cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Fifty years of sociological leadership at Social Science and Medicine

In this review article, we examine some of the conceptual contributions of sociology of health and illness over the past fifty years. Specifically, we focus on research dealing with medicalization, the management of stigma, research on adherence and compliance, and patient-doctor interaction. We show how these themes that originated within sociology, diffused in other disciplines. Sociology in Social Science and Medicine started as an applied research tradition but morphed into a robust, stand-alone social science tradition.
Integration on Manifolds

The integral of an n-form on an n-manifold is defined by piecing together integrals over sets in ℝn using a partition of unity subordinate to an atlas. The change-of-variables theorem guarantees that the integral is well defined, independent of the choice of atlas and partition of unity. Two basic theorems of integral calculus, the change-of-variables theorem and Stokes’ theorem, are discussed in detail along with some applications.
Bronchocentric granulomatosis with mucus impaction due to bronchogenic carcinoma. An association with clinical relevance.

Abstract Objective.—To describe an unexpected inflammatory process associated with malignancy in the lung and to postulate a new mode of pathogenesis. Design.—Retrospective review of surgical pathologic findings. Setting.—Academic hospital pathology department. Patients.—Four patients, 2 men and 2 women, ranging in age from 45 to 74 years, each of whom had a solitary mass on chest radiographs. Interventions.—Pulmonary lobectomy. Main Outcome Measure.—Histopathologic identification of bronchocentric granulomatosis. Results.—Accompanying a bronchogenic carcinoma in each case was a necrotizing chronic granulomatous reaction centered around bronchioles that were plugged with mucus, necrotic detritus from the tumor, lipid, or a combination of these substances. Eosinophils were present in small numbers in one case. The pathologic findings characterize bronchocentric granulomatosis. Conclusions.—The presence of bronchocentric granulomatosis in the biopsy of a mass does not exclude the presence of an accompanying...
Crystal forms of α2-tropomyosin

Abstract α2-Tropomyosin crystals can be distinguished from those obtained from unfractionated tropomyosin by phase contrast microscopy and by their electron microscopic appearance after thin sectioning and negative staining. The overlapping of two conventional kite-shaped tropomyosin nets gives projections that are similar to those obtained from the new α2-tropomyosin crystals. Both symmetrical and unsymmetrical overlap patterns were observed. These crystals may prove to be useful for X-ray diffraction studies because of their presumably higher protein densities.
From Insect to Mammal: Complications of the Bioassay

The bioassay is a test procedure which endeavors to use the occurrence of a unique behavioral or physiological response to evaluate the various steps involved in the chemical fractionation, isolation, and identification of the active compounds which occur in an animal’s chemical communication system. It is usually assumed that the animal which normally perceives the chemical signal under investigation is best suited to act as the biological detector for the presence of active compounds. Therefore, the central element in the bioassay is the experimental animal with its range of sensory capabilities and its behavioral and physiological repetoire. Accordingly, the typical bioassay represents a coalition between natural product chemistry, sensory physiology, and ethology. Each of these disciplines has its own historical perspective, theoretical expectation, armament of technique and experimental strategy. Consequently, it is easy to appreciate how it is that complications should arise from time to time in the design and execution of a suitable bioassay. Since the intricacies of natural product chemistry have already been thoroughly evaluated, I shall concentrate on the complications which arise in the interaction between sensory physiology and ethology.
Uncertainty analysis of axial temperature and Seebeck coefficient measurements

Experimental investigations of solid materials at elevated temperatures rely on the optimized thermal design of the measurement system, as radiation becomes a predominant source of heat loss which can lead to large uncertainty in measured temperature and related physical properties of a test sample. Advancements in surface temperature measurements have reduced thermal losses arising from the cold-finger effect using axially inserted thermocouples and from radiation using shields or other thermal guards. The leading technology for temperature sensing at temperatures up to ∼900 °C makes use of these design features for measuring thermopower, yet uncertainty analysis estimation of this technique is not known. This work makes use of finite element modeling to determine spatial temperature distributions to obtain the upper limit of confidence expected for the axially inserted thermocouple approach when a heated radiation shield is incorporated into the design. Using an axially inserted thermocouple to measure the sample surface temperature, the temperature variations across the sample hot and cold surfaces at 900 °C for a temperature drop of 0, 5, and 10 °C are calculated to be as low as 0.02, 0.21, and 0.41 °C, respectively, when a heated radiation shield is employed. Uniform temperature distribution on the thermocouple cross-wire geometry indicates that the axial thermocouple measurement design is indeed effective for suppressing the cold-finger effect. Using a heated radiation shield is found to significantly reduce the temperature gradient across the thermocouples.
Simultaneous Design of Smooth Switching State-Feedback LPV Control

This paper presents an approach to simultaneously design smooth switching state-feedback LPV controllers. Using hysteresis switching strategy, a family of mixed $ICC/\mathscr{H}_{\infty}$ LPV controllers are designed to stabilize the open-loop system over each subregion and switching region. This control problem is formulated into Parametric Linear Matrix Inequalities (PLMIs) and can be numerically solved by convex optimization algorithms. A tunable cost function consisting of switching smoothness index and output system performance index is proposed to solve for the optimal LPV controller. With given robustness level, switching smoothness is improved by tuning the cost function to trade-off switching smoothness and weighted output performance. To demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed approach and balance output performances and switching smoothness, a vibratory model of flexible Blended-Wing-Body (BWB) airplane is applied. Simulation results show that switching smoothness can be improved and balanced with output performance by proposed switching controller design approach.
The effects of inflow conditions on vertical axis wind turbine wake structure and performance

Abstract The behavior of wind turbines wakes is of considerable interest, especially in the context of wind farms where wake-turbine interactions are important. Here we investigate experimentally the wake structure of a straight-bladed vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT), both in uniform flow, and immersed in a thick turbulent boundary layer. We use high resolution experimental data obtained with particle image velocimetry (PIV) over a range of tip speed ratios typical of the operation of vertical axis wind turbines. A highly three-dimensional wake was observed, with strong deflections in both the spanwise and wall-normal directions. The deflection toward the wall may help explain the larger equivalent roughness length observed for VAWT wind farms. Three distinct regions were identified in the wake, marked by the presence of vortex streets, including a previously unreported vortex street downstream of the advancing blade at the blade passing frequency. Increasing the tip speed ratio decreased the spacing between the vortices in vortex streets downstream of the advancing and retreating blades, causing them to appear more as vortex sheets, with increased velocity deficits and increased turbulent kinetic energy. The wake decays rapidly downstream of the turbine, with significant momentum recovery and turbulence reduction after only three turbine diameters. Finally, inflow conditions do not affect the overall wake structure, though an increase in the wake velocity deficit and a decrease in the near wake turbulence were observed in the boundary layer inflow condition, despite the associated increase in the inflow turbulence levels.
Case Report of De Novo Cavernous Carotid Artery Aneurysm After an Acute Stroke Intervention for a Carotid Occlusion

Background Arterial dissections are a common cause of stroke in second decade–fourth decade patients, but may occur at any age. There are no previous reports of an intracranial carotid artery dissection that evolved spontaneously into both complications (i.e., stroke, pseudoaneurysm). To our knowledge, this is the first case of arterial dissection complicated by an occlusion and a pseudoaneurysm occurring at the same site. Case Description The patient is a 57-year-old woman who was found by a family member with complete right-side weakness and without the ability to communicate. On admission, her National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score was 18 and her cerebral angiogram showed a left cavernous carotid occlusion. Mechanical thrombectomy failed to open the occlusion; therefore, an enterprise stent was deployed. Four weeks after the left internal carotid artery (ICA) stent placement, the patient presented with a complete ptosis of the left eye with minimally reactive pupil and a third nerve palsy. Computed tomography angiogram showed an 8-mm aneurysm of the left cavernous ICA. A cerebral angiogram was performed and showed a 10- × 7-mm cavernous pseudoaneurysm. The decision was made to treat the aneurysm with Pipeline-assisted coiling. The procedure went well without any complications. Conclusions Intracranial dissection/occlusion is a frequent cause of brain infarction, especially in mid-adulthood. Clinical signs of subarachnoid hemorrhage, compressive nerve palsies, and epistaxis in a patient who had endovascular treatment for an intracranial arterial dissection occlusion should be considered as signs for pseudoaneurysm formation, and an angiography should be obtained as soon as possible.
Economy of goodness: the benevolence and morality of economic lifestyle

Looking back in history, humans have put in much effort in making profit distribution fair: the outcome for Adam Smith’s proposition of maximising self-interest became public welfare in the end, wh...
Constructive Policy: Reinforcement Learning Approach for Connected Multi-Agent Systems

Policy based reinforcement learning methods are widely used for multi-agent systems to learn optimal actions given any state; with partial or even no model representation. However multi-agent systems with complex structures (curse of dimensionality) or with high constraints (like bio-inspired (a) snake or serpentine robots) show limited performance in such environments due to sparse-reward nature of environment and no fully observable model representation. In this paper we present a constructive learning and planning scheme that reduces the complexity of high-diemensional agent model by decomposing it into identical, connected and scaled down multiagent structure and then apply learning framework in layers of local and global ranking. Our layered hierarchy method also decomposes the final goal into multiple sub-tasks and a global task (final goal) that is bias-induced function of local sub-tasks. Local layer deals with learning ‘reusable’ local policy for a local agent to achieve a sub-task optimally; that local policy can also be reused by other identical local agents. Furthermore, global layer learns a policy to apply right combination of local policies that are parameterized over entire connected structure of local agents to achieve the global task by collaborative construction of local agents. After learning local policies and while learning global policy, the framework generates sub-tasks for each local agent, and accepts local agents’ intrinsic rewards as positive bias towards maximum global reward based of optimal sub-tasks assignments. The advantage of proposed approach includes better exploration due to decomposition of dimensions, and reusability of learning paradigm over extended dimension spaces. We apply the constructive policy method to serpentine robot with hyper-redundant degrees of freedom (DOF), for achieving optimal control and we also outline connection to hierarchical apprenticeship learning methods which can be seen as layered learning framework for complex control tasks.
Preliminary PCR-Based Screening Indicates a Higher Incidence of Porcine Endogenous Retrovirus Subtype C (PERV-C) in Feral Versus Domestic Swine

Xenotransplantation is considered a potential alternative to allotransplantation to relieve the current shortage of human organs. Due to their similar size and physiology, the organs of pigs are of particular interest for this purpose. Endogenous retroviruses are a result of integration of retroviral genomes into the genome of infected germ cells as DNA proviruses, which are then carried in all cells of the offspring of the organism. Porcine endogenous retroviruses (PERVs) are of special concern because they are found in pig organs and tissues that might otherwise be used for xenotransplantation. PERV proviruses can be induced to replicate and recombine in pigs, and have been shown to infect human cells in vitro. There are three subtypes of PERVs based on differences in the receptor binding domain of the env protein; PERV-A, PERV-B, and PERV-C. PERVs A and B can infect human cells in vitro and can recombine with PERV-C, resulting in a recombinant virus with a higher rate of replication in pig and human cell lines. In this study, we used a PCR-based analysis of 50 domestic and 35 feral pigs to study the distribution of PERVs A, B, and C in swine raised under domestic conditions, versus feral swine from rural areas. PERV-A and PERV-B were universal in both domestic and feral swine. Feral swine had a higher incidence of PERV-C (85.7%) compared to domestic swine (42.0%). Further studies in other feral swine herds are ongoing to verify this observation.
13 – Electrogenerated Chemiluminescence

Publisher Summary The chapter emphasizes on electrogenerated chemiluminescence. Electrogenerated chemiluminescence (ECL) is the process where species can be generated at electrodes undergoing electron-transfer reactions to form excited states that emit light. ECL is a kind of luminescence and it can be produced by electrode reactions. It is a very powerful analytical technique and can be widely used in the areas of immunoassay, food and water testing, and biowarfare agent detection. Both ECL and chemiluminescence (CL) involve production of light by species that undergoes highly energetic electron-transfer reactions. Luminescence in CL can be initiated by mixing necessary reagents. It can be controlled by the careful manipulation of fluid flow. On the other hand, luminescence in ECL can be initiated and controlled by changing an electrode potential. The basic components of an ECL instrument include an electrical energy supply for the ECL reaction at an electrode within an electrochemical cell. It serves as an optical detector for the measurement of either the emitted light intensity or its spectroscopic response.
A mid-chemoradiation dynamic risk model integrating tumor features and ctDNA analysis for lung cancer outcome prediction.

9046Background: Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) molecular residual disease after curative intent therapy predicts disease progression in localized lung cancer. We hypothesized that integrating pre-CR...
Analysis of terpenes in hemp (Cannabis sativa) by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry: Isomer identification analysis

Abstract We have analysed 20 terpenes and terpenoids as part of a study on the detection and identification of these compounds in hemp plants and other products as part of a research project on hemp and cannabidiol (CBD). Our first goal was to develop a method to detect and identify these terpenes with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). We used a microfluidics GC/MS (named Intuvo) with a guard-chip design. The purpose of the guard chip is to protect the analytical column when plant extracts are analysed directly. The second goal was to develop a simple extraction procedure for hemp plants using solvents compatible with GC/MS. This was accomplished with simple grinding and extraction with ethyl acetate or methanol. Thirdly, the goal was to determine the fragmentation patterns of these terpene standards in order to better understand their chemistry and to have the ability to determine new terpenes, if they are detected in various plant samples. Examples of two hemp plant extracts will be shown and the challenges of separating and identifying the mixture of isomers associated with the terpene family of compounds will be discussed. Finally, the relationship between terpene structure and their incorporation into CBD and THC will be examined.
Guns and Intimate Partner Violence among Adolescents: a Scoping Review

Intimate partner violence (IPV) among adolescents, or teen dating violence (TDV), is a significant public health issue that may affect up to two-thirds of youth aged 12–18. Gun violence among adolescents is similarly high, accounting for 18.7% of all firearm injuries from 2010 to 2016. Despite these statistics and evidence showing that TDV continues into adulthood as IPV, gun-related TDV has not received the same level of attention as adult IPV. In this scoping review, we are guided by the following questions: (1) what are the known risk and protective factors for gun-related TDV across micro (individual, interpersonal), mezzo (school, neighborhood), and macro (policy, social norms) domains? (2) What are the future directions for this area of research? We conducted a scoping review of eight academic databases to identify peer-reviewed studies examining risk and protective factors for gun-related TDV published in 1999–2019. Our search returned few unique results (N = 16). Most of the published studies described the shared individual risk factors of gun carrying/access and TDV. Mezzo studies discussed TDV within the context of peer aggression or youth delinquency and gun carrying. There were zero macro studies meeting our search parameters. Our review suggests that adolescence may confer a unique blend of risk factors for both firearm and relationship violence, yet the intersection of these issues has received relatively little attention compared to gun violence in adult relationships. Areas for future inquiry involve increased surveillance of this issue and interventions addressing the shared risks for gun carrying/access and TDV.
Perceptual organization and stability of auditory streaming for pure tones and /ba/ stimuli

The dynamics of auditory stream segregation were evaluated using repeating triplets composed of pure tones or the syllable /ba/. Stimuli differed in frequency (tones) or fundamental frequency (speech) by 4, 6, 8, or 10 semitones, and the standard frequency was either 250 Hz (tones and speech) or 400 Hz (tones). Twenty normal-hearing adults participated. For both tones and speech, a two-stream percept became more likely as frequency separation increased. Perceptual organization for speech tended to be more integrated and less stable compared to tones. Results suggest that prior data patterns observed with tones in this paradigm may generalize to speech stimuli.
Tocilizumab induces rapid, sustained improvement of inflammatory markers in COVID-19

Background: Frequent observation of increasing fever and rising inflammatory markers late after onset of COVID-19 suggests Cytokine Release Syndrome (CRS, “Cytokine Storm”) may contribute to pathophysiology Tocilizumab (TCZ), a monoclonal antibody targeting the receptor for the pro-inflammatory cytokine, IL-6, is effective in suppressing pathological inflammation in several rheumatological diseases After administering TCZ to COVID-19 patients with suspected CRS, we observed a sharp fall in inflammatory indices We analyzed this effect using results from the first 19 COVID-19 patients receiving TCZ at our hospital Methods: Data for all patients with confirmed COVID-19 who received TCZ at our center, a 200 bed community hospital in New England, were extracted from the Electronic Medical Record, including demographics, body temperature, C-Reactive Protein (CRP), IL-6 levels, clinical severity on the Ordinal Scale for Clinical Improvement (OSCI), and clinical outcome (recovery/discharge home, partial recovery/ discharge rehab, death) Results were tabulated and statistical significance of changes in indices pre- and post- TCZ assessed by Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test Results: 19 patients received TCZ: 16 got 400mg x1, 2 got 400 mg x2, 1 got 660 mg x1 Median age was 64 years (range: 44-94), 68% male Mean interval from symptom onset to receiving TCZ was 11 5 days Mean IL-6 was 145 pg/mL Demographics, OSCI scores, and discharge status are shown in Table 1 Average daily peak temperatures (Tmax) pre- and post- TCZ were 100 7 and 98 9°F, p< 0 001 Mean CRP pre- and postwere 234 and 84 6 mg/L, p=0 001 (Fig 1) Decrease in Tmax and CRP was rapid and sustained (Fig 2, 1st 8 patients shown for clarity ) 58% had improved clinical improvement by OSCI by day 7, 68% by day 14 7 of 19 of patients were discharged home, 6 to rehab or acute care facility, and 6 died Conclusion: In this cohort of patients with moderate-to-severe COVID-19 and evidence of Cytokine Release Syndrome, tocilizumab was associated with rapid resolution of fever and marked decline in CRP Most patients showed improvement in clinical severity scores and no adverse reactions were noted Tocilizumab may be useful in control of pathological inflammation in COVID-19 Controlled trials will be needed to assess overall clinical benefit
Lip and Perioral Trauma: Principles of Aesthetic and Functional Reconstruction

Successful management of lip and perioral trauma requires a nuanced understanding of anatomy and surgical techniques. Surgical correction is particularly challenging in instances of tissue loss, due to a narrow tolerance for aesthetic deformity and highly specialized functions of the perioral region, including facial expression, communication, and oral competence. Restoring continuity of the orbicularis oris musculature is critical for dynamic sphincter function of the upper and lower lips. Lip and perioral tissue symmetry are also critical for aesthetic balance, and failure to restore a natural appearance can adversely affect personal identity, with attendant psychological trauma. This discussion of lip and perioral trauma management encompasses lip and perioral anatomy, evaluation of injuries, reconstructive techniques, and prevention and management of complications. Perioral injuries are classified by size, depth, and extent of injury, and the corresponding reconstructive approaches are a function of complexity. These approaches proceed sequentially up rungs of the reconstructive ladder including primary repair, local flaps, grafting, regional flaps, as well as microvascular free tissue transfers. Procedures may be single stage or require multiple stages or subsequent refinement. Regardless of the defect size or location, the guiding principle of repair in the perioral region is restoring natural function and aesthetic appearance. This still-evolving area of facial plastic and reconstructive surgery lends itself to artistry and technical precision, offering opportunities for further innovation to improve the outcomes of patients with lip and perioral trauma.
A novel percussion-based method for multi-bolt looseness detection using one-dimensional memory augmented convolutional long short-term memory networks

Abstract In the past decade, bolt looseness detection has attracted much attention. Compared to common approaches that require the implementation of constant-contact sensors, several percussion-based methods have demonstrated their superiorities, including low-cost and easy-to-operate, in detecting bolt looseness. However, some drawbacks may impede the further real-world application of percussion-based methods in detecting bolt looseness. First, current percussion-based methods depend on hand-crafted features, which require the extensive experience of operators. In addition, the ability of current percussion-based methods in anti-noising and adaptability is unknown, since no related investigation has been conducted. Moreover, only single-bolt looseness is considered in the current percussion-based investigation. With these deficiencies in mind, in this paper, we propose a novel percussion-based method that uses a newly developed one-dimensional memory augmented convolutional long short-term memory (1D-MACLSTM) networks. Via the convolutional operation in the 1D-MACLSTM, we can avoid manual feature extraction, and the long short-term memory (LSTM) controller backed by external memory can enhance the ability of anti-noising and adaptability. Finally, three case studies are conducted on a pair of typical multi-bolt connections to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method, which has better performance than current percussion-based methods, particularly in a noisy environment and new scenarios.
34 – Tumor Angiogenesis

Angiogenesis is the establishment of a neovascular blood supply derived from preexisting blood vessels—specifically, from postcapillary venules. In contrast, “vasculogenesis” is the embryonic establishment of a blood supply from mesodermal precursors such as angioblasts or hemangioblasts. The processes of angiogenesis and vasculogenesis are very similar; it is now apparent that the process of tumor angiogenesis is, in reality, a combination of the above, in which the main blood supply to a tumor is derived from preexisting blood vessels, but circulating endothelial cell precursors may contribute to the growing endothelial cell mass. Angiogenesis is an essential step both in the growth of primary tumors and in metastasis. For a tumor to become clinically relevant, angiogenesis must occur to provide nutrients to the growing tumor mass. This neovascular blood supply is also essential for increasing the chance that tumor cells will gain access to the circulation and thus embolize to form a metastasis at a different site. Once a tumor establishes an invasive phenotype in the organ of metastasis, it must establish its own neovascular blood supply to grow there. Numerous investigators have established the association of tumor angiogenesis with metastasis.
New Constraints on Neutron Star Cooling from Chandra Observations of 3C 58

3C 58 is a young Crab-like supernova remnant. Historical evidence strongly suggests an association of the remnant with supernova SN 1181, which would make 3C 58 younger than the Crab Nebula. Recent Chandra observations have identified the young 65 ms pulsar J0205+6449 at its center, embedded in a compact nebula that, as we show here, appears to be confined by the pulsar wind termination shock. We present new Chandra observations of this compact nebula and the embedded pulsar that set strong upper limits on the thermal emission originating from the neutron star surface. These limits fall far below predictions of standard neutron star cooling, requiring the presence of exotic cooling processes in the neutron star core.
Radar imaging of three-dimensional surfaces using limited data

We consider the problem of radar imaging of 3-D targets, where conventional 2-D synthetic aperture radar (SAR) techniques are inadequate, because of range-Doppler ambiguities. This problem is cast into the form of a spectral estimation problem, which can be solved using a variety of methods. After giving an overview of two methods, ESPRIT and RELAX, we demonstrate this approach using simulated data.
Sources of Economics Majors: More Biology, Less Business

This paper uses national data from 1975 to 2003 to examine which alternative academic disciplines were chosen by undergraduates as if they were complements to, or substitutes for, an economics major. One familiar hypothesis suggests that majoring in economics is a reluctant choice for students more interested in a business major. However, when the proportion of economics majors is considered across all disciplines, I find a striking inverse relation between the shares of graduating majors in economics and those in biology; no relationship between any other two disciplines is closer. The paper closes with speculations about possible reasons for the strong negative relation between the shares of graduates in biology and economics.
French and Burgess, Into That Silent Sea: Trailblazers of the Space Era, 1961–1965

A complement to their In the Shadow of the Moon: A Challenging Journey to Tranquility, 1965–1969 (Lincoln: University of Nebraska, 2007), Francis French and Colin Burgess's Into That Silent Sea cov...
Channel estimation under space-time block-coded transmission

Space-time block coded transmission has established itself as an efficient means to enhance wireless communication performance over quasi-static fading channels. Its success relies on accurate channel knowledge on the receiver side. We present a new channel estimation approach that does not require training data to estimate the unknown channel. We present an unassisted channel identifiability condition for space-time block codes. The algorithm is simple with low complexity. We also provide some simulation results.
Transitioning to post-war supply chain system in Afghanistan

As the United States begins to complete its 13-year war in Afghanistan, the pullout of troops and materiel is proving to be an extremely complex undertaking. As the pullout occurs, the major logistical undertaking for the United States is the retrograde of equipment and materiel, much of which has been in direct support of the Afghan military, and the general Afghan population, for over a decade. This direct logistical support cannot sustain in post-war environment. As such, this paper seeks to define the current supply chain system between the United States and Afghanistan, and then to propose a transition system that can provide the required support to Afghanistan, without direct military involvement post-war. In order to accomplish the task, this paper outlined following research questions. These questions are: To what extent should the United States Government rely on indigenous Afghan channel members to maintain the supply chain of goods flowing between the United States and Afghanistan? How does the United States Government transition from a military logistics model to a peace-time, civilian-driven supply chain to sustain post-war Afghanistan? And finally, what changes to the current supply chain, both domestic and international, must be made in order to sustain post-war Afghanistan at an acceptable level?
African Americans, 25-hydroxyvitamin D, and osteoporosis: a paradox

African Americans have lower serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations and a lower risk of fragility fractures than do other populations. I review the evidence on factors other than vitamin D that might explain this paradox and the calcium economy in different life stages. Researchers are actively trying to explain this genetically programmed advantage. Factors that could protect African Americans against fracture include their higher peak bone mass, increased obesity rates, greater muscle mass, lower bone turnover rates, and advantageous femur geometry. In addition, bone histomorphometry in young adults shows longer periods of bone formation. Although African Americans fall as frequently as do whites, the direction of their falls and their manner of breaking falls could protect them from fractures. African American girls accrue more calcium than do white girls during adolescence as the result of increased calcium absorption and superior renal calcium conservation. In adulthood, higher parathyroid hormone concentrations do not result in increased bone loss in African Americans because of their skeletal resistance to parathyroid hormone, and their superior renal conservation of calcium persists. These advantages diminish in the elderly, in whom further increases in parathyroid hormone result in increased bone turnover and bone loss. Ultimately, I explain the paradox by multiple factors associated with fracture risk and calcium economy in African Americans. Despite African Americans' reduced risk of osteoporotic fractures, such fractures remain an important public health problem for this population that vitamin D intervention studies have not addressed.
Metal complexes of ditopic dithiophosphonate ligands built on a naphthalenediimide core

Abstract Ditopic ligands consisting of two dithiophosphonate donor groups attached to a 1,4,5,8-naphthalenediimide core through ether spacers of different length have been synthesized and characterized. The NDI[(CH2CH2O)n(An)PS2NH4]2 ligands (n = 1: 1a-[NH4]2; n = 2: 1b-[NH4]2; NDI = naphthalenediimide; An = anisole) react with Ph3SnCl and (Ph3P)2CuNO3 in a 1:2 ratio to yield bimetallic complexes (1a-[SnPh3]2 and 1a-[Cu(PPh3)2]2 for n = 1, and 1b-[SnPh3]2 and 1b-[Cu(PPh3)2]2 for n = 2), and with Ph2SnCl2 in a 1:1 ratio to form bimetallic ({1a-[SnPh2]}2) and monometallic (1b-[SnPh2]) macrocycles. Structural characterization of these compounds revealed monodentate and anisobidentate coordination modes of the dithiophosphonate group, as well as the presence of metal-sulfur secondary bonds. While the ditopic nature of the ligand does not have an influence over the coordination behavior of the individual –PS2 groups, the length of the naphthalenediimide-dithiophosphonate linker lead to different solid-state supramolecular architectures. Cooperative π–π stacking and C–H⋯π interactions organize the supramolecular structures of these complexes, generating two-dimensional sheets (in the case of “short-arm” ligand: 1a-[SnPh3]2 and 1a-[Cu(PPh3)2]2) and mono-dimensional chains (in the case of “long-arm” ligand: 1b-[SnPh3]2). In the case of {1a-[SnPh2]}2 and 1b-[SnPh2] metallacycles, π–π stacking interactions between NDI central moieties produce infinite π–π stacked chains and discrete dimers, respectively.
Phylogeny of immunoglobulin structure and function-XII. Secretory immunoglobulins in the bile of the marine teleost Archosargus probatocephalus.

Abstract Sheepshead bile was shown to contain immunoglobulin which was antigenically identical to the high molecular weight tetrameric immunoglobulin found in sheepshead serum. Although the bile immunoglobulin appeared dimeric (mol. wt ~ 320,000 daltons) in physiological buffers, molecular weight determinations in the detergent sodium dodecyl sulfate indicated this dimeric protein dissociated into monomeric units (~ 160,000 daltons) each composed of two heavy and two light chains. Furthermore, the molecular weight (~ 55,000 daltons) of the heavy chains from the bile immunoglobulin was intermediate between those of the H chains from the serum high molecular weight and low molecular weight immunoglobulins (~ 70,000 and ~45,000 daltons, respectively). These findings have revealed a previously unappreciated heterogeneity in fish immunoglobulins and suggest that fish, like higher animals, may have the ability to synthesize immunoglobulins that are destined to function in secretions.
Surface plasmon dispersion engineering via double-metallic Au/Ag layers for III-nitride based light-emitting diodes

Double-metallic Au/Ag layers deposited on top of InGaN/GaN quantum wells (QWs) are used to tune the Purcell peak enhancement of the radiative recombination rate for nitride light-emitting diodes. By modifying the Au/Ag thicknesses, the Purcell factor can be widely tuned between the surface plasmon frequencies of Au/GaN and Ag/GaN. Photoluminescence studies demonstrated the concept of the Purcell factor tuning by using the double-metallic Au/Ag layers.
Short-term preservation of fowl sperm in buffered potassium chloride

Previous research demonstrated that sperm motility is dependent upon mitochondrial calci- um cycling. Thus, sperm are inactivated when extracel- lular calcium ions are chelated. Mitochondrial calcium cycling, however, is driven by extracellular sodium ions. The hypothesis that sperm inactivation is subject to 2 variables was tested in the present work. Sperm motil- ity was evaluated with computer-assisted sperm motion analysis in the first experiment. Sperm became immo- tile within minutes when suspended in buffered isotonic potassium chloride containing calcium ions. This out- come set the stage for the second experiment in which sperm were inactivated by centrifugation through 12% (wt/vol) Accudenz prepared with potassium chloride and tetrasodium 1,2-bis-(o-aminophenoxy)ethane- N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid (BAPTA). Sperm mobility was the end point in the second and subsequent ex- periments. Potassium chloride was a suitable medium in regard to sperm inactivation with BAPTA followed by storage for 2 h at 10°C. Consequently, sperm so inactivated were reactivated after 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 h of storage in the third experiment. Whereas pre- and postwash sperm mobility were equivalent, sperm mobil- ity declined with time (P 0.05). Potassium chloride was replaced with potassium glutamate in the last experiment. Whereas reactivation was once again independent of time when sperm were stored with glucose (P > 0.05), greater variability was observed among observations in comparison with the potassium chloride-based medium. In summary, sperm motility was inactivated when calcium was chelated and extracellular sodium was replaced with potassium. Sperm reactivation was most consistent when chloride was the predominant extracellular anion. Collectively, these experiments demonstrate that short-term sperm storage can be achieved with simple media that pro- mote sperm glycolysis and minimize energy demands imposed by the active transport of calcium and sodium ions.
Analytical chemistry and the cone penetrometer: In situ chemical characterization of the subsurface

The development of novel microanalytical techniques forin situ chemical characterization of the terrestrial subsurface environment has grown significantly over the last decade, particularly those instruments that are interfaced to the cone penetrometer. Cone penetrometer testing (CPT) has emerged as an effective means to introduce samplers and probes forin situ analysis of contaminants in soil and groundwater matrices. A variety ofin situ chemical samplers for CPT have been developed that can be driven into the subsurface to collect soil gas, groundwater, or soil samples at depth, thus providing a means of determining the vertical and horizontal extent of contamination. Cone penetrometer testing is also being explored as a means to deliverin situ subsurface sensor probes, including probes based on laser-induced fluorescence, Raman, and infrared spectroscopies for organics; on laser-induced breakdown and X-ray fluorescence spectroscopies for heavy metals; and on passive gamma-ray spectroscopy for radionuclides. The range of analytical technologies used in CPT for the determination of organic and inorganic species in the subsurface is described.
Caffeine withdrawal in college students: Differences by gender and beverage type

Aims: Motivational interviewing (MI) has been shown to be effective as a short-term therapeutic intervention for alcohol abuse. However, the researchon theeffectivenessofMI forotherdrugpopulations is mixed. The inconsistent findings may, in part, be due to the severity of problems experienced by these populations and the relative brevity of the 1–3 sessions typical of an MI intervention. The current study is a Stage 2 clinical trial that addresses these gaps in the literature by studying a methamphetamine (MA) dependent population and extending MI therapy to 9 sessions. Methods: Participants were randomized to (1) a 9-session intensive MI intervention (n=111) or (2) one session of standard MI with a time equivalence activity (n=106). All participants were followed at 2, 4, and 6months. Data collection included days of MA use, ASI drug, and ASI psychiatric severity. Results: Longitudinal analyses were estimated via the use of random intercept models assessing averaged treatment effects from baseline. Both conditions had significant decreases in MA use and ASI drug scores though significant differences between MI conditions were not observed. However, ASI psychiatric severity scores significantly declined for the intensive MI condition but not for the standard MI condition. Further examination of psychiatric symptoms showed significant decreases in the number of days of psychological problems compared to the standardMI condition and significant decreases in the number of days of depression for the intensive MI condition. Conclusions: This clinical trial focused on MA dependent individuals, a population that frequently presentswith serious psychiatric symptomatology at treatment entry, thereby complicating treatment efforts. Our findings demonstrate that standard MI may be equally beneficial in helpingMA clients reduce theirMA use and problem severity but intensive MI may help alleviate psychological problems not adequately addressed in shorterMI interventions. Future study should include long-term follow-up and examine the elements of MI therapy that may work as moderators to successful recovery. Financial support: NIDA R01 DA024714.
Teaching manuscripts from a digital library on the web

A new cache of digital images of manuscripts from the collections of the University of California, Berkeley, and Columbia University provided the impetus for a course in the autumn of 1998 on Medieval Manuscripts as Primary Sources' (http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/Scriptorium/Class). The course was an experiment to see whether it would be possible for very different institutions to teach collaboratively, sharing faculty and library resources through the medium of the web and distance learning technologies. Thanks to a Mellon grant, thousands of selected leaves of manuscripts had been photographed and scanned to be made available on the Internet as the Digital Scriptorium' (http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/Scriptorium). The team-taught distance-learning course allowed a different instructor each week to introduce his or her speciality to students at both universities through the screens of video-conferencing, with manuscript images accessed locally directly through the Internet. The multiple dimensions of the course complicate assessment. The new interdisciplinary course was taught by instructors from many departments anti from two institutions separated by a continent and connected by a web site. Classes were attended by graduate students and often by several of the participating faculty. A treasure of images of manuscripts was newly available in and beyond the classroom through a database interface still in a preliminary stage. Participants used a variety of technological tools in the two classrooms for projection and for transcontinental communication, together with a broad spectrum of computers and printers available outside the classroom in libraries, computer laboratories, offices, and students' homes. Nearly all students who responded to a questionnaire at the end of the course concluded that they would take the class again for its content and for the opportunity to be taught by specialists, but many voiced suggestions and criticisms. This review describes the organi
A 90nm CMOS 5GHz ring oscillator PLL with delay-discriminator based active phase noise cancellation

Ring-oscillators provide a low-cost digital VCO solution in fully integrated PLLs, but due to their supply noise sensitivity and high noise floor, their applications have been limited. A fully integrated feed-forward, delay-discriminator based adaptive noise-cancellation architecture that improves phase noise characteristic of ring-oscillators outside the PLL bandwidth is presented. Proposed technique can improve the phase noise in an arbitrary offset frequency and bandwidth, and it is insensitive to process and temperature variations. The proposed cancellation loop suppresses the phase noise at 1 MHz offset by 12.5dB and reference spur by 13dB, with 3.7mA power consumption. The measured phase noise at 1 MHz offset is −105 dBc/Hz. The proposed PLL is fabricated in 90 nm CMOS with current consumption of 24.7 mA with the cancellation technique enabled from a voltage supply of 1.2 V.
Preferential isotopic labeling of lattice oxygen positions on the SnO2(110) surface

The stoichiometric SnO2(110) surface exposes two crystallographically inequivalent forms of lattice oxygen. One form occupies top atomic layer bridging sites between sixfold-coordinated second-layer tin cations, and the second form occupies “in-plane” positions in the second atomic layer. The oxygen anions occupying the bridging positions are quite labile and can be removed by heating to ≤ 700 K in vacuum [D.F. Cox, T.B. Fryberger and S. Semancik, Phys. Rev. B 38 (1988) 2072]. Ion scattering spectroscopy has been used to demonstrate the feasibility of preferentially labeling the bridging positions ( > 70%) with 18O while maintaining a relatively small amount of isotopic scrambling (< 15%) in the second layer in-plane positions. This labeling procedure provides a means of studying the role of crystallographically inequivalent forms of lattice oxygen in the oxidation chemistry of tin oxide surfaces via thermal desorption spectroscopy.
Closed Transventricular Aortic Valvotomy for Critical Aortic Stenosis in Neonates: Outcomes, Risk Factors, and Reoperations

Background Critical aortic stenosis (AS) in neonates necessitates urgent intervention for patient survival. The optimal treatment, however, continues to be controversial and still has high morbidity and mortality in many centers. This study examined our late outcome, risks, and reoperations after the treatment of critical AS in neonates. Methods Sixty-six neonates (47 boys and 19 girls) underwent closed transventricular aortic valvotomy for critical AS between 1978 and 2000. The mean age at the first intervention was 15.1 ± 19.6 days (range, 1 to 78). Their weight ranged from 1.4 to 6.2 kg (mean, 3.5 ± 0.9 kg). Sixteen patients (23%) had isolated critical AS and normal or dilated left ventricles, and 50 neonates (77%) had associated cardiovascular anomalies (ie, aortic annular hypoplasia, hypoplasia of the left ventricle, mitral valve abnormalities, and endocardial fibroelastosis, coarctation, or interruption of aorta). Results The hospital mortality was 29% (19 of 66). Kaplan-Meier 5- and 15-year survival was 61% and 58%, respectively. The operative mortality rates were 6% in neonates with isolated AS and 36% in patients with complex AS. The five risk factors significant for mortality on univariate analysis were (1) presence of endocardial fibroelastosis ( p = 0.05), (2) presence of hypoplastic left ventricle ( p = 0.003), (3) presence of associated cardiovascular anomalies ( p = 0.04), (4) aortic valve annulus of less than 5.0 mm ( p = 0.01), and (5) surgery before 1985 ( p = 0.003). Of these five factors, only the presence of hypoplastic left ventricle ( p = 0.001) and surgery before 1985 ( p = 0.001) remain significant for mortality by multivariate analysis. At last follow-up (mean, 8.2 ± 6.2 years), 36 of 47 of the long-term survivors were in New York Heart Association functional class I and II. Kaplan-Meier analysis showed 5- and 15-year freedom from aortic valve reoperation to be 83% and 60%, respectively. Univariate and multivariate analysis showed the presence of multilevel stenosis ( p = 0.04) as the best preoperative predictor for the need for late reoperation in survivors. Conclusions We conclude that critical AS in neonates continues to be associated with significant mortality. Reintervention such as surgical and balloon valvotomy are usually required within 10 years of initial surgery.