cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Non-invasive assessment of low risk acute chest pain in the emergency department: A comparative meta-analysis of prospective studies.

Abstract Background The aim of this meta-analysis was to compare the diagnostic accuracy of cardiac computed tomographic angiography (CCTA), stress echocardiography (SE) and radionuclide single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) for the assessment of chest pain in emergency department (ED) setting. Methods A systematic review of Medline, Cochrane and Embase was undertaken for prospective clinical studies assessing the diagnostic efficacy of CCTA, SE or SPECT, as compared to intracoronary angiography (ICA) or the later presence of major adverse clinical outcomes (MACE), in patients presenting to the ED with chest pain. Standard approach and bivariate analysis were performed. Results Thirty-seven studies (15 CCTA, 9 SE, 13 SPECT) comprising a total of 7800 patients fulfilled inclusion criteria. The respective weighted mean sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV) and total diagnostic accuracy for CCTA were: 95%, 99%, 84%, 100% and 99%, for SE were: 84%, 94%, 73%, 96% and 96%, and for SPECT were: 85%, 86%, 57%, 95% and 88%. There was no significant difference between modalities in terms of NPV. Bivariate analysis revealed that CCTA had statistically greater sensitivity, specificity, PPV and overall diagnostic accuracy when compared to SE and SPECT. Conclusions All three modalities, when employed by an experienced clinician, are highly accurate. Each has its own strengths and limitations making each well suited for different patient groups. CCTA has higher accuracy than SE and SPECT, but it has many drawbacks, most importantly its lack of physiologic data.
t(8;13) (p11;q12) translocation in a myeloproliferative disorder associated with a T-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Summary. An unusual cytogenetic translocation, t(8;13) (p11;q12), is described in a patient presenting with a CML-like myeloproliferative disorder associated with a high-grade T-cell lymphoma. Evidence is presented suggesting that the breakpoint region in the translocation involves a site implicated in both the T cell malignancy and the abnormal granulocyte proliferation.
Development of an Object-Oriented Program With Adaptive Mesh Refinement for Heat Transfer Simulations

A 2D/3D object-oriented program with h-type adaptive mesh refinement method is developed for finite element analysis of the multi-physics applications including heat transfer. A framework with some basic classes that enable the code to be built accordingly to the type of problem to be solved is proposed. The program consists of different modules and classes, which ease code development for large-scale complex systems, code extension and program maintenance. The developed program can be used as a “test-bed” program for testing new analysis techniques and algorithms with high extensibility and flexibility. The overall mesh refinement causes the CPU time cost to greatly increase as the mesh is refined. However, the CPU time cost does not increase very much with the increase of the level of h-adaptive mesh refinement. The CPU time cost can be saved by up to 90%, especially for the simulated system with a large number of elements and nodes.Copyright © 2007 by ASME
When Grapevine News Meets Mass Media: Different Information Sources and Perceptions of Government Corruption in Mainland China

This paper examines factors that shape people’s perceptions of government corruption in China. We are particularly interested in how people acquire information on local corruption, given the general lack of pertinent first-hand experience. We combine the data from a national survey in Mainland China with a self-compiled dataset on the number of corruption cases reported in Chinese provincial newspapers. The results of Probit and Heckman Selection models show that indirect formal and indirect informal information sources have diverging effects. While coverage of corruption by newspapers controlled by the authoritarian regime reduces people’s perceptions of corruption, exposure to grapevine news significantly increases perceived corruption. Moreover, access to media controlled by the government can significantly dilute the negative impact of grapevine news on perceptions of corruption.
Phospho-sulindac (OXT-922) inhibits the growth of human colon cancer cell lines: a redox/polyamine-dependent effect

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as sulindac are promising chemoprevention agents against colon cancer, but their weak potency and side effects limit their use for both chemoprevention and chemotherapy. Here, we evaluated the effect of a new sulindac derivative, phospho-sulindac or OXT-922, on the growth of human cancer cell lines and its mechanism of action. OXT-922 inhibited the growth of human cancer cell lines originating from colon, pancreas and breast � 11- to 30-fold more potently than sulindac. This effect was mediated by a strong cytokinetic effect. Compared with control, OXT-922 inhibited cell proliferation by up to 67%, induced apoptosis 4.1-fold over control and blocked the G1 to S cell cycle phase transition. OXT-922 suppressed the levels of cell cycle regulating proteins, including cyclins D1 and D3 and Cyclin-dependent kinases (CDK) 4 and 6. The levels of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), especially those of mitochondrial O d2 2 , were markedly elevated (5.5-fold) in response to OXT-922. ROS collapsed the mitochondrial membrane potential and triggered apoptosis, which was largely abrogated by antioxidants. OXT-922 suppressed nuclear factor-kappaB activation and downregulated thioredoxin-1 expression. It also suppressed the production of prostaglandin E2 and decreased cyclooxygenase-1 expression. Similar to sulindac, OXT-922 enhanced spermidine/spermine N1-acetyltransferase activity, reduced the cellular polyamine content and synergized with difluoromethylornithine to inhibit cancer cell proliferation and induce apoptosis. Our results suggest that OXT-922 possesses promising anticancer properties and deserves further evaluation.
EVOLUTION, TAXONOMY AND ANTITROPICAL DISTRIBUTIONS OF THE PORPOISES (PHOCOENIDAE, MAMMALIA)

True porpoises are a morphologically distinctive and evolutionarily old group of odontocete cetaceans classified as the family Phocoenidae. They are distinct from members of the family Delphinidae, with which they have sometimes been classified. Re-examination of all living and fossil species of phocoenids yields new information on the evolution of the family and indicates the need for significant taxonomic changes. Two separate lines of descent within the group are classified as the subfamilies Phocoeninae and Phocoenoidinae. The living southern hemisphere spectacled porpoise, Phocoena dioptrica, is actually more closely related to the North Pacific Dali's porpoise, Phocoenoides dalli, than to other species of Phocoena. It therefore belongs in the subfamily Phocoenoidinae with Phocoenoides but represents a separate genus, Australophocaena (new genus). The earliest unquestioned fossil phocoenids have been found only in rocks around the Pacific basin. They include latest Miocene and Pliocene species of Piscolithax and the Late Miocene Salumiphocaena stocktoni (new genus) in the Phocoenoidinae, and an undescribed latest Miocene species in the Phocoeninae. World climate has influenced past and present distributions of phocoenids, and Australopbocaena dioptrica is possibly the antitropical counterpart of Phocoenoides dalli. All species of living phocoenids show similarities caused by convergent evolution, resulting in part from the phenomenon of paedomorphosis.
Use of isometric handgrip for the indirect assessment of left ventricular function in patients with coronary atherosclerotic heart disease

Abstract The hemodynamic effects of maximal isometric handgrip exercise were determined in 6 normal subjects, 27 patients with coronary atherosclerotic heart disease and 6 patients with idiopathic congestive cardiomyopathy. The hemodynamic responses to isometric handgrip exercise and to dynamic treadmill exercise were compared in normal subjects and patients with atherosclerotic heart disease. In normal subjects, isometric handgrip did not alter heart sounds or precordial apex pulsations, but in patients with atherosclerotic heart disease it either accentuated or evoked atrial or ventricular gallop sounds in 59 and 44 percent, respectively. In patients with atherosclerotic heart disease and those with cardiomyopathy, apical diastolic pulsations markedly increased in amplitude during isometric handgrip. In both normal subjects and patients isometric exercise produced similar responses in systolic time intervals. Isometric handgrip evoked rapid and significant increases in systolic and diastolic blood pressure and heart rate in all normal subjects and patients. The product of systolic blood pressure and heart rate/100 (modified tension-time index) was used as an index of myocardial oxygen demand. Treadmill exercise increased mean modified tension-time index in normal subjects and in patients with atherosclerotic heart disease by 215 (+244 percent) and 147 units (+150 percent), respectively. Handgrip increased mean modified tensiontime index by 52 units in both normal subjects and patients with atherosclerotic heart disease patients (+60 and +49 percent, respectively) and by 38 units (+39 percent) in patients with cardiomyopathy. Isometric handgrip exercise is a simple cardiovascular stress test, applicable at the bedside for provoking abnormal physical signs associated with decreased left ventricular compliance or dysfunction in patients with atherosclerotic heart disease or cardiomyopathy.
Cross-sectional survey of long-term quality of life after radical perineal prostatectomy.

Objectives To evaluate the late health-related quality of life (HRQOL) after radical perineal prostatectomy (RPP) and identify the predictors of outcome. Methods We performed a cross-sectional study of 266 consecutive patients who underwent RPP for clinically localized prostate cancer between July 1998 and December 2000. Of the 236 patients successfully contacted, 187 (79.2%) returned a validated patient self-assessment questionnaire, the Expanded Prostate Cancer Index Composite, a mean of 42.1 months (range 29 to 64) months after surgery. The median HRQOL scores were calculated in four disease-specific domains: urinary, bowel, sexual, and hormonal. Preoperative baseline information from a separate group of 144 consecutive RPP candidates from January 2002 to May 2003 was used for comparison. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to identify predictors of more favorable long-term HRQOL outcomes. Results No statistically significant differences were found in any of the domain-specific summary scores between the study and reference groups, except in the sexual domain (median score 19.2 versus 56.4; P = 0.001). The number of medical comorbidities was a statistically significant predictor of HRQOL summary scores in all domains (P <0.05). In addition, the urinary summary score was statistically significantly associated with income (P = 0.03), sexual summary with the use of erectile aids (P = 0.003), bowel summary with secondary radiotherapy (P = 0.001) and income (P = 0.002), and hormonal summary with androgen ablation (P = 0.004). Conclusions The results of this study have shown that the long-term HRQOL of RPP patients in the urinary, bowel, and hormonal domains is favorable. HRQOL outcomes depend on a spectrum of factors, including the presence of comorbid disease, socioeconomic status, and secondary cancer treatments. Future studies should seek to address the efficacy of preserving the sexual domain HRQOL in patients undergoing bilateral nerve-sparing RPP.
Resistance to Metastatic Disease in STAT6-Deficient Mice Requires Hemopoietic and Nonhemopoietic Cells and Is IFN-γ Dependent

Mice deficient for the STAT6 gene (STAT6(-/-) mice) have enhanced immunosurveillance against primary and metastatic tumors. Because STAT6 is a downstream effector of the IL-4R, and IL-13 binds to the type 2 IL-4R, IL-13 has been proposed as an inhibitor that blocks differentiation of tumor-specific CD8(+) T cells. Immunity in STAT6(-/-) mice is unusually effective in that 45-80% of STAT6(-/-) mice with established, spontaneous metastatic 4T1 mammary carcinoma, whose primary tumors are surgically excised, survive indefinitely, as compared with <10% of STAT(+/+) (BALB/c) mice. Surprisingly, STAT6(-/-) and BALB/c reciprocal bone marrow chimeras do not have increased immunosurveillance, demonstrating that immunity requires STAT6(-/-) hemopoietic and nonhemopoietic components. Likewise, CD1(-/-) mice that are NKT deficient and therefore IL-13 deficient also have heightened tumor immunity. However, STAT6(-/-) and CD1(-/-) reciprocal bone marrow chimeras do not have increased survival, suggesting that immunity in STAT6(-/-) and CD1(-/-) mice is via noncomplementing mechanisms. Metastatic disease is not reduced in BALB/c mice treated with an IL-13 inhibitor, indicating that IL-13 alone is insufficient for negative regulation of 4T1 immunity. Likewise, in vivo depletion of CD4(+)CD25(+) T cells in BALB/c mice does not increase survival, demonstrating that CD4(+)CD25(+) cells do not regulate immunity. Cytokine production and tumor challenges into STAT6(-/-)IFN-gamma(-/-) mice indicate that IFN-gamma is essential for immunity. Therefore, immunosurveillance in STAT6(-/-) mice facilitates survival against metastatic cancer via an IFN-gamma-dependent mechanism involving hemopoietic and nonhemopoietic derived cells, and is not exclusively dependent on counteracting IL-13 or CD4(+)CD25(+) T cells.
Immortalization of differentiated human keratinocytes by human papillomavirus (HPV) 16 DNA

Abstract Human papillomavirus (HPV) 16 is strongly implicated as having an etiologic role in cervical carcinoma. Human basal keratinocytes have been used in most HPV transformation studies, and transformed cells have exhibited undifferentiated characteristics. However, tumor cells in cervical squamous cell carcinoma are differentiated to certain degrees. Therefore, we hypothesize that HPV may transform not only basal cells but also differentiated keratinocytes. Human keratinocytes isolated from neonatal foreskin were induced to differentiate by treatment with 2 mM Ca2+ for various times (24, 48, 72 and 96 h) and were transfected with HPV 16 DNA. After G418 selection and repeated subculture, HPV 16-transformed cells were derived from each group of the Ca2+-treated and untreated cells. HPV DNA was detected in the transformed cells by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Southern analysis and two-dimensional gel results indicated that HPV 16 DNA had been integrated into the chromosomes. The HPV 16-transformed cells exhibited an indefinite lifespan and were not tumorigenic in nude mice. They also showed the morphology and expressed the markers of differentiated keratinocytes. This study showed that differentiated human keratinocytes could be immortalized by HPV 16, and this may be a better model for cervical carcinomas in humans.
Variable optical delay prototype using a 2d array of mems mirrors

A variable optical signal delay is desirable for TDM optical networks and optical beamforming in phased-array antennas. A MEMS device with 2-bit variable delay for optical signals is proposed. The design of a device to introduce this controllable delay will have to use moveable mirrors that physically change the path of the optical signal
The outcomes of patients with positive margins after excision for intraepithelial Paget's disease of the vulva.

Abstract Objectives. Vulvar Paget's disease is a rare neoplasm that usually occurs in postmenopausal women. Treatment with surgical excision can be complicated by extension of microscopic disease in an irregular manner well beyond the visible margins of the lesion. The objective or our study was to analyze the outcomes of patients with primary vulvar intraepithelial Paget's disease who had positive microscopic margins after primary excision. Methods. We reviewed the records of all patients with Paget's disease of the vulva treated at our institution from 1/80 to 9/02. Patients whose sample showed stromal invasion or an underlying carcinoma were excluded. Data were collected regarding patient demographics, disease location, treatment, surgical margin status, additional treatment, and clinical outcome. Results. The medical records and histopathologic specimens of 28 women with intraepithelial Paget's disease of the vulva were evaluated. Surgical treatment consisted of radical vulvectomy in 3 patients (11%), simple vulvectomy in 18 patients (64%), and wide local excision in the other 7 patients (25%). Of the 20 patients with microscopically positive margins, 14 (70%) developed recurrent disease and the remaining 6 (30%) are disease free. Of the 8 patients with negative margins, 3 (38%) developed disease recurrence and the remaining 5 (63%) are disease free. With a median follow-up of 49 months (range, 3–186 months), there was no correlation between disease recurrence and margin status ( P =0.20). Of the 17 patients who recurred, 14 (82%) underwent additional surgical excision and 1 patient was treated with Retin-A. The remaining 2 patients refused further treatment and were lost to follow-up. In those patients who underwent surgery for recurrence, between 1 and 3 re-excisions were performed. Of the 15 evaluable patients who were treated for recurrent disease, 12 (80%) had no evidence of persistent disease and 3 (20%) had persistent disease at a median follow-up of 63.7 months (range, 18.5–186 months). Conclusions. Microscopically positive margins following surgical excision of vulvar intraepithelial Paget's disease is a frequent finding, and disease recurrence is common regardless of surgical margin status. Long-term monitoring of patients is recommended, and repeat surgical excision is often necessary.
Multicomponent micropatterned sol-gel materials by capillary molding

A physically and chemically benign method for patterning multiple sol-gel materials onto a single substrate is described. Structures are demonstrated for potential micro- optical chemical sensor, biosensor, and waveguiding applications. Fabrication is based on the micro molding in capillaries (MIMIC) approach. A novel mold design allows several sols to be cast simultaneously. Closely spaced, organically modified silica ridges containing fluorescent dyes are demonstrated. Ridges have cross sectional dimensions from one to 50 micrometers and are centimeters in length. Processing issues, particularly those related to mold filling, are discussed in detail. Because sol-gel MIMIC avoids the harsh physical and chemical environments normally associated with patterning, the approach allows full exploitation of sol- gel processing advantages, such as the ability to entrap sensitive organic dopant molecules in the sol-gel matrix.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Peroxisome proliferator activator receptor gamma coactivator-1alpha (PGC-1α) improves motor performance and survival in a mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Background: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease that affects spinal cord and cortical motor neurons. An increasing amount of evidence suggests that mitochondrial dysfunction contributes to motor neuron death in ALS. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma co-activator-1a (PGC1a) is a principal regulator of mitochondrial biogenesis and oxidative metabolism. Results: In this study, we examined whether PGC-1a plays a protective role in ALS by using a double transgenic mouse model where PGC-1a is over-expressed in an SOD1 transgenic mouse (TgSOD1-G93A/PGC-1a). Our results indicate that PGC-1a significantly improves motor function and survival of SOD1-G93A mice. The behavioral improvements were accompanied by reduced blood glucose level and by protection of motor neuron loss, restoration of mitochondrial electron transport chain activities and inhibition of stress signaling in the spinal cord. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that PGC-1a plays a beneficial role in a mouse model of ALS, suggesting that PGC-1a may be a potential therapeutic target for ALS therapy.
THE PHYCOBILIN SIGNATURES OF CHLOROPLASTS FROM THREE DINOFLAGELLATE SPECIES: A MICROANALYTICAL STUDY OF DINOPHYSIS CAUDATA, D. FORTII, AND D. ACUMINATA (DINOPHYSIALES, DINOPHYCEAE)

The absorbance and fluorescence emission spectra for three species of Dinophysis, D. caudata Saville-Kent, D. fortii Pavillard, and D. acuminata Claparede et Lach- mann, were obtained through an in vivo microanalytical technique using a new type of transparent filter. The pig- ment signatures of these Dinophysis species were compared to those of Synechococcus Nageli, a cryptophyte, and two wild rhodophytes, as well as those of another dinoflagellate, a diatom, and a chlorophyte. Phycobilins are not consid- ered a native protein group for dinoflagellates, yet the ab- sorption and fluorescence properties of the three Dino- physis species were demonstrated to closely resemble phy- cobilins and chlorophylls of Rhodomonas Karsten (Cryp- tophyceae). Analyses of Dinophysis species using epifluorescence microscopy found no additional nucleus or nuclear remnant as would be contributed by an endosym- biont.
Gut microbiota protects against gastrointestinal tumorigenesis caused by epithelial injury

Inflammation is a critical player in the development of both colitis-associated and sporadic colon cancers. Several studies suggest that the microbiota contribute to inflammation and tumorigenesis; however, studies to understand the role of the microbiota in colon tumor development in germfree (GF) mice are limited. We therefore studied the effects of the microbiota on the development of inflammation and tumors in germfree and conventionally-raised specific pathogen-free (SPF) mice treated with azoxymethane (AOM) and dextran sulfate sodium (DSS). We discovered that GF mice developed significantly more and larger tumors compared to that in SPF mice after AOM and DSS treatment despite the lack of early acute inflammation in response to chemically-induced injury by DSS. Although the extent of intestinal epithelial damage and apoptosis was not significantly different in GF and SPF mice, there was a delay in intestinal epithelial repair to DSS-induced injury in GF mice resulting in a late onset of proinflammatory and protumorigenic responses and increased epithelial proliferation and microadenoma formation. Recolonization of GF mice with commensal bacteria or administration of LPS reduced tumorigenesis. Thus, although commensal bacteria are capable of driving chronic inflammation and tumorigenesis, the gut microbiota also have important roles in limiting chemically-induced injury and proliferative responses that lead to tumor development.
Optical Spectroscopy for the Detection of Dysplasia in Barrett’s Esophagus

Patients with Barrett's esophagus (BE) undergo periodic endoscopic surveillance with multiple biopsy examinations in an attempt to identify dysplastic and early cancerous lesions at a time when intervention can be beneficial. However, this surveillance approach is hindered by low sampling yield, random sampling error, pathology-associated costs, and delay in diagnosis. Optical spectroscopy offers the potential to identify tissue pathology accurately in real time. The technique uses diagnostic molecular and/or microstructural information contained in light-tissue interactions such as fluorescence, elastic scattering, and inelastic (Raman) scattering. As an adjunct to endoscopy, optical spectroscopy has the capacity to enhance lesion detection in premalignant conditions such as BE. This article highlights the current status and future prospects of optical spectroscopy in BE.
The Americans with Disabilities Act at 25 Years: Lessons to Learn from the Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities

In this Article, the Author argues that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the subsequent ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA), have not realized the goal of ensuring equality for people with disabilities. The Author suggests that the Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (CRPD), adopted in 2006 by the United Nations, offers a new approach to realizing the right to equality for people with disabilities. The Author begins the Article with an analysis of the shortcomings of the ADA, including its medical approach to the definition of disability, its narrow application of the requirement of reasonable accommodation, as well as the broad defenses and the limited damages it offers to claimants, even after the 2008 ADAAA. The Author argues further that the ADA’s limited success in achieving equality for people with disabilities is likely due to the fact that it was never intended to achieve equality; rather, it sought to move people from reliance on government benefits to employment by prohibiting discrimination. In contrast to the ADA’s limited anti-discrimination approach to disability rights, the Author presents the advantages of the human rights approach of the CRPD, including its broad definition of equality, its use of the social model of disability, its recognition of the right to reasonable accommodation as a free standing human right, and its adherence to the interdependence of civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights as well as negative and positive rights. The CRPD also differs from the ADA by valuing independence alongside the need for support by some people with disabilities. It is this “right to support,” the Author argues, that offers an opportunity to ensure greater equality and participation in society for people with disabilities but which also poses a challenge to such American values as independence and self-reliance. Based on the limitations of the ADAAA and the advantages of the CRPD, the Author concludes that the CRPD should play an important role in the implementation of the ADAAA as well as in the development of new laws and policies to advance the rights of people with disabilities in the U.S., even in the absence of Senate ratification of the CRPD.
Advancing Reversible Shape Memory by Tuning the Polymer Network Architecture

Because of counteraction of a chemical network and a crystalline scaffold, semicrystalline polymer networks exhibit a peculiar behavior—reversible shape memory (RSM), which occurs naturally without applying any external force and particular structural design. There are three RSM properties: (i) range of reversible strain, (ii) rate of strain recovery, and (iii) decay of reversibility with time, which can be improved by tuning the architecture of the polymer network. Different types of poly(octylene adipate) networks were synthesized, allowing for control of cross-link density and network topology, including randomly cross-linked network by free-radical polymerization, thiol–ene clicked network with enhanced mesh uniformity, and loose network with deliberately incorporated dangling chains. It is shown that the RSM properties are controlled by average cross-link density and crystal size, whereas topology of a network greatly affects its extensibility. We have achieved 80% maximum reversible range, 15% minim...
Relational accounting: A cultural approach

This article extends (but goes beyond) Zelier’s original concept of relational earmarking, where individuals engaged in dynamic forms of relational work categorize their spending and develop practices of resource allocation by virtue of the relationships being managed. This article pushes for a performative understanding of accounting practices by elaborating a theory of relational accounting based on the outlines proposed by Zelizer. Relational accounting begins (i) upstream where identifiable codes and structured meaning systems shape the set of options, non-options and their sense of being possible for the person engaged in action. Moral considerations embedded in these codes affect the geometric shape of the individual’s decision tree, nearly collapsing some decision branches. (ii) In mid-stream there are meaningful, ritually prescribed occasions altering accounting priorities. And (iii) downstream people are engaged in relational work where the meanings of their relationships function performatively. Deals make more or less sense by virtue of the types of relationships being managed and the meanings of the relational sites where monetary evaluations take place. Identifiable third parties sanction these relational performances. The article concludes with concrete examples of relational accounting for luxury transactions and for high cost debt.
CHARACTERIZATION OF DIMETHYL SULFOXIDE BINDING SITES ON GLOBULAR TRIMERIC ADIPONECTIN

Secreted by the adipose tissue, adiponectin is an adipokine with unique anti-diabetic, anti-obesity and anti- atherosclerosis properties. Adiponectin has been proposed as a drug target for treating obesity-related diseases and many existing drugs have been found to regulate circulating adiponectin levels in humans. The initial goal of this study was to characterize the binding of potential ligands to adiponectin. However, the binding site of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) was incidentally discovered by solution NMR. As the widely used solvent for many ligand binding assays, DMSO binding at the atomic level has never been reported. Our results indicate the necessity of characterizing the binding of DMSO prior to perfoming ligand binding assays.
0232 Depression and anxiety as an outcome of job strain in the Chilean workforce

Objectives Based on previous analyses, using ROC curves and correlation, we aim to improve agreement assessments between diverse formulations of the Demand Control (DC) Model for Job Strain in order to test its ability to predict anxiety and depression (AD) in a nationally representative population of workers from Chile, a country transitioning to high economic development and with high prevalence of AD. Method A weighted national sample of 9503 workers representing the entire Chilean workforce was surveyed during 2010–2011 in Chile. Goldberg Health Questionnaire (12 questions) to assess AD and diverse formulation of the DC model were used as dependent and independent variables respectively. Bland-Altman plots for agreement and Poisson-log models (controlled for demographics) for predictive ability were used to assess each formulation. Results Good agreement between Log and Quotient formulations. For different formulations, high strain jobs had between 1.7 (quadrant and tertile formulations) and 3.7 (extreme tertile formulation), higher prevalence of AD than low strain jobs. Approximately 12–25% of AD cases might be attributed to increased strain. Conclusions Predictive ability of the DC model for AD was similar in trend to other studies. Most accurate models (extreme formulations) represent less population and might be impractical. At the cost of excluding many people from the evaluation, the extreme tertile model seems to be the best formulation to predict AD among extreme exposures to job strain within the Chilean working population. Better operationalizations of the DC model should be considered in future surveys to allow international comparisons and guide eventual interventions.
Effect of Variation of Blood Pressure on the Autonomic Nervous System

Summary1. Increase in blood pressure induced by adrenalin or infusion of Ringer's solution leads to a decrease in pupillary diameter and to a relaxation of the nictitating membrane. A fall in the b...
Technology Support for Discussion Based Learning: From Computer Supported Collaborative Learning to the Future of Massive Open Online Courses

This article offers a vision for technology supported collaborative and discussion-based learning at scale. It begins with historical work in the area of tutorial dialogue systems. It traces the history of that area of the field of Artificial Intelligence in Education as it has made an impact on the field of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning through the creation of forms of dynamic support for collaborative learning, and makes an argument for the importance of advances in the field of Language Technologies for this work. In particular, this support has been enabled by an integration of text mining and conversational agents to form a novel type of micro-script support for productive discussion processes. This research from the early part of the century has paved the way for emerging technologies that support discussion-based learning at scale in Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). In the next 25 years, we expect to see this early, emerging work in MOOC contexts grow into ubiquitously available social learning approaches in free online learning environments like MOOCs, or what comes next in the online learning space. These ambitious social learning approaches include Problem Based Learning, Team Project Based Learning, and Collaborative Reflection. We expect to see the capability of drawing in and effectively supporting learners of all walks of life, especially impacting currently under-served learners. To that end, we describe the current exploratory efforts to deploy technology supported collaborative and discussion-based learning in MOOCs and offer a vision for work going forward into the next decade, where we envision learning communities and open collaborative work communities coming together as persistent technology supported and enhanced communities of practice.
Defying NGO-ization?: Lessons in Livelihood Resilience Observed Among Involuntarily Displaced Women in Mumbai, India

This article focuses on how a group of women involuntarily displaced from Mumbai’s slums managed the resulting sizeable disruptions to their livelihoods. One hundred and twenty women—relocated to a resettlement site chosen by a nongovernmental organization (NGO)—are the primary data source. The concept of sensemaking/sensegiving provides a framework for analyzing how these particular women reconstructed their livelihoods in new surroundings independent of directives from NGOs, government agencies, or private developers. The article identifies four strategies that the women utilized to make sense of changes in their livelihood—positive reappraisal, radical change, incremental steps, and restraint—depending on their age, marital status, length of time widowed, family-size, past employment experience, education, ethnicity, and/or religion. Once women had individually and retrospectively made sense of their new environment and circumstances, they attempted to influence others present to consider an alternate vision for livelihood generation. This article captures the micro-level dynamics operating in these early moments of livelihood envisioning, dynamics that might otherwise escape the attention of government, business, and civil society actors with a stake in the project’s future. Such early-stage envisioning by residents could serve as a valuable guide for all concerned stakeholders and must be factored in to strengthen national and international policy for urban resettlement and rehabilitation.
Analysis on a food poisoning caused by Staphylococcus aureus

Objective To analyze the reason for a food poisoning by epidemiological investigation and laboratory testing,in order to provide a basis for food poisoning emergency treatment. Methods Samples collected from the food poisoning cases were analyzed according to national standard methods in microbiological examination of food hygiene(GB / T 4789-2003, GB 4789-2008,GB 4789-2010,GB 4789-2012) and WS / T 80-1996. Staphylococcal enterotoxins were detected by real-time PCR in Staphylococcus aureus isolates. Results Five Staphylococcus aureus strains were isolated from 20samples and Staphylococcal enterotoxin A was found in these strains.No other enteric pathogens were detected.Conclusion This food poisoning outbreak was due to Staphylococcal enterotoxin A.
Transurethral Incision of Prostate Compared with Transurethral Resection of Prostate in 132 Matching Cases

In a prospective project during a 2-year period 132 patients with bladder outlet obstruction who were candidates for transurethral incision of the prostate were managed alternately by transurethral incision and transurethral resection of the prostate. Both operations were compared in matched patients. The results and complications favored transurethral incision, although there was no statistical significance except for the high incidence of bladder neck contracture after transurethral resection (p equals 0.028).
Activin inhibition of estradiol and progesterone production in porcine granulosa cells

Two studies evaluated the influence of activin on steroidogenesis in cultured porcine granulosa cells obtained at various stages of differentiation. In granulosa cells isolated from 1- to 3-mm follicles, obtained at random stages of the estrous cycle, treatment with activin or transforming growth factor beta (TGF beta) decreased progesterone production during the first 48 h of culture, but neither had an effect on estradiol production. One-half of these cells received FSH treatment at 48 h, and at 96 and 144 h of culture FSH increased estradiol and progesterone production. Activin or TGF beta reduced, in a dose-dependent manner, both basal and FSH-stimulated production of both steroids. In the second study, granulosa cells were obtained during follicular growth associated with weaning and were separated into two subpopulations (weakly associated [WA] and tightly bound [TB]). Estradiol production in culture increased with time after weaning. Tightly bound cells produced more estradiol than WA cells and maintained FSH-stimulated estradiol production, whereas production of progesterone increased in both cell types after treatment with FSH. Activin depressed FSH-stimulated estradiol production in TB cells and depressed FSH-stimulated progesterone production in both cell types. These results clearly indicate that activin depresses in vitro steroidogenesis by granulosa cells from antral, porcine follicles; thus, activin may participate in atresia of antral follicles of this species.
Stabilization of Uncertain Linear Systems

Feedback stabilization of linear, uncertain systems is usually analyzed using quadratic Lyapunov functions that are common to all values in the uncertainty set. In this paper we use the alternative classical concept of Laypunov exponents to characterize the precise (exponential) stability regions for systems with contrained linear output feedback. In particular, we exploit the continuity of the maximal Lyapunov exponent depending on the size of the uncertainty and on the bounds of the feedback gain matrix, to obtain results on the exponential stabilizability radius r(u) as a function of the linear, time invariant feedback u. Several examples show, among other facts, that quadratic Lyapunov functions lead in general to conservative criteria, when compared to the precise exponential stabilizability region.
Traditioneller Genuss mit Nebenwirkungen

Ob als Zeichen der Gastfreundschaft, zum Dessert oder in der Brautwerbung–Kauen des sogenannten Betelbissens hat vor allem in Sudostasien eine lange Tradition. Die wichtigste Zutat des Betelbissens, die Arecanuss, wirkt stimulierend und mild berauschend. Zu den Nebenwirkungen zahlen schlechte Mundhygiene bis zur Zahnfaule, Asthma bronchiale und Diabetes mellitus Typ 2. In der Mundhohle fordert Betelkauen die Entstehung von Krebs.
Immigration and Citizenship in Japan: Is Japan an Outlier? Cross-National Patterns of Immigrant Incorporation and Noncitizen Political Engagement

Much contemporary literature on political participation in advanced industrial democracies has focused on the vexing problem of declining citizen participation (Fiorina 2002; Schlozman 2002). In particular, this scholarship is motivated by the disjuncture between citizenship policies and citizen political behavior: why don't citizens vote? Meanwhile, scholarship on immigration and racial politics in Western Europe and the United States has demonstrated increasing interest in a similar disjuncture between citizenship policies and noncitizen political behavior: why don't noncitizens naturalize? Although foreign nationals make up a substantial proportion of the labor force in a number of industrialized societies, their rates of naturalization have been relatively low even among long-term and native-born residents. Tomas Hammar (1990: 22–3) estimated that, by 1987, more than half of the total foreign-resident population in Europe were permanent foreign residents who were eligible for naturalization but remained noncitizens by choice or circumstance. He labeled this category of foreigners “denizens.” Low naturalization rates especially among permanently settled populations of foreign residents – who are neither full citizens of the host country nor recent immigrants who lack a secure residence status – pose particular dilemmas for liberal democracies. On the one hand, the long-term exclusion of a significant fraction of the population from the rights and duties of full citizenship is untenable for putatively democratic states. Especially as debates about immigration and national identity become increasingly racialized, the line separating de facto and de jure second-class citizens is often blurred.
Kinds of Authenticity

The concept of authenticity plays an important role in how people reason about objects, other people, and themselves. However, despite a great deal of academic interest in this concept, to date, the precise meaning of the term, authenticity, has remained somewhat elusive. This paper reviews the various definitions of authenticity that have been proposed in the literature and identifies areas of convergence. We then outline a novel framework that organizes the existing definitions of authenticity along two key dimensions: (i) describing the type of entity that is evaluated and (ii) describing the source of information that is consulted. We argue that this convergence across a number of papers, and more importantly, across a number of domains, reflects significant progress in articulating the meaning(s) of authenticity. We conclude by suggesting new avenues for research in this area, with particular attention toward psychological process.
Novel developments in differentiating the role of renal and intestinal sodium hydrogen exchanger 3

The Na+/H+ exchanger isoform 3 (NHE3) facilitates Na+ absorption and H+ secretion and is expressed in the intestine, proximal tubule, and thick ascending limb of the kidney. While the function of N...
Space Object Detection in Images Using Matched Filter Bank and Bayesian Update

Electrooptical sensors, when used to track space objects, are often used to produce detections of space objects for some orbit determination scheme. Instead, this paper proposes a series of methods...
Extracting Weighted Language Lexicons from Wikipedia

Language models are used in applications as diverse as speech recognition, optical character recognition and information retrieval. They are used to predict word appearance, and to weight the importance of words in these applications. One basic element of language models is the list of words in a language. Another is the unigram frequency of each word. But this basic information is not available for most languages in the world. Since the multilingual Wikipedia project encourages the production of encyclopedic-like articles in many world languages, we can find there an ever-growing source of text from which to extract these two language modelling elements: word list and frequency. Here we present a simple technique for converting this Wikipedia text into lexicons of weighted unigrams for the more than 280 languages present currently present in Wikipedia. The lexicons produced, and the source code for producing them in a Linux-based system are here made available for free on the Web.
Beyond Moral Dilemmas: Exploring the Ethical Landscape in HRI

HRI research has yielded intriguing empirical results connected to ethics and how we act in social contexts with robots, even though much of this work has focused on task-based, one-on-one interaction. In this paper, we point to the need to investigate a wider range of ethically relevant dynamics that interaction with robots carries with it -- individually and in groups, with a single robot or more. We specifically examine three areas: 1) the primacy and implicit dynamics of bodily perception, 2) the competing interests at work in a single robot-human interaction, and 3) the social intricacy of multiple agents -- robots and humans -- communicating and making decisions. While these areas are not exhaustive by any means, we find they yield concrete directions for how HRI can contribute to a widening, intensifying set of ethical debates with critical empirical insight, starting to explore more of the ethical landscape in HRI.
Monitoring user distraction in a car by segmentation of experimental data

We present in this paper results of research conducted on evaluation of speech user interfaces in cars. The approach is based on segmentation of the driver's attention data based on user activity and attention. The methodology applied is based on the proposed standard of Lane Change Test (ISO proposal #26022) which is extended by splitting the data based on operation performed. We summarize first results obtained while larger scale study is ongoing.
Red Giant Mass Loss and Planetary Nebula Formation

It is generally believed that red giant mass loss plays some role in the formation of planetary nebulae (PNe), but the connection is not clearly understood. To investigate this issue we have undertaken an extensive search for molecular gas in PNe, which is likely to be remnant material of the red giant wind not yet ionized by the central star. The search has been carried out with the NRAO 12 m telescope in the 1.3 mm line of 00 which is widely observable in the molecular winds of red giants.
Abet Student Outcomes and the Entrepreneurial Mindset

The purpose of this chapter is to understand the perspective that ABET takes toward the entrepreneurial mindset and what that means for us, as engineering educators.
The Semantic Aspect of Plato’s Theory of Ideas

The Socratic quest for the meaning of general terms and Plato’s venture into the semantics and metaphysics of Ideas were mainly endeavors to save knowledge from the Heraclitean attack.1 For if every perceivable element is in constant flux, in the sense that nature is capriciously playing dice with us, it would be possible to find some distinction between any pair of elements however closely similar they may be; and if every element is discernible from every other, no one is compelled to apply the same word to two different things. In sum, if nature is not so simple as the simple-minded wishfully assume it to be, there would be no reason to believe in its uniformity. For to believe in the uniformity of nature is to believe that those things which are similar in some respects tend to behave similarly in others. But if we look captiously at any portion of nature, we shall find that every atom of existence, let alone every blade of grass, is different from others and from itself at any span of space-time. Hence it is argued that any name is a misnomer and any description, if not a total falsification, at best, a distortion. In this way the Heraclitean metaphysics gave birth to a semantic theory of the unnameables, and to unmitigated scepticism with regard to knowledge. This was enough to disallow any theory as being nothing but a too simple account of our complex world.
Adjoint twisted Alexander polynomial of twisted Whitehead links

The adjoint twisted Alexander polynomial has been computed for twist knots [A. Tran, Twisted Alexander polynomials with the adjoint action for some classes of knots, J. Knot Theory Ramifications 23(10) (2014) 1450051], genus one two-bridge knots [A. Tran, Adjoint twisted Alexander polynomials of genus one two-bridge knots, J. Knot Theory Ramifications 25(10) (2016) 1650065] and the Whitehead link [J. Dubois and Y. Yamaguchi, Twisted Alexander invariant and nonabelian Reidemeister torsion for hyperbolic three dimensional manifolds with cusps, Preprint (2009), arXiv:0906.1500]. In this paper, we compute the adjoint twisted Alexander polynomial and nonabelian Reidemeister torsion of twisted Whitehead links.