cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
An Examination of Current Leadership Practices in Early Childhood and Early Childhood Special Education: A Mixed Methods Study

Research Findings: Effective leadership is one necessary element of achieving high quality in early childhood (EC) and early childhood special education (ECSE) programs. To date, little leadership ...
Spectral Embedding of Graph Networks.

We introduce an unsupervised graph embedding that trades off local node similarity and connectivity, and global structure. The embedding is based on a generalized graph Laplacian, whose eigenvectors compactly capture both network structure and neighborhood proximity in a single representation. The key idea is to transform the given graph into one whose weights measure the centrality of an edge by the fraction of the number of shortest paths that pass through that edge, and employ its spectral proprieties in the representation. Testing the resulting graph network representation shows significant improvement over the sate of the art in data analysis tasks including social networks and material science. We also test our method on node classification from the human-SARS CoV-2 protein-protein interactome.
AR-Loupe: Magnified Augmented Reality by Combining an Optical See-Through Head-Mounted Display and a Loupe.

Head-mounted loupes can increase the user's visual acuity to observe the details of an object. On the other hand, optical see-through head-mounted displays (OST-HMD) are able to provide virtual augmentations registered with real objects. In this paper, we propose AR-Loupe, combining the advantages of loupes and OST-HMDs, to offer augmented reality in the user's magnified field-of-vision. Specifically, AR-Loupe integrates a commercial OST-HMD, Magic Leap One, and binocular Galilean magnifying loupes, with customized 3D-printed attachments. We model the combination of user's eye, screen of OST-HMD, and the optical loupe as a pinhole camera. The calibration of AR-Loupe involves interactive view segmentation and an adapted version of stereo single point active alignment method (Stereo-SPAAM). We conducted a two-phase multi-user study to evaluate AR-Loupe. The users were able to achieve sub-millimeter accuracy (0.82mm) on average, which is significantly (p<0.001) smaller compared to normal AR guidance (1.49mm). The mean calibration time was 268.46s. With the increased size of real objects through optical magnification and the registered augmentation, AR-Loupe can aid users in high-precision tasks with better visual acuity and higher accuracy.
Sensitivity enhancement and selection are shared mechanisms for spatial and feature-based attention

Abstract Human observers use cues to guide visual attention to the most behaviorally relevant parts of the visual world. Cues are often separated into two forms: those that rely on spatial location and those that use features, such as motion or color. These forms of cueing are known to rely on different populations of neurons. Despite these differences in neural implementation, attention may rely on shared computational principles, enhancing and selecting sensory representations in a similar manner for all types of cues. Here we examine whether evidence for shared computational mechanisms can be obtained from how attentional cues enhance performance in estimation tasks. In our tasks, observers were cued either by spatial location or feature to two of four dot patches. They then estimated the color or motion direction of one of the cued patches, or averaged them. In all cases we found that cueing improved performance. We decomposed the effects of the cues on behavior into model parameters that separated sensitivity enhancement from sensory selection and found that both were important to explain improved performance. We found that a model which shared parameters across forms of cueing was favored by our analysis, suggesting that observers have equal sensitivity and likelihood of making selection errors whether cued by location or feature. Our perceptual data support theories in which a shared computational mechanism is re-used by all forms of attention. Significance Statement Cues about important features or locations in visual space are similar from the perspective of visual cortex, both allow relevant sensory representations to be enhanced while irrelevant ones can be ignored. Here we studied these attentional cues in an estimation task designed to separate different computational mechanisms of attention. Despite cueing observers in three different ways, to spatial locations, colors, or motion directions, we found that all cues led to similar perceptual improvements. Our results provide behavioral evidence supporting the idea that all forms of attention can be reconciled as a single repeated computational motif, re-implemented by the brain in different neural architectures for many different visual features.
Mapping the gravitational-wave sky with LISA: A Bayesian spherical harmonic approach

The millihertz gravitational-wave frequency band is expected to contain a rich symphony of signals with sources ranging from galactic white dwarf binaries to extreme mass ratio inspirals. Many of these gravitational-wave signals will not be individually resolvable. Instead, they will incoherently add to produce stochastic gravitational-wave confusion noise whose frequency content will be governed by the dynamics of the sources. The angular structure of the power of the confusion noise will be modulated by the distribution of the sources across the sky. Measurement of this structure can yield important information about the distribution of sources on galactic and extra-galactic scales, their astrophysics and their evolution over cosmic timescales. Moreover, since the confusion noise is part of the noise budget of LISA, mapping it will also be essential for studying resolvable signals. In this paper, we present a Bayesian algorithm to probe the angular distribution of the stochastic gravitational-wave confusion noise with LISA using a spherical harmonic basis. We develop a technique based on Clebsch-Gordan coefficients to mathematically constrain the spherical harmonics to yield a non-negative distribution, making them optimal for expanding the gravitational-wave power and amenable to Bayesian inference. We demonstrate these techniques using a series of simulations and analyses, including recovery of simulated distributed and localized sources of gravitational-wave power. We also apply this method to map the gravitational-wave foreground from galactic white-dwarfs using a simplified model of the galactic white dwarf distribution.
Factor structure, internal reliability, and construct validity of the Brief Resilience Scale (BRS): A study on persons with serious mental illness living in the community

Objectives Resilience, the ability to bounce back from a stressful situation, is a valuable asset for aiding adults with serious mental illness (SMI) in navigating the recovery process. People with SMI experience stress, including traumatic experiences at disproportionate rates. The purposes of this study were to examine the factor structure, internal reliability, and construct validity of the Brief Resilience Scale (BRS) among adults with SMI living in the community. Design A cross-sectional survey design was used. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and correlational analyses were employed. Methods Three hundred fifteen adults with SMI were recruited for two studies (Sample 1, n = 122; Sample 2, n = 193) from three states. All participants completed the BRS along with nearly identical positive psychology- and psychopathology-related measures. Results EFA revealed the BRS was unidimensional and explained 61.20% of the variance. Results from seven CFA models suggested a bifactor structure for the BRS, which fit the data best. Internal reliability of the BRS was computed to be within acceptable ranges (α = .87, ω = .90). The BRS was positively correlated with measures of positive coping and life satisfaction, providing convergent validity. Divergent validity was supported by negative correlations between the BRS and measures of psychiatric symptoms, succumbing, and self-stigma. Conclusions The BRS is a valid measure that can be used by clinical and research professionals to assess levels of resilience in adults with SMI at baseline and across time. Practitioner points The Brief Resilience Scale (BRS) was developed to measure a person's ability to bounce back from stressful situations. The BRS was examined in adults with serious mental illness living in the community. The BRS presented a bifactor structure measuring resilience (an outcome) and correlated with positive psychology- and psychopathology-related measures. The BRS can be used by practitioners to assess levels of resilience in their clients at baseline and over time to evaluate the effectiveness of therapeutic interventions.
Mining Wikidata for Name Resources for African Languages.

This work supports further development of language technology for the languages of Africa by providing a Wikidata-derived resource of name lists corresponding to common entity types (person, location, and organization). While we are not the first to mine Wikidata for name lists, our approach emphasizes scalability and replicability and addresses data quality issues for languages that do not use Latin scripts. We produce lists containing approximately 1.9 million names across 28 African languages. We describe the data, the process used to produce it, and its limitations, and provide the software and data for public use. Finally, we discuss the ethical considerations of producing this resource and others of its kind.
Direct Measurements of Ion Density and Conductivity in the D-region

Certain low altitude atmospheric electricity techniques can in principle be extended to higher altitudes. An ion collector adapted for rocket determination of ionic density, conductivity and mobility in the D-region is described. Previous results point out the importance in general of dust in providing a recombination surface for ions and electrons.
Examining Shaken Baby Syndrome Convictions in Light of New Medical Scientific Research

This is the text of a talk given by Keith Findley as part of the Integris Law & Medicine Lecture Series at Oklahoma City University School of Law on September 27, 2011, with commentary by Dr. Patrick Barnes, Professor David Moran, and Professor Carrie Sperling. The talks address controversies that have arisen in the past ten or twelve years over the diagnosis Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) (now known also more expansively as Abusive Head Trauma (AHT)) and prosecution of individuals based on the hypothesis that the child was injured or died after an adult caregiver violently shook the child. The talks examine the science-dependent nature of prosecutions (or child removal actions) based on the shaking hypothesis, as well as emerging controversies from new medical research about whether shaking can cause such injuries and death, at least without causing extensive neck and cervical spine injuries; whether the indicators previously attributed almost exclusively to shaking -- such as subdural hematomas and retinal hemorrhages -- are indeed diagnostic of abuse; whether other causes, both natural and accidental, can mimic abuse and lead medical professionals astray; and whether the onset of clear neurological impairment can reliably be timed to the infliction of injuries so that the medical science can be used to identity the perpetrator (assuming there was one). This talk examines how the legal system is being called upon to re-examine SBS convictions in light of this evolving medical science.
Social services and telecommunications

Abstract This article presents an analysis of the current state of adoption of telecommunications technologies by organizations and individuals who work in human services. It examines the barriers to use of innovations and suggests the future course of acceptance for the different technologies. Radio and telephone appear to have the fewest barriers to adoption, and it is likely that as consumers become more accustomed to advanced technologies in their homes, they will be more likely to accept them in the workplace.
Catheter conversion of classic glenn to bidirectional glenn with closure of left central shunt years after surgical attempts

Bidirectional Glenn shunt is usually performed in patients with single ventricle in preparation for a total cavo-pulmonary connection. We present a patient born with complex congenital heart disease consisting of single ventricle, pulmonary atresia, non confluent pulmonary arteries, and anomalous pulmonary venous return in whom surgical bidirectional Glenn was attempted. After multiple surgical attempts she was converted to a Classic Glenn and a central ascending aorta to left pulmonary artery shunt. Several years later by the aid of radiofrequency wire the occluded pulmonary artery segment was canalized establishing continuity between the two pulmonary artery branches with stenting of the intervening segment. The central shunt to the left pulmonary artery was subsequently embolized. Thus this patient was converted in the catheterization laboratory from the physiology of a classic Glenn to the more preferred bidirectional Glenn physiology. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Measurement of steady-state, space-dependent, thermal-neutron spectra in beryllium assemblies with strong transverse leakage

Thermal-neutron energy spectra have been measured as a function of transverse buckling and of space position along the longitudinal axes of 25.4- x 25.4- and 35.6- x 35.6-cm beryllium assemblies by the slow-chopper, time-of- flight technique using the thermal column of the Georgia Tech Research Reactor as the steady- state neutron source. For neutrons moving in the (forward) positive Z direction, no evidence was found of the establishment of, or the tendency toward, discrete asymptotic decay conditions from the strongly space-dependent spectra in either assembly. This is a direct experimental verification of the disappearance of the discrete set of eigenvalues and eigenfunctions in the diffusionlength problem with transverse leakage. These results are in at least qualitative agreement with the transport theory predictions of Williams, but in disagreement with the diffusion theory results of Ahmed, Kothari, and Kumar which predict that a true discrete mode should exist in beryllium assemblies as small as 30 x 30 cm. (auth)
Eco-iconic skyscrapers: review of new design approaches

A plethora of contemporary tall building designs appear to lack genuine architecture for they employ eccentric forms to compete for attention and they poorly respond to their specific environment and the climate (Gang, 2008). However, this paper examines the emergence of a notable type of tall buildings, described as eco-iconic, which depart from purely image-driven structures, and emphasises functionality and energy efficiency – designated here as iconic. The paper reviews a number of green skyscrapers from various parts of the world. Findings suggest that a dynamic synergy among innovative green design strategies, new architectural languages and exciting aesthetics has constituted a trend that is more likely to prevail in the 21st Century.
The role of cerebrovascular disease when there is concomitant Alzheimer disease

Cerebrovascular Pathologies (CVP) are the most common co-existent pathologies observed in conjunction with Alzheimer disease. CVP rarely exists in isolation in later life, and CVP most likely plays a supporting role, rather than a sole leading role, in the pathogenesis of dementia. Our goal is to illustrate CVP's role using neuroimaging biomarkers. First, we discuss the frequency of CVP and present data from population-based Mayo Clinic Study of Aging. Here, we used a novel metric for identifying individuals with cerebrovascular imaging abnormalities (that we designate as "V+") and present the frequency of V-/V+ in the context of absence and presence of β-amyloid elevation (designated A-/A+). Next, we discuss the contribution of CVP to neurodegeneration and use hippocampal volume loss over time in a subset of participants categorized as A-V-, A-V+, A+V-, A+V+. Lastly, we discuss the contribution of CVP to cognitive impairment and conclude with the considerations for design of future studies. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Vascular Contributions to Cognitive Impairment and Dementia edited by M. Paul Murphy, Roderick A. Corriveau and Donna M. Wilcock.
Practical Politics and Voice and Equality

both to reconstruction for post-hoc plausibility and to inflation for social desirability, but they point out that the response patterns vary by forms of participation in ways which make it unlikely that social desirability accounts for the entire phenomenon. They also forgo describing civic motivations as "expressive," probably having picked up from the philosophical literature the point that motivations deriving from duty are conceptually distinct from, even opposed to, motivations deriving from desire. In the adversarial model of democracy, the relevant normative rule is that conflicting interests should be represented in proportion to the numbers of interestbearers in the population. VSB advance both normative theory and empirical knowledge in this tradition by considering in depth for the first time the role of citizen as representative, and by demonstrating to devastating effect that both descriptively and substantively the existing participatory system in the United States results in major representational distortions.
Public Budget Choices and Private Willingness to Pay

Efficient allocation of public funds depends upon good information about citizens' values. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how citizens' values can be obtained by eliciting marginal willingness to tradeoff (MWTTO) ratios for public spending categories and linking these ratios to individual, private willingness to pay. The link enables estimation of the willingness to pay for an expansion to any of the budget categories based on the elicited willingness to pay and the marginal willingness to tradeoff ratios. Tradeoff ratios and willingness to pay are estimated for public budget categories in Kentucky based on a representative sample surveyed by mail and the web in 2007. Estimates show that individuals are willing to pay the most for an expansion to educational services, followed by health care.
Resonance Raman evidence for an exchangeable protein hydrogen associated with the heme a group of cytochrome oxidase.

Abstract When cytochrome-c oxidase is soaked in D2O, downshifts of the cytochrome a formyl CO stretching mode are seen in the resonance Raman (RR) spectra (413.1 nm excitation) of both the resting and reduced forms. Other changes observed in the reduced protein RR spectra are consistent with involvement of the cytochrome a formyl group in the deuterium effect. The D2O-induced RR changes are fully developed during 3–5 days incubation, but are incomplete after 1 h. Extraction of the heme a chromophore in deuterated solvents eliminates these changes, implying that the exchangeable proton is on a protein group in the cytochrome a pocket which H-bonds to the heme formyl. The rate of the D2O exchange process is unaffected by enzyme turnover, thus reducing the likelihood that the cytochrome a formyl H-bond is directly involved in the redox-linked mechanism of proton pumping.
Electromagnetic plane wave solutions in general relativity

Abstract The problem of Rainich for null fields is examined, and it is found that for particular geometries the electromagnetic field is not unique. In the special case where the propagation and polarization vectors are harmonic, the geometry admits an electromagnetic potential which excludes the existence of magnetic monopoles. An explicit solution for a null electromagnetic plane wave of arbitrary pulse shape is obtained. It is found that there is generated no gravitational field external to the pulse.
A multi-scale and adaptive Track-Before-Detect technique for maritime environments

Track-Before-Detect (TBD) is a detection technique that simultaneously tracks and detects a target. The technique is specially useful for targets whose back-scattered return is significantly lower than the surrounding noise and background environments. Different algorithms proposed to perform TBD include particle filter, dynamic programming and Hough transform algorithms have been proposed. These techniques work well in a highly noise environment with constant velocity targets. However, some of these techniques are not applicable to targets that have acceleration as well as targets embedded in sea clutter. In this paper, we present a beamlet track-before-detect technique for maritime detection. Due to the sea clutter, two different adaptive sea clutter filtering methods are applied before the aforementioned TBD technique. Overall, the paper introduces and studies a beamlet TBD technique for maneuverable maritime targets in sea clutter.
Fluorocinematographic and Manometric Studies of Esophageal Motility in Patients with Achalasia

Achalasia is a neuromuscular disorder of the esophagus with typical motility, X ray, and intraluminal pressure patterns. In the past, diagnostic and therapeutic procedures in this disease involved the use of fluoroscopy and ``spot'' filming. With the introduction of fluorocinematography (General Electric TV-X), it has become feasible to perform prolonged studies and more accurate therapy with simultaneous filming of all these events. The motor phenomena could then be studied in detail with frame by frame analysis of the film. At the same time the radiation hazard to the patient and the observer has been greatly reduced. Although at the moment certain technical problems have tended to limit the usefulness of this procedure to the esophagus and adjacent structures, it is felt that the entire gastrointestinal tract will ultimately be amenable to such detailed methods of study.
Specification of glancing-incidence mirrors in terms of system performance

ABSTRACT have deve1op1 an sinpie analytic method of predicting t performance ofglancing-incidence mirrors from laboratory measurements of tfr surface profiles and,conversely, of specifying mirror quality in terms of practical performance requirements. call it the five-factor forrrula . This paper outlines its crivation and properties. 1. CAI4ICAL PIBIfl4 TI present ork is motivated by t need for a sin1e, unified methx of relating laborathry measurements of the profiles of synchrotron-radiation mirrors to theirfurxtional performance.To this end have examird the canonical problem of the image formation by asinle curve:1 mirror with shape errors • We first calculate the t-dimensional far-field intensity distribution of a point sxirce using Fresnel-Kircb1ff diffraction theory;integrate it over the illumination function, the rio-vanishing sxirce size, and a longthin detector aperture; and finally, average that deterministic result over thetopographic finish and figure errors of the mirror surface, taken to be independentstatio4ary random variables.The result is a concise expression for measured image-plane intensity distributionin the form of a ore-dimensional Fcrier transform of the product of five factors ,
Diarrhea Among Residents of Long-Term Care Facilities

Both sporadic cases of diarrhea and outbreaks of infectious gastroenteritis occur commonly in long-term care facilities. There are no national statistics on the prevalence or incidence of diarrhea among residents of nursing homes, but recent studies from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have described the increased morbidity and mortality associated with gastrointestinal illnesses among the elderly. Although deaths related to diarrheal illnesses have long been considered a problem of infants and young children in the developed world, 51% of the 28,538 diarrhea-related deaths in the United States from 1979 through 1987 occurred in adults older than 74 years, and 27% occurred in adults between 55 and 74 years old. In contrast, only 11% of these deaths occurred in children <5 years old (ie, the vast majority of deaths occurred in older Americans rather than in children). For both the very young and the very old, there were winter peaks in the mortality rates consistent with the presumption that infectious illnesses led to death, and one of the major risk factors for dying from diarrhea was being a resident of a nursing home. In a subsequent study in which 87,181 hospitalizations were analyzed, 85% of 514 diarrhea-related deaths occurred in adults over 65 years old. The odds ratio of dying during a hospitalization involving gastroenteritis was 52.6 (CI95, 37.0 to 76.9) for adults ≥70 years old as compared with children <5 years old.
Structure and heat capacity of Ne and Xe adsorbed on a bundle of carbon nanotubes from Monte Carlo calculations

The structural and thermal properties of Ne and Xe gases adsorbed on the outer surface of a large nanotube bundle have been evaluated with computer simulation. The potential energy model and numerical techniques were used previously to study Ar [N. M. Urban, S. M. Gatica, M. W. Cole, and J. L. Riccardo, ``Correlation functions and thermal properties of Ar adsorbed on the external surface of a bundle of carbon nanotubes'', Phys. Rev. B 71, 245410 (2005)]. Heat capacity results for Ne and Xe exhibit peaks associated with reordering and ``stripe'' melting transitions for these gases.
Understanding and Treating Sexual Offenders

At the earliest stages of development of psychological theories of crime, a belief existed that each crime of violence was associated with a particular personality type or behavioural abnormality. The existence of the violent crime itself was considered prima facie evidence that a pattern of abnormality was present. Examination of contemporary writings and studies reveal that this search has been discarded and that few scholars believe that the rapist represents a single psychopathological type. Pacht (1976) has asserted that it is a myth that all rapists have similar characteristics; they are not the “. oversexed, stupid, animalistic monsters portrayed in the literature” (p. 91). What they are, however, is more difficult to ascertain than what they are not.
Crisis Management And Civil Unrest: Seeing The La Riots Through An Industrial Lens

Pearson, C. and Kirby, M., 1993, Crisis management and civil unrest: seeing the LA riots through an industrial lens, Industrial & Environmental Crisis Quarterly, 7:4, 262-278.This article describes an industrial perspective of the effects of and respons es to the Los Angeles riots of 1992. Using a time phase model, this study examines the efforts made by businesses to detect early warning signals, pre pare for the riots, contain damages, and resume operations. In addition, the authors identify lessons that businesses can apply to prepare for civil unrest.
High resolution imaging of barium ions and atoms near the sampling cone of an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer

Planar laser-induced fluorescence was used to map density distributions of ground state barium atoms, ground state barium ions, and excited-state barium ions in the region between the load coil and the sampling cone of an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer. The effects of power, nebulizer gas flow rate, and the addition of lithium to the sample on the distributions were studied. The maps reveal that the radial distributions of atomic species across the diameter of the plasma are compressed as the plasma is drawn into the sampling orifice, and that as a result of that compression, the distribution of ions across the 1-mm diameter of the sampling orifice is non-uniform. The distribution changes as conditions in the plasma change. The skimmer cone that separates the first and second stages of the differentially-pumped vacuum interface transmits ions exclusively from the center of the distribution that exists at the sampling cone. As a result, the overall efficiency with which ions are transmitted through the vacuum interface varies as conditions in the plasma change.
Obesity in Children: Recent Advances in Energy Metabolism and Body Composition

In this paper we review recent advances in energy metabolism and body composition studies in pre-pubescent children and the relationship to childhood obesity. Our review on energy expenditure focusses on studies of total energy expenditure using doubly labeled water, the role of energy expenditure in the development of obesity, and the determinants of resting energy expenditure in children. The relatively few studies that have examined the regulation of energy and macronutrient intake in children are also reviewed. In terms of body composition, we focus on recent methodological studies that have developed existing techniques for application to the pediatric population, including dual energy X-ray absorptiometry and bioelectrical resistance. Lastly, we review existing information relating to measurement and alteration of body fat distribution in children.
Strategy choice and strategy discovery

Abstract This article summarizes a number of recent findings and ideas concerning how children choose among existing strategies and how they discover new ones. Across a wide range of domains, individual children use diverse strategies. In all of these domains, they choose adaptively among the alternative approaches. Consistent individual differences are present within the strategy choices of both middle and lower class populations, and these predict performance on standardized achievement tests. The ideas about strategy choices have been formalized within running computer simulations that produce performance much like children's both in terms of performance at any one time and in terms of changes over time. The article concludes with a description of recent work on how children discover new strategies and with a discussion of the relation of the present perspective on cognitive development to that embodied in traditional Piagetian and neo-Piagetian theories.
Community-Based Screening Interventions for Colorectal Cancer

Abstract This review examines issues related to population-based colorectal cancer screening and strategies to increase screening levels for all clients, particularly the elderly. Because cancer survival is inversely related to the stage of cancer at the time of detection and the costs of screening are less than the costs of treatment, screening levels are used increasingly as a measure of high-quality health care. Patients in acute and primary care settings underestimate their risk and overestimate their screening; providers also overestimate the level of screening in their patients. Strategies to increase patients' completion of screening include speaking directly with patients in the office, making follow-up telephone calls, and using behavioral health education strategies. Provider issues that may act as barriers to the completion of screenings also are discussed. Special concerns related to diverse populations (including immigrants) include issues regarding language and dialect, the appropriate use o...
DRUG METABOLISM IN PEDIATRIC LIVER TRANSPLANTATION 199

Introduction: Little is known about drug metabolism in pediatric liver transplantation (TX). Antipyrine(AP) is metabolized by multiple P450(CYP) enzymes and caffeine (CAF) is predominantly metabolized by CYP1A2. We hypothesize that AP and CAF half-lives (t 1/2) will normalize over time in liver Tx patients. Methods: Five liver Tx patients and 4 non-liver Tx patients (heart, kidney and 2 small bowel) are included in this study. AP(18mg/kg) and CAF (2.5mg/kg) were administered preTx and on days 3, 7 and 30 post Tx when possible. The t 1/2 of AP and CAF and the Pugh score was determined on each day. AP and CAF concentrations were determined by HPLC. Results: Day 3 AP and CAF t 1/2 were similar in liver Tx (AP 12.5+/- 9.81 CAF 7.20 +/- 4.24 and non liver Tx (AP 12.21=/-2.88, CAF 7.4 +/- 2.90) (Normal AP 8 +/- 2, CAF 4.1 +/- 2.0). Two of 5 liver Tx patients had elevated AP and CAF t 1/2 at 3 days (see graphs). One child (ischemic split liver) showed an increase in AP and CAF t 1/2 at 7 days with no change in Pugh score. The other child continued to have increased AP t 1/2 at 30 days. One child enrolled preTx showed marked decrease in AP CAF t 1/2 post Tx. Conclusions: This preliminary data indicates that drug metabolism can return to normal by day 3 post Tx. However, in certain patients metabolism may remain impaired, indicating that strict monitoring of drug dosing is warranted. NIH Grant #DK34475 Figure
Thermal stability of the human body under environmental air conditions

The term “thermal stability of the human body” is introduced by an analogy with the stability of the stationary state of an irreversible thermodynamics system. The measure of stability of the human body thermal state, evaporative resistance parameter h−1e, hPa. (W.m−2)−1, is applied. The parameter expresses a deviation (in hPa) in the human body thermal state caused by the change with 1 W.m−2 of intensity in affecting heat flows. Estimates of the dynamics of the parameter h−1e are used to determine the body’s thermal stability with relation to the change in environmental thermal parameters and altitude. The human body thermal comfort stability is also discussed.
Putting behavior back into feeding behavior: A tribute to George Collier ☆

In an attempt to explain my failure to find any correlation between meal size and intermeal intervals in free-feeding rats, George Collier, my mentor, suggested that perhaps eating behavior had strong extra-physiological determinants, a heretical idea that had an enormous impact on my subsequent research. After moving to Cornell University, my students and I began a series of studies, first with animals, then with humans, all of which supported George's idea. We observed that, under our test conditions, humans (a) do not respond to overfeeding by reducing their food intake, (b) do not change the amount they consume at meals when snacks or breakfasts are added or subtracted from their daily intake, (c) do not change the amount they eat when the energy density of their food is changed, (d) nor do they increase their intake following a semi or total fast for 24 h. They also increase the amount they consume proportionally to the amount of food they are served, the variety of foods offered, and the number of people with whom they eat. The combination of these data with George's insightful idea, has merged into a modification of the popular Set-Point Theory of the regulation of body weight. The alternative "Settling Zone" Theory suggests that whereas biology may determine a range of body weights (adiposity) that are maintained fairly constant for long periods of time, within this "zone", the behaviors responsible for controlling energy intake and energy expenditure are influenced primarily by environmental and cognitive stimuli. The size of the "Settling Zone" is not currently known, but if it is 10% or greater, then efforts to identify and understand the environmental and cognitive stimuli that influence body weight may produce advances that will reduce our high rates of overweight and obesity.
MK-801 protects against neuronal injury induced by electrical stimulation.

Abstract The ability of MK-801, a non-competitive N -methyl- d -aspartate receptor antagonist, to protect neurons in the cerebral cortex from injury induced by prolonged electrical stimulation was assessed in cats. Platinum disc electrodes 8.0 mm in diameter and with a surface area of 0.5 cm 2 were implanted in the subdural space over the parietal cortex. Ten days after implantation of the electrodes, all animals received continuous stimulation for 7 h using charge-balanced, cathodic-first, controlled current pulses with a charge density of 20 μC/cm 2 and a charge/phase of 10 μC/phase. They received either no MK-801, or 0.33 or 5.0 mg/kg (i.v.) administered intravenously, just before the start of the stimulation. Immediately following the stimulation, the animals were perfused and the cerebral cortex examined by light microscopy at eight sites beneath the electrodes. Neuronal damage in the form of shrunken, hyperchromic neurons and perineuronal halos was present only beneath the stimulating electrodes; damage was moderate to severe in stimulated animals that had not received MK-801, slight in animals receiving 0.33 mg/kg, and none to slight in animals receiving 5.0 mg/kg. These results indicate that MK-801, in an apparently dose-dependent fashion, provides substantial but not complete protection against neuronal injury induced by prolonged electrical stimulation. Thus prolonged electrical stimulation can be added to the list of neuropathologic conditions which involve glutamate-induced excitotoxic damage via the N -methyl- d -aspartate receptor. The results also support the hypothesis of neuronal hyperactivity as a principal cause of electrically-induced injury in the central nervous system. The implications for design of protocols for functional electrical stimulation are discussed.
Notched Strength Prediction and Design of Laminated Composites Under In-Plane Loadings:

Two models based on the first-ply-failure stresses of notched and unnotched laminates are developed for the strength prediction of composite laminates containing an opening under in-plane loadings. Comparisons show that these models provide good agreement with experimental data for quasi-isotropic and orthotropic laminates containing a circular hole or a center crack. In conjunction with these models, a ranking method is applied for the laminate designs that is found reliable and very useful.
Age-related changes of myelin basic protein in mouse and human auditory nerve.

Age-related hearing loss (presbyacusis) is the most common type of hearing impairment. One of the most consistent pathological changes seen in presbyacusis is the loss of spiral ganglion neurons (SGNs). Defining the cellular and molecular basis of SGN degeneration in the human inner ear is critical to gaining a better understanding of the pathophysiology of presbyacusis. However, information on age-related cellular and molecular alterations in the human spiral ganglion remains scant, owing to the very limited availably of human specimens suitable for high resolution morphological and molecular analysis. This study aimed at defining age-related alterations in the auditory nerve in human temporal bones and determining if immunostaining for myelin basic protein (MBP) can be used as an alternative approach to electron microscopy for evaluating myelin degeneration. For comparative purposes, we evaluated ultrastructural alternations and changes in MBP immunostaining in aging CBA/CaJ mice. We then examined 13 temporal bones from 10 human donors, including 4 adults aged 38–46 years (middle-aged group) and 6 adults aged 63–91 years (older group). Similar to the mouse, intense immunostaining of MBP was present throughout the auditory nerve of the middle-aged human donors. Significant declines in MBP immunoreactivity and losses of MBP+ auditory nerve fibers were observed in the spiral ganglia of both the older human and aged mouse ears. This study demonstrates that immunostaining for MBP in combination with confocal microscopy provides a sensitive, reliable, and efficient method for assessing alterations of myelin sheaths in the auditory nerve. The results also suggest that myelin degeneration may play a critical role in the SGN loss and the subsequent decline of the auditory nerve function in presbyacusis.
Somatosensory cortical plasticity: recruiting silenced barrels by active whiskers.

A unique feature of the mammalian neocortex is its areal specification, with allocations of neural tissue to primary sensory information processing, and dispersion of this information to the association areas, and motor cortex. The locations of the primary sensory cortices are similar in all mammals and set by gradients of differential gene expression during early development of the telencephalic vesicles (Lopez-Bendito and Molnar, 2003; Ragsdale and Grove, 2001). However, these intrinsically allocated cortical areas can shift or change their properties when thalamocortical inputs or sensory stimulation and distribution of receptors in the periphery are altered (Fox, 2002; Kaas, 2002; Kaas and Catania, 2002; Kossut, 1998; Pallas, 2001; Rauschecker, 2002). This plasticity allows the neocortex to adapt to changes in the environment, to loss of function in the sensory periphery or along the subcortical pathways that bring the sensory world to the neocortex. Plastic changes occur in the adult primate cortex following disuse or peripheral injury (Buonomano and Merzenich, 1998; Garraghty and Muja, 1995; Merzenich and Sameshima, 1993; Pons et al., 1991; Wall et al., 2002). Cortical plasticity has also been reported in humans with referred phantom sensations after spinal cord injury (Mackert et al., 2003; Moore et al., 2000). While some of these effects may be attributed to changes in subcortical somatosensory pathways and reflection of these changes in the somatosensory cortex (Florence and Kaas, 1995; Kaas, 2002; Wall et al., 2002), several lines of evidence indicate that alterations in intracortical pathways play a major role in functional plasticity. Interestingly, different forms of cortical plasticity are manifested during early stages of cortical development and throughout maturity.
Surface Chemistry of Colloidal Silica and a Possible Application to Stabilize Aspirin in Solid Matrixes

The surface chemistry of colloidal silica was investigated in relation to its application as a stabilizer for a hydrolabile drug, aspirin, in tablets. Water vapor adsorption properties of the selected silicas were studied as a function of vapor pressure at 40°. Silica I, a precipitated colloidal form, exhibited a type IV adsorption isotherm, characteristic of multilayer adsorption with limited pore volume. Therefore, the Brunauer, Emmett, and Teller (BET) theory of multilayer adsorption was employed to quantify the monolayer capacity (Xm) and the specific surface area available for water vapor adsorption (Sw). The surface area and average particle diameter of I, determined by BET nitrogen adsorption, were 714.4 m2/g and 3.8 nm, respectively. Silica I, which had the greatest moisture adsorption capacity, was then evaluated for its stabilizing effects on aspirin in tablet form. Since silica increased the tablet void space in proportion to its concentration, Control (aspirin) and sample (aspirin–silica) tablets with controlled void space (held constant at 20%) were subjected to accelerated stability evaluation. In general, silica enhanced aspirin stability; a concentration of 3% offered maximum stabilization. Tablets with higher silica concentrations (up to 15%) showed poorer stability and approached the control tablets in aspirin content at the end of 120 days.
FAMILY THERAPY OUTCOME RESEARCH: POTENTIAL PITFALLS AND PROSPECTS*

This paper raises and attempts to resolve some significant and controversial issues in the design of family therapy outcome studies. First, the issue of clinical relevance is addressed. Much of psychotherapy research has little relevance for practicing clinicians; this paper discusses some partial explanations and proposes some changes in the way data are reported that would have a salutary effect. Second, inter-model comparative outcome studies are critiqued. Third, the necessary preconditions for internally valid outcome studies are delineated, along with conditions in which randomization and the use of control groups can be abandoned. Fourth, there is a discussion of a research strategy which examines the generalizability of treatment effects found in research settings to conditions which come closer to resembling clinical practice. Fifth, questions regarding the selection of therapists for family therapy outcome research are addressed, including the issue of optimal level of therapist experience, and the question of whether or not “therapists” should be treated as a randomized factor in the overall design. Finally, there is a brief discussion of outcome criteria, with a fairly clear-cut and straightforward recommendation for determining whether or not a family therapy has had a desirable effect.
Joe Breen, The Ayatollah Khomeni, and Film Censorship

For admirers of the emerging Iranian film industry under the Shah, the Islamic Revolution of February, 1979 was obviously a cause for concern if not outright pessimism. Indeed, the May issue of Var...
Emotion and autobiographical memory

Autobiographical memory encompasses our recollections of specific, personal events. In this article, we review the interactions between emotion and autobiographical memory, focusing on two broad ways in which these interactions occur. First, the emotional content of an experience can influence the way in which the event is remembered. Second, emotions and emotional goals experienced at the time of autobiographical retrieval can influence the information recalled. We discuss the behavioral manifestations of each of these types of interactions and describe the neural mechanisms that may support those interactions. We discuss how findings from the clinical literature (e.g., regarding depression) and the social psychology literature (e.g., on emotion regulation) might inform future investigations of the interplay between the emotions experienced at the time of retrieval and the memories recalled, and we present ideas for future research in this domain.
Use of Caco-2 cells and LC/MS/MS to screen a peptide combinatorial library for permeable structures.

The transepithelial transport of a synthetic peptide combinatorial library containing 375,000 individual peptides was assessed using Caco-2 cell monolayers in order to screen for permeability and deliverability. A series of 150 pools, each containing 2500 tripeptide sequences, were applied to the apical side of Caco-2 monolayers. Basolateral side samples were collected after 4 h and screened by capillary high-pressure liquid chromatography. The majority of pools showed no permeable species, due to low solubility, limited permeability and extensive metabolism. Several pools contained permeable structure, and transport proved reproducible with passage number and time. Permeable structures were identified by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS). To discriminate between isobaric structures, several tripeptides were resynthesized and tested as discrete compounds. For example, 1-2% D-Phe-D-Ala-D-Ser-OH was transported across the Caco-2 cell monolayer with a Papp value of 0.35-0.69 x 10(-6) cm/s, which is comparable with the permeability of amino acids (Leu, Papp = 0.30 x 10(-6) cm/s) and dipeptides (L-Val-L-Val, Papp = 0.18 x 10(-6) cm/s) (Lennernas, H., Palm, K., Fagerholm, U., Artursson, P., 1996. Comparison between active and passive drug transport in human intestinal epithelial (Caco-2) cells in vitro and human jejunum in vivo. Int. J. Pharm. 127, 103-107; Tamura, K., Bhatnagar, P.K., Takata, J.S., Lee, C.P., Smith, P.L., Borchardt, R.T., 1996. Metabolism, uptake, and transepithelial transport of the diastereomers of Val-Val in the human intestinal cell line Caco-2. Pharm. Res. 13, 1213-1218). These studies demonstrate the techniques used to screen combinatorial libraries for permeability across Caco-2 cells and structurally identify the resulting compounds. Such methodology can be of importance in the achievement of structure-permeability relationships, useful in the design of pharmaceutically bioavailable drugs.
Clarification of the concept of “emitted radiation”

The quantity "emitted radiation" (due to Jonns and Cunningham) is defined mathematically and its relationship to certain other quantities employed in brachytherapy dosimetry is shown.