cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
INSTITUTIONAL EFFECTIVENESS PRACTICES IN COMMUNITY COLLEGES IN THE SOUTHERN REGION

The purpose of this study was to survey associate degree‐granting institutions in the southern region to determine (a) the extent to which the components of institutional effectiveness were currently being practiced, (b) the degree of importance placed on the effectiveness components by institutional professionals, and (c) any discrepancies between reported practice and perceived importance of the components of effectiveness. The study was limited to Level I institutions accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools which include community, junior, and technical colleges, both public and private, located in eleven southern states: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. Data were gathered by administering a 40 item questionnaire, with two seven point scales for each item, to the chief executive officer, a randomly selected middle‐line administrator, and a randomly selected faculty member in each of 80 rand...
Use of ion beam analysis in metal modification by means of ion implantation

Abstract Ion implantation is being investigated as a technique for the beneficial modification of surface sensitive, life-limiting properties of metals, including resistance to corrosion, wear, and fatigue. Ion implantation can produce a graded alloy from the surface to the unchanged underlying bulk alloy so that both the surface alloy and bulk alloy can be independently optimized, and the technique promises the ability to produce unique metastable surface alloys. With typical implantation energies in the range of 10–200 keV, implantation depths are less a few hundred nanometers. These implantation depths are well suited for study by means of ion beam analysis techniques. This paper reviews examples of mechanical and corrosion property changes induced by ion implantation and describes in each case how ion beam surface layer analysis provided information useful to the present understanding of the effects observed.
The effect of bleaching and backgrounds on pupil size.

Abstract Measurements of pupil size and retinal rhodopsin in the dark after a full bleach confirm the suggestion of Alpern and Campbell that pupil dia. is linearly related to the fraction of unregenerated rhodopsin. This provides a transform [equation (1)] which can be used in conjunction with current ideas of visual adaptation to infer the pupil diameter at any luminance level ( log I ≤ 5.0 scotopic td) in equilibrium viewing in a uniformly illuminated ganzfeld. Experimental determinations of such values on three normal subjects are in reasonable accord with expectation.
Temporally and spatially restricted expression of the helix-loop-helix transcriptional regulator Id1 during avian embryogenesis.

We isolated the chick orthologue of the Id1 helix–loop–helix gene and analyzed its expression pattern during early chick embryo development by whole-mount in situ hybridization. The Id1 expression pattern is dynamic and confined to discrete locations including the neural plate border, prospective olfactory placode, hindbrain, mesenchyme of distal branchial arches and adjacent to placodes, and the distal mesoderm of the limb buds.
Estimation of stress-strength reliability based on tail-modelling

In probabilistic design it is common to use parametric statistical models to calculate the probability of failure (Pf) obtained from stress-strength interference theory. In this respect, it is well known that Pf is sensitive to the shape of the upper and lower tails of the stress and strength distributions respectively and also to their interference. If the true shapes of these tails could be discovered, it would be possible to improve the existing techniques. However, in practice there is seldom sufficient real data available to establish these tails with statistical significance. Moreover, often one or both variables are expensive to sample. Thus a separate tail estimation may not always be possible. Motivated to define a theoretical safety factor, the author presents a method here which provides a general solution to the problem by considering the tail estimation for a sample of increased sized. This is obtained by a reformulation of the problem in terms of excesses over a threshold, and by breaking the analysis into two parts; estimation of the number of exceedances and modelling the excesses. The analysis is carried out by non-parametric estimation of the former and parametric modelling of the latter based on data from the critical region.
Effectiveness factor calculations for immobilized enzyme catalysts

The steady state, nonlinear diffusion equations which describe reactions in constrained enzyme solutions are of great interest in many biological and engineering applications. As in other types of nonlinear differential equations, exact analytical solutions do not exist except in some simplified cases. In this paper, a general procedure is presented for solving numerically for the substrate concentration profile and effectiveness factor utilizing the transformation method suggested by Na and Na. Design correlations for enzyme solutions constrained within spherical membranes are included. The use of a unique definition of the Thiele Modulus in these charts permits the clear illustration of the effects of substrate concentration and external mass transfer resistances on the overall effectiveness factor for the catalyst particle.
REIT Dividend Determinants: Excess Dividends and Capital Markets

∗∗∗ The determinants of excess dividend payments above mandatory requirements in real estate investment trusts (REITs) are evaluated. Payment of excess dividends is related to factors associated with reduced agency costs, strong operating performance, the implementation of a stock repurchase plan and an ability to access short-term bank debt. Recognizing that access to external capital is essential for long-term growth, REITs manage dividend policy to allow for capital acquisition in the form of both equity and debt. The acquisition and use of short-term bank debt provides REIT management flexibility in determining dividend policy. A number of studies have focused on the determinants of real estate investment trust (REIT) dividend policy (Wang, Erickson and Gau 1993, Bradley, Capozza and Seguin 1998, Ghosh and Sirmans 2006) as regulatory constraints imposed on REITs allowing them preferable tax status require the payment of dividends. The existing published studies on REIT dividends, however, do not differentiate between the mandatory and nonmandatory components of REIT common dividends. Dividend payment and policy analysis should explicitly recognize that dividend payments to REIT common shareholders can be decomposed into two components. The first component of the dividend payment is the mandatory payment required to retain the tax-preferenced REIT regulatory status. The second component of the dividend payment is an additional or excess payment over and above the minimal statutorily driven payment. It is this excess payment that is of most interest as it is not driven by mandatory requirements, but is instead the component of the dividend payment that is directly attributable to management decisions and a firm’s operating performance. Contemporaneous REIT research focused on capital formation shows the considerable limitations REITs have in generating sufficient internal cash flow to substantially increase assets under management. REITs employing a growth strategy are dependent on the capital markets for short-term bank debt,
Community Science, Philosophy of Science, and the Practice of Research

Embedded in community science are implicit theories on the nature of reality (ontology), the justification of knowledge claims (epistemology), and how knowledge is constructed (methodology). These implicit theories influence the conceptualization and practice of research, and open up or constrain its possibilities. The purpose of this paper is to make some of these theories explicit, trace their intellectual history, and propose a shift in the way research in the social and behavioral sciences, and community science in particular, is conceptualized and practiced. After describing the influence and decline of logical empiricism, the underlying philosophical framework for science for the past century, I summarize contemporary views in the philosophy of science that are alternatives to logical empiricism. These include contextualism, normative naturalism, and scientific realism, and propose that a modified version of contextualism, known as perspectivism, affords the philosophical framework for an emerging community science. I then discuss the implications of perspectivism for community science in the form of four propositions to guide the practice of research.
Stability of geotextile-retained earth railroad embankments

Abstract Application of geotextiles to retain railroad embankments is relatively new. Presented is a methodology for stability analysis of such a structure. The analysis accounts for surcharge load and it satisfies all global equilibrium requirements. It is based on variational limit equilibrium and although the basic formulation is involved, a closed-form solution is derived. Consequently a complete investigation of the solution behaviour is conducted. Comparison of the analysis prediction with limited experimental work exhibits good agreement. The end products of this work are stability design charts.
Using game days to teach a multiagent system class

Multiagent systems is an attractive problem solving approach that is becoming ever more feasible and popular in today's world. It combines artificial intelligence (AI) and distributed problem solving to allow designers (programmers and engineers alike) to solve problems otherwise deemed awkward in traditional approaches that are less flexible and centralized. In the Fall semester of 2002, I introduced a new game-based technique to my Multiagent Systems class. The class was aimed for seniors (with special permission) and graduate students in Computer Science, covering some breadth and depth of issues in multiagent systems. One of the requirements was participation in four Game Days. On each Game Day, student teams competed against each other in games related to issues such as auction, task allocation, coalition formation, and negotiation. This article documents my designs of and lessons learned from these Game Days. The Game Days were very successful. Through role-playing, the students were motivated and learned about multiagent systems.
The structure of the rectal pads of Periplaneta americana L. With regard to fluid transport

The rectum of Periplaneta americana L. is lined with cuticle and has six radially arranged cushion-shaped thickenings, the rectal pads, composed of columnar cells. Narrow strips of simple rectal cells lie between the pads. Tall junctional cells form a thin but continuous collar around the pads where they join the rectal cells. The epithelium is surrounded by a layer composed of circular and longitudinal muscles and connective tissue. This layer of muscle and connective tissue is innervated and tracheated, and is separated from the pad surface by a subepithelial sinus. Fluid flowing through the sinus enters the haemolymph through openings in the muscle layer whre large tracheae penetrate. These openings can be sealed by muscle contractions that appress the muscle around the openings against the pad surface. The tracheae pass on into the pads, following basement membrne-lined indentations of the pad surface. Within the pad tracheolar cells send fine branches between the cells. Near the apical and basal surfaces the lateral membranes of pad cells are bridged by septate desmosomes that form a continuous band around the cells. Between apical and basal septate desmosomes is an interconnected labyrinthine system of intercellular spaces. There are three kinds of space, dilations and apical sinuses, both of variable size, and narrow communicating channels about 200 A wide. The membranes of the latter have mitochondria closely associated with them. Continuity between the system of spaces and the subepithelial sinus is established by the basement membrane-lined invaginations of the basal surface where tracheae penetrate between pad cells. Apical surfaces of the pad cells are highly infolded and are also associated with mitochondria. However, unlike the lateral membranes facing the narrow channels, the apical membranes have a cytoplasmic coating of particles. Both associations of mitochondria with membranes constitute discrete structural entities that are found in many transporting epithelia, and we have termed them “plasmalemma-mitochondrial complexes.” As the rectal pads are organized into systems of spaces that ultimately open in the direction of fluid movement, existing models of solute-coupled water transport can be applied. However, the rectal pads are structurally more complex than fluid-transporting tissues of vertebrates. This complexity may be related to the ability of the rectum to withdraw water from ion-free solutions in the lumen. We present a structural model involving solute recycling to explain the physiological characteristics of rectal reabsorption.
Pituitary-Adrenocortical Response to Stress in the Neonatal Rat

Exposure of 2-day-old rats to ether resulted in a small but reliable increment in the corticosterone content of their plasma taken 30 min after the exposure. This increment was greater than the increment due to a handling or heat-stress procedure, and was completely prevented if the animal was pretreated with dexamethasone. Eight-day-old rats also showed an ether-induced, dexamethasone-preventable increment in plasma corticosterone. {Endocri- nology 89: 1126, 1971)
Rheological behavior of progressively shear-thickening solutions

The rheological behavior of the recently developed polymer FM-9 in Jet A fuel and JP 8 fuel is reported. In aqueous solution, FM 9 is found to exhibit strong time-dependent shear thickening behavior. Induction time necessary for the onset of thickening is found to depend on shear rate, solvent, concentration, and molecular weight. Altering the nature of the solvent results in effects similar to those obtained by changing the concentration or molecular weight. A critical shear rate is derived, and is inversely proportional to the zero shear rate viscosity of the solution for the temperature and concentrations observed. The onset of shear thickening behavior appears to be related to the onset of viscoelastic response, and thus the time scale follows reduced variable behavior.
Study on Activity Prediction of Slag in Material Engineering with Software Analysis Based on GA-BPNN

Genetic algorithm-back propagation neural network (GA-BPNN) was used for activity prediction of slag, then activity prediction software of slag was developed by Matrix Laboratory (Matlab) and Microsoft visual C++ (VC++), and activity database of slag was established. The software is simple operation and activity of slag can be predicted accurately, almost activity of slag in the condition of different temperature and composition of slag system can be predicted. The plenty of activity data was collected by the database of software, therefore, more accurate activity data for thermodynamic and dynamics calculation of metallurgist were provided by software. The software lays a good foundation for producing more advanced steel materials.
Deletion mutagenesis of rat PC12 tyrosine hydroxylase regulatory and catalytic domains.

The functional organization of rat tyrosine hydroxylase was investigated by deletion mutagenesis of the regulatory and catalytic domains. A series of tyrosine hydroxylase cDNA deletion mutants were amplified by PCR, cloned into the pET3C prokaryotic expression vector, and the mutant proteins were partially purified fromE. coli. The results show that the deletion of up to 157 N-terminal amino acids activated the enzyme, but further deletion to position 184 completely destroyed catalytic activity. On the carboxyl end, the removal of 43 amino acids decreased but did not eliminate activity, suggesting that this region may play a different role in the regulation of the enzyme. These findings place the amino end of the catalytic domain between residues 158 and 184 and the carboxyl end at or prior to position 455. Deletions within the first 157 amino acids in the N-terminus caused an increase in hydroxylating activity, a decrease in the apparentK m for tyrosine and phenylalanine substrates, and a substantial increase in theK i for dopamine inhibition. The results define this region of the N-terminus as the regulatory domain of tyrosine hydroxylase, whose primary functions are to restrict the binding of amino acid substrates and to facilitate catecholamine inhibition. The results also suggest that the well-established role of the regulatory domain in restricting cofactor binding may be secondary to an increase in catecholamine binding, which in turn lowers the affinity for the cofactor. These findings provide new insight into the functional organization and mechanisms of regulation of tyrosine hydroxylase.
Robot assisted thoracoscopic resection of giant esophageal leiomyoma

INTRODUCTION Esophageal leiomyoma represents the most common benign esophageal tumor. Robot-assisted thoracoscopic surgery has provided ability to remove it successfully using a minimally invasive approach.
A new transthyretin variant (His 69) associated with vitreous amyloid in an FAP family

Direct sequencing of the TTR gene from a patient with vitreous amyloid deposits revealed heterozygosity for a previously unreported variant transthyretin gene. Both the normal T and mutant C were present at the first position of codon 69, resulting in a substitution of histidine for tyrosine at amino acid 69 of the TTR protein. This mutation can be detected by conventional RFLP analysis, since a novel Dra III restriction site is created by the mutant base. In addition, a variation of the polymerase chain reaction was used to create an alternative method of detection. The patient presented with vitreous opacities and without polyneuropathy or cardiomyopathy which are normally seen in FAP. Mutant transthyretin may be responsible for the formation of vitreous deposits in other instances where there are minimal systemic findings and no family history of disease.
An analytical solution for mass transfer in turbulent falling films with or without chemical reaction

Abstract A simple analytical solution is presented for mass transfer in an isothermal turbulent falling liquid film with or without chemical reaction. The exact solutions are compared with previous work for the cases of physical absorption and first-order reaction. New solutions are presented for a zero-order reaction, and generalized results are presented for first and pseudo n th-order reactions. The method of superposition is used to generate the first ten eigenvalues and corresponding values of the Sherwood number for several limiting situations. The analytical solution offers substantial advantages over previous finite-difference numerical solutions both in computation time and in describing the effects of operating variables.
Reduced mitochondrial manganese-superoxide dismutase activity exacerbates glutamate toxicity in cultured mouse cortical neurons.

Studies of neuronal injury and death after cerebral ischemia and various neurodegenerative diseases have increasingly focused on the interactions between mitochondrial function, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and glutamate neurotoxicity. Recent findings suggest that increased mitochondrial ROS production precedes neuronal death after glutamate treatment. It is hypothesized that under pathological conditions when mitochondrial function is compromised, extracellular glutamate may exacerbate neuronal injury. In the present study, we focus on the relationship between mitochondrial superoxide production and glutamate neurotoxicity in cultured cortical neurons with normal or reduced levels of manganese-superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) activity. Our results demonstrate that neurons with reduced MnSOD activity are significantly more sensitive to transient exposure to extracellular glutamate. The increased sensitivity of cultured cortical neurons with reduced MnSOD activity is characteristically subject only to treatment by glutamate but not to other glutamate receptor agonists, such as N-methyl-d-aspartate, kainate and quisqualate. We suggest that the reduced MnSOD activity in neurons may exacerbate glutamate neurotoxicity via a mechanism independent of receptor activation.
Peripherin Is Tyrosine‐Phosphorylated at Its Carboxyl‐Terminal Tyrosine

Abstract: Peripherin is a type III intermediate filament present in peripheral and certain CNS neurons. We report here that peripherin contains a phosphotyrosine residue and, as such, is the only identified intermediate filament protein known to be modified in this manner. Antiserum specific for phosphotyrosine recognizes peripherin present in PC12 cells (with or without nerve growth factor treatment) and in rat sciatic nerve as well as that expressed in Sf-9 cells and SW-13 cl. 2 vim− cells. The identity of peripherin as a tyrosine-phosphorylated protein in PC12 cells was confirmed by immunoprecipitation, two-dimensional isoelectric focusing/sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis gels, and phosphoamino acid analysis. Unlike serine/threonine phosphorylation, tyrosine phosphorylation of peripherin is not regulated by depolarization or nerve growth factor treatment. To identify the site of tyrosine phosphorylation, rat peripherin was mutated at several tyrosine residues and expressed in SW-13 cl. 2 vim− cells. Tyrosine phosphorylation was selectively lost only for peripherin mutants in which the carboxy-terminal tyrosine (Y474) was mutated. Indirect immunofluorescence staining indicated that both wild-type peripherin and peripherin Y474F form a filamentous network in SW-13 cl. 2 vim− cells. This indicates that tyrosine phosphorylation of the peripherin C-terminal residue is not required for assembly and leaves open the possibility that this modification serves other functions.
consensus and variation in the interpretation of religious symbolism: A Swedish example

In this study of religious symbolism among a group of Swedish Protestants, three church members are shown to attribute different meanings to certain of the group's key symbols. This raises the twofold problem of the nature of the consensus constituting the group and whether key symbols can have any uniform influence on group members' behavior when the latter hold different views about the meaning of the symbols. This analysis proposes a solution to both of these problems based on the discovery of a formal structural similarity among belief systems that are substantively different. Informants agree on the meaningfulness, if not the meaning, of key symbols. Although they see that meaningfulness as being constituted in different ways, they trace the consequences of the symbols to a similar end, that of “inner-worldly” activism [symbolic anthropology, anthropology of religion, Christian symbolism, Protestant religious groups]
On the Existence of Abelian Hadamard Difference Sets and a New Family of Difference Sets

We present a construction of Hadamard difference sets in abelian groups of order 4p4n, whose Sylowp-subgroups are elementary. By a standard composition procedure, we can now conclude that (4h2, 2h2?h,h2?h)-Hadamard difference sets exist forh= 2?13?2u2, where ?1, ?2= 0 or 1 anduis a positive integer. We then generalize the construction of Hadamard difference sets to construct a family of (4q2n(q2n? 1)/(q2?1),q2n?12(q2n? 1)/(q+ 1) + 1], (q2n?q2n?1)(q2n?1 + 1)/(q+ 1)-difference sets, whereqis an even power of an odd prime or any power of 3.
Genetic factors in pancreatitis.

A number of genetic mutations have recently been identified that appear to be important in the development of pancreatitis. Point mutations in the cationic trypsinogen gene are capable of initiating pancreatitis. These mutations also provide important insights into the pathophysiology of acute pancreatitis and into potential connections between acute and chronic pancreatitis. Mutations in the genes encoding for the pancreatic secretory trypsin inhibitor and the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator more likely work in concert with other genes and environmental factors in affecting disease susceptibility. Although the subject so far has recieved only a limited amount of study, genetic polymorphisms in a wide range of genes relating to pancreatic function and to regulation of inflammation are likely to play major roles in determining each individual’s susceptibility to developing pancreatitis, and its severity if it does develop.
Orthopedics and sports medicine.

In the literature of the past year, we continued to see the preoccupation of the orthopedic world with total joint arthroplasty and, in particular, with the problem of particulate debris and eventual loosening of prostheses. Maloney et al 1 studied 14 patients with severe pelvic osteolysis after having had an acetabular replacement without cement. The osteolysis appeared from 53 to 84 months after the index operation and, although all patients initially had good function, by the time the article was written, nine patients required re-operation. Particulate debris, primarily polyethylene, was present in all hips. The treatment of primary bone tumors seems to be becoming the province of a small number of specially trained orthopedic surgeons, a practice that seems logical because other orthopedic surgeons may not keep abreast of the remarkable advances being made in the treatment of primary bone tumors and of the newest diagnostic tests. During the past
The pathogenesis of mycoplasmal (PPLO) arthritis in rats

The pathogenesis of mycoplasmal polyarthritis in rats was investigated by cultural and morphologic procedures. Virulent Mycoplasma, injected intravenously, localized in joint structures. Synovitis appeared within several days and rapidly advanced to suppurative arthritis and periosteal new bone formation. Arthritis of interspinal articulations produced hind limb paralysis. Lesions resolved with fibrosis, ankylosis and remodeling of new bone. Histologically, mycoplasmal arthritis resembled other forms of experimental suppurative arthritis, distinguishable only by isolation of the pathogenic agent.
Faraday-effect magnetic field sensors based on substituted iron garnets

The class of ferrimagnetic materials known as substituted iron garnets display characteristics which make them suitable for applications of magnetometry requiring high sensitivity, high spatial resolution, or high speed. Diamagnetic substitution, in which specific iron ions are replaced by diamagnetic ions, reduces the saturation magnetization and increases the sensitivity. We find that the sensitivity of a composition of gallium-substituted yttrium iron garnet is six times greater than of pure yttrium iron garnet. The noise-equivalent magnetic field for a sample of this material has been measured as approximately 100 pT/THz.
Heritability of Spinal Trabecular Volumetric Bone Mineral Density Measured by QCT in the Diabetes Heart Study

The heritability of trabecular volumetric bone mineral density (BMD) determined by quantitative computed tomography (QCT) has not yet been reported. The purpose of this study was to investigate the heritability of BMD as determined by QCT and DXA in 124 women and 120 men (age 39-83 years, BMI 17-75, 84% type 2 diabetics) from 101 families (232 sibling pairs) in the Diabetes Heart Study. Volumetric BMD had a heritability (h2) estimate of 0.73 (SE = 0.15, P < 0.0001) at the lumbar spine and 0.71 (SE = 0.15, P < 0.0001) at the thoracic spine. Areal BMD heritability estimates were 0.56 for PA spine, 0.43 for total hip, 0.43 for femoral neck, 0.45 for distal radius, 0.42 for mid-radius, and 0.52 for whole body (all P < 0.01). After accounting for familial correlation using generalized estimating equations, volumetric BMD was inversely associated with age (r = -0.52, P < 0.0001) and duration of diabetes (r = -0.24, P < 0.01) and positively associated with body weight (r = 0.25, P < 0.01). In multivariate analysis, adjustment for age, sex, and race lowered the h2 estimates for volumetric BMD at the lumbar (h2 = 0.41, P < 0.01) and thoracic (h2 = 0.48, P < 0.001) spine, increased the h2 estimate for areal BMD at the mid radius (h2 = 0.58, P < 0.0001), and had little effect on the h2 estimate for areal BMD at other sites (h2 = 0.41-0.55, all P < 0.01). Additional adjustment for BMI, duration of diabetes, and physical activity had little effect on the h2 estimates for volumetric BMD or areal BMD except at the hip where they were lowered (h2 = 0.31-0.33, all P < 0.05). These data suggest that, like areal BMD, volumetric BMD is highly heritable and may be used in designing linkage studies to locate genes governing bone metabolism.
Intraflagellar Transport Particles Participate Directly in Cilium-Generated Signaling in Chlamydomonas

Primary cilia are widely used for signal transduction during development and in homeostasis and are assembled and maintained by intraflagellar transport (IFT). Here, we have dissected the role of IFT in signaling within the flagella (structural and functional counterparts of cilia) of the biflagellated green alga Chlamydomonas. Using a conditional IFT mutant enables us to deplete the IFT machinery from intact, existing flagella. We identify a cGMP-dependent protein kinase (CrPKG) within flagella as the substrate of a protein tyrosine kinase activated by flagellar adhesion during fertilization. We demonstrate that flagellar adhesion stimulates association of CrPKG with a new flagellar compartment. Moreover, formation of the compartment requires IFT, and IFT particles themselves are part of the compartment. Our results lead to a model in which the IFT machinery is required not only for assembling cilia and flagella but also for organizing a signaling pathway within the organelles during cilium-generated signaling.
A comparison of the rate of DNA synthesis in myeloblasts from peripheral blood and bone marrows of patients with acute nonlymphocytic leukemia.

Abstract Durations of S-phase ( T s ) and total cell cycle times ( T c ) were measured from the peripheral blood (PB) and bone marrow aspirates (BM) of five patients with acute nonlym-phocytic leukemia (ANLL). Intravenous bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) was used as the first label for S-phase cells and a monoclonal anti-BrdU antibody was used to detect the positive cells. Tritiated thymidine ([ 3 H]Tdr) was used as a second label in vitro , and the T s was calculated by counting the number of cells labeled either by BrdU or by [ 3 H]Tdr or by both. Our data demonstrate that the duration of S-phase in myeloblasts obtained from BM is quite similar to that of circulating leukemic cells. Finally, the most accurate assessment of percentage of myeloblasts actively engaged in DNA synthesis can be obtained only from bone marrow biopsies following in vivo labeling.
Counterion-induced translational isomerism in a bistable [2]rotaxane.

Translational isomerization can be induced by changing the anions associated with a bistable rotaxane in which the tetracationic cyclophane (blue box), cyclobis(paraquat-p-phenylene), encircles a dumbbell component containing bispyrrolotetrathiafulvalene (green) and a dioxynaphthalene (red) recognition sites. The rotaxane was isolated as both its hexafluorophosphate and tris(tetrachlorobenzenediolato)phosphate(v) (TRISPHAT-) salts. Photophysical measurements and NMR spectroscopy carried out in acetone (CD3COCD3) and acetonitrile (CD3CN) solutions reveal that the much larger TRISPHAT- anion favors predominantly the encirclement of the green site by the blue box.
An SVD-based projection method for interpolation on SE(3)

This paper develops a method for generating smooth trajectories for a moving rigid body with specified boundary conditions. Our method involves two key steps: 1) the generation of optimal trajectories in GA/sup +/ (n), a subgroup of the affine group in R/sup n/ and 2) the projection of the trajectories onto SE(3), the Lie group of rigid body displacements. The overall procedure is invariant with respect to both the local coordinates on the manifold and the choice of the inertial frame. The benefits of the method are threefold. First, it is possible to apply any of the variety of well-known efficient techniques to generate optimal curves on GA/sup +/ (n). Second, the method yields approximations to optimal solutions for general choices of Riemannian metrics on SE(3). Third, from a computational point of view, the method we propose is less expensive than traditional methods.
Management of intratonsillar abscess in children.

Background The aim of this study was to assess outcomes of medical and surgical treatment of intratonsillar abscess in children. Methods The medical charts of children with intratonsillar abscess were reviewed to obtain information on history and physical examination, imaging, management, and follow-up assessment. Results Eleven children (six male, five female; age range, 4–18 years) were identified. The common complaints included sore throat, fever, and odynophagia. Asymmetric tonsil hypertrophy was present in nine patients and erythema of tonsils in all patients. Peritonsillar fullness was present in three patients. One patient needed emergency intubation due to respiratory compromise. Computed tomography indicated unilateral intratonsillar abscess in nine patients, bilateral intratonsillar abscess in one, and unilateral phlegmon in one. Inflammatory changes were observed in the parapharyngeal space in all patients, retropharyngeal space in one, and pyriform sinus and aryepiglottic folds in two. Antibiotic treatment included clindamycin in seven patients, ampicillin/sulbactam in one, and clindamycin plus ceftriaxone in three. The patients with respiratory compromise underwent surgery prior to antibiotic treatment. Patients with isolated intratonsillar abscess or phlegmon had resolution of their symptoms with i.v. antibiotic treatment. Patients with combination of intratonsillar and peritonsillar abscess required incision and drainage of peritonsillar abscess. Conclusions Clinically stable children with intratonsillar abscess or phlegmon respond to i.v. antibiotic therapy. Surgical drainage can accomplish clinical resolution in the presence of a combination of intra- and peri-tonsillar abscess, airway compromise, or unresponsiveness to medical treatment.
A technique for conducting point pattern analysis of cluster plot stem-maps

Point pattern analysis of forest inventory stem-maps may aid interpretation and inventory estimation of forest attributes. To evaluate the techniques and benefits of conducting point pattern analysis of forest inventory stem-maps, Ripley`s K(t) was calculated for simulated tree spatial distributions and for over 600 USDA Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) plots in Minnesota andWisconsin. A new technique for calculation of Ripley`s K(t) for cluster plot stem-maps was proposed that involves the truncation and combination of clustered, circular sub-plots (0.01 ha) into one square (0.04 ha) for each inventory plot. For Poisson and uniform simulated tree spatial distributions, combined sub-plots may possess nearly the same spatial properties as the entire plot area from which they were sampled. Although sub-plots may be too small for meaningful spatial analysis, combined sub-plots may permit spatial analysis regardless of how sub-plots are combined. The step-size (t) at which stem-map point patterns were most discernible as either clustered or uniform varied by forest type. Additionally, stand disturbances may increase K(t). Although limitations exist, point pattern analysis of forest inventory stem-maps may permit refined ecological analysis of forest inventories.
Size of Residual Lymph Node Metastasis After Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Locally Advanced Breast Cancer Patients Is Prognostic

Background The prognostic significance of micrometastasis after neoadjuvant chemotherapy for locally advanced breast cancer is unknown. We examined the residual lymph node metastasis size in patients after treatment with neoadjuvant chemotherapy to determine the relevance of metastasis size on outcome.
Sandboxing Controllers for Cyber-Physical Systems

Cyber-physical systems bridge the gap between cyber components, typically written in software, and the physical world. Software written with traditional development practices, however, likely contains bugs or unintended interactions among components, which can result in uncontrolled and possibly disastrous physical-world interactions. Complete verification of cyber-physical systems, however, is often impractical due to outsourced development of software, cost, software created without formal models, or excessively large or complex models where the verification process becomes intractable. Rather than mandating complete modeling and verification, we advocate sandboxing of unverified cyber-physical system controllers by augmenting the system with a verified safety wrapper that can take control of the plant in order to avoid violations of formal safety properties. The focus of this work is an automatic method, based on reach ability and time-bounded reach ability of hybrid systems, to generate verified sandboxes. The method is shown to be both more general than previous work, and allows the trade-off of increased computation time for improved reach ability accuracy. We also present an end-to-end toolkit which performs the low-level computation to generate the sandbox source code from Simulink/State flow models of a cyber-physical system.
The Shapes and Shaping of Planetary Nebulae

One of the most striking attributes of planetary nebulae are their complex, yet highly symmetric shapes. The process (es) which shape planetaries are only beginning to be understood. It is proposed that the morphologies of most PNs can be understood within the context of the “interacting winds” wherein a fast but light wind driven by the nucleus rams into an older, slower, and more massive wind, or red giant envelope (“RGE”) ejected earlier.
Maternal serum biochemical markers in pregnancies with fetal parvovirus B19 infection

Hydrops fetalis and fetal death caused by fetal parvovirus B19 infection have been reported to be associated with elevated maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), based on a total of six cases. It has been suggested that the absence of AFP elevation may be reassuring. Maternal serum levels of the Down syndrome screening markers unconjugated oestriol and human chorionic gonadotropin in cases of fetal parvovirus infection have not been previously reported. We report four cases of hydrops fetalis and fetal death caused by fetal parvovirus infection, each with unremarkable second-trimester levels of AFP, unconjugated oestriol, and human chorionic gonadotropin.
Timing in the movement of jaws, tongue, and hyoid during feeding in the hyrax, Procavia syriacus

The anatomical structures used during mammalian feeding are morphologically linked by their connecting musculature, suggesting a predictable timing relationship among their movements. Cine-x-ray (100 frames per second) was used to record feeding behavior in four adult hyraxes (Procavia syriacus), herbivores. Movement of jaws, tongue, and hyoid bone was cyclic, and prior to the first swallow cycle, cycle duration was constant through time for all structures. Minimum gape, beginning of forward movement of the tongue and hyoid, and beginning of intrinsic tongue expansion occurred simultaneously over a large number of cycles. However, maximum gape, maximum protrusion of hyoid, and maximum forward position of the tongue happened at statistically different points in time. After the first swallow, cycle duration increased. Most of the variation in cycle duration can be explained by variation in the opening or forward phase of movement; the closing and return phases are constant in duration. These results are a quantitative description of the coordination that exists during different feeding behaviors (ingestion, intraoral transport, mastication, and swallowing) in normal, freely functioning hyraxes. The patterns of phase duration differ from some results obtained by using anesthetized animals.
Reading the Ostia Synagogue: A Reply to A. Runesson

A scholar who respects the nature of historical and archaeological evidence can hardly complain when others take his work seriously and read it carefully. So it is with gratitude that I offer this reply to Anders Runesson for his forgoing article in which my own work figures so prominently. I can honestly say that I have learned some things from it. Nor do I take undue umbrage at the clearly critical, albeit rather strident, tone. Some of it I attribute to the natural give-and-take of scholarly debate; some, to a few key misunderstandings on the part of Runesson regarding the terminology and intention in my earlier argument; and others, to the complex nature of the material under discussion. It is a matter of reading the evidence.
Using Health Care Failure Mode and Effect Analysis™: The VA National Center for Patient Safety’s Prospective Risk Analysis System

The authors describe HFMEA, a five-step process used to proactively evaluate a health care process, and provide examples of a team's forms and actions regarding prostate-specific antigen testing.
Full field imaging based instantaneous hyperspectral absolute refractive index measurement

Multispectral refractometers typically measure refractive index (RI) at discrete monochromatic wavelengths via a serial process. We report on the demonstration of a white light full-field imaging-based refractometer capable of instantaneous multispectral measurement of absolute RI of clear liquid-gel samples across the entire visible light spectrum. The broad optical bandwidth refractometer is capable of hyperspectral measurement of RI in the range 1.30-1.70 between 400 and 700 nm with a maximum error of 0.0036 units (0.24% of actual) at 414 nm for an η=1.50 sample. We present system design and calibration method details as well as results from a system validation sample.
Elimination of cost-sharing and receipt of screening for colorectal and breast cancer.

BACKGROUND The aim of the cost-sharing provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) was to reduce financial barriers for preventive services, including screening for colorectal cancer (CRC) and breast cancer (BC) among privately and Medicare-insured individuals. Whether the provision has affected CRC and BC screening prevalence is unknown. The current study investigated whether CRC and BC screening prevalence among privately and Medicare-insured adults by socioeconomic status (SES) changed before and after the ACA. METHODS Data obtained from the National Health Interview Survey pertaining to privately and Medicare-insured adults from 2008 (before the ACA) and 2013 (after the ACA) were used. There were 15,786 adults aged 50 to 75 years in the CRC screening analysis and 14,530 women aged ≥40 years in the BC screening analysis. Changes in guideline-recommended screening between 2008 and 2013 by SES were expressed as the prevalence difference (PD) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI) adjusted for demographics, insurance, income, education, body mass index, and having a usual provider. RESULTS Overall, CRC screening prevalence increased from 57.3% to 61.2% between 2008 and 2013 (P<.001). Adjusted CRC screening prevalence during the corresponding period increased in low-income (PD, 5.9; 95% CI, 1.8 to 10.2), least-educated (PD, 7.2; 95% CI, 0.9 to 13.5), and Medicare-insured (PD, 6.2; 95% CI, 1.7 to 10.7) individuals, but not in high-income, most-educated, and privately insured respondents. BC screening remained unchanged overall (70.5% in 2008 vs 70.2% in 2013) and in the low SES groups. CONCLUSIONS Increases in CRC screening prevalence between 2008 and 2013 were confined to respondents with low SES. These findings may in part reflect the ACA's removal of financial barriers. Cancer 2015;121:3272–3280. © 2015 American Cancer Society.
Pocketsphinx: A Free, Real-Time Continuous Speech Recognition System for Hand-Held Devices

The availability of real-time continuous speech recognition on mobile and embedded devices has opened up a wide range of research opportunities in human-computer interactive applications. Unfortunately, most of the work in this area to date has been confined to proprietary software, or has focused on limited domains with constrained grammars. In this paper, we present a preliminary case study on the porting and optimization of CMU Sphinx-11, a popular open source large vocabulary continuous speech recognition (LVCSR) system, to hand-held devices. The resulting system operates in an average 0.87 times real-time on a 206 MHz device, 8.03 times faster than the baseline system. To our knowledge, this is the first hand-held LVCSR system available under an open-source license
Study on Intermittent WLAN Consisting of Heterogeneous Multi-radio Devices

It is envisioned that multiple radios may be integrated into a single portable device in the near future. Such multi-radio devices may participate in multiple networks at the same time. In this paper, we consider a 802.11 WLAN network that shares a common set of multi-radio devices with another network, say CO-NETWORK, and we discuss WiMAX as one example of CONETWORK. One multi-radio device may not actively operate in WLAN when the same device is transmitting or receiving in the CO-NETWORK. As such, two networks interact with each other via shared multi-radio devices; and scheduling in CO-NETWORK may affect the performance of WLAN. In this paper, we study how the fairness/throughput of a WLAN network may be affected by the scheduling of CO-NETWORK. We further propose some scheduling optimization criteria for CO-NETWORK to minimize such impact. Simulation and analytical results are provided to support our discussions.
Ketamine does not reverse Lipopolysacharide (LPS) induced ileus

Abstract Introduction. LPS causes a gastrointestinal ileus and gastric luminal fluid accumulation. Ketamine, an antiinflammatory agent, attenuates accumulation of luminal fluid. However its effects on gastrointestinal transit during endotoxemia are unknown. The purpose of this study was to determine if the antiinflammatory properties of ketamine improve impaired gastrointestinal transit due to LPS. We hypothesized that ketamine would improve impaired GI transit caused by LPS. Methods. Rats were given ketamine (70 mg/kg ip) or saline 1 h prior to LPS (20 mg/kg, ip) or saline injection. Five hours following LPS injection, rats were gavaged with 0.1 ml of 5 mM FITC Dextran followed by 0.9 ml of saline. After 30 min rats were sacrificed; transit was determined as the mean geometric center of the FITC Dextran tracer signal; gastric fluid accumulation was determined, and gastric and ileal mucosa were harvested for analysis of iNOS as an inflammatory marker (Western immunoblot). Results are reported as mean ± SE (n ≥ 5 per group; ANOVA). Results. As shown in the table TABLE—ABSTRACT P84 . GI transit Gastric fluid Gastric iNOS Ileal iNOS Sal/Sal 6.35 ± .16 .21 ± .02 .03 ± .001 .02 ± .001 Sal/LPS 2.71 ± .34 ∗ 2.71 ± .46 ∗ .31 ± .13 ∗ .4 ± .08 ∗ Ket/Sal 6.33 ± .38 .24 ± .08 .02 ± .01 .01 ± .002 Ket/LPS 2.86 ± .28 ∗ 1.23 ± .4 ∗∗ .13 ± .02 ∗∗ .24 ± .02 ∗∗ ∗ P ∗∗ P above, ketamine did not reverse LPS-induced gastrointestinal ileus. However it did decrease LPS-induced gastric luminal fluid accumulation and blunted iNOS expression in both the stomach and the ileum. Conclusion. These data indicate that ketamine’s ability to attenuate gastric fluid accumulation is not due to improved gastric emptying. Moreover, while iNOS may play a role in LPS-induced gastric luminal fluid accumulation, it does not appear to play a significant role in the gastrointestinal ileus caused by LPS.