cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Minimally Invasive Radical Nephrectomy Including Vena Cava Thrombus

Among the nearly 64,000 individuals diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) in 2017, approximately 4–9% will have tumors that extend into the inferior vena cava (IVC). Radical nephrectomy with IVC thrombectomy is known to improve survival. Minimally invasive techniques for tumor removal are growing in popularity. This chapter describes perioperative considerations as well as technical aspects of this complex surgical approach.
Erdös and Ramanujan: Legends of Twentieth Century Mathematics

The Hungarian Paul Erdos was one of the greatest mathematicians of the twentieth century and one of the most prolific in history. This article describes the unusual itinerant life of Erdos, his idiosyncrasies, and his life’s mission to spot budding young mathematicians and encourage them. Erdos was inspired by Ramanujan’s work on prime numbers and arithmetical functions. The origins of probabilistic number theory founded by Erdos and Marc Kac in the 1940s can be traced to the fundamental 1917 paper of Hardy and Ramanujan on round numbers and the remarkable story of how the Erdos–Kac collaboration came about is also told.
The Application of Computerized High Resolution Scanning Techniques to the Identification of Human Cells and Tissues

The purpose of this paper is to summarize the basic information on cell morphology useful in the microscopic diagnosis of human disease with special emphasis on morphologic identification of cancer cells. The rationale for computerized analysis of digitized cell images and the principal targets of this approach, namely, cytology of the uterine cervix, urine and sputum have been discussed. The technical and legal problems of sample preparation and the problems of sample interpretation have been outlined. A summary of present and future research trends concludes this paper.
Using Machine Learning for Identifying Ping Failure in Large Network Topology

It is well recognized in this digital world that, businesses, government, and people depend on reliable network infrastructure for all aspects of daily operations such as for i.e. Banking, retail, transportation and even socializing. Moreover, today, with the growing trend for the internet of thing, demands for a safe network management system has tremendously increased. Network failures are expensive: network downtime or outages should be avoided as it might affect business operations and might generate a tremendous cost due to the Mean Time to Repair in Network Infrastructure (MTR). This paper presents an ongoing work in exploring the use of machine learning algorithms for better diagnosis of network failure by using PING. To this end, we have analyzed 3 methods such Machine Learning (ML), Feature Selection with ML and hyperparameter tuning of ML. Within each method we used 3 algorithms such as KNN, Logistic Regression and Decision Tree algorithms and benchmarked them with each other’s in order to define the best accuracy of ping failure identification.
Quantification of Queuosine Modification Levels in tRNA from Human Cells Using APB Gel and Northern Blot

Queuosine (Q) is a hypermodified base in the wobble anticodon position of tRNAs coding for the amino acids Tyr, His, Asn, and Asp. tRNA Q-modification is introduced by a queuine tRNA-ribosyltransferase (TGT) that replaces the guanine base at G34 at these tRNAs with the modified base. tRNA Q-modification is widely distributed among prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms, but only bacteria synthesize Q-modified tRNA de novo. In mammals, tRNA Q-modifications strictly rely on the presence of gut microbiomes or diets to produce the queuine base. Despite decades of study, cellular roles of tRNA Q-modification are still not fully understood. Here we describe a method to quantify tRNA Q-modification levels in individual tRNAs from human cells based on the presence of a cis-diol in the Q modification. This cis-diol moiety slows modified tRNA migration through polyacrylamide gels supplemented with N-acryloyl-3-aminophenylboronic acid (APB) compared to the unmodified tRNA. This difference can be visualized by Northern blots using probes for specific tRNA.
A Study of Beirut Rapid Transit System Using Probabilistic Approach

The need for sustainable transportation in Lebanon has become more critical than ever as a result of the high amount of energy required by the transport sector coupled with the large quantities of greenhouse gas emissions by this sector both of which has a direct effect on the social, economic and environmental status of Lebanese citizens. A proposed project, the bus rapid transit (BRT) project supported by the World Bank, is a major step towards achieving the sustainable transportation system. Yet, the realization of this goal is highly dependent on the effectiveness of this project. This research presents a probabilistic cost-benefit analysis (CBA) on the BRT section that spans from Tabarja to Beirut. The CBA accounts for all the costs incurred to construct and operate the system, whereas the benefits considered are savings in travel time, emissions, and crash cost. Using the probabilistic approach is adopted considering the high uncertainties that surrounds the BRT design variables. The probabilistic approach is performed using Monte Carlo Simulation where the uncertain parameter in the CBA analysis are identified and their probability distributions are constructed that can better represent the variability in these parameters. This approach has proven that modal shift is a key element to the success of the project. Finally, a financial analysis is conducted showing that an operating subsidy is needed if the fare revenues are lower than 20%, thus the prominence of modal shift and the number of BRT passengers.
Visible-light optical coherence tomography investigation into vasculature changes following microprism implantation

A chronically implanted microprism in the rodent cortex enables cross-sectional imaging of all the key cortical layers. We determined the time course of recovery from this surgical implantation using visible-light optical coherence tomography angiography.
Scalable Consensus in Networks of Multiagent Systems Using High-Gain Observers

Consensus algorithms are popular in the field of multiagent systems due to their wide application in formation control, distributed estimation, sensor networks, etc. Generally, for certain classes of undirected graphs, with an increase in the network size, the second smallest eigenvalue of the graph Laplacian decreases toward zero, which leads to a slow convergence rate. We present a scalable consensus algorithm using proportional derivative (PD) control where the eigenvalues of the closed-loop Laplacian matrix are invariant with respect to the size of the network for general directed graphs. The PD controller is realized using a high-gain observer. We show that the trajectories of the closed-loop system when the high-gain observer is used can be brought arbitrarily close to the trajectories under the PD controller. Simulation results are presented to demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed algorithm.
Angry Optimism: Climate Disaster and Restoration in Kim Stanley Robinson’s Alternate Futures

Focusing on Kim Stanley Robinson’s New York 2140, 2312, and especially Aurora, this chapter shows how fiction can link human social structures and larger ecologies while rejecting both permanent despair and cruel optimism. Showing how Robinson’s indignation about our climate emergency drives his focus on economic exploitation and species extinctions, the essay investigates the increasingly complex human–animal–A.I. hybrids appearing across his corpus and considers how his advocacy of rewilding dovetails with contemporary climate policy. Relying on both concrete realism and subtler allegory, these novels prepare readers for climate devastation that spans many decades, features painful splits, and demands bold maneuvers. They invite readers to empathize with climate victims both familiar and distant and to pursue long-term transformations, not rhetorical band-aids.
A process model of tacit knowledge transfer between sales and marketing

Abstract Although an ability to generate and transfer tacit knowledge provides the basis for competitive differentiation, organizations face two primary issues when attempting to achieve this task. First, tacit knowledge, which differs from explicit knowledge in that it can only be gained through experiences, deep interactions, and learning by doing, is highly complex and therefore difficult to transfer. Second, as challenging as tacit knowledge transfer may be under the most ideal circumstances, the issue is exacerbated by the fact that sales and marketing professionals oftentimes have a dysfunctional relationship. Addressing these issues, we present and examine a theoretical model which captures the process through which tacit knowledge transfer occurs across the two functions. Study results, derived from a sample of 215 salespeople, highlight the important role interfunctional communication quality and the development of a mutual understanding play in this process. We discuss the theoretical and managerial implications arising from the study, and present opportunities for further research in the area.
The Nature, Timing, and Symptom Trajectories of Dropout From Transdiagnostic and Single-Diagnosis Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Anxiety Disorders.

Abstract Dropout from psychotherapy is common and can have negative effects for patients, providers, and researchers. A better understanding of when and why patients stop treatment early, as well as actionable factors contributing to dropout, has the potential to prevent it. Here, we examined dropout from a large randomized controlled trial of transdiagnostic versus single-diagnosis cognitive-behavioral treatment (CBT) for patients with anxiety disorders (n = 179; Barlow et al., 2017). We aimed to characterize the timing of and reasons for dropout and test whether participants who dropped out had different symptom trajectories than those who completed treatment. Results indicated that overall, the greatest risk of dropout was prior to the first treatment session. In single-diagnosis CBT, dropout risk was particularly elevated before the first session and after other early sessions, whereas in transdiagnostic CBT, dropout risk was low and stable before and during treatment. Participants most often dropped out due to failure to comply with study procedures or dissatisfaction with or desiring alternative treatment. Results from multilevel models showed that trajectories of anxiety symptoms did not significantly differ between dropouts and completers. These findings suggest that there may be specific time windows for targeted and timely interventions to prevent dropout from CBT.
Impact of slice thickness, pixel size, and CT dose on the performance of automatic contouring algorithms.

Purpose To investigate the impact of computed tomography (CT) image acquisition and reconstruction parameters, including slice thickness, pixel size, and dose, on automatic contouring algorithms. Methods Eleven scans from patients with head-and-neck cancer were reconstructed with varying slice thicknesses and pixel sizes. CT dose was varied by adding noise using low-dose simulation software. The impact of these imaging parameters on two in-house auto-contouring algorithms, one convolutional neural network (CNN)-based and one multiatlas-based system (MACS) was investigated for 183 reconstructed scans. For each algorithm, auto-contours for organs-at-risk were compared with auto-contours from scans with 3 mm slice thickness, 0.977 mm pixel size, and 100% CT dose using Dice similarity coefficient (DSC), Hausdorff distance (HD), and mean surface distance (MSD). Results Increasing the slice thickness from baseline value of 3 mm gave a progressive reduction in DSC and an increase in HD and MSD on average for all structures. Reducing the CT dose only had a relatively minimal effect on DSC and HD. The rate of change with respect to dose for both auto-contouring methods is approximately 0. Changes in pixel size had a small effect on DSC and HD for CNN-based auto-contouring with differences in DSC being within 0.07. Small structures had larger deviations from the baseline values than large structures for DSC. The relative differences in HD and MSD between the large and small structures were small. Conclusions Auto-contours can deviate substantially with changes in CT acquisition and reconstruction parameters, especially slice thickness and pixel size. The CNN was less sensitive to changes in pixel size, and dose levels than the MACS. The results contraindicated more restrictive values for the parameters should be used than a typical imaging protocol for head-and-neck.
Stereotyping Latinas: candidate gender and ethnicity on the political stage

Current scholarship analyzes how gender influences the character-based traits and belief-based traits that women candidates are attributed. Yet little is known about the effect of the intersection ...
Drifting to the top? Disentangling mechanisms influencing the turnover rate of popular music

What causes turnover on the Billboard charts? The neutral model of cultural evolution, which assumes that taste is transmitted via an unbiased copying process, provides precise predictions regardin...
Potassium in Plant Nutrition

Publisher Summary It is often difficult to assign specific roles to potassium within closely related physiological processes as unlike nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium, and magnesium, the potassium ion does not enter into permanent organic combinations in plants, but exists as soluble inorganic and organic salts. However, potassium is essential for various metabolic activities of living cells. A lack of sufficient potassium for normal growth causes disturbances in one or more vital plant processes resulting in the appearance of visual symptoms of disorder. By comparing certain constituents and properties of plants starved for potassium with those of normal plants, much insight has been gained regarding the influence of potassium on the physiology of plants. Potassium affects the synthesis of simple sugars and starch, translocation of carbohydrates, reduction of nitrates and synthesis of proteins, and helps in normal cell division. Potassium plays a role in the maintenance of turgor in plant cells as well as in the formation of oils and in the enhancement of disease resistance.
Accelerated Schools: A Decade of Evolution

The Accelerated Schools Project is designed to create schools that provide enriched and accelerated learning opportunities for all students throughout the curriculum. This chapter assesses the first decade of Accelerated Schools which has grown from two pilot schools in 1986 to almost 1000 schools in 1996. The key factors and changes in the development of the project are considered in light of the lessons learned in making sense of large scale change.
Exploring Interventions for LGBT Caregivers: Issues and Examples

Abstract LGBT caregiving for midlife and older adults facing chronic illness or disability as well as the development and evaluation of interventions targeting LGBT caregivers remains fundamentally unexplored. Caregivers regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity often juggle multiple roles and responsibilities leading to increased stress and distress. However, largely due to discrimination and discriminatory policies, many LGBT caregivers face barriers at multiple levels of service provision that can exacerbate stress and negatively impact caregiver and care recipient quality of life. This article highlights many of these obstacles and provides examples of intervention strategies designed to assist LGBT caregivers ranging from interventions aimed at the individual and interpersonal levels of service provision to changes needed at the social policy level. As an example of an individual or interpersonal level of intervention designed to assist LGBT caregivers, the SURE 2 framework is present...
Vortex shear modulus and lattice melting in twin boundary channels of YBa2Cu3O7- delta.

Melting of the vortex lattice is probed directly by investigating the flow of vortices in channels created by twin boundaries. The angular-dependent resistivity {rho}{sub {ital T},{ital H}}({theta}) has a maximum above the melting temperature {ital T}{sub {ital m}} and crosses over to a minimum below, corresponding to the onset of a shear modulus which reduces vortex flow in the channels. A peak effect in the critical current below {ital T}{sub {ital m}} is accompanied by a sharp increase in the twin boundary pinning accommodation angle. We calculate the effective twin boundary pinning energy by relating the accommodation angle to a thermal depinning angle. {copyright} {ital 1996 The American Physical Society.}
THE EFFECTS OF MUTAGEN-SENSITIVE MUTANTS OF DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER IN NONMUTAGENIZED CELLS

The effects of 13 mutagen-sensitive (mus) mutants (representing seven loci) on mitotic chromosome stability in nonmutagenized cells have been examined genetically. To do this, mus-bearing flies heterozygous for the recessive somatic-cell marker, multiple wing hairs (mwh), were examined for increased frequencies of mwh clones in the wing blade. Mutants at the mus-103, mus-104 and mus-106 loci do not affect the frequency of mwh clones, while mus-101, mus-102, mus-105 and mus-109 alleles cause increases in the frequency of mwh clones. These data show that the wild-type alleles of latter four loci specify functions that are required for chromosome stability in nonmutagenized cells. Analysis of the size distribution of mwh clones produced by these mutants suggests that most chromosome instability caused by these mutants is the consequence of chromosome breakage; in the presence of mus-105 and mus-109 alleles a small fraction of the mwh clones are produced by an event (mitotic recombination, mutation, nondisjunction) that produces euploid clones. To inquire whether any of the extant alleles of the mus-101, mus-102, mus-105 and mus-109 loci might be leaky alleles of loci that carry out essential mitotic functions, chromosome stability in females homozygous for alleles of these loci has been compared to that of females carrying one dose of a mutant over a deficiency for that mus locus. These comparisons show that the extant alleles at the mus-101, mus-109 and mus-105 loci are all leaky mutants. It is suggested that all three of these loci may specify essential mitotic functions.
The Case for Context-Bounded Verification of Concurrent Programs

Concurrent programs are difficult to get right. Subtle interactions among communicating threads in the program can result in behaviors unexpected to the programmer. These behaviors typically result in bugs that occur late in the software development cycle or even after the software is released. Such bugs are difficult to reproduce and difficult to debug. As a result, they have a huge adverse impact on the productivity of programmers and the cost of software development. Therefore, tools that can help detect and debug concurrency errors will likely provide a significant boost to software productivity.
Proliferative Assays for B Cell Function

This unit describes procedures for measuring the capacity of purified B cells to undergo proliferation. The method centers on the use of polyclonal stimulating agents (mitogens) because these agents stimulate the majority of B cells and because the alternative (measurement of antigen-induced proliferation) requires the laborious procedures of isolating antigen-specific B cells (which are otherwise present in too low a concentration in whole B cell populations). Cross-linking of the B cell antigen receptor, surface immunoglobulin (sIg), by specific antigen stimulates cells to proliferate prior to secreting Ig. For this purpose, monoclonal or heterologous affinity-purified anti-Ig antibodies are used. B cells can also be stimulated to proliferate by antigen-nonspecific reagents (mitogens), and it is also critical to study the role of these mitogens in B cell responses. Both of these systems have the advantage that the majority of B cells will be activated. The first basic protocol describes B cell proliferation induced by two commonly used stimulants--anti-Ig antibody (either anti-IgM or anti-IgD) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS)--as measured by incorporation of [3H]thymidine into dividing cells. Alternate protocols describe other commonly used mitogens as well as other means of measuring cell proliferation.
Compensatory Stereotyping in Interracial Encounters

The judgment dimensions of competency and warmth capture much of the space into which our perceptions of individuals and groups fall. Though these dimensions are orthogonal to each other, they may also be inversely related, as perceivers may compensate for low ratings on one with high ratings on the other (Judd, James-Hawkins, Yzerbyt, & Kashima, 2005). We predicted that Whites would perceive Black targets as warmer but less competent relative to a White target, and that their behavior would be in accord with these perceptions. In two studies, behavioral indicators of warmth and competence (as well as explicit judgments) were assessed among White participants who anticipated interacting with a Black or White partner. Black targets were judged and received treatment consistent with low competency but high warmth perceptions. In Study 1, these indicators were negatively correlated only when the target was Black, and particularly among those high in prejudice. The data are discussed in terms of the functions of compensatory stereotyping and importance of considering multiple indicators of judgment and behavior in anticipated or actual interracial interactions.
Origin of kinetochore microtubules in Chinese hamster ovary cells

We have attempted to determine whether chromosomal microtubules arise by kinetochore nucleation or by attachment of pre-existing microtubules. The appearance of new microtubules was investigated in vivo on kinetochores to which microtubules had not previously been attached. The mitotic apparatus of Chinese hamster ovary cells was reconstructed in three dimensions from 0.25 μm thick serial sections, and the location of chromosomes, kinetochore outer disks, centrioles, virus-like particles and microtubules determined. Central to the interpretation of these data is a synchronization scheme in which cells entered Colcemid arrest without forming mitotic microtubules. Cells were synchronized by the excess thymidine method and exposed to 0.3 μg/ml Colcemid for 8 h. Electron microscopic examination showed that this Colcemid concentration eliminated all microtubules. Mitotic cells were collected by shaking off, and cell counts showed that over 95% of the cells were in interphase when treatment began and thus were arrested without the kinetochores having been previously attached to microtubules. Cells were then incubated in fresh medium and fixed for high voltage electron microscopy at intervals during recovery. — In early stages of recovery, short microtubules were observed near and in contact with kinetochores and surrounding centrioles. Microtubules were associated with kinetochores facing away from centrosomes and far from any centrosomal microtubules, and thus were not of centrosomal origin. At a later stage of recovery, long parallel bundles of microtubules, terminating in the kinetochore outer disk, extended from kinetochores both toward and away from centrosomes. Because microtubules had never been attached to kinetochores, the possibility that kinetochore microtubles were initiated by microtubule stubs resistant to Colcemid was eliminated. Therefore we conclude that mammalian kinetochores can initiate microtubules in vivo, thus serving as microtubule organizing centers for the mitotic spindle, and that formation of kinetochore-microtubule bundles is not dependent on centrosomal activity.
On Comparison of Experiment and Theory for Ultrasonic Attenuation in Polycrystalline Niobium

In this communication comparison of experimental attenuation results in polycrystalline niobium (Zeng et al., J. Nondestruct. Eval. 29:93–103, 2010) with scattering-induced attenuation models is reexamined. Reasonable agreement is found between those results and the standard Stanke and Kino model (in J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 75:665–681, 1984) contradicting the conclusions of Zeng et al.
Influence of blood flow occlusion on muscle oxygenation characteristics and the parameters of the power-duration relationship.

It was previously (Monod H, Scherrer J. Ergonomics 8: 329–338, 1965) postulated that blood flow occlusion during exercise would reduce critical power (CP) to 0 Watts (W), while not altering the cur...
A Music Professor Views Music Libraries

Describes a number of musical resources found in music libraries, and explains how these resources expedite my work as a faculty member.
Rectus muscle flap tear as an independent cause of restricted motility

Most published cases of rectus muscle flap tear have been associated with orbital trauma of various degrees of severity. When they accompany an orbital fracture, however, it is difficult to determine whether the flap tear is merely an incidental additional finding or a major contributing cause of the resulting restriction. How to treat the flap itself remains an open question. We report a 24-year-old man with an inferior rectus muscle flap tear caused by direct laceration of the muscle. The major finding was a "reverse leash" vertical restriction. Discarding the flap instead of reattaching it did not prevent a successful result. Our case supports the proposition that rectus muscle flap tear can be a restriction-producing entity.
MICROSCOPIC STUDY OF GROUND COAT AND COVER COAT ENAMEL REACTIONS1

A study of ground coat and cover coat enamel reactions showing that the degree of susceptibility of enamels to furnace gases is easily classified by cross-section examination' under the microscope. The excess intermingling of the ground and cover coats and interaction between ingredients can be determined. Lack of firing range of the two coats is easily noted. The tendency of an excess gasifying of the enamel on the ware is seen. The high viscosity of enamels which do not allow the ready escape of occluded air and gases, thereby forming large bubbles and resulting weak structure, is studied. Results of overfiring and underfiring are summarized.
Capabilities of Single Particle Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry for the Size Measurement of Nanoparticles: A Case Study on Gold Nanoparticles

The increasing application of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) in consumer and medical products has motivated the development of single-particle inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (spICP-MS) for characterizing nanoparticles under realistic environmental exposure conditions. Recent studies have established a set of metrological criteria and evaluated the feasibility of spICP-MS for sizing or quantifying various highly commercialized ENMs. However, less is known about the performance of spICP-MS for detecting nanoparticles with sizes greater than 80 nm. This paper presents a systematic study on spICP-MS for accurate size measurement of gold nanoparticles from 10 to 200 nm. We show that dwell time contributes significantly to the quality of data, with the optimal dwell time that limits split particle events, particle coincidences and false positives being 10 ms. A simple approach to correct for split particle events is demonstrated. We show that transient features of single particle events can be te...
A Bayesian test of the product cycle hypothesis applied to Japanese crude steel production

Abstract It is postulated that the product cycle of crude steel production may be observed as a gradual shift in the time trend parameter in the family of the CES production functions. Quarterly data from 1957 to 1973 are used for the empirical test. Posterior pdf's for the join point as well as for the adjustment parameter are derived, and they indicate that Japanese crude steel production passed from the new to standardized product stage between 1968 and 1972. With the arrival of the standardized state it is noted that the industry has become less competitive.
Stalk segment 5 of the yeast plasma membrane H(+)-ATPase. Labeling with a fluorescent maleimide reveals a conformational change during glucose activation.

Abstract Glucose is well known to cause a rapid, reversible activation of the yeast plasma membrane H+-ATPase, very likely mediated by phosphorylation of two or more Ser/Thr residues near the C terminus. Recent mutagenesis studies have shown that glucose-dependent activation can be mimicked constitutively by amino acid substitutions in stalk segment 5 (S5), an α-helical stretch connecting the catalytic part of the ATPase with transmembrane segment 5 (Miranda, M., Allen, K. E., Pardo, J. P., and Slayman, C. W. (2001)J. Biol. Chem. 276, 22485–22490). In the present work, the fluorescent maleimide Alexa-488 has served as a probe for glucose-dependent changes in the conformation of S5. Experiments were carried out in a “3C” version of the ATPase, from which six of nine native cysteines had been removed by site-directed mutagenesis to eliminate background labeling by Alexa-488. In this construct, three of twelve cysteines introduced at various positions along S5 (A668C, S672C, and D676C) reacted with the Alexa dye in a glucose-independent manner, as shown by fluorescent labeling of the 100 kDa Pma1 polypeptide and by isolation and identification of the corresponding tryptic peptides. Especially significant was the fact that three additional cysteines reacted with Alexa-488 more rapidly (Y689C) or only (V665C and L678C) in plasma membranes from glucose-metabolizing cells. The results support a model in which the S5 α-helix undergoes a significant change in conformation to expose positions 665, 678, and 689 during glucose-dependent activation of the ATPase.
Variations in the Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Pathway Predict Pulmonary Complications

Background Clinical factors predicting pulmonary complications after lung resection have been well described, whereas the role of genetics is unknown. The vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling pathway has been linked to acute lung injury. We hypothesized that genetic variations in this pathway may be associated with postoperative pulmonary complications after lung resection. Methods One hundred ninety-six single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 17 genes in the VEGF pathway were genotyped in a discovery set of 264 patients and a replication set of 264 patients who underwent lobectomy for lung cancer. Multivariable analysis adjusting for baseline clinical factors was used to identify SNPs associated with pulmonary complications. Cumulative and classification and regression tree (CART) analyses were used to further stratify risk groups. Results The overall number of pulmonary complications was 164/528 (31%). The effects of 6 SNPs were consistent in the discovery and replication sets (pooled p value FLT1 resulted in a 1.50-fold increased risk (1.15–1.96; p = 0.003). A cumulative effect for the number of risk genotypes and complications was also evident ( p p = 4.44 × 10 –6 ). Regression tree analysis identified potential gene-gene interactions between FLT1 :rs9319425 and RAF1: rs713178. The addition of the 6 SNPs to the clinical model increased the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve by 6.8%. Conclusions Genetic variations in the VEGF pathway are associated with risk of pulmonary complications after lobectomy. This may offer insight into the underlying biological mechanisms of pulmonary complications.
Proterozoic Evolution of the Mojave Crustal Province as Preserved in the Ivanpah Mountains, Southeastern California

Abstract In the western U.S., numerous exposures of Precambrian crustal rocks were exhumed from mid-crustal depths during Cenozoic tectonic events and provide a view into the deep crust. This natural laboratory provides an excellent opportunity to study orogenic and continent-forming processes at deeper levels. The Ivanpah Mountains of southeastern California contain exposures of Paleoproterozoic migmatites and banded gneisses that belong to the Mojave crustal province. New, detailed U–Pb geochronology of monazite and zircon from ortho- and paragneisses reveal the timing of the formation of these rocks and multiple periods of metamorphism and magmatism. Paragneisses have detrital zircon populations of dominantly 1.80–2.15 Ga (dominant) and 2.4–2.8 Ga, although the youngest detrital zircon grain is 1.754 ± 24 Ga. Values of δ18O(zircon) of the two detrital age populations are 7.0 ± 2.2‰ and 6.3 ± 1.4‰ (2SD), respectively, consistent with original, igneous values. Based on the 1.76 Ga age of metamorphic zircon rims, the metasediments were intruded by a calc-alkaline magmatic suite including gabbro, tonalite, and porphyritic granite at 1.76 Ga, although the contacts are obscured by pervasive metamorphism and deformation. U–Pb ages of metamorphic overgrowths on detrital zircons from the paragneisses indicate multiple events at ∼1.76, 1.74, 1.70 and 1.67 Ga which documents a periodicity of tectonism through time. The oxygen isotope ratios of the metamorphic zircon overgrowths from the paragneisses remained relatively constant through time within each sample, consistent with growth during in situ partial melting. However, oxygen isotope ratios of zircons from 1.74 Ga leucocratic material are lower in δ18O, and therefore could not have been generated by partial melting of the adjacent paragneiss. Monazite from both igneous and metasedimentary rocks preserves two periods of growth at 1.75 and 1.67 Ga. In situ, U–Pb dating of monazite reveals that 1.67 Ga monazite inclusions are found in major rock-forming minerals, and therefore we interpret this as the timing of fabric formation and migmitization, which is younger than previously believed and is interpreted to be the dominant metamorphic pulse in the protracted middle crustal tectonism. Thermobarometry indicates peak metamorphic conditions of ∼3.5 kb and ∼740 °C, which is consistent with partial melting and the metamorphic mineral assemblage in these rocks (sillimanite + K-feldspar, muscovite absent). This paper shows (1) multiple pulses identified within 100 Ma orogeny, (2) zircon components and their overgrowths demonstrate mixing of Archean, 1.8 and younger reservoirs, (3) low pressure granulite facies metamorphism occurred at 1.67 Ga and may have been related to continental extension of a tectonically over-thickened crust.
Eigenvalues of Adjoints of Certain Composition Operators and Weighted Composition Operators

We look at the point-spectrum of the adjoints of certain composition operators on the Hardy–Hilbert space, for which the composition map has two distinguished fixed points: one inside the unit disk and one on the unit circle. In particular, we show that the point-spectrum of such operators contains a disk centered at the origin, and each eigenvalue in that disk has infinite multiplicity. We also identify for every such operator a subspace of the Hardy–Hilbert space which is invariant for the operator and on which it acts like a weighted shift. Finally, we generalize these results to weighted composition operators.
Seeing facial motion affects auditory processing in noise.

Speech perception, especially in noise, may be maximized if the perceiver observes the naturally occurring visual-plus-auditory cues inherent in the production of spoken language. Evidence is conflicting, however, about which aspects of visual information mediate enhanced speech perception in noise. For this reason, we investigated the relative contributions of audibility and the type of visual cue in three experiments in young adults with normal hearing and vision. Relative to static visual cues, access to the talker’s phonetic gestures in speech production, especially in noise, was associated with (a) faster response times and sensitivity for speech understanding in noise, and (b) shorter latencies and reduced amplitudes of auditory N1 event-related potentials. Dynamic chewing facial motion also decreased the N1 latency, but only meaningful linguistic motions reduced the N1 amplitude. The hypothesis that auditory–visual facilitation is distinct to properties of natural, dynamic speech gestures was partially supported.
Motility: Achalasia subtyping directs therapy.

Post hoc analysis of treatment responses from a European achalasia trial confirms that subtyping of patients with achalasia does help direct therapy. The high success rates for types I and II achalasia with either pneumatic dilatation or laparoscopic Heller myotomy support the recommendation that available local expertise should be a major consideration in treatment choice.
Nitridation of Si(111) by nitrogen atoms. II

The reaction between Si(111) and nitrogen atoms has been investigated by LEED, Auger, and electron energy loss (ELS) techniques. The early stage of the reaction at 850-1050 C involves the formation of a chemically reacted monolayer which grows in islands. The sticking coefficient for the submonolayer is estimated to be of the order of unity. Two electronically different surface structures can be formed during these stages, yielding the '8 x 8' and the quadruplet LEED patterns; the quadruplet unit cell is the one with the highest nitrogen density. A pure quadruplet structure is obtained from samples with a carbon contamination of the Si monolayer of about 5 pct. During the multilayer stages, the influence of the substrate is not as important, and the reactions at 850 C and above produce quadruplet-like local structures.
Resiniferatoxin and its analogs provide novel insights into the pharmacology of the vanilloid (capsaicin) receptor.

Capsaicin, the pungent constituent of chili peppers, represents the paradigm for the capsaicinoids or vanilloids, a family of compounds shown to stimulate and then desensitize specific subpopulations of sensory receptors, including C-polymodal nociceptors, A-delta mechanoheat nociceptors and warm receptors of the skin, as well as enteroceptors of thin afferent fibers. An exciting recent advance in the field has been the finding that resiniferatoxin (RTX), a naturally occurring diterpene containing a homovanillic acid ester, a key structural motif of capsaicin, functions as an ultrapotent capsaicin analog. For most of the responses characteristic of capsaicin, RTX is 100–10,000 fold more potent. Structure/activity analysis indicates, however, that RTX and related homovanillyl-diterpene esters display distinct spectra of activity. Specific [3H]RTX binding provides the first direct proof for the existence of vanilloid receptors. We expect that the RTX class of vanilloids will promote rapid progress in understanding of vanilloid structure/activity requirements and mechanism.
Fiber optic confocal laser Doppler velocimeter using an all-fiber laser source for high resolution measurements.

We demonstrate and analyze a novel fiber optic confocal laser Doppler velocimeter using an ultra-narrow linewidth all-fiber laser source centered at around 1550 nm (eye-safe region). The narrow spectral linewidth of the fiber laser (<10 kHz) is used to achieve an extremely high velocity resolution (~0.0075 m/s), which is an order of magnitude better as compared to the commonly used semiconductor diode lasers or He-Ne lasers based systems. The directional optical circulator based design used in our system is much simpler to implement and is power conserving compared to the conventional Michelson interferometer based designs. We perform Gaussian beam propagation analysis by using the ABCD law to study the performance of the confocal design. The analysis is in good accord with our experimental results. The confocal design is capable of providing ultrahigh spatial resolution (~5μm, in both lateral and longitudinal directions) for high-precision velocity distribution measurement applications.
Surgical technique and outcomes in the treatment of spinal cord ependymomas, part 1: intramedullary ependymomas.

BACKGROUND: Intramedullary spinal ependymomas are rare tumors. OBJECTIVE: To provide a large retrospective review in the modern neuroimaging era from a tertiary center where aggressive surgical resection is favored. METHODS: Charts of intramedullary spinal ependymomas treated between 1983 and 2006 were reviewed. RESULTS: Sixty-seven cases were reviewed. The mean age was 45.6 years (range, 11-78 years) with a male-to-female ratio of 2:1. The most common location was the cervical spine, followed by the thoracic and lumbar spine. The average duration of symptoms was 33 months, with the most common symptom being pain and/or dysesthesias, followed by weakness, numbness, and urinary or sexual symptoms. Gross total resection was achieved in 55 patients and a subtotal resection was performed in 12 patients; 9 patients were treated with adjuvant radiation therapy. Mean follow-up was 32 months. The mean McCormick neurological grade at last follow-up was 2.0. The preoperative outcome correlated significantly with postoperative outcome (P , .001). A significant number of patients who initially worsened improved at their 3-month follow-up examination. Outcomes were significantly worse in patients undergoing subtotal resection with or without radiation therapy (P , .05). There were 3 recurrences. The overall complication rate was 34%. The primary complications were wound infections or cerebrospinal fluid leaks. CONCLUSION: Spinal cord ependymomas are difficult lesions to treat. Aggressive surgical resection is associated with a high overall complication rate. However, when gross total resection can be achieved, overall outcomes are excellent and the recurrence rate is low.
The prospects for developing a vaccine against Stapphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus aureus is an important bacterial pathogen with multiple virulence factors. The prevalence of antibiotic resistance among clinical isolates means that new vaccine strategies to prevent staphylococcal infections are needed. An ideal vaccine would induce antibodies to prevent bacterial adherence, promote opsonophagocytic killing by leukocytes and neutralize toxic secreted proteins.
Uptake and metabolism of female sex steroids by isolated small neurons and other cell fractions from the rat medial basal hypothalamus.

Rat medial basal hypothalami (MBH) and sections of cerebral cortex (CC) were dissociated with trypsin to prepare single cells and subcellular fractions. They were then separated into four fractions on a discontinuous sucrose gradient. The small neurons in Fraction D were highly purified. Fraction A had synaptosomes, myelin and other cell particulates. Fraction B had glial cells, neurons and a few synaptosomes. Fraction C had large neurons and red blood cells. All four fractions contained LHRH, but most (62.5%) of this hormone was present in Fraction A. Dissociated cell suspensions were incubated with [3H]-steroids, with and without a 100-fold excess of unlabeled steroids, then separated on sucrose gradients. In most fractions the total uptake and specific uptake of [3H]-progesterone, [3H]-5α-pregnane-3,20-dione (5α-dihydroprogesterone) and [3H]-l7β-estradiol were greater for the dissociated cells from the MBH than the CC. The dissociated cells and cell particulates in all four fractions from the MBH and CC metabolized progesterone, 5α-dihydroprogesterone and l7β-estradiol. These results indicate that hypothalamic neurons contain small amounts of LHRH and retain the ability to take up and metabolize progesterone, 5α-dihydroprogesterone and 17β-estradiol.
A single-machine, single-wafer-processing, multiple-lots-per-carrier scheduling problem to minimize the sum of lot completion times

A high volume/high mix wafer fabrication facility processes customer orders (or lots) that are smaller in size. Because of their small sizes, a number of these lots are transported together in a carrier from one machine to another for processing. This is in contrast to transporting them individually, which would lead to an excessive number of mostly empty carriers, thereby resulting in a situation that would be prone to congestion and delays. At a machine, the wafers contained in a carrier are processed one-at-a-time. The problem that we address in this paper is to configure a given set of identical carriers of known capacity with a given number of lots of various sizes for processing at a machine so that the sum of the completion times of the lots at the machine is minimized. The processing time of a carrier is the sum of the processing times of the wafers in it, and the completion time of each lot in a carrier is the same being equal to the completion time of the carrier. To develop an effective solution methodology, first, we consider carriers of an unlimited capacity. We develop some structural properties for this version of the problem that readily lead to its solution for the case of same-sized lots, and also, that help in devising an effective procedure for its solution when the lots are of different sizes. Then, we consider identical carriers of finite and known capacity and show that the problem is readily solvable if the lots are of the same size. For different-sized lots, we present a branch-and-bound-based method that exploits the structural properties that we develop. For the testbed of data used, the results of our experimental investigation reveal the efficacy of our branch-and-bound method over the direct solution by CPLEX 12.2 of two different mixed integer programming formulations of the problem. The proposed branch-and-bound method has the tendency of solving a problem at the root node itself, while CPLEX 12.2 cannot solve large-sized instances due to excessive memory requirements.
Placement of the diaphragmatic vertebra in catarrhines: implications for the evolution of dorsostability in hominoids and bipedalism in hominins.

A fundamental adaptation to orthograde posture and locomotion amongst living hominoid primates is a numerically reduced lumbar column, which acts to stiffen the lower back and reduce injuries to the interver- tebral discs. A related and functionally complementary strategy of spinal stability is a caudal position of the dia- phragmatic vertebra relative to the primitive condition found in nonhominoid primates and most other mammals. The diaphragmatic vertebra marks the transition in verte- bral articular facet (zygapophysis) orientation, which ei- ther resists (prediaphragmatic) or allows (postdiaphrag- matic) trunk movement in the sagittal plane (i.e., flexion and extension). Unlike most mammals, which have dorso- mobile spines (long lumbar columns and cranially placed diaphragmatic vertebrae) for running and leaping, homi- noids possess dorsostable spines (short lumbar columns and caudally placed diaphragmatic vertebrae) adapted to orthogrady and antipronogrady. In contrast to humans and other extant hominoids, all known early hominin par- tial vertebral columns demonstrate cranial displacement of the diaphragmatic vertebra. To address this difference, variation in diaphragmatic placement is assessed in a large sample of catarrhine primates. I show that while hominoids are characterized by modal common placement of diaphragmatic and last rib-bearing vertebrae in general, interspecific differences in intraspecific patterns of varia- tion exist. In particular, humans and chimpanzees show nearly identical patterns of diaphragmatic placement. A scenario of hominin evolution is proposed in which early hominins evolved cranial displacement from the ancestral hominid condition of common placement to achieve effec- tive lumbar lordosis during the evolution of bipedal loco- motion. Am J Phys Anthropol 148:111-122, 2012. V C 2012