventricular CSF; however, wide variation was observed in the CSF values of animals about to enter the fresh water streams. In the dog salmon serum values were higher than the CSF until 6 hr. 3. 3. The observation that the salmon can cope with excessive urea-an organic compound of dubious toxicity and utilized by certain other marine fishes to maintain homeostasis without any apparent ill effects—indicates that a certain system of excretion and/or metabolism- operative in the elasmo-branch—may still function in part in the salmon. Preliminary data on the effect both in vivo and in vitro on LDH levels in the serum and gill of the salmon supports the idea that urea may have a stabilizing function.
University faculty and federal documents: Use patterns

Abstract Faculty use patterns of government publications were investigated with the questionnaire and interview techniques. Questionnaire responses were tabulated by total faculty, variables of use and non-use, humanities, social and physical sciences and individual departments. Interviews were essential as they clarified and corrected points gathered from the questionnaire. Many faculty are unaware of the value of government publications to their research and teaching. Obviously it is desirable that they be aware of these publications, but more importantly librarians are negligent in their academic responsibilities if they do not seek a closer working relationship with classroom instructors and bring about such an awareness.
Phytophthora megasperma culture filtrate and cell wall preparation stimulate glyceollin production and reduce cell viability in suspension cultures of soybean

Abstract Cultivation of soybean cells in a medium containing fungal culture filtrate induced glyceollin biosynthesis and loss of cell viability. Most of the glyceollin was released into the medium. Purified fungal cell walls (100μg/ml) and x 2 diluted fungal culture filtrate caused similar levels of glyceollin synthesis in soybean cell suspensions. Fungal culture filtrate treated cells, however, were dead after four days of culture, whereas, loss of cell viability in the case of 100μg/ml fungal cell wall treated cells was gradual. Culture filtrate-induced glyceollin production was not lethal to all cells if the cells were rinsed 24 hr after treatment. Toxic fungal products may be involved in this cell death. Addition of glyceollin to cell cultures, at amounts comparable to that produced in these studies, caused loss of cell viability but the surviving cells gradually regrew. Live cells caused the disappearance of glyceollin from the medium but autoclaved, glyceollin-treated cells had no effect on the added glyceollin even after 24 hr. Evidently, glyceollin was catabolized or bound only by living cells.
Phosphate Ester Hydrolysis in Aqueous Solution: Associative versus Dissociative Mechanisms

Phosphate hydrolysis plays a major role in many biological processes. To fully understand such processes, it is essential to obtain a quantitative description of the corresponding reactions in solu...
Health System Factors Affecting Communication with Pediatricians: Gendered Work Culture in Primary Care

This qualitative study examined the roles that practice setting, education level, and gender may play in social workers' communication satisfaction with pediatricians. Taking an ethnographic approach, the researcher interviewed social workers and pediatricians who worked together to provide mental health services in primary care. The results suggested that gender at the health system level may be an issue and that gendered work culture in primary care was a factor in communication. In particular, reimbursement, an aspect of the gendered work culture, was a substantial communication barrier, and the implications for Medicaid billing are discussed.
Neutron diffraction measurement of the Debye-Walker factor of solid hcp 4He

Abstract The Debye-Waller factor of hcp 4He at molar volumes Vm of 12.06 and 15.72 cm3 has been measured by neutron diffraction techniques. It has been found that for scattering vectors Q ≲ 7 A −1 the Debye-Waller factor can be well represented by a simple Gaussian. The Debye temperatures, appropriate to the Debye-Waller factor, were found to be 99.73 K (Vm = 12.06 cm3) and 55.86 K (Vm = 15.72 cm3). No evidence was found of any forbidden reflections.
Community-Based Participatory Research Contributions to Intervention Research: The Intersection of Science and Practice to Improve Health Equity

Community-based participatory research (CBPR) has emerged in the last decades as a transformative research paradigm that bridges the gap between science and practice through community engagement and social action to increase health equity. CBPR expands the potential for the translational sciences to develop, implement, and disseminate effective interventions across diverse communities through strategies to redress power imbalances; facilitate mutual benefit among community and academic partners; and promote reciprocal knowledge translation, incorporating community theories into the research. We identify the barriers and challenges within the intervention and implementation sciences, discuss how CBPR can address these challenges, provide an illustrative research example, and discuss next steps to advance the translational science of CBPR.
Modulation of T-cell CD3-zeta chain expression in early pregnancy.

PROBLEM: To assess the modulation of T-cell CD3-zeta chain expression by a factor in the sera of women, prior to egg retrieval and 14 days after an in vitro fertilization (IVF) and to delineate the mechanism of this modulation. METHOD OF STUDY: In this prospective study, blood samples were obtained from 17 patients during an IVF cycle, prior to human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), and 14 days after embryo return. Serum was incubated with cultured T-lymphocytes (Jurkat cells) for 96 hr and expression of CD3-zeta chain was evaluated. RESULTS: Eight patients had a positive serum hCG titer 14 days after retrieval, while nine patients had a negative hCG titer. Serum from pregnant patients significantly suppressed CD3-zeta chain expression as compared with their sample prior to retrieval (85.6 ± 6.2%), while subjects not becoming pregnant failed to suppress zeta expression (99.1 ± 0.9%, P < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: A factor capable of suppressing TcR/CD3-zeta expression can be detected in the sera of pregnant women 14 days after embryo retrieval. Loss of zeta chain was associated with the induction of apoptosis.
Onset of metamorphic competence in larvae of the gastropod Crepidula fomicata (L.), judged by a natural and an artificial cue

Exposing larvae of the marine prosobranch gastropod Crepidula fornicata L. to excess K+ triggers the metamorphosis of competent individuals. This paper considers whether larvae of C. fornicata become responsive to excess K+ at the same time and size that they become responsive to adult-conditioned seawater and other apparently natural cues. Fourteen experiments were conducted at room temperature (ca. 23°C), with 3–5 replicates per treatment and 6–10 larvae per replicate. Larvae became responsive to natural cues within 12–24 h after becoming responsive to excess K+, and responded sooner to natural cues under agitated (20–50 rpm) rather than static conditions (p<0.05). These results emphasize the importance of defining metamorphic competence with respect to specific external cues. Although it seems reasonable to estimate the onset of metamorphic competence using excess K+ in this species, the data suggest that the excess K+ and the natural inducer act at different points in the metamorphic pathway.
The impact of asthma on the health status of adolescents.

Objective. To identify a characteristic pattern of health and illness for adolescents with asthma, we compared the health status of teenagers with asthma to those without asthma using a recently developed generic health status instrument, the Child Health and Illness Profile, Adolescent Edition (CHIP-AE). Methods. This was a cross-sectional survey using a school sample of 3109 teenagers. Participants completed the CHIP-AE during school in northern Baltimore City, rural western Maryland, and rural Arkansas. The health and functioning scores of teens without asthma (“well” group) were compared with those with asthma with and without recent wheezing. Results. Of the 12% who reported that a physician had ever told them they had asthma, 50% had problems with wheezing in the past 28 days. Compared with well teenagers, those with asthma and recent wheezing had lower perceived well-being, more physical and emotional symptoms, greater limitations in activity, more comorbidities, and more negative behaviors that threaten social development. These findings held true in multivariable regression models that controlled for sociodemographics and sites of data collection. Teenagers with asthma without recent wheezing reported a greater number of comorbidities than well teens and showed similar trends in health status as those with recently symptomatic asthma. Conclusions. Multiple aspects of adolescent health status are affected by asthma, particularly if it is recently symptomatic. These results argue for incorporating a generic health status instrument, such as the CHIP-AE, in studies that document the health needs or outcomes of medical care for populations of teenagers with asthma. asthma, quality of life, adolescence. * Abbreviations: CHIP-AE = : Child Health and Illness Profile, Adolescent Edition • CI = : confidence interval
Walt Whitman: The Song of Himself

"Walt Whitman: The Song of Himself" is the first full-length critical biography of Walt Whitman in more than forty years. Jerome Loving makes use of recently unearthed archival evidence and newspaper writings to present the most accurate, complete, and complex portrait of the poet to date. This authoritative biography affords fresh, often revelatory insights into many aspects of the poet's life, including his attitudes toward the emerging urban life of America, his relationships with his family members, his developing notions of male-male love, his attitudes toward the vexed issue of race, and his insistence on the union of American states. Virtually every chapter presents material that was previously unknown or unavailable, and Whitman emerges as never before, in all his complexity as a corporal, cerebral, and spiritual being. Loving gives us a new Poet of Democracy, one for the twenty-first century.Loving brings to life the elusive early Whitman, detailing his unhappy teaching career, typesetting jobs, quarrels with editors, and relationships with family and friends. He takes us through the Civil War - with Whitman's moving descriptions of the wounded and dying he nursed, the battlegrounds and camps he visited - demonstrating why the war became one of the defining events of Whitman's life and poetry. Loving's account of Whitman's relationship with Ralph Waldo Emerson is one of the most complete and fascinating available. He also draws insights from new material about Whitman's life as a civil servant, his Lincoln lectures, and his abiding campaign to gain acceptance for what was regarded by many as a 'dirty book'.He examines each edition of "Leaves of Grass" in connection with the life and times that produced it, demonstrating how Whitman's poetry serves as a priceless historical document - marking such events as Grant's death, the completion of the Washington monument, Custer's defeat, and the Johnstown flood - at the same time that it reshapes the canon of American literature. The most important gap in the Whitman record is his journalism, which has never been completely collected and edited. Previous biographers have depended on a very incomplete and inaccurate collection. Loving has found long-forgotten runs of the newspapers Whitman worked on and has gathered the largest collection of his journalism to date. He uses these pieces to significantly enhance our understanding of where Whitman stood in the political and ideological spectra of his era.Loving tracks down the sources of anecdotes about Whitman, how they got passed from one biographer to another, were embellished and re-contextualized. The result is a biography in which nothing is claimed without a basis in the factual record. "Walt Whitman: The Song of Himself" will be an invaluable tool for generations to come, an essential resource in understanding "Leaves of Grass" and its poet - who defied literary decorum, withstood condemnation, and stubbornly pursued his own way.
Exchange coupling in Eu compounds

Using ab initio electronic structure calculations employing the LDA+U method we have investigated the exchange coupling in materials containing Eu in Eu2+ formal valency including: (i) insulating ferromagnets (EuO, EuS, EuSe, EuTe), and (ii) elemental metal BCC Eu. The total energies calculated with constrained magnetic structures were mapped on the Heisenberg Hamiltonian in order to investigate the thermodynamic properties. The mechanisms of inter-site exchange, which differ between the studied systems, are discussed.
The diagnostic utility ofcardiac biomarkers in detecting myocardial infarction

Cardiac biomarkers, eg, cardiac troponin, have become the standard test in combination with clinical and electrocardiographic findings for physicians to conduct prompt and effective triage of patients presenting with chest pain. Cardiac biomarkers are protein components of cell structures that are released into circulation when myocardial injury occurs. The purpose of this article is multifold. First, to identify specific cardiac biomarkers and review current guidelines based on study findings on the diagnostic utility of cardiac biomarkers in detecting myocardial infarction. Recent guidelines of the European Society of Cardiology, the American College of Cardiology, the American Heart Association, and the National Academy of Clinical Biochemistry were examined, as well as relevant studies relating to the development of these guidelines. Second, to analyze the clinical significance of cardiac biomarker measurements and the challenges with existing cardiac biomarker assays. Third, to discuss our findings regarding our evaluation of the analytical performance of a chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay for the quantitative determination of cardiac troponin I in human serum and plasma on an automated immunoassay instrument system (ARCHITECT) to aid in the diagnosis of myocardial infarction.
Economic Analysis of Physical Activity Interventions

Background Numerous interventions have been shown to increase physical activity but have not been ranked by effectiveness or cost. Purpose This study provides a systematic review of physical activity interventions and calculates their cost-effectiveness ratios. Methods A systematic literature review was conducted (5579 articles) and 91 effective interventions promoting physical activity were identified, with enough information to translate effects into MET-hours gained. Cost-effectiveness ratios were then calculated as cost per MET-hour gained per day per individual reached. Physical activity benefits were compared to U.S. guideline–recommended levels (1.5 MET-hours per day for adults and 3.0 MET-hours per day for children, equivalent to walking 30 and 60 minutes, respectively). Results The most cost-effective strategies were for point-of-decision prompts (e.g., signs to prompt stair use), with a median cost of $0.07/MET-hour/day/person; these strategies had tiny effects, adding only 0.2% of minimum recommended physical activity levels. School-based physical activity interventions targeting children and adolescents ranked well with a median of $0.42/MET-hour/day/person, generating an average of 16% of recommended physical activity. Although there were few interventions in the categories of “creation or enhanced access to places for physical activity” and “community campaigns,” several were cost effective. The least cost-effective categories were the high-intensity “individually adapted behavior change” and “social support” programs, with median cost-effectiveness ratios of $0.84 and $1.16 per MET-hour/day/person. However, they also had the largest effect sizes, adding 35%–43% of recommended physical activity, respectively. Study quality was variable, with many relying on self-reported outcomes. Conclusions The cost effectiveness, effect size, and study quality should all be considered when choosing physical activity interventions.
Penicillin Tolerance in Group 8 Streptococci Isolated from Infected Neonates

Four (4%) of 100 isolates of group B streptococci from the blood or cerebrospinal fluid of infected neonates were shown to be tolerant to penicillin by significantly slower rates of killing at penicillin levels that were 16 times greater than the minimal inhibitory concentrations. Different killing rates between nontolerant and tolerant streptococci were observed with penicillin only in the logarithmic phase of growth. Nontolerant strains in the stationary phase and tolerant strains in both the logarithmic and stationary phases were killed at similar rates, which were slower than the rates for nontolerant streptococci in the logarithmic phase. When incubated with [14C]lysine-labeled preparations of cell wall, freeze-thaw extracts of tolerant strains released less radioactivity than did those of nontolerant strains. This activity of nontolerant streptococci was maximal during logarithmic growth and was heat-labile, a result which presumably reflected the activity of autolytic enzyme(s).
ΔznuAΔpurE Brucella abortus 2308 mutant as a live vaccine candidate

To create a new, safe brucellosis live vaccine, a double mutant strain was constructed from Brucella abortus 2308. Using the ΔznuA B. abortus 2308 mutant, a second mutation was introduced by deleting purE gene. The ΔznuA ΔpurE B. abortus 2308 strain was less capable of surviving in macrophages. When evaluated in vivo, it was cleared within 8 weeks (wks) from mice, causing significantly less inflammation than spleens obtained from wild-type B. abortus 2308-infected mice. Furthermore, two doses of ΔznuA ΔpurE B. abortus 2308 conferred 0.79 log protection, similar to S19 as did a single dose of ΔznuA B. abortus 2308. Thus, this study shows the ΔznuA ΔpurE B. abortus 2308 strain to be a potential livestock vaccine candidate.
Assessing visibility impairment in class I parks and wilderness areas: A comparison of policy‐relevant methods

Abstract The regulations implementing the 1977 Clean Air Act Amendments distinguish between the detectability of air pollution‐caused visibility impairment in Class I Parks and Wilderness areas and the adversity of impairment, referring to the effect on the quality of park visitors’ visual experiences. Two lines of environmental perception research have arisen from this distinction, one emphasizing the detectability of visibility impairment, and the other emphasizing the quality of park visitors’ experiences. This study addressed issues relevant to both lines of research. Subjects rated either the “visual air quality”; or “scenic beauty”; of color slides depicting varying levels of atmospheric visibility in Class I scenic vistas under treatment conditions designed to emphasize either the detectability or adversity criteria. Subjects who rated visual air quality for repeated samples of a single vista were most sensitive to changes in atmospheric visibility. Subjects who rated a mixture of different vistas ...
A comparison of the effects of dehydroepiandrosterone treatment to ad libitum and pair-feeding in the obese zucker rat

Abstract In general, treatment of mice and rats with dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) has been shown to result in a decrease in body weight gain without an effect on food intake. The obese Zucker rat has been the exception. The present study compares the response of DHEA-treated obese rats to both ad libitum -fed and pair-fed obese groups. Body weight, weight gain and food efficiency ratio were all significantly decreased in DHEA-treated rats compared with either ad libitum -fed or pair-fed rats. Liver weight was higher and heart weight lower in the DHEA-treated group in comparison to both control groups. Retroperitoneal fat pad weight was lowered in DHEA-treated rats by over 60% compared to both pair-fed rats and ad libitum -fed rats. Similar results were found for parametrial fat pads. Neither fecal fat excretion nor urinary output were altered by DHEA treatment. The finding of greater activity of the enzyme, long chain acyl-CoA hydrolase, in DHEA-treated but not in either ad libitum -fed or pair-fed rats, supports our hypothesis that DHEA may induce a futile cycle of fatty acid metabolism leading to enhanced energy utilization. These results support fundamentally different effects of DHEA compared to a decreased food intake in the obese Zucker rat.
Hypertension in populations of different ethnic origins

In their recent Editorial Hypertension: an urgent need for global control and prevention (May 31, p 1861),1 Lancet Editors highlight the global need to address high blood pressure—the leading risk factor for mortality worldwide. This is particularly urgent in low-income and middle-income countries where prevalence is increasing. Present treatment guidelines, however, are largely based on white populations whereas evidence suggests that cardiovascular disease varies with ethnic origin.2 South Asian populations, for example, have higher death rates from ischemic heart disease at young ages compared with populations in Western countries; Hispanic populations might achieve better blood pressure control with less treatment compared with non-Hispanic groups.3,4 Thresholds for treatment, blood pressure targets, and antihypertensive regimens might differ between ethnic groups. Despite differences in general guidelines, the Eighth Joint National Committee (JNC8), American and International Societies of Hypertension, and European Society of Hypertension/ European Society of Cardiology all provided specific recommendations for blacks individuals.5–7 Ethnic variations couldhave implications for polypills and other initiatives to streamline management in low-income and middle-income settings, such as the Global Standardized Hypertension Treatment Project [http://www.cdc.gov/globalhealth/ncd/hypertension-treatment.htm]. Good quality data on hypertension in different ethnic populations are missing. Of the more than 180 studies that met the JNC8's standards for inclusion, less than 30 include analysisof non-white, non-black groups.5 Generating high-quality evidence for diverse populations should become a priority. Prospective cohort studies and randomised controlled trials are needed to define how blood pressure should best be managed among the groups found in low-income and middle-income countries where the burden of hypertension is growing.
Stimulus novelty differentially affects attentional allocation in PTSD

Abstract Background: This study investigated attentional allocation in 39 Vietnam combat veterans, 25 with and 14 without posttraumatic stress disorder, assessing P300 amplitudes and latencies during both three-tone and novelty “oddball” tasks. Methods: The three-tone oddball task consisted of three stimuli: frequent tones (85%), rare target tones (7.5%), and rare distractor tones (7.5%). The novelty oddball task was identical to the three-tone task except that the rare distractor tones were replaced with nonrepeating novel sounds (7.5%). Results: Combat veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder showed significant P300 amplitude enhancements at frontal sites in response to distracting stimuli during the novelty but not during the three-tone oddball tasks. There were no amplitude differences in target tones during either task. Conclusions: The data suggest that combat veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder demonstrate P300 responses consistent with a heightened orientation response to novel, distracting stimuli. This finding is consistent both with the clinical presentation of the disorder and with theoretical notions that individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder demonstrate information-processing biases towards vague or potentially threatening stimuli.