cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Entry of nephrons into the collecting duct network of the avian kidney: a comparison of chickens and desert quail

The avian kidney contains a population of nephrons with and without loops of Henle. How the collecting ducts of this heterogeneous population of nephrons merge to exit as single ducts from the medullary cones has been uncertain. The results of this study show that the collecting duct tree begins with the coalescence of the distal tubules of pairs of loopless nephrons. These primary collecting ducts receive output from only loopless nephrons. Primary collecting ducts fuse in pairs and become secondary collecting ducts. They receive the distal tubules of transition nephrons. Pairs of secondary collecting ducts fuse and become tertiary collecting ducts. Tertiary collecting ducts receive the distal tubules of looped nephrons. Thus, the fluid from all nephron types comingles as it passes through the medullary cone. The results of this study also show that the anatomical arrangement of medullary cones does not permit the output from one medullary cone to enter a second medullary cone. Thus, all the medullary cones function as parallel units. This anatomical organization of the avian kidney affects its ability to produce a urine hyperosmotic to the plasma. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Temperature alters the interaction between a herbivore and a resistant host plant

Temperature and other environmental factors can strongly influence arthropods and their interactions with host plants. However, such effects are usually studied while keeping the suitability of host plants as constant as possible, thereby removing the possibility of interactions between temperature and host plant resistance. We performed experiments to determine whether temperature interacts with plant resistance to alter the density, movement, and distribution of wingless soybean aphids on resistant and susceptible soybeans. In individual plant tests, temperature influenced aphids differently depending on the plant they were on; aphids in the warmer temperature did better than aphids in the cooler temperature when on susceptible plants, but when on resistant plants aphids did worse in the warmer temperature. This pattern was, in part, due to markedly increased aphid fecundity on susceptible plants in warmer temperatures which was not the case on resistant plants. A follow-up experiment showed that higher temperature meant lower adult survival for aphids on a nutrient-poor diet, further suggesting how higher temperatures may be difficult for aphids when on resistant host plants. We also saw that both higher temperature and resistance increased within-plant movement in an additive fashion. Altering temperature and host plant resistance can each influence the demographic and movement responses of herbivores; however, this study indicates that the two factors may interact to influence herbivores in potentially unexpected ways.
Kissing cousins: frequencies of cousin types in "Nebraska" Amish marriages.

Abstract One hundred and ninety current “Nebraska” Amish marriages are analyzed to determine if statistical frequencies of types of cousin marriage conform to cultural rules for marriage. The Nebraska Amish (so named because a bishop from Nebraska organized the group) are located in Central Pennsylvania. They are prohibited by church and state from marrying first cousins or closer relatives. No other mating proscriptions based on kinship exist. This analysis is based on pedigrees four generations deep for each currently‐married individual. These pedigrees were constructed from private and published genealogies and from individual interviews conducted during four months of residence in the community in 1979–1980. Findings are that 47.4 per cent of all marriages are between second cousins. No significant basis exists toward marrying matrilateral or patrilateral cousins. This finding concords with the absence of prescriptive marriage rules and also reflects the demographic constraints on mate choice.
Bonding of carbon to nickel surfaces: effects of subsurface Na, H and C

Abstract This paper reports the results of a theoretical study of Na, H and C subsurface atomic species in nickel and demonstrates how these interstitial atoms influence the reactivity of the Ni(111) surface and the structure of carbon species adsorbed on the surface. The CH 3 fragment and the benzene molecule, C 6 H 6 , in planar and non-planar geometries, are used to probe bonding at the surface. Adsorption energies are calculated by ab initio configuration interaction techniques modelling the surface as an embedded cluster. Calculated chemisorption energies of pyramidal CH 3 on Ni(111) are 38 for the clean surface and 50, 47 and 17 kcal/mol for the Na, H and C implants, respectively. The energies required to distort tetrahedral CH 3 into a planar structure are 22 kcal/mol on clean Ni(111), 30 kcal/mol with the Na implant, 24 kcal/mol with the H implant and 12 kcal/mol with the C implant, respectively. Adsorption energies of planar C 6 H 6 at the most stable, 3-fold, adsorption site are 18 kcal/mol for the Ni(111) surface, and 10, 19 and 44 kcal/mol in the presence of the Na, H and C interstitials, respectively. The energies required for the planar to puckered distortion are 99 kcal/mol on Ni(111), 69 kcal/mol with the Na interstitial, 83 kcal/mol with H and 134 kcal/mol with C, compared to 198 kcal/mol for distortion of C 6 H 6 in the gas phase. The possible relevance of these results to the nucleation of diamond on nickel is discussed. The results indicate that subsurface Na stabilizes tetrahedrally bonded carbon subunits of the diamond structure while subsurface C may make it easier for the overlayer to revert to a planar graphite structure.
Effects of Drinking Water Temperature on Broiler Performance

In the first experiment, higher body weight gain and feed comsumption were attained with water at a temperature of 23.9 degrees C. as compared with 35.0 degrees C. No significant differences in feed efficiency due to water temperature were evident. Livability was significantly reduced during brooding for the birds given warm water (35.0 degree C). A significant interaction for body weight gain was observed between the initial ambient air brooding temperatures and water temperatures during the growing period. In the second experiment six water temperatures during brooding to three weeks of age were studied. Body weight gain and feed comsumption were significantly depressed at a drinking water temperature of 40.6 degrees C. as compared with drinking water temperatures between 17.8 degrees C. and 35.0 degrees C. No differences in livability were noted which was in contrast to the results of the first experiment. A drinking water temperature below ambient air temperature is apparently beneficial to the growth of the broiler chick. The placement of the waterers in relation to the brooder stoves could influence water temperature which would affect the growth of broilers.
Performance comparison of laboratory and field produced pervious concrete mixtures

Abstract Portland cement pervious concrete (PCPC) is an environmentally friendly paving material that has been increasingly used in parking lots as well as low volume and low speed pavements. Although specifications are available for the mix design and construction of pervious concrete, there still remains a need for laboratory tests to ensure the anticipated performance of laboratory designed pervious concrete. In this study, the performance of laboratory and field produced pervious concrete mixtures as well as field cores were evaluated and compared through laboratory performance tests, including air voids, permeability, compressive and split tensile strengths, as well as Cantabro and freeze–thaw durability tests. Two types of coarse aggregate, limestone and granite, with two gradings, No. 8 and No. 89 specified in ASTM C33, were used to produce the mixtures. Latex, air-entraining admixture (AEA), and high range water reducer (HRWR) were also added to improve the overall performance of pervious concrete. The results indicated that the mixtures made with limestone and latex had lower porosity and permeability, as well as higher strength and abrasion resistance than other mixtures. Even for pervious concrete, the addition of AEA could still help to improve the freeze–thaw resistance. The comparison between laboratory and field mixtures showed that a properly designed and laboratory verified pervious concrete mixture could meet the requirements of permeability, strength, and durability performance in the field.
CD4+ CD25high Foxp3+ regulatory T cells downregulate human Vδ2+ T‐lymphocyte function triggered by anti‐CD3 or phosphoantigen

Vdelta2+ T cells, the major circulating T-cell receptor-gammadelta-positive (TCR-gammadelta+) T-cell subset in healthy adults, are involved in immunity against many microbial pathogens including Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Vdelta2+ T cells recognize small phosphorylated metabolites (phosphoantigens), expand in response to whole M. tuberculosis bacilli, and complement the protective functions of CD4+ T cells. CD4+ CD25(high) Foxp3+ T cells (Tregs) comprise 5-10% of circulating T cells and are increased in patients with active tuberculosis (TB). We investigated whether, in addition to their known role in suppressing TCR-alphabeta+ lymphocytes, Tregs suppress Vdelta2+ T-cell function. We found that depletion of Tregs from peripheral blood mononuclear cells increased Vdelta2+ T-cell expansion in response to M. tuberculosis (H37Ra) in tuberculin-skin-test-positive donors. We developed a suppression assay with fluorescence-activated cell sorting-purified Tregs and Vdelta2+ T cells by coincubating the two cell types at a 1 : 1 ratio. The Tregs partially suppressed interferon-gamma secretion by Vdelta2+ T cells in response to anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody plus interleukin-2 (IL-2). In addition, Tregs downregulated the Vdelta2+ T-cell interferon-gamma responses induced by phosphoantigen (BrHPP) and IL-2. Under the latter conditions there was no TCR stimulus for Tregs and therefore IL-2 probably triggered suppressor activity. Addition of purified protein derivative (PPD) increased the suppression of Vdelta2+ T cells, suggesting that PPD activated antigen-specific Tregs. Our study provides evidence that Tregs suppress both anti-CD3 and antigen-driven Vdelta2+ T-cell activation. Antigen-specific Tregs may therefore contribute to the Vdelta2+ T-cell functional deficiencies observed in TB.
An Efficient Bottom-Up Image Segmentation Method Based on Region Growing, Region Competition and the Mumford Shah Functional

Curve evolution implementations [3][17] [18] of the Mumford-Shah functional [11] are of broad interest in image segmentation. These implementations, however, have initialization problems [4]. A mathematical analysis of the initialization problem for the bi-modal Chan-Vese model [3] is provided in this paper. The initialization problem is a result of the non-convexity of the Mumford-Shah functional and the top-down hierarchy of the model's use of global region information in the image. An efficient image segmentation method is proposed that alleviates the initialization problem, based on region growing, region competition and the Mumford Shah functional [11]. This algorithm is able to automatically and efficiently segment objects in complicated images. Using a bottom-up hierarchy, the method avoids the initialization problem in the Chan-Vese model and works for images with multiple junctions and color images. It can be extended to textured images. Experimental results show that the proposed method is robust to the effects of noise.
Moral realism and cross-cultural normative diversity

We discuss the implications of the findings reported in the target article for moral theory, and argue that they represent a clear and genuine case of fundamental moral disagreement. As such, the findings support a moderate form of moral anti-realism - the position that, for some moral issues, there is no fact of the matter about what is right and wrong.
VERTICAL EQUATING USING THE RASCH MODEL

Standardized achievement test batteries are typically constructed to measure the performance of pupils over a range of several grades. To measure such a wide range of ability most efficiently and accurately, levels are constructed within each subtest area, with each level containing items appropriate in difficulty and content for typical students within a particular grade. In order to provide a developmental score scale which is continuous across all levels, it is important to have a technique for determining the relationship between raw scores on one level of the test and raw scores on another level. This score scale is determined through what is frequently referred to as vertical equating. Horizontal equating (Slinde and Linn, 1977) involves equating scores between two tests which are similar in content and difficulty and intended for the same population of examinees; vertical equating, on the other hand, is an attempt to equate scores on two tests which are intentionally designed to be different in difficulty and intended for groups with different ranges of abilities, but which measure the same general area of knowledge or general domain of skills. One method which has been applied to the problem of vertical equating is equipercentile equating. One procedure for equipercentile equating involves the use of two groups of comparable ability. Each group is administered a different form or a different level of the test. Raw scores on the two levels with identical percentile ranks in the two comparable groups are assumed equivalent. In equipercentile equating, however, the equivalence of scores is dependent upon the ability and other characteristics of the population from which the groups are drawn; therefore the conversion scale for any given group may not be altogether accurate for other groups. In response to the difficulty created by sample dependency in equating and calibrating forms and levels of tests, another method, utilizing the Rasch model approach to item analysis, has received consideration. Latent trait models such as the Rasch model have the proposed advantage of providing estimates of item parameters, which allow the equating of levels or forms to be independent of the sample used in estimation. The Rasch, or one parameter logistic, model specifies an item characteristic curve which defines the relationship between an examinee's ability measured by the items of a test and the probability of answering an item correctly. This item characteristic curve is represented by the following mathematical expression:
Implementation of control methodologies on the computational architecture for the Utah/MIT hand

This paper provides an overview of the hardware and software systems developed for the Utah-MIT dextrous hand. It builds on the issues raised in an earlier paper [Siegel et al. 1985]. An innovative task scheduling system and a new implementation of our message-passing based inter-task communication system are discussed. Finally, an application program using this system to implement hand-level primitive operations is presented.
Confessions of an Expert Ethics Witness

The aim of this essay is to describe and reflect upon the concrete particulars of one academician's work as an expert ethics witness. The commentary on my practices and the narrative descriptions of three cases are offered as evidence for the thesis that it is possible to act honorably within a role that some have considered to be inherently illicit. Practical measures are described for avoiding some of the best known pitfalls. The discussion concludes with a listing of the distinctive competencies and understandings that are useful in serving as an expert ethics witness.
Identification of Yeast IQGAP (Iqg1p) as an Anaphase-Promoting-Complex Substrate and Its Role in Actomyosin-Ring-Independent Cytokinesis

In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a ring of myosin II forms in a septin-dependent manner at the budding site in late G1. This ring remains at the bud neck until the onset of cytokinesis, when ...
An unusual non-fluorescing algal kerogen from the Canadian Arctic

Abstract Bituminous cobbles collected from the Fossil Forest site (Geodetic Hills, Axel Heiberg Island, Canadian Arctic) have been subjected to petrographic and geochemical characterization. Transmitted light microscopy and pyrolytic analyses indicate that these samples are derived from algal biomass and are in most ways, generally comparable with other boghead coals and torbanites. However, fluorescence microscopy results in the surprising observation that these samples do not fluoresce under normal blue-light excitation conditions. Strong fluorescence is generally considered to be characteristic of alginites and Type I (and II) kerogens, and the absence of this property in these samples suggests that even petrographic analyses with blue-light excitation (fluorescence) may underestimate the occurrence of algal-derived materials in some samples.
Through the eyes of the wounded: a narrative analysis of children's sexual abuse experiences and recovery process

Numerous children receive counseling for sexual abuse, yet their personal perspectives related to the abuse, the impact of making the disclosure, and the recovery process are noticeably absent from the scholarly literature. This study addressed this gap by analyzing trauma narratives written by children as part of a counseling intervention. Qualitative analysis revealed three themes: memories of the abuse, the disclosure and subsequent events, and the healing journey. Children’s descriptions of their thoughts, feelings, and beliefs about their experiences are delineated and recommendations are provided for counseling professionals to increase the efficacy of care provided.
Reviving Inert Knowledge: Analogical Abstraction Supports Relational Retrieval of Past Events

We present five experiments and simulation studies to establish late analogical abstraction as a new psychological phenomenon: Schema abstraction from analogical examples can revive otherwise inert knowledge. We find that comparing two analogous examples of negotiations at recall time promotes retrieving analogical matches stored in memory—a notoriously elusive effect. Another innovation in this research is that we show parallel effects for real-life autobiographical memory (Experiments 1‐3) and for a controlled memory set (Experiments 4 and 5). Simulation studies show that a unified model based on schema abstraction can capture backward (retrieval) effects as well as forward (transfer) effects.
Does additional campaign spending really hurt incumbents?: The theoretical importance of past investments in political brand name

The existing literature ignores the fact that the marginal return to current campaign expenditures depends on the candidate's stock of brand name. This simple observation is then used to provide a possible explanation for the negative empirical relationship observed between an incumbent's campaign spending and how well he does.
Effect of Grain Size Distribution on Tensile Properties of Electrodeposited Nanocrystalline Nickel

We have produced dense and ductile nanocrystalline nickel with various grain size distributions using electrodeposition techniques. The strength of the nickel deposits fell within the scatter band of the general Hall-Petch curve for nickel. However, large variations in yield strength, strain hardening rate and tensile elongation were associated with a relatively small change in the average grain size. The scatter in the elongation data has been attributed to the formation of nodules and the presence of voids. The variations in strength and strain hardening rate have been shown to be associated with the changes in the grain size distribution. A model based on confined dislocation motion and composite behavior has been developed for predicting the stress-strain behavior of the nanocrystalline nickel.
Polarimetric microwave wind radiometer model function and retrieval testing for WindSat

A geophysical model function (GMF), relating the directional response of polarimetric brightness temperatures to ocean surface winds, is developed for the WindSat multifrequency polarimetric microwave radiometer. This GMF is derived from the WindSat data and tuned with the aircraft radiometer measurements for very high winds from the Hurricane Ocean Wind Experiment in 1997. The directional signals in the aircraft polarimetric radiometer data are corroborated by coincident Ku-band scatterometer measurements for wind speeds in the range of 20-35 m/s. We applied an iterative retrieval algorithm using the polarimetric brightness temperatures from 18-, 23-, and 37-GHz channels. We find that the root-mean-square direction difference between the Global Data Assimilation System winds and the closest WindSat wind ambiguity is less than 20/spl deg/ for above 7-m/s wind speed. The retrieval analysis supports the consistency of the Windrad05 GMF with the WindSat data.
NON-DIMENSIONAL EQUATIONS AND MODELING CRITERIA FOR THE ATMOSPHERE

Abstract Examples of the application of a general method, standard in aerodynamics and fluid mechanics, for expressing the meteorological equations in systematic non-dimensional form are given. In the case of the equation of motion, three dimensionless parameters appear in the particular choice made among the many possible resolutions.These are a Reynolds number, a Froude number, and a number expressing the influence of rotation, which it is proposed to name the “Rossby number.”
Health information systems - new shifts and emerging trends in health IT infrastructures.

Objectives: Summarize excellent current research in the field of Health Information Systems. Method: Synopsis of the articles selected for the IMIA Yearbook 2009. Results: Five papers from international peer reviewed journals have been selected for the section on health information systems. They concentrate on topics such as personal health records, the comparison of IT infrastructures in hospitals from different countries, hospital to hospital IT outsourcing partnership, and the wireless monitoring of patients. Conclusions: The elected articles highlight the new shifts in health information management and challenges faced by hospitals regarding IT infrastructures.
Relaxation Processes in Vulcanized Rubber. III. Relaxation at Large Strains and the Effect of Fillers

Abstract Some experimental measurements are described of stress relaxation and creep at room temperatures in vulcanizates of natural rubber, butyl, and SBR. In an unfilled natural rubber vulcanizate the rate of stress relaxation is found to rise sharply for extensions of more than about 200%. Reasons are given for attributing this to the growth of a crystalline phase. Similar rates are observed at all extensions for a carbon black filled natural rubber vulcanizate. This is shown to be in satisfactory accord with the Mullins-Tobin model structure for filled vulcanizates, when the whole of the observed relaxation occurs in “softened” regions at rates appropriate to the high local deformations. The failure of rubber-carbon black associations with time does not appear to constitute a major relaxation process. In noncrystallizing unfilled vulcanizates the rate of relaxation is found to decrease somewhat with extension, possibly due to finite-extensibility effects. Preliminary measurements on a filled SBR vulca...
Protein kinase Cδ and apoptosis

The PKC (protein kinase C) family regulates diverse cellular functions and specific isoforms have been shown to be critical regulators of cell proliferation and survival. In particular, PKCδ is known to be a critical pro-apoptotic signal in many cell types. Work in our laboratory has focused on understanding the molecular mechanisms through which PKCδ regulates apoptosis and on how the pro-apoptotic activity of this ubiquitous kinase is regulated such that cells only activate the apoptotic cascade when appropriate. We have identified multiple regulatory steps that activate the pro-apoptotic function of PKCδ in response to genotoxins. Our studies show that apoptotic signals induce rapid post-translational modification of PKCδ in the regulatory domain, which facilitates translocation of the kinase from the cytoplasm to the nucleus. Active caspase 3 also accumulates in the nucleus under these conditions, resulting in caspase cleavage of PKCδ and generation of a constitutively activated form of PKCδ [δCF (PKCδ catalytic fragment)]. In contrast with PKCδ, δCF is constitutively present in the nucleus, and this nuclear accumulation of PKCδ is essential for apoptosis. Thus our studies suggest that tight regulation of nuclear import and of PKCδ is critical for cell survival and that caspase cleavage of PKCδ in the nucleus signals an irreversible commitment to apoptosis. Abbreviations: JNK, c-Jun N-terminal kinase; NLS, nuclear localization sequence; PKC, protein kinase C; PKCδKD, kinase dead PKCδ; δCF, PKCδ catalytic fragment; STAT1, signal transducer and activator of transcription-1
The pH of prostatic fluid: a reappraisal and therapeutic implications.

Abstract A basic assumption in all experiments on prostatic physiology, particularly those designed to study the diffusion of drugs into the prostate gland, is that the pH of human prostatic fluid is similar to that of the dog, that is pH 6.1 to 6.5. We believe that this assumption is incorrect. Our data indicate 1) the expressed prostatic secretion of most normal men is alkaline (mean pH 7.31), 2) with prostatic infection the pH of prostatic fluid increases markedly (mean pH 8.34) and, therefore, drugs shown to diffuse into the canine prostate may be ineffective in treating prostatitis in humans and 3) the increase in pH of the expressed prostatic secretion seen with infection is not simply owing to an increase in the relative concentration of alkaline seminal vesicular components. Biochemical markers of seminal vesicular activity (fructose and prostaglandins) showed no correlation with pH values of expressed prostatic secretion. Hence, it appears that the change in pH of the expressed secretion is owing to a real increase in pH of prostatic fluid. The clinical implications of these findings are discussed. An appreciation of the profound variation in the prostatic fluid pH may be of importance not only in furthering the understanding and treatment of chronic bacterial prostatitis but, also, of other prostatic diseases as well.
Arthroscopic decompression of the shoulder in athletes.

An accurate diagnosis of pathologic conditions of the shoulder joint complex involves a detailed physical examination, appropriate radiographs, and sometimes additional diagnostic tests. An individually designed rehabilitation program frequently can return an athlete to sport. Operative intervention may be necessary in some cases with an optimistic outlook for return to sport. Higher caliber athletes may have a less successful outcome.
Horseshoe kidney and urolithiasis.

AbstractPatients with horseshoe kidney and associated urinary stone disease were reviewed. There were 8 patients evaluated and the data indicate that similar metabolic parameters governing stone disease in anatomically normal kidneys also are operative in the horseshoe kidney. This fact must be recognized in the evaluation of these patients so that metabolic disorders can be identified and treated properly.
The political economy of flood management reform in China

AbstractThis article examines the political economy factors that are likely to shape China’s attempts to reform its approach to managing floods, particularly by implementing integrated flood risk management (IFRM). IFRM emphasizes the use of structural and non-structural measures to reduce flood risk, rather than simply seeking to control flooding. For China, reducing flood risk is increasingly important in light of urbanization and climate change. However, a number of political economy issues, especially the division of power between central and local levels of government, create considerable challenges for flood management reform. This article examines China’s approach to implementing IFRM in light of existing political economy constraints and the institutional framework for flood management. It argues that effective flood management reform requires addressing common challenges, including interjurisdictional and intersectoral coordination and stakeholder participation.
Energy-resolved coherent diffraction from laser-driven electronic motion in atoms

We investigate theoretically the use of energy-resolved ultrafast electron diffraction to image laser-driven electronic motion in atoms. A chirped laser pulse is used to transfer the valence electron of the lithium atom from the ground state to the first excited state. During this process, the electronic motion is imaged by 100-fs and 1-fs electron pulses in energy-resolved diffraction measurements. Simulations show that the angle-resolved spectra reveal the time evolution of the energy content and symmetry of the electronic state. The time-dependent diffraction patterns are further interpreted in terms of the momentum transfer. For the case of incident 1-fs electron pulses, the rapid $2s\ensuremath{-}2p$ quantum beat motion of the target electron is imaged as a time-dependent asymmetric oscillation of the diffraction pattern.
Cu/Co metaconductor based high signal integrity transmission lines for millimeter wave applications

This work reports copper/cobalt (Cu/Co) metaconductor based coplanar waveguide (CPW) transmission lines, featuring excellent signal integrity at K-bands and millimeter wave frequencies such as low conductor loss, reduced signal dispersion, and low noise figure. CPW transmission lines consisting of 10 pairs of Cu/Co thin film metaconductors with each layer thickness of 150 nm/25 nm, respectively, have been designed, fabricated and characterized. Experimental results show an RF resistance reduction of up to 50 % (Max.) in 7 GHz–32 GHz, 25.5 % delay performance improvement, and 30 % thermal noise voltage reduction compared with reference copper based CPWs. Compared with devices from other literatures, the presented device shows the best signal integrity performance in Ku, K, and Ka bands.
Study abroad and the development of college students' travel venturesomeness

Abstract This research examines the impact of short-term study abroad on a travel-specific psychographic manifestation of intercultural competence, Plog's concept of venturesomeness. It also assesses the moderating effect of cultural distance on students' development of venturesomeness. Using a pre-post longitudinal design, research found that the intercultural and personal development benefits acquired during study abroad had a significant mediating effect on student venturesomeness; i.e., students became more likely to pursue travel that facilitates immersion in and reflection on the host culture's way of life. Consistent with social distance and expectancy value theory, this effect was found for students who traveled to culturally proximate countries and not for those who traveled to countries with a higher cultural distance from the U.S. Given that this was the first study abroad experience for a majority of the sample, we suggest the need for a phase-based program of study abroad experientiation to optimize study abroad effects and facilitate more holistic student development. The intricacies of study abroad as a specific form of facilitated travel have certain implications for study abroad program administrators and the travel and tourism industry.
The Toxicity of Persistent Organic Pollutants to Aquatic Organisms

Abstract Persistent organic pollutants are of great concern because they tend to disperse widely across ecosystems; they accumulate to high concentrations in the tissues of wildlife; and they possess certain sublethal, insidious mechanisms for toxicity that include the potential for endocrine disruption and carcinogenesis. This chapter reports on contaminant classes that have garnered much attention, including polychlorinated biphenyls, dioxins, furans, perfluorinated chemicals, and organobromide compounds. This chapter attempts to summarize what is known about the fate, transport, and toxicity of these pollutants in aquatic environments. Most of the data presented here indicate that acute ecological impacts to aquatic biota from exposure to these types of contaminants occur at relatively high concentrations that are not environmentally relevant. The most significant toxicological aspects of these compounds, however, lies in their environmental persistence and their ability to bioaccumulate and biomagnify through aquatic food chains.
Randomized controlled trial investigating the experimental effects of reduced habitual physical activity on cardiometabolic profile.

Abstract Objective Previous work suggests that reduced habitual physical activity is unfavorably associated with cardiometabolic health. Fewer lifestyle-based, experimental studies on this topic have been conducted. Thus, the purpose of this study was to experimentally reduce habitual physical activity over a one-week period to evaluate its potential effects on cardiometabolic profile. Methods Young physically active adults (Mage = 21 yrs) were randomized into a Reduced Activity Group (N = 19) or a Control Group (N = 20). The Reduced Activity group engaged in baseline week of normal activity, then reduced their activity for one week (from approximately 9000 steps/day to approximately 6000 steps/day), followed by resumption of habitual activity for a week. The Control Group maintained their normal active lifestyle for two-weeks. At all time points, the following cardiometabolic parameters were assessed: systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, mean arterial blood pressure, total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), triglycerides (TG), atherogenic index of plasma (AIP), TC/HDL-C, LDL-C/HDL-C, TG/HDL-C, non-HDL-C, and glucose. Results The Reduced Activity Group, compared to the Control Group, had an unfavorable change in TG/HDL-C (FInteraction = 4.995, P = 0.03, η2p = 0.14). No other biomarkers were altered Conclusion A one-week period of reduced activity among a young adult, active population, increased TG/HDL-C levels, with no changes observed in any of the other evaluated cardiometabolic parameters. Thus, a temporary lapse in habitual physical activity does not considerably change cardiometabolic outcomes in young, healthy physically active adults.
The Role of a B Factory in the U.S. Program

In this paper I have summarized the particle physics which leads the particle physics community to call for the construction of an asymmetric B factory. It is clear that the era of particle factories — e+e−~ colliders at the frontier of luminosity rather than energy — is approaching. A ϕ factory is well underway at Frascati. A τ-charm factory is proposed in Spain, and a large contingent of U.S. physicists is anxiously waiting for the chance to work there. And in Japan and the U.S., plans for building a B factory are well along, and approval from funding agencies is being actively sought.
Content Location in Peer-to-Peer Systems: Exploiting Locality

Efficient content location is a fundamental problem for decentralized peer-to-peer systems. Gnutella, a popular file-sharing application, relies on flooding queries to all peers. Although flooding is simple and robust, it is not scalable. In this chapter, we explore how to retain the simplicity of Gnutella while addressing its inherent weakness: scalability. We propose two complementary content location solutions that exploit locality to improve scalability. First, we look at temporal locality and find that the popularity of search strings follows a Zipf-like distribution. Caching query results to exploit temporal locality can significantly decrease the amount of traffic seen on the network by 3-times while using only a few megabytes of memory. As our second solution, we exploit a simple, yet powerful principle called interest-based locality, which posits that if a peer has a particular piece of content that one is interested in, it is very likely that it will have other items that one is interested in as well. We propose that peers loosely organize themselves into an interest-based structure on top of the existing Gnutella network. When using our algorithm, called interest-based shortcuts, a significant amount of flooding can be avoided, reducing the total load in the system by a factor of 3 to 7 and reducing the time to locate content to only one peer-to-peer hop. We demonstrate the existence of both types of locality and evaluate our solutions using traces of several different content distribution systems such as the Web and popular peer-to-peer file-sharing applications.
Paleoecology in an Era of Climate Change: How the Past Can Provide Insights into the Future

Anthropogenic climate change is the most prominent conservation issue of our time. Expectations are that the Earth’s climate will warm ~2.5–6.5° within the next century. The accompanying biological consequences will no doubt be huge. How will the diversity of life on our planet respond to rapid climate change? The best way to predict the future may be to examine the past as biota have experienced numerous episodes of climate fluctuation throughout geologic time. Some of these climatic fluctuations, particularly those of the late Quaternary, have been as rapid as those anticipated by climate warming scenarios. Analysis of the paleontological record can yield valuable information on how past climate change has shaped biodiversity in the past, and provide clues for what we may expect in the future.
Health Insurance in Historical Perspective, II: The Rise of Market-Oriented Health Policy and Healthcare

This article explores the intellectual history of market-based health policy in America. It opens by characterizing the two broad forms that American proposals for market-based health policy initially assumed: One resting on modern economic analysis of the demand side of healthcare markets and the other, initially depending far less heavily on formal economic analysis, but reflecting the conviction that public purposes could better be realized through supply-side reforms. The article reveals the extent to which some of the founding ideas and concerns of health economics took form through analysis of the health sector when national health insurance seemed imminent; and it briefly explores the consequences of these developments for the history of ideas about health insurance and for the development of healthcare markets on the ground. It offers conclusions about both the kinds of reform measures that American health policy has generated and role of economists in health policy.
Vibration-based damage detection with uncertainty quantification by structural identification using nonlinear constraint satisfaction with interval arithmetic:

Structural identification has received increased attention over recent years for performance-based structural assessment and health monitoring. Recently, an approach for formulating the finite elem...
SPHERICAL CONFLUENCE: Global Curatorship after ‘Magiciens de la Terre’

This paper examines the 25th anniversary of Magiciens de la Terre, one of the twentieth century’s most controversial and ambitious exhibitions. The aim of this text is to call into question the assumption that this exhibition inaugurated a sort of new global confluence between so-called Western and Non-Western art. In order to do that, the paper addresses some of the curatorial projects, theories of (alter)modernity and globalist ideologies that gravitate around this exhibition. Our intention is to analyse the consequences of accepting that 1989 is the degree zero of the ‘spherical confluence’ of global art. For our purposes here, the papers defines this phenomenon as the ‘magiciens effect’: the premise that art became truly global in 1989, in Paris, due to Magiciens de la terre, and that the canonical hierarchies of modernity were dissolved in the process giving place to a post-asymmetric geo-aesthetic regime.
Abstract WMP53: New Diagnosis of Cancer and the Risk of Subsequent Arterial Thromboembolic Events

Background: Retrospective studies have reported an association between cancer and arterial thromboembolism risk. We sought to confirm this in a prospective cohort with adjudicated cardiovascular ou...
On Philosophical Historiography

The history of philosophy is the prime source alike for data as for the methodology of philosophizing.
A new campaign strategy informed by pragmatism: Running on a platform of expanding voting accessibility

Voter disillusionment is commonplace in the United States, with many eligible voters either choosing not to or altogether unable to exercise their right to vote. To the former, in 2016 alone, nearl...
Changing frameworks in treatment sequencing of triple-negative and HER2-positive, early-stage breast cancers

Important results are emerging from clinical trials showing that surgery followed by chemotherapy might not be the optimal strategy to maximise a patient's chance of survival from triple-negative or HER2-positive breast cancers. Administering chemotherapy before surgery provides an opportunity to directly observe the efficacy of a particular chemotherapy regimen. Patients who have extensive residual invasive cancer after neoadjuvant chemotherapy are at a high risk of recurrence for metastatic disease, which, in turn, make these patients ideal candidates for clinical trials. Two important clinical trials, CREATE-X (UMIN000000843) and KATHERINE (NCT01772472), have shown improved disease-free survival with postoperative capecitabine and ado-trastuzumab emtansine in patients with either triple-negative or HER2-positive breast cancer who had residual disease after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The opportunity for residual-disease guided therapy, as observed in these trials, is lost when patients undergo surgery first. In this Personal View, we discuss the clinical implications of the CREATE-X and KATHERINE trials and place them into context with other developments in the adjuvant setting of early-stage breast cancer. We suggest that neoadjuvant systemic therapy should be considered as the new standard of care for HER2-positive and oestrogen receptor negative breast cancer, even for patients who present with operable (T1 or T2) disease.
How urban African American young adolescents spend their time: time budgets for locations, activities, and companionship.

The time budgets of a population of youth provide important information about their daily experience and socialization. This study reports data on the time budgets of a sample of 253 urban African American poor to working- and middle-class 5th–8th graders in Chicago. These youth were found to spend less time in school than other postindustrial adolescent populations, but spent no less time doing homework than White suburban U.S. young adolescents. They spent large quantities of time at home and with their families—at rates comparable to rates for young adolescents in a society with collectivist values like India. Unlike with other populations, early adolescence was not associated with major age changes in time allocations. Amount of time in schoolwork did not differ by grade, and amount of time with family did not show the decline with age that has been found for European American suburban adolescents.
Quenching and Partitioning of Plate Steels: Partitioning Design Methodology

Quenching and partitioning (Q&P), a new heat treatment concept to develop high-strength martensitic microstructures with retained austenite (RA), has been implemented industrially to make sheet products. This process is also of interest for thicker plate products, to employ transformation-induced plasticity to enhance toughness and/or wear resistance. The applicability of the Q&P process to plate steel is explored considering through-thickness thermal profiles and associated microstructural gradients. Design methodologies are developed for both the quenching and the partitioning steps of plate processing, coupling thermal models with microstructural design concepts. The design methodologies are experimentally validated using a 0.4 wt pct C 300 M alloy through dilatometry simulations of plate Q&P processing, according to numerically simulated profiles. Q&P microstructures were successfully obtained through the thickness of a simulated 18-mm plate, and attractive RA fractions were achieved.
Antecedents of Entrepreneurs’ Well-being: A Meta-Analytic Review

Given the economic contributions made by entrepreneurs, it is necessary for researchers to understand what makes individual entrepreneurs satisfied and healthy. In this study, we conducted a set of...
INVESTIGATING SOME NEGLECTED CRITERIA: THE INFLUENCE OF ORGANIZATIONAL LEVEL AND PERCEIVED SYSTEM KNOWLEDGE ON APPRAISAL REACTIONS

Researchers have suggested that examining the factors which influence appraisal reactions is important because these reactions are critical criteria of appraisal effectiveness. The current field study investigates how organizational level and knowledge of the performance appraisal system may be related to employees' reactions toward the performance appraisal system. Inferences from past research suggest that supervisory employees' unique perspective on the appraisal system may lead to more positive evaluations. The present study attempts to better explain this relationship by investigating the effect of Perceived System Knowledge (PSK) as a mediator of this relationship. Results revealed that PSK completely mediated the relationship between organizational level and appraisal reactions.
Design Methodologies and Specifications

In the design phase of the software life cycle, the architecture of the system is determined. If it is reasonably complicated, the system in most cases consists of a number of components, called modules. During the design phase, those modules, relationships among modules, and possibly some control sequences are identified. Requirements for the modules are further specified, and this step is repeated until no further decomposition can be made and each module can be realized directly.
Distributed Smart Cameras in the Age of Cloud Computing and the Internet-of-Things

This chapter considers the implications of cloud-oriented, Internet-of-Things systems for distributed smart cameras. Advances in smart camera design enable new applications and capabilities. Advances in middleware and software support for distributed algorithms on smart camera networks have resulted in improved software platforms, but work still needs to be done. A variety of network-level algorithms and services are now possible and are starting to be developed.
COVID-19 Outcomes in Patients Undergoing B Cell Depletion Therapy and Those with Humoral Immunodeficiency States: A Scoping Review

Background The role of humoral immunity has been well established in reducing infection risk and facilitating viral clearance in patients with COVID-19. However, the relationship between specific antibody responses and severity of COVID-19 is less well understood. Methods To address this question and identify gaps in knowledge, we utilized the methodology of a scoping review to interrogate risk of infection and clinical outcomes of COVID-19 in patients with iatrogenic and inborn humoral immunodeficiency states based on existing literature. Results Among patients with iatrogenic B-cell depletion, particularly with agents targeting CD20, our analysis found increased risk of severe COVID-19 and death across a range of underlying disease states. Among patients with humoral inborn errors of immunity with COVID-19, our synthesis found that patients with dysregulated humoral immunity, predominantly common variable immunodeficiency (CVID), may be more susceptible to severe COVID-19 than patients with humoral immunodeficiency states due to X-linked agammaglobulinemia and other miscellaneous forms of humoral immunodeficiency. There were insufficient data to appraise the risk of COVID-19 infection in both populations of patients. Conclusions Our work identifies potentially significant predictors of COVID-19 severity in patients with humoral immunodeficiency states and highlights the need for larger studies to control for clinical and biologic confounders of disease severity.