cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Agroforestry practice and policy in the United States of America

Abstract Agroforestry practices and the policies influencing development and adoption within the United States are reviewed. Agroforestry is defined as ‘intensive land-management systems that optimize the benefits from biological interactions created when trees and/or shrubs are deliberately combined with crops and/or livestock’. The five agroforestry systems identified as having importance in the US are tree-agronomic crop systems (alley cropping and intercropping), riparian vegetative buffer strip systems, tree-animal systems (silvopasturing), forest/speciality crop systems (forest farming) and windbreak systems (shelterbelts). A lack of federal policy relating specifically to agroforestry exists. If agroforestry is to achieve its full potential in the United States, adequate financial, institutional and technical support for its development must be provided.
A current-sensor electrochemical device for accurate gas diffusivity measurement in fuel cells

Abstract In the previous diffusivity measurements via the electrochemical devices designed by the authors, the electronic conduction contribution of electrolyte materials was neglected, and an error in the subsequent evaluations of limiting current density and concentration polarization was consequently induced. In this report, a current-sensor and oxygen-sensor based electrochemical cell was designed for accurate diffusivity measurements in fuel cells. Our analytical investigation shows that diffusivity measurements via the new device lead to accurate analytical evaluations of limiting current density and concentration polarization in fuel cells. With the improved accuracy, one can reliably pre-evaluate the limiting current density and concentration polarization of fuel cell electrodes with different thicknesses ranging from several nanometers to a few millimeters at different operating temperatures.
High-performance computer architecture

From the Publisher: design ideas embodied in many high-performance machines and stresses techniques for evaluating them. Stone develops a proper understanding of the design process by treating the various trade-offs that exist in designing choices, and shows how good designs make efficient use of technology. Features Teaches techniques for the design and analysis of high-performance machines Develops students' intuition for design by treating various tradeoffs that exist in design choices Discusses many important topics: RISC architectures, interconnection meshes, Cache coherent and multiprocessors, and Cache Memory. Includes enhanced descriptions of RISC Processors Expands material on Cache Memory Analysis Current technology in RISC with a focused look on super scalar Additional memory models and techniques for doing Cache design New porposals for coherent memory systems in System C parallel processors Both design and thought problems and problems with limiting parameters are provided
Performance estimates of pulsed detonation engines

Pulsed detonation engines have recentlyreceived increasing attention. Various advantages claimed for the pulsed detonation engines depend on performance estimates. A review of previous computational studies of pulsed detonation engines shows a wide variation in the predicted performance of even an idealized system. In this paper, detailed, time-dependent numerical simulations are used to explore some plausible reasons for the observed differiences. The system simulated consists of a tube closed at one end and open at the other. The relaxation of the pressure at the exit of the tube to the ambient values is found to be a critical factor determining the specific impulse. Higher specific impulse can be attained with a gradual relaxato of the pressure at the exit of the tube. Numerically, different specifications of the outflow boundary conditions results in different relaxation rates and hence different values for the specific impulse. Experimentally, different effective rates of relaxation can be attained with different exhaust nozzle designs. The initial conditions used in simulations to initiate detonations are also found to contribute significantly to the overall performance. The results from these studies are used to reconcile previous performance estimates.
Limiting inpatient substance use treatment: What are the consequences?

This study tested whether a managed care policy of substituting outpatient for inpatient treatment of substance use disorders shifted treatment costs to psychiatric providers. This was an observational study, based on administrative data of 25,450 adult disabled Medicaid beneficiaries treated for schizophrenia and major affective disorders. Eighteen percent had a diagnosis of substance use disorder. Multivariate regression was used to determine the odds of having a hospital admission and the relationship of managed care to hospital length of stay and total per person treatment expenditures. Hospital admissions and length of stay for both substance use disorder and psychiatric treatment were reduced, but adults with a dual diagnosis had higher annual expenditures compared to those with only a psychiatric diagnosis. There was no evidence of cost shifting. Although emphasis on outpatient treatment did not result in cost shifting, the combination of substance use disorder and psychiatric illness remains an expensive public health problem.
Modeling flow around a microrotor in creeping flow using a quasi-steady-state analysis

Paramagnetic microsphere suspensions placed in a rotating magnetic field aggregate to form rotating magnetic chains. These chains that are several tens of micrometers in length act as microrotors, and can be modeled as circular cylinders. The flow and associated micromixing around these cylinders rotating about their radial axis is studied for a very low Reynolds number, creeping-flow system.. Time-scales for momentum transfer are much smaller than boundary movement, hence a quasi-steady approximation can be used. The flow is derived at every instant from the case of a steady motion of a horizontally translating cylinder, with the rotation approximated to a series of incremental translations. A numerical simulation was used to determine the pathlines and material lines of point fluid elements, which were analyzed to understand the behavior of the microfluidic system. The results indicate the flow to be unsteady, with chaotic advection observed in the system. The flow is primarily two-dimensional with planar fluid movement limited to the immediate area around the rotating cylinder, with a small disturbance in the axial direction that is experienced up to many diameters away. Elliptic and star shaped pathlines, including periodic orbits, are observed depending on the fluid element's initial location. The trajectories and phase angles compare well with the limited experimental results, as well as with data from particle dynamics simulations. Material lines and streaklines display stretching and folding, which are indicative of the chaotic behavior of the system. The material lines have similar lengths for the same amount of rotation at different speeds, and the affect of rotational speeds appears to be primarily to change the time of mixing.
Generating hypotheses to explain declining HIV infection in four U.S. jurisdictions.

The aims of this study were (1) to generate hypotheses to explain declines in HIV incidence in Massachusetts, North Carolina, San Francisco, and Seattle, and (2) based on lessons learned from these jurisdictions, to offer recommendations for implementation elsewhere. Through in-depth interviews, we identified policies and practices that stakeholders across jurisdictions believe are important to achieving successful outcomes. The most unifying observation was that leadership within health departments is critical to achieving success. With this consideration, we developed a list of tools for public health officials to assert leadership to address challenges posed by HIV: extending access to health insurance, using an array of approaches to increase knowledge of serostatus, investing in services to retain people in care, collecting and using better data, translating data into policy change and public health practice, developing targeted programming for vulnerable populations, minimizing administrative polici...
Physical origins of input filter oscillations in current programmed converters

Addition of an input filter to a current-programmed converter can cause the controller to oscillate. Two instability mechanisms can typically occur: (1) the current programmed controller effective current feedback loop may become unstable, or (2) the controller effective input voltage feedforward loop, which becomes a positive feedback loop when an input filter is added, may oscillate. Three design criteria for preventing oscillations are derived and interpreted. When all three criteria are well satisfied, then the output voltage regulation loop gain is unchanged. Hence, input filters of current programmed converters can be designed in essentially the same manner as for duty-ratio programmed converters. Results are summarized in tabular form for the basic buck, boost, and buck-boost converters. Experimental measurements for a buck converter with different input filters support the theoretical predictions. >
Visible and telecom-wavelength single quantum dots in 1-D photonic bandgap chiral microcavities

CdSe/PbSe single quantum dots were doped into chiral-photonic-bandgap cholesteric microcavities for visible/telecom wavelengths. High-purity circularly polarized fluorescence of definite handedness from single quantum dots was observed for the first time because of microcavity spiral structure.
EM field analysis of complementary structures

The symmetry of the Maxwell equations is such that, given one electromagnetic field solution, E, H, satisfying electric conductor and (theoretical) magnetic conductor boundary conditions, a second solution, E', H', may be constructed. At a waveguide port to a region formed by electric and magnetic conductors, the input impedance of the original waveguide, Z, is related to the input impedance, Z', of the complementary/dual region as ZZ' = Z/sub 0//sup 2/. This principle has been applied to relate equivalent circuit parameters for symmetrical obstacles in waveguides (inductive and capacitive windows in rectangular guides). The implications of the symmetry principle are illustrated through a waveguide example constructed for the express purpose of providing computable means for illuminating EM and equivalent network features of complementary structures and, in particular, the self-complementary case.
Understanding airway disease in infants

Large airway diseases manifest in ways distinct from those of small airway diseases. Noisy breathing that begins early in life suggests a congenital lesion of the large airways. The findings of elevated respiratory rate, in conjunction with subcostal retractions, hyperinflation to percussion, and musical wheezes, are diagnostic of small airway obstruction. Differentiating large from small airway disease is crucial, because each disease has a distinct diagnosis, and treatment of the 2 disease types can be quite different. When these principles are applied to a patient with wheezing or other signs of airway compromise, it becomes fairly easy to differentiate large from small airway disease. The treatment of patients with large airway disease can be substantially different from that of patients with small airway disease. Being able to differentiate the two is critically important. With the use of the history, physical examination, and radiographic evaluations described earlier, nearly every patient can be given an accurate diagnosis and treated appropriately.
Auctions: Research Opportunities in Marketing

Despite growing interest in traditional and Internet auctions, the marketing literature on auctions is sparse. This paper outlines selected aspects of the research opportunity. We provide a brief description of the major auction mechanisms, outline key concepts and results from the economic analysis of auctions, and summarize the key findings in empirical tests of auction theory. We then identify areas for future research on auction markets, particularly those of interest to marketers in the new contexts created by the Internet.
Novel syntaxin homologue, Pep12p, required for the sorting of lumenal hydrolases to the lysosome-like vacuole in yeast.

Abstract pep12/vps6 mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae are defective in delivery of soluble vacuolar hydrolases to the vacuole. Morphological analysis by electron microscopy revealed that pep12 cells accumulate 40- to 50-nm vesicles. Furthermore, pep12 cells have enlarged vacuoles characteristic of class D pep/vps mutants. PEP12 encodes a protein of 288 amino acids that has a C-terminal hydrophobic region and shares significant sequence similarity with members of the syntaxin protein family. These proteins appear to participate in the docking and fusion of intracellular transport vesicles. Pep12p is the first member of the syntaxin family to be implicated in transport between the Golgi and the vacuole/lysosome. Pep12p-specific polyclonal antisera detected a 35-kDa protein that fractionated as an integral membrane protein. Subcellular fractionation experiments revealed that Pep12p was associated with membrane fractions of two different densities; the major pool (approximately 90%) of pep12p may associate with the endosome, while a minor pool (approximately 10%) cofractionated with the late Golgi marker Kex2p. These observations suggest that Pep12p may mediate the docking of Golgi-derived transport vesicles at the endosome.
A New Opisthotropis (Serpentes: Colubridae: Natricinae) from Northeastern Thailand

ABSTRACT A new species of the aquatic natricine colubrid snake genus Opisthotropis is described based on a single specimen from Nong Khai Province, northeastern Thailand. The new species is distinguished from other Opisthotropis by the combination of having smooth scales on the body and tail, 15 dorsal scale rows throughout the body, the fourth supralabial in contact with the eye, the posterior pair of chin shields longer than the anterior pair, and a glossy black dorsum with yellow spots.
Prosthetic interfaces with the visual system: biological issues

The design of effective visual prostheses for the blind represents a challenge for biomedical engineers and neuroscientists. Significant progress has been made in the miniaturization and processing power of prosthesis electronics; however development lags in the design and construction of effective machine–brain interfaces with visual system neurons. This review summarizes what has been learned about stimulating neurons in the human and primate retina, lateral geniculate nucleus and visual cortex. Each level of the visual system presents unique challenges for neural interface design. Blind patients with the retinal degenerative disease retinitis pigmentosa (RP) are a common population in clinical trials of visual prostheses. The visual performance abilities of normals and RP patients are compared. To generate pattern vision in blind patients, the visual prosthetic interface must effectively stimulate the retinotopically organized neurons in the central visual field to elicit patterned visual percepts. The development of more biologically compatible methods of stimulating visual system neurons is critical to the development of finer spatial percepts. Prosthesis electrode arrays need to adapt to different optimal stimulus locations, stimulus patterns, and patient disease states.
A Study of Short Period P-wave Signals from Longshot

Summary Well documented short period seismic observations from the nuclear explosion Longshot provide an unusual opportunity to study seismic wave propagation in the mantle beneath an island arc. Ray calculations for a model containing a descending lithospheric slab predict an extensive P-wave shadow zone covering much of Canada and Europe and this is in close agreement with the pattern of reported magnitudes. Other features of the short period waveform which occur on some seismograms also seem amenable to explanation in terms of the complications that a slab introduces into seismic wave propagation in the vicinity of an island arc. Many examples are cited, including instances where a slab beneath the observing station also modifies the waveform.
GROUPOID FROBENIUS ALGEBRAS

In this note, we extend the idea of G-Frobenius algebras (G-FAs) for G a finite group to the case where G is replaced by a finite groupoid. These new structures, which we call groupoid Frobenius algebras, have twists that are entirely analogous to the universal G-FA twists by Z2(G, k×). The usefulness of these new structures comes from recognizing that there is a large collection of G-FAs that can be regarded as non-trivial groupoid Frobenius algebras. As a consequence of this, the twists associated to groupoid Frobenius algebras can be brought to bear on the problem of twisting G-FAs. In particular, we show that for any integer n ≥ 2, there exists a class of G-FAs with twists by Zn(G, k×).
Fertility preservation: a vital survivorship issue for young women with breast cancer.

Improvements in the diagnosis and treatment of early breast cancer have led to an increased number of women living with a history of the disease. There are now more than 2.4 million breast cancer survivors in the US alone, and an estimated 10% of these women are of childbearing age. 1,2 In a landmark essay on cancer survivorship, Fitzhugh Mullen wrote: “The challenge in overcoming cancer is not only to find therapies that will prevent or arrest the disease quickly, but also to map the middle ground of survivorship and minimize medical and social hazards.’’ 3 For young adults with cancer, the threat or experience of infertility may be a particularly distressing consequence of a cancer diagnosis. In recognition of this concern, and with an awareness of the recent advances in the reproductive sciences, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has published guidelines recommending that oncologists discuss with patients the possibility of infertility when treated during their reproductive years. 4 Furthermore, ASCO suggests that oncologists be prepared to discuss possible fertility preservation options or to refer appropriately. However, many of the available strategies for fertility preservation have not been fully evaluated in terms of both efficacy and safety. These limitations likely hamper discussion of fertility concerns, referrals to reproductive specialists, and the enthusiasm for patients and providers to embrace some of the available options. 4-7 For young women with breast cancer, in particular, fertility preservation is associated with a number of unique concerns. Because the initiation of systemic breast cancer treatment is rarely a medical emergency, newly diagnosed women with breast cancer usually have the opportunity to weigh pros and cons of treatment recommendations, seek consultation regarding fertility preservation, and consider available options. Traditionally, however, the strategies for fertility preservation in young women with breast cancer have been limited both by safety concerns and limited data regarding efficacy. For these reasons, such approaches have been considered experimental. 8,9 Ovarian stimulation and oocyte harvesting followed by in vitro fertilization (IVF) is the only widely available, effective procedure for fertility preservation, with an excellent track record among infertile couples. In women with newly diagnosed breast cancer, however, it has been hypothesized that the supraphysiologic estradiol levels arising from conventional ovarian stimulation might increase a woman’s risk of recurrence, particularly for women with hormone receptor–positive disease. Given this uncertainty, only a small proportion of young breast cancer patients utilize this option, and investigators have sought to identify strategies that would avoid the possible risks associated with high levels of
The Effect of Microcurrent Electrical Stimulation on the Foot Blood Circulation and Pain of Diabetic Neuropathy

[Purpose] This study was performed to investigate the effect of microcurrent electrical stimulation on the foot blood circulation and the degree of pain experienced by diabetes patients. [Subjects] Twenty nine patients with diabetic neuropathy over the age of 60 were randomly divided into an experimental(16 patients, 67.9 ± 8.0 years) and a control group(13 patients, 70.4 ± 4.4 years). [Methods] Both groups walked on a treadmill at a comfortable pace for 50 min/day, 5 days/week for 4 weeks, and each participant's body weight, body composition, and blood lipid were examined at the baseline and 4 weeks later. [Results] The results show that the foot blood flow rate increment after the intervention was significantly different between the experimental group and the control group, and the VAS was also significantly different. [Conclusion] Based on the results of this study, we consider that microcurrent electric stimulation of the foot may be helpful for preventing the pain and diabetic ulcers by increasing the foot blood circulation in diabetes patients.
“Ex Oriente Lux”: Thoreau's Ecstasies and the Hindu Texts

From the standpoint of marketing and sales, Henry David Thoreau's first major publishing venture, A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers, was something of a fiasco, a fact hardly mitigated by his famously stoic, as well as humorous, avowals of failure. When, four years after its first appearance, he finally acquiesced to his publisher's petitions to accept the seven hundred and six unsold copies piled in the warehouse, he noted wryly in his journal, “I have now a library of nearly nine hundred volumes, over seven hundred of which I wrote myself.” Besides the commercial disappointment, Thoreau must have found the book's critical reception somewhat disheartening also.
Three‐dimensional sinus imaging as an adjunct to two‐dimensional imaging to accelerate education and improve spatial orientation

Objectives/Hypothesis Develop a novel three-dimensional (3-D) anatomical model to assist in improving spatial knowledge of the skull base, paranasal sinuses, and adjacent structures, and validate the utilization of 3-D reconstruction to augment two-dimensional (2-D) computed tomography (CT) for the training of medical students and otolaryngology–head and neck surgery residents. Study Design Prospective study. Methods A study of 18 subjects studying sinus anatomy was conducted at a tertiary academic center during the 2011 to 2012 academic year. An image processing and 3-D modeling program was used to create a color coded 3-D scalable/layerable/rotatable model of key paranasal and skull base structures from a 2-D high-resolution sinus CT scan. Subjects received instruction of the sinus anatomy in two sessions, first through review of a 2-D CT sinus scan, followed by an educational module of the 3-D reconstruction. After each session, subjects rated their knowledge of the sinus and adjacent structures on a self-assessment questionnaire. Results Significant improvement in the perceived understanding of the anatomy was noted after the 3-D educational module session when compared to the 2-D CT session alone (P < .01). Every subject believed the addition of 3-D imaging accelerated their education of sinus anatomy and recommended its use to others. Conclusions The impression of the learners was that a 3-D educational module, highlighting key structures, is a highly effective tool to enhance the education of medical students and otolaryngology residents in sinus and skull base anatomy and its adjacent structures, specifically in conceptualizing the spatial orientation of these structures. Level of Evidence NA Laryngoscope, 124:596–601, 2014
Impact of Dynamic Corporate News Networks on Assets Return and Volatility

This paper analyzes the relationship between assets return, volatility and the centrality indicators of a corporate news network. We build a sequence of daily corporate news network for the period 2005-2011 using companies of the STOXX 50 index as nodes; the weights of the edges are the sum of the number of news items with the same topic by every pair of companies identified by the topic model methodology. The STOXX 50 includes the top 50 European companies by level of capitalization. We conducted two studies to evaluate the impact of corporate news network in the assets return dynamic. In the first study we conducted a longitudinal network analysis using the stochastic actor oriented model with daily return and news for March 2009. We found that there was a 0.55 correlation between the rate of change of the news network and the STOXX 50 index. In the second study we extended our longitudinal analysis of networks using a sequence of daily corporate news networks for the period 2005-2011. We performed the Granger causality test and the Brownian distance covariance test of independence among several measures of centrality, return and volatility. We found that the average eigenvector centrality of the corporate news networks at different points of time has an impact on return and volatility of the STOXX 50 index. Likewise, return and volatility of the STOXX 50 index also has an effect on average eigenvector centrality. These results are more significant during the most important period of the recent financial crisis (January2008-March 2009). The same results hold when we examine this relationship at the level of individual companies. So, we observe that there is a dynamic process that affects and is affected by return, volatility, and centrality. The causality tests suggest it is possible to improve the prediction of return and volatility by extracting and analyzing a network based on the common topics of news stories.
Ambiguous words are harder to learn

Relatively little is known about the role of ambiguity in adult second-language learning. In this study, native English speakers learned Dutch–English translation pairs that either mapped in a one-to-one fashion (unambiguous items) in that a Dutch word uniquely corresponded to one English word, or mapped in a one-to-many fashion (ambiguous items), with two Dutch translations corresponding to a single English word. These two Dutch translations could function as exact synonyms, corresponding to a single meaning, or could correspond to different meanings of an ambiguous English word (e.g., wisselgeld denotes the monetary meaning of the word change, and verandering denotes alteration). Several immediate and delayed tests revealed that such translation ambiguity creates a challenge for learners. Furthermore, words with multiple translations corresponding to the same meaning are more difficult to learn than words with multiple translations corresponding to multiple meanings, suggesting that a one-to-many mapping underlies this ambiguity disadvantage.
DC to 2.5 Gb/s*4 p-i-n/HBT optical receiver array with low crosstalk

A multichannel optical receiver with an In/sub 0.53/Ga/sub 0.47/As p-i-n photodetector array and a monolithic transimpedance amplifier array fabricated in AlGaAs/GaAs HBT (heterojunction bipolar transistor) technology were demonstrated. Both flip-chip rear-illuminated and wire-bonded front-illuminated detector configurations were implemented. The transimpedance was 65 dB Omega , and the 3-dB bandwidth was measured to be 2.3 GHz. By using series feedback, the transimpedance gain of each cell was matched to within 0.5 dB, and the entire array operated from a single 5-V supply. A low interchannel crosstalk of less than -40 dB was measured up to a data rate of 2 Gb/s. >
Abdominal aortic aneurysm sac shrinkage after endovascular aneurysm repair: Correlation with chronic sac pressure measurement

Objectives Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) sac shrinkage after endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) is considered to be evidence of clinical success. Exclusion of the sac from systemic pressure is the likely cause of shrinkage. We report our continuing clinical experience with the use of a permanently implantable, ultrasound-activated remote pressure transducer to measure intrasac pressure and its correlation with changes in sac diameter over time. Methods Over a 22-month period, 21 patients underwent EVAR of an infrarenal AAA with implantation of an ultrasound-activated remote pressure transducer fixed to the outside of the stent-graft and exposed to the excluded aortic sac. Intrasac pressures were measured directly with an intravascular catheter and by the remote sensor at the time of stent-graft deployment. Follow-up sac pressures were measured by remote sensor and compared with systemic arterial pressure at every follow-up visit. Mean follow-up was 11.4 ± 5.0 months (range, 1 to 26 months). Twenty patients had follow-up of ≥6 months. Mean pressure index (MPI) was calculated as the ratio of mean sac pressure to mean systemic pressure. Results Pressures could be obtained at all visits in 15 of the 21 patients. Fourteen of these 15 patients had follow-up of at least 6 months. Aneurysm sac shrinkage of >5 mm was seen in seven (50%) of these 14 patients. No aneurysm enlargement was observed in any patient. The MPI was significantly lower in patients with sac shrinkage at 6 months and at final follow-up. Conclusions Endovascular aneurysm repair results in marked reduction of sac pressure in most patients. Patients with aneurysm shrinkage after EVAR have significantly lower MPI; however, the absence of sac shrinkage does not imply persistent pressurization of the sac. Further clinical follow-up will delineate the role of long-term sac pressure monitoring in surveillance after EVAR.
Activation of PI3K signaling in Merkel cell carcinoma

Purpose: Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is an aggressive cutaneous neuroendocrine tumor, often metastatic at presentation, for which current chemotherapeutic regimens are largely ineffective. As its pathogenesis is still unknown, we hypothesized that deregulation of signaling pathways commonly activated in cancer may contribute to MCC tumorigenesis and may provide insights into targeted therapy approaches for this malignancy. Experimental Design: We retrospectively profiled 60 primary MCC samples using a SNaPshot-based tumor genotyping assay to screen for common mutations in 13 cancer genes. Results: We identified mutations in 9 (15%) MCC primary tumors, including mutations in TP53 (3 of 60) and activating mutations in the PIK3CA gene (6 of 60). Sanger sequencing of the primary MCC tumors detected one additional PIK3CA mutation (R19K) that had not been previously described in cancer. Merkel cell polyoma virus (MCPyV) was detected in 38 (66%) MCC cases and patients with MCPyV-positive cancers showed a trend toward better survival. With one exception, the presence of MCPyV and activating mutations in PIK3CA appeared mutually exclusive. We observed that signaling through the PI3K/pAKT pathway was active in one MCPyV-positive and in all MCPyV-negative MCC cell lines, as evidenced by AKT phosphorylation. Importantly, the presence of a PIK3CA- activating mutation was associated with sensitivity to treatment with ZST474, a specific phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) inhibitor, and to NVP-BEZ235, a dual PI3K/mTOR inhibitor, targeted agents under active clinical development. Conclusions: PI3K pathway activation may drive tumorigenesis in a subset of MCC and screening these tumors for PIK3CA mutations could help identify patients who may respond to treatment with PI3K pathway inhibitors. Clin Cancer Res; 18(5); 1227–36. ©2012 AACR .
Lack of evidence for thyrotropin-releasing hormone deamidation in normal and hyperthyroid human sera.

Two-hour incubations of human serum with 50 ng TRH or pyroglutamyl-histidyl-proline (TRH-OH) were performed under substrate conditions of0.2 µg substrate/ml serum. During incubations withnormal serum, 46.3 ± 1.3 (SEM) ng TRH were degraded while only 14.2 ± 5.1 ng TRH-OH were degraded (P < 0.001). During incubationswith serum from patients with hyperthyroidism, 42.7 ± 2.6 ng TRH were degraded compared to only 19.6 ± 2.0 ng TRH-OH (P < 0.001).Despite thefact that TRH degradation was significantly greater than TRH-OHdegradation in both normal and hyperthyroid serum, no formation of TRH-OH (< 3.1ng/incubation tube) from TRH was detected. Formation ofTRH-OH from TRH was also not noted when normal or hyperthyroid serum was incubated with TRH at substrate concentrations of 62.5 µg/ml serum. These data confirm other reports that TRH deamidation does not occur in normal serum and extends this observation to hyperthyroid serum.
In vitro system to study realistic pulsatile flow and stretch signaling in cultured vascular cells

We developed a novel real-time servo-controlled perfusion system that exposes endothelial cells grown in nondistensible or distensible tubes to realistic pulse pressures and phasic shears at physio...
Thermopower in Correlated Systems

Novel correlated materials discussed recently such as sodium cobaltate Na x CoO 2and iron antimonide FeSb 2show considerable promise for attaining high values of thermopower. These extend the limits set by standard semiconducting materials such as bismuth telluride Bi 2 Te 3. Understanding the scale of thermopower and its dependence on material properties is a difficult task, since the Kubo formulas are somewhat opaque. We have developed two alternative approximate formulas that are easier to interpret, while capturing the many body enhancements of thermopower. These are the “high frequency” Seebeck coefficient S ∗and the Kelvin formula S Kelvin published recently. This article provides a brief guide to these alternate formulas together with a delineation of their domain of usefulness.
Renal cystic disease and ammoniagenesis in Han:SPRD rats.

Cyst formation in conditions associated with increased renal ammoniagenesis (hypokalemia, distal renal tubular acidosis, renal mass reduction) and experimental links between increased ammoniagenesis and interstitial inflammation have suggested a role for ammonia in the pathogenesis of polycystic kidney disease (PKD). To explore this hypothesis, Han:SPRD rats, a PKD model that affects male more severely than female animals, have been used. Heterozygous cystic (Cy/+) and homozygous normal (+/+) male and female offspring of Cy/+ rats were divided at 3 wk of age into control groups drinking water and experimental groups drinking 300 mM NH4Cl, 300 mM KHCO3, 200 mM KHCO3, 200 mM KCl, 200 mM NaHCO3, or 200 mM NaCl. At 2 months of age, the rats were kept fasting from 8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. in metabolic cages and urine samples were collected under mineral oil. The rats were then weighed and anesthetized for the collection of blood and kidneys. The administration of 300 mM NH4Cl, and to a lesser extent that of 200 mM NaCl, was accompanied by an increase in the urinary excretion of ammonia and aggravation of the renal cystic disease. On the other hand, the administration of 300 mM KHCO3, 200 mM KHCO3, or 200 mM NaHCO3 lowered the urinary excretion of ammonia and markedly reduced the severity of the cystic disease and interstitial inflammation. The administration of 300 mM KHCO3, and to a lesser extent that of 200 mM KHCO3, resulted in the precipitation of calcium phosphate in the medullary collecting ducts.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
The SBA's Justification IOU

Supporters of the Small Business Administration's loan program argue that it is necessary because traditional sources of credit do not provide loans for the purposes, in the amounts, and with the terms required by small business borrowers. However, a large economic literature dismisses this argument and demonstrates no failure of the private sector to allocate loans efficiently. Absent such a clearly identified problem, the SBA's activities are simply a wasteful, politically motivated subsidy to this sector.
Opportunistic overlays: efficient content delivery in mobile environments

Middleware has become a key enabler for the development of distributed applications. Unfortunately, conventional middleware technologies do not yet offer sufficient functionality to make them suitable for mobile environments. This dissertation proposes a novel middleware approach termed opportunistic overlays and its dynamically reconfigurable support framework for building efficient mobile applications. Specifically, we address the inefficiency of content delivery introduced by node mobility and by dynamically changing system loads, in the context of publish/subscribe systems. In response to changes in physical network topology, in nodes' physical locations, and in network node behaviors, opportunistic overlays dynamically adapt event dissemination structures (i.e., broker overlays) with the goal of optimizing end-to-end delays in event delivery. Adaptation techniques include the dynamic construction of broker overlay networks, runtime changes of mobile clients' assignments to brokers, and dynamic broker load balancing. Essentially, opportunistic overlays implement a middleware-level analogue of the networking routing protocols used in wireless communications (i.e., Mobile IP, AODV, DSR and DSDV). By thus coordinating network- with middleware-level routing, opportunistic overlays can attain substantial performance improvements over non-adaptive event systems. Such improvements are due to their use of shorter network paths and better balancing of loads across event brokers. Opportunistic overlays and the adaptive methods they use are realized by a set of distributed protocols implemented in a Java-based publish/subscribe infrastructure. Comprehensive performance evaluations are performed via simulation, emulation, and with two representative applications on actual networks. Experimental results demonstrate that the opportunistic overlay approach is practically applicable and that the performance advantages attained from the use of opportunistic overlays can be substantial, in both infrastructure-based mobile environments and mobile ad hoc networks.
The Dirty Dairying Campaign and the Clean Streams Accord

Competing discourses on environmentally responsible dariy farming in New Zealand are compared and contrasted, with a particular focus on public perceptions and changes in two key industry 'accords' - the 2003 Dairying Clean Streams Accord and the 2013 Sustainable Dairying - Water Accord.
Kinetics and Mechanisms of Solid Phase Epitaxy and Competitive Processes in Silicon

Recent progress in studies of temperature dependent kinetic competition during solid phase crystallization of silicon is reviewed. Specific areas which are emphasized include: the enhancement of solid phase epitaxial growth rates by impurity-induced changes in electronic properties at the crystal/amorphous interface, the influence of impurity diffusion and precipitation in amorphous silicon on the kinetics of epitaxial growth, the effects of impurities on the kinetic competition between solid phase epitaxy and random crystallization, and the kinetics of solid phase crystallization at very high temperatures in silicon.
Eric Williams: British Capitalism and British Slavery (1987)

Just over forty years ago the University of North Carolina Press published Capitalism and Slavery.1 Its author was a young Trinidadian, Eric E. Williams, then teaching at Howard University in Washington, DC. If one criterion of a classic is its ability to reorient our most basic way of viewing an object or a concept, Eric Williams’ study supremely passes that test.
Opportunities for artificial intelligence development in the accounting domain: the case for auditing: Research Articles

This paper reviews the nature of accounting and auditing problems and the need for application of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to the discipline. The discussion includes current accounting issues for which new AI development should be fruitful, particularly auditing and assurance. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Feminist Theology, Roman Catholicism, and Alienation

The topic of this article is the effects that the writings of feminist theologians, many of whom are Roman Catholic, have upon Catholic students. The questions it attempts to answer are: Has feminist theology served to alienate American Catholics further from the church, discouraging them from identifying with the tradition or institution, or has it awakened them to retrieve the tradition in a creative way and to take responsibility within the institution and reshape it? The article further seeks to differentiate between spirituality, theology, and religious institution. How will Catholicism affect the larger culture if this generation is alienated from institutional identification? If they settle permanently on alternative forms of religious identification and spiritual fulfillment the face of Catholicism in the future will be even more conservative than it is today. However, feminist theology may be the basis for hope. Seriously attended to by the church, it could help to inform the consciousness of the next generation.
A Refractory Stage IVb Thymoma Responded Completely to a Combination of Dasatinib and Prednisone but Poorly to Either One Alone

Abstract Abstract 4925 Introduction: Thymomas are rare tumors for which there is little randomized evidence to guide treatment and therefore, therapeutic options to cure advanced malignant thymomas are limited. We hereby report the first clinical outcome of combined dasatinib and prednisone therapy in a patient with heavily treated stage IVB malignant thymoma. Case Presentation: A 41 year old white male presented with fatigue, fever and granulocytopenia. He soon developed myasthenia gravis and aplastic anemia. Computer tomography showed a mediastinal mass, pleural thickening, splenomegaly and mesenteric nodes; biopsy of mediastinal mass revealed a malignant thymoma. Prednisone for 6 weeks along with antithymocyte globulin and cyclosporine were started for myasthenia gravis and aplastic anemia. Chemotherapy for unresectable thymoma was soon initiated with ADOC (Cisplatin, Doxorubicin, Vincristine, and Cyclophosphamide), but only small partial response was noted. After failing to show response to another three lines of therapy, we commenced therapy with dasatinib 75 mg twice daily. Thymoma showed partial response to dasatinib initially but soon became resistant and progressed. When prednisone 100 mg daily was added, a complete response was observed. Conclusion: A patient with stage IVB thymic carcinoma failed to respond well 3 lines of combination chemotherapy, and neither to prednisone or dasatinib alone. When dasatinib is combined with prednisone, it induced a complete response. Disclosures: Off Label Use: Dasatinib is an oral dual BCR/ABL and Src family tyrosine kinase inhibitor. It is a potent inhibitor of Imatinib resistant KIT activation loop mutants and induces apoptosis in mast cells and leukemic cells. At higher concentrations, Dasatinib also inhibits c-Kit, PDGFR and EphedrinA2. it has currently FDA approval for treatment of adults in all phases of chronic myeloid leukemias with resistance or intolerance to prior therapy, including Gleevec. The second indication for Dasatinib, is for the treatment of Ph+ALL. A number of Phase II trials have shown activity of this agent to various solid tumors including breast and lung cancer. Imatinib showed activity in thymomas, thus the rationale for using Dasatinib in the treatment of our patient.
Characteristics and Impacts of Extratropical Rossby Wave Breaking during the Atlantic Hurricane Season

AbstractThis study investigates the characteristics of extratropical Rossby wave breaking (RWB) during the Atlantic hurricane season and its impacts on Atlantic tropical cyclone (TC) activity. It was found that RWB perturbs the wind and moisture fields throughout the troposphere in the vicinity of a breaking wave. When RWB occurs more frequently over the North Atlantic, the Atlantic main development region (MDR) is subject to stronger vertical wind shear and reduced tropospheric moisture; the basinwide TC counts are reduced, and TCs are generally less intense, have a shorter lifetime, and are less likely to make landfalls. A significant negative correlation was found between Atlantic TC activity and RWB occurrence during 1979–2013. The correlation is comparable to that with the MDR SST index and stronger than that with the Nino-3.4 index. Further analyses suggest that the variability of RWB occurrence in the western Atlantic is largely independent of that in the eastern Atlantic. The RWB occurrence in the...
Upstream social marketing strategy: An integrated marketing communications approach

Abstract This article provides an organized approach for managers to develop social marketing strategies that target upstream decision and policy makers. A conceptual application model and five-stage process is presented for an upstream social marketing strategy based on integrated marketing communications (IMC). IMC concepts are described in the context of social marketing, as well as specific stages for creating an IMC social marketing strategy; these include target audience research and determination, channel selection and integration, strategic message creation, and measurement and control. A central and novel feature of the IMC social marketing strategy model is the simultaneous targeting of an upstream decision maker and influential peripheral (upstream) audiences in order to triangulate and increase campaign effectiveness. An IMC approach to upstream social marketing ensures consistent, persuasive messages specifically crafted for the selected target audiences and coordinated through precise channels to maximize impact. This multi-channel, multi-audience approach to message creation and channel selection produces synergies that increase the potential to influence an upstream decision/policy maker.
Pheochromocytomas and Paragangliomas, Genetically Diverse and Minimalist, All at Once!

Pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas are infrequent, genetically heterogeneous neuroendocrine tumors. In this issue of Cancer Cell, Fishbein et al. report novel driver genes, pathogenic mechanisms, and markers of malignancy. Notably, the new findings support the long-held view that these tumors distinctively arise from a single driver event, either inherited or acquired.
Saving fuel using wireless vehicle-to-vehicle communication

In this paper, we compare two different connected cruise control strategies that utilize vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication to monitor multiple vehicles ahead in order to save fuel. One strategy uses direct feedback while the other is based on dynamic optimization that assigns the control action in a receding horizon fashion while relying on preview information about the vehicle immediately ahead. We demonstrate that both methods produce significant fuel improvements but the performance of the second controller depends significantly on the length of time horizon as well as the accuracy of the preview information.
Guided-mode resonance device technology: Design, fabrication, applications and prospects

We review principles and applications of nanophotonic devices based on the guided-mode resonance effect in thin periodic films. We discuss design and optimization with rigorous mathematical methods and review typical fabrication processes. Theoretical and experimental results for numerous prototype devices are provided. These include wideband reflectors, nonfocusing spatial filters, ultra-sparse reflectors and polarizers, single-layer bandpass filters, and resonant sensors. Inherent modal dynamics allow facile manipulation of resonant amplitudes, phase, polarization, and spectral bandwidth. This enables design of robust devices with minimal layer count. The guided-mode resonance concept applies in all spectral regions, from the visible to the microwave domain, with available low-loss materials.