cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The keyhole technique for meniscal transplantation

Meniscal injuries are the most common traumatic injury seen in knees and second only to osteoarthritis as an etiology of knee problems. Not surprisingly, meniscal injuries and meniscal deficiencies have osteoarthritis as their most common sequelae. Early and effective treatment for these injuries can lessen the chances for progressive degenerative changes frequently encountered 15 years after total menisectomy. Repairing a torn meniscus, when possible, is appropriate for tears in the vascular zone and perhaps even some in the so-called ‘white' zone. However, there are some instances when repairs are not possible and a total menisectomy must be performed. When this occurs in younger adults, consideration of a meniscal allograft reconstruction is appropriate. This procedure has been utilized for greater than 20 years and has been shown to have durable results in 85% of cases. The procedure involves implanting an appropriately sized meniscus in an open or arthroscopically assisted method that allows the transplanted meniscus to be repaired peripherally to the joint capsule as well as the solid securing of the anterior and posterior meniscal roots to the tibial plateau.
Relationship between age of blastocyst formation and interferon-τ secretion by in vitro-derived bovine embryos

This study was designed to examine the relationship between the speed at which bovine embryos reach the blastocyst stage, their cell number, and interferon-tau production. A total of 800 oocytes were fertilized by frozen-thawed semen. On day 2, 44 hr after exposure to sperm, 78, 320, and 296 embryos were at the two-, four-, and eight-cell stages, respectively, with an overall cleavage rate of 86.8%. Within these three groups 15 (19.2%), 106 (33.1%), and 158 (53.4%) embryos proceeded to the blastocyst stage. Of these 46.7%, 65.1%, and 63.3% hatched in the three groups, respectively. Blastocysts began to appear at day 7, but a few did not form until as late as day 13. Expanded blastocysts (n = 279) were cultured individually for 48 hr in 50-microliter droplets of medium, fixed for cell counts, and the concentration of interferon-tau in the medium was determined. Blastocysts originating from two-cell embryos had significantly fewer cells (46.5 +/- 23.3) than either four-cell- (97.2 +/- 13.5) or eight-cell-derived embryos (113.8 +/- 13.6; P < 0.05). Hatching was accompanied by an increase in cell number (129.8 +/- 15.5 versus 41.9 +/- 14.4; P < 0.01). Blastocysts derived from embryos that had reached the eight- or four-cell stage 44 hr after insemination produced significantly more interferon than embryos derived from two-cell embryos (941.7 +/- 92.1, 930.1 +/- 163.1, versus 232.8 +/- 70.1 pM). In contrast, hatching, ovary batch, the speed of early cleavage, cell number, and quality grade had no effect on interferon-tau secretion. The embryo's age at blastocyst formation was not related to the number of its cells but did have a significant effect (P < 0.001) on interferon-tau production, with mean concentrations in the medium of 294.8 +/- 57.9, 563.3 +/- 82.0, 1126.3 +/- 133.6, 1778.5 +/- 297.2, 512.9 +/- 82.0, 315.0 +/- 157.5, and 157.5 pM among blastocysts appearing from days 7 to 13, respectively. These data suggest that blastocysts that form at days 7 and 8 produce less interferon-tau than those that form on days 9 or 10. Since early-forming blastocysts are generally considered more developmentally competent than those which form late, there may be a negative relationship between early interferon-tau production and competence.
FEMALE OFFICERS ON PATROL: PUBLIC PERCEPTIONS IN THE 1990'S

ABSTRACT Prior research suggests that males and individuals with lower levels of education are less supportive of female police officers. This research found support for the education hypothesis. In regard to the various calls respondents were asked to consider, those who had attended college were more likely to support the equal effectiveness of males and females. Respondents with a high school degree or less were more likely to contend that males were more effective. This study suggests that the public may be more readily accepting of females as officers when questioned in a nonspecific context. However, when faced with specific situations officers respond to, some revert to stereotypical expectations of male and female characteristics. The challenge for police agencies is to devise strategies for changing the perceptions of those who have difficulty accepting females as fully functioning patrol officers. One strategy for changing inappropriate attitudes is the placement of more females in community pol...
Nonlinear integer programming for various forms of constraints

A theoretical and computational investigation is made of the performance of a dynamic-programming-based algorithm for nonlinear integer problems with various types of constraints. We include linear constraints, aggregated linear constraints, separable nonlinear constraints and constraints involving maxima and minima. Separability of the objective function is assumed. The new feature of the algorithm is that two types of fathoming or pruning are used to reduce the size of tables and number of computations: fathoming by bounds and fathoming by infeasibility.
Colloid replacement in the ICU

Abstract Colloids are fluids containing large molecular weight molecules that do not readily cross the capillary membrane. Colloid replacement is becoming increasingly more common in the equine intensive care unit. Advantages of colloid therapy include improved oncotic pressure, rapid intravascular volume replacement, and improved microvascular perfusion. Edema formation is minimized through the use of colloids, rather than crystalloids, in the volume resuscitation of hypoproteinemic animals. Available colloids include both natural (biologic) and synthetic formulations. Plasma is the most common biologic colloid utilized in horses, and offers the advantage of providing a broad range of proteins in addition to its principle colloid, albumin. These additional proteins include coagulation factors, antithrombin, and immunoglobulins. The most widely used synthetic colloid in horses is hydroxyethyl starch (hetastarch). Side effects of hetastarch include dose-dependent effects on coagulation, primarily because of decreases in factor VIII and von Willebrand factor concentrations. Other synthetic or semisynthetic colloids include pentastarch, dextrans, and a polymerized ultrapurified bovine hemoglobin product. Monitoring of patients receiving colloid therapy should include direct colloid osmometry. Indirect estimates of colloid osmotic pressure are not reliable in critically ill patients and in those receiving synthetic colloids. Total protein measurements do not account for the oncotic contribution of synthetic colloids.
Abdominal adiposity and hot flashes among midlife women

Objective: Two competing hypotheses suggest how adiposity may affect menopausal hot flashes. The "thin hypothesis" asserts that aromatization of androgens to estrogens in body fat should be associated with decreased hot flashes. Conversely, thermoregulatory models argue that body fat should be associated with increased hot flashes. The study objective was to examine associations between abdominal adiposity and hot flashes, including the role of reproductive hormones in these associations. Design: The Study of Women's Health Across the Nation Heart Study (2001-2003) is an ancillary study to the Study of Women's Health Across the Nation, a community-based cohort study. Participants were 461 women (35% African American, 65% white) ages 45 to 58 years with an intact uterus and at least one ovary. Measures included a computed tomography scan to assess abdominal adiposity; reported hot flashes over the previous 2 weeks; and a blood sample for measurement of follicle-stimulating hormone, estradiol, and sex hormone-binding globulin-adjusted estradiol (free estradiol index). Associations were evaluated within multivariable logistic and linear regression models. Results: Every 1-SD increase in total (odds ratio [OR] = 1.28; 95% CI: 1.06-1.55) and subcutaneous (OR = 1.30; 95% CI: 1.07-1.58) abdominal adiposity was associated with increased odds of hot flashes in age- and site-adjusted models. Visceral adiposity was not associated with hot flashes. Associations were not reduced when models included reproductive hormone concentrations. Conclusion: Increased abdominal adiposity, particularly subcutaneous adiposity, is associated with increased odds of hot flashes, favoring thermoregulatory models of hot flashes. Body fat may not protect women from hot flashes as once thought.
Hispanic involvement in motor vehicle accidents

Many traffic safety-related programs developed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) have helped raise the awareness of traffic safety in the United States. So far, the majority of the programs have been geared to English-speaking, average, middle-class Americans. However, because of the surge of immigrants from non-English-speaking countries and an increase in their involvement in motor vehicle accidents, the need for reaching culturally diverse groups has increased. The involvement of Hispanics, the nation's third-largest ethnic group, in motor vehicle accidents is becoming an important agenda. Nationwide, motor vehicle accidents are the third leading cause of death for Hispanics after heart disease and cancer. In spite of this trend, no comprehensive summary of traffic accidents involving Hispanics and their attitude toward traffic safety has been compiled. A study showed a lack of traffic injury and fatality data for Hispanics and a lack of uniformity in reporting such data. De...
Large mutagenic lesions are induced by photodynamic therapy in murine L5178Y lymphoblasts.

— Mutagenic lesions at the thymidine kinase locus (tk) in mouse lymphoma L5178Y (LY) cells treated with red light and either Photofrin (PF) or chloroaluminurn phthalocyanine (AIPc) as the photosensitizer were compared in the relatively photodynamic therapy (PDT)-sensitive strain LY-R16 and the relatively resistant strains LY-S1 and LY-SR1. Southern blot analysis revealed that 92% (36/39) of the PDT-induced thymidine kinase (TK −/-) mutants of strains LY-R16 and LY-SR1 lost the entire active tk allele. (Strain LY-S1 lacks a known tk polymorphism and has not been analyzed for loss of the active tk allele.) A decrease in galactokinase (GK) activity in the TK−/- mutants has been taken as an indication that the mutagenic lesion extends from the tk gene to the closely linked galactokinase gene (gk). Using PF as the photosensitizer, GK activity was decreased in 45% of the LY-R16 mutants and in 22% of the LY-S1 and LY-SR1 mutants. With photoactivated AIPc, 59% of the TK −/- mutants of strains LY-S1 and LY-SR1 showed GK inactivation. (LY-R16 mutants were not analyzed because of the low LY-R16 mutant frequency induced by PDT with AlPc.) Thus, many of the TK−/- mutants of LY cells induced by PDT with either PF or AlPc harbor multilocus lesions.
An excess of uterine sarcomas after pelvic irradiation

The Ohio State University Registry recorded 1208 uterine corpus malignancies between 1940 and 1983. Thirty cases occurred in women with a history of pelvic irradiation. Eight patients had previously been irradiated for pelvic malignancy, four of whom presented with advanced stage sarcomas and died of their disease within 14 months. This represents an increase over the expected sarcoma prevalence which is less than 5%. In contrast, the majority of women (20 of 22) previously irradiated for benign conditions were diagnosed with endometrial adenocarcinoma. In 18, the adenocarcinoma was diagnosed as Stage I, and the prognosis was only slightly less favorable than for nonirradiated women. No significant effect of age at the time of irradiation was apparent. This study of women with a history of pelvic irradiation who later developed uterine cancer demonstrates a tendency for patients previously irradiated for pelvic malignancy to present with advanced stage, extremely aggressive uterine tumors compared to those previously irradiated for benign conditions.
Using mathematical models to understand the AIDS epidemic

Abstract The most urgent public-health problem today is to devise effective strategies to minimize the destruction caused by the AIDS epidemic. This complex problem will involve medical advances and new public-health and education initiatives. Mathematical models based on the underlying transmission mechanisms of the AIDS virus can help the medical/scientific community understand and anticipate its spread in different populations and evaluate the potential effectiveness of different approaches for bringing the epidemic under control. Before we can use models to predict the future, we must carefully test them against the past spread of the infection and for sensitivity to parameter changes. The long and extremely variable incubation period and the low probability of transmitting the AIDS virus in a single contact imply that population structure and variations in infectivity both play an important role in its spread. The population structure is caused by differences between people in numbers of sexual partners and the use of intravenous drugs and because of the way in which people mix among age, ethnic, and social groups. We use a simplified approach to investigate the effects of variation in incubation periods and infectivity specific to the AIDS virus, and we compare a model of random partner choices with a model in which partners both come from similar behavior groups.
Sentinel lymphonodectomy and s-classification : a successful strategy for better prediction and improvement of outcome of melanoma

The most successful strategies in the management of melanoma have always been based on early diagnosis and timely surgical removal. Sentinel lymphonodectomy (SLNE) is the most reliable technique for the detection of melanoma micrometastases in regional lymph nodes. The micromorphometric S-classification, a routinely determinable surrogate of tumor burden in the sentinel lymph node (SLN), has high prognostic relevance. SIII metastases, defined by a depth of invasion (d) greater than 1 mm below the capsular level, imply a risk of more than 50% for the presence of nonsentinel lymph node metastases in the same basin and for the emergence of distant metastases within 5 years of follow-up. Corresponding risk with SI metastases (d≤0.3 mm) and SII metastases (0.3 mm<d≤1 mm) do not exceed 15%. The survival curve for patients with SIII metastases approaches that of patients in the pre-SLNE era who underwent delayed lymph node dissection for subsequently detected nodal macrometastases. The survival of patients with initially removed SI and SII metastases is much better, similar to that of patients with S0 metastases. This explains the significant survival benefit of SLN-guided surgery in the entire population of patients with melanomas thicker than 0.75 mm, although the outcome of the subgroup without nodal metastases is not influenced by SLNE.
Valve replacement for tricuspid regurgitation appearing late after healing of left ventricular posterior wall and right ventricular acute myocardial infarction

Significant tricuspid regurgitation complicating acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is uncommon, and rarely results in hemodynamic compromise. Previously published reports of tricuspid regurgitation associated with right ventricular (RV) AMI have confirmed a relation between acute right-sided congestive heart failure and disruption of the papillary muscle apparatus,1 or have implicated pulmonary hypertension in the genesis of progressive RV failure.2 Although exceedingly rare as an acute post-AMI complication, such “structural” tricuspid regurgitation due to anatomic disruption of the tricuspid valve apparatus can be catastrophic. “Functional” tricuspid regurgitation associated with annular dilatation does not usually attain hemodynamic significance. Even when RV AMI results in progressive chamber dilatation and contractile impairment, such chronic tricuspid regurgitation rarely—if ever—causes overt clinical deterioration refractory to diuretics or vasodilators, or both.3,4 Refractory RV failure resulting from chronic functional tricuspid regurgitation late after RV AMI has not been reported previously. We describe a case of severe right-sided heart failure appearing 8 months after healing of posterior (inferior) and RV AMI that led ultimately to tricuspid valve replacement.
Considering the Contribution of US Agricultural Policy to the Obesity Epidemic: Overview and Opportunities

Agricultural policies help shape which, and in what relative quantities, foods are produced and consumed in the United States. This review of existing US agricultural policies reveals some important contributing factors to negative trends in overweight and obesity and helps to identify possible strategies for redirecting such policies so as to blunt and reverse those trends. Unlike expensive and often unsuccessful treatments of obesity, changes to agricultural policy that could help prevent obesity may not only be “nine tenths of the cure” but a highly effective public investment.
Interfacial complexation of phospholipid Langmuir monolayers with water-soluble porphyrins and phthalocyanines: an X-ray reflectivity study

Abstract The use of Coulombic forces to isolate charged, water-soluble macrocycles at the air-water interface (through their interactions with the oppositely charged headgroups of a phospholipid Langmuir monolayer) is currently being exploited in this laboratory as a means to create two-dimensional arrays of pigments. Significant differences have been observed in the surface pressure-molecular area ( π - A ) isotherms of dihexadecyl phosphate on subphases containing either copper (II) tetra-(methylaza)-phthalocyanine or tetra-(methylpyridyl)-porphyrin, both of which are cationic. In-situ X-ray specular reflectivity has been employed to determine interfacial organization in these systems and to elucidate the origin of their different phase behavior at the air-water interface.
Satiety for glucose solution in rat: The specificity is postingestive

Rats that have drunk a concentrated glucose solution to satiety, and will drink no more of it if access is prolonged, will return to vigorous ingestion if offered carbohydrate powder or laboratory chow. We show that this specificity of satiety is maintained even if the initial glucose load is delivered directly to the stomach, bypassing the stimuli and the responses associated with spontaneous ingestion. Therefore, the specificity of satiety for glucose does not reflect sensory- or response-specific satiety.
Consequences of interspecies antennal imaginal disc transplantation on organization of olfactory glomeruli and pheromone blend discrimination.

The antennal imaginal disc was transplanted between male larvae of two different heliothine moth species, Heliothis virescens (HV) and Helicoverpa zea (HZ). Males of these species respond to distinct pheromone blends, have different peripheral and central olfactory neuron specificities, as well as distinct arrangements of antennal lobe olfactory glomeruli, in the specialized male macroglomerular complex (MGC). After pupal development and adult eclosion, unilateral (with one antennal disc left intact) and bilateral antennal transplant males were assayed in a wind tunnel to both species' pheromone blends to determine their ability to discriminate between the two signals. The postmetamorphic developmental effects of interspecific transplantation upon the primary olfactory centers in the moth brain were then examined in these same individuals. Behavioral tests showed that both types of unilateral transplant continued to exhibit upwind anemotactic flight to the normal recipient blend with occasional flights to the donor blend. In contrast, bilateral transplants preferred the HV pheromone blend regardless of the direction of transplant, with some males of each type also responding to the HZ blend. Neuroanatomic evaluation of the MGC revealed that the donor arrangement of MGC glomeruli was induced in 73% HZ donor to HV recipient transplants and 56% of the reciprocal transplant. Surprisingly, several V-Z bilateral transplant males responded to both HV and HZ pheromone blends and had two HV MGC structures. This behavioral outcome was unexpected, because responses to the HV blend are mediated by inputs that are normally antagonistic to HZ males and the normal HV antenna lacks olfactory receptor neurons capable of responding to the essential minor pheromone component of the HZ blend. These data indicate a plasticity in developmental pathways regulating the expression of peripheral olfactory receptor neurons and in the glomerular processing of species-specific olfactory information.
Optimization of enzyme parameters for fermentative production of biorenewable fuels and chemicals

Microbial biocatalysts such as Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae have been extensively subjected to Metabolic Engineering for the fermentative production of biorenewable fuels and chemicals. This often entails the introduction of new enzymes, deletion of unwanted enzymes and efforts to fine-tune enzyme abundance in order to attain the desired strain performance. Enzyme performance can be quantitatively described in terms of the Michaelis-Menten type parameters Km, turnover number kcat and Ki, which roughly describe the affinity of an enzyme for its substrate, the speed of a reaction and the enzyme sensitivity to inhibition by regulatory molecules. Here we describe examples of where knowledge of these parameters have been used to select, evolve or engineer enzymes for the desired performance and enabled increased production of biorenewable fuels and chemicals. Examples include production of ethanol, isobutanol, 1-butanol and tyrosine and furfural tolerance. The Michaelis-Menten parameters can also be used to judge the cofactor dependence of enzymes and quantify their preference for NADH or NADPH. Similarly, enzymes can be selected, evolved or engineered for the preferred cofactor preference. Examples of exporter engineering and selection are also discussed in the context of production of malate, valine and limonene.
Graphic Organizers Applied to Higher-Level Secondary Mathematics.

A review of popular approaches to teaching mathematics that emphasize nonverbal skills, such as using manipulatives or problem–solving schema, shows that they are often not immediately applicable to some important areas of secondary algebra. However, graphic organizers in various forms have been widely suggested and researched as an intervention approach to improve reading comprehension. In this article, suggestions for modifying graphic organizers to make them more applicable to teaching higher–level mathematics concepts and procedures are proposed. Using an appropriately modified graphic organizer to teach higher–level mathematics skills may help students with relatively weak verbal skills and strong nonverbal reasoning skills to be more successful in mathematics. This subgroup of students with learning disabilities has been consistently identified in several schemes for subtyping mathematical disorders developed from empirical evidence. Excerpts of two sample scripted lessons based on this approach, one for the solving of systems of linear equations in three variables and one for the concept of negative integer exponents, are included.
Groundwater as an environmental constraint of longwall coal mining

Groundwater impacts are a common reason for opposition to longwall mining. Most impacts are due to subsidence-related fracturing. Although upper aquifers are protected from drainage to the mine by a confining zone, water levels decline due to fracture dilation, and drawdown expands outward a few hundred meters. Recovery of water levels is common.
Immunocytochemical Localization of rH1 Sodium Channel in Adult Rat Heart Atria and Ventricle Presence in Terminal Intercalated Disks

Background Of the five sodium channel subtypes expressed in cardiac tissues, the rat (rH1) and human (hH1) isoforms are thought to be the predominant subtypes on the basis of heterologous expression studies. In this study, subtype-specific antibodies and immunocytochemistry were used to confirm protein expression and to localize rH1 protein in cardiac tissues. Methods and Results Subtype-specific antibodies immunolabeled adult rat heart tissue in a manner identical to that obtained with subtype-nonselective antibodies. All antibodies specifically bound to the surface and t-tubular systems of atrial and ventricular muscle cells. Cytoplasmic labeling, reflecting nascent sodium channels or cytoplasmic stores of sodium channel protein, was apparent. Most notably, all antibodies also specifically labeled the subset of intercalated disks located at the ends but not the sides of adjacent ventricular muscle cells. Conclusions rH1 is the predominant subtype expressed on rat atrial and ventricular muscle cells. rH1 protein localization in surface and t-tubular membranes is consistent with its proposed role in coordinating membrane depolarization along the length and deep within cardiac muscle cells. rH1 protein localization in terminal intercalated disks suggests that sodium channels may also act as a localized voltage-dependent current amplifier, raising the safety margin for conduction; they also may contribute to anisotropic or saltatory conduction in cardiac tissues. These electrophysiological properties would be particularly important under conditions of altered channel function resulting from ion channel gene defects (eg, long QT syndrome), antiarrhythmic drug therapy, ischemia, or other heart diseases by influencing the electrophysiological substrate for ventricular tachyarrhythmias. (Circulation. 1996;94:3083-3086.)
Larval Characteristics and Taxonomic Position of the Lacewing Genus Suarius

The 3 larval instars of S. (Prochrysopa) apache (Banks) and S. (Prochrysopa) yuma (Banks) are described, and a definition of the subgenus Prochrysopa based on larval characteristics is proposed. Many structures of Prochrysopa larvae are highly modified for trash carrying, and the degree and type of specialization support the placement of Prochrysopa among the more highly evolved forms of the subfamily Chrysopinae. Certain morphological modifications in chrysopid larvae are closely related to a single adaptation—trash carrying; therefore, in analyses of taxonomic relationships many of these characters should be regarded as redundant. Because of this, and because the trash carrying habit probably evolved several times, care must be taken when using larval characters in proposing phylogenetic relationships within the Chrysopidae.
The Distinction Between the Logical and the Empirical in On Certainty

Dans le cadre du colloque consacre a l'essai de Wittgenstein sur «La certitude», organise par H. E. Mason a l'universite du Minnesota en octobre 1996, l'A. etudie la question de la distinction entre le logique et l'empirique chez Quine et Wittgenstein. Examinant la relation entre les croyances et l'experience chez le premier, et la notion de systeme d'image du monde chez le second, l'A. montre que Quine et Wittgenstein partagent le meme holisme concernant les croyances et le meme concept de mythologie pour reconnaitre le statut epistemique des propositions. Une comparaison de leurs metaphores respectives du systeme epistemique indique une meme difference de degre entre le logique, le mathematique et l'empirique
Integration of language and sensor information

The talk describes the development of basic technologies of intelligent systems fusing data from multiple domains and leading to automated computational techniques for understanding data contents. Understanding involves inferring appropriate decisions and recommending proper actions, which in turn requires fusion of data and knowledge about objects, situations, and actions. Data might include sensory data, verbal reports, intelligence intercepts, or public records, whereas knowledge ought to encompass the whole range of objects, situations, people and their behavior, and knowledge of languages. In the past, a fundamental difficulty in combining knowledge with data was the combinatorial complexity of computations, too many combinations of data and knowledge pieces had to be evaluated. Recent progress in understanding of natural intelligent systems, including the human mind, leads to the development of neurophysiologically motivated architectures for solving these challenging problems, in particular the role of emotional neural signals in overcoming combinatorial complexity of old logic-based approaches. Whereas past approaches based on logic tended to identify logic with language and thinking, recent studies in cognitive linguistics have led to appreciation of more complicated nature of linguistic models. Little is known about the details of the brain mechanisms integrating language and thinking. Understanding and fusion of linguistic information with sensory data represent a novel challenging aspect of the development of integrated fusion systems. The presentation will describe a non-combinatorial approach to this problem and outline techniques that can be used for fusing diverse and uncertain knowledge with sensory and linguistic data.
A Four Country Comparison: Special Education in the United States, China, India and Thailand

There are few systems of special education that are as comprehensive as the one in place in the United States. This paper compares the special education services available to students with disabilities in China, India and Thailand with the services for students with disabilities in the United States. The first part of the paper is a review of the literature on special education in the aforementioned countries. This is followed by a survey conducted in 1st through 5th grade classrooms in each country. Results show while the United States has by far the most uniform and comprehensive service, followed by Thailand with progressive services in their university demonstration schools. China and India, however, have little in place to assist struggling students in their highly populated classrooms.
Coupled FEM and BEM code for simulating acoustically excited bubbles near deformable structures

An understanding of biotissue–bubble interactions and the stresses induced in the tissue is needed to identify potential mechanisms of tissue damage, such as vessel rupture, by acoustically excited bubbles. Interactions between acoustically excited bubbles and nearby rigid structures have been studied effectively using the boundary element method. However, if the nearby structure is a biotissue, structure deformations will affect the bubble response. In this paper a coupled finite element and boundary element code, developed to investigate the interactions between an acoustically excited bubble and a deformable structure, is presented. In particular, this model was developed to investigate the response of bubbles within deformable tubes. This code is validated by comparison to other simulation and experimental results and employed to obtain the response of an acoustically excited bubble centered within a tube. General characteristics of bubble–tube interactions and stresses induced in the tube wall are described by considering typical simulation results.
The orbital period and negative superhumps of the nova-like cataclysmic variable V378 Pegasi

Abstract A radial velocity study is presented of the cataclysmic variable V378 Pegasi (PG 2337 + 300). It is found to have an orbital period of 0.13858 ± 0.00004 d (3.32592 ± 0.00096 h). Its spectrum and long-term light curve suggest that V378 Peg is a nova-like variable, with no outbursts. We use the approximate distance and position in the Galaxy of V378 Peg to estimate E(B − V) = 0.095, and use near-infrared magnitudes to calculate a distance of 680 ± 90 pc and MV = 4.68 ± 0.70, consistent with V378 Peg being a nova-like. Time-resolved photometry taken between 2001 and 2009 reveals a period of 0.1346 ± 0.0004 d (3.23 ± 0.01 h). We identify this photometric variability to be negative superhumps, from a precessing, tilted accretion disk. Our repeated measurements of the photometric period of V378 Peg are consistent with this period having been stable between 2001 and 2009, with its negative superhumps showing coherence over as many as hundreds or even thousands of cycles.
Quality-of-life measurements versus disease activity in systemic lupus erythematosus

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic disease affecting the physical, social, and psychological well-being of patients. Different instruments have been developed to measure health-related quality of life, some of which are SLE-specific. Contributors to poor quality of life in patients with SLE include fatigue, fibromyalgia, depression, and cognitive dysfunction. Health-related quality of life is not strongly associated with disease activity or organ damage. The Medical Outcomes Survey Short Form 36 is the most common instrument used to measure quality of life in SLE.
Private Equity and Entrepreneurship: An Inequitable Match

Faced with economic challenges in the United States, we frequently hear in political discourse the virtues of entrepreneurship as a powerful paradigm for innovation and job creation. Unfortunately, despite this well-intended rhetoric, I believe we are paralyzed as a nation by our inability to enact meaningful legislative initiatives that would advance or nurture U.S. entrepreneurship.The purpose of this paper is to discuss investment options for entrepreneurial ventures and shed light on the appropriateness of private equity as an option by documenting my own first-hand experience as a founding independent director of an entrepreneurial venture that accepted financing from a private equity fund. I also contrast the value proposition of private equity with that required for the success of entrepreneurial and innovative ventures, and argue against the private equity firm investment in entrepreneurial ventures, which at best does not serve the interests of creating successful businesses that nurture innovation and create jobs. The conclusions and insights that follow are based on my years of extensive experience working with many entrepreneurial organizations at all stages of development.
Time-varying filter banks and wavelets

Time-varying filter banks and wavelets are studied and a design procedure is presented. In the resulting analysis-synthesis structures, the analysis filters and the corresponding synthesis filters, the number of bands, and the decimation rates can be changed with time. Such structures can be considered as time-frequency overlapping block transforms. From this viewpoint, the tiling of the time-frequency plane and the corresponding basis functions are changed in time. The time-varying discrete wavelet transforms can be considered a special case of time-varying overlapping block transforms and are studied in detail. The formulation is based on the time domain formulation of time-varying analysis-synthesis structures. The design procedure can be used to design time-varying perfectly invertible transformations with a finite number of distinct analysis structures. For adaptive filter bank application, a least squares design method is also studied. >
Teaching Theory, Writing Policy: Integrating Lessons from Foggy Bottom into the Classroom

This article describes guidelines for assignments designed to build and improve policy-oriented writing skills of college students. Based on our experiences as Franklin Fellows at the United States Department of State, we developed strategies for teaching writing skills that are transferable to the workplace. The pedagogical approaches highlighted in this article will equip students with the analytical and writing abilities needed in a variety of employment situations. First, we offer insights into the qualities that we believe are important for success in a policy-oriented work environment. Second, we link those skills to the challenges and gaps that students face. Third, we propose assignments that can address those gaps.
Abductive planning with sensing

In abductive planning, plans are constructed as reasons for an agent to act: plans are demonstrations in logical theory of action that a goal will result assuming that given actions occur successfully. This paper shows how to construct plans abductively for an agent that can sense the world to augment its partial information. We use a formalism that explicitly refers not only to time but also to the information on which the agent deliberates. Goals are reformulated to represent the successive stages of deliberation and action the agent follows in carrying out a course of action, while constraints on assumed actions ensure that an agent at each step performs a specific action selected for its known effects. The result is a simple formalism that can directly inform extensions to implemented planners.
Writing About Cannibal Diets And Consuming Black Africans In France During The First Half Of The Twentieth Century

This article examines the meaning of references to cannibalism in French descriptions of black African cuisine in the first half of the twentieth century. Because of the intimacy of eating and the perceived importance of diet in defining racial boundaries, exotic dining and gastronomic writing about the colonised Other were fraught with tension about the possible crossing of boundaries. When African cuisine was discussed in cooking magazines, by gastronomes, and in the context of the 1931 Colonial Exposition, references to cannibalism guarded these borders. The discourse surrounding African food and African chefs at the exposition also used eating as a metaphor for the cannibalistic nature of French imperialism in Africa. The physical and metaphoric consumption of the colonised African Other was featured dramatically in the French dessert tete de negre, which presented a representation of an African head for French consumption, ritualising and taming the violent incorporation of African bodies into the Fr...
Integrating co-regulated gene-groups and pair-wise genome comparisons to automate reconstruction of microbial pathways

This paper extends previously described automated techniques by automatically integrating the information about automatically derived co-transcribed gene-groups, functionally similar gene-groups derived using automated pair-wise genome comparisons and automatically derived orthologs (functionally equivalent genes) to derive microbial metabolic pathways. The method integrates automatically derived co-transcribed gene-groups with orthologous and homologous gene-groups (http://www.mcs.kent.edu//spl sim/arvind/orthos.html), the biochemical pathway template available at the KEGG database. (http://www.genome.ad.jp), the enzyme information derived from the SwissProt enzyme database (http://expasy.hcuge.ch/) and Ligand database (http://www.genome.ad.jp). The technique refines existing pathways (based upon network of reactions of enzymes) by associating corresponding non-enzymatic, regulatory, and cotranscribed proteins to enzymes. The technique has been illustrated by deriving a major pathway of M. tuberculosis by comparison with seven microbial genomes including E coli and B. subtilis - two microbes well explored in wet laboratories.
Comprehensive TDDB lifetime prediction methodology for intrinsic and extrinsic failures in Cu interconnect dielectrics

This paper presents a comprehensive lifetime prediction methodology for both intrinsic and extrinsic Time-dependent dielectric breakdown (TDDB) failures to provide adequate Design-for-Reliability. For intrinsic failures, it is found that the @/E model is suitable for the field acceleration model from long-term TDDB tests. By applying the @/E model and estimating the Weibull slope using dedicated single-via test structures, we effectively prevent lifetime underestimation, therefore relaxing design restrictions. For extrinsic failures, by applying the thinning model and Critical area analysis (CAA) it is possible to predict extrinsic failure of breakdown voltage and lifetime only from hard-short defect densities, and we can quantify the failure probabilities for any design layouts of various LSI products.
Dynamic Distribution using (DER) Distributed Energy Resources

A comprehensive solution to the new distribution system require integrating DER with distribution in such a way as to radically changing the way distribution and transmission are used to deliver power to the customer. The basic concept is to use DER to move all load following requirements to the distribution system and allow for intentional islanding within possible to have a T&D system with less losses, more transmission capabilities, more stable markets, higher level of security and double the total energy transfer over a 24 hour period without new generation or transmission
Online Ratings: Fact and Fiction.

Northwestern University's experience sheds light on some of the common (mis)perceptions about online student evaluations.
Chlamydomonas reinhardtii Tubulin Gene Structure

DNA sequencing studies have provided a picture of the total information available at the gene level for tubulin production in C. reinhardtii. The data indicates that diversity at the gene level is very limited and that all the microtubules in the cell are composed of a very similar set of tubulins. These studies contrast with similar studies of S. pombe alpha-tubulin genes and chicken beta-tubulin genes that show much heterogeneity among members of the same gene family. Further studies will be needed to investigate whether the high degree of conservation of tubulin genes is unique or common among lower eukaryotes, and what mechanisms are used to maintain homogeneity in C. reinhardtii tubulin gene families. Our DNA sequence analysis, in addition to the work of Brunke et al., has provided information on the noncoding, and possibly regulatory, portions of the tubulin genes. For example, the promoter regions of the 4 tubulin genes share a consensus sequence of 16 nucleotides upstream of the TATA box. This sequence could be involved in regulating the coordinate expression of the genes. Although little homology exists generally in the noncoding region of the genes, striking homology between the third IVS in each beta-tubulin gene is observed. Small elements homologous to the beta-tubulin IVS 3 also exist in the second IVS of each alpha-tubulin gene. In addition, considerable homology in the 5' noncoding portion of the alpha-tubulin transcripts has been noted. These homologies may be the result of recent gene conversion events, and may not have functional significance. The possibility, however, must also be considered in future experiments that these elements may play a role in regulating the expression of the tubulin genes.
Circulating Factors Induce Coronary Endothelial Cell Activation Following Exposure to Inhaled Diesel Exhaust and Nitrogen Dioxide in Humans: Evidence From a Novel Translational In Vitro Model

The vascular toxicity of inhaled agents may be caused by soluble factors that are released into the systemic circulation. To confirm this in a straightforward manner, we obtained plasma from healthy human volunteers before and after exposure to diesel exhaust (DE) and nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)). Plasma samples were obtained from human volunteers exposed to 100 μg/m(3) DE or filtered air for 2 h. A second cohort was exposed to 500 ppb NO(2) or filtered air in an identical protocol. Primary human coronary artery endothelial cells (hCAECs) were grown to confluence and treated for 24 h with a 10 or 30% (in media) mixture of plasma obtained before, immediately post or 24 h postexposure to pollutant exposures. Messenger RNA (mRNA) was isolated from hCAECs following the incubation and probed for intracellular cell adhesion molecule (ICAM-1) and vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM-1) expression. ICAM-1 mRNA expression was increased by plasma obtained at both timepoints following the NO(2) exposures. VCAM-1 was significantly elevated in cells treated with plasma obtained 24 h following diesel exposure and at both timepoints following NO(2) exposure. Interleukin-8 protein was elevated in the hCAEC supernatant when cells were incubated with plasma from NO(2) exposures. These data indicate that proinflammatory circulating factors are elevated acutely following exposure to both DE and a primary component thereof, NO(2). These functional translational assays offer novel approaches to assessing the cardiovascular risk associated with air pollution exposure.
A maximum entropy approach to the moment closure problem for Stochastic Hybrid Systems at equilibrium

We study the problem that arises in a class of stochastic processes referred to as Stochastic Hybrid Systems (SHS) when computing the moments of the states using the generator of the process and Dynkin's formula. We focus on the case when the SHS is at equilibrium or approaching equilibrium. We present a family of such processes for which infinite-dimensional linear-system analysis tools are ineffective, and discuss a few differing perspectives on how to tackle such problems by assuming that the SHS state distribution is such that its entropy is maximum. We also provide a numerical algorithm that allows us to efficiently compute maximum entropy solutions, and compare results with Monte Carlo simulations for some illustrative SHS.
Ku70 Is Required for DNA Repair but Not for T Cell Antigen Receptor Gene Recombination In Vivo

Ku is a complex of two proteins, Ku70 and Ku80, and functions as a heterodimer to bind DNA double-strand breaks (DSB) and activate DNA-dependent protein kinase. The role of the Ku70 subunit in DNA DSB repair, hypersensitivity to ionizing radiation, and V(D)J recombination was examined in mice that lack Ku70 ( Ku70 −/− ). Like Ku80 −/− mice, Ku70 −/− mice showed a profound deficiency in DNA DSB repair and were proportional dwarfs. Surprisingly, in contrast to Ku80 −/− mice in which both T and B lymphocyte development were arrested at an early stage, lack of Ku70 was compatible with T cell receptor gene recombination and the development of mature CD4 + CD8 − and CD4 − CD8 + T cells. Our data shows, for the first time, that Ku70 plays an essential role in DNA DSB repair, but is not required for TCR V(D)J recombination. These results suggest that distinct but overlapping repair pathways may mediate DNA DSB repair and V(D)J recombination.
A Social–Cognitive Treatment Approach to Schizophrenia: Responses to Rector, and Lewine and Walker's Comments

We appreciate the comments of both Rector (2006), and Lewine and Walker (2006), since these offer us the possibility of elaborating as well as clarifying some of our key points (Riskind, Bombardier, & Ayers, 2006). First, we fully share Rector’s cognitive clinical perspective that it is not just an individual’s symptoms (e.g., his/her hallucinations), but the person’s beliefs about the meaning of the symptoms that are important in schizophrenia (e.g., Beck, in press; Beck & Rector, 2000). Our social–cognitive approach modestly adds the idea of humanizing and giving patients dignity by helping them to frame symptoms in a positive way (as due to the endless power of the human imagination, and past acquired schemas and beliefs). We believe this positive normalizing approach may curtail the crushing sense of helplessness and hopelessness that many individuals with schizophrenia might feel. Thus, in our variation, there is an even greater injection of positive element to the conceptualization to humanize patients. That is, this may help to limit the overwhelming powerlessness and threat and help them to focus with more empowerment on the need to test the products of their imaginations. In balance, however, we believe that our variation of the normalizing/reattribution technique is largely consistent or at least compatible with the standard cognitive clinical approach outlined by Rector. Lewine and Walker raise several points of disagreement. First, we agree with them that it is important to consider negative side effects associated with any treatment, but disagree with their further inferences. They mention research that suggests that patients are more likely to comply with treatment (particularly medication) if they accept a biologi-