cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of four methods for determining energy intake in young and older women: comparison with doubly labeled water measurements of total energy expenditure.

The accuracy and precision of four different food intake assessment methods were evaluated in young and older women by comparing reported energy intakes with doubly labeled water measurements total energy expenditure (TEE). A study lasting 8 d was conducted in 10 young women aged 25.2 ± 1.1 y (x ± SEM) and in 10 older women aged 74.0 ± 1.4 y. Free-living TEE was measured over 7 d and food consumption was determined from weighed food intake data (7 d), a 24-h food recall (in duplicate), and two different food-frequency questionnaires [Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC)/Block and Willett, both in duplicate]. In addition, body composition was determined by using hydrodensitometry, and strenuous physical activity and the extent of dietary restraint were determined by questionnaire. In young women, 24-h recall gave mean energy intakes that were closest to measures of TEE (-0.34 ± 3.71 MJ/d compared with TEE, P = 0.178), and energy intakes by food-frequency questionnaires were the only intake data that correlated significantly with individual values for TEE (P < 0.05). In older women, food-frequency questionnaires gave mean energy intakes that were closest to measured TEE (+0.53 ± 2.95 MJ/d with the Willett questionnaire and -1.19 ± 3.02 MJ/d with the FHCRC/Block questionnaire). No energy intake data from this group correlated significantly with values for TEE. The 7-d weighed dietary intakes were significantly lower than measured TEE in both young and older women (-2.0 MJ/d in young and older women combined, P < 0.001), and did not correlate significantly with values for TEE, although they did most closely mirror the mean difference in TEE between the young and older women (2.30 MJ/d for TEE and 2.11 MJ/d for 7-d weighed intake). These data suggest that none of the methods studied gave accurate estimates of the usual energy requirements of individual subjects. In addition, the results suggest that for some types of studies, simple methods for assessing group mean dietary intake may actually give more accurate information than weighed dietary intakes.
Recommendations for screening for thrombophilic tendencies in teenage females prior to contraceptive initiation.

Venous thromboembolic events (VTE) are not common in children; however over the past ten years the incidence has increased. Reasons for the increase are two-fold. Physicians have an increased awareness of clotting events in children and imaging modalities have improved with a concomitant increase in diagnosis of VTEs. In addition children with chronic medical conditions that predispose to thrombotic events are living longer and thereby suffering increased treatment-related sequelae. It is important to note that VTEs are an increasingly recognized cause of pediatric morbidity and mortality. Newborns and teenagers over the age of 15 are at the greatest risk for developing thromboses. Thrombotic events in children are usually secondary complications of a primary illness or therapeutic modality. Risk factors for clotting can be classified as acquired or congenital. Common acquired conditions include indwelling central venous catheters malignancy infection trauma prolonged immobilization surgery smoking obesity and oral contraceptive pill (OCP) use. (excerpt)
Studies of Motor Function in Schizophrenia: II. Reaction Time

(1937). Studies of Motor Function in Schizophrenia: II. Reaction Time. The Journal of General Psychology: Vol. 16, No. 1, pp. 39-82.
Assessing Student Perceptions of School Victimization and School Safety: A Psychometric Assessment of Relevant Instruments.

In an effort to assess students' perceptions of victimization in their schools, as well as their schools' safety, over 1,900 students from elementary, middle, high, and alternative schools were administered a 154-item questionnaire. The responses on the items were used to establish the psychometric properties of 19 theoretically driven scales and subscales developed by the researchers. The results support the use of these scales and indices to measure students' self-reported levels of school victimization and victimization response, school safety, delinquency, weapons threat response, severity of school problems, school climate, future goals, attachment to school, alienation, negative peer influence, and strain. Additionally, this research describes the characteristics of the student sample on all of these dimensions.
A Comparative Study of Parental Behaviors and Children's Eating Habits:

Childhood obesity poses a serious threat to the health of our nation. Specifically, the preschool years (3-5 years of age) have been identified as a crucial time to study the determinants of childhood nutrition and obesity. This study investigated the body mass index (BMI) of children ages 3 to 5 years, as well as parenting behaviors and parenting styles and how they possibly influenced children's eating habits and overall BMIs. Results indicated there was a significant difference between parenting styles and children's eating habits, with authoritative parents labeling their children's eating habits as either very good or good and permissive parents labeling their children's eating habits as fair. In addition, results indicated a significant difference between parents' educational levels and personal BMIs. As parents' educational level increased, their BMI levels decreased.
RPS2, an Arabidopsis Disease Resistance Locus Specifying Recognition of Pseudomonas syringae Strains Expressing the Avirulence Gene avrRpt2

A molecular genetic approach was used to identify and characterize plant genes that control bacterial disease resistance in Arabidopsis. A screen for mutants with altered resistance to the bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato (Pst) expressing the avirulence gene avrRpt2 resulted in the isolation of four susceptible rps (resistance to P. syringae) mutants. The rps mutants lost resistance specifically to bacterial strains expressing avrRpt2 as they retained resistance to Pst strains expressing the avirulence genes avrB or avrRpm1. Genetic analysis indicated that in each of the four rps mutants, susceptibility was due to a single mutation mapping to the same locus on chromosome 4. Identification of a resistance locus with specificity for a single bacterial avirulence gene suggests that this locus, designated RPS2, controls specific recognition of bacteria expressing the avirulence gene avrRpt2. Ecotype Wu-0, a naturally occurring line that is susceptible to Pst strains expressing avrRpt2, appears to lack a functional allele at RPS2, demonstrating that there is natural variation at the RPS2 locus among wild populations of Arabidopsis.
Structural model of certified pharmacy technicians' job satisfaction

Abstract Objective To determine the effects of worklife attitudes on certified pharmacy technicians' job satisfaction. Design Cross-sectional descriptive design. Setting United States in January 2004. Participants Random sample of 3,200 certified pharmacy technicians (CPhTs) acquired from the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board. Intervention Mail survey. Main Outcome Measures Responses to previously validated instruments measuring quality of worklife attitudes. Hypothesized relationships between these worklife attitudes (job stress, future uncertainty, career commitment, organizational commitment, supervisor support, coworker support, employer support) and job satisfaction were tested with structural equation modeling. Results The results provided adequate support for the hypothesized, partially mediated (comparative fit index [CFI] = 0.091, root mean square error of approximation [RMSEA] = 0.073), fully mediated (CFI = 0.091, RMSEA = 0.073) and direct effects (CFI = 0.922, RMSEA = 0.066) models, each exhibiting moderate fit. As predicted, job stress negatively affected job satisfaction among CPhTs. However, the negative effects of job stress were mitigated by supervisor support, which, along with employer and coworker support, was positively related to job satisfaction. Future uncertainty also was found to be negatively related to job satisfaction; this relationship was mediated by organizational commitment. Conclusion Job stress was present in CPhTs, although not to the degree pharmacists have reported it. Job stress negatively affected job satisfaction, but this was mitigated by supervisor support. CPhTs reported uncertainty about their future career plans. Commitment to their current employer lessened this uncertainty. Pharmacy managers should consider including CPhTs in goal setting and career planning.
Voltage oscillations and ionic conductances in hair cells isolated from the alligator cochlea

Tall hair cells were isolated by enzymatic and mechanical dissociation from selected regions of the apical half of the alligator (A. mississippiensis) cochlea. Single cells were subjected to voltage-clamp and current-clamp using the tight-seal whole-cell recording technique. Most hair cells isolated from the apex of the cochlea produced slowly regenerative depolarizations or Na action potentials during current injection, whereas hair cells isolated from more basal regions usually produced voltage oscillations (ringing) in response to depolarizing current injection, an indication of electrical resonance. Resonant frequencies ranged from 50 to 157 Hz in different cells. The higher-frequency cells tended to have larger and more rapidly activating outward currents than did the lower-frequency cells. An inward Ca current and an outward Ca-activated K current were present in all hair cells. In addition, an inwardly rectifying current and a small, transient outward current were often seen. Thus, we conclude that an electrical tuning mechanism is present in alligator hair cells. The role of the ionic conductances in shaping hair cell responses to current injection, and the possible contributions of these electrical responses to cochlear function are discussed.
Subjective ratings of credibility following brief exposure to desensitization and pseudotherapy.

Abstract Forty-two Ss were selected as if they were to participate in an analogue desensitization experiment. They then listened to taped excerpts of desensitization and pseudotherapy and responded to a questionnaire assessing the relative credibility of the two treatments. Desensitization was found to be more credible than pseudotherapy. The implications of this finding for previous and future research are discussed.
Facile and efficient assembly of collagen-like triple helices on a TRIS scaffold

The TRIS scaffold, Boc-beta-Ala-TRIS-(OH)3, was utilized to assemble triple helices composed of the Gly-Nleu-Pro sequence (Nleu denotes N-isobutylglycine). The scaffold assembly can be achieved efficiently through direct coupling between long peptide chains and the TRIS scaffold using DEPBT, a recently developed peptide coupling reagent. CD spectroscopy and thermal denaturation studies demonstrated that Boc-beta-Ala-TRIS-[(Gly-Nleu-Pro)n-OMe]3 exhibits triple helicity in H2O when n equals 5, 6, and 8, while the shorter analogs (where n=1 and 4) do not. TRIS-assembled structures possess several advantages over the KTA- and TREN-assembled structures previously reported from our laboratory (where KTA and TREN denotes cis-1,3,5-trimethyl cyclohexane-1,3,5-tricarboxylic acid and tris(2-aminoethyl)amine, respectively). The protecting groups on the scaffold and at the C-terminus of the TRIS-assembled peptides can be readily removed to synthesize collagen mimetic dendrimers and metal-complexing collagen-like peptides respectively, both of which can lead to further enhanced thermal stability.
Fracture of single crystals of the nickel-base superalloy PWA 1480E in helium at 22 °C

The fracture behavior of single crystals of the PWA 1480E nickel-base superalloy was studied using both scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques. Notched single crystals with seven different crystal growth orientations near [100], [110], [111], [013], [112], [123], and [223] were tensile tested at 22 °C in a helium atmosphere at 34 MPa. Gamma prime particles were orderly and closely aligned with the cube edges along the [100], [010], and [001] directions of theγ matrix. The cuboid morphology of theγ’ precipitate was not influenced by the crystal growth orientation. The specimen with the [110] orientation was the strongest, while the crystal with the [100] orientation was the weakest. A stereoscopic technique, combined with the use of planary’ morphologies, was applied to identify the cleavage plane orientation. All specimens failed predominately by {lll}-type cleavage which originated from combined slip on various {111} planes. In most cases, deformation was found to occur inhomogeneously in intense slip bands lying on {111} planes and aligned parallel to the different slip directions. Both SEM and TEM studies indicated that {lll}-type slip was the controlling factor during cleavage fracture of single crystals of the PWA 1480E nickel-base superalloy.
Multiperiod design and planning with interior point methods

Abstract This work develops an efficient decomposition algorithm for solving multiperiod design problems (MPD) using interior point (JP) methods within a reduced Hessian successive quadratic programming (rSQP) framework. MPD problems often result when multiple planning scenarios or discretized uncertainty descriptions are incorporated in an optimization study. Each uncertain or planning scenario is expressed as a separate period in MPD and all of these are linked by a small set of design variables. The limiting factor in solving MPD problems is a disproportionate increase in computational resources and decrease in solution robustness, with an increase in the number of periods. However, efficient decomposition strategies exist that exploit the block bordered diagonal structure of these problems and provide a linear increase in computational resources with the growth in periods. This was proposed in the (MPD–SQP) algorithm for general nonlinear MPD problems by Varvarezos, Biegler and Grossmann, 1994. On the other hand, the MPD/SQP algorithm employs an active set strategy for solving the quadratic programming (QP) sub-problem and this is combinatorial in the number of active constraints. Also, it needs to address a potentially different structure with each update of the active set. This consideration usually leads MPD–SQP to adopt an early termination for the QP problem, and this often requires additional SQP iterations. In order to solve the QP completely at each iteration, interior point methods have advantages as the number of updates is independent of the number of active constraints and we deal with a fixed structure throughout the solution procedure. Incorporating these concepts leads to the MPD–rISQP algorithm. The resulting algorithm maintains the nice features of the MPD–SQP algorithm, such as a range and null space decomposition within each period and a periodic problem decomposition. Moreover, the MPD–rISQP algorithm proposed here employs a primal–dual path following interior point method to address the QP. This permits a rigorous solution to the QP with an effort that is linear with the number of periods and independent of the active set. This algorithm is demonstrated on four example problems with up to 16 000 variables.
Inhibition of radiogenic lymphoma development in mice by interferon.

SummaryLong-term administration of interferon resulted in the partial suppression of radiation-induced lymphosarcoma development in strain C57BL mice. The inducer of interferon, polyinosinic acid-polycytidylic acid, was without effect under the same conditions. Interferon also protected C57BL mice against the induction of these tumors by a virus, RadLV, but did not modify the death rate following injection of tumor cells.
Brain mapping in animals and humans

Studies using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to map cortical areas in humans have revealed many similarities with recent cortical mapping studies from nonhuman primates as well as some striking differences. Improved methods for analyzing, displaying and averaging fMRI data on an unfolded cortical surface atlas are poised to improve the integration of information across burgeoning numbers of imaging studies. By combining fMRI with electrical and passive magnetic imaging modalities, the millisecond-to-millisecond sequence of activation of different cortical regions elicited by an event can be imaged, provided the regions are sufficiently far apart.
Chill block melt spinning of nickel-molybdenum alloys

Samples of Ni-Mo alloys ranging in composition from pure nickel to Ni-40 at. pct molybdenum were cast by the chill block melt-spinning rapid solidification technique and examined by optical metallography, X-ray diffraction, and microhardness testing. Casting difficulties were encountered with lean alloys, but richer alloys spread more readily on the casting wheel. Alloy microstructures for 5 to 37.5 at. pct molybdenum ribbons were primarily cellular/dendritic; microstructure feature size decreased with increasing molybdenum content. Extended solubility of molybdenum in gamma-nickel, with fcc lattice parameter increasing with composition to the 1.05 power, was observed up to 37/5 at. pct molybdenum. Substoichiometric Ni-Mo (delta) nucleated on the wheel side of the ribbons of compositions 35, 37.5, and 40 at. pct molybdenum. The amount of partitionless delta-phase thus formed increased with increasing molybdenum content and quench rate. This substoichiometric delta transformed readily to a fine structure gamma-delta mixture.
Early results of the "clamp and sew" Fontan procedure without the use of circulatory support.

Background A modification of the Fontan operation was recently applied, which includes anastomoses of the extracardiac conduit to the right pulmonary artery and inferior vena cava using simple clamping with no additional circulatory support, venous shunting, pulmonary artery preparation, or prior maintenance of azygos vein patency. The objective of this study is to assess the outcomes of this novel off-pump "clamp and sew" Fontan procedure. Methods This is a retrospective review of all patients having a Fontan procedure between January 2009 and October 2010 at a single institution. Results Twelve patients had a Fontan procedure with the use of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB group), and 12 had an off-pump Fontan procedure (off-pump group). Preoperative demographic and hemodynamic data were similar except for higher mean pulmonary artery pressure in the CPB group (12.2 ± 1.6 mm Hg versus 9.9 ± 2.4 mm Hg; p = 0.02). No patients in the off-pump group required conversion to CPB. The mean inferior vena cava clamp time in the off-pump group patients was 10 ± 3 minutes. There were no early or midterm deaths. No patients exhibited postoperative hepatic or renal dysfunction. Postoperative maximal serum creatinine and aspartate transaminase were significantly lower in the off-pump group compared with the CPB group (0.59 ± 0.12 versus 0.77 ± 0.22 mg/dL; p = 0.03 and 35.5 ± 8.3 versus 53.1 ± 19.0 U/L; p = 0.02, respectively). At median follow-up of 13 months (range, 1 to 20 months), all but 1 patient in the CPB group are in New York Heart Association class I with unobstructed Fontan circulation. Conclusions The clamp and sew technique for completion of an extracardiac conduit Fontan procedure appears safe and feasible for selected patients.
Numerical modelling of UV intensity : application to collimated-beam reactors and continuous-flow systems

When properly designed, collimators can be used to develop a source of electromagnetic radiation which is uniform and easily quantified. A collimator design is presented which minimizes reflection and promotes the development of a well-behaved, quantifiable radiation source. The design of the collimator is optimized by use of a numerical model, line source integration (LSI), a continuous version of the widely used point-source summation technique. The LSI model is used to quantify the radiation intensity field from a collimator which incorporated a standard low-pressure mercury arc lamp as its source of radiation. A method of measuring lamp output power is also demonstrated which employs experimental measurements of intensity through a collimator and the LSI model. The physical meaning of this measurement, its limitations and potential applications are discussed.
Clio and Computers: Moving into Phase II, 1970-1972.

Historians frequently take stock of the state of their discipline. They update their bibliographies, compose long historiographic essays, and regularly argue the virtues or vices of new tendencies, conceptions, and methods. Given such predilections, the intrusion of quantitative and computer-assisted approaches into the historian's world has not gone unnoticed. Robert Swierenga's exhaustive and able survey published in 1970 capped a literature of at least a dozen ever longer and more detailed articles examining, promoting, or taking issue with the electronic age's contribution to historical scholarship.' The state of the art was clear enough. More and more historians were utilizing quantification and computer technology to deal with large masses of data and stubborn historical problems; institutional developments kept pace to provide a necessary frame for this research, and reports of substantive findings were beginning to appear. Generally, computer-assisted historical research appeared to be, as of 1970, healthy and growing, with some problems not unknown in infancy, but with a sanguine future as a "doorway to a new world of scholarship."2 In the two years since Swierenga's survey this pattern has continued. Learned journals and newsletters abound with descriptions of computer-assisted projects, new research grants, and conferences of committed and like-minded individuals. More crucial, a proliferating list of articles, reviews, and books report the fruits of a great number of investigations. Institutional developments also reflect an up-curve. The Inter-University Consortium for Political Research remains a model of the kind of institutional service
Initial experience with the prototype forward-viewing echoendoscope for therapeutic interventions other than pancreatic pseudocyst drainage (with videos).

Background The current oblique-viewing echoendoscope can occasionally be limited in its ability to perform therapeutic interventions because of the acute angle at which endoscopic accessories passed via the biopsy channel make contact with the gut wall. In an effort to overcome this limitation, a prototype forward-viewing echoendoscope was developed and successfully tested for performing transgastric drainage of pancreatic pseudocysts. Objective Evaluation of an initial experience with the prototype forward-viewing echoendoscope for performing interventions such as bile-duct drainage, pelvic-abscess drainage, and fiducial marker placement via the transduodenal and transrectal approaches. Design A retrospective study. Setting An academic tertiary-referral center. Patients Three patients. Interventions By using the prototype forward-viewing echoendoscope, transduodenal drainage of an obstructed bile duct, transrectal drainage of a pelvic abscess, and placement of fiducial markers in a rectal cancer were undertaken in 3 patients. Main Outcome Measurements To evaluate the feasibility of performing interventions via the transduodenal and transrectal approaches by using the prototype forward-viewing echoendoscope. Observations The procedures were technically successful in all 3 patients, and no procedural complications were encountered. The passage of accessories and the deployment of stents were technically easy with the forward-viewing echoendoscope. In addition, there was no need to reorient the position of the echoendoscope when switching from a sonographic to endoscopic view while performing therapeutic interventions. Limitation Small number of patients. Conclusions It was feasible to perform interventions such as drainage of an obstructive bile duct and a pelvic abscess, and placement of fiducial markers via the transduodenal and transrectal approaches by using the prototype forward-viewing echoendoscope. Further studies that include larger numbers of patients are needed to evaluate the role of the forward-viewing echoendoscope for performing EUS-guided therapeutic interventions.
A generalization of a theorem of dimensional analysis

Abstract Any function relating several variables for which admissible scale transformations are specified is assumed to satisfy a functional equation that requires admissible transformations of the independent variables to effect only admissible transformations of the dependent variable. When there are not any dimensional constants that, in effect, cancel out the admissible transformations of the independent variables, this equation severely limits the possible functions relating the variables. The equation is solved for any finite number of variables that are either ratio or interval scales.
Peripheral structure of 3-manifolds

If M is a compact 3-manifold with boundary, any 2-manifold T c c?M defines a set of conjugacy classes of subgroups of ~I(M), namely the images of the fundamental groups of the components of T under inclusion. We are concerned with studying the additional structure on r~t(M ) determined by this set of conjugacy classes of "peripheral" subgroups, in the case where T is incompressible. (This means that the inclusion homomorphism ~ l ( t )~ ~I(M) is a monomorphism for each component t of T, c. [21]). According to the fundamental work of Haken and Waldhausen presented in [21], this "peripheral structure" is significant for two reasons. If M is irreducible and has non-empty, incompressible boundary, it is determined up to homeomorphism by ~I(M) and the peripheral structure defined by T=~M. On the other hand, the fundamental group of such a manifold M (or more generally of a "sufficiently large" 3-manifold [21]) may be described, via an inductive procedure, in terms of peripheral structures defined on the fundamental groups of certain simpler 3-manifolds by certain incompressible submanifolds of their boundaries. (This is related to the notion of a "hierarchy" [21].) The present paper introduces a new technique for studying the peripheral structure, based on a theorem of J. Simon's describing certain covering spaces of 3-manifolds. Applications of the technique yield both new results and unified, often simplified proofs of some old ones. Generally speaking, it is a method for comparing maps of a polyhedron P into T which are homotopic as maps of P into M. A sample result, proved rather early in the paper, is Corollary 2.2, which asserts that a map of a polyhedron into T, which is homotopic in M to an embedding in T, is actually homotopic within T to an embedding. (Note that this applies whether or not T is connected.) This is essentially a special case of one of our main results, Theorem 3.2. The latter result asserts that if two maps of a polyhedron into Tare homotopic in M,
Malaria control and population growth

Summary This paper investigates the effects of malaria control programmes on mortality and fertility rates, and hence on population growth, with special reference to Ceylon. The crude death rate (C...
Iron metabolism at the host pathogen interface: Lipocalin 2 and the pathogen-associated iroA gene cluster

The host innate immune defense protein lipocalin 2 binds bacterial enterobactin siderophores to limit bacterial iron acquisition. To counteract this host defense mechanism bacteria have acquired the iroA gene cluster, which encodes enzymatic machinery and transporters that revitalize enterobactin in the form of salmochelin. The iroB enzyme introduces glucosyl residues at the C5 site on 2,3-dihydroxybenzoylserine moieties of enterobactin and thereby prevents lipocalin 2 binding. Additional strategies to evade lipocalin 2 have evolved in other bacteria, such as Mycobacteria tuberculosis and Bacillus anthracis. Targeting these specialized bacterial evasion strategy may provide a mechanism to reinvigorate lipocalin 2 in defense against specific pathogens.
Using Real-Life Dual-Loop Detector Data to Develop New Methodology for Estimating Freeway Travel Time Reliability

Travel time reliability is an important system performance measure for freeway traffic operations. It captures the variability experienced by individual travelers, and it is an indicator of the operational consistency of a facility over an extended period. Real-life transportation data were used to develop a new methodology for estimating travel time reliability of the 1-4 corridor in Orlando, Florida. Four different travel time distributions were tested: Weibull, exponential, lognormal, and normal. The developed best-fit statistical distribution (lognormal) can be used to compute and predict travel time reliability of freeway corridors and report this information in real time to the public through traffic management centers. When compared with existing Florida and buffer time methods, the new reliability method showed higher sensitivity to geographical locations, which reflects the level of congestion and bottlenecks. Another advantage of the new method is its ability to estimate the travel time reliabil...
Long-term Visual Morbidity of Cytomegalovirus Retinitis in Patients with Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome

Background: Patient survival with the acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and cytomegalovirus (CMV) retinitis is increasing because of earlier diagnosis and improved medical therapy. Visual morbidity that occurs with prolonged survival has not been well described. Methods: To evaluate the progression of retinitis, ocular complications, and visual morbidity, the authors retrospectively reviewed the records of 22 patients who had tested positive for human immunodeficiency virus since December 31, 1987. Each patient had an ophthalmologic diagnosis of CMV retinitis and had survived for a minimum of 6 months after diagnosis of retinitis. Patients were treated with intravenous ganciclovir alone, ganciclovir followed by foscarnet, or foscarnet alone (1 patient). Results: Mean survival was 16.7 months after the diagnosis of retinitis. The retinitis progressed in 74% of eyes during therapy. Visual acuity of 20/70 or worse occurred in 79% of eyes at a mean of 7.6 months from diagnosis of CMV retinitis. No light perception occurred in 49% of eyes after a mean of 15 months patient survival. Eleven patients with visual acuity of 20/70 or worse in both eyes survived a mean of 11 months. In 39 eyes with CMV retinitis, the following complications occurred: retinal detachment (33%), papillitis (32%), branch retinal artery occlusion (10%), persistent iritis (5%), and cataract (2.5%). Conclusion: Improved modalities of therapy will continue to increase the survival of patients with AIDS and CMV retinitis. Progression of the retinitis occurs with current therapeutic regimens in the majority of patients. As survival increases, significant visual loss and ocular complications may compromise patient care and quality of life.
Effects of PDT on the endocytic pathway

Two lines of evidence point to an early effect of photodamage on membrane trafficking. [1] Internalization of a fluorescent probe for hydrophobic membrane loci was impaired by prior photodamage. [2] Interference with the endocytic pathway by the PI-3 kinase antagonist wortmannin led to accumulation of cytoplasmic vacuoles suggesting a block in the recycling of plasma membrane components. Prior photodamage blocked this pathway so that no vacuoles were formed upon exposure of cells to wortmannin. In a murine hepatoma line, the endocytic pathway was preferentially sensitive to lysosomal photodamage. The role of photodamage to the endocytic pathway as a factor in PDT efficacy remains to be assessed.
Continuum shape sensitivity and reliability analyses of nonlinear cracked structures

A new method is proposed for shape sensitivity analysis of a crack in a homogeneous, isotropic, and nonlinearly elastic body subject to mode I loading conditions. The method involves the material derivative concept of continuum mechanics, domain integral representation of the J-integral, and direct differentiation. Unlike virtual crack extension techniques, no mesh perturbation is required in the proposed method. Since the governing variational equation is differentiated before the process of discretization, the resulting sensitivity equations are independent of any approximate numerical techniques. Based on the continuum sensitivities, the first-order reliability method was employed to perform probabilistic analysis. Numerical examples are presented to illustrate both the sensitivity and reliability analyses. The maximum difference between the sensitivity of stress-intensity factors calculated using the proposed method and the finite-difference method is less than four percent. Since all gradients are calculated analytically, the reliability analysis of cracks can be performed efficiently.
A note on the determinants of residential succession

Abstract A recent paper by J. Brueckner [ J. Urban Econ. , 4 , (1977)] presents empirical evidence that the Muth vintage model explains the neighborhood succession process better than the Bailey boundary externality model. This note shows that Brueckner's apparent empirical findings are spurious as a result of the construction of the dependent variable, and do not provide insight into the neighborhood succession process. Re-estimation of the corrected regressions using similar data yields results which are clearly supportive of neither theoretical model.
Retention rate of silicone punctal plugs placed by residents in a general clinic setting.

Purpose To evaluate the retention rate of silicone punctal plugs placed in patients with dry eye in a general clinic setting by ophthalmology residents. Methods A cohort study reviewing charts of 88 patients who underwent punctal plug placement in the resident clinic at The New York Eye and Ear Infirmary from January 2007 to November 2008. Information recorded included age and sex of the patients, date of insertion, initial versus replacement plug, type and size of plug, location of insertion, and retention versus spontaneous extrusion versus removal of plugs at follow-up visits. Follow-up data were recorded at 30 and 60 days. Results Follow-up data for 106 plug placements were available at 30 days. A total of 71.7% were retained, 23.6% were lost, and 4.7% were removed. At 60 days, data were available for 96 plug placements. A total of 50.0% were retained, 47.9% were lost, 5.2% had been removed prior to 60 days, and 2.1% had been replaced prior to 60 days. Conclusion Spontaneous extrusion is a common complication in punctal plug insertion, and the retention rate in a general clinic setting with ophthalmology residents is low. This may suggest that attention should be placed on improved instruction in placement techniques and sizing, better patient education on avoidance of rubbing, and importance of follow-up. It may also support the need for better designed plugs or considering alternatives to the silicone plugs, or the placement of such plugs in a dedicated punctal plug clinic under supervision of an experienced attending physician.
Small RNA species of the HeLa cell: Metabolism and subcellular localization

Abstract The small molecular weight RNAs of the HeLa cell have been located in specific subcellular fractions. SnA is located in the nucleolus and is partially bonded to nucleolar 28S RNA. SnD, the most abundant of the small nuclear RNAs, is partially released from the nucleus when the nuclear preparation is briefly warmed. SnF is released from the nuclei when chromatin is digested with the micrococcal nuclease and not when pancreatic DNAase is used. The remainder of the small nuclear species remain in the nucleus following the digestion of chromatin and are concluded to be elements of the "nuclear skeleton." SnK is found predominantly in the cytoplasm, but migrates quantitatively to the nuclear fraction in the presence of high levels of actinomycin D. ScL is totally cytoplasmic and is partially bound to cell membranes. It is the 7S RNA found in oncornavirus virions. All the small nuclear RNAs appear initially in the cytoplasmic fraction before fixation in the nucleus. Two short-lived cytoplasmic species behave kinetically as precursors to the stable nuclear RNAs.
Controlling island size distributions: a comparison of nickel and copper growth on TiO2(110)

Abstract Scanning tunneling microscopy studies of Ni islands deposited on TiO 2 (1 1 0) show that the islands grow three-dimensionally at room temperature with an average height of approximately 6.5 A and diameter of 30 A. The broadness of the island size distributions can be controlled by the diffusion ( D ) to deposition flux ( F ) ratio, with the narrowest distribution corresponding to the smallest D / F ratio. Decreasing the flux or increasing the diffusion rate by increasing the deposition temperature results in a lower island density, larger islands and a broader size distribution. Although the Ni–TiO 2 interfacial energy should be greater than that of Cu–TiO 2 , the Ni islands do not grow flatter on the surface compared to Cu. The higher surface free energy for Ni relative to Cu apparently dominates over the greater interfacial energy for Ni, resulting in Cu and Ni islands with the same aspect ratios. The island densities, average sizes and spatial distributions are roughly the same for both Cu and Ni growth, and we find no evidence that Ni diffusion is slower on TiO 2 compared to Cu diffusion. A major difference between Ni and Cu growth is in island sintering at elevated temperatures. Large Cu islands (67 A diameter, 22 A height) are produced after deposition at room temperature and annealing to 800 K, whereas the Ni islands undergo much slower growth under the same conditions (34 A diameter, 6.6 A height). This effect is explained by the stronger metal–metal bond strength for Ni compared to Cu since adatom detachment is the rate limiting step in island sintering.
A remark on of limit reliability function of large series-parallel systems with assisting components

In the reliability investigation of large scale systems the problem of the complexity of their reliability functions arises. This problem may be approximately solved by assuming that the number of the system components tends to infinity and finding the limit reliability function of the system. The results for series, parallel, series-parallel and parallel-series systems are given in R.E. Barlow, F. Proschan, Statistical Theory of Reliability and Life Testing, Probability Models, Holt Rinehart and Winston, New York, 1975; K. Kolowrocki, On a Class of Limit Reliability Functions for Series-Parallel and Parallel-Series Systems, Monograph, Gdynia Maritime Academy Press, 1993; K. Kolowrocki, Reliability Engineering and System Safety 39 (1993) 11-23. In the paper as a partial extension of these results, theorems which determinate necessary and sufficient conditions for a reliability function to be an asymptotic reliability function of the series-parallel system with assisting components are given. The problem is solved for the system which the number of its series components is of order of the number of its parallel components. Moreover, some examples are presented.
Numerical Simulation of Transient Thermal Transport on a Rotating Disk Under Partially Confined Laminar Liquid Jet Impingement

This paper considers the transient conjugate heat transfer characterization of a partially confined liquid jet impinging on a rotating and uniformly heated solid disk of finite thickness and radius. A constant heat flux was imposed at the bottom surface of the solid disk at t=0, and heat transfer was monitored for the entire duration of the transient until the steady state condition was reached. Calculations were done for a number of disk materials using water as the coolant, covering a range of Reynolds numbers (225–900), Ekman numbers (7.08×10−5−∞), nozzle-to-target spacing (β=0.25–1.0), confinement ratios (rp/rd=0.2–0.75), disk thicknesses to nozzle diameter ratios (b/dn=0.25–1.67), and solid to fluid thermal conductivity ratios (36.91–697.56). It was found that a higher Reynolds number decreases the time to achieve the steady state condition and increases the local and average Nusselt number. The duration of the transient increases with the increment of the Ekman number and disk thickness, and the reduction in the thermal diffusivity of the disk material.
Surface diffusion: Atoms go underground.

The rich behaviour of atoms diffusing on surfaces continues to hold surprises. New calculations suggest that some atoms prefer to diffuse just below the surface.
Introduction: Biomechanics from Molecules, Cells, Tissues to Organs and Tissue Regeneration

INTRODUCTION This Special Session “Biomechanics from Molecules, Cells, Tissues to Organs and Tissue Regeneration” has organized by a diverse group of biomechanics researchers in the United States of America. Most people in this group have heritages rooted in mainland of China and are performing the state of art biomechanics research and education in the United States of America. They have been actively involved in the scientific and educational exchanges in biomechanics research and education between Mainland China and the United States of America. Since 2001, they have been organizing and participating in China Overseas Workshop on Biomechanics (2001 in Beijing, 2004 in Beijing and Shanghai, and 2007 planned in Guangzhou). The third China Overseas Workshop on Biomechanics will be held in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China (July 4-7, 2007). This international Workshop has been listed as one of the satellite conference of ISB 2007. The organizers and delegates of the Workshop treasure these unique opportunities brought by the ISB 2007 organizing committee and are privileged to organize the special session of “Biomechanics from Molecules, Cells, Tissues to Organs and Tissue Regeneration”.
Clinical and experimental aspects of renal allograft rejection.

The pathophysiology, differential diagnosis, and clinical management of renal allograft rejection is reviewed. Recent data have revealed the discriminant biochemical and functional attributes of Class I (HLA-A,B, and C) and Class II (HLA-DR) major transplantation antigens. Graft rejection is an intricate process in which several cytodestructive mechanisms may coexist. The role of donor-specific and nonspecific immunologic monitoring tests in patient management is reviewed. Acute cellular rejection is usually readily reversed by high dose corticosteroid therapy while chronic humoral rejection is refractory to such treatment. Treatment of steroidresistant rejection episodes by plasmapheresis/antilymphocyte globulin is under investigation.
Population Fitness and the Regulation of Escherichia coli Genes by Bacterial Viruses

Temperate bacteriophage parasitize their host by integrating into the host genome where they provide additional genetic information that confers higher fitness on the host bacterium by protecting it against invasion by other bacteriophage, by increasing serum resistance, and by coding for toxins and adhesion factors that help the parasitized bacterium invade or evade its host. Here we ask if a temperate phage can also regulate host genes. We find several different host functions that are down-regulated in lysogens. The pckA gene, required for gluconeogenesis in all living systems, is regulated directly by the principal repressor of many different temperate prophage, the cI protein. cI binds to the regulatory region of pckA, thereby shutting down pckA transcription. The pckA regulatory region has target sequences for many other temperate phage repressors, and thus we suggest that down-regulation of the host pckA pathway increases lysogen fitness by lowering the growth rate of lysogens in energy-poor environments, perhaps as an adaptive response to the host predation system or as an aspect of lysogeny that must be offset by down-regulating pckA.
The equivalence of controlled lagrangian and controlled hamiltonian systems

The purpose of this paper is to show that the method of controlled Lagrangians and its Hamiltonian counterpart (based on the notion of passivity) are equivalent under rather general hypotheses. We study the particular case of simple mechanical control systems (where the underlying Lagrangian is kinetic minus potential energy) subject to controls and external forces in some detail. The equivalence makes use of almost Poisson structures (Poisson brackets that may fail to satisfy the Jacobi identity) on the Hamiltonian side, which is the Hamiltonian counterpart of a class of gyroscopic forces on the Lagrangian side.
The Art and Science of an Analytic Potential

Two aspects of the development of an effective interatomic potential energy function are discussed. The first is the derivation of sound functional forms that are motivated by quantum-mechanical bonding principles. The second aspect is the development of empirical corrections and fitting parameters that are often necessary to make a potential function practical for specific applications. An analytic bond-order function for carbon is used as an example.
Interferometric measurements of re-entry vehicle base radius

The expected accuracy of a proposed technique to measure the base radius of re-entry vehicles at ranges of several hundred kilometers is described. It is shown that a plausible aircraft-mounted intensity interferometer should be capable of measuring the base radius of a nominal 20 cm base radius, 14,000 kg/m2 ballistic coefficient re-entry vehicle to an uncertainty of 0.96 cm at a range of 277.5 km. This figure includes the degrading effects of photon shot noise, the turbulence and attenuation in the atmosphere between the aircraft and the re-entry vehicle, and the uncertainty in the atmospheric structure constant. The corresponding expected base radius uncertainty for measurements on a nominal 35 cm base radius, 8500 kg/m2 ballistic coefficient re-entry vehicle is 0.68 cm. The aircraft carrying the interferometer is assumed to be flying above the tropopause, which lies at an altitude below 10.67 km at latitudes far from the equator in the winter. This paper includes a brief theoretical description of the effects of atmospheric turbulence on the output of an intensity interferometer. Nomenclature a = temperature correlation length of boundarylayer turbulence Ad = area of detector A^ = projected area of re-entry vehicle B = bandwidth of a detector and its associated electronics c = vacuum speed of light
Galantamine and nicotine have a synergistic effect on inhibition of microglial activation induced by HIV-1 gp120

Chronic brain inflammation is the common final pathway in the majority of neurodegenerative diseases and central to this phenomenon is the immunological activation of brain mononuclear phagocyte cells, called microglia. This inflammatory mechanism is a central component of HIV-associated dementia (HAD). In the healthy state, there are endogenous signals from neurons and astrocytes, which limit excessive central nervous system (CNS) inflammation. However, the signals controlling this process have not been fully elucidated. Studies on the peripheral nervous system suggest that a cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway regulates systemic inflammatory response by way of acetylcholine acting at the alpha7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (alpha7nAChR) found on blood-borne macrophages. Recent data from our laboratory indicates that cultured microglial cells also express this same receptor and that microglial anti-inflammatory properties are mediated through it and the p44/42 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) system. Here we report for the first time the creation of an in vitro model of HAD composed of cultured microglial cells synergistically activated by the addition of IFN-gamma and the HIV-1 coat glycoprotein, gp120. Furthermore, this activation, as measured by TNF-alpha and nitric oxide (NO) release, is synergistically attenuated through the alpha7 nAChR and p44/42 MAPK system by pretreatment with nicotine, and the cholinesterase inhibitor, galantamine. Our findings suggest a novel therapeutic combination to treat or prevent the onset of HAD through this modulation of the microglia inflammatory mechanism.