cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Liposomal Entrapment of Suramin(l1): Interaction of Suramin with Phospholipids of Various Chain Lengths

Previously, we reported that the entrapment of suramin in dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC, C16) multilamellar liposomes ranged from 25% to 65% and the addition of 30–50 mol % cholesterol (CHL) greatly reduced entrapment. Entrapment of small molecules similar to suramin, disodium 1,5‐naphthalenedisulfonic acid (5.5%) and sodium 3‐amino‐2,7‐naphthalenedisulfonic acid (1.2%), were very low. In the present study, the entrapment and interaction of suramin with dilauroylphosphatidylcholine (DLPC, C12), dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC, C14), and distearoylphosphatidylcholine (DSPC, C18) liposomes was investigated. DLPC and DMPC showed 2–3‐fold higher entrapment percentages (95.1% and 74.2%, respectively) than DPPC (37%). However, the entrapment with DSPC (29%) was about 25% lower than DPPC. Adding 50 mol % cholesterol greatly reduced suramin entrapment for all phospholipids. The entrapment of polysulfonated dyes such as Evans blue, Direct blue 1, or Trypan blue, which are structurally similar to suramin, was found to be in the same order of DLPC > DMPC > DPPC > DSPC. Differential scanning calorimetry of aqueous dispersions of DLPC and DMPC with suramin showed more apparent interaction than for DPPC and DSPC. These results suggest that a large portion of the associated suramin and other polysulfonated compounds results from binding to the surface of the phospholipid bilayer or intercalation into the liposomal bilayer. The phospholipid chain length effect on entrapment may be due to the lower net van der Waals interaction between hydrocarbon chains for shorter acyl chains which also increases the bilayer intermolecular spacing. Such effects could then increase the ability of suramin to interact with individual phospholipid molecules.
Validity of measures is no simple matter.

Conclusion. It is important to consider the definition and validity of the construct at issue as well as the adequacy of its representation in the measurement instrument. By considering a particular construct within the context of a conceptual model, researchers and clinicians will improve their understanding of the construct’s validity as measured.
A 12-GHz SiGe phase shifter with integrated LNA

This paper presents the design and measurement of a 12-GHz active phase shifter with an integrated low-noise amplifier in SiGe. The phase is controlled with a 1-bit (180/spl deg/) digital phase shifter and a 180/spl deg/ continuous analog phase shifter. The 1-bit digital phase shifter is implemented by switching between a -90/spl deg/ low-pass network and a +90/spl deg/ high-pass network. The analog phase shifter is implemented using a lumped-element loaded line technique where both series and shunt elements are adjusted to continuously vary the phase while maintaining a constant port impedance. Design equations for this constant-impedance phase-shift network are derived and presented. The phase shifter achieves 3.7/spl plusmn/0.5 dB of gain, with a noise figure of 4.4 dB at a center frequency of 11.5 GHz. The total chip size including pads is 1920 /spl mu/m /spl times/ 780 /spl mu/m, and the area of the active circuitry without pads is 1680 /spl mu/m /spl times/ 660 /spl mu/m (1.1 mm/sup 2/).
Human papillomavirus, p16 and p53 expression associated with survival of head and neck cancer

P16 and p53 protein expression, and high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV-HR) types have been associated with survival in head and neck cancer (HNC). Evidence suggests that multiple molecular pathways need to be targeted to improve the poor prognosis of HNC. This study examined the individual and joint effects of tumor markers for differences in predicting HNC survival. P16 and p53 expression were detected from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues by immunohistochemical staining. HPV DNA was detected by PCR and DNA sequencing in 237 histologically confirmed HNC patients. Overexpression of p16 (p16+) and p53 (p53+) occurred in 38% and 48% of HNC tumors, respectively. HPV-HR was detected in 28% of tumors. Worse prognosis was found in tumors that were p53+ (disease-specific mortality: adjusted hazard ratios, HR = 1.9, 95% CI: 1.04-3.4) or HPV- (overall survival: adj. HR = 2.1, 1.1-4.3) but no association in survival was found by p16 status. Compared to the molecular marker group with the best prognosis (p16+/p53-/HPV-HR: referent), the p16-/p53+/HPV- group had the lowest overall survival (84% vs. 60%, p < 0.01; HR = 4.1, 1.7-9.9) and disease-specific survival (86% vs. 66%, p < 0.01; HR = 4.0, 1.5-10.7). Compared to the referent, the HRs of the other six joint biomarker groups ranged from 1.6-3.4 for overall mortality and 0.9-3.9 for disease-specific mortality. The p16/p53/HPV joint groups showed greater distinction in clinical outcomes compared to results based on the individual biomarkers alone. This finding suggests that assessing multiple molecular markers in HNC patients will better predict the diverse outcomes and potentially the type of treatment targeted to those markers.
Design and implementation of a new sliding-mode observer for speed-sensorless control of induction machine

In this letter, a new sliding-mode-sensorless control algorithm is proposed for the field-oriented induction machine drive. In the proposed algorithm, the terms containing flux, speed, and rotor time constant, which are common in both current and flux equations, in the current model of the induction machine are estimated by a sliding function. The flux and speed estimation accuracy is guaranteed when the error between the actual current and observed current converges to zero. Hence, the fourth-order system is reduced to two second-order systems, and the speed estimation becomes very simple and robust to the parameter uncertainties. The new approach is verified by simulation and experimental results.
Surgical pearl: the use of a cotton-tipped applicator for temporary hemostasis during punch biopsy.

From the University of South Alabama College of Medicine, Department of Dermatology, University of Utah School of Medicine. Funding sources: None. Conflicts of interest: None identified. Correspondence to: Christopher M. Hull, MD, Department of Dermatology, University of Utah, 4B454 School of Medicine, 30 North 1900 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84132. E-mail: hull@ derm.med.utah.edu. J Am Acad Dermatol 2005;52:1075. 0190-9622/$30.00 a 2005 by the American Academy of Dermatology, Inc. doi:10.1016/j.jaad.2004.11.059 quickly with limited bleeding. This task can become difficult when performing multiple punches or punching areas where adequate visualization of the biopsy site is impaired and bleeding is brisk, such as the scalp, especially if an assistant is unavailable. We describe a simple method to achieve temporary hemostasis using a cotton-tipped applicator, an inexpensive tool that is useful in a number of surgical tasks, including unassisted punch biopsy.
The Concentration of Uranium in Freshwater Vadose and Phreatic Cements in a Holocene Ooid Cay: A Method of Identifying Ancient Water Tables

ABSTRACT The concentration of uranium has been measured using the fission track technique in vadose and freshwater phreatic cements from South Joulters Cay, in The Bahamas. These analyses reveal dramatic differences in the U concentration of vadose (< 0.28 ± 0.11 ppm) and freshwater phreatic (1.80 ± .75 ppm) cements. This distinctive change in concentration is proposed to result from 1) variations in the CO2 of the waters of the phreatic and vadose environments, and 2) selective exclusion of U during the precipitation of calcite. The pCO2 is important because it controls the pH and hence the concentration of CO32- ions in the pore fluids as well as the amount of dissolution of the U rich aragonitic precursors. For example, an increas in pCO2 will lower the pH and decrease the concentration of CO32- present in the porewaters. As the U, present as the uranyl ion (UO22+), is mainly complexed with CO32-, a decrease in the concentration of CO32- will not only alter the speciation of U but also increase the UO2(CO3)22-/ CO32- ratio of the fluid and hence the concentration of U in the precipitated carbonate cements. The second mechanism for explaining the increase of U in phreatic cements relies on the low distribution coefficient for the incorporation of U into low-Mg calcite (LMC). The precipitation of LMC therefore leads to an increase in the concentration of U in the residual solution. As fluids do not remain in the vadose zone, but rather accumulate in the freshwater phreatic portion of the lens, phreatic waters become relatively enriched in U compared to vadose fluids. The clear difference in the U concentrations of cements in these two zones may enable the U concentration of cements to be used as an indicator of paleo-water tables in ancient rocks even where other geochemical and petrographic evidences are equivocal.
The internal thoracic muscle and its significance.

Summary The case of a child with chronic bronchitisis presented in which the incidental finding of an internal thoracic muscle presented a diagnostic problem. Attention of the pediatrician and the radiologist is drawn to this shadow, which is seen on the lateral chest film and is of no clinical significance. This structure should not be confused with intrathoracic abnormalities such as neoplastic lesions or fibrous adhesions from pre-existing pleuritis.
Shlomo P. Neuman: A Brief Autobiography

Prologue I thank Ground Water and its editor for the privilege of sharing some highlights of my personal and professional lives with colleagues. The story of my childhood, which is a key to understanding who I am, might otherwise have never been told: I owe it to our younger colleagues, my children, and my grandchildren. I urge the reader to explore further the historical events and circumstances that I describe by turning to readily accessible sources starting, most conveniently, with Wikipedia on the Internet.
WMCSA 2004: 10 Years of Mobile and Ubiquitous Computing

The Sixth IEEE Workshop on Mobile Computing Systems and Applications took place in December 2004 in Englands Lake District. WMCSA 2004 continued the trend of a high-quality interactive workshop focused on mobile and ubiquitous applications, systems, and environments, as well as their underlying state-of-the-art technologies.
Problem‐solving skills of high school chemistry students

What strategies do high school students use when solving chemistry problems? The purpose for conducting this study was to determine the general problem-solving skills that students use in solving problems involving moles, stoichiometry, the gas laws, and molarity. The strategies were examined for success in problem solving for 266 students of varying proportional reasoning ability, using interviews incorporating the think-aloud technique. Data were coded using a scheme based on Polya's heuristics. Results indicated that successful students and those with high proportional reasoning ability tended to use algorithmic reasoning strategies more frequently than nonsuccessful and low proportional reasoning students. However, the majority of all students solved the chemistry problems using only algorithmic methods, and did not understand the chemical concepts on which the problems were based.
Hyke: a low-cost remote attendance tracking system for developing regions

Tracking attendance is an important consideration for many developing world interventions. In many cases, these interventions are located in remote areas where its not always feasible to deploy expensive attendance tracking systems. In addition, since many existing systems focus on tracking participants (such as patients or students), rather than agents (such as teachers or health workers), they assume a trusted administrative staff on-site to record attendance. In this paper, we present the design of Hyke, a system for remote and cost effective attendance tracking in developing regions. Hyke combines voice-biometrics with accurate location tagging for tracking attendance in remote locations without the need for a trusted mediator on-site. Hyke was designed based on our observation of a currently deployed teacher attendance tracking system in rural Rajasthan, India. We have implemented some of the key components in Hyke, and discuss some of the security concerns in the system. The Hyke biometric stack for voice recognition is built atop several open source technologies, and provides a simple interface for non-expert users. Our evaluations with Indian speakers over telephone audio suggests the biometric stack is at par with the current state of the art. We believe this will be a useful tool for researchers who would like to incorporate voice technologies in their developing world projects.
Myth of the pure obsessional type in obsessive--compulsive disorder.

Background: Several studies have identified discrete symptom dimensions in obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD), derived from factor analyses of the individual items or symptom categories of the Yale–Brown Obsessive–Compulsive Scale Symptom Checklist (YBOCS-SC). This study aims to extend previous work on the relationship between obsessions and compulsions by specifically including mental compulsions and reassurance-seeking. Because these compulsions have traditionally been omitted from prior factor analytic studies, their association to what have been called ‘‘pure obsessions’’ may have been overlooked. Method: Participants (N 5201) were recruited from two multi-site randomized clinical treatment trials for OCD. The YBOCS-SC was used to assess OCD symptoms, as it includes a comprehensive list of obsessions and compulsions, arranged by content category. Each category was given a score based on whether symptoms were present and if the symptom was a primary target of clinical concern, and a factor analysis was conducted. Mental compulsions and reassurance-seeking were considered separate categories for the analysis. Results: Using an orthogonal geomin rotation of 16 YBOCS-SC categories/items, we found a five-factor solution that explained 67% of the total variance. Inspection of items that composed each factor suggests five familiar constructs, with mental compulsions and reassurance-seeking included with sexual, aggressive, and religious obsessions
Comparative analysis of image compression techniques

Data compression as it is applicable to image processing is addressed. The relative effectiveness of several image compression strategies is analyzed. This study covers data compression algorithms, file format schemes, and fractal image compression. An overview of the popular LZW compression algorithm and its subsequent variations is also given. Several common image file formats are surveyed, highlighting the differing approaches to image compression. Fractal compression is examined in depth to reveal how an interactive approach to image compression is implemented. The performance of these techniques is compared for a variety of landscape images, considering such parameters as data reduction ratios and information loss.
Service Oriented Evolutions and Analyses of Design Patterns

The globalization of software development helps to reduce business cost by outsourcing software design and development tasks. However, it also poses new challenges on the collaboration and management of the development teams at multiple remote sites. Service-oriented approaches facilitate Web-based collaborations and reuses. In this paper, we propose a service-oriented architecture for the collaboration of software design teams in distributed locations. In particular, our approach allows different design teams from multiple remote sites to design software systems with design patterns, to evolve the designs, and to check the consistencies of the design evolutions. We provide service-oriented prototype tools for the design teams from different physical locations to model the software system designs in UML, to evolve the designs based on XSLT transformations, and to check the consistencies based on the Java theorem prover. A case study is presented to illustrate our approach
Diagnosis of Strep Throat in Adults: Are Clinical Criteria Really Good Enough?

The clinical manifestations of group A streptococcal and nonstreptococcal pharyngitis overlap quite broadly. For this reason, the updated Infectious Diseases Society of America practice guideline for group A streptococcal pharyngitis, published in this issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases, recommends laboratory confirmation of the clinical diagnosis by means of either throat culture or a rapid antigen detection test. However, a recently published guideline, developed by a subcommittee of the American College of Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine (ACP-ASIM) in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, advocates use of a clinical algorithm alone, in lieu of microbiologic testing, for confirmation of the diagnosis in adults for whom the suspicion of streptococcal infection is high. In this discussion, we examine the assumptions of the ACP-ASIM guideline, question whether its recommendations will achieve the stated objective of dramatically decreasing excess antibiotic use, and suggest that its recommendations be confirmed by clinical trials before clinicians abandon long-held teachings regarding diagnosis and management of group A streptococcal pharyngitis.
Warehouse scale computers: Bandwidth drivers for large scale compute systems

Traditionally, mechanical, power and civil engineers built the datacenter building, unencumbered by any useful knowledge of what kinds of machines would be placed there, what kind of software they would run, and what kinds of activity patterns they would experience. The results were not impressive.
When Does Fading Enhance Perceptual Category Learning

Training that uses exaggerated versions of a stimulus discrimination (fading) has sometimes been found to enhance category learning, mostly in studies involving animals and impaired populations. However, little is known about whether and when fading facilitates learning for typical individuals. This issue was explored in 7 experiments. In Experiments 1 and 2, observers discriminated stimuli based on a single sensory continuum (time duration and line length, respectively). Adaptive fading dramatically improved performance in training (unsurprisingly) but did not enhance learning as assessed in a final test. The same was true for nonadaptive linear fading (Experiment 3). However, when variation in length (predicting category membership) was embedded among other (category-irrelevant) variation, fading dramatically enhanced not only performance in training but also learning as assessed in a final test (Experiments 4 and 5). Fading also helped learners to acquire a color saturation discrimination amid category-irrelevant variation in hue and brightness, although this learning proved transitory after feedback was withdrawn (Experiment 7). Theoretical implications are discussed, and we argue that fading should have practical utility in naturalistic category learning tasks, which involve extremely high dimensional stimuli and many irrelevant dimensions.
Cross-linguistic transfer and borrowing in bilinguals

Cross-linguistic borrowing (overt use of words from the other language) and transfer (use of semantic or syntactic structures from the other language without active switching to that language) were examined during language production in Russian–English bilinguals. Grammatical category (noun/verb) and level of concreteness were found to influence language interaction. More cross-linguistic borrowings were found for nouns than for verbs and more cross-linguistic transfers were found for verbs than for nouns, suggesting that grammatical categories are differentially vulnerable to covert and overt language interaction. Moreover, concrete nouns and verbs were transferred more than abstract nouns and verbs, suggesting that level of concreteness influences lexical access in bilinguals. Overall, bilinguals transferred more when speaking their second and less proficient language and borrowed more when speaking their first and less recent language (especially if the described event took place in the other language). We suggest that language architecture (e.g., semantic representation, lexical access) and language environment influence the nature of cross-linguistic interaction.
Odor perception is dynamic: consequences for interpretation of odor maps.

The concept of odor maps in the olfactory system can imply a precise one-to-one mapping between the physicochemical stimulus, the central sensory representation of that stimulus, and the olfactory perception. However, in humans and animals, experience plays a major role in qualitative perception of odors. This suggests that either odor maps and coding in the olfactory bulb (OB) are highly dynamic and/or that odor perception is more closely linked to olfactory cortical ensemble processing where precise maps of odorant physicochemical features are less evident.
Global compressional oscillations of the terrestrial magnetosphere: The evidence and a model

Compressional oscillations of nearly constant frequency (period < 8 min) were observed from L - 5 to L - 10 near local noon over an interval of almost 3 hours during a dayside radial pass of the ISEE 1 spacecraft on August 12, 1982. The density fluctuations, measured by the electron density experiment, were in phase with the compressional magnetic oscillations measured by the magnetometer. We relate the observations to an analytical model of a global compressional wave reflected at the gradient of the magnetic field and plasma density near the plasmapause and standing in the outer magnetospherel Qualitative arguments based on the model lead one to expect that conditions in the outer magnetosphere are not normally compatible with the standing wave solution, that when such a solution can be found, only the lowest eigenfrequencies will be present, and that some variation in period with local time may occur.
The oxygen isotopic record of seasonality in Conus shells and its application to understanding late middle Eocene (38 Ma) climate

Abstract To better understand Eocene climate and the isotopic record of paleotemperature preserved in shells of the gastropod Conus, we serially sampled and analyzed four modern and two Eocene shells from the U.S. Gulf Coast and the Gulf of Mexico. The modern shells are from nearshore Mexico off Veracruz, off-shore Texas (Stetson Bank), and nearshore Florida (Alligator Point). The fossil shells are of late middle Eocene (ca. 38 Ma) age from the Moodys Branch Formation in Mississippi (U.S.A.). The four modern shells yield three different oxygen-isotopic patterns of seasonality (asymmetrical saw-tooth, cuspate, and irregular) representing different seasonal growth patterns and environments. The asymmetrical sawtooth pattern occurs in the middle shelf specimen (Stetson Bank) and indicates rapid spring and declining autumn growth, presumably in response to increased nutrient supply and productivity associated with spring upwelling. The cuspate pattern indicates winter shutdown and occurs in the most northern ...
Passive Decomposition and Control of Nonholonomic Mechanical Systems

We propose nonholonomic passive decomposition, which enables us to decompose the Lagrange-D'Alembert dynamics of multiple (or a single) nonholonomic mechanical systems with a formation-specifying (holonomic) map h into 1) shape system, describing the dynamics of h(q) (i.e., formation aspect), where q ∈ ℜn is the systems' configuration; 2) locked system, describing the systems' motion on the level set of h with the formation aspect h(q) being fixed (i.e., maneuver aspect); 3) quotient system, whose nonzero motion perturbs both the formation and maneuver aspects simultaneously; and 4) energetically conservative inertia-induced coupling among them. All the locked, shape, and quotient systems individually inherit Lagrangian dynamics-like structure and passivity, which facilitate their control design/analysis. Canceling out the coupling, regulating the quotient system, and controlling the locked and shape systems individually, we can drive the formation and maneuver aspects simultaneously and separately. Notions of formation/maneuver decoupled controllability are introduced to address limitations imposed by the nonholonomic constraint, along with passivity-based formation/maneuver control design examples. Numerical simulations are performed to illustrate the theory. Extension to kinematic nonholonomic systems is also presented.
Sphingolipid bases. A revisitation of the O-methyl derivatives of sphingosine. Isolation and characterization of diacetate derivatives, with revised 13C nuclear magnetic resonance assignments for D-erythro-sphingosine.

As described by Carter et al. (J. Biol. Chem. 1951. 192: 197-207), O-methyl derivatives of sphingosine are formed upon acid hydrolysis of sphingolipids in the presence of methanol. In the present study, we have isolated four O-methyl ethers of C18-sphingosine by medium pressure liquid chromatography of their diacetate derivatives, i.e., (2S,3R,4E)-1-acetoxy-2-acetamido-3-methoxy-4-octadecene, its (2S,3S) epimer, (2R,3E,5R)-1-acetoxy-2-acetamido-5-methoxy-3-octadecene, and its (2R,5S) epimer. Structures were determined by physical, chromatographic, and spectral properties. The 5-O-methyl ethers, which were the predominant byproducts of sphingolipid hydrolysis, were easily distinguished from the 3-O-methyl ethers by chromatography, and all four isomers could be differentiated by 1H and 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. NMR analysis of the original N-acetate and diacetate samples of O-methylsphingosines I and II of Carter et al. demonstrated that they correspond to the 5-O-methyl ethers (2R,5R and 2R,5S, respectively), with purities of approximately 90-99%. Resolution enhancement of the 126-MHz 13C NMR spectra of the O-methyl ethers and D-erythro-C18-sphingosine (Ia) afforded distinct signals for nearly all carbon atoms. 13C NMR assignments of carbons 7-15 were made from their lanthanide-induced shifts, and revised assignments for olefinic carbons of Ia were established based upon 1H-13C shift correlation experiments.
Antifungal Activity of a New Triterpenoid Glycoside from Pithecellobium racemosum (M.)

Purpose. In a continuation of our search for novel antifungal compounds from higher plants, the standard extract of the bark of Pithecellobium racemosum was found to have good activity against important AIDS-related opportunistic yeasts.
Whose on Third? Black Electoral Complexity and 'Third Wave' Mayoral Leadership Claims

The purpose of this paper is to examine how African American voters sort out the claims of Black mayoral candidates who claim the mantle of transformative leadership in this so-called "post racial" Obama era. We focus upon the re-election campaign of controversial Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick as he was challenged by a political insider, Freeman Hendrix. We test Thompson’s (2006) provocative thesis -- “the Dirty Little Secret of Black Politics” -- which presumes, overtime, African American mayors do not actively court the black poor as members of their electoral coalitions because of the fiscal and political costs of meeting these constituents’ needs over the needs of the middle and upper classes who ask for growth and economic development. Thompson asserts that whereas a “Third Wave” of black politicians -- such as Mayor Harold Washington of Chicago or David Dinkins of New York -- have averted this dilemma and explicitly built grassroots alliances, previous cohorts of “civil rights” mayors and “technocratic” mayors did or have not. Merging and analyzing data from Detroit’s 2005 mayoral primary and general elections with 2000 census data, we find that Kilpatrick’s re-election coalition (which had elements of the old-style, civil rights generation leadership) beat back the challenge of Hendrix (a second wave, technocratic leadership style) as both made implicit claims about being (Third Wave) transformative leaders. But neither of their campaigns neatly fit into Thompson’s interesting typology, partly due to how age, class, and gender mattered in unanticipated ways. In this regard, we believe this work is not only an interesting addition to the work in black political participation but further suggests that the mobilization of black grassroots constituencies in this new era is not as easy as a candidate calling for symbolic racial representation.
Reidite: An impact-produced high-pressure polymorph of zircon found in marine sediments

Reidite is a high-pressure polymorph of zircon with the scheelite structure. It has been found in an upper Eocene impact ejecta layer in marine sediments on the upper continental slope off New Jersey and on Barbados. Reidite occurs (epitaxially oriented) in shock-metamorphosed zircons. It is associated with impact glass (tektites), shocked quartz and feldspar with multiple sets of planar deformation features, coesite, and trace amounts of stishovite. This phase was first produced in high-pressure laboratory experiments in 1969 and has also been produced in shock recovery experiments. Reidite is brittle with an irregular fracture, a hardness of 7.5, a calculated density of 5.2 g/cm3, a white streak, adamantine luster, and it does not fluoresce. In index oil in transmitted light, shocked zircon grains consisting almost entirely of reidite are transparent. Pleochroism was not observed. Reidite appears to have parallel extinction and is length slow. The maximum birefringence is roughly 0.015. Reidite appears to be uniaxial positive. It is tetragonal, space group I 41/ a , a = 4.738 (1) A, c = 10.506 (2) A, V = 235.84(2) A3. Previous shock-loading experiments on zircons indicate that the transition to reidite starts at about 30 GPa and is completed around 53 GPa. Reidite should be a useful indicator of peak pressure in shock metamorphosed rocks. Reidite is named after Alan Reid who first produced this phase in the laboratory.
Racial and ethnic disparities in cancer survival by neighborhood socioeconomic status in Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Registries.

Introduction Reducing cancer disparities is a major public health objective. Disparities often are discussed in terms of either race and ethnicity or socioeconomic status (SES), without examining interactions between these variables.
Sectioning techniques for electron microscopy using a conventional microtome.

SummaryConventional histological techniques have been modified so that is is possible consistently to cut 0.2 micron sections for use with the electron microscope. The material must be doubly embedded in strong collodion and hard paraffin. The face of the block to be cut must be small, and the tilt of the knife must be precisely adjusted.Procedures have been developed for partly or wholly removing the embedding media, and mounting the sections for the electron microscope.Micrographs of rat liver sections show that the principal artefacts are due to fixation rather than subsequent treatments.
Effect of Zinc on Cancerogenesis by Cadmium.

SummaryA single injection of cadmium chloride (0.03 mmole/kg) to male Wistar rats has been shown to be cancerogenic both locally, by production of pleomorphic sarcomas at the subcutaneous site of injection, and systemically by production of interstitial cell tumors of testis. The development of both types of cadmium-induced tumors is inhibited by subcutaneous administration of zinc acetate (3.0 mmole/kg).
IL-6 enhances TNF-alpha- and IL-1-induced increase of Mn superoxide dismutase mRNA and O2 tolerance.

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) are multifunctional cytokines produced by a number of cells in response to endotoxin. We have previously demonstrated (M.-F. Tsan, J. E. White, T. A. Santana, and C. Y. Lee. J. Appl. Physiol. 68: 1211-1219, 1990, and M.-F. Tsan, C. Y. Lee, and J. E. White. J. Appl. Physiol. 71: 688-697, 1991) that tracheal insufflation of 5 micrograms of TNF-alpha or 1 microgram of IL-1 markedly protects rats against O2 toxicity and enhances pulmonary Mn superoxide dismutase (Mn SOD) activity. We now report that TNF-alpha and IL-1 at subprotective doses, e.g., 1 and 0.2 micrograms, respectively, act synergistically in protecting rats against O2 toxicity. Likewise, TNF-alpha and IL-1 at 0.005 microgram/ml each act synergistically in enhancing endothelial cell Mn SOD, but not Cu,Zn SOD mRNA levels. IL-6 at 5 or 10 micrograms provides no protective effect in rats against O2 toxicity and at up to 0.5 microgram/ml has no apparent effect on endothelial cell Mn or Cu,Zn SOD mRNA levels. However, IL-6 markedly enhances TNF-alpha- and IL-1-induced increases in Mn SOD mRNA levels and O2 tolerance. These results support an important role of Mn SOD in the protection against O2 toxicity.
Effect of crystalline/amorphous interfaces on thermal transport across confined thin films and superlattices

We report on the thermal boundary resistances across crystalline and amorphous confined thin films and the thermal conductivities of amorphous/crystalline superlattices for Si/Ge systems as determined via non-equilibrium molecular dynamics simulations. Thermal resistances across disordered Si or Ge thin films increase with increasing length of the interfacial thin films and in general demonstrate higher thermal boundary resistances in comparison to ordered films. However, for films ≲3 nm, the resistances are highly dependent on the spectral overlap of the density of states between the film and leads. Furthermore, the resistances at a single amorphous/crystalline interface in these structures are much lower than those at interfaces between the corresponding crystalline materials, suggesting that diffusive scattering at an interface could result in higher energy transmissions in these systems. We use these findings, together with the fact that high mass ratios between amorphous and crystalline materials can...
Permeable Pavements and Permeability

Beyond the growing use as an alternative best management practice for storm-water runoff management, permeable pavements also could be an effective solution for cool pavements through evaporative cooling effects. Permeability is a very important property for permeable pavement, which influences the hydraulic performance of the permeable pavement as well as the thermal performance related to evaporative cooling. This chapter compares measured values for two of the most commonly used permeability measurement methods (i.e., NCAT permeameter and ASTM C1701) in the field on a variety of permeable pavements, including pervious concrete, porous asphalt, and permeable interlocking concrete pavers. The relative reliability and the variability of both permeability measurement methods were evaluated and the correlation between the measured values was determined.
Vascular ADAM17 as a Novel Therapeutic Target in Mediating Cardiovascular Hypertrophy and Perivascular Fibrosis Induced by Angiotensin II

Angiotensin II (AngII) has been strongly implicated in hypertension and its complications. Evidence suggests the mechanisms by which AngII elevates blood pressure and enhances cardiovascular remodeling and damage may be distinct. However, the signal transduction cascade by which AngII specifically initiates cardiovascular remodeling, such as hypertrophy and fibrosis, remains insufficiently understood. In vascular smooth muscle cells, a metalloproteinase ADAM17 mediates epidermal growth factor receptor transactivation, which may be responsible for cardiovascular remodeling but not hypertension induced by AngII. Thus, the objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that activation of vascular ADAM17 is indispensable for vascular remodeling but not for hypertension induced by AngII. Vascular ADAM17-deficient mice and control mice were infused with AngII for 2 weeks. Control mice infused with AngII showed cardiac hypertrophy, vascular medial hypertrophy, and perivascular fibrosis. These phenotypes were prevented in vascular ADAM17-deficient mice independent of blood pressure alteration. AngII infusion enhanced ADAM17 expression, epidermal growth factor receptor activation, and endoplasmic reticulum stress in the vasculature, which were diminished in ADAM17-deficient mice. Treatment with a human cross-reactive ADAM17 inhibitory antibody also prevented cardiovascular remodeling and endoplasmic reticulum stress but not hypertension in C57Bl/6 mice infused with AngII. In vitro data further supported these findings. In conclusion, vascular ADAM17 mediates AngII-induced cardiovascular remodeling via epidermal growth factor receptor activation independent of blood pressure regulation. ADAM17 seems to be a unique therapeutic target for the prevention of hypertensive complications.
Predicting 30-day postoperative mortality for emergent anterior abdominal wall hernia repairs using the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database.

Anterior abdominal wall hernias are among the most commonly encountered surgical disease. We sought to identify risk factors that are associated with 30-day postoperative mortality following emergent abdominal wall hernia repair using the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) database. A retrospective analysis of data from the ACS NSQIP from 2005 to 2010 was performed. Patients were selected using Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) and International Classification of Disease 9 Clinical Modification (ICD9) codes for the repair of inguinal, femoral, umbilical, epigastric, ventral, or incisional hernias that were incarcerated, obstructed, strangulated, or gangrenous. Only emergent cases occurring within two days of admission and admitted as inpatients were included. Univariate and multivariable analysis was performed. A risk score was also created. There were 4298 cases of emergent anterior abdominal wall hernia surgery. The most common was inguinal (25.3 %), followed by incisional (23.8 %), umbilical (23.5 %), ventral (12.1 %), femoral (8.8 %), and epigastric (6.5 %) hernias. Multivariable analysis demonstrated six statistically significant predictors of short-term mortality, including history of congestive heart failure (CHF) [odds ratio (OR) 8.24, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 4.05–16.75), age (OR 5.52, 95 % CI 3.48–8.77), history of peripheral vascular disease (PVD) (OR 4.98, 95 % CI 2.08–11.92), presence of ascites (OR 3.16, 95 % CI 1.64–6.08), preoperative blood urea nitrogen (OR 1.35, 95 % CI 1.22–1.49), and preoperative white blood cell count (OR 1.22, 95 % CI 1.02–1.45). The C-statistic for the risk model was 0.858. We present a large study on short-term mortality following emergent anterior abdominal wall hernia repairs based on the ACS NSQIP with a derived risk model that demonstrates excellent discriminative ability.
Forward selection and estimation in high dimensional single index models

Abstract We propose a new variable selection and estimation technique for high dimensional single index models with unknown monotone smooth link function. Among many predictors, typically, only a small fraction of them have significant impact on prediction. In such a situation, more interpretable models with better prediction accuracy can be obtained by variable selection. In this article, we propose a new penalized forward selection technique which can reduce high dimensional optimization problems to several one dimensional optimization problems by choosing the best predictor and then iterating the selection steps until convergence. The advantage of optimizing in one dimension is that the location of optimum solution can be obtained with an intelligent search by exploiting smoothness of the criterion function. Moreover, these one dimensional optimization problems can be solved in parallel to reduce computing time nearly to the level of the one-predictor problem. Numerical comparison with the LASSO and the shrinkage sliced inverse regression shows very promising performance of our proposed method.
Comprehensive environmental public health.

Typically, people thinking about environmental health focus on how the environment can affect the four key physiological factors: air, water, food, and shelter. However, the environment can have a much broader impact on human health through changes to security, and personal and endogenous factors, such as genes, age, and past medical history. Every change in an external environmental factor can affect a broad array of diseases and alter morbidity and mortality in a population, sometimes in unpredictable ways. Our nation's disease burden is due to numerous causes, and we must address the complexity of the environment in which we live in a comprehensive way if we are to make significant strides in reducing morbidity and mortality. Addressing single issues undoubtedly will help to reduce health risks, but not nearly as well as addressing a much broader range of exposures that can harm an individual.
Shechtman: Unmögliche Kristalle (8.4.1982)

Kristalle sind periodische Anordnungen von Atomen zu einem Gitter. Viele Gitter lassen bestimmte Drehungen zu, die sie in sich uberfuhren, doch die Drehordnungen konnen nur 2, 3, 4 oder 6 sein. Aber 1982 beobachtete Dan Shechtman ”unmogliche“ Kristalle mit Drehordnung 5, wofur er 2011 den Chemie-Nobelpreis erhielt. Es waren kristallartige Strukturen, die nicht-periodisch sind und dennoch lokal uberall gleich aussehen, sogenannte Quasikristalle. Mathematische Modelle fur solche Strukturen in Dimension 2 und 3 waren in einem anderen Zusammenhang schon ein paar Jahre zuvor von Mathematikern gefunden worden. Als erster hatte Roger Penrose einfache nicht-periodische Pflasterungen der ganzen Ebene entdeckt. Solche Muster waren von manchen fur unmoglich gehalten worden, denn sie mussten ja mangels Wiederholung eine unendliche Vielfalt aufweisen. Wir zeigen, wie diese Vielfalt durch Selbstahnlichkeit tatsachlich entsteht.
Self-adaptive hydrogels to mineralization

Mineralized biological tissues, whose behavior can range from rigid to compliant, are an essential component of vertebrates and invertebrates. Little is known about how the behavior of mineralized yet compliant tissues can be tuned by the degree of mineralization. In this work, a synthesis route to tune the structure and mechanical response of agarose gels via ionic crosslinking and mineralization has been developed. A combination of experimental techniques demonstrates that crosslinking via cooperative hydrogen bonding in agarose gels is disturbed by calcium ions, but they promote ionic crosslinking that modifies the agarose network. Further, it is shown that the rearrangement of the hydrogel network helps to accommodate precipitated minerals into the network -in other words, the hydrogel self-adapts to the precipitated mineral- while maintaining the viscoelastic behavior of the hydrogel, despite the reinforcement caused by mineralization. This work not only provides a synthesis route to design biologically inspired soft composites, but also helps to understand the change of properties that biomineralization can cause to biological tissues, organisms and biofilms.
Normal Hepatic Function and Physiology

The liver is the body’s largest internal organ. It plays a vital role in many metabolic processes. The liver has a unique vascular supply with most of its blood coming from the portal venous circulation. The distribution of the portal vein and hepatic artery (which supplies the liver), hepatic vein (which drains the liver), and bile ducts (transport out of the liver) form a unique pattern. This architectural pattern is important to keep in mind as it impacts various metabolic processes of the liver, disease occurrence, and surgical options for intervention (if required). The liver performs complex functions of synthesizing and metabolizing carbohydrates, protein, and lipids. In addition, the liver plays a significant role in modification of proteins and drugs to their biologically active form (which can be used by the body). In addition to modification, the liver is involved in detoxification and filtration of drugs out of the body. Due to the myriad processes the liver is involved in, there are no specific tests or tools that can be used to comprehensively evaluate its function.
Hay Fever (Allergic Rhinitis and Chronic Runny Nose)

Children, from birth on, are subject to runny noses. The main reasons are upper respiratory infections colds and allergies—although a few youngsters do have chronic runny noses for no discernible reason.
African Economic Renaissance: A Case Study of Rwanda and Angola:

In the past century, Africa has been visibly absent from the world’s growth map. At the dawn of the twenty-first century, however, many countries in Africa have guided their way into achieving impr...
Stereotactic body radiation therapy for heart-base tumors in six dogs.

Abstract Introduction Heart-base tumors are increasingly treated with radiotherapy, yet safety and efficacy are incompletely understood. This case series describes outcomes after stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for presumed chemodectoma. Animals Six pet dogs. Methods A retrospective study was performed, including dogs with a clinical diagnosis of chemodectoma and treatment with three-fraction SBRT (30 Gy total). Results Heart-base tumors, presumed or confirmed to be chemodectomas, were diagnosed via histopathology or imaging. Treatment was delivered with intensity modulation and cone-beam computed tomography–based image guidance, using a linear accelerator and robotic couchtop. Intrafraction respiratory motion was managed with either neuromuscular blockade and breath-holding (n = 3) or high-frequency jet ventilation (n = 3); mean total anesthesia times for each technique were 165 and 91 min per fraction, respectively. Four tumors were assessed after SBRT; tumor volume decreased by 30–76%. Possible treatment-related complications included cough, tachyarrhythmias, and congestive heart failure. Two dogs experienced sudden death 150 and 294 days after SBRT. Three dogs are alive 408–751 days after SBRT, and one dog died of unrelated disease 1,228 days after SBRT. Conclusions This SBRT protocol resulted in rapid tumor volume reduction, and jet ventilation effectively reduced treatment delivery times. However, cardiac arrhythmias (presumably tumor or treatment associated) and sudden death were common after SBRT. Therefore, SBRT is a potentially useful treatment but may not be appropriate for dogs with incidentally diagnosed, slowly growing tumors, which are not causing cardiovascular disturbances. Longer follow-up and larger case numbers are needed to more completely define safety and impact of treatment on long-term survivability.
Search for Strange Quark Matter at the AGS

We present results of searches for negatively, positively charged, as well as neutral strange quark matter (strangelet) production in central 11.6 A GeV/c Au + Pb collisions.
Law Upside Down: A Critical Essay on Stoneridge Investment Partners, LLC v. Scientific-Atlanta, Inc.

This essay uses the Supreme Court’s recent decision in the highly controversial Stoneridge Investment Partners, LLC v. Scientific Atlanta, Inc. case to explore the question of who ought to pay when corporations issue false financial statements - an issue of critical importance with the seemingly endless stream of corporate fraud coming to light. The Supreme’s Courts’ answer is to focus on the corporation as the target for liability. The thrust of the essay is to show how this paints a bulls-eye on the wrong target, while allowing those who profited from knowing misrepresentation to escape liability.
Division Algebras over Number Fields

In this chapter we come to some of the deepest and most beautiful results in modern algebra. These are the theorems that classify and describe the central simple algebras over algebraic number fields. This work is associated with the names of several of the greatest heroes of mathematics: Hasse, Brauer, Noether, and Albert. It is based on developments in number theory that are due to Kronecker, Weber, Hilbert, Minkowski, Furtwangler, Artin, Takagi, Hasse, Witt, and many others.