cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Offline multiple adaptive planning strategy for concurrent irradiation of the prostate and pelvic lymph nodes.

Purpose: Concurrent irradiation of the prostate and pelvic lymph nodes (PLNs) can be challenging due to the independent motion of the two target volumes. To address this challenge, the authors have proposed a strategy referred to as Multiple Adaptive Planning (MAP). To minimize the number of MAP plans, the authors’ previous work only considered the prostate motion in one major direction. After analyzing the pattern of the prostate motion, the authors investigated a practical number of intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) plans needed to accommodate the prostate motion in two major directions simultaneously. Methods: Six patients, who received concurrent irradiation of the prostate and PLNs, were selected for this study. Nine MAP-IMRT plans were created for each patient with nine prostate contours that represented the prostate at nine locations with respect to the PLNs, including the original prostate contour and eight contours shifted either 5 mm in a single anterior-posterior (A-P), or superior-inferior (S-I) direction, or 5 mm in both A-P and S-I directions simultaneously. From archived megavoltage cone beam CT (MV-CBCT) and a dual imaging registration, 17 MV-CBCTs from 33 available MV-CBCT from these patients showed large prostate displacements (>3 mm in any direction) with respect to the pelvic bones. Formore » each of these 17 fractions, one of nine MAP-IMRT plans was retrospectively selected and applied to the MV-CBCT for dose calculation. For comparison, a simulated isocenter-shifting plan and a reoptimized plan were also created for each of these 17 fractions. The doses to 95% (D95) of the prostate and PLNs, and the doses to 5% (D5) of the rectum and bladder were calculated and analyzed. Results: For the prostate, D95 > 97% of the prescription dose was observed in 16, 16, and 17 of 17 fractions for the MAP, isocenter-shifted, and reoptimized plans, respectively. For PLNs, D95 > 97% of the prescription doses was observed in 10, 3, and 17 of 17 fractions for the three types of verification plans, respectively. The D5 (mean ± SD) of the rectum was 45.78 ± 5.75, 45.44 ± 4.64, and 44.64 ± 2.71 Gy, and the D5 (mean ± SD) of the bladder was 45.18 ± 2.70, 46.91 ± 3.04, and 45.67 ± 3.61 Gy for three types of verification plans, respectively. Conclusions: The MAP strategy with nine IMRT plans to accommodate the prostate motions in two major directions achieved good dose coverage to the prostate and PLNs. The MAP approach can be immediately used in clinical practice without requiring extra hardware and software.« less
A study of the quantal (all-or-none) change in reflex latency produced by opiate analgesics.

Abstract The properties of opiate-induced changes of tail-flick latency were studied in the rat. (1) Morphine and pentazocine produced a stepwise increase in latency which rose from near baseline to cut-off (usually greater than 20 sec) in less than 30 sec. Abrupt return to pre-treatment latencies was observed either spontaneously or when the rat was back-titrated with the narcotic antagonist naloxone. (2) The proportion of rats showing this stepwise change increase with increasing dose; however, the step itself was independent of dose. The same step was produced by a slow, constant infusion of morphine but was not produced by ice-water stress or barbiturate administration. (3) Increasing heat intensity to the tail shortened the baseline latency and raised the mean dose of morphine required to produce a step latency increase. (4) A step increase in latency was also observed when paw withdrawal instead of tail-flick was measured. We hypothesize that the analgesic behavior described partly defines the operating characteristics of an intrinsic endorphin-mediated analgesia system which mediates narcotic suppression of withdrawal reflexes.
The development and testing of new instruments for operative vaginal delivery

Abstract OBJECTIVE : Little innovation has occurred in recent years in the instruments available for operative vaginal delivery. The purpose of this study is to develop a technique to test the utility of an investigational device, the obstetric bonnet, and measure the forces it places on the fetal head. STUDY DESIGN : We constructed a model of the fetal head capable of measuring both compression and vacuum created by an applied device. A total of 18 devices were tested to a maximum traction of 60 pounds. RESULTS : A significant linear relationship exists between the traction applied and the compression (R 2 = 0.42, p = 0.0004) and vacuum ( R 2 = 0.85, p = 0.0001) created. Compression and vacuum recorded at maximum recommended traction were 1.1 lb/sq in and 31 cm Hg, respectively. CONCLUSION : These findings explain the mechanics of this interesting device, and demonstrate forces that compare favorably with those known to occur with forceps or vacuum extraction. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 1992;167:1121–4.)
Artificial intelligence methods in quantitative electroencephalogram analysis.

Abstract A set of programs designed to implement artificial-intelligence-related concepts in quantitative electroencephalogram analysis are described. The programs use rule-based logic with top down parsing (backward chaining) to evaluate EEG data. A simple implementation of fuzzy logic in premise clauses of ‘IF-THEN’ rules is included.
Part II: differences between sexually victimized and nonsexually victimized male adolescent sexual abusers and delinquent youth: further group comparisons of developmental antecedents and behavioral challenges.

In a recent paper published in the Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, we assessed the differences between sexually victimized and nonsexually victimized male adolescent sexual abusers (Burton, Duty, & Leibowitz, 2011). We found that the sexually victimized group had more severe developmental antecedents (e.g., trauma and early exposure to pornography) and behavioral difficulties (sexual aggression, arousal, pornography use, and nonsexual offenses). The present study compares sexually victimized and nonsexually victimized adolescent sexual abusers with a group of nonsexually victimized delinquent youth. Findings included that delinquent youth had fewer behavioral and developmental problems than the comparison groups. In addition, sexually victimized sexual abusers had the highest mean scores on trauma and personality measures. Implications for research and treatment are offered.
Demand modeling, new mode problems, and the $64 (sic) question: technological utopianism in America's race to develop high speed rail technology

The author analyzes two reports describing a now abandoned MagLev (magnetic levitation) rail system that would have run from Ontario, California, to Las Vegas, Nevada. Unlike traditional technical reports, the Budd Company Transit Division's MagLev reports appeal to utopian visions of futuristic technologies that would solve America's social and economic problems of the 1980s. The writers of these reports employ economic and political rhetoric such as risk modeling, market projections, appeals to the American dream and new frontier mentality, as well as xenophobic Japan-bashing, and downplay technical constraints on rail corridors. An analysis of these reports reveals the ethical and rhetorical dilemmas that writers face when the companies they work for seek funding for untried and untested visionary designs. >
Pancreatic cancer: new hopes for early detection and a future screening tool?

Given the overall poor prognosis of patients with pancreatic cancer, there has always been an interest in early screening and primary prevention. An abstract presented in ASCO 2014 by Orlowski et al . introduced the potential use of an elevated serum procarboxypeptidase A (PCPA) and high ratios of PCPA to free carboxypeptidase A (FCPA) in enhancing the diagnostic efficacy of pancreatic cancer either alone or with CA19-9 (Abstract #4118). Image: Screening.
Interactive fast spin‐echo imaging

It is shown that a spin-echo sequence may be used to acquire T2-weighted, high-resolution, high-SNR sections at quasi-real-time frame rates for interactive, diagnostic imaging. A single-shot fast spin-echo sequence was designed which employs driven equilibrium to realign transverse magnetization remaining at the final spin echo. Driven equilibrium is shown to improve T2 contrast at a given TR, or conversely to reduce TR by approximately 1000 msec and thus increase temporal resolution while maintaining a given level of contrast. Wiener demodulation of k-space data prior to reconstruction is shown to reduce blurring caused by T2-decay while constraining noise often associated with other inverse filters. Images are continuously acquired, reconstructed, and displayed at rates of one image every one to two seconds, while section position and contrast may be altered interactively. The clinical utility of this method is demonstrated with applications to dynamic pelvic floor imaging and interactive obstetric imaging. Magn Reson Med 44:339–348, 2000. © 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Pictures as prepulse: attention and emotion in startle modification

The effects of an emotional stimulus prepulse on probe startle response were examined here. Pleasant, neutral and unpleasant pictures were viewed for 6 s, and an acoustic startle probe was presented either 300, 800, 1,300, or 3,800 ms after slide onset, or 300 or 3,800 ms after slide offset. Blink magnitude and onset latency demonstrated (a) an early (prepulse) inhibition effect in which reflexes elicited immediately after slide onset were smaller than reflexes elicited later in the viewing interval, and (b) affective modulation, in which unpleasant stimuli prompted larger reflexes than pleasant. Interactive effects of probe time and picture valence indicated attention/arousal effects early and pleasantness effects late in the picture interval. Effects of both attention and emotion can be simultaneously measured using this startle-probe paradigm, encouraging its use in both basic and clinical contexts.
The influence of food material properties on jaw kinematics in the primate, Cebus

Abstract Objective To quantify the impact of food material properties on temporal and spatial variables of chewing kinematics at the level of the feeding sequence, gape cycle, and gape cycle phases. Design Three-dimensional kinematics were quantified from two adult, male capuchin monkeys (genus Cebus) while chewing on foods grouped by material properties into two categories, foods of high toughness and foods of low toughness. Results Total sequence duration and the total number of chews in a sequence are significantly influenced by food material properties, with foods of high toughness having shorter sequence durations and lower total chew numbers per sequence. Mean cycle duration is not impacted by food material properties at the level of the sequence, but food group differences are found when each cycle is compared independently by food group. Prior to chew fifteen, foods of low toughness elicit significantly lower gape cycle durations and significantly lower vertical displacements of M1. At the level of the chew phase, variance in slow close explains the majority of variance in chew cycle duration prior to chew thirteen, with foods of low toughness eliciting shorter slow close durations and smaller vertical displacements of M1. The vertical displacement of M1 throughout the chewing sequence is the primary spatial determinant of variance in the duration of slow close. Conclusions These data reveal that chewing behaviour in Cebus is temporally stereotyped at the level of the gape cycle, but temporally and spatially flexible within the cycle, at least partly due to central mechanisms of motor control.
Lattice Transformations and Subunit Conformational Changes in Phage Capsid Maturation

A general feature of the pathways for the assembly of double-stranded DNA phages and viruses is the assembly of coat and scaffolding subunits into a precursor shell or procapsid, followed by packaging of the genomic DNA into the shell. Coupled to this DNA packaging process is the loss of the scaffolding subunits and expansion and re-organization of the procapsid lattice to the lattice of the mature virus. Such lattice transitions have also been observed with adenoviruses and herpesviruses. In re-organizing into the mature capsid lattice, each subunit of the precursor lattice must change its conformation, or its relationship with its neighbours, or both. We briefly review here recent structural data for phages P22 and HK97, and describe the motions and conformational changes associated with this lattice transition. Possible functions of such constrained transformations within the virus life-cycle are discussed.
Physiological and molecular characterization of aluminum resistance in Medicago truncatula

Aluminum (Al) toxicity is an important factor limiting crop production on acid soils. However, little is known about the mechanisms by which legumes respond to and resist Al stress. To explore the mechanisms of Al toxicity and resistance in legumes, we compared the impact of Al stress in Al-resistant and Al-sensitive lines of the model legume, Medicago truncatula Gaertn. A screen for Al resistance in 54 M. truncatula accessions identified eight Al-resistant and eight Al-sensitive lines. Comparisons of hydroponic root growth and root tip hematoxylin staining in an Al-resistant line, T32, and an Al-sensitive line, S70, provided evidence that an inducible Al exclusion mechanism occurs in T32. Transcriptional events associated with the Al resistance response were analyzed in T32 and S70 after 12 and 48 h Al treatment using oligonucleotide microarrays. Fewer genes were differentially regulated in response to Al in T32 compared to S70. Expression patterns of oxidative stress-related genes, stress-response genes and microscopic examination of Al-treated root tips suggested a lower degree of Al-induced oxidative damage to T32 root tips compared to S70. Furthermore, genes associated with cell death, senescence, and cell wall degradation were induced in both lines after 12 h of Al treatment but preferentially in S70 after 48 h of Al treatment. A multidrug and toxin efflux (MATE) transporter, previously shown to exude citrate in Arabidopsis, showed differential expression patterns in T32 and S70. Our results identified novel genes induced by Al in Al-resistant and sensitive M. truncatula lines. In T32, transcription levels of genes related to oxidative stress were consistent with reactive oxygen species production, which would be sufficient to initiate cell death of Al-accumulating cells thereby contributing to Al exclusion and root growth recovery. In contrast, transcriptional levels of oxidative stress-related genes were consistent with excessive reactive oxygen species accumulation in S70 potentially resulting in necrosis and irreversible root growth inhibition. In addition, a citrate-exuding MATE transporter could function in Al exclusion and/or internal detoxification in T32 based on Al-induced transcript localization studies. Together, our findings indicate that multiple responses likely contribute to Al resistance in M. truncatula.
Association between clinical examination and outcome after cardiac arrest.

Background: Neurologic prognostication after cardiac arrest relies on clinical examination findings derived before the advent of therapeutic hypothermia (TH). We measured the association between clinical examination findings at hospital arrival, 24, and 72 h after cardiac arrest in a modern intensive care unit setting. Methods: Between 1/1/2005 and 3/31/2009, hospital charts were reviewed in 272 subjects for neurologic examination findings (Glasgow Coma Score – motor examination, pupil response, corneal response) at hospital arrival, 24, and 72 h following cardiac arrest. Primary outcome was survival to hospital discharge. Secondary outcome was “good outcome,” defined as discharge to home or acute rehabilitation facility. Results: Mean age was 61 years; 155 (57%) were male. Most were treated with TH (N = 161; 59%) and 100 subjects (37%) were in ventricular fibrillation/ventricular tachycardia. Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest was common (N = 169; 62%). Ninety-one (33%) survived, with 54 (20%) experiencing a good outcome. In subjects with a GCS Motor score ≤3 at 24 and 72 h survival was 17% (13/76; 95% CI 7.9–26.2%) and 20% (6/27; 95% CI 6.3–33.6%), respectively. Subjects with a GCS Motor score ≤2 at 24 and 72 h survived in 14% (9/66; 95% CI 4.6–22.6%) and 18% (6/33; 95% CI 3.5–32.8%), respectively. Absent pupil reactivity on arrival did not exclude survival (7/65; 11%; 95% CI 2.4–19%). A lack of pupil reactivity or corneal response at 72 h was associated with death (pupil: 0/17; 95% CI 0, 2.9%; corneal: 0/21; 95% CI 0, 2.4%). Conclusions: GCS Motor score ≤ 3o r≤2 at 24 or 72 h following cardiac arrest does not exclude survival or good outcome. However, absent pupil or corneal response at 72 h appears to exclude survival and good outcome.
Filamin B regulates chondrocyte proliferation and differentiation through Cdk1 signaling.

Humans who harbor loss of function mutations in the actin-associated filamin B (FLNB) gene develop spondylocarpotarsal syndrome (SCT), a disorder characterized by dwarfism (delayed bone formation) and premature fusion of the vertebral, carpal and tarsal bones (premature differentiation). To better understand the cellular and molecular mechanisms governing these seemingly divergent processes, we generated and characterized FlnB knockdown ATDC5 cell lines. We found that FlnB knockdown led to reduced proliferation and enhanced differentiation in chondrocytes. Within the shortened growth plate of postnatal FlnB−/− mice long bone, we observed a similarly progressive decline in the number of rapidly proliferating chondrocytes and premature differentiation characterized by an enlarged prehypertrophic zone, a widened Col2a1+/Col10a1+ overlapping region, but relatively reduced hypertrophic zone length. The reduced chondrocyte proliferation and premature differentiation were, in part, attributable to enhanced G2/M phase progression, where fewer FlnB deficient ATDC5 chondrocytes resided in the G2/M phase of the cell cycle. FlnB loss reduced Cdk1 phosphorylation (an inhibitor of G2/M phase progression) and Cdk1 inhibition in chondrocytes mimicked the null FlnB, premature differentiation phenotype, through a β1-integrin receptor- Pi3k/Akt (a key regulator of chondrocyte differentiation) mediated pathway. In this context, the early prehypertrophic differentiation provides an explanation for the premature differentiation seen in this disorder, whereas the progressive decline in proliferating chondrocytes would ultimately lead to reduced chondrocyte production and shortened bone length. These findings begin to define a role for filamin proteins in directing both cell proliferation and differentiation through indirect regulation of cell cycle associated proteins.
Shaping the Commercial City: Retail Districts in Nineteenth-Century New York and Boston

Abstract The built forms of New York City and Boston differed dramatically in the second half of the nineteenth century. This paper focuses on the changing forms of their retail districts and evaluates the divergence in those patterns in relation to their socioeconomic context. Historical atlases and city directories identified the locations of department stores, which were used as indicators of the retail districts while primary and secondary historical sources related locational decisions to their economic position and the structure of their elite classes. New York's unstable elite classes continued to move their residences north on Manhattan Island throughout the latter half of the nineteenth century and were unable and unwilling to stop the northward expansion of the retail district. Boston's stable ruling class was able to control retail expansion through various political acts limiting development and through social barriers that limited displays of conspicuous consumption. The importance of the str...
Marked Variations in Colon Cancer Epidemiology: Sex-specific and Race/Ethnicity-specific Disparities.

Background: Recent studies have reported on the changing epidemiology of colon cancer. Given this cancer’s high prevalence and mortality, defining high risk groups will be important to guide improvements in cancer screening programs. Methods: A retrospective cohort study of a large population-based cancer registry in the United States from 1973-2004 was performed to analyze the race and sex-specific disparities in colon cancer epidemiology. Results: Blacks and females demonstrated the greatest proportions of proximal cancers: the incidence rate of proximal cancers among black males was more than double that of Asian males (25.2 per 100,000/year vs 11.7 per 100,000/year, p < 0.0001) and the rate among black females was twice that of Asian females (21.9 per 100,000/year vs 11.4 per 100,000/year, p < 0.0001). Blacks as a group had the highest rates of advanced cancers: the rate among black males was nearly double that of Hispanic males (17.1 per 100,000/year vs 8.7 per 100,000/year, p < 0.0001) and the rate of advanced cancers among black females was twice that of Hispanic females (12.4 per 100,000/year vs 6.2 per 100,000/year, p < 0.0001). Conclusions: This study demonstrates marked disparities in the sex-specific and race/ethnicity-specific epidemiology of colon cancer. These differences likely represent unequal access to health care resources and race and sex-specific variations in cancer biology. An individualized approach incorporating these disparities would benefit future research and guidelines for improvements in cancer screening programs.
Task-based adaptation for ubiquitous computing

An important domain for autonomic systems is the area of ubiquitous computing: users are increasingly surrounded by technology that is heterogeneous, pervasive, and variable. In this paper we describe our work in developing self-adapting computing infrastructure that automates the configuration and reconfiguration of such environments. Focusing on the engineering issues of self-adaptation in the presence of heterogeneous platforms, legacy applications, mobile users, and resource variable environments, we describe a new approach based on the following key ideas: 1) explicit representation of user tasks allows us to determine what service qualities are required of a given configuration; 2) decoupling task and preference specification from the lower level mechanisms that carry out those preferences provides a clean engineering separation of concerns between what is needed and how it is carried out; and 3) efficient algorithms allow us to calculate in real time near-optimal resource allocations and reallocations for a given task
Some Metals of the Last Century

The Twentieth Century can be looked back upon as a period in which a number of metal alloys unknown to previous centuries were introduced Some were alloys in unusual combinations of previously-used metals, but also elements little used earlier. Some of these alloys have already had their day and exist now only in museum collections, where they may also present problems of preservation. Many metals lost their traditional applications or added entirely new ones. Elements such as uranium and the semimetals that had been of interest only to the ceramist at the start of the century are now the bases of industries unforseen only a hundred years ago. From this it is concluded that predictions for the present century are uncertain.
The Evolution of Retirement: An American Economic History, 1880–1990 . By Dora Costa. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1998. Pp. xiii, 234.$40.00, £31.95, cloth; $19.00, £ 13.50, paper.

Buy this book, read it, and keep it on your shelf as a reference. Dora Costa has written an award-winning book about retirement over the past century. She examines long-term trends in the propensity to retire and the impact of health, public pensions, income, and other determinants on the retirement decision.
Alphabet sizes of auxiliary random variables in canonical inner bounds

Recently, we proposed canonical inner bounds for a broad class of multiterminal source coding problems, subsuming an array of known results. Computation of those bounds assumes importance in view of open tightness questions, as well as their role as benchmarks, and in other contexts. In this backdrop, as computational algorithms depend exponentially on alphabet sizes of auxiliary random variables, estimating their sizes remains an important task. In existing literature, each auxiliary alphabet size is bounded within a positive integer constant of the corresponding source alphabet size. In a significant improvement, we give a tight bound, by showing that this constant integer can in fact be set to zero.
Circadian rhythm of salivary cortisol, plasma cortisol, and plasma ACTH in end-stage renal disease

Objective: Patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) can display the features of endogenous hypercortisolism but are difficult to evaluate for Cushing’s syndrome. We evaluated the circadian rhythm of plasma compared with salivary cortisol in subjects with ESRD. Design: Plasma and salivary cortisol and plasma ACTH samples were drawn frequently over 24 h in an inpatient research unit in stable ESRD subjects on daytime chronic hemodialysis (nZ16) vs controls (nZ8). Methods: Plasma cortisol was measured every 2 h from 0800 to 0600 h the following day. Salivary cortisol was measured every 2 h, except between 2400 and 0400 h (sleep time). Plasma ACTH measured in a subset of samples and C-reactive protein (CRP) was measured as a marker of a subclinical inflammatory state in all subjects. Results: ESRD subjects had a discernable circadian rhythm in plasma and salivary cortisol, but with a significantly higher nadir (1800–2400 h) compared with the controls (PZ0.016–!0.001). After excluding four ESRD subjects without a normal circadian rhythm, the ESRD subjects still had higher nadir plasma and salivary cortisol and plasma ACTH compared with controls. There was no difference in the correlation of salivary and plasma cortisol in control vs ESRD subjects. ESRD subjects had higher CRP levels compared with controls. Conclusions: ESRD subjects had increased late-night plasma and salivary cortisol and plasma ACTH levels. Late-night salivary cortisol is a reliable index of plasma cortisol in ESRD patients.
Protein synthesis and the presence or absence of a measurable G1 in cultured chinese hamster cells

V79-8 cells lack a measurable G1 interval under normal growth conditions. We found that partial inhibition of protein synthesis using low levels of cycloheximide (0.05 μ/ml) could induce a measurable G1 in these cells without any significant effects on S, G2, or M. In view of these findings, recessive mutants selected from the V79-8 cell line, which each express G1, were analyzed for their rates of protein synthesis and degradation/loss. Three of the four mutants showed a decreased rate of protein synthesis sufficient to account for their G1 lengths. A fourth mutant, however, showed parental rates of both protein synthesis and degradation/loss. These results suggest not only that a G1 interval can be expressed as a result of a decreased rate of protein synthesis, but that other alterations (mutations) other than those simply affecting overall protein synthesis can result in the expression of a measureable G1 interval.
Spirituality, Religion, and Counseling: Dimensions and Relationships

Although United States culture is experiencing a resurgence of interest in spirituality, little work has been advanced that specifically operationalizes definitions or descriptions of spirituality or discusses the relationship between spirituality and religion. In addition, there is an absence of literature addressing how counselors may work with explicitly spiritual issues in the counseling session. This article aims to describe spirituality, discuss spirituality in relation to religion, and approach spiritual issues in the clinical setting.
University Faculty Knowledge, Beliefs, and Practices in Providing Reasonable Accommodations to Students With Disabilities

University faculty members play an essential role in ensuring that students with disabilities receive a quality postsecondary education. Many factors influence the willingness of faculty to provide quality services. The purpose of this survey study was to identify these influential factors through a structural equation modeling model. Findings indicate that faculty personal beliefs have the most direct influence on provision of reasonable accommodations; knowledge of legal responsibilities and perceived institutional support directly influence personal beliefs. Suggestions for training programs and interventions are made to improve faculty personal beliefs and enhance their provision of accommodations and support to students with disabilities.
Rapid evolution of mimicry following local model extinction

Batesian mimicry evolves when individuals of a palatable species gain the selective advantage of reduced predation because they resemble a toxic species that predators avoid. Here, we evaluated whether—and in which direction—Batesian mimicry has evolved in a natural population of mimics following extirpation of their model. We specifically asked whether the precision of coral snake mimicry has evolved among kingsnakes from a region where coral snakes recently (1960) went locally extinct. We found that these kingsnakes have evolved more precise mimicry; by contrast, no such change occurred in a sympatric non-mimetic species or in conspecifics from a region where coral snakes remain abundant. Presumably, more precise mimicry has continued to evolve after model extirpation, because relatively few predator generations have passed, and the fitness costs incurred by predators that mistook a deadly coral snake for a kingsnake were historically much greater than those incurred by predators that mistook a kingsnake for a coral snake. Indeed, these results are consistent with prior theoretical and empirical studies, which revealed that only the most precise mimics are favoured as their model becomes increasingly rare. Thus, highly noxious models can generate an ‘evolutionary momentum’ that drives the further evolution of more precise mimicry—even after models go extinct.
In vivo evidence for post-adolescent brain maturation in frontal and striatal regions.

We spatially and temporally mapped brain maturation between adolescence and young adulthood using a whole-brain, voxel-by-voxel statistical analysis of high-resolution structural magnetic resonance images (MRI). The pattern of brain maturation during these years was distinct from earlier development, and was localized to large regions of dorsal, medial and orbital frontal cortex and lenticular nuclei, with relatively little change in any other location. This spatial and temporal pattern agrees with convergent findings from post-mortem studies of brain development and the continued development over this age range of cognitive functions attributed to frontal structures.
A lossless, accurate, self-calibrating current-sensing technique for DC-DC converters

High-performance, state-of-the-art applications demand smart power supplies to be adaptive, power efficient, and reliably accurate, which is why monitoring inductor current flow in a lossless fashion is not only desirable but also critical for protection and feedback control. Filter-based lossless current-sensing technique use a tuned filter across the inductor to estimate current flow, and its accuracy is dependent on the inductance and equivalent series resistance (ESR) of the device. Because of process-related tolerances, errors as high as /spl plusmn/28% are reported, even when the nominal inductor value is known, which is not the case for the IC designer, whose errors will then grossly exceed this value. A technique is proposed to boost the accuracy of these current-sensing filters by automatically adjusting their bandwidth and gain via phase and gain feedback control loops. The proposed scheme essentially measures the inductance and ESR values during startup and power-on reset events. Because the filter is automatically tuned to the inductor, the current during normal operation can be measured accurately by simply sensing the voltage across the inductor. A PCB prototype implementation of the proposed technique achieved overall DC and AC gain errors of 2.3% and 5% at full load, respectively, when lossless, state-of-the-art schemes achieve 20-40% error.
On the "Evolvable Hardware" Approach to Electronic Design Invention

Our interest is in evolutionary electronics and its exploitation for invention. In this paper, we survey how the community currently tries to exploit the invention potential of evolvable hardware. We assess whether the current state-of-art in evolvable hardware has resulted in successful inventions or invention tools. We discuss the challenges faced by the community in this regard and how the community can overcome these challenges by exploiting nascent technologies, which include new design substrates, new computational paradigms and recently discovered design principles
GENETIC VARIATION IN MALE EFFECTS ON FEMALE REPRODUCTION AND THE GENETIC COVARIANCE BETWEEN THE SEXES

Males of many insect species increase the fecundity and/or egg size of their mates through the amount or composition of their nuptial gifts or ejaculate. The genetic bases of such male effects on fecundity or egg size are generally unknown, and thus their ability to evolve remains speculative. Likewise, the genetic relationship between male and female investment into reproduction in dioecious species, which is expected to be positive if effects on fecundity are controlled by at least some of the same genes in males and females, is also unknown. Males of the seed beetle Stator limbatus contribute large ejaculates to females during mating, and the amount of donated ejaculate is positively correlated with male body mass. Females mated to large males lay more eggs in their lifetime than females mated to small males. We describe an experiment in which we quantify genetic variation in the number of eggs sired by males (mated to a single female) and found that a significant proportion of the phenotypic variance in the number of eggs sired by males was explained by their genotype. Additionally, the number of eggs sired by a male was highly positively genetically correlated with his body mass. The between-sex genetic correlation, that is, the genetic correlation between the number of eggs sired by males and the number of eggs laid by females, was highly positive when eggs were laid on Acacia greggii seeds. This indicates that males that sire many eggs have sisters that lay many eggs. Thus, some of the genes that control male ejaculate size (or some other fecundity-enhancing factor) when expressed in males appear to control fecundity when expressed in females. We found no significant interaction between male and female genotype on fecundity.
A Feminist Response to Weitzer

In his review of my book Pornland: How Porn has Hijacked our Sexuality, Ronald Weitzer claims that anti-porn feminists are incapable of objective, rigorous research because they operate within the “oppression paradigm,” which he defines as “a perspective that depicts all types of sex work as exploitive, violent, and perpetuating gender inequality.” (VAW, 2011, 666). This article argues that while anti-porn feminists do indeed see pornography as exploitive, such a position is rooted in the rigorous theories and methods of cultural studies developed by critical media scholars such as Stuart Hall and Antonio Gramsci. Pornland applies a cultural studies approach by exploring how porn images are part of a wider system of sexist representations that legitimize and normalize the economic, political and legal oppression of women.
Selective Radiant Temperature Mapping Using a Layered Classifier

A method of measuring temperatures of selected ground cover types using remotely sensed multispectral scanner data and a layered classification approach is described. A brief review of radiation theory is presented to show that for the wavelength bands and temperature ranges involved in remote sensing applications, a linear calibration function can be satisfactorily utilized. Finally, an example of the application of the layered classifier for temperature mapping of water is shown.
Assessing varying degrees of lethality in depressed adolescent suicide attempters

Objective: Understanding the lethality of suicide attempts and its relation to other psychological variables may improve clinical judgement with regard to suicide risk. Method: The lethality of suicidal behaviour was examined in 60 hospitalized adolescent in-patients who had recently attempted suicide. Subjects were divided into non-lethal, low-lethal and high-lethal groups based on the qualities of their suicidal acts. Results: The groups did not differ in terms of hopelessness, depression, substance abuse or self-esteem. Moreover, they did not differ significantly in diagnoses of major depression. adjustment disorder, substance abuse and bipolar disorder. The group of high-lethal attempters was the only group with several individuals diagnosed with a major depressive episode and comorbid attention deficit disorder. The high-lethal group also reported the strongest desire to end their lives. Conclusion: Based on lethality of suicide attempts, adolescent suicide attempters can be differentiated in terms of the wish to die as well as some instances of diagnostic comorbidity. However, they may not be differentiated in terms of severity of depression or hopelessness, demographic variables and other aspects of suicidal behaviour.
Lung volume reduction surgery and bronchoscopic lung volume reduction in severe emphysema

Abstract Lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS) improves the fit of severely hyperinflated emphysematous lungs to the surrounding chest cavity and thereby improves respiratory mechanics and expiratory airflow. LVRS is a potent and life extending therapy for some patients with severe emphysema and has a low associated operative mortality. The national emphysema treatment trial (NETT) identified characteristics of patients for whom LVRS improves survival, function and health-related quality of life and characteristics of patients who should not have surgery. Patients with upper-lobe predominant distribution of emphysema on high-resolution computed tomogram are most likely to benefit from LVRS vs. optimal medical therapy and rehabilitation. At long-term follow-up, the survival and functional benefits derived from LVRS are durable. In efforts to make lung volume reduction safer and more broadly accessible physician-scientists have developed bronchoscopic lung volume reduction (BLVR) procedures. Early clinical trials of BLVR performed with endobronchial valves (EVB) and sclerosant biogels demonstrate their safety. The ability of BLVR EBV techniques to produce desired atelectasis and lung volume loss is likely limited in those patients with collateral ventilation, incomplete fissures and those unable to achieve complete lobar exclusion. Results from a phase III BLVR EBV trial are in analysis.
Telomeric DNA induces p53-dependent reactive oxygen species and protects against oxidative damage

Background Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are generated by cellular metabolism as well as by exogenous agents. While ROS can promote cellular senescence, they can also act as signaling molecules for processes that do not lead to senescence. Telomere homolog oligonucleotides (T-oligos) induce adaptive DNA damage responses including increased DNA repair capacity and these effects are mediated, at least in part, through p53.
A Two-Year Research Project on Web-Based Teaching and Learning

During the academic school years of 2008–2010, a 2-year in-situ study was conducted on web-based teaching and learning at a major research university in the southwest United States. We utilized a variety of qualitative and quantitative techniques to explore the impact of online pedagogies and contexts on the learning experiences of a diversity of college students living in rural and urban areas, with an emphasis on learners of non-traditional age and/or minority status.
How Smart was Robinson Crusoe

The continuous and almost unprecedented popularity of Robinson Crusoe, Part i, has been variously explained. In accounting for the book's superiority to the imitations which it has inspired, several critics have praised Defoe for allowing his island adventurer barely enough in the way of tools and equipment to keep himself alive and gradually to improve his condition. It is often held, too, that Crusoe manifests unusual mechanical ability. But the facts do not support either of these assumptions, and I believe that the reader who makes them has failed to recognize a perennial source of the book's charm. James Sutherland, Defoe's biographer, commends the author for restricting his hero to “only a few things saved from the wreck,” with which he “proceeds to build up a new life.” In his introduction to the Modern Library edition of Robinson Crusoe, Louis Kronenberger agrees with others who, he says, have pointed out that “Defoe allowed Crusoe just enough in the way of equipment and fodder and tools for him at the outset to stay alive, and in the course of time to be made comfortable.” Paul Dottin remarks that Defoe has simplified his task by allowing the castaway “tout ce qui peut etre utile.”
Glycoside conjugative activity in different insect and vertebrate species.

The occurrence and comparative activity of glycoside conjugating enzymes were investigated in insect and vertebrate species. Although some quantitative differences were noted, all species readily conjugated the substrate, 1-naphthol. Glucosyltransferase activity was essentially the same in whole body homogenates and in selected tissues of the adult housefly, Musca domestica L., and the American cockroach, Periplaneta americana (L.), and larvae of the alfalfa weevil, Hyper postica (Gyllenhal), tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta (L.), and Indian meal moth, Plodia interpunctella (Hubner). In the rat, the comparable enzyme, glucuronyltransferase, was more active in the liver, kidney, and lungs than in the intestine, stomach, heart, fat, and brain. Glycoside conjugating enzymes were stable when stored in the intact tissue or in various subcellular fractions at −20° and O°C for 90 days. In vitro glucosylation of 1-naphthol by house flies was not influenced by developmental state, age, sex or insecticide resistance.
DENUDATION OF SMALL ALPINE BASINS, NANGA PARBAT HIMALAYA, PAKISTAN

Thirty-three debris fans and five small alpine basins on the south side of the rapidly uplifting Nanga Parbat Himalaya of northern Pakistan were assessed to determine how much alpine processes contribute to the overall denudation of the massif. A high-resolution digital elevation model was used to measure the volume of the small alpine fans and a few basins in the Rupal valley. These volumetric estimates, coupled with time-constraining dates from cosmogenic-nuclides of glacially exposed rocks and infrared-stimulated luminescence of sediments, indicate that estimated average denudation rates in these systems have been -2 mm yr-~ over the past 4600 to 6000 yr since the last major deglaciation. This is similar to other estimates of rates of denudation in the Himalaya.
Analysis on AIDS/STD infection status and high risk behaviors among 225 clients in STD clinics of Huairou District of Beijing

[Objective]To understand the awareness rate of AIDS knowledge,STD infection status and impact of high risk behaviors among clients in STD clinics.[Methods]225 clients who have visited the STD clinic of 3 Grade B hospitals in Huairou District of Beijing from January 1 to September 30th,2012 were collected to perform the face-to-face anonymous questionnaire survey,and the blood samples were tested for the AIDS antibody and syphilis antibody.[Results]The youngest and oldest client was 15 years old and 77 years old respectively,and 64.9% of clients were people aged 20-39 years old.73.78% were married,and the awareness rate of AIDS knowledge was 80%.39.11% of clients had the high-risk behaviors,and one people had the sexual relationship with 3 unlicensed prostitutes and temporary partners in the recent 3 months.6.67% had have STDs,and the condom use rate was only 27.27%.The positive rate of AIDS antibody and syphilis antibody was 0.44% and 14.67% respectively.[Conclusion]The incidence rates of AIDS and STD among clients visiting STD clinics of Huairou District of Beijing are high.It is necessary to strengthen the health education and behavior intervention,improve the awareness rate of AIDS knowledge,and reduce the influencing factors of high-risk behaviors,to effectively control the sexual transmission of AIDS.
A prospective study on the surgical outcomes of children with sleep-disordered breathing.

Study objective To prospectively evaluate the outcome of surgical treatment decisions made by a multidisciplinary team for children aged 18 months to 12 years with sleep-disordered breathing (SDB). Design and setting A multidisciplinary team evaluated children referred to a sleep clinic for suspicion of SDB using polysomnography, questionnaires, and clinical evaluations. Suggestions for treatment (surgical, medical, or orthodontic) were made and sent to referring providers. A follow-up evaluation, which included a repeat of all of the tests performed at baseline, was performed 3 months after treatment (and at 6 months for a subgroup of subjects). The clinical outcome of the recommended versus the performed treatment was compared. Patients 56 successively evaluated children. Results Based on insurance plans, 11 children were treated by a surgeon on the multidisciplinary team, who followed all treatment recommendations. After treatment, 1 of the 11 children still had SDB. Forty-five children were referred to other specialists. Only 1 of these children had the team's treatment recommendations implemented. Twenty-six of the 45 children had residual symptoms. Twelve children had polysomnographic abnormalities with or without symptoms or snoring. Sixteen children (28.6%) underwent a second surgical procedure. Conclusion There are misconceptions in the pediatric and otolaryngologic communities about the rationale for the surgical treatment of SDB. Interactions between mouth breathing, maxillofacial growth, and clinical symptoms associated with SDB are not well understood. Multidisciplinary evaluations of the anatomic abnormalities of children with SDB lead to better overall treatment.
Weights of Worker Honeybees in Swarms

SummaryThe weights of European and Africanized worker honeybees in swarms were determined. European worker were significantly heavier. Within each population, mean weights of workers from different swarms varied greatly, mostly because of differences in the mean weights of honey sac contents. As the weights of worker differed so much between swarms, it is recommended that an estimate of a swarm size should be based on the mean weight of workers sampled from that swarm.
Paine and Jefferson in the Age of Revolutions. Edited by Simon P. Newman and Peter S. Onuf. (Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia Press, 2013. Pp. 311. $39.50.)

This is an important collection of essays on Thomas Paine. Many of them consider Paine's relationship to Thomas Jefferson, and the two remain inseparable in this collection because, as Edward G. Gr...