cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Adjunctive renal sympathetic denervation to modify hypertension as upstream therapy in the treatment of atrial fibrillation (H-FIB) study: clinical background and study design

Adjunctive Renal Sympathetic Denervation to Modify Hypertension Background Hypertension is the most important risk factor directly attributable to the high prevalence of atrial fibrillation (AF), and is one of the few modifiable risk factors for AF. Activation and overactivity of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) have been implicated in the pathogenesis of both essential hypertension and AF. Catheter-based renal sympathetic denervation (RSDN) appears to be an effective adjunctive treatment for refractory hypertension, and may be beneficial in other conditions characterized by SNS overactivity, such as left ventricular hypertrophy and atrial arrhythmias. Objective The H-FIB study is a multicenter prospective, double-blind, randomized (1:1) controlled trial. The primary efficacy endpoint is antiarrhythmic drug-free freedom from AF recurrence through 12 months. Methods Patients with a history of significant hypertension who are receiving treatment with at least one antihypertensive agent who are planned for a first time ablation for symptomatic paroxysmal or persistent AF will be randomized to either AF ablation alone (control group) or AF ablation + RSDN (study group). Conclusions H-FIB is a multicenter, randomized trial that will test the hypothesis that adjunctive renal sympathetic denervation, at the time of AF ablation, will increase the freedom from recurrent AF.
Medications for sleep disturbances in children

At least 25% of infants, children, and adolescents have a sleep problem at some point during this developmental period. The management of pediatric sleep-related disorders often begins with behavioral strategies. While medications can be a useful adjunct, they are used off-label for sleep problems in this age group. When used, medications should be chosen carefully and targeted to specific outcomes as part of a comprehensive approach to management. This article reviews medications used for common pediatric sleep problems with a focus on pediatric insomnia and the importance of a multifactorial approach to evaluation and management.
A Computational Model for Diffusion Weighted Imaging of Myelinated White Matter

Abstract The signal for diffusion weighted magnetic resonance imaging has previously been represented analytically and simulated numerically for a variety of model problems with idealized geometries. Numerical simulations hold the promise of computing the diffusion weighted MR signal for more complex realistic tissue architectures and physiological models. This paper investigates a white matter model consisting of a matrix of coated cylinders with distinct diffusion coefficients and spin concentrations for each of the cylinder core, the coating, and the surrounding bath and compares results with an the analytical solution developed by Sen and Basser for the long diffusion time limit. Numerical simulations of diffusion weighted imaging experiments are performed for the three-medium model using a Monte Carlo diffusion simulation. Experiments are carried out for model parameters representing normal white matter. Pulse sequence parameters range from a low b value, long time limit, short pulse approximation to realistic clinical values. For simulations in the short pulse width, long diffusion time limit, numerical simulations agree with the Sen–Basser analytical result. When tested with realistic pulse sequence parameters, numerical simulations show lower anisotropy than the analytical model predicts.
Fast state-space methods for inferring dendritic synaptic connectivity

We present fast methods for filtering voltage measurements and performing optimal inference of the location and strength of synaptic connections in large dendritic trees. Given noisy, subsampled voltage observations we develop fast l 1-penalized regression methods for Kalman state-space models of the neuron voltage dynamics. The value of the l 1-penalty parameter is chosen using cross-validation or, for low signal-to-noise ratio, a Mallows' C p -like criterion. Using low-rank approximations, we reduce the inference runtime from cubic to linear in the number of dendritic compartments. We also present an alternative, fully Bayesian approach to the inference problem using a spike-and-slab prior. We illustrate our results with simulations on toy and real neuronal geometries. We consider observation schemes that either scan the dendritic geometry uniformly or measure linear combinations of voltages across several locations with random coefficients. For the latter, we show how to choose the coefficients to offset the correlation between successive measurements imposed by the neuron dynamics. This results in a "compressed sensing" observation scheme, with an important reduction in the number of measurements required to infer the synaptic weights.
Comparison of the kraft paper crosslinked by polymeric carboxylic acids of large and small molecular sizes: Dry and wet performance

Polycarboxylic acids have been used as crosslinking agents for wood pulp cellulose for improving paper wet strength. Our previous research showed that low-molecular-weight polymeric carboxylic acids are effective in improving paper wet strength retention and reducing its flexibility. In this research, we compared two polymeric carboxylic acids, that is, poly(maleic acid) (PMA) with Mn of 800 and poly(methyl vinyl ether-co-maleic acid) (PMMA) with Mn of 1,130,000 for improving paper wet strength. The kraft paper sheets were treated at a 2% acid level and cured at different temperatures. The dry strength, wet strength, and folding endurance of the treated sheets were measured. We found that PMA and PMMA have comparable effectiveness in improving paper wet strength and wet stiffness. However, the treatment with PMA increases paper brittleness and severely diminishes paper folding endurance, whereas the treatment with PMMA increases both the dry strength and folding endurance by enhancing the paper's toughness. This striking difference in the performance of the treated paper is attributed to the different nature of the crosslinkages formed on the sheets. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 74: 907–912, 1999
Local quantum size effect as seen by room-temperature 195Pt NMR in octanethiol-protected Pt nanoparticles

Abstract The average energy level spacing δ at the Fermi level has been almost exclusively used as a global indicator for predicting quantum size effect in metal nanoparticles and its detailed local characteristics have usually been neglected. Here, we report new 195Pt NMR evidence obtained on octanethiol-protected Pt nanoparticles with an average particle size of 1.0 ± 0.3 nm at room temperature which shows that the local characteristics of δ can be discerned and are directly related to the local variations of electronic properties of the system in its ‘bulk’ metallic state.
Materialism: Matters Of Definition, Defense, and Deconstruction

How should the metaphysical hypothesis of materialism be formulated? What strategies look promising for defending this hypothesis? How good are the prospects for its successful defense, especially in light of the infamous "hard problem" of phenomenal consciousness? I will say something about each of these questions.
Localization of polysome-bound albumin and serine dehydratase in rat liver cell fractions.

The polysomes involved in albumin and serine dehydratase synthesis were identified and localized by the binding to rat liver polysomes of anti-rat serum albumin and anti-serine dehydratase [125I]Fab dimer and monomer. Techniques were developed for the isolation of undegraded free and membrane-bound polysomes and for the preparation of [125I]Fab monomers and dimers from the IgG obtained from the antisera to the two proteins, rat serum albumin and serine dehydratase. The distribution of anti-rat serum albumin [125I]Fab dimer in the polysome profile is in accordance with the size of polysomes that are expected to be synthesizing albumin. By direct precipitation, it has been demonstrated that nascent chains isolated from the membrane-bound polysomes by puromycin were precipitated by anti-rat serum albumin-IgG at a level of 5–6 times those released from free polysomes. Anti-rat serum albumin-[125I]Fab dimer reacted with membrane-bound polysomes almost exclusively compared to the binding of nonimmune, control [125I]Fab dimer; a significant degree of binding of anti-rat serum albumin-[125I]Fab to free polysomes was also obtained. The [125I]Fab dimer made from normal control rabbit serum does not react with polysomes from liver at all and this preparation will not interact with polysomes extracted from tissues that do not synthesize rat serum albumin. Both anti-serine dehydratase-[125I]Fab monomer and dimer react with free and bound polysomes from livers of animals fed a chow diet or those fed a high 90% protein diet and given glucagon. In the latter instance, however, it is clear that the majority of the binding occurs to the bound polysomes. Furthermore, the specificity of this reaction may be further shown by the use of kidney polysomes that do not normally synthesize serine dehydratase. When these latter polysomes are isolated, even after the addition of crude and purified serine dehydratase, no reaction with anti-serine dehydratase-Fab fragments could be demonstrated. These results indicate that the reaction of the Fab fragments are specific for polysomes that synthesize rat serum albumin or rat liver serine dehydratase. Furthermore, they demonstrate that even with this high degree of specificity, some polysomes in the fraction labeled "free" are in the process of synthesizing rat serum albumin while bound polysomes to a significant, if not major, degree are the site of the synthesis of rat liver serine dehydratase.
Entropy generation, particle creation, and quantum field theory in a cosmological spacetime: When do number and entropy increase

This paper reexamines the statistical quantum field theory of a free, minimally coupled, real scalar field Phi in a statically bounded, classical Friedmann cosmology, where the time-dependent scale factor ..cap omega..(t) tends to constant values ..cap omega../sub 1/ and ..cap omega../sub 2/ for tt/sub 2/. The principal objective is to investigate the intuition that ''entropy'' S correlates with average particle number , so that increases in induced by parametric amplification manifest a one-to-one connection with increases in S. The definition of particle number N/sub k/ becomes unambiguous for t>t/sub 2/ and t
Compact reversed-field pinch reactors (CRFPR)☆

The unique confinement properties of the Reversed-Field Pinch (RFP) are exploited to examine physics and technical issues related to a compact, high-power-density fusion reactor. This resistive-coil, steady-state, toroidal device would use a dual-media power cycle driven by a fusion power core (FPC, i.e., plasma chamber, first wall, blanket, shield, and coils) with a power density and mass approaching values characteristic of pressurized-water fission rectors. A 1000-MWe(net) base case is selected from a comprehensive trade-off study to examine technological issues related to operating a high-power-density FPC. After describing the main physics and technology issues for this base-case reactor, directions for future study are suggested.
Studies of quinidine plasma levels and rate of decline following cessation of quinidine administration.

Abstract 1. 1. Quinidine sulfate was administered in divided dosages for forty-eight hours. Serial plasma quinidine levels were measured 2 hours, 26 hours, and 50 hours after the last dosage. Four groups were studied: normal individuals, and patients with obvious heart, renal, and hepatic disease. 2. 2. Individuals with cardiac disease exhibited a slower decline of quinidine level than the other three groups. 3. 3. The peak levels reached by all the groups were the same. 4. 4. Significant levels of quinidine persisted in the blood of all individuals for 26 hours, in many for 50 hours. 5. 5. The slower loss of quinidine from the blood of cardiac patients is not thought to be a function of delayed excretion by liver or kidneys and does not carry with it the threat of excessive cumulation in the blood of these patients.
PSON: predictable service overlay networks

Predictable Service Overlay Networks (PSON) improve the predictability of Internet communication by providing an estimate of the upper bound on message latency for each path of the overlay. The upper bound serves as an assurance of synchrony and enables applications to order events or make inferences based on non-receipt of a message. For improved performance, PSON also employs overlay routing and overlay configuration. Messages are routed either through the direct overlay path or via a one-hop overlay path such that the selected path is stable and promotes synchrony, while the overlay configuration mechanisms are utilized in order to select nodes that promote predictable communication. The expected impact of PSON is that by utilizing intelligent techniques such as upper bound estimation, routing and configuration, it can harness the unexpected and unreliable Internet substrate to provide a predictable communication overlay for applications.
Significance and Survival of Enterococci During the House Fly Development

House flies are among the most important nonbiting insect pests of medical and veterinary importance. Larvae develop in decaying organic substrates and their survival strictly depends on an active microbial community. House flies have been implicated in the ecology and transmission of enterococci, including multi-antibiotic-resistant and virulent strains of Enterococcus faecalis. In this study, eight American Type Culture Collection type strains of enterococci including Enterococcus avium, Enterococcus casseliflavus, Enterococcus durans, Enterococcus hirae, Enterococcus mundtii, Enterococcus gallinarum, Enterococcusfaecalis, and Enterococcusfaecium were evaluated for their significance in the development of house flies from eggs to adults in bacterial feeding assays. Furthermore, the bacterial colonization of the gut of teneral flies as well as the importance of several virulence traits of E. faecalis in larval mortality was assessed. Overall survival of house flies (egg to adult) was significantly higher when grown with typically nonpathogenic enterococcal species such as E. hirae (76.0% survival), E. durans (64.0%), and E. avium (64.0%) compared with that with clinically important species E. faecalis (24.0%) and E. faecium (36.0%). However, no significant differences in survival of house fly larvae were detected when grown with E. faecalis strains carrying various virulence traits, including isogenic mutants of the human clinical isolate E. faecalis V583 with in-frame deletions of gelatinase, serine protease, and capsular polysaccharide serotype C. Enterococci were commonly detected in fly puparia (range: 75-100%; concentration: 103-105 CFU/puparium);however, the prevalence of enterococci in teneral flies varied greatly: from 25.0 (E. casseliflavus) to 89.5% (E. hirae). In conclusion, depending on the species, enterococci variably support house fly larval development and colonize the gut of teneral adults. The human pathogenic species, E. faecalis and E. faecium, poorly support larval development and are likely acquired in nature by adult flies during feeding. House fly larvae do not appear to be a suitable model organism for assessment of enterococcal virulence traits.
Spectroscopic Analysis of Highly Concentrated Suspensions of Bovine Somatotropin in Sesame Oil

ABSTRACT: Spectroscopy was employed to analyze the structural and thermal stability of highly concentrated oil suspensions of bovine somatotropin (bST). These methods were then compared with more dilute aqueous solutions (1 and 10 mg/mL). All oil suspensions were opaque, viscous, and highly concentrated in bST (>300 mg/mL) and thus provided unique analytical challenges. Using front surface fluorescence and ATR-FTIR spectroscopy, protein structure and stability could be directly monitored in this environment. Differences were detected in structure between concentrated oil and dilute aqueous formulations. Fluorescence spectroscopy found that bST was highly thermally stabile within oil suspensions, since minimal changes in emission peak maxima and emission intensity were observed with increasing temperature when compared to dilute solutions. It was also observed that the amount of aggregate in a sample had some effect on the fluorescence spectra. As the amount of aggregated protein increased, the emission peak maximum and emission intensity changed. Employing ATR-FTIR, the secondary structure was examined with increasing temperature. The secondary structure of bST was also found to be very thermally stabile since no change in relative amount of helix/random structure is observed up to 70°C while significant losses are observed in aqueous solution. This study demonstrates that conformational stability can be directly analyzed within highly concentrated, opaque environments using slight modifications of conventional methods.
A disjunct Argentine ant metacolony in Macaronesia and southwestern Europe

The Argentine ant, Linepithema humile, originally from South America, is now a major pest in many parts of the world with Mediterranean-like climates. Earlier research indicated that southwestern European L. humile populations are segregated into two distinct supercolonies, the ‘Main’ supercolony extending through Portugal, Spain, southern France, and Italy, and the ‘Catalonian’ supercolony in eastern Spain. Both supercolonies are unicolonial, with workers showing no aggression towards members of the same supercolony, but severe aggression towards members of the other supercolony. Here we evaluated the behavioral relationships among non-native L. humile populations on the Macaronesian islands of Madeira and the Azores and non-native populations in southwestern Europe. We conducted aggression assays among L. humile workers from Madeira, the Azores, and the two southwestern European supercolonies. We found no aggressive interactions among any combination of workers from Madeira, the Azores, and the Main supercolony. However, workers from Madeira and the Azores always fought aggressively with workers from the Catalonian supercolony. Thus, the populations of L. humile in Madeira and the Azores appear to be unicolonial and act as if they belong to the Main supercolony of southwestern Europe. This set of geographically separated but mutually compatible supercolonies, which we term a ‘metacolony,’ appears to descend from one supercolony. Historical evidence suggests that the first L. humile population in the greater Mediterranean region was established in Madeira and that propagules from the dominant supercolony in Madeira gave rise to the dominant supercolonies in to other parts of the region.
Decision-directed line detection with application to medical ultrasound

This paper presents a method of enhancing linear and curvilinear image features, such as those corresponding to tissue discontinuities in medical ultrasound. The method is an extension of a template based technique for line enhancement which produces a test statistic at each point by projecting the pixels near that point onto a line segment, varying the orientation of the segment to maximize the projected value, and retaining the projected value as the test statistic. In the past, we have not made use of information about which angle produced the maximum value at each point. In this paper, we compute a histogram of the angles near each point to gain an indication of the direction of larger scale linear features lying nearby. Mathematically, we wish to estimate a set of prior probabilities for the orientation of line segments that pass through each point. The priors can then be used to improve the power of the Bayesian line detection procedure. In addition, they can also be used to improve the visual quality of the image produced by plotting the test statistics on an image raster. We have found that such an image is revealing because it shows more sharply the edges of the linear components, making them more clearly visible and their fringes more distinguishable from the background. With the incorporation of prior information, the processed image shows a further improvement in visual and machine detectability of linear components, due to increased difference in gray level between points lying on edges and those lying away. This technique has potential to significantly improve the machine detectability of tissue discontinuities in medical ultrasound, as well as linear features in other forms of computed imaging.
Effect of an electric field on the plastic deformation and fracture of polycrystalline NaCl

Abstract The influence of an electric field E ≤ 0.1 MV/m on the plastic flow and fracture of cast polycrystalline NaCl was determined in compression at room temperature. Without an electric field the major slip system was deduced to be 110 〈 110 〉, with impurity-cation-vacancy dipoles being the short-range obstacles to dislocation motion. The initial strain hardening rate was similar in magnitude to that for Stage II in single crystals; its decrease with strain was attributed to cross slip. Plastic flow preceded fracture, which was intergranular without an electric field. The yield, flow and fracture stresses and the strain hardening coefficient decreased with electric field, an approximately 50% decrease occurring at E = 0.1 MV/m. This field is one-to-two orders of magnitude lower than had previously been found to produce significant effects in NaCl single crystals. The fracture mode with the field was mixed cleavage and intergranular. It is concluded that the major effect of the electric field was to enhance cross slip, thereby reducing the rate of strain hardening and in turn the flow and fracture stresses.
Sensitivity of the Human Eye to Power Frequency Electric Fields

Reports spanning more than a century have shown that tissues associated with the eye are able to respond to local electric fields with impressions of light called electrophosphenes. A finite element analysis of the field distributions in the head near the receptors shows that the 60 Hz threshold for perception of electrophosphenes is approximately 1 V/m. Thus, tissues associated with the eye appear to be among the most sensitive to power frequency electric fields in the human body.
The Adequacy of Observing Systems in Monitoring the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation and North Atlantic Climate

Abstract The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) has an important influence on climate, and yet adequate observations of this circulation are lacking. Here, the authors assess the adequacy of past and current widely deployed routine observing systems for monitoring the AMOC and associated North Atlantic climate. To do so, this study draws on two independent simulations of the twentieth century using an Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) coupled climate model. One simulation is treated as “truth” and is sampled according to the observing system being evaluated. The authors then assimilate these synthetic “observations” into the second simulation within a fully coupled system that instantaneously exchanges information among all coupled components and produces a nearly balanced and coherent estimate for global climate states including the North Atlantic climate system. The degree to which the assimilation recovers the truth is an assessment of the a...
Topological insulators: The dirt on topology

Topological insulators have a conducting surface on which spin currents are not easily scattered, although the addition of magnetic impurities does affect electronic behaviour. But is this situation unique? Graphene comes to mind.
Voluntary compliance and the effectiveness of public and non-profit institutions: American philanthropy and taxation

Abstract Compared to for-profit organizations, performance evaluation for public and non-profit agencies is more likely to be based on measures such as whether advocated social behaviors are adopted by targeted groups. Further, these behaviors are frequently complex, often resisted, with few immediate or strong rewards. Voluntarism is one such action that is of great concern to many such institutions, not only in matters of conscience but also in conduct involving difficult-to-enforce laws and regulations. Using the construct of voluntary compliance, this paper addresses four objectives: first, to review the need for public and non-profit agencies to identify their relevant measures of performance; second, to outline the similarity between determinants of voluntary support of philanthropy and the American system of taxation; third, to present empirical evidence describing the characteristics associated with such behaviors; and last, to use those findings to develop a general set of postulates for improving the performance of public and non-profit agencies.
Recoil Implantation of Ito thin Films on Glass Substrates

Indium-Tin Oxide (ITO) heat mirror films implanted into window glass were obtained by post annealing of argon irradiated coatings of In-5w/o Sn produced by reactive evaporation in oxygen. Characterization of coatings has been carried out using TEM and AES. Optical properties have also been evaluated. The production of acceptable thin films requires low energy deposition rates during ion bombardment. This places a limit on the extent of film-substrate mixing, which is required if increased film lifetimes are to be realized.
Phase Transformation Hysteresis in a Plutonium Alloy System: Modeling the Resistivity during the Transformation

We have induced, measured, and modeled the {delta}-{alpha}' martensitic transformation in a Pu-Ga alloy by a resistivity technique on a 2.8-mm diameter disk sample. Our measurements of the resistance by a 4-probe technique were consistent with the expected resistance obtained from a finite element analysis of the 4-point measurement of resistivity in our round disk configuration. Analysis by finite element methods of the postulated configuration of {alpha}' particles within model {delta} grains suggests that a considerable anisotropy in the resistivity may be obtained depending on the arrangement of the {alpha}' lens shaped particles within the grains. The resistivity of these grains departs from the series resistance model and can lead to significant errors in the predicted amount of the {alpha}' phase present in the microstructure. An underestimation of the amount of {alpha}' in the sample by 15%, or more, appears to be possible.
Contraceptive use and the poor: a matter of choice?

From the “Health for All” declaration made at Alma Alta in 1978 to the recently created Commission on Social Determinants of Health, a recurrent theme is health equity, whereby all segments of society should have equal access to and reap the benefits of health-enhancing interventions [1,2]. Since 1978, a substantial literature has addressed health equity, much of it relating to the gap between the high rhetorical priority given health equity and its programmatic neglect [3]. Contrastingly, much less has been written about equity in family planning. The important article by Gakidou and Vayena in this issue of PLoS Medicine goes a long way toward filling this imbalance in attention [4]. Using Demographic and Health Surveys data from 55 developing countries, Gakidou and Vayena show that despite the overall increase in the use of modern contraceptives, the use among the poor remains quite low compared to the better-off segments of society. This difference in use rates among different groups is well known. While there is much to recommend this article, the authors' two main contributions is their documentation that the contraceptive use gap has persisted over time despite increases in gross domestic product (GDP) and showing the important role family planning services availability can play in closing this gap.
The effect of gender role, attitude toward leadership, and self‐confidence on leader emergence: Implications for leadership development

Although research has indicated no substantial differences between the behaviors of male and female leaders, differences exist in perceptions of these behaviors. Leadership continues to be described in stereotypically masculine terms, although some evidence exists that an androgynous leadership style also may be related to perceptions of leadership. This study examined whether self-perceptions of masculine gender role characteristics would predict individuals who were perceived by others as leaders on a team project and if other self-report measures might be used instead to predict leadership. Results indicate that both attitude toward leadership and leadership experience were stronger predictors of leader emergence than masculine gender role.
Optimal income taxation with human capital accumulation and limited record keeping

Abstract This paper characterizes optimal income taxes in a dynamic economy where human capital is unobservable and the government is restricted to use taxes that depend only on current income. I show that unobservability of human capital tends to decrease the labor wedge, while the effect on the human capital wedge is uncertain. I also analyze the relationship between optimal taxes in economies with and without endogenous human capital and identify two qualitative reasons why the optimal tax codes will differ. I perform numerical simulations to calculate the quantitative relevance of endogenous human capital formation for optimal tax policy. I find that endogenous human capital lowers marginal tax rates by about 9% on average, as compared with a static model without human capital.
Ammonium inhibition of fatty acid oxidation in rat liver mitochondria. A possible cause of fatty liver in Reye's syndrome and urea cycle defects.

NH4Cl inhibited oxygen consumption (State 3, ADP induced) by rat liver mitochondria respiring on palmitoyl-L-carnitine or octanoic acid but not on succinate or malate + glutamate. The inhibition became apparent at 0.02 mM reaching a plateau (40%) at 2 mM NH4Cl. Similar inhibition was observed with uncoupled (in the presence of 2, 4-dinitrophenol)mitochondria. The inhibition of uncoupled mitochondria was reversible as the rate of respiration with palmitoyl-L-carnitine was further increased by succinate and the total rate was unaffected by NH4Cl. Therefore, NH4+ inhibition of mitochondrial respiration may lead to fatty infiltration and be one of the causes of the pathophysiology in children with Reye's syndrome and disorders of urea cycle enzymes.
THE QUANTITATIVE REVOLUTION IN URBAN GEOGRAPHY

The quantitative revolution in urban-economic geography flourished in the 1960s at a time when United States domestic policy focused on cities, problems of race and poverty, urban renewal and housing, land use and transportation, and environmental pollution. Theoretical work in previous decades in economic geography, spatial analysis, and quantitative social science had set the stage for the 1960s. After computers came along, psychology and economics moved briskly into theoretical areas, with application of quantitative analysis and statistical analysis, while applied mathematics vaguely promised to unify theoretical and applied realms of social science. Geography's main research agendas through the 1950s had been dominated by physical geography and regional analysis, but a new generation of scholars at Washington, Northwestern, Michigan, Ohio State, Chicago, Minnesota, and Penn State pushed ahead with serious attention to theory development and quantification in human geography and statistical cartograph...
Glucose microbiosensor based on alumina sol-gel matrix/electropolymerized composite membrane.

A procedure is described that provides co-immobilization of enzyme and bovine serum albumin (BSA) within an alumina sol–gel matrix and a polyphenol layer permselective for endogenous electroactive species. BSA has first been employed for the immobilization of glucose oxidase (GOx) on a Pt electrode in a sol–gel to produce a uniform, thin and compact film with enhanced enzyme activity. Electropolymerization of phenol was then employed to form an anti-interference and protective polyphenol film within the enzyme layer. In addition, a stability-reinforcing membrane derived from (3-aminopropyl)-trimethoxysilane was constructed by electrochemically-assisted crosslinking. This hybrid film outside the enzyme layer contributed both to the improved stability and to permselectivity. The resulting glucose sensor was characterized by a short response time (<10 s), high sensitivity (10.4 nA/mM mm2), low interference from endogenous electroactive species, and a working lifetime of at least 60 days.
Head, neck, and oral abnormalities in dentists participating in the health assessment program.

The results of the head, neck, and oral examinations of 7,014 dentists who participated in the American Dental Association Health Assessment Program during a 7-year period are presented. A total of 484 clinical abnormalities were observed in 7,041 dentists who participated in head, neck, and oral examinations during a 7-year period. Most of the dentists had been unaware of the lesions. Forty-nine of the 97 dentists who were informed that they had potentially serious lesions sought further diagnostic assistance. Of the suspected carcinomas, six were confirmed as basal cell carcinomas and one was confirmed as a mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the palate. The results of the examination substantiate the recommendation that dentists undergo, as well as administer to patients, periodic and thorough head, neck, and oral examinations.
Properties of a NaI(Tl) total absorption spectrometer for electrons and γ-rays at gev energies

In the past two years we have reported on the properties of large NaI(Tl) crystals as total absorption spectrometers foy electrons and γ-rays in the range 0.1 to 14 GeV1,2. We have recently made similar measurements on a NaI(Tl) spectrometer which is both larger than any we have used before and assembled in a different way. In the following paragraphs we indicate the results of our initial tests.
WITHDRAWN: Multiple exciton generation in semiconductor quantum dots: Application to third generation solar photon conversion

This article has been withdrawn consistent with Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal ( http:www.elsevier.com/locate/withdrawalpolicy ). The Publisher apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause.
Automated morphometric study of brain variation in XXY males

This paper studies brain morphometry variation associated with XXY males (Klinefelter's syndrome) by using an automated whole-brain volumetric analysis method. The application to 34 XXY males and 62 normal male controls reveals pronounced volume reduction in the brains of XXY males, relative to the brains of normal controls, localized at the insula, temporal gyri, amygdala, hippocampus, cingulate, and occipital gyri. Most of these statistically significant regions are in the gray matter structures, with the exception of one cluster of atrophy involved in white matter structure, i.e., right parietal lobe white matter. Compared to previous findings documented in the literature, our findings provide a better spatial localization of the affected regions. In addition to the reduction of local volume, overall enlargement of ventricles and overall volume reduction of both white matter and gray matter are also found in XXY males.
Safety Controller Synthesis Using Human Generated Trajectories

This paper focuses on the task of safety controller synthesis, that is, designing a controller that will take a system from any point within a compact set of initial states to a point inside a set of acceptable goal states, while never entering any state that is deemed unsafe. To do this we use a human generated trajectory-based approach. We introduce the control autobisimulation function, which is the analog of the control Lyapunov function for approximate bisimulation. We consider a class of hybrid systems and use this function to determine a set of admissible feedback control laws that guarantee trajectory robustness for underlying dynamics that are linear affine, feedback linearizable, and differentially flat. This property ensures that any trajectory of the closed-loop system that is initialized within some neighborhood of a nominal trajectory will stay within some tube of the nominal trajectory when given the same input. This feedback control and input can be used as the controller for some subset of the initial states. We demonstrate how to combine multiple trajectories into a synthesized controller that satisfies the safety problem.
Research Article: Grading and Strength of Salvaged Lumber from Residential Buildings

Buildings that need to be removed are normally demolished and deposed ofin landfills. Current trends focus on material recovery and reuse as a means to conserve our natural resources and promote environmentally acceptable disposal methods. This research was conducted to evaluate the grading and mechanical properties of lumber salvaged from deconstruction of several residential buildings in Gainesville, Florida. Results of visual grading showed that more than half of the pieces (57%) had damages due to use, construction, and deconstruction that resulted in reduction of their grades. Trimming the ends of damaged pieces resulted in grade increase, but of course reduced the length of the salvaged lumber pieces. Compared to virgin lumber with the same grade and tested under the same conditions, the salvaged lumber was on average denser and had a higher bending stress and modulus of elasticity. Although the findings of this study are limited because the sample sizes were rather small, the salvaged lumber was of such strength as to merit its structural use in building construction. More research data is needed to determine if the properties of recycled lumber differ significantly from the properties of virgin lumber.
Neighbors or Strangers? Binational and Transnational Identities in Strasbourg

Two modes of consciousness influence the current identities of Strasburgers. During the period when a French and then a German nation-state impinged on this frontier region of Alsace, there existed a binationalism. That is, the Strasburgers, whose “Double Culture” identity partakes of both Germanic and French strains, mostly remained where they were while different official and nationally-exclusive cultures, either from Paris or Berlin, washed over them. Since 1945, however, “The Construction of Europe” seems largely to have laid to rest Franco-German rivalry over Strasbourg, and the Strasburgers' old binationalism is fading. At the same time, since 1945 but especially since 1962, the closing of the French colonial era has seen the settling in of large numbers of persons of color, followed by a considerable influx of Turkish citizens. Strasbourg now has, as do other major French cities, a significant “visible minority” population of people who draw their identities both from their Frenchness and from their lands of provenance. Thereby a whole set of novel Double Cultures is being engendered, in which Islam can be a high-profile component. With the shift from the earlier binationalism toward the newer transnationalism, a complex cultural uncertainty is making it difficult for Strasburgers to decide just what comprises their identity now.
Regulation of serotonin2A receptors in heterologous expression systems.

: The serotonin2A and serotonin2C receptors are unique among receptors coupled to guanine nucleotide binding proteins in that chronic treatment in vivo with agonists as well as antagonists decreases receptor density. In an attempt to uncover molecular events involved in down-regulation of the serotonin2A receptor, the ability of agonists and antagonists to alter receptor density was examined in three heterologous expression systems, i.e., transfected NIH 3T3, transfected Madin-Darby canine kidney, and transfected AtT-20 cells. All three transfected cell lines exhibited pharmacological properties consistent with that predicted for cells expressing the serotonin2A receptor. However, the three cell lines displayed different receptor regulation properties in response to drugs acting at the serotonin2A receptor. In transfected NIH 3T3 cells, neither agonist nor antagonist treatment altered receptor density. Treatment with agonist as well as antagonist led to up-regulation of the serotonin2A receptor in transfected Madin-Darby canine kidney cells. In transfected AtT-20 cells, treatment with agonist led to receptor down-regulation, whereas antagonist treatment increased receptor density. Thus, the cellular background in which the serotonin2A receptor is expressed appears to determine the regulation properties of the receptor.
Host genetics affect susceptibility to invasive aspergillosis

Invasive aspergillosis is a common and life-threatening infection in immunocompromised individuals. Epidemiologic risk factors do not fully explain susceptibility to disease amongst at-risk persons. Recently, the contribution of host genetics and genetic polymorphisms to disease susceptibility has begun to be explored. This paper highlights methodologies for evaluating the role of host genetics in aspergillosis susceptibility.
Tumor angiogenesis in T1 oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma: role in predicting tumor aggressiveness.

Background. Angiogenesis is necessary for tumor growth and metastasis. In breast and other cancers angiogenesis has been shown to correlate with tumor size, metastatic potential, and prognosis. Some studies of head and neck cancer have shown a similar correlation, although results are inconclusive. This study was performed to determine whether tumor angiogenesis can be used as a prognostic indicator for early oral cancers. Methods. CD-31 immunostaining, the technique of choice for determining microvessel density, was utilized to investigate T1 squamous cell carcinomas of the ventral tongue and floor of the mouth. Results. Adequate staining was achieved in 19 tumors. Seven tumors were deemed aggressive due to either the development of metastases or recurrence. The mean microvessel density in the aggressive patients was 43.1/hpf (range 15-79) and in the nonaggressive patients was 38.6/hpf (range 17-78). Statistical analysis failed to reveal any correlation between tumor aggressiveness and tumor angiogenesis in these early tumors. Conclusions. Tumor angiogenesis failed to predict tumor aggressiveness in T1 oral cavity carcinoma; however, low levels of neoangiogenesis were seen in all cases. For this reason this technique may prove more valuable in more advanced cancers.
Achene Germination Ecology of the Federally Threatened Floodplain Endemic Boltonia Decurrens (Asteraceae)

Abstract As a result of modification/destruction of its floodplain habitats, Boltonia decurrens (Torr. & Gray) Wood now is listed as federally threatened. We investigated dormancy-breaking and germination requirements of achenes, monitored seasonal changes in germination responses of buried achenes and determined if buried achenes have the potential for long term viability. At maturity in autumn, 70–100% of the achenes germinated in light at high (30/15, 35/20 C), but not at low (15/6 C), alternating temperature regimes. Cold stratification during winter increased germination percentages, especially at low temperatures, and by spring 95–100% of the achenes germinated over a range of temperatures, including those (e.g., 15/6 C) that were inhibitory in autumn. Achenes required light for germination, but exposure to light during stratification did not promote germination in darkness at stimulated spring and/or summer habitat temperatures. Nearly 100% of the achenes buried for 88 mo in a nonheated greenhouse ...
Chorionic Gonadotropin Levels in the Rhesus Monkey During Early Pregnancy

Rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta) chorionic gonadotropin content of serum and urine was determined by bio-assay (mouse uterine weight, rat ovarian hyperemia). Negative results were obtained from serum collected on days 9 through 14 post mating. In the 2 weeks following the 15th post-mating day, positive gonadotropin responses were observed in all cases. The hormone was rarely detectable after the 35th post-mating day. Monkey chorionic gonadotropin concentration of serum and urine was assessed in terms of International Units of HCG. MCG levels in serum rose to 335 IU HCG/100 ml (days 21–30 post mating). Maximum urinary MCG levels attained were 200 IU HCG/24 hr (days 20–24 post mating). (Endocrinology 78: 204, 1966)
The combined effect of low temperature and low pH on survival of, and growth and toxin formation from, spores of Clostridium botulinum

An inoculum of 7 × 104 spores consisting of approximately equal numbers of spores of two strains each of Clostridium botulinum type A, proteolytic type B, non-proteolytic type B and type E was added to 20 ml volumes of culture medium at pH 7 or adjusted to pHs 5·1, 4·8 or 4·5 with citric acid, which were then incubated under strictly anaerobic conditions, at redox potentials equivalent to approximately −200 mV at pH 7, at 20°C, 16°C, 12°C or 8°C for 8 weeks. Germination, multiplication and formation of toxin occurred rapidly in medium at pH 7 incubated at all temperatures; the toxin detected was type E. In media at pH 5·1, 4·8 or 4·5 no significant change in viable count occurred at any temperature and no toxin formation was detected; counts of viable micro-organisms in heated samples showed that a high number of spores had failed to germinate. From this experiment the probability of growth from single spores in these conditions was calculated to be When inoculated media at pH 5·1, 4·8 and 4·5 that had been incubated at 8°C for 8 weeks were transfered to 30°C, growth and toxin formation were detected at pH 5·1 and pH 4·8 within 23–52 days and 43–61 days respectively, but not at pH 4·5 within 76 days. The toxins detected in these conditions were types A and B.
A Practical Transfer Learning Algorithm for Face Verification

Face verification involves determining whether a pair of facial images belongs to the same or different subjects. This problem can prove to be quite challenging in many important applications where labeled training data is scarce, e.g., family album photo organization software. Herein we propose a principled transfer learning approach for merging plentiful source-domain data with limited samples from some target domain of interest to create a classifier that ideally performs nearly as well as if rich target-domain data were present. Based upon a surprisingly simple generative Bayesian model, our approach combines a KL-divergence based regularizer/prior with a robust likelihood function leading to a scalable implementation via the EM algorithm. As justification for our design choices, we later use principles from convex analysis to recast our algorithm as an equivalent structured rank minimization problem leading to a number of interesting insights related to solution structure and feature-transform invariance. These insights help to both explain the effectiveness of our algorithm as well as elucidate a wide variety of related Bayesian approaches. Experimental testing with challenging datasets validate the utility of the proposed algorithm.