cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Diuretics and Cerebral Edema

Publisher Summary Cerebral edema is defined as an increase in the volume of the brain due to an increase in brain water content. The water content of the brain in health is about 80% of wet weight for the gray matter, and 70% of wet weight for the white matter. The adverse effects of cerebral edema are not caused by the direct effects of the swelling itself, or on impaired neuronal transmission, or by disturbances in the chemical composition of brain tissue, or by deficits in oxygen delivery. Rather, the adverse effects appear to be indirect and mediated by cerebral ischemia, increased intracranial pressure, and brain shift with displacement. The manifestations of cerebral edema range from minimal to focal to generalized neurologic deficits. The dreaded complication of cerebral edema involves brain herniation. Various forms of brain herniation can occur, including cingulate herniation of the cingulate gyrus and the hemisphere beneath the falx to the contralateral side, uncal herniation of the medial portion of the temporal lobe through the tentorium with subsequent midbrain compression, tonsillar herniation of the cerebellum through the foramen magnum with brain stem compression, and transcalvarial herniation of any portion of the brain through craniotomy sites. Finally, weak diuretic agents have been tried in the treatment of cerebral edema. Thiazides, amiloride, and spironolactone, all lower cerebrospinal fluid production, but there are virtually no clinical studies to look at their utility in the treatment of cerebral edema.
Endothelial Cells Induce Multiple Myeloma Cell Proliferation Protect Against Conventional and Novel Therapies.

Abstract Angiogenesis or formation of new blood vessels from existing blood vessels, in contrast to vasculogenesis or de novo formation of new vessels, plays an important role in the progression and spread of most cancers. Multiple myeloma (MM) is characterized by increased microvessel density (MVD), a quantitative estimate of angiogenesis, which correlates with stage of disease. MVD increases with progression from MGUS to smoldering MM to newly diagnosed MM and relapsed MM. It is a powerful prognostic factor, predicting for overall survival. To further elucidate the biological basis for the prognostic value of increased angiogenesis in MM, we studied the interactions of MM cells with endothelial cells using HUVECS as a model system. Co-culture of MM cells (MM1.S, OPM2, U266) with HUVECS induced tumor cell proliferation. Enhanced tumor cell proliferation correlated with the number of HUVECs and was greater than that triggered by co-culture with patient bone marrow stromal cells. When HUVECs were fixed prior to co-culture there was a significant decrease in the tumor cell proliferation. Addition of HUVEC conditioned media to the MM cell lines also induced proliferation. Importantly, HUVECS protected against anti-MM agents including conventional agents (Dexamethasone, Doxorubicin, Melphalan) and novel drugs (Revlimid™). The protective effect afforded by co-culture was lost on HUVEC fixation. Intracellular signaling events following MM cell-endothelial cell contact were studied to understand the mechanisms of the proliferative and protective effects. Western blotting demonstrated activation of the JAK/STAT, PI3K/Akt and the MAPK pathways, mediating proliferation and survival. Ongoing studies focused on understanding cytokine as well as adhesion-mediated interactions between the endothelial cells and the MM cells will identify targets for new therapeutic approaches in MM.
An intelligent power flow controller for autonomous operation of islanded micro-grids

This paper presents a novel power flow control method for autonomous operation of micro-grids in islanded mode. The proposed power flow controller makes use of a new adaptive estimation unit (AEU), which can estimate the amplitude, phase, and frequency of the fundamental component of the potentially non-stationary power signal, as well as the associated active and reactive power. The AEU is based on a sinusoid-tracking algorithm (STA), which is recently proposed as an improved phase-locked loop (PLL). The proposed method is stable for any grid perturbation. The performance of the proposed method is illustrated on a micro-grid that includes an inverter and a synchronous generator. Low pass and washout filters are used in the proposed power flow control method to adjust the amount of power flow through the inverter and synchronous generator to the load after islanding. The estimated frequency and the amplitude by the AEU are used to adjust the governor and the field controller of the synchronous generator, respectively. Since the AEU estimates the power signal properties of each phase independently, the proposed method can be applied to single-phase and unbalanced micro-grids as well. The results show that without the controller, the inverter will not share the power with the synchronous generator after islanding. By using the controller, the power flow from inverter and synchronous generator to the load is under control. The application of the proposed method offers significant advantages, especially in multi-machine based micro-grids.
Enhanced Protein Translation Underlies Improved Metabolic and Physical Adaptations to Different Exercise Training Modes in Young and Old Humans

The molecular transducers of benefits from different exercise modalities remain incompletely defined. Here we report that 12 weeks of high-intensity aerobic interval (HIIT), resistance (RT), and combined exercise training enhanced insulin sensitivity and lean mass, but only HIIT and combined training improved aerobic capacity and skeletal muscle mitochondrial respiration. HIIT revealed a more robust increase in gene transcripts than other exercise modalities, particularly in older adults, although little overlap with corresponding individual protein abundance was noted. HIIT reversed many age-related differences in the proteome, particularly of mitochondrial proteins in concert with increased mitochondrial protein synthesis. Both RT and HIIT enhanced proteins involved in translational machinery irrespective of age. Only small changes of methylation of DNA promoter regions were observed. We provide evidence for predominant exercise regulation at the translational level, enhancing translational capacity and proteome abundance to explain phenotypic gains in muscle mitochondrial function and hypertrophy in all ages.
Integrated care clinic: Creating enhanced clinical pathways for integrated behavioral health care in a family medicine residency clinic serving a low-income, minority population.

Introduction Research examining the implementation and effectiveness of integrated behavioral health (BH) care in family medicine/primary care is growing. However, research identifying ways to consistently use integrated BH in busy family medicine/primary care settings with underserved populations is limited. This study describes 1 family medicine clinic's transformation into a fully integrated BH care clinic through the development of an Integrated Care Clinic (ICC) and enhanced clinical pathways to promote regular use of behavioral health clinicians (BHCs). Method We implemented the ICC at the Broadway Family Medicine Clinic serving a low-income ( 70% African American) in Minnesota. We conducted a pre- and postevaluation of the ICC during regular clinic activity. Results Pilot findings indicated that the creation of ICC and the use of enhanced clinical pathways (e.g., 5-2-1-0 obesity prevention messages, Transitional Care Management, postpartum depression screening visits, warm hand-offs) to facilitate regular use of integrated BH care resulted in 6 integrated care visits per BHC per clinic half-day. In addition, changes in the behavioral/mental health therapy appointment time slot (from 60 to 30 min) reduced therapy no-show rates. Transitional Care Management (TCM) visits also showed improved pre- and postchanges in patient and clinician satisfaction and reductions in patient hospital readmission rates. Discussion The transformation into a fully integrated BH family medicine clinic through the creation of ICC and enhanced clinical pathways to facilitate regular integrated BH care showed promising pilot results. Future research is needed to examine associations between ICC and patient outcomes (e.g., weight, depressive symptoms). (PsycINFO Database Record
Graph Theoretic Analysis of Resting State Functional MR Imaging

Graph theoretic analyses applied to examine the brain at rest have played a critical role in clarifying the foundations of the brain's intrinsic and task-related activity. There are many opportunities for clinical scientists to describe and predict dysfunction using a network perspective. This primer describes the theoretic basis and practical application of graph theoretic analysis to resting state functional MR imaging data. Major practices, concepts, and findings are concisely reviewed. The theoretic and practical frontiers of resting state functional MR imaging are highlighted with observations about major avenues for conceptual advances and clinical translation.
Preparation of Metallic Iron of High Purity

A brief review is given of methods designed to produce metallic iron of high purity, and typical results are listed. A recent method, utilized at the National Bureau of Standards, consists of the extraction of ferric chloride by ether, reduction of this ferric chloride to ferrous chloride, further purification of this chloride, and the subsequent electrolytic deposition of metallic iron. Iron produced by this procedure apparently is softer than, and otherwise different in properties from, any iron previously prepared and contains appreciably smaller amounts of impurities.
Peptides as drug delivery vehicles across biological barriers

Peptides are small biological molecules that are attractive in drug delivery and materials engineering for applications including therapeutics, molecular building blocks and cell-targeting ligands. Peptides are small but can possess complexity and functionality as larger proteins. Due to their intrinsic properties, peptides are able to overcome the physiological and transport barriers presented by diseases. In this review, we discuss the progress of identifying and using peptides to shuttle across biological barriers and facilitate transport of drugs and drug delivery systems for improved therapy. Here, the focus of this review is on rationally designed, phage display peptides, and even endogenous peptides as carriers to penetrate biological barriers, specifically the blood-brain barrier(BBB), the gastrointestinal tract (GI), and the solid tumor microenvironment (T). We will discuss recent advances of peptides as drug carriers in these biological environments. From these findings, challenges and potential opportunities to iterate and improve peptide-based approaches will be discussed to translate their promise towards the clinic to deliver drugs for therapeutic efficacy.
Novel Wearable Seismocardiography and Machine Learning Algorithms Can Assess Clinical Status of Heart Failure Patients

Background Remote monitoring of patients with heart failure (HF) using wearable devices can allow patient-specific adjustments to treatments and thereby potentially reduce hospitalizations. We aimed to assess HF state using wearable measurements of electrical and mechanical aspects of cardiac function in the context of exercise. Methods and Results Patients with compensated (outpatient) and decompensated (hospitalized) HF were fitted with a wearable ECG and seismocardiogram sensing patch. Patients stood at rest for an initial recording, performed a 6-minute walk test, and then stood at rest for 5 minutes of recovery. The protocol was performed at the time of outpatient visit or at 2 time points (admission and discharge) during an HF hospitalization. To assess patient state, we devised a method based on comparing the similarity of the structure of seismocardiogram signals after exercise compared with rest using graph mining (graph similarity score). We found that graph similarity score can assess HF patient state and correlates to clinical improvement in 45 patients (13 decompensated, 32 compensated). A significant difference was found between the groups in the graph similarity score metric (44.4±4.9 [decompensated HF] versus 35.2±10.5 [compensated HF]; P P Conclusions Wearable technologies recording cardiac function and machine learning algorithms can assess compensated and decompensated HF states by analyzing cardiac response to submaximal exercise. These techniques can be tested in the future to track the clinical status of outpatients with HF and their response to pharmacological interventions.
URECA: Unified register file for CGRAs

Coarse-grained reconfigurable array (CGRA) is a promising solution to accelerate loops featuring loop-carried dependencies or low trip-counts. One challenge in compiling for CGRAs is to efficiently manage both recurring (repeatedly written and read) and nonrecurring (read-only) variables of loops. Although prior works manage recurring variables in rotating register file (RF), they access the nonrecurring variables through the on-chip memory. It increases memory accesses and degrades the performance. Alternatively, both the variables can be managed in separate rotating and nonrotating RFs. But, it increases code size and effective utilization of the registers becomes challenging. Instead, this paper proposes to manage the variables in a single nonrotating RF. During mapping loop operations on CGRA, the compiler allocates necessary registers and splits RF in rotating and nonrotating parts. While rotation is implemented by a modulo addition based indexing mechanism, read-only values are preloaded and directly accessed. Evaluating compute-intensive benchmarks from MiBench show that URECA provides a geomean speedup of 11.41x over sequential loop execution. It improves the loop acceleration through CGRAs by 1.74x at 32% reduced energy consumption over state-of-the-art.
Injection rate threshold of triple-lumen central venous catheters: an in vitro study

Rationale and Objectives Computed tomographic angiography (CTA) requires the rapid injection of contrast media ideally through an 18-gauge intravenous line in the antecubital fossa. Patients with CVCs undergoing CTA, however, are typically injected at low rates for two reasons: the potential for catheter failure and because of the lack of manufacturer recommendations for high injection rates typically used during CTA. The purpose of the study is to measure the injection rate thresholds of CVC. The results suggest that CVC can be used at high injection rates that are now typically used with peripheral intravenous catheters during CTA. Materials and Methods We used 16-cm-long catheters and 20-cm-long catheters in six groups (n = 5 for each catheter length). After the catheters were placed into a water bath, each group was injected at 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 ml/sec. New contrast, pressure tubing, and catheters were used for each test. Results No catheter ruptures were encountered during the experiment, but there was one episode of power injector tubing rupture during the injection of a 16-cm catheter at an injection rate of 30 ml/sec. Conclusion No catheter failures were demonstrated in this study using injection rates well above those used in conventional CTA. Power injector tubing failure was demonstrated at an injection rate of 30 ml/sec, which generated mean pressures in the 16-cm catheters of 920 psi (tubing rating per manufacturer is 300 psi). This study demonstrated no catheter or injector tubing failure at injection rates of 5 to 25 ml/sec.
Evaluation of Training Program for the Maternal and Child Health Workforce at Tulane University.

Objectives Despite significant investments in Maternal and Child Health (MCH), the United States still lags behind other countries in key MCH indicators. A well-trained workforce is needed to improve MCH. The Division of MCH Workforce Development of HRSA’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau provides funding to schools of Public Health to support Centers of Excellence in MCH, which is focused on preparing the next generation of MCH leaders through specialized training and mentorship. One such center, the Tulane Center of Excellence in MCH (CEMCH), is housed at the Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. This study evaluated the perceived effectiveness and acceptability of the CEMCH leadership training program. Methods A mixed-methods approach was used, consisting of semi-structured interviews and quantitative surveys which were analyzed through inductive methods based in grounded theory and non-parametric methods respectively. Results Results indicated an overall high level of program satisfaction by all stakeholders. Mentorship and personal attention emerged as an important benefit for both former and current Scholars. The opportunity to gain real-world understanding of MCH work through program activities was an added benefit, although these activities also presented the most challenges. Community stakeholders generally did not view the program as providing immediate organizational benefit, but recognized the distal benefit of contributing to a well-trained MCH workforce. Conclusions for Practice These results will be used to inform other MCH training programs and strengthen Tulane’s CEMCH. A well-trained MCH workforce is essential to improving MCH, and high-quality training its foundation.
Metabolites of Tamoxifen as the Basis of Drug Development

By the early 1970s, a number of metabolites of tamoxifen had been identified in animals and following administration to a few patients. The hydroxylated metabolite of tamoxifen, 4-hydroxytamoxifen, proved to be the most interesting. The discovery of its high binding affinity for the estrogen receptor made it a new laboratory tool for all future in vitro studies of antiestrogen action and also provided the clue for all future structure-function relationships studies of new antiestrogens. These compounds would subsequently be developed as selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs). Tamoxifen is a prodrug but it is the metabolite 4-hydroxy-N-desmethyltamoxifen or endoxifen that has attracted pharmacogenetic interest. Mutations of the CYP2D6 gene control endoxifen production and have been associated with drug efficacy in some clinical trials.
Physiologically Based Pharmacokinetic Modeling in Regulatory Science: An Update From the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Clinical Pharmacology

This commentary provides an update on the status of physiologically based pharmacokinetic modeling and simulation at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Office of Clinical Pharmacology. Limitations and knowledge gaps in integration of physiologically based pharmacokinetic approach to inform regulatory decision making, as well as the importance of scientific engagement with drug developers who intend to use this approach, are highlighted.
Zwitterionic Trivalent (Alkyl)lanthanide Complexes in Ziegler-Type Butadiene Polymerization

The organolanthanide complexes Ln{C(SiHMe2)3}3 (Ln = La, 1a; Ce, 1b; Pr, 1c; Nd, 1d) react with 1 or 2 equiv of B(C6F5)3 to yield the well-defined zwitterionic species Ln{C(SiHMe2)3}2HB(C6F5)3 (Ln = La, 2a; Ce, 2b; Pr, 2c; Nd, 2d) or LnC(SiHMe2)3{HB(C6F5)3}2 (Ln = La, 3a; Ce, 3b; Pr, 3c; Nd, 3d), respectively. These complexes are shown to contain labile, bridging Si–H⇀Ln and o-F→Ln interactions based upon the observation of low one-bond silicon–hydrogen coupling constants (1JSiH) in 1H NMR spectra of 2a and 3a, the presence of one set of C6F5 signals in the 19F NMR spectra of 2a and 3a, the detection of only m-F and p-F resonances in the 19F NMR spectra of 2b–d and 3b–d, two νSiH bands in the IR spectra of 2a–d, and X-ray crystallography analyses of 2b and 3d. In addition, a hexahaptotoluene molecule is coordinated to neodymium in 3d. Reactions of 1a and (AlMe3)2 yield labile adducts. With greater than 3 equiv of AlMe3, exchange between free and bound AlMe3 groups was observed in EXSY NMR experiments. Com...
Treatment utilization trends and outcomes in renal liposarcoma (RLS): A National Cancer Database (NCDB) analysis.

559Background: RLS is an extremely rare neoplasm with only few case reports documented in the literature. Due to the rarity of this disease, level 1 evidence guiding optimal patient management is l...
Combined antiretroviral therapy for HIV and the risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy: A systematic review.

Abstract Objective To assess if there is a relationship between use of combined antiretroviral therapy among pregnant women living with HIV and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP). Design Due to the heterogeneity of study designs in the literature and the utilization of different outcome measures in regards to assessing the presence of HDP, a systematic review was performed. Methods ClinicalTrials.gov and MEDLINE, via PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, CINAHL, ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global, EBSCOHost, DARE, and the Cochrane Library, were queried from January 1997 to October 2017. Studies were included if they reported HDP and focused on pregnant women living with HIV who used combined antiretroviral therapy. The Cochrane Collaboration’s tool for assessment of risk of bias and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force grading scale were used to assess the studies. Results Of 1055 abstracts, 28 articles met inclusion criteria. The data are marked by multiple biases and poor study design. All studies demonstrate an increased risk of HDP among pregnant women living with HIV who used combined antiretroviral therapy when compared to seropositive pregnant women not using antiretroviral therapy. Three studies suggest protease inhibitors may be associated with a higher risk of HDP. Conclusion Despite all studies indicating a higher frequency of HDP among pregnant women living with HIV using combined antiretroviral therapy when compared with seropositive pregnant women not using antiretroviral therapy, the quality of the studies is mixed, necessitating further research.
Disaggregating Hispanic American Cancer Mortality Burden by Detailed Ethnicity

Background: Hispanics are the largest minority population in the United States (18%). They represent a heterogeneous and growing population. Cancer is the leading cause of death among Hispanics, yet few studies have described cancer mortality burden by specific Hispanic group nationwide. Methods: Cancer-related deaths from U.S. death certificates for the years 2003-2012 were analyzed for decedents identifying as Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, and Central or South American. We calculated descriptive statistics including potential years of lives lost (PYLL), age-adjusted rates, standardized mortality ratios, and fitted JoinPoint regression models to evaluate annual trends by Hispanic group, using non-Hispanic Whites (NHWs) as the reference population. Results: We identified 287,218 cancer deaths among Hispanics and 4,570,559 among NHWs. Mortality trends were heterogeneous across Hispanic groups. Female NHWs and male Puerto Ricans had the greatest rates of adjusted PYLL per 1000 (NHWs, 19.6; Puerto Ricans, 16.5). Liver cancer was ranked among the top 5 cancer-related deaths for every Hispanic group, but not for NHWs. Stomach cancer mortality was twice as high for most Hispanic groups when compared to NHWs and especially high for Mexicans (male SMR, 2.07; 95% CI, 2.01-2.13; female SMR, 2.62; 95% CI, 2.53-2.71) Conclusion: We observed marked heterogeneity in cancer mortality across Hispanic groups. Several cancers affect Hispanics disproportionately compared to NHWs. Screening programs in Hispanics should be considered for stomach and liver cancer. Impact: Disaggregated analysis of Hispanics is needed to fully understand cancer burden among the diverse Hispanic population and is critical for cancer prevention and control efforts.
A generalized multidirectional mean value inequality and dynamic optimization

AbstractWe consider a general calculus of variations problem with lower semicontinuous data which includes an optimal control problem with a dynamic differential inclusion constraint as a particula...
Prevention of Stroke in Atrial Fibrillation After Coronary Stenting.

Background and Purpose— The optimal antithrombotic strategy to balance thromboembolic and bleeding events, especially acute stroke, for patients with atrial fibrillation following coronary stenting...
A primer on quantitative bias analysis with positive predictive values in research using electronic health data.

Objective In health informatics, there have been concerns with reuse of electronic health data for research, including potential bias from incorrect or incomplete outcome ascertainment. In this tutorial, we provide a concise review of predictive value-based quantitative bias analysis (QBA), which comprises epidemiologic methods that use estimates of data quality accuracy to quantify the bias caused by outcome misclassification. Target audience Health informaticians and investigators reusing large, electronic health data sources for research. Scope When electronic health data are reused for research, validation of outcome case definitions is recommended, and positive predictive values (PPVs) are the most commonly reported measure. Typically, case definitions with high PPVs are considered to be appropriate for use in research. However, in some studies, even small amounts of misclassification can cause bias. In this tutorial, we introduce methods for quantifying this bias that use predictive values as inputs. Using epidemiologic principles and examples, we first describe how multiple factors influence misclassification bias, including outcome misclassification levels, outcome prevalence, and whether outcome misclassification levels are the same or different by exposure. We then review 2 predictive value-based QBA methods and why outcome PPVs should be stratified by exposure for bias assessment. Using simulations, we apply and evaluate the methods in hypothetical electronic health record-based immunization schedule safety studies. By providing an overview of predictive value-based QBA, we hope to bridge the disciplines of health informatics and epidemiology to inform how the impact of data quality issues can be quantified in research using electronic health data sources.
On the Optimal Interdiction of Transportation Networks

We consider the optimal interdiction problem in transportation networks as a game in which an attacker acts as the player who goes first and, subject to budget constraints, fails nodes (partially or fully) at time zero so as to maximize the total travel time of the mass. A centralized network operator then acts as the player who goes second and, subject to the system's dynamics, routes the mass so as to minimize its total travel time. We prove that the attacker's best action is to find the most consequential nodes and employ his resources to fail them fully, so that the optimal attack is both sparse and binary. We then propose an algorithm to numerically solve the optimal interdiction problem, and demonstrate the utility of our approach through illustrative examples.
"The Hopkins Mongol Case": The Dawn of the Bioethics Movement

One of the earliest controversies in the modern history of bioethics was known at the time as "the Hopkins Mongol case," involving an infant with Trisomy 21 and duodenal atresia whose parents declined to consent to surgery. Fluids and feeding were withheld, and the infant died of dehydration after 15 days. The child's short life had a profound impact on the author's career and that of several others and ultimately led to changes in the care of children and adults with disabilities and the way difficult end-of-life decisions are made in US hospitals today. It also contributed to the growth of the modern bioethics movement and scholarship focused on pediatric bioethics issues.
The Global Trade in E-Waste: A Network Approach

Electronic waste trade is a global environmental injustice issue. Electronic waste is composed of precious metals, making its recycling and reuse economically viable. Yet, it contains hazardous com...
The “Sixth” Factor—A Social Media Factor Derived Directly from Tweet Sentiments

Institutional investors may have an unclear understanding of the role of social media in asset price determination. Although some of the top quant hedge funds use crowd-based information gleaned from tweets, this relationship may be opaque to the rest of our community. In this article, the authors attempt to clarify the confusion regarding social media sentiment and security return behavior. They show that, surprisingly, Tweet sentiments have significant power in explaining the time-series contemporaneous variation in daily stock returns, even in the presence of well-known equity factors. By examining direct tweet sentiments as provided by StockTwits, the authors claim to have identified a Social Media Factor , the “sixth” factor, and they highlight the distinctions vis-a-vis Fama–French’s factors.
Genealogies of Pluralism in Islamic Thought: Shi‘a Perspective

This chapter explores the major aspects of Shi‘a Islamic thought on the subject of religious pluralism in three sections. The first section is a necessary discussion of the classical juridical method of interpretation of divine law called ‘abrogation.’ Although there are a lot of verses in the Qur’an endorsing the notions of freedom, tolerance, diversity, and pluralism, all of these verses were abrogated by the Sword Verse, according to some major classical Sunni scholars. Accepting abrogation means that there is no valid Qur’anic argument left in support of freedom and diversity in the modern sense. According to Shi’a exegeses of the Qur’an, however, none of these verses were abrogated; the Qur’anic arguments on freedom and diversity are always valid since they are an essential part of faith; they cannot be abrogated. Shi‘a scholars proved the impossibility of abrogation of these liberal verses in four arguments. This section is the longest in the chapter since it engages in details with both classical and modern Sunni and Shi‘a scholarship on the topic of abrogation. The second section succinctly refers to some of the political teachings of Imām ‘Ali Ibn Abī Ṭālib, teachings which are very supportive of diversity and pluralism in the modern sense. The third section discusses briefly the place of reason (‘aql) in Islamic thought, with its higher importance in Shi‘i kalam and fiqh.
Book Review of 'Smoke-Filled Rooms: A Postmortem on the Tobacco Deal'

Viscusi’s new book, Smoke-Filled Rooms, presents itself as a critical analysis of the states’ settlements of their lawsuits against the cigarette companies. This framework serves Viscusi well, because it supports the narrow, dollars-and-cents approach he favors and excludes important public health considerations.
Some reflections on Hernández and López’s reflections on the chain rule

To shed light on how history of mathematics can play a role in mathematics education, Hernandez and Lopez chose well in focusing on the chain rule as a case study. Generally speaking, it is, as they point out, a topic students find difficult to grasp: it is a rule involving a different order of complexity than, say, the rule for differentiating functions of the form f(x)=x, and, although it can eventually become intuitive, it is far from intuitive at the start. Harel et al. (2009) have pointed out that students’ difficulties with the chain rule involve: “...coordinating three or more changing quantities [when viewed in a physical context]; executing the chain rule algebraically requires sophisticated abilities in recognizing algebraic form; making the translation between the physical and algebraic manifestations...” Others, reasonably enough, have seen the difficulties of the chain rule in conjunction with more general problems concerning the composition of functions (e.g. Cottrill, 1999). For their part, Hernandez and Lopez have looked for insight on the chain rule and how to confront the difficulties associated with it in one of the earliest instances where the rule seems to have been used, namely, in l’Hopital’s Analyse des infiniment petits (1696/1716).
CFD Simulation of Lab Seal Tooth Tip Geometry Variations to Reduce Leakage

A modification of a conventional straight four-tooth labyrinth seal with inclined teeth including single and double stepped notches is proposed. The variants are to be numerically modeled and evaluated for potential leakage reduction through the seal as a result of the developing flow field. The CFD methodology for numerical investigation is first validated by comparison with literature data from static labyrinth seal experiments. The objective is to numerically analyze the proposed “Notched Inclined Teeth” with solid and honeycomb lands and verify the leakages. Another objective is to compare these leakages with the “Stepped Double Notched Straight Tooth” variant discussed by the present authors in a previous paper.Results indicate that the proposed modifications — single and double stepped notched inclined teeth, systematically reduce the seal leakage compared to the baseline straight and forward inclined teeth due to higher turbulence, higher blockages by introducing vortex in leakage flow through step and cavities, and higher flow resistance as compared to baseline model.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
Isolation and characterization of pathogen-containing phagosomes.

Publisher Summary The chapter illustrates a range of techniques to study the phagosome-differentiation mechanisms for model systems, such as IgG-coated latex particles and for the pathogens Leishmania and Mycobacterium. Different intracellular pathogens exploit different locations to sustain their infection. Despite the obvious perils of the host cell lysosomal system many pathogens remain inside their phagosome. Both the protozoan parasite Leishmania and the bacterial pathogen Mycobacterium enter their host macrophage by phagocytosis and remain intravacuolar throughout their intracellular infection. Their strategies of phagosome modulation are diametrically opposite. Leishmania actively enhances the interchange between its vacuole and the host cell's endosomal network, whereas Mycobacterium inhibits fusion of its vacuole with endosomal vesicles. These functional differences facilitate a comparative approach to the identification of pathogen-specific modulation of their phagosome. Both pathogens overcome these short-term problems, procure an adequate supply of nutrients, and prevent their host cell from inducing a protective immune response.
Geographic evaluation of radar imagery of New England

Photointerpretation of radar photography of New England States for population density and distribution
Search for Exotics at the Tevatron: Present and Future

We present recent results on searches for non-SUSY new physics at the CDF and D0 Collaborations in the 1992-1996 Fermilab Tevatron run. While no compelling evidence for existence of new physics was found, the Tevatron data have excluded a significant region of the theoretically allowed phase space for a variety of non-SUSY extensions of the Standard Model. Tight limits on the existence of the following new phenomena are set: leptoquarks of all three generations, quark-lepton compositeness, 4-th generation quarks, fermiophobic Higgs, technicolor, etc. Prospects of the Tevatron experiments in Run II are discussed.
Building conceptual models of field‐scale uranium reactive transport in a dynamic vadose zone‐aquifer‐river system

[1] Subsurface simulation is used to build, test, and couple conceptual process models to better understand the persistence of uranium concentrations above federal drinking water standards in a 0.4 km by 1.0 km groundwater plume beneath the 300 Area of the U.S. Department of Energy's Hanford Site in eastern Washington State. At this location, the unconfined aquifer and the variably saturated lower vadose zone sediments are subject to significant variations in water levels driven by diurnal, weekly, and seasonal fluctuations in the Columbia River stage. In the near-river aquifer, uranium-contaminated sediments in the highly transmissive Hanford formation are subject to high groundwater velocities, daily flow reversals, and exposure to river water. One- and two-dimensional simulations of variably saturated flow and reactive transport based on laboratory-derived models of uranium sorption are used to assess the representation of uranium transport processes in the vadose zone-aquifer-river system. The simulations show that the various frequencies of river stage fluctuation are capable of driving significant inland transport above the average water table, which is in contrast to the net groundwater flow to the river. Inclusion of a rate-limited uranium mass transfer process model is notably more important to the timescales of the river stage-driven groundwater flow than for vadose zone flow driven by natural recharge. Spatially and temporally variable solution chemistry from the dynamic exchange of river water and groundwater in the unconfined aquifer is shown to significantly alter uranium mobility as represented by a multicomponent uranium surface complexation model.
Geometric spin dephasing of carriers with strong spin-orbit coupling

It has been shown that the geometric Berry-phase shift acquired by the components of the light hole (LH) spinor during an adiabatic collision is equal to the angular distance traveled by the wave vector. For LH, geometric dephasing leads to equality between angular and crystal momentum relaxation time. I will show that the same mechanism is completely ineffective for heavy and split-off holes in bulk crystals, and in electron QSLs in spherical nanostructures. This non-model result suggests that these carriers may be considered as the stern candidates for implementation of dissipationless spin currents (Spin Hall effect) and fault-tolerant qubits.
Security Zones and New York City's Shrinking Public Space.

Urban scholars lament the loss of public space due to heightened security and behavioral controls borne of economic priorities and anti‐terror concerns after September 11th 2001. Owners and managers of government buildings, banks and courthouses have closed streets and fitted the surrounding space with concrete barriers, bollards and moat‐like structures to prevent potential terror attacks. These are reasonable protections in emergency situations, but, as threat levels fall, these zones fail to incorporate a diversity of users, privatizing the space for those with security clearance. The ubiquity of these zones encourages us to consider them as a new type of land use. To test this statement, we describe the results of site visits to two high‐profile New York City neighborhoods (one with numerous civic buildings, the other populated with corporate headquarters). Using a simple tool we developed, we find that 27% of aggregate non‐building area in the two districts is now in a security zone. Interestingly, the percentage of space within each district that can be classed as a security zone is reasonably similar, providing insight into the way in which terror targets are internally and externally defined and justified. We argue that this new type of land use is an important and permanent feature of twenty‐first century global cities. Les chercheurs en sciences urbaines regrettent la perte d’espace public, incriminant souvent les controles accrus de securite et de comportement suscites par des priorites economiques ou des preoccupations anti‐terroristes depuis le 11 septembre 2001. Proprietaires et gestionnaires de bâtiments publics, banques et tribunaux ont ferme des rues et equipe l’espace environnant d’obstacles en beton, de plots et de quasi‐fosses afin de parer aux attaques terroristes potentielles. Ces protections sont normales en situations d’urgence, mais lorsque la menace decroit, les zones concernees ne parviennent pas a diversifier leurs usagers, l’espace etant reserve aux detenteurs de droits d’acces. L’ubiquite de ces zones pousse a les considerer comme un nouveau type d’occupation des sols. Pour verifier cette affirmation, nous presentons les resultats de visites dans deux quartiers eminents de New York, l’un regroupant de nombreux bâtiments publics, l’autre une multitude de sieges sociaux. Au moyen d’un outil simple developpe par nos soins, nous constatons que 27% de la surface cumulee non bâtie dans les deux secteurs sont desormais dans une zone securisee. Il faut noter que, dans chaque secteur, la proportion de l’espace qui peut etre classe en zone securisee est relativement similaire, donnant un eclairage sur la facon dont les cibles terroristes sont definies et justifiees sur les plans interieur et exterieur. Selon nous, ce nouveau type d’occupation des sols constitue un caractere important et permanent des villes planetaires du xxie siecle.
Skill-Related Task Structures, Explicitness, and Accountability: Relationships with Student Achievement

Abstract The purpose of this study was to determine relationships of task structures, explicitness, and accountability with student achievement in physical education. The subjects were teachers of 10 physical education classes and their 202 students. Each class participated in instruction that was videotaped, and the students were pre- and posttested. Videotapes were coded to collect data on each skill-related task including the task presentation time, skill being taught, explicitness of the task presentation, primary and secondary accountability systems used, level of student participation, and total task time. Among the many results, for the volleyball forearm pass, significant relationships were found for the total number of tasks and time spent in tasks when expectations included outcome, situation, and criteria-product. For the volleyball underhand serve, significant relationships were found for the total number of tasks and time spent in tasks when accountability included teacher feedback with follo...
Keep Calm and Carry On

This Essay examines some of the hard data available for today’s legal market and develops very basic forecasts and hypotheses about what the future will bring for the U.S. legal profession during the next decades. In conclusion, it projects that recent law school graduates and current and future law students are standing at the threshold of the most robust legal market that ever existed in this country — a legal market which will grow, exist for, and coincide with, their entire professional careers. Using admittedly back-of-the-envelope math based on current trends affecting the legal market (in particular, lawyer retirements, population growth, and additional demand for legal services driven by increased volume and complexity), the Essay estimates over 840,000 new employment opportunities for lawyers between 2010 and 2030 alone. In other words, the Essay projects that, statistically, the legal profession market is moving into the direction of close-to-guaranteed legal employment for all law school graduates over the course of the next two decades.
Mathematics-driven design

This paper presents an untypical circuit design philosophy. The starting point is not the circuit diagram as done in most conventional designs. Instead, it is the mathematical formulae, related to the required electronic function, that get manipulated and thus lead to circuit diagrams as the end result. The importance of the proposed design philosophy is illustrated via examples covering the creation of new block diagrams and circuit diagrams from scratch, and the modification of already existing circuits to improve the performance or achieve simpler hardware. The paper thus turns up-side-down the concept of circuit diagrams followed by mathematical analysis and design to present mathematical deduction followed by circuit diagrams, a research concept which is useful in the design of many analog circuit applications.
Cooperatives, Green Behavior, and Environmental Protection

Human behavior related to environmental degradation can be the greatest opportunity, until now, for socially valid application of behavioral science on wide-scale. Changing behavior at a scale needed to make a difference globally will entail efforts ever seen before within applications of behavior analysis. Incorporating behavioral principles within existent organizational models shown effective in altering the behaviors of hundreds of millions of people may offer a part of the human solution to global warming. This research considers the cooperative movement and how students of behavior might use current communication technologies, social media, and emerging understanding of interlocked contingencies and verbal networks to address solutions to global climate through behavioral change. Considerations for practical initiatives are proposed.
Vertex Poisson Algebras Associated with Courant Algebroids

We study relationships between vertex Poisson algebras and Courant algebroids. For any ℕ-graded vertex Poisson algebra A = ∐ n∈ℕ A (n), we show that A (1) is a Courant A (0)-algebroid. On the other hand, for any Courant &#x1d49c;-algebroid ℬ, we construct an ℕ-graded vertex Poisson algebra A = ∐ n∈ℕ A (n) such that A (0) is &#x1d49c; and the Courant &#x1d49c;-algebroid A (1) is isomorphic to ℬ as a Courant &#x1d49c;-algebroid.
The Effects of Relaxation Training (Autogenic Training) on the Upper Extremities Circulation

自律訓練法(ATと略す)は，末梢皮膚温の上昇，末梢血流量の増大，血圧の低下を起こすと考えられている。末梢循環の改善が起こるなら，術後や反射性交感神経性ジストロフィーの患者で，損傷部の循環改善と治癒促進を起こす可能性があるが理学療法領域での研究はない。そこで，ATが末梢循環に与える影響を確認し，臨床研究の価値について考察することを本研究の目的とした。健常成人23名にATを実施し，合計3回，AT前後で表面皮膚温度，血流速度，血圧，脈拍を測定した。最終測定時に表面皮膚温度が有意に上昇し，血流速度は上昇，血圧は下降傾向を示した。これらはATの専門家による結果と類似していた。今後は上記疾患の患者を対象に臨床研究を実施する必要があると考察した。
Comparative study of mixing in corotating twin screw extruders using computer simulation

Twin screw extruders are common for mixing and compounding of different polymers and additives in the production of materials with enhanced properties. However, the flow field and resulting mixing that occur inside these extruders are not well understood. For gaining a better understanding of the flow phenomena that take place during these operations, computer simulation can be used; however, due to the complexity of the moving boundaries in the twin screw extruder this is not an easy task. Using the boundary element method (BEM), which is the method of choice for moving boundary problems, the flow field, pressures, stress, and strains can be computed at every time step. With this information, the quality of mixing can be determined quantitatively and allows the engineer to modify the geometry of the screws for optimal mixing conditions. In this article, the boundary element method is used to analyze and compare mixing effectiveness of various geometries of the twin screw extruder. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Adv Polym Techn 17: 107–113, 1998
Izvestia Looks Inside U.S.A.

COMMON American stereotypes regarding the Soviet press are more colorful than accurate. Analysis of news items regarding the United States in the official organ of the Russian government reflects the change in relationship between the two countries during the past three years, but it also reveals a tendency, which may be surprising to some, for Izvestia to represent American public opinion as being favorable to the Soviet Union. The author, who holds an M.A. degree in political science from Columbia University, is now engaged in free-lance journalism in Europe.
Icosahedral germacarboranes and some σ-bonded metal derivatives

Abstract The syntheses, characterization and properties of 1,2-B 10 H 10 CHGeR (R  CH 3 and C 2 H 5 ), 1,2-B 10 H 10 CHGe − and 1,2-B 10 H 10 CHGeM(CO) 5 − (M  Cr, Mo and W) are described.