cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio predicts disease severity and outcome after lower extremity procedures.

Abstract Objective Neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) has been associated with inferior outcomes after lower extremity interventions. NLR has been associated with systemic inflammation and atherosclerotic burden. We examined NLR, severity of peripheral artery disease (PAD), and outcomes after endovascular or open surgical procedures. Methods Inpatients undergoing lower extremity procedures (2008-2016) were selected from Cerner Health Facts database (Cerner Corporation, North Kansas City, Mo) using International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision procedure codes. Disease severity was grouped into claudication, rest pain, and tissue loss. Outcomes were identified using International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision codes. NLR was calculated preoperatively and postoperatively. A χ2 analysis and multivariable logistic regression were performed. A receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was used to determine the cutoff for preoperative (low, Results There were 3687 patients evaluated; 2183 (59%) underwent endovascular procedures and 1504 (41%) had open procedures. Compared with black patients, claudication was more frequent in white patients (81.7% vs 72.7%; P Conclusions Preoperative and postoperative NLR significantly increases with disease severity for PAD, providing further evidence of NLR as a biomarker of a patient's systemic inflammatory state. After adjustment for confounders, NLR still remained strongly associated with death and other adverse outcomes after intervention for PAD. Further study of the clinical association of NLR with other vascular disorders, such as symptomatic carotid stenosis and symptomatic and ruptured aortic aneurysmal disease, is planned to guide individualized treatment to prevent stroke or aneurysm rupture.
Turbidity Hysteresis in an Estuary and Tidal River Following an Extreme Discharge Event

Non-linear turbidity-discharge relationships are explored in the context of sediment sourcing and event-driven hysteresis using long-term (>12 year) turbidity observations from the tidal freshwater...
Who is a Yid? Reading the journal Der Yid beyond the Hebraist – Yiddishist binary

The journal Der Yid was the first Yiddish periodical officially tied to a Zionist body. This article follows the shared genealogy of early Zionism and diasporic nationalism as expressed in Der Yid,...
Impact of a District-Wide One-to-One Technology Initiative on Kindergartners’ Engagement and Learning Outcomes

Interest in providing one-to-one technology to students is increasing, particularly in low-income schools. This study examined the impact of one such approach on kindergartners’ math and literacy d...
High gene expression of estrogen and progesterone receptors is associated with decreased t cell infiltration in patients with NSCLC.

Abstract Objectives Prior studies have demonstrated that signaling via the estrogen and progesterone receptors (ER and PR) may affect prognosis in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The precise impact of hormone signaling on clinical outcomes in NSCLC, especially in the context of immune checkpoint blockade, remains unclear. Materials and Methods We obtained RNA-Seq data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) to determine mRNA expression levels of ESR1 (ER-α), ESR2 (ER-β), PGR (PR), CYP19A1 (aromatase), and immune-related genes. Tumor infiltration by activated T cells was predicted based on expression of immune metagenes. Results High levels of both ESR1 and PGR were associated with significantly decreased tumor infiltration by CD4+ and CD8+ activated T cells. CYP19A1 expression was associated with decreased CD4+ but not CD8+ T cell infiltration. There were no significant differences based on ESR2. These findings persisted after stratifying patients based on sex and tumor histology. In addition, increased ESR1 was associated with high gene expression of immune checkpoint markers, while increased PGR was associated with high levels of TGF-β genes. In a multivariate logistic regression analysis, ESR1, PGR, TGFB1, and the total number of somatic variants were identified as independent factors predicting T cell infiltration. Conclusions Increased gene expression of ER-α and PR was associated with decreased activated T cell infiltration in patients with NSCLC. The relevance of hormone receptor status should be validated clinically, including in the context of immune checkpoint inhibitors.
Has Removal From the Inpatient-Only List Increased Complications After Outpatient Total Knee Arthroplasty?

Abstract Background On 1/1/2018, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services removed total knee arthroplasty (TKA) from the Inpatient-Only (IPO) list. This change allowed expansion of outpatient TKA, potentially to include older, more frail patients at greater risk for perioperative complications. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of removing TKA from the IPO list on early complications. Methods Patients undergoing TKA in the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database were identified using CPT code 27447. Only cases with length of stay of zero days were included. Rates of 30-day complications, readmissions, and reoperation were compared before and after TKA was removed from the IPO list (2015-2017 vs 2018). The analysis was performed both with and without propensity score matching. Results 212,313 patients underwent TKA during the study period. 2466 (1.5%) were outpatient TKA in 2015-2017 and 3189 (5.6%) in 2018. After propensity matching, there were 2458 patients in each cohort. Rates of total 30-day complications were significantly lower in 2018 (3.7%) than the years TKA remained on the IPO (4.5%, P = .04). Similarly, rates of any reoperation decreased from 1.2% during 2015-2017 to 0.6% in 2018 (P = .03). There were no significant changes in rates of readmission (2.5% vs 2.2%, P = .5) or wound complications (0.8% vs 0.8%, P = 1.0). Conclusion Removal of TKA from the IPO list did not result in an increase in complications or readmissions. These data suggest, despite the regulatory change, surgeons have continued to exercise sound judgment as to what patients can safely undergo outpatient TKA.
Blind source recovery: algorithms for static and dynamic environments

This paper integrates our contributions in the domain of blind source separation and blind source deconvolution, both in static and dynamic environments. We focus on the use of the state space formulation and the development of a generalized optimization framework, using Kullback-Liebler divergence as the performance measure subject to the constraints of a state space representation. Various special cases are subsequently derived from this general case and are compared with material in recent literature. Some of these reported works have also been implemented in dedicated hardware/software and experimental designs have been compared with their computer simulations.
The Impact of Information Asymmetry on Debt Pricing and Maturity

In this paper, I exploit the syndicated loan market to explore the impact of information asymmetry on the cost of debt capital. As a measure of information asymmetry associated with a borrowing firm, I use the bid-ask spread on the firm’s loans traded on the secondary loan market. I find that a higher bid-ask spread on a borrower’s traded loans leads to a higher interest rate on the borrower’s subsequently issued loans. I show that both information asymmetry between syndicate lenders and a borrowing firm and information asymmetry among secondary loan market participants are priced in the loan interest rate. I also find that information asymmetry decreases debt maturity. I show that a higher bid-ask spread on the borrower’s traded loans translates into a shorter maturity of the borrower’s subsequently issued loans.
Carcinoid tumor of the kidney: The use of somatostatin receptor scintigraphy in diagnosis and management

Three patients were diagnosed with carcinoid tumors of the kidney. The diagnosis was rendered after biopsy with the assistance of immunohistochemical stains. In all three patients, a pentetreotide scan was helpful in staging. Metastatic disease that was not evident by computed tomography was found in one patient. All three patients are alive with stable or slowly progressive disease at 33, 36, and 40 months. Carcinoid tumors arising from the kidney are rare but must be considered in the differential diagnosis of a renal mass. Immunohistochemical staining is important in the diagnosis of these tumors and the pentetreotide scan contributes to accurate staging.
Invited commentary on volunteerism among surgeons: an exploration of attitudes and barriers.

lunt cons eral H the u B) p wth. A rectly r can b orit teer a ing, e The accompanying article by McGingle et al is a ome addition to the limited body of literature relate urgeons and volunteer outreach. The findings are strikin onsistent with those previously reported by the Institute ealth Policy of the Massachusetts General Hospital (I GH) in their assessment of surgeons’ interest and invo ent in volunteer work commissioned by the Amer ollege of Surgeons (ACS) in 2002.
Cross-modal asymmetries in perception related to asymmetry in cerebral function.

Abstract Cross-modal correlations between left-right asymmetry on the Dichotic Listening (D-L) test and a visual half-field ((VHF) test were obtained for 30 right-handed subjects with no family history of left-handedness, 30 right handed subjects with a positive family history of left-handedness and 30 left-handed subjects. Both groups of right-handed subjects demonstrated significant cross-modal correlations between the D-L (auditory) asymmetry and the VHF (visual) asymmetry. The left-handed subjects displayed no correlation between D-L and VHF asymmetries. This suggests a dissociation between auditory and visual laterality in left-handers. Differences between this finding and two previous studies which found no cross-modal asymmetry for right-or-left-handers are discussed. The visual half-field test utilized in this experiment controlled fixation by presenting digits sequentially at fixation, while simultaneously presenting other digits to either the right or left VHF. This procedure minimizes the effect of directional scanning on VHF asymmetry. The reliability of the D-L and VHF asymmetries was also computed. The D-L asymmetry proved to be highly reliable ( r = 0.86), while the VHF asymmetry was somewhat less reliable ( r = 0.46). The asymmetry on both tests was attributed to asymmetry of cerebral function.
ISOETRP—an interactive clustering algorithm with new objectives

Abstract A new clustering algorithm ISOETRP has been introduced which has new objectives particularly suitable for hierarchical pattern classification. These objectives are: (a) minimizing overlap between pattern class groups; (b) minimizing entropy; (c) keeping balance between these groups. An interactive version of ISOETRP was implemented which gave much better results than some other existing algorithms.
Synthesis and spectroscopic and magnetic characterization of tris(3,5-dimethylpyrazol-1-yl)borate iron tricyanide building blocks, a cluster, and a one-dimensional chain of squares.

The synthesis and spectroscopic and magnetic characterization of several hydridotris(3,5-dimethylpyrazol-1yl)borate (Tp*) iron(II) and iron(III) tricyanide complexes, a rectangular cluster, and a one-dimensional chain of squares are described. Treatment of [NEt4][(Tp*)FeIII(CN)3] (3) with manganese(II) triflate in dimethylformamide (DMF) affords rectangular clusters (6, {[(Tp*)Fe(CN)2(μ-CN)Mn(DMF)4]2[OTf]2}·2DMF), while tosylate salts afford one-dimensional networks (5, {MnII(DMF)2(μ-OTs)(μ-NC)2(NC)FeIII(Tp*)}n) containing embedded [(Tp*)2FeIII2MnII2(CN)6]2+ clusters via in situ trapping; the cluster and network crystallize in the monoclinic (6, P21/n) and triclinic (5, P1) space groups, respectively. The 1-D network (5) appears to be derived from {cis-(μ-O3SC6H4Me)2MnII(DMF)4}n (4, P21/n), which is obtained via crystallization of Mn(OTs)2 from DMF/Et2O mixtures. For 4, magnetic studies indicate that the MnII centers are magnetically isolated, with calculated J, g, and θ constants of 6.7 × 10-3 cm-1, 2.0...
Our own experience in supracricoid laryngectomy with CHP and CHEP type of reconstruction due to larynx cancer

Abstract The results of the surgical treatment of larynx cancer (glottic–supraglottic) by supracricoid laryngectomy with CHP and CHEP type of reconstruction are presented. The material consists of 160 cases (88 after CHP and 72 after CHEP). A 5-year survival rate was obtained in over 71% of cases in all material. Decannulation was possible in 126 (79%) patients. Feeding tube removal before 4 weeks after operation was performed in 139 (87%) cases. In subjective assessment, all patients had social efficient speech. Favorable results of the treatment encourage wider application of supracricoid laryngectomy.
Juvenile osteochondritis dissecans of the knee

Abstract Sir James Paget is credited with the first detailed description of osteochondritis dissecans (OCD). He termed the condition quiet necrosis. However, it was Koenig in 1887 who coined the term osteochondritis dissecans , based on his theory that the corpora mobile (loose bodies) were the result of fragments of subchondral bone dissected out by a line of inflammation. Originally described in adults, OCD it has been recognized to occur frequently in the skeletally immature individual. Since the term first appeared, there has been controversy and confusion regarding the definition, epidemiology, etiology, pathogenesis, natural history, and treatment of OCD. This article reviews the current theories of pathophysiology, etiology, and natural history, the clinical evaluation of the patient with suspected OCD; and current and future treatment options.
A Single Detector Split-Beam Automatic Recording Spectrophotometer

A split-beam system of spectrophotometry is described in which each of the two beams is modulated at a different frequency. A single photomultiplier is used as a detector. Separation and amplification of the two frequencies are effected by tuned amplifiers. Percent transmission versus wavelength data is recorded automatically in the region 2050A to 4000A using a hydrogen discharge lamp, and in the region 3200A to 7000A using a tungsten lamp as a source. Either of these ranges is scanned in less than ten minutes and the accuracy at an optical density of 2 is about ten percent. The optical system of the commercial monochromator used is in no way altered.
An EQMB Examination of Cu Surface Oxides in Borate Buffer

The oxidation and reduction of copper (Cu), either electrodeposited or vapor deposited onto quartz crystal resonators, was examined in borate/boric acid mixtures at two different pH values, comparing electrochemical measurements with mass changes. The results showed that at pH 8.8, Cu dissolution significantly influences the microbalance readings. It was found that, when surface oxidation during potentiodynamic scans is limited in the anodic direction, the first reduction peak is caused by Cu redeposition and not by oxide reduction. At pH 10.0, Cu dissolution is minimal, and the microbalance signal is given by surface oxidation or reduction. Comparing charge and mass data, it was found that the reaction Cu+↔Cu is the formation or reduction of Cu2O, while the reaction Cu2+↔Cu+ most likely involves some hydroxide.
The bedrock structured programming system: combining generative metaprogramming and hoare logic in an extensible program verifier

We report on the design and implementation of an extensible programming language and its intrinsic support for formal verification. Our language is targeted at low-level programming of infrastructure like operating systems and runtime systems. It is based on a cross-platform core combining characteristics of assembly languages and compiler intermediate languages. From this foundation, we take literally the saying that C is a "macro assembly language": we introduce an expressive notion of certified low-level macros, sufficient to build up the usual features of C and beyond as macros with no special support in the core. Furthermore, our macros have integrated support for strongest postcondition calculation and verification condition generation, so that we can provide a high-productivity formal verification environment within Coq for programs composed from any combination of macros. Our macro interface is expressive enough to support features that low-level programs usually only access through external tools with no formal guarantees, such as declarative parsing or SQL-inspired querying. The abstraction level of these macros only imposes a compile-time cost, via the execution of functional Coq programs that compute programs in our intermediate language; but the run-time cost is not substantially greater than for more conventional C code. We describe our experiences constructing a full C-like language stack using macros, with some experiments on the verifiability and performance of individual programs running on that stack.
The multiplicity of experimental protocols: a challenge to reductionist and non-reductionist models of the unity of neuroscience

Descriptive accounts of the nature of explanation in neuroscience and the global goals of such explanation have recently proliferated in the philosophy of neuroscience (e.g., Bechtel, Mental mechanisms: Philosophical perspectives on cognitive neuroscience. New York: Lawrence Erlbaum, 2007; Bickle, Philosophy and neuroscience: A ruthlessly reductive account. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishing, 2003; Bickle, Synthese, 151, 411–434, 2006; Craver, Explaining the brain: Mechanisms and the mosaic unity of neuroscience. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007) and with them new understandings of the experimental practices of neuroscientists have emerged. In this paper, I consider two models of such practices; one that takes them to be reductive; another that takes them to be integrative. I investigate those areas of the neuroscience of learning and memory from which the examples used to substantiate these models are culled, and argue that the multiplicity of experimental protocols used in these research areas presents specific challenges for both models. In my view, these challenges have been overlooked largely because philosophers have hitherto failed to pay sufficient attention to fundamental features of experimental practice. I demonstrate that when we do pay attention to such features, evidence for reduction and integrative unity in neuroscience is simply not borne out. I end by suggesting some new directions for the philosophy of neuroscience that pertain to taking a closer look at the nature of neuroscientific experiments.
The Inhibitory Effect of Dopamine Agonists on LH Release in Women

Our demonstration of an inhibitory effect of dopamine on LH release prompted us to examine whether a similar action exists for dopamine agonists, such as L-dopa and 2-bromo-α-ergocryptine (CB-154). Following the administration of L-dopa (0.5 g, orally) to 6 normal women in the early follicular phase, a significant fall in mean LH levels after 1 h which lasted for 5 h was observed (P < 0.00005). This was followed by a significant rebound above basal levels between the 7th and 10th h (P < 0.00005). The expected fall in mean PRL levels which lasted for 4 h (P < 0.00001) was followed by a significant rebound above basal levels after the 6th h (P < 0.00001). There was no significant change in mean FSH levels. Following the administration of CB-154 (2.5 mg, orally) to 6 women with hyperprolactinemic amenorrhea, there was also a significant fall in LH levels (P < 0.00001) and in FSH levels (P < 0.00001) from 5 h until the study ended at 10 h. The anticipated PRL suppression was also observed and persisted for th...
Sacred Tobacco Use in Ojibwe Communities

A sacred relationship exists between tobacco and American Indian ceremonial activities and beliefs. This ancient connection continues to play an important role in American Indian communities including the Anishinabe (Ojibwe). Six Ojibwe traditional healers and spiritual leaders described the sacred use of tobacco during interviews. The research provides information on key-informant smoking behaviors, influence of tobacco-industry media, and 3 essential themes: the origin of sacred traditional tobacco; contemporary use and abuse of tobacco; and cultural strengths and meaning of tobacco in Anishinabe (Ojibwe) communities. Health professionals must recognize, be amenable to learn, and understand that sacred tobacco use and smoking commercial cigarette tobacco have separate purposes and functions. The challenge for health professionals, including nurses, is to retain the cultural use and value of tobacco while addressing the abuse and chronic effects of cigarette smoking when providing health care to American Indian clients.
Future perspectives on the treatment issues associated with cancer and aging.

For many older individuals, the decision to undergo treatment for cancer is viewed as a tradeoff between loss of function and extension of life: a decision that often is complicated by concomitant issues such as comorbid medical conditions, frailty, functional declines, family dynamics, and social and psychological issues. This poses several challenges and affords opportunities for healthcare professionals conducting research with older cancer patients who are undergoing treatment. The current article presents a summary of a roundtable discussion of the issues that face older individuals with cancer during the treatment phase of a cancer diagnosis. The issues covered include the importance of conducting thorough assessments, addressing methodological issues, differentiating age from cohort issues, reducing patient and healthcare provider misperceptions, and taking a multidisciplinary approach to care. To address the aforementioned issues, future research directions in the treatment phase of the cancer continuum should include encouraging transdisciplinary work; increasing age-related, behaviorally focused research that also is sensitive to differentiating age and cohort effects; understanding the impact of comorbidity; and separating out the influences of age, comorbidity, and performance status. Cancer 2008;113(12 suppl):3512–18. © 2008 American Cancer Society.
Alterations of the immune system in thymic malignancies.

Normal thymic architecture is essential for the proper development of T-lymphocytes. Immature T-cell progenitors enter the thymus where through interactions with cortical and medullary thymic epithelial cells (TECs) they undergo positive and negative selection and become competent cells that do not react with self-antigens. This process requires normal thymic architecture, expression of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II, and normal expression of the autoimmune regulator (AIRE) gene. Thymomas are rare neoplasms of the TECs that often generate lymphocytes that mature into CD4+ and CD8+ T-lymphocytes. However, several abnormalities have been described in thymomas that may affect normal T-cell development: the tumor architecture is distorted, neoplastics expresses less MHC class II, most thymomas do not express AIRE, and production of T-regulator cells is decreased. Thymomas are associated with a variety of autoimmune disorders often linked to T–cell-mediated autoimmunity. Myasthenia gravis, the most common autoimmune disorder associated with thymoma patients, is present in 30% of patients with thymoma. Several theories attempt to explain the association of immune disorders with thymomas. These different theories are based on failure of positive and negative selection of T-lymphocytes and on autoimmunizing mechanisms in an AIRE-poor environment in the thymus. The finding that immunosurveillance against cancer may be impaired before the diagnosis of thymoma may challenge current theories and suggest a more complex defect in T-lymphocyte maturation. It is likely that a combination of mechanisms is responsible for immune disorders in patients with thymoma. More investigation is needed to clarify the basic mechanisms responsible for immune disorders in patients with thymoma.
Determinants of the damage cost and injury severity of ferry vessel accidents

This study investigates determinants of the property damage cost and injury severity of ferry vessel accidents. Detailed data of individual ferry vessel accidents for the 11-year timeperiod 1991–2001 that were investigated by the U.S. Coast Guard are used to estimate ferry-vessel accident property damage cost and injury severity equations. Tobit regression is used to estimate the former equation and the ordered probit model is used to estimate the latter. Property damage costs include damage costs to the vessel itself, its cargo and contents, and other-property damage (e.g., damage to pier structures and waterfront facilities). Injury severity for a ferry vessel accident is measured as an ordinal variable — no injuries, non-fatal injuries and fatal injuries. Damage cost and injury severity of individual ferry vessel accidents are expressed as functions of the type of vessel accident, vessel characteristics, vessel operation phase, weather/visibility conditions, type of waterway, type of vessel propulsion, type of vessel hull construction and cause of vessel accident. The property damage estimation results suggest that allision, collision and fire ferry vessel accidents incur more vessel property damage cost per vessel gross ton than other types of accidents. The injury severity estimation results suggest that injury severity is greater when the ferry vessel accident is caused by human error as opposed to vessel and environmental factors.
USE OF QUANTITATIVE SEROLOGY IN PREDICTING THE GENOTYPIC RELATIONSHIPS OF OAT CULTIVARS

Quantitative serological techniques were used to estimate the genotype relationships of six oat (Avena sativa L.) cultivars to a seventh. Reciprocal comparisons were made in which leaf, pollen, whole grain, and scutellum antigens were used. The reciprocal comparisons did not estimate genotypic relationships in the same order, but produced reciprocal results, i.e., when one method estimated lower relationships the other estimated higher, often above 100%. The reciprocal results were attributed to antigens common to each cultivar and these antigens masked and confounded the qualitative differences needed to estimate genotypic relationships. The different responses of common and qualitative antigens in the reciprocal comparisons made possible an analysis method that removed much of the masking effect of common antigen differences. In these tests, whole grain and embryo mean serological relationships agree well with best genetic estimates of genotypic relationships.
A Partial Snake for the AGS

Based on snake experiments at the Indiana University Cyclotron Facility and computer simulations at Brookhaven National Laboratory, as well as the conclusions of a BNL mini-workshop, we feel that a partial Siberian snake is a practical device for the AGS. It is anticipated that such a device could reduce the polarized beam tune-up time from 2-3 weeks to 2–3 days.
Convective heat transfer response to height differences in an array of block-like electronic components

Etude experimentale du refroidissement par convection de dispositifs electroniques constitues de differents modules. Influence de modules de hauteurs differentes ou d'espacements entre les modules
A Comprehensive Toolkit of Plant Cell Wall Glycan-Directed Monoclonal Antibodies

A collection of 130 new plant cell wall glycan-directed monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) was generated with the aim of facilitating in-depth analysis of cell wall glycans. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay-based screen against a diverse panel of 54 plant polysaccharides was used to characterize the binding patterns of these new mAbs, together with 50 other previously generated mAbs, against plant cell wall glycans. Hierarchical clustering analysis was used to group these mAbs based on the polysaccharide recognition patterns observed. The mAb groupings in the resulting cladogram were further verified by immunolocalization studies in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) stems. The mAbs could be resolved into 19 clades of antibodies that recognize distinct epitopes present on all major classes of plant cell wall glycans, including arabinogalactans (both protein- and polysaccharide-linked), pectins (homogalacturonan, rhamnogalacturonan I), xyloglucans, xylans, mannans, and glucans. In most cases, multiple subclades of antibodies were observed to bind to each glycan class, suggesting that the mAbs in these subgroups recognize distinct epitopes present on the cell wall glycans. The epitopes recognized by many of the mAbs in the toolkit, particularly those recognizing arabinose- and/or galactose-containing structures, are present on more than one glycan class, consistent with the known structural diversity and complexity of plant cell wall glycans. Thus, these cell wall glycan-directed mAbs should be viewed and utilized as epitope-specific, rather than polymer-specific, probes. The current world-wide toolkit of approximately 180 glycan-directed antibodies from various laboratories provides a large and diverse set of probes for studies of plant cell wall structure, function, dynamics, and biosynthesis.
Sintering and Deformation of Nanocrystalline Ceramics

Nanocrystalline ceramics have been produced by the method of inert gas condensation of ultra-small particles and in situ consolidation. Sintering characteristics and microstructural parameter such as grain size, porosity and pore size distributions have been investigated by a variety of techniques, including: X-ray diffraction, gravimetry, nitrogen adsorption, scanning electron microscopy and small angle neutron scattering. In pure TiO2, the sintering temperatures are drastically lowered compared to conventional ceramics, however, extensive grain growth occurs before full densification is achieved. High density, nanocrystalline ceramics can be prepared by pressure assisted sintering, doping and additions of second phases. High temperature microhardness and creep deformation in compression were measured and it was found that creep processes occur at lower temperatures than in ceramics with larger grain sizes. Nanocrystalline TiO2 with densities > 99 % can be deformed plastically without fracture at temperatures below half the melting point. The total strains exceed 0.6 at strain rates as high as 10−3 s−1. The stress exponent of the strain rate, n, is approximately 3 and the grain size dependence is G-q with q in the range of 1 – 1.5. It is concluded that the creep deformation occurs by an interface reaction controlled mechanism.
Implications of cleaning gestational age data

Gestational age is an important birth characteristic examined in epidemiological studies. Though there are well-documented problems with the reporting of gestational age on birth certificates, schemes for addressing this issue have not been systematically evaluated. With singleton births from the 1995-97 US linked birth/infant death files, we compared a handful of perinatal outcome estimates derived from the resulting analytical files using two published methods often used to manage inconsistent gestational age data. The first method (Alexander et al., 1996), provides cut-points for implausible birthweight-gestational age combinations and excludes infants with birthweights outside a plausible range. The second (Zhang and Bowes, 1995), provides different cut-points for implausible birthweight-gestational age combinations and then substitutes the clinical gestational age estimate for the original value, if available, reducing the number of births at the affected gestational age, but excluding fewer births from the resulting analytical files. The Alexander method excluded 0.4 of our study population and the Zhang method reassigned and excluded 1.0 and 0.2, respectively; however, over 20 of birth records with gestational age 28-30 weeks were modified by either method. Using either method, more high-risk than low-risk and more black than white births were excluded. These differential exclusions affected corresponding perinatal outcome estimates and relative risks between maternal risk groups for preterm delivery, gestation-specific infant mortality and birthweight; overall infant mortality rates were not affected. Systematic comparisons between results of different studies will need to consider the data modifications used, the populations affected, and the outcomes assessed when drawing conclusions.
Hibernation induces oxidative stress and activation of NK-kappaB in ground squirrel intestine.

Dramatic changes in blood flow occur during torpor-arousal cycles in mammalian hibernators that could increase the risk of oxidative stress to sensitive tissues. We used 13-lined ground squirrels (Spermophilus tridecemlineatus) to determine the effect of hibernation on lipid peroxidation and expression of stress-activated signaling pathways in the intestine, a tissue highly susceptible to ischemia-reperfusion injury. Compared with summer-active squirrels, levels of the mitochondrial stress protein GRP75 were consistently higher in intestinal mucosa of hibernators in each of five hibernation states (entrance, short-bout torpid, long-bout torpid, arousal and interbout euthermia). The redox-sensitive transcription factor, nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB), was strongly activated in each hibernation state compared with summer squirrels except for squirrels during an arousal from torpor. In contrast, NF-κB activation in brown adipose tissue (BAT) was low in active and hibernating squirrels regardless of season. Levels of conjugated dienes (products of lipid peroxidation) were higher in intestine of hibernators entering torpor and early in a torpor bout compared with summer squirrels. Conjugated diene levels were also higher in short-bout torpid vs arousing squirrels. The results suggest that the intestinal mucosa is vulnerable to oxidative stress during the hibernation season and in response may activate cellular defense pathways that help minimize severe oxidative damage induced by torpor-arousal cycles.
Beyond bone mineral density: can existing clinical risk assessment instruments identify women at increased risk of osteoporosis?

Wehren LE, Siris ES (University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD; and Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY) Beyond bone mineral density: can existing clinical risk assessment instruments identify women at increased risk of osteoporosis? (Review), J Intern Med 2004; 256: 375-380. Objective. Although osteoporosis and fragility fracture are common amongst postmenopausal women, the extent of risk varies, and measurement of bone mineral density (BMD) is the standard tool used to diagnose and assess fracture risk. Rates of diagnosis remain relatively low, and several groups have developed instruments to help identify individuals who would most benefit from BMD testing. In this paper, we review and compare the performance of these instruments to identify those most useful in the primary care setting. Design. Review of screening instruments comprised osteoporosis clinical risk factors and comparison of the sensitivity and specificity of these algorithms. Results. Validated instruments have varying complexity, but similar sensitivity and specificity for identifying individuals who are likely to have low BMD. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve ranges from 0.75 (SOFSURF) to 0.81 (SCORE). The simplest of the instruments (OST) uses only age and weight and has an AUC of 0.79. Conclusions. The Osteoporosis Self-assessment Tool, the simplest of the instruments, performs as well as more complex tools and, because of its simplicity, may be the most useful means for the busy clinician to identify postmenopausal women who would most benefit from BMD testing.
Compliance with prevention practices and their association with central line-associated bloodstream infections in neonatal intensive care units.

Background Bundles and checklists have been shown to decrease the rates of central line–associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs), but implementation of these practices and association with CLABSI rates have not been described nationally. We describe implementation and levels of compliance with preventive practices in a sample of US neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) and assess their association with CLABSI rates. Methods An online survey assessing infection prevention practices was sent to hospitals participating in National Healthcare Safety Network CLABSI surveillance in October 2011. Participating hospitals permitted access to their NICU CLABSI rates. Multivariable regressions were used to test the association between compliance with NICU-specific CLABSI prevention practices and corresponding CLABSI rates. Results Overall, 190 level II/III and level III NICUs participated. The majority of NICUs had written policies (84%-93%) and monitored compliance with bundles and checklists (88%-91%). Reporting ≥95% compliance for any of the practices ranged from 50%-63%. Reporting of ≥95% compliance with insertion checklist and assessment of daily line necessity were significantly associated with lower CLABSI rates ( P Conclusions Most of the NICUs in this national sample have instituted CLABSI prevention policies and monitor compliance, although reporting compliance ≥95% was suboptimal. Reporting ≥95% compliance with select CLABSI prevention practices was associated with lower CLABSI rates. Future studies should focus on identifying and improving compliance with effective CLABSI prevention practices in neonates.
Ultrafast laser fabrication of submicrometer pores in borosilicate glass

We demonstrate rapid fabrication of submicrometer-diameter pores in borosilicate glass using femtosecond laser machining and subsequent wet-etch techniques. This approach allows direct and repeatable fabrication of high-quality pores with diameters of 400-800 nm. Such small pores coupled with the desirable electrical and chemical properties of glass enable sensitive resistive-pulse analysis to determine the size and concentration of macromolecules and nanoparticles. Plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition allows further reduction of pore diameters to below 300 nm.
Bacterial Cell Wall Products Increase Monocyte HLA-DR and ICAM-1 without Affecting Lymphocyte CD18 Expression

Abstract Bacterial cell wall products such as lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and muramyl dipeptide (MDP) have the capacity to enhance immune responses to antigens. The expression of surface class II major histocompatibility antigens and the costimulatory receptors CD18 and CD54/ICAM-1 (intercellular adhesion molecule) was used to evaluate the comparative influence of these immunostimulators. On monocytes, both LPS and MDP increased the expression of human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DR (maximal at 6 hr), CD18 (maximal at 1–3 hr), and ICAM-1 (maximal at 18–24 hr for LPS and 12 hr for MDP) without increasing the production of superoxide. MDP-induced ICAM-1 expression on monocytes returned to baseline values after 12 hr. On lymphocytes, only LPS increased ICAM-1 (after 18 hr) without affecting CD18, and a differential analysis demonstrated a generalized ICAM-1 upregulation in lymphocyte subsets after 18 hr: the most pronounced effect was measured in natural killer cells, followed by CD8 + T cells, B cells, and CD4 + T cells. MDP did not alter ICAM-1 or CD18 expression on lymphocytes. These similar but smaller effects of MDP may, in part, explain the lesser toxicity of MDP when compared to LPS.
Potential dependent adhesion forces on bare and underpotential deposition modified electrode surfaces

Adhesion force measurements are used to determine the potential dependence of the force of adhesion between a Si3N4 cantilever and a Au(111) surface modified by the underpotential deposition (upd) of Bi or Cu in acid solution or by oxide formation. The measured work of adhesion is near zero for most of the potential region examined in Bi upd but rises after the formation of a full Bi monolayer. The work of adhesion is high at positive potentials for Cu upd but then decreases as the Cu partial and full monolayers are formed. The work of adhesion is low in the oxide region on Au(111) but rises following the sulfate disordering transition at 1.1 V vs NHE. These results are interpreted in terms of the degree of solvent order on the electrode surface.
Relative molecular mass determination of a major, highest relative molecular mass extracellular amelogenin of developing bovine enamel.

Abstract Proteins of developing bovine enamel were fractionated by molecular sieving and ion-exchange chromatography. The major fraction corresponding to the highest M r amelogenin of M r ~26000–30000 was isolated and its M r determined by SDS-PAGE, molecular sieving on G-100 resin and high performance liquid chromatography and by sedimentation-equilibrium ultracentrifugation, the latter three procedures in guanidine hydrochloride. SDS-PAGE and HPLC molecular sieving, employing commonly used M r standards, gave M r values of ~22000–26000. SDS-PAGE and HPLC molecular sieving, using proline-rich CNBr peptides of collagen as standards, and sedimentation-equilibrium ultracentrifugation, gave M r values of ~15000–18000 and ~17385, respectively. These latter values correspond well with those reported earlier and with the M r of the major amelogenin computed from recent amino acid sequence data (~19000). It is concluded that the recently described, highest M r amelogenin of M r = 26000–30000 is not a new component but is identical to the proline-rich components having relative molecular masses ranging from 15000 to 18000 described much earlier by several groups of workers.
Perceptions of the Effectiveness of Online Instruction in Terms of the Seven Principles of Effective Undergraduate Education

This study investigated the perceived effectiveness of online instructional delivery among full-faculty experienced teaching online as well as in traditional classroom environments and variables of...
Daily Variation of Corticosterone and Thyroid Hormones in Broiler Cockerels

Abstract An experiment was conducted to moniter fluctuations in the major adrenal steroid, corticosterone (B), and two iodinated thyroid hormones, triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4), over the course of a 24-hr day in broiler cockerels. A circadian variation was observed in B concentrations with the highest found at 0130 hr (23 hr light: 1hr darkness; photophase beginning at 0100 hr). No circadian variation was observed for either T3 or T4.
Microscopic observation of intracellular ice formation in unfertilized mouse ova as a function of cooling rate

Abstract A physical-chemical analysis of water loss from cells at subzero temperatures had shown that the likelihood of intracellular ice formation increased with increasing cooling rate (22). We have now used a modified version of a unique conductioncooled cryomicroscope stage (8) to observe the freezing of unfertilized mouse ova suspended in dimethyl sulfoxide. Survival measurements showed that the respective survivals of ova were about 65, 56, and 0% when they were cooled at rates of 0.2 to 1.5, 2.5, and 5.4 °C/min. Direct microscopic observation of mouse ova during freezing showed that the respective fractions of cells that froze intracellularly were 13, 72, and 100% when they were cooled at rates of 1.3, 2.9, and 4.8 °C/min or faster. These values agree with those predicted from the physical-chemical analysis for cells the size of mouse ova. The microscopic observations have also shown that intracellular freezing generally occurred at about −40 to −45 °C. We had previously observed that mouse embryos must be cooled slowly to −50 °C or below if they are to survive subsequent rapid cooling to −196 °C. The observation of intracellular ice formation at −45 °C supports the interpretation that at temperatures above −50 °C the embryos still contain water capable of freezing intracellularly.
Sampling Foods for Mycotoxins

It is difficult to obtain precise and accurate estimates of the true mycotoxin concentration of a bulk lot when using a mycotoxin-sampling plan that measures the concentration in only a small portion of the bulk lot. A mycotoxin-sampling plan is defined by a mycotoxin test procedure and a defined accept/reject limit. A mycotoxin test procedure is a complicated process and generally consists of several steps: (1) a sample of a given size is taken from the lot, (2) the sample is ground (comminuted) in a mill to reduce its particle size, (3) a subsample is removed from the comminuted sample, and (4) the mycotoxin is extracted from the comminuted subsample and quantified. Even when using accepted test procedures, there is uncertainty associated with each step of the mycotoxin test procedure. Because of this variability, the true mycotoxin concentration in the lot cannot be determined with 100% certainty by measuring the mycotoxin concentration in a sample taken from the lot. The variability for each step of the mycotoxin test procedure, as measured by the variance statistic, is shown to increase with mycotoxin concentration. Sampling is usually the largest source of variability associated with the mycotoxin test procedure. Sampling variability is large because a small percentage of kernels are contaminated and the level of contamination on a single seed can be very large. Methods to reduce sampling, sample preparation and analytical variability are discussed.
An examination of practice effects in recognition.

A study of practice effects in recognition performance is reported. In each of two experiments, different conditions of training were followed by a critical final test. In Experiment I, a yes-no procedure was used on the critical test. During the training phase, some subjects were tested by the same method, either with or without item-by-item feedback, whereas others were given forced-choice tests. No significant changes in recognition accuracy were observed, either during the training trials or on the final test. However, feedback and experience with forced­ choice tests both served to increase the bias toward positive responding. In Experiment 2, the forced-choice procedure was used on the critical final test. Either foreed-choice tests or yes-no tests were given on the training lists. Again, there were no significant changes in performance. The absence of practice effects is attributed to the difficulty of identifying and implementing test-appropriate strategies. This study addressed two related questions: (1) Does subjects' ability to discriminate between targets and dis­ tractors on recognition tests change significantly as a function of practice? (2) Can response biases, if not the accuracy of recognition, be brought under experimental control by systematic manipulations of the conditions of training? The literature on learning to learn (LTL) provides ample documentation of practice gains in the per­ formance of tasks requiring recall of the target items (ef. Postman, 1971). While LTL in recognition has not been investigated extensively, little or no change in accuracy over successive study-test cycles was found in several experiments, both for categorized lists (Carey & Lockhart, 1973; Connor, 1977; Jacoby, 1973) and for lists of unrelated words (Connor, 1977; McCormack & Swenson, 1972). Divergent effects of practice on per­ formance may represent a potentially important differ­ ence between recall and recognition. The reasons for such a difference invite careful consideration. One possible explanation is that encoding and retrieval operations conducive to gains on subsequent tests can be more readily identified during the performance of recall tasks than during the performance of recognition tasks. For example, attention to the development of higher order units can lead to substantial increases in free recall (Mayhew, 1967). More generally, subjects can choose and practice the procedures they fmd useful for recall. The opportunities to do so with respect to recognition are likely to be much more limited. To be