cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Remote Order Entry Services: Providing 24-Hour Pharmaceutical Care for Small to Medium Sized Hospitals

Purpose: In the last few years, The Joint Commission (TJC) has strongly recommended that hospitals provide 24-hour pharmacy services. Many small to medium sized hospitals have insufficient workload and/or lack the financial resources to justify 24-hour pharmacy services. When a pharmacy does not provide 24-hour pharmacy services, it must provide a retrospective review of medication orders. Carolinas Healthcare System (CHS) faced the challenge of economically providing 24-hour pharmaceutical care in smaller to medium size hospitals by developing a remote order entry service (ROES).Summary: This article describes the process of implementing an ROES and the technology that is involved, including physician order transmittal, pharmacy information systems, communication between facilities, distribution of pharmaceuticals, and clinical pharmacy services. The financial and pharmaceutical service benefits are illustrated.Conclusion: ROES has proven to be an effective method that allows small to medium sized hospit...
Early Proterozoic metasediments from north-central Colorado: Metamorphism, provenance, and tectonic setting

Early Proterozoic metasediments from the Big Thompson Canyon area in north-central Colorado increase in metamorphic grade from the biotite zone to the sillimanite zone, representing a low-pressure facies series that probably developed in response to a steep geotherm over a thermal high. High-grade rocks are enriched in K 2 O, Al 2 O 3 , Fe 2 O 3 , MgO, TiO 2 , Cr, Sc, Cs, Rb, Ba, and light REE and are depleted in SiO 2 , CaO, and Zr relative to low-grade rocks. These differences chiefly reflect differences in the original sandstone/shale ratio. Detrital grains in medium and coarse metasediments are quartz, quartzite, and feldspar, and they suggest a recycled orogen provenance in which granitic rocks and quartzites dominate in the source. The abundance of shale in the original succession also attests to the importance of granite in the source. Major- and trace-element contents of the rocks constrain the input of mafic to dacitic detritus to less than a few percent. REE patterns in all rocks are similar to Phanerozoic shales and cratonic sandstones. The Big Thompson Canyon metasediments may have been derived from an uplifted collisional orogen in southern Wyoming in which unroofed Proterozoic granitic rocks and quartzites of the Snowy Pass Supergroup served as the principal sources.
Spirituality in Advertising: A New Theoretical Approach

Current directions in advertising practice point to the use of more spiritual themes in advertising. Yet the concept of spirituality has not received enough attention in advertising research. We argue that spirituality is a crucial dimension in the human experience with theoretical implications for the field of advertising. In this paper, we first define and translate spirituality based on holistic and eclectic approaches so it is suitable for research in advertising. We propose a new theoretical framework—The Spirituality in Advertising Framework (SAF), which delineates 16 core ideas that are characteristics of spiritual people and spiritual messages—for use as a platform for future research of spirituality and advertising. Second, we offer a qualitative analysis of television ads that illustrates how the SAF can be used to interpret spirituality in advertising messages. Finally, we discuss the role of spirituality in advertising research while suggesting an agenda for future exploration.
Current trends on applications of PMUs in distribution systems

Distribution systems are evolving at a high pace largely due to the proliferation of DER, the growing utilization of DA, AMI, DMS, and the expected propagation of PEVs. This evolution is also leading to new challenges, for instance large penetration of intermittent DG can lead to noticeable impacts on distribution feeders. The coordinated implementation of Smart Grid technologies is called upon to handle these challenges. This paper explores the contribution that PMUs can provide to handling these challenges by examining recent research results on applications of synchrophasors in distribution systems. This review includes descriptions of representative works in a wide range of applications designed for smart distribution feeders, and some developments originally proposed for transmission level, but with equivalent applicability to distribution systems.
WIC female parents' behavior and attitudes toward their children's food intake — Relationship to children's relative weight

Abstract This study measured female parents' self-reported behavior and attitudes toward selected parent-child food intake interactions, and compared these behaviors and attitudes between female parents of normal weight and obese children. Questionnaires were completed by predominantly white female parents of 130 normal weight and 48 obese three- and four-year old children enrolled in four Iowa WIC programs. Data collected included descriptive characteristics, the female parent's self-reported behavior regarding control of the child's food behavior, and attitudes toward both satisfaction with the child's food behavior and the degree to which she felt her food behavior influenced that of her child. Several significant differences between the two groups were found. Female parents of obese children tended to exercise less control over and to be more dissatisfied with the type of foods their children ate. In addition, these female parents seemed more dissatisfied with the amount of food their children consumed between meals. It appeared that obese children were encouraged less often to eat all the food on their plate and were allowed less often to eat as much food as they would like. Normal weight children tended to be offered sweets only after eating a good meal more often than obese children. Female parents of normal weight children appeared more likely than those of obese children to feel their children played too much while eating.
A large-scale distributed decision-making procedure for a single-machine scheduling problem

This paper presents a distributed scheduling procedure for a large-scale single-machine problem with precedence constraints, and identifies phenomena using large-scale distributed decision-making for a decomposable and distributed situation. The approach proposed exhibits efficient computational performance over a large-sized work load (23,000 jobs and 2,209,536 precedence constraints) in a distributed computing environment. We highlight three findings: (1) the communication burden originating from the large-scale problem can lead to performance loss while distributed agents collaborate to solve the problem, but after a threshold the computational gain by distribution offsets the loss; (2) when the problem size is sufficiently large, the real computation gain outperforms the expected gain by the number of agents (super-linear effect); and (3) when the number of precedence constraints of each agent differs, the slowest agent processing the largest number of precedence constraints restrains the computationa...
The flow of granular materials in moving beds

Abstract A series of studies was made to provide practical information necessary to design moving bed equipment. Experiments consist of observations on the flow pattern and measurement of the stress in the bed. The results indicate the following facts: (1) Granular materials flowing in the centre part of a straight column flow down as if stuck together and they do not break unless the pressure exceeds their static load-carrying capacity. (2) The boundary zone at the wall extends for 4–8 times the particle size, and abrasion of material occurs in this zone. (3) The height above the bottom where the uniform flow patterns begin to break down due to the orifice is correlated for two-dimensional flow. The height is very small when the material is choke-fed into a rotating table.
Pulsed electron spin resonance—Applications to photoionization processes

Abstract Several new aspects of pulsed electron spin resonance methods are described with emphasis on detection of weak hyperfine interactions of a paramagnetic species to give environmental information that is not normally possible with continuous wave methods. The electron spin echo modulation technique is used primarily to measure such weak hyperfine interactions. It is shown that variable pulse sequence repetition rates can be used to separate echo responses from overlapping radicals with different relaxation times in frozen vesicle systems in which photoionization has occured. Pulsed light excitation with electron spin resonance detection has been used to study transient triplet states in frozen vesicles. The external heavy atom affect induced by adding sodium iodide has been shown to be a control method to affect the net photoionization efficiency in frozen vesicle systems. Electron spin echo modulation is also used to monitor location control of an electron donor or acceptor at an interface by added alkyl chains.
Determination of dissociation constants and ligand specificity of detergent solubilized surface membrane immunoglobulin a from MOPC-315

Surface membrane immunoglobulin from MOPC-315 plasmacytoma cells (smM315) was isolated by nonionic detergent lysis of radioiodinated cells and affinity chromatography on Dnp-aminohexyl-Sepharose 4B. Verification of the solubilized molecule as an integral membrane protein, distinct from secreted MOPC-315 IgA (M315) was accomplished by NaDodSO4-PAGE, charge-shift electrophoresis and molecular sieve gel filtration with NP-40 and deoxycholate. smM315 was compared to reduced and alkylated monomeric secreted immunoglobulins from MOPC-315, MOPC-460, and XRPC-25 by quantitative affinity chromatography (QAC) using two differently substituted Dnp-aminohexyl-Sepharose 4B resins. Unique patterns of cross-reactivity of all secreted myeloma proteins were independently established with a competitive hapten inhibition assay using 125I-Dnp26BSA as the precipitating probe. After derivation with dinitrobenzylsulfonate, Dnp-aminohexyl-Sepharose 4B was modified with succinic anhydride which, with the inclusion of 0.03% Doc in a PBS and 0.1% NP-40 buffer, prevented nonhapten specific protein-matrix interactions during QAC. Dissociation constants determined by QAC for three ligands, (dinitrophenyl-glycine, trinitrophenyl-amino-caproate and tetramethylrhodamine) were essentially the same for smM315 and M315. Both of the other nitrophenyl binding IgA myelomas had distinct and significant differences in dissociation constants. Thus, for a differentiated antibody secreting cell which has undergone a heavy chain class switch, such as MOPC-315, the cell surface immunoglobulin has an identical ligand binding active-site as the secreted immunoglobulin.
Screening for 2n female gametophytes, female fertility, and 2x × 4x crossability in potatoes (Solanum spp.)

Knowledge concerning potato (Solanum spp.) 4x × 2x crossability and particularly 2n pollen greatly exceeds that concerning 2x × 4x crossability and 2n female gametophytes. As a consequence, novel breeding schemes employing sexual polyploidization via 2n pollen have evolved to a sophisticated level, whereas those involving 2n female gametophytes remain nonexistant or proceed empirically. The fundamental cause for the dearth of genetic and breeding knowledge of 2n female gametophytes is that adequate techniques to screen for 2n female gametophytes have been lacking. We recently developed a new cytological procedure, hemalum-methyl salicylate stain-clearing, that lends itself to cytology ofSolanum ovules. Herein, we report on the use and effectiveness of the technique to screen for 2n female gametophytes. We established that visual classification of central cell nuclear and/or nucleolar sizes corresponded well with subsequently measured sizes. Visual classifications provided an indication of whether or not a clone produced 2n female gametophytes, and yielded an estimate of the 2n female gametophyte frequency. An unexpected finding was that female sterility was prevalent in the clones used, and that it seemed to vary significantly with genotype. We rationalize that female sterility will be found to be very prevalent in other Solanums as well. Trials indicated that samples ofca. 100 ovules could be prepared, classified as In or 2n, and recorded at an average rate of about 4 ovules per minute. The stain-clearing technique offers several advantages over the traditional method of using multiple 2x × 4x testcrosses to determine 2x × 4x crossability and the relative frequency of 2n female gametophytes. To some extent, the technique renders the female reproductive system as amenable to analysis as is the male reproductive system.
Myofibroblasts and smooth muscle cells in human myocardial scars: Possible origins and inductive factors.

Necrotic myocardial lesions, including myocardial infarcts, heal by formation of scar tissue, and it is commonly thought that fibroblasts are the principal cells producing and maintaining the scar tissue matrix. In contrast to this notion, our study of old myocardial scars in 11 human hearts revealed that myofibroblasts (MFBs) and nonvascular smooth muscle cells (SMCs) were the dominant cell types. Both contractile cell types stained positively with antibody to α-smooth muscle actin and were identified ultrastructurally by the presence of nonsarcomeric myofibrillar elements. They were distinguished from each other by basal lamina, which invested the SMCs but not the MFBs. Neither cell type was identified in the myocardium of 3 normal human hearts, where fibroblasts were the normal interstitial cells. In earlier studies, we made similar observations in rat heart scars. The presence of MFBs and SMCs in myocardial scar tissue but not in normal myocardium raises questions about their origins, lineage relationships, inductive mechanisms, and functions. The results of our studies indicated that the MFB and SMC phenotypes were induced and maintained by the cyclical physical forces associated with myocardial contractions; that fibroblasts and MFBs seemed to be phenotypic modulations of the same cell type in a physical environment favoring expression of the MFB form; that the nonvascular SMCs were not derived from MFBs but may have come from cells located in vessel walls; and that the contractile cells in scar tissue might resist and counteract the stretching forces induced by myocardial contractions.
Spinal anaesthesia for outpatient surgery

Spinal anaesthesia in the outpatient is characterized by rapid onset and offset, easy administration, minimal expense, and minimal side effects or complications. Spinal anaesthesia offers advantages for outpatient lower extremity, perineal, and many abdominal and gynaecological procedures. Development of small-gauge, pencil-point needles are responsible for the success of outpatient spinal anaesthesia with acceptable rates (0-2%) of postdural puncture headache (PDPH). Compared with peripheral nerve blocks, spinal anaesthesia has a more predictable offset. There are many possible choices of local anaesthetics for outpatient spinal anaesthesia. These include lidocaine, prilocaine, mepivacaine and small doses of bupivacaine. Meperidine has local anaesthetic properties in addition to its opiate properties. It has been used as the sole intrathecal agent for spinal anaesthesia but has no real advantages over lidocaine. Mepivacaine and lidocaine have each been associated with transient neurological symptoms (TNS) following intrathecal administration. This has stimulated development of alternative agents, including combinations of local anaesthetics and opioids. Lidocaine remains the most useful agent for outpatient spinal anaesthesia. For longer procedures, mepivacaine is an excellent spinal anaesthetic agent. Attention to technique, reduction of dose and addition of fentanyl to lidocaine result in effective spinal anaesthesia with rapid recovery and a low incidence of significant side effects or complications.
Protein intake and calcium absorption – Potential role of the calcium sensor receptor

Abstract Dietary protein induces calcium excretion but the source of this calcium is unclear. Evidence from short-term studies indicates that protein promotes bone resorption, but many epidemiologic studies do not corroborate this. Evidence is also mixed on whether protein promotes calcium absorption. Studies in animal models suggest that the aromatic amino acid components of protein, but not the branched-chain amino acids, may activate calcium sensor receptors in the gut and increase gastric acid production. The latter could enhance calcium absorption. We compared the impact of aromatic and branched-chain amino acids on changes in calcium excretion and on an index of calcium absorption in 30 healthy older men and women. A 5-fold increase in aromatic amino acid intake induced a greater increase in calcium excretion, calcium absorption, and serum IGF-1 than did a similar increase in branched-chain amino acids. These findings are consistent with the concept that the calcium sensor receptor mediates selected effects of dietary protein on calcium metabolism.
Apicoplast translation, transcription and genome replication: targets for antimalarial antibiotics

Several antibiotics possess antimalarial properties, although the mechanisms by which they kill malaria parasites have been poorly understood. Recent data suggest that the target for multiple antimalarial antibiotics is the apicoplast, a chloroplast-like organelle of uncertain function. Translation inhibitors (such as tetracyclines, clindamycin and macrolides) and gyrase inhibitors (such as ciprofloxacin) cause modest antimalarial effects initially but are much more potent against the progeny of treated parasites. These progeny inherit nonfunctional apicoplasts, suggesting that blocking production of apicoplast proteins causes the 'delayed-death effect'. Interestingly, the antibiotics thiostrepton and rifampin are fast acting and might target additional processes outside the apicoplast.
The Potentially Precarious Condition Of Tenure and Academic Freedom

Abstract Contemporary scholars acknowledge a powerful connection between academic tenure and freedom of speech. This study examines whether sufficient safeguards are in place to protect tenure and its concomitant atmosphere of free inquiry, expression, and speech. More specifically, the analysis considers whether the AAUP, institutional governance, and the federal court system offer protection. Particular attention is given to judicial cases in which tenured faculty have been dismissed for cause. The analysis concludes that a lack of clearly-defined protection leaves the tenure system and academic freedom in a potentially precarious condition.
An Examination of Wind Profiler Signal Processing Algorithms

Abstract A numerical model to simulate radar data is used for testing various estimators of the Doppler shift in Doppler radar echoes. The estimators are the pulse pair and poly-pulse pair algorithms in the correlation domain, a least-squares fitting to the spectral peak of the power spectra, and direct calculations of the moments from periodograms in the spectral domain. Two averaging schemes (a consensus average and a median filter) are also examined for data with poor signal-to-noise ratios. The data processing method used in Doppler radar wind profilers, which operate over a very wide range of signal to noise ratios, is examined in detail. It is shown that the direct moment calculation combined with a consensus averaging technique has the best overall performance for accuracy and the ability to use data with a very low signal-to-noise ratio.
The inhalation of 1-(3',4'-dihydroxyphenyl)-2-isopropylaminoethanol (norisodrine sulfate dust).

Summary 1.Twenty-four patients with bronchial asthma were treated by the inhalation of Norisodrine dust. 2.Nineteen responded satisfactorily and were completely under control with this form of therapy. Four showed a good response whereas one patient was not influenced at all. 3.Sixteen patients were controlled by the inhalation of the Norisodrine dust only, eight required Norisodrine plus aminophylline and iodides, and/or an antihistaminic. 4.The inhalation of penicillin dust in asthmatic patients with an associated bronchitis reduced the requirements of Norisodrine. 5.It would appear that the inhalation of Norisodrine sulfate as a dust is a safe procedure since no serious side-reactions were noted. Palpitation and/or dizziness were noted only in four of thirty subjects. These effects were transitory and disappeared within ten minutes. 6.There has been no diminution in its effect with the continued use of this drug. 7.The inhalation of Norisodrine as a dust permits the use of a device which is simple to use, may be carried at all times, and is readily available for administration in cases of impending asthmatic paroxysms.
Design and Operation of a tunable MeV-level Compton-scattering-based γ-ray source

A monoenergetic gamma-ray (MEGa-ray) source based on Compton scattering, targeting nuclear physics applications such as nuclear resonance fluorescence, has been constructed and commissioned at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. In this paper, the overall architecture of the system, as well as some of the design decisions (such as laser pulse lengths and interaction geometry) made in the development of the source, are discussed. The performances of the two laser systems (one for electron production, one for scattering), the electron photoinjector, and the linear accelerator are also detailed, and initial $\ensuremath{\gamma}$-ray results are presented.
Direct aperture optimization: a turnkey solution for step-and-shoot IMRT.

IMRT treatment plans for step-and-shoot delivery have traditionally been produced through the optimization of intensity distributions (or maps) for each beam angle. The optimization step is followed by the application of a leaf-sequencing algorithm that translates each intensity map into a set of deliverable aperture shapes. In this article, we introduce an automated planning system in which we bypass the traditional intensity optimization, and instead directly optimize the shapes and the weights of the apertures. We call this approach “direct aperture optimization.” This technique allows the user to specify the maximum number of apertures per beam direction, and hence provides significant control over the complexity of the treatment delivery. This is possible because the machine dependent delivery constraints imposed by the MLC are enforced within the aperture optimization algorithm rather than in a separate leaf-sequencing step. The leaf settings and the aperture intensities are optimized simultaneously using a simulated annealing algorithm. We have tested direct aperture optimization on a variety of patient cases using the EGS4/BEAM Monte Carlo package for our dose calculation engine. The results demonstrate that direct aperture optimization can produce highly conformal step-and-shoot treatment plans using only three to five apertures per beam direction. As compared with traditional optimization strategies, our studies demonstrate that direct aperture optimization can result in a significant reduction in both the number of beam segments and the number of monitor units. Direct aperture optimization therefore produces highly efficient treatment deliveries that maintain the full dosimetric benefits of IMRT.
A comment on the optimal sizing of a biomass utilization facility under constant and variable cost scaling

Abstract Two solutions are obtained for the optimal size of a biomass utilization facility subject to an economy of scale in capital and non-fuel operating costs. The conventional assumption of constant-scaling parameter over all capacities leads to a larger optimum than if the scaling factor is increased asymptotically towards 1 with increasing capacity to reflect technical and economic constraints or risks. Lack of appropriate scaling data for larger size makes the question of general optimization for biomass facilities uncertain, and conclusions regarding development policies based on assumptions of constant cost scaling should be carefully tested.
Loss of PM2.5 nitrate from filter samples in central California.

Abstract Evaporative loss of particulate matter (with aerodynamic diameter 80% during warm months. In agreement with theory, evaporative loss from quartz-fiber filters in nitric acid denuded samplers is controlled by the ambient nitric acid-to-particulate nitrate ratio, which is determined mainly by ambient temperature. Accurate estimation of nitrate volatilization requires a detailed thermodynamic model and comprehensive chemical measurements. For the 14-month average of PM2.5 acquired on Teflon-membrane filters, measured PM2.5 mass was 8–16% lower than actual PM2.5 mass owing to nitrate volatilization. For 24-hr sa...
Network-coding-based scheduling and routing schemes for service-oriented wireless mesh networks

Service-oriented wireless mesh networks have recently been receiving intensive attention as a pivotal component to implement the concept of ubiquitous computing due to their easy and cost-effective deployment. To deliver a variety of services to subscriber stations, a large volume of traffic is exchanged via mesh routers in the mesh backbone network. One of the critical problems in service-oriented wireless mesh networks is to improve the network throughput. Wireless network coding is a key technology to improve network throughput in multihop wireless networks since it can exploit not only the broadcast nature of the wireless channel, but also the native physical-layer coding ability by mixing simultaneously arriving radio waves at relay nodes. We first analyze the throughput improvement obtained by wireless network coding schemes in wireless mesh networks. Then we develop a heuristic joint link scheduling, channel assignment, and routing algorithm that can improve the network throughput for service-oriented wireless mesh networks. Our extensive simulations show that wireless network coding schemes can improve network throughput by 34 percent.
A 308‐nm excimer laser for the treatment of scalp psoriasis

Background and Objectives Scalp psoriasis is a frustrating disorder whose treatments can all too often be cumbersome and ineffective. Our objective was to test a combination device involving the 308-nm excimer laser in tandem with a hair blower for treating scalp psoriasis. Study Design/Materials and Methods Adult subjects with scalp psoriasis unresponsive to class I topical steroids used in conjunction with medicated shampoos were treated with 308-nm excimer laser pulses in conjunction with a hair blower that parted the obstructing hair twice a week for up to 15 weeks. Half of the scalp served as a control. Starting doses were based on standard minimal erythema dose (MED)'s with subsequent increments of up to 20%. Results Thirteen subjects completed the study without adverse events. Two were dropped due to lack of compliance. At the end of the investigation, the difference in the mean modified PASI scores between the control and treated sites was 4.0 (<0.0001). Conclusions The air blower device in conjunction with the 308-nm excimer laser can safely and effectively treat otherwise refractory scalp psoriasis. Lasers Surg. Med. 34:136–140, 2004. © 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Training and Technological Change: Case Evidence from the Printing Industry

This article examines the connection between training and technological change by looking at the printing industry through the experiences of six companies. The study revealed that these companies hold training to be strategic, not just peripheral. They invest heavily in the retraining of workers, using a multiplicity of strategies, including training by equipment manufacturers, OJT, peer tutoring, teamwork, customized training at vocational colleges, and tuition reimbursement. The study adds an empirical dimension to what is largely a rhetorical literature on the connection between technological change, training, and competitiveness.
Attention as a Bayesian inference process

David Marr famously defined vision as "knowing what is where by seeing". In the framework described here, attention is the inference process that solves the visual recognition problem of what is where. The theory proposes a computational role for attention and leads to a model that performs well in recognition tasks and that predicts some of the main properties of attention at the level of psychophysics and physiology. We propose an algorithmic implementation a Bayesian network that can be mapped into the basic functional anatomy of attention involving the ventral stream and the dorsal stream. This description integrates bottom-up, feature-based as well as spatial (context based) attentional mechanisms. We show that the Bayesian model predicts well human eye fixations (considered as a proxy for shifts of attention) in natural scenes, and can improve accuracy in object recognition tasks involving cluttered real world images. In both cases, we found that the proposed model can predict human performance better than existing bottom-up and top-down computational models.
Predictors of systolic and diastolic improvement in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy treated with metoprolol

Abstract Objectives. The aim of this study was to determine which patients will have systolic and diastolic improvement after betablockade with metoprolol. Background. Beta-adrenergic blocking agents improve systolic and diastolic function in patients with heart failure. However, it is unclear which patients will respond best to therapy. Methods. We retrospectively examined baseline characteristics of 24 patients who underwent double-blind then open-label treatment with metoprolol to determine which characteristic predicted improvement in systolic and diastolic function. Degree of improvement in systolic function (22 patients) was defined by the change in left ventricular ejection fraction after 3 months of therapy. Degree of improvement in diastolic function (15 patients) was defined as the change in left ventricular end-diastolic pressure and change in the slope of the isovolumetric relaxation rate—end-systolic pressure relation. Results. Both systolic blood pressure at baseline (r = 0.54, p = 0.009) and the maximal positive value of the first derivative of left ventricular pressure with respect to time (peak +dP/dt) at baseline (r = 0.39, p = 0.07) correlated with improvement in ejection fraction after metoprolol treatment. Stepwise logistic regression demonstrated that only peak systolic pressure was an independent predictor of systolic improvement. Baseline heart rate, ventricular volumes, ejection fraction and adrenergic activation, as reflected by coronary sinus norepinephrine, did not predict response. Patients with the most diastolic impairment at baseline had the most favorable diastolic improvement. Those with the lowest myocardial respiratory quotient (most fatty acid utilization) at baseline also had the most marked reduction in left ventricular end-diastolic pressure. Conclusions. These data suggest that those patients with the highest peak systolic pressure, highest left ventricular end-diastolic pressure and most prolonged isovolumetric relaxation at baseline will respond best to therapy with metoprolol. However, other patients without these characteristics may also benefit.
Membrane distillation. I. Module design and performance evaluation using vacuum membrane distillation

Pure water vacuum membrane distillation (VMD) experiments were performed to evaluate the heat and mass transfer boundary layer resistances in a new laboratory-scale membrane module. The membrane module designed for this work is unique in that it can use flat-sheet membranes without a support. Additionally, the membrane module and associated apparatus were designed to achieve relatively high feed and permeate Reynolds numbers within the module. These two factors led to a dramatic reduction in boundary layer resistances, which resulted in improved VMD fluxes. This paper also examines a new complete VMD model based on the dusty-gas model, which accounts for both Knudsen and viscous mass transport across the membrane. The new model was used to predict the performance of VMD with pure water and ethanol-water solutions.
Longitudinal analysis of the road network development and land-cover change in Lop Buri province, Thailand, 1989-2006.

Abstract Land use and land-cover change (LUCC) is mainly a consequence of human activities such as road network development. In Thailand, the explicit objective of road network development has been to foster economic and social development. The extent of change in roads and land-cover change in Lop Buri between 1989–2006 is analyzed. We hypothesized that road development is a key driver of land-cover change and will cause, substantial changes in areas of forest cover, cultivated food and cash crops. We used land-cover classifications of Landsat imagery and resultant class trajectories to measure change. We then analyzed the relationships between roads, land-cover types, and land-cover trajectories. Overall, cash crops increased while forest and food crops declined between 1989–2006. The relationships between distance to roads and land- cover trajectories indicate that as the distance to roads increase, there are fewer changes in LUCC. The results suggest that in this case study, an increase in road network contributes to an increase in upland crops. In turn, the increase in upland crop production is one of the factors linked to economic development.
Low activation energy for the crystallization of amorphous silicon nanoparticles

We have experimentally determined the crystallization rate of plasma-produced amorphous silicon powder undergoing in-flight thermal annealing, and have found a significant reduction in the activation energy for crystallization compared to amorphous silicon thin films. This finding allows us to shed light onto the mechanism leading to the formation of high quality nanocrystals in non-thermal plasmas.
Protein yield of oats as determined by protein percentage and grain yield

Relationships among the traits protein percentage, grain yield, and protein yield of oats were studied with F2-derived lines in F3 and F4 from 27 matings obtained by crossing high-protein with high-yield oat lines. High-protein parents were (a) selections from an Avena sativa bulk, (b) selections from three-way matings in which an initial parent was A. sterilss, and (c) cultivars. High-yield parents were derived from backcross populations involving A. sterilis accessions as donor parents.
Air–sea gas exchange at extreme wind speeds measured by autonomous oceanographic floats

Abstract Measurements of the air–sea fluxes of N2 and O2 were made in winds of 15–57 m s− 1 beneath Hurricane Frances using two types of air-deployed neutrally buoyant and profiling underwater floats. Two “Lagrangian floats” measured O2 and total gas tension (GT) in pre-storm and post-storm profiles and in the actively turbulent mixed layer during the storm. A single “EM-APEX float” profiled continuously from 30 to 200 m before, during and after the storm. All floats measured temperature and salinity. N2 concentrations were computed from GT and O2 after correcting for instrumental effects. Gas fluxes were computed by three methods. First, a one-dimensional mixed layer budget diagnosed the changes in mixed layer concentrations given the pre-storm profile and a time varying mixed layer depth. This model was calibrated using temperature and salinity data. The difference between the predicted mixed layer concentrations of O2 and N2 and those measured was attributed to air–sea gas fluxes FBO and FBN. Second, the covariance flux FCO(z) = 〈wO2′〉(z) was computed, where w is the vertical motion of the water-following Lagrangian floats, O2′ is a high-pass filtered O2 concentration and 〈〉(z) is an average over covariance pairs as a function of depth. The profile FCO(z) was extrapolated to the surface to yield the surface O2 flux FCO(0). Third, a deficit of O2 was found in the upper few meters of the ocean at the height of the storm. A flux FSO, moving O2 out of the ocean, was calculated by dividing this deficit by the residence time of the water in this layer, inferred from the Lagrangian floats. The three methods gave generally consistent results. At the highest winds, gas transfer is dominated by bubbles created by surface wave breaking, injected into the ocean by large-scale turbulent eddies and dissolving near 10-m depth. This conclusion is supported by observations of fluxes into the ocean despite its supersaturation; by the molar flux ratio FBO/FBN, which is closer to that of air rather than that appropriate for Schmidt number scaling; by O2 increases at about 10-m depth along the water trajectories accompanied by a reduction in void fraction as measured by conductivity; and from the profile of FCO(z), which peaks near 10 m instead of at the surface. At the highest winds O2 and N2 are injected into the ocean by bubbles dissolving at depth. This, plus entrainment of gas-rich water from below, supersaturates the mixed layer causing gas to flux out of the near-surface ocean. A net influx of gas results from the balance of these two competing processes. At lower speeds, the total gas fluxes, FBO, FBN and FCO(0), are out of the ocean and downgradient.
Beyond “Anchorman”: A Comparative Analysis of Race, Gender, and Correspondent Roles in Network News

In 2006, network news seemed to enter a new period of racial and gender diversity: Katie Couric was appointed anchor of the CBS Evening News, NBC’s Ann Curry filled multiple roles, and Martin Bashi...
The Effect of Medicaid on Health Care Consumption of Young Adults

Summary All states provide Medicaid until the age of 19 years. After 19 years, young adults may become ineligible for Medicaid. Using the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, we find that the resulting loss of Medicaid coverage causes substantial changes to the level and composition of health care use. The total number of visits to health care providers falls by over 60%, two-thirds of which is due to a decline in office visits. Expenditures, in particular inpatient expenditures, also appear to fall sharply. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Transistor oscillator and amplifier grids

Although quasi-optical techniques are applicable to a large variety of solid-state devices, special attention is given to transistors, which are attractive because they can be used as either amplifiers or oscillators. Experimental results for MESFET bar-grid and planar grid oscillators are presented. A MESFET grid amplifier that receives only vertically polarized waves at the input and radiates horizontally polarized waves at the output is discussed. These planar grids can be scaled for operation at millimeter- and submillimeter-wave frequencies. By using modern IC fabrication technology, planar grid oscillators and amplifiers containing thousands of devices can be built, thereby realizing an efficient means for large-scale power combining. >
Predictor-like feedback for actuator and sensor dynamics governed by diffusion PDEs

For (possibly unstable) ODE systems with actuator delay, predictor-based infinite-dimensional feedback can compensate for actuator delay of arbitrary length and achieve stabilization. We extend this concept to another class of PDE-ODE cascades, where the infinite-dimensional part of the plant is of diffusive, rather than convective type. We derive predictor-like feedback laws and observers, with explicit gain kernels. The gain kernels involve second order matrix exponentials of the system matrix of the ODE plant, which is the result of the second-order-in-space character of the actuator/sensor dynamics. The construction of the kernel functions is performed using the continuum version of the backstepping method. Robustness to small perturbations in the diffusion coefficient is proved.
CHONDRULE FORMATION AND PROTOPLANETARY DISK HEATING BY CURRENT SHEETS IN NONIDEAL MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC TURBULENCE

We study magnetic field steepening due to ambipolar diffusion in protoplanetary disk environments and draw the following conclusions. Current sheets are generated in magnetically active regions of the disk where the ionization fraction is high enough for the magnetorotational instability to operate. In late stages of solar nebula evolution, the surface density is expected to decrease and dust grains are expected to gravitationally settle to the midplane. If the local dust-to-gas mass ratio near the midplane is increased above cosmic abundances by factors 103, current sheets reach high enough temperatures to melt millimeter-sized dust grains and hence may provide the mechanism to form meteoritic chondrules. In addition, these current sheets possibly explain the near-infrared excesses observed in spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of young stellar objects. Direct imaging of protoplanetary disks via a nulling interferometer or, in the future, a multiband, adaptive optics coronagraph can test this hypothesis.
Thrombolytic therapy in acute myocardial infarction

Abstract The effect of thrombolysis in acute myocardial infarction on infarct size, left ventricular function, clinical course and patient survival was studied in a randomized trial comparing thrombolysis (269 patients) with conventional treatment (264 control patients). All 533 patients were admitted to the coronary care unit within 4 hours after the onset of symptoms related to the infarction. Baseline characteristics were similar in both groups. Informed consent was requested only of patients allocated to thrombolysis; no angiography was performed in 35. The infarct-related artery was patent in 65 patients and occluded in 169. Recanalization was achieved in 133 patients. The median time to angiographic documentation of vessel patency was 200 minutes after the onset of symptoms. The clinical course in the coronary care unit was more favorable after thrombolysis. Infarct size, estimated from myocardial enzyme release, was 30% lower after thrombolysis. In patients admitted within 1 hour after the onset of symptoms the reduction of infarct size was 51%, in those admitted between 1 and 2 hours it was 31% and in those admitted later than 2 hours it was 13%. Left ventricular function measured by radionuclide angiography before hospital discharge was better after thrombolysis (ejection fraction 48 ± 15%) than in control patients (44 ± 15%). Similar improvement was observed in patients with a first infarct only (thrombolysis 50 ± 14%, control subjects 46 ± 15%), in patients with anterior infarction (thrombolysis 44 ± 16%, control subjects 35 ± 14%) and in those with inferior infarction (thrombolysis 52 ± 12%, control subjects 49 ± 12%). Similar results were obtained by contrast angiography. Mortality was lower after thrombolysis. After 28 days 16 patients allocated to thrombolysis and 31 control patients had died. One year survival rates were 91 and 84%, respectively. On the other hand, nonfatal reinfarction occurred more frequently after thrombolysis (36 patients) than in control subjects (16 patients). Early thrombolysis by intracoronary streptokinase leads to a smaller infarct size estimated by enzyme release, preserves left ventricular function at the second week and leads to improved 1 year survival. Originally published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology , April 1986.
Vascular dysfunction in diabetes mellitus: large conductance calcium-activated potassium channels as part of a subsarcolemmal signaling soiree.

Vascular smooth muscle membrane potential is a key determinant of vessel tone primarily through regulation of voltage-dependent calcium channels (VDCCs). The opening probability of VDCCs is increased by membrane depolarization, facilitating influx of calcium and producing contraction of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). Control of membrane potential and VDCC activity is orchestrated by a complex series of signals that occur just below the sarcolemmal membrane. Article, see p 607 Large-conductance calcium-activated potassium channels (also known as maxi-K or BK channels) play a pivotal role in modulating vasomotor tone in both health and disease. BK channels, expressed on VSMCs, act as breaks for the increase in vascular tone that occurs after membrane depolarization and elevation of cytosolic calcium. An intracellular rise in cytosolic calcium through VDCC leads to activation of ryanodine receptors that release quanta of calcium from the sarcoplasmic reticulum (calcium sparks). It is these intracellularly generated sparks that elevate local submembrane concentrations of calcium and activate BK channels which increase potassium conductance and lower membrane potential.1 This reduces opening of VDCCs, thus modulating contraction (Figure2). Figure. Pathways for activation and modulation of vascular large-conductance calcium-activated potassium (BK) channels . Diabetes mellitus reduces BK channel activity by ≥3 mechanisms. First, as demonstrated by Nystoriak et al,2 through activation of calcineurin, dephosphorylated nuclear factor of activated T cells, c3 isoform (NFATc3) enters the nucleus where it inhibits transcription of the β1 subunit of BK, thereby reducing BK sensitivity to calcium. Second, diabetes mellitus–induced elevations in reactive oxygen species (ROS), particularly hydrogen peroxide, directly oxidize cysteine residues in the bowl region of the α subunit of BK to reduce opening. Finally, reduced insulin activation of phosphoinositol-3-kinase (PI3) kinase in diabetes mellitus reduces phosphorylation of forkhead box O family transcription factor (FOXO)-3a, allowing nuclear localization and transcription of f-box only protein …
Credentialing Structures, Pedagogies, Practices, and Curriculum Goals: Trajectories of Change in Community College Mission Statements.

Objective:To examine the discursive strategies deployed by community colleges to sustain legitimacy in an evolving and contradictory institutional environment.Method:Using corpus linguistics softwa...
Fault tolerant hashing and information retrieval using back propagation

The architecture and performance of neural networks designed and trained to compute hashing functions is described. The networks described are of the connectionist type and are capable of learning complex mappings using the back-propagation or error algorithm. Connectionist networks are robust, are capable of limited error correction, and offer several advantages over traditional hashing methods. Multiple indexing, which implements many-to-one mapping, can be easily realized by training a network for each key attribute. The neural network approach can be used to train a very large number of pattern associations by dividing a problem into smaller problems. This neural network consists of several subnetworks, each solving a specific mapping task. The experimental results show that small neural networks with simple processing elements can learn complex mapping that implement index search in constant time. >
Cortical Representation of Medial Axis Structure

The identity of an object is not only specified by its parts but also by the relations among the parts. Rearranging parts can produce a completely different object, in the same manner as rearranging the phonemes in "fur" can yield "rough." How does the visual system represent the relative positions of parts? Between-part relations can be characterized by specifying the relations between the medial axes (imaginary lines through the centers) of an object's parts. A functional magnetic resonance imaging multivoxel classification study tested whether the medial axis structure is represented in the human visual system independent of part identity and overall object orientation. Stimuli were line drawings of novel 3-part geometrical objects, which differed in the relations between their parts' medial axes (i.e., in their medial axis structures), the geons that composed each object, and the objects' orientations in plane and in depth. In regions of interest throughout visual cortex, a support vector machine classifier was trained to distinguish objects that shared either the same medial axis structures or the same orientations. By the level of V3, different medial axis structures were more accurately classified than different orientations, indicating a change in the representation of shape compared with earlier visual areas.