cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
An overview of potentially life-threatening poisonous plants in dogs and cats

Objectives: This article discusses the toxicity of the most common poisonous plants known to cause life-threatening systemic effects or death in dogs and cats as reported to the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center (APCC). Data sources: The article presents an overview of geographic distribution, toxic principle, clinical signs, clinical chemistry alterations, and treatment of intoxication as reported in the literature and based upon data retrieved from the APCC between January 2001 and December 2003. Summary: Most plant exposures in dogs or cats result in mild to moderate signs of vomiting and diarrhea while liver, kidney, central nervous system, or cardiovascular effects are rare. Some garden or household plants can cause serious systemic effects or death when a small amount of plant material has been ingested. Based on APCC records, the most frequently reported poisonous plants causing serious systemic effects include Lily (Lilium and Hemerocallis spp.), Azalea (Rhododendron spp.), Oleander (Nerium oleander), Sago palm (Cycas spp.), Castor bean (Ricinus communis), Kalanchoe (Kalanchoe spp.), and Autumn Crocus (Colchicum autumnale). Conclusion: Despite the variety of toxins present in the plants listed above, early clinical signs of toxicosis in dogs and cats can be nonspecific and can include vomiting, lethargy, anorexia, salivation, or diarrhea. Cardiac arrhythmias may be present with oleander, azalea, or kalanchoe ingestion. Evidence of liver or kidney damage (Cycas, Lilium, Hemerocallis spp., Ricinus communis) may occur 1–2 days after the exposure. Treatment consists of early decontamination and supportive care and may vary according to the type of plant involved and clinical signs present.
A qualitative comparison of smokeless powder measurements.

Measurements of the type and concentration of propellant and stabilizer additives in smokeless gunpowder are used by forensic scientists investigating the source of explosives and by military laboratories assuring the safety and efficacy of munitions. The National Institute of Standards and Technology recently assessed the state-of-the-practice of smokeless powder measurements through an international measurement comparison exercise. We here present results provided by the five participants (of 20 total) reporting quantitative as well as qualitative values for two handgun reloading powders. All five of these participants reported values for nitroglycerin (NG), ethyl centralite (EC), diphenylamine (DPA), and N-nitrosodiphenylamine (NnDPA). Several participants additionally reported the concentrations of secondary stabilizer decomposition products. The unstable NG propellant additive appears to be more susceptible to method-specific calibration biases then are the stabilizer additives. All results from one participant were strongly biased relative to those of the other four. The within-participant measurement uncertainties for all analytes were self-reported to be 1 to 5% relative; among the four concordant participants, the measurement ranges are 5 to 10% relative. There was little consistency among the participants as to what components of measurement variance were included in their uncertainty statements. A discussion of the certainties in these measurements and factors that affect the accuracy of gunpowder additive determinations is presented.
Simulation of multi UAV flight formation

This paper deals with the flight formation of multiple unmanned air vehicles in performance of task such as surveillance, reconnaissance, target attack etc. Algorithms have been developed and implemented for formation flying taking into account the static and dynamic obstacles, wind gusts that are encountered during the mission. The simulation is done for an arbitrary number of vehicles in virtual reality environment using virtual reality modeling language. Complete simulation have been done showing how the predetermined path is maintained by alleviating the deviations caused so as to avoid static and dynamic obstacle collisions, inter vehicle collisions and hence maintain formation flying.
190 fs passively mode-locked thulium fiber laser with low threshold

Summary form only given. We report a self-starting passively mode-locked thulium-doped silica fiber laser capable of 190-fs pulses. Mode-locking of the fiber laser was achieved with a band-gap-engineered saturable absorber fabricated monolithically along with the output coupler of the laser by MOCVD. Stable, single-pulse-in-the-cavity mode-locking was observed for a 2-m-long fiber laser utilizing a nanosecond response strained InGaAs detector.
Implementing Promising Practices To Prepare Quality Teacher Educators

The United States does more than just talk; it invests a lot of money in public education. While students are the major focus of concern, teachers are a mainstay in the enterprise. In 2002, the U.S. invested $192 billion in teacher pay and benefits. More than 50% of all dollars allocated by the government for education is paid in salaries for teachers, yet there is little research to guide decisions as whom to hire, retain, and promote (Rice, 2003). However, the general consensus is that under good teachers, students get a good education, and under poor teachers, students get a poor education. The difference between the two makes a world of difference. The U. S. cannot afford to trust its most valuable asset – students - to the tutelage of poor teachers. Doing so would be to run the risk of needlessly suffering from medical conditions, financial woes, and a quality of life not befitting a highly advanced nation. This manuscript provides a functional framework for the student and faculty, a review of related literature, and a detailed description of an individual effort at implementing promising practices to prepare quality teacher educators. The expectation is that information and preliminary findings that are provided will, in some way, further thinking and effort at producing effective teachers to staff our schools.
A Reduced Ratio of Dietary Carbohydrate to Protein Improves Body Composition and Blood Lipid Profiles during Weight Loss in Adult Women

Claims about the merits or risks of carbohydrate (CHO) vs. protein for weight loss diets are extensive, yet the ideal ratio of dietary carbohydrate to protein for adult health and weight management remains unknown. This study examined the efficacy of two weight loss diets with modified CHO/protein ratios to change body composition and blood lipids in adult women. Women (n = 24; 45 to 56 y old) with body mass indices >26 kg/m(2) were assigned to either a CHO Group consuming a diet with a CHO/protein ratio of 3.5 (68 g protein/d) or a Protein Group with a ratio of 1.4 (125 g protein/d). Diets were isoenergetic, providing 7100 kJ/d, and similar amounts of fat ( approximately 50 g/d). After consuming the diets for 10 wk, the CHO Group lost 6.96 +/- 1.36 kg body weight and the Protein Group lost 7.53 +/- 1.44 kg. Weight loss in the Protein Group was partitioned to a significantly higher loss of fat/lean (6.3 +/- 1.2 g/g) compared with the CHO Group (3.8 +/- 0.9). Both groups had significant reductions in serum cholesterol ( approximately 10%), whereas the Protein Group also had significant reductions in triacylglycerols (TAG) (21%) and the ratio of TAG/HDL cholesterol (23%). Women in the CHO Group had higher insulin responses to meals and postprandial hypoglycemia, whereas women in the Protein Group reported greater satiety. This study demonstrates that increasing the proportion of protein to carbohydrate in the diet of adult women has positive effects on body composition, blood lipids, glucose homeostasis and satiety during weight loss.
Hardware and software prototyping for application-specific real-time systems

Dedicated systems with hardware and software tailored for the application provide tremendous performance improvements over systems based on general-purpose hardware. The authors describe SIERA, a system being developed for rapid-prototyping of the hardware and software components of such dedicated real-time systems starting from a high-level description. Based on their experience of automated generation at the chip level which they developed with the LAGER system, they identify two distinct phases in the design process. The first is the process of mapping the high-level system specification to a set of interacting hardware and software modules. The second is the generation of these software and hardware modules. A mix of mapping, synthesis and library based techniques is being utilized to accomplish these tasks. >
Assessing the ability of cardiovascular disease risk calculators to evaluate effectiveness of trials and interventions

Many cardiovascular disease risk calculators are available to evaluate clinical trials and lifestyle interventions aimed at reducing cardiovascular disease risk. We build upon previous research on differences across existing calculators by describing 11 cardiovascular disease risk calculators and conducting simulations assessing their differences in the ability to detect changes in risk resulting from changes in input risk factors. Our results indicate that the ability to show statistically significant reductions in cardiovascular disease risk in a clinical trial or intervention may depend as much on the choice of the calculator as on the effectiveness of the intervention. Evaluators should consider this factor, along with other previously presented selection criteria, when identifying the appropriate calculator for evaluations.
Designing the workstation: an innovative concept.

In conclusion, this team emphasizes that the technology must not get in the way of the anesthesiologist having contact with the patient. The technology should function as transparently as possible.
Changes in protein and glycoprotein concentrations in human submaxillary saliva under various stimulatory conditions

Abstract The concentrations of protein and protein-bound carbohydrates in human submaxillary saliva depended on salivary flow rate and not on the specific type of gustatory stimulus. “Unstimulated” saliva had the highest concentration of protein-bound carbohydrates. Low flow rates were associated with the lowest concentrations of protein and protein-bound carbohydrates, and as flow rate was increased, there was an accompanying increase in the concentrations of these substances. The concentrations of protein-bound carbohydrates were highly variable in “unstimulated” saliva. Stimulated saliva was relatively more predictable in composition. Protein concentration averaged 122 ± 76 (S.D.) mg%; however, the change in concentration from the lowest to the highest value recorded represented an increase of 1600%. Similarly, the concentration of protein-bound carbohydrates varied as much as 450% in the case of galactose. Average concentrations (μM) for protein-bound carbohydrates were: galactose, 395 ± 235; hexosamine, 290 ± 169; sialic acid, 151 ± 83; fucose, 160 ± 108. Secretors of blood group substances had concentrations of protein-bound carbohydrates higher than non-secretors, except for sialic acid concentration which was similar for the two groups. The sialic acid/fucose ratio for secretors was 0.64 ± 0.12 and did not vary with flow rate. The ratio for non-secretors was 1.40 ± 0.35 and rose with increasing flow rate.
Administrative decentralization of municipal services: Assessing the New York City experience

New York City's Office of Neighborhood Government was created in 1971 to coordinate renewed attempts at decentralizing municipal operations. The decentralization was primarily of an administrative nature, with emphasis on expanding district (neighborhood) management. This study examined decision-making at the district level. The major focus of inquiry was the nature of decision-making responsibilities in five municipal agencies, and the degree to which district officers acted as autonomous managers before and after administrative decentralization had occurred. The results showed that major shifts in responsibilities occurred only in one management function, inter-agency communication. For other functions, such as budget and personnel allocations, priority setting, and information gathering, central headquarters retained major decision-making responsibility. The study thus casts doubt on administrative decentralization as a feasible alternative for reorganizing municipal services to increase service responsiveness to neighborhoods.
A COMPARATIVE-ANALYSIS OF THE ACTIVITY OF RETINOIC ACID AND CYCLIC-AMP IN THE INDUCTION OF DIFFERENTIATION OF EMBRYONAL CARCINOMA-CELLS

Retinoic acid (RA) and/or cAMP elevating agents have been shown to promote differentiation of embryonal carcinoma (EC) cells. In this report we examine the response of different EC cell lines to different combinations of RA and cAMP elevating reagents. The degree of differentiation was measured via mRNA levels of stage specific markers: Endo A, collagen IV and tissue plasminogen activator. We show that complete differentiation cannot be achieved with cAMP elevating agents alone. Furthermore, the results obtained with each cell line are quite distinct and the degree of differentiation differs with the type of cAMP elevating agent used and the marker examined.
Raumklimatische Planungsgrundlagen für Klassenräume

Bei der Sanierung von Schulen besteht nicht nur die Chance die Energieeffizienz der Schulgebaude zu erhohen, sondern gleichzeitig auch das Raumklima in Klassenraumen im Vergleich zur derzeitigen Situation zu verbessern. Neben einer unzureichenden Raumluftqualitat besonders wahrend der Heizperiode, sind einige Klassenraume im Winter zu kalt und zu warm im Sommer. Auch die akustischen Verhaltnisse sind in vielen Klassenraumen so, dass die Sprachverstandlichkeit beeintrachtigt ist. Nach einer Beschreibung der Anforderungen und der Analyse der derzeitigen raumklimatischen Verhaltnisse in Schulen werden Ansatze fur die Optimierung der raumklimatischen Situation bereits bei der Planung von Neubauten oder bei einer Sanierung aufgezeigt. Auch durch ein verandertes Betreiben von Schulen kann die raumklimatische Situation verbessert werden. Planning principles for indoor climate of classrooms. Retrofitting of school does not only offering the chance to improve the energy efficiency of school buildings but also to improve the indoor climate in classrooms in comparison with the current situation. Beside an insufficient indoor air quality especially during the heating period some classrooms are to cold in winter or to hot in summer. The acoustical properties of the classrooms reduce the speech intelligibility. After description of the indoor climate requirements and the analysis of the current indoor environmental conditions in school approaches to optimize the indoor climate already during planning stage of new buildings or buildings to retrofit. Also a modified behaviour when operating schools can lead to an improved indoor climate.
Ventricular Venting during Coronary Revascularization: Assessment of Benefit by Intraoperative Ventricular Function Curves

Although the physiological benefits of left ventricular venting during cardiopulmonary bypass have been documented experimentally, air embolus is still a concern clinically, and surgeons, therefore, continue to debate whether or not to vent routinely during coronary revascularization. In this study, 10 patients vented during revascularization and 10 not vented were studied immediately before and after cardiopulmonary bypass using Sarnoff ventricular function curves to assess changes in ventricular performance. Stroke work index by each patient before and after bypass was compared at common left atrial pressures and concomitant similar systemic resistances. In patients who were vented, there was overall no change in function (98 +/- 7% of control; range, 146--73%). In patients who were not vented, there was overall significant depression of function (67 +/- 5% of control; range, 91--45%, p less than 0.01). The overall absence of depression in patients who were vented, several of whom had very poor ventricles before bypass, strongly supports venting for coronary revascularization.
Morphometry of In Situ and Lavaged Pulmonary Alveolar Macrophages from Control and Ozone-Exposed Rats

Effects of ambient levels of ozone on cell size and compartments were determined morphometrically for both in situ and lavaged pulmonary alveolar macrophages from rats exposed to filtered air or to filtered air with 0.60 ppm ozone. The ozone exposure was 8 hr/day for 3 days. Significant exposure-related compartmental volume density changes of in situ centriacinar macrophages were: decreased endoplasm (p < 0.01); increased lysosome-like structures (p < 0.01); decreased primary lysosomes (p < 0.01); increased small and large secondary lysosomes (p < 0.001); and decreased phagosomeslautophagosomes (p < 0.05). In lavaged macrophages, the only significant exposurerelated change was an increase in the density of large secondary lysosomes (p < 0.01). Mean profile areas of in situ centriacinar macrophages from control and exposed rats were 86.94 μm2 and 112.04 μm2, respectively. The average mean cell volume V and mean caliper diameter D of macrophages lavaged from control rats were 1128.45 μ3 and 12.92 μm, respec...
Nab-paclitaxel in the treatment of metastatic breast cancer: A comprehensive review

The novel paclitaxel formulation (nanoparticle albumin-bound [nab] paclitaxel (Abraxane(®)) has recently been approved by the US FDA for treatment of breast cancer after failure of combination chemotherapy for metastatic disease or relapse within 6 months after adjuvant chemotherapy. Apart from its superior efficacy, as demonstrated in the pivotal Phase III study, less toxicity compared with the traditional solvent-containing paclitaxel (Taxol(®)) seems to contribute to its favorable therapeutic index. While approved as a single agent, nab-paclitaxel may prove more effective in combination with either biologic agents and/or other cytotoxic chemotherapeutic agents, as summarized in this article.
Detecting forest disturbance in the Pacific Northwest from MODIS time series using temporal segmentation

Abstract Fire, insects, and human activities are the dominant drivers of forest disturbance at the global scale. Because forests are geographically extensive and are often remote, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) is uniquely suited to monitor the state and health of forested ecosystems. However, the extent to which coarse-resolution remote sensing data can accurately capture spatial and temporal patterns of disturbance is unclear. To investigate this, we developed an 11-year time series of MODIS Normalized Burn Ratio images corresponding to peak-growing season conditions for a study area located in the Pacific Northwest of the conterminous United States. Using a temporal segmentation algorithm that was originally developed using Landsat TM and ETM data, we created annual maps of forest disturbance from these time series. We then compared these maps to a database of annual forest disturbance that was compiled using Landsat TM/ETM data for the same region. Results from this comparison revealed that about half of all pixels affected by disturbances that occupied more than 5% of a MODIS pixel were correctly identified as disturbed, including 79% of those that were affected by disturbances larger than one-third of a MODIS pixel. Our results also show that the size, severity, and timing of disturbance events, along with gridding artifacts inherent to MODIS data, interact in complex ways that influence the signature of forest disturbance events in MODIS data. These results demonstrate both the utility as well as the limitations of MODIS and other coarse spatial resolution sensors for monitoring forest disturbance at regional to global scales.
Pregnenolone and pregnenolone sulfate, alone and with ethanol, in mice on the plus-maze.

The neurosteroids pregnenolone and pregnenolone sulfate were tested for anxiogenic/anxiolytic effects in mice on the elevated plus-maze. Pregnenolone in a dose of 0.01 micrograms/kg increased motor activity and caused an anxiogenic response, i.e., a decreased number of entries onto the open arms of the plus-maze. Pregnenolone sulfate had no effect on motor activity in the doses tested but showed a biphasic response on the plus-maze: at 10.0 and 1.0 micrograms/kg pregnenolone sulfate caused an anxiogenic response but at 0.1 microgram/kg it produced an anxiolytic response. When administered with 1.5 g/kg ethanol, neither neurosteroid altered the depression in motor activity caused by ethanol. However, all doses of pregnenolone tested blocked the anxiolytic effect of ethanol on the plus-maze while one dose of pregnenolone sulfate, 1.0 microgram/kg, attenuated the response to ethanol. These results support the suggestion that these neurosteroids could play a role in the initial response to stress and indicate that further work needs to be done to determine the mechanism for the interaction with ethanol.
Segmentation of ophthalmic optical coherence tomography images using graph cuts

We describe an efficient approach for the automated segmentation of pathological/morphological structures in ophthalmic Spectral Domain Optical Coherence Tomography (SDOCT) images. In this algorithm, image pixels are treated as nodes of a graph with edge weights assigned to associate pairs of pixels. The weights vary according to the distances, brightness differences, and feature variations between pixel pairs. Cuts through the graph with minimum accumulated weights correspond to morphological layer boundaries. This approach has been applied to SDOCT images with encouraging results and thus forms an adaptable framework for the segmentation of many different ophthalmic structures.
Scaling the Physiological Effects of Exposure to Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Radiation: Consequences of Body Size

SummaryWe have demonstrated that a comparative analysis of the physiological effects of exposure of laboratory mammals to radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation (RFR) may be useful in predicting exposure thresholds for humans if the effect is assumed to be due only to heating of tissue. The threshold specific absorption rate (SAR) necessary to affect a thermoregulatory parameter shows an inverse and linear relationship to body mass. The inverse relationship between threshold SAR and body mass is attributed to a surface area: body mass relationship. In comparison to small mammals, relatively large mammals have a reduced capacity to dissipate an internal heat load passively, and are therefore physiologically more sensitive to RFR exposure. The threshold for a thermoregulatory response depends on the type of response measured, species, ambient temperature, etc. By extrapolation, it can be shown that a SAR of only 0·2–0·4 W/kg is required to promote a thermoregulatory response in a mammal with a body mass o...
Themometers and themostats: characterizing and controlling thematic attributes of information

Contents of documents can be characterized not just by subject matter or topic, but also in terms of more thematic or even stylistic attributes, such as level of detail, emotional vs. unemotional presentation, personal vs. impersonal voice, positive or negative attitude or "spin," theoretical vs. practical presentation, etc. As implied by these examples, such attributes often form continuous dimensions along which documents can be distinguished. In the best case, the appropriate place on these dimensions -- i.e., which documents will be of most value to the user at the current time -- can be determined by the user's current task, prior knowledge, etc. Does the user need more detail, or less, for example? In the current state of the art, it is difficult to compute this automatically. Instead, we propose that users should be enabled view these dimensions using themometers and to navigate them using themostats -- controls that offer users a choice of documents on the same topic, but with differing levels of detail, positive or negative spin, personal or impersonal voice, etc. The dimensions along which we can provide this kind of control must be easily computable. We have been able to characterize documents with respect to a number of these dimensions using simple statistical measures as well as specialized dictionaries, and describe these methods herein.
Relationships between phase stability and void swelling in Fe-Cr-Ni alloys during irradiation

Austenitic Fe-Cr-Ni steels are potential candidate alloys for structural materials in both fast breeder and magnetic fusion reactors. However, void swelling and phase instability during irradiation have been major problems limiting the properties and useful lifetimes of these materials and thus have been the subject of intensive investigations. Cavity nucleation in steels subjected to displacement damage is strongly influenced by the interactions between helium atoms and precipitates which are formed during irradiation. Several important mechanisms regarding gas atom-precipitate interactions and principles for the design of radiation-resistant alloys are critically examined. Central concepts derived from theory, including the critical radius and critical number of gas atoms, cavity-precipitate interactions, and relative sink strengths for point defects, are applied to the interpretation of experimental data.
California species of the Typhlodromus pini Chant species group (Mesostigmata: Phytoseiidae)

Abstract The California species of the Typhlodromus pini group are described and illustrated. Dichotomous and tabular keys are provided for identification of females. Typhlodromus columbiensis Chant is reduced to synonymy with T. citri Garman and McGregor. T. johnsoni Mahr n. sp. is described and illustrated.
Using the Domain-Specific Beliefs Questionnaire With Adolescents Enrolled in High-Poverty, High-Minority Schools: Examining Psychometric Properties

Recent interest in epistemic beliefs has given way to a proliferation of new measures. Yet, little is known about the psychometric properties of various measures when used with diverse populations. In this study, the authors explored the psychometric properties of a measure of existing epistemic beliefs, the Domain-Specific Belief Questionnaire (DSBQ; M. M. Buehl, P. A. Alexander, & P. K. Murphy, 2002), for a diverse population of students. The authors applied the DSBQ's 4-factor model, which researchers have previously identified and confirmed, to data from 8th- and 9th-grade adolescents attending high-poverty, high-minority schools. Evidence suggested that the 4-factor model was not appropriate for this population. Subsequent analyses revealed a 2-factor model for 8th-grade students and a 3-factor model for 9th-grade students. This study underscores the importance of examining the appropriateness of using existing measures with diverse populations.
Relation between typical intellectual engagement and openness: Comment on Goff and Ackerman (1992).

M. Goff and P. L. Ackerman (1992) identified a personality trait that they called «typical intellectual engagement.» Typical intellectual engagement represents a departure from the common conceptualization of intelligence as maximal performance, and a measure of the construct correlates with measures of crystallized intelligence but not with a measure of fluid intelligence. In this article, the relation between Typical Intellectual Engagement and the personality trait of Openness is examined. In analyzing the relations between Typical Intellectual Engagement and variables in the ability, personality, and achievement domains, and between Openness and variables in the ability, personality and achievement domains, I find little support for a distinction between typical intellectual engagement and openness
HIV-1 mediates rapid apoptosis of lymphocytes from human CD4 transgenic but not normal rabbits.

Abstract Normal rabbit lymphocytes can be infected with HIV-1 although infection is much less efficient than in human lymphocytes. When peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from rabbits transgenic for human CD4 (HuCD4) were exposed to HIV-1, enhanced infection and a rapid depletion of lymphocytes were observed. Cell death in the infected cultures occurred via apoptosis, but no similar effect was seen in nontransgenic rabbit PBMC cultures. Induction of apoptosis in HuCD4-expressing cells required virus replication; heat-inactivated virus or recombinant viral proteins had no effect on cell viability. Expression of the Fas antigen was increased in HIV-1-infected CD4 + rabbit lymphocytes. Characterization of the infected PBMC cultures revealed that apoptosis occurs both in HuCD4 + and HuCD4 − cells, indicating that bystander cells are killed. These data define a requirement for HuCD4 in initiation, but not the spread, of HIV-1-induced apoptosis in rabbit PBMC and provide a model to probe mechanisms leading to lymphocyte depletion in HIV-1 infection.
CORRESPONDENCE OF SALIVARY AND PLASMA CONCENTRATIONS OF ATRAZINE IN RATS UNDER VARIABLE SALIVARY FLOW RATE AND PLASMA CONCENTRATION

Abstract The stability of the saliva/plasma (SIP) concentration ratio of atrazine was determined under varying conditions of salivary flow rate and plasma concentration of atrazine in Sprague-Dawley rats. In the salivary flow study, whole saliva samples were collected at different salivary flow rates while the plasma concentration of atrazine was maintained at a steady-state level of approximately 150 μgll. In the plasma level study, whole saliva samples were collected at two steady-state plasma concentrations of atrazine (50 and 250 μgll), while salivary flow rate was maintained at a relatively constant level. In both studies, atrazine concentrations in whole saliva and arterial plasma demonstrated a consistent rela tionship, but salivary concentrations were always lower than those of arterial plasma. Linear regression analysis demonstrated that the SIP concentration ratio of atrazine was not significantly different for salivary flow rates ranging from 23 to 92 pLIminlkg body weight, and did not vary for...
Relationship violence and frequency of intoxication among low-income urban women

Using data from the Welfare, Children, and Families project (1999), a probability sample of 2,280 low-income women with children living in low-income neighborhoods in Boston, Chicago, and San Antonio, we examine the effects of relationship violence before age 18 and in the past year on frequency of adult intoxication. Results obtained from a series of ordered logistic regression models suggest that sexual coercion before age 18 and minor and severe physical assault in the past year are independently associated with greater frequency of intoxication, net of a range of sociodemographic controls. The study's limitations are noted.
Characterizations of Stable Laws Based on a Number Theoretic Result

Abstract Characterizations of stable laws are given using a certain number theoretic result in Hardy [Hardy, G. H. (1967). A First Course of Pure Mathematics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press], in conjunction with Deny's theorem [Deny, J. (1966). Sur l'equation de convolution μ = μ*σ. Semin. Theory Potent. (Ed. M. Brelot), Fac. Sci. Paris. 250:1959–1960 (4e annee.)] or the Lau-Rao theorem [Lau, K. S., Rao, C. R. (1982). Integrated Cauchy functional equation and characterizations of the exponential law. Sankhyā Ser. A 44:72–90] on integral equations. Some observations of relevance to the characterizations or the arguments employed to obtain these are also made.
Prostaglandin analogs as inhibitors of tumor cell DNA synthesis.

AbstractAnalogs of the A and E series prostaglandins were screened in vitro for their chemotherapeutic potential against Lewis lung carcinoma and B16 amelanotic melanoma cells, since in vivo studies had demonstrated that PGA1 and an analog of PGE2 inhibited tumor growth. DNA synthesis by collagenase-dispersed tumor cells was evaluated at timed intervals after exposure to the 16, 16-dimethyl analogs of PGA1, PGA2, PGE1, and PGE2. In general, the PGA derivatives were more potent than the PGE analogs. However, the maximum effect was achieved with combined PGA and PGE treatment. These findings demonstrate that A and E series prostaglandin analogs inhibit DNA synthesis in two unrelated tumor types and thus may be potent inhibitors of tumor growth. These effects were not due to tumor cell cytotoxicity. These results suggest that these compounds may prove useful as cancer chemotherapeutic agents.
Field observations of medium-sized debris from postburnout solid-fuel rocket motors

Solid-fuel rocket motors are well recognized as a source of numerous small-sized (10 micrometer or less) debris that are ejected at high velocities during the propellant burning process. Medium-sized (1 mm to 10 cm), low velocity versions of these metallic oxide or other combustion chamber debris have also been reported from static ground tests of solid-fuel motors. Field observations of a third component of the debris generated by solid-fuel rocket motor operation are presented in this paper. These are medium-sized debris that are expelled at low velocities through the rocket motor nozzles after the nominal cessation of propellant burning. These post-burnout debris, referred to as chuffing debris, may be a significant component of the orbital debris environment. Radar and optical measurements of these debris have been collected during numerous sub-orbital flight tests conducted over the past several years. The large database of such observations that has now been accumulated indicates that such post-burnout debris are a generic consequence of solid-fuel rocket motor operation. Selected portions of this database are reviewed, and a preliminary model of such medium-sized debris production is presented that is suitable for correlation with existing orbital debris observations and population models.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Some nickel(II) complexes with pentadentate and tridentate heterocyclic N- and S-donor ligands

Abstract High-spin Ni(II) complexes of the linear pentadentate ligand 2,6-bis([2′-aminophenylthio]methyl)pyridine (Batp) and the tridentate ligands ([2′-aminophenylthio]ethyl)pyridine (Atep) 1,5-bis(N-methylbenzimidazol-2′-yl)-3-oxapentane (Mbeo) have been prepared. Crystal structures of the complexes [Ni(Batp)(H2O)](CF3SO3)2 (2) and [Ni(Atep)2](ClO4)2 (4) reveal pseudooctahedral coordination. Tetragonal distortion in [Ni(Mbeo)2](ClO4)2 (5) is evident from the longer Ni–O and shorter Ni–N bond lengths. From the electronic spectrum of 5, the tetragonal distortion parameter Dt and the in-plane Dqxy and axial Dqz ligand field parameters are calculated. The three Ni(II) complexes exhibit irreversible cathodic electrochemistry.
An Evaluation of Vectorizing Compilers

Most of today's processors include vector units that have been designed to speedup single threaded programs. Although vector instructions can deliver high performance, writing vector code in assembly language or using intrinsics in high level languages is a time consuming and error-prone task. The alternative is to automate the process of vectorization by using vectorizing compilers. This paper evaluates how well compilers vectorize a synthetic benchmark consisting of 151 loops, two application from Petascale Application Collaboration Teams (PACT), and eight applications from Media Bench II. We evaluated three compilers: GCC (version 4.7.0), ICC (version 12.0) and XLC (version 11.01). Our results show that despite all the work done in vectorization in the last 40 years 45-71% of the loops in the synthetic benchmark and only a few loops from the real applications are vectorized by the compilers we evaluated.
Improved Adherence with Contingency Management

Contingency management (CM) based interventions that reinforce adherence to prescribed medications have shown promise in a variety of disadvantaged populations. Fifty-six participants with histories of illicit substance use who were prescribed antiretroviral medication but evidenced suboptimal adherence during a baseline assessment were randomly assigned to 16 weeks of weekly CM-based counseling or supportive counseling, followed by 16 additional weeks of data collection and adherence feedback to providers. The CM intervention involved review of data generated by electronic pill-bottle caps that record bottle opening (MEMS) and brief substance abuse counseling. CM participants were reinforced for MEMS-measured adherence with drawings from a bowl for prizes and bonus drawings for consecutive weeks of perfect adherence. Potential total earnings averaged $800. Mean MEMS-measured adherence to the reinforced medication increased from 61% at baseline to 76% during the 16-week treatment phase and was significant...
The Health Orientation Scale: A measure of psychological tendencies associated with health.

Health professionals have recently begun to examine the impact of psychological tendencies on people's physical health. The present investigation sought to facilitate this research endeavour through the development and validation of a self-report instrument designed to measure multiple health-related psychological tendencies. Reliability analyses provided evidence of internal consistency for the subscales of the Health Orientation Scale. Other results indicated that both gender and age jointly influenced people's responses to the Health Orientation Scale. A final set of results revealed that the psychological variables measured by the Health Orientation Scale were predictive of women's and men's self-reported compliance with health-promoting behaviours. The discussion focuses on the potential uses of the Health Orientation Scale in both research and applied settings.
An elementary solution of a variational problem of aerodynamics

The problem of Miele of finding the transversal contour of a conical body of given length and base area so as to minimize the total drag in hypersonic flow is solved here without making use of the usual tools of the calculus of variations. The solution makes use of the isoperimetric inequality, together with the usual elementary methods for determining the minimum of a function of one real variable.
Milling quality of Belle Patna rice in experimental storage: A study of the effects of field fungi on subsequent invasions by storage fungi

Abstract Storage of rough rice under constant conditions of 75 per cent r.h. and 30°C yielded no evidence to indicate that preharvest infections by Helminthosporium oryzae or other field fungi predisposed the rice to postharvest invasions by storage fungi or to more rapid deterioration in milling quality. The xerophytic fungus, Aspergillus restrictus, became the dominant species in the rice within 71 days and remained dominant through-out the 385 days of the experiment.
Modified procedure of a direct in vitro exposure system for mammalian cells to whole cigarette smoke.

Summary In vitro biological studies on cigarette smoke have usually been made using either cigarette smoke condensate – obtained by trapping the particulate phase of smoke on a filter, or soluble smoke components – obtained by trapping cigarette smoke in buffer solution. However, these approaches may not truly reflect the physical and chemical condition of freshly generated smoke. Clearly it is important to be able to evaluate the biological effects of fresh smoke on mammalian cells for a better understanding of the potential effects of smoking. The CULTEX™ technology is a new experimental system for cultivation and exposure techniques enhanced the efficiency of in vitro studies, and allows direct exposure of cells intermittently at the air/liquid interface with ultrafine particles, gases, or mixtures of both which fixedly flows. The CULTEX™ technology has therefore been modified to evaluate the biological effects of whole cigarette smoke in an in vitro system. The exposure system design was based on a combination of the sedimentation procedure and the CULTEX™ cultivation technique. After freshly generated smoke was delivered onto cells, the flow was shut off and the medium was slowly removed. In this manner, cells were exposed to both the vapor and particulate phase of smoke efficiently. Cells were maintained in the liquid medium except during the exposure period to maintain the culture conditions and to protect the cells from both the influence of puff pressure and the airflow, which served to remove residual cigarette smoke. The medium was changed at every puff of smoke and so effectively eliminating the possibility of any effects caused by accumulation of soluble cigarette smoke components into the medium. This cycle was repeated and cells were exposed to freshly generated cigarette smoke intermittently. The direct in vitro exposure system was modified to measure the effects of whole cigarette smoke on mammalian cells. It was confirmed that this system is effective for in vitro studies of cigarette smoking by dose-response relationship and reproducibility, discrimination of vapor phase and whole smoke, and the evaluation on the vapor phase components.
Digital rights management for digital cinema

There is a wide consensus among feature film production studios that the Internet era brings a new paradigm for film distribution to cinemas worldwide. The benefits of digital cinema to both producers and cinemas are numerous: significantly lower distribution and maintenance costs, immediate access to film libraries, higher presentation quality, and strong potential for developing new business models. Despite these advantages, the studios are still reluctant to jump into the digital age. An important concern regarding digital and conventional cinema is the danger of widespread piracy. Piracy already costs Hollywood an estimated two billion dollars annually, and digital cinema without proper copyright enforcement could increase this number. In this paper, we present a copyright management system that aims at providing the set of necessary security tools: standard cryptographic primitives and copyright protection mechanisms that enable a reliable and secure feature film delivery system.
Improved transduction of human corneal epithelial progenitor cells with cell-targeting adenoviral vectors.

The development of vectors and techniques to transfer therapeutic genes to corneal epithelium has broad clinical applications. To determine if adenoviral (Ad5) vectors could be tailored to increase transduction of corneal epithelial progenitor cells expressing epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), the feasibility of targeting gene therapy vectors to genetically modify primary cultured human corneal epithelial cells (PHCEC) was evaluated. PHCECs were cultured from human limbal explants and transduced with Ad5 vectors containing the enhanced green fluorescent protein (GFP) reporter cassette to mediate gene transfer. The efficiencies of transduction with different Ad5 dosages and different time periods of exposure were compared. Metabolically biotinylated Ad5 vectors were retargeted to PHCECs using biotinylated epidermal growth factor (EGF) as a cell-targeting ligand. Phenotypes and function assays of transduced cells were determined by real-time PCR and BrdU incorporation. Ad5 vectors transduced approximately 50–93% of PHCEC at 10–100 PFU/cell in a dose-dependent manner and the transgene persisted for more than 2 weeks in vitro. Retargeting of biotinylated Ad5 with EGF increased transduction of EGFR and ABCG2-expressing corneal epithelial progenitor cells up to nine-fold and reduced transduction of K12 and involucrin-expressing differentiated corneal epithelial cells and had higher BrdU incorporation indexes. These data provide proof of principle that ligand-bearing modified Ad5 vectors can target a population of corneal epithelial progenitor cells for corneal gene therapy.
Preparation and characterization of a silica gel-based substrate activated with a doubly attached chlorotriazine

Abstract It is shown that trichloro-1,3,5-triazine can be attached to aminated silica gel at two sites. This method of activating the silica gel for immobilization of analytical reagents is considered in relation to the typical single-site method of attachment. Diffuse-reflectance infrared and ultraviolet spectroscopic results are presented to confirm the nature of the attachment. 2,2′,4-Trihydroxyazobenzene is used as a model reagent to illustrate that better control of the immobilization reaction results from the second site of attachment of the triazine linkage to the substrate.
A goal programming model as an aid in facility location analysis

Abstract This paper presents an application of goal programming as an aid in facility location analysis. Specifically, this paper illustrates the use of a goal programming model to resolve a site location problem. The results of this study show that the goal programming model presented can be used to improve the site selection process over existing models. This is accomplished by allowing consideration of substitutable resources that exist in the decision environment.
An Estimation Algorithm for a Class of Networked Control Systems Using UDP-Like Communication Schemes

In this work we consider a class of networked control systems (NCS) when the control signal is sent to the plant via a UDP-like communication protocol. In this case the controller sends a communication packet to the plant across a lossy network, but the controller does not receive any acknowledgement signal indicating the status of the control packet. Standard observer based estimators assume the estimator has knowledge of what control signal is applied to the plant. Under the UDP-like protocol the controller/estimator does not have explicit knowledge whether the control signals have been applied to the plant or not. We present a simple estimation and control algorithm that consists of a state and mode observer as well as a constraint on the control signal sent to the plant. For the class of systems considered, discrete time LTI plants where at least one of the states that is directly affected by the input is also part of the measurement vector, the estimator is able to recover the fate of the control packet from the measurement at the next timestep and exhibit better performance than other naive schemes. For single-input-single-output (SISO) systems we are able to show convergence properties of the estimation error and closed loop stability. Simulations are provided to demonstrate the algorithm and show it's effectiveness.
Effect of antiinflammatory drugs on human interleukin-1-induced cartilage degradation.

Human monocyte IL-1 stimulated the release of proteoglycans from cartilage in organ culture in a concentration-related manner. This stimulation required protein synthesis as shown by inhibition with cycloheximide. The metal chelator, 1,10-phenanthroline, inhibited breakdown, suggesting the involvement of a metalloproteinase. Various nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (100 μM), and the corticosteroids, dexamethasone and hydrocortisone (1–10 μM), were not effective in blocking proteoglycan release. Of the disease modifying agents tested, levamisole was ineffective while the antimalarials, chloroquine (100 μM) and hydroxychloroquine (100 μM), inhibited the action of IL-1. The free- radical inhibitor SOD (5000 U/ml but not 1000 U/ml) was effective while catalase (8000 U/ml) was not. The protective effects of SOD and the antimalarials suggest that oxygen reactive species may play a role, while lack of inhibition with NSAIDs and corticosteroids indicate that arachidonic acid metabolites may not be important in this degradative process.
Determinant Attributes in Pharmacists' Drug Product Choice Decisions

The objective of this study was to identify determinant attributes in pharmacists' drug product choice decisions. The determinance model, which posits that determinance of an attribute in product choice decisions is a function of the perceived importance of the attribute and the extent to which alternative products are perceived to differ on that attribute, was employed in the study. A mail questionnaire was used to collect data from 1,500 independent pharmacists. Twenty-three attributes were identified as determinant. Price was not the most determinant attribute; other attributes related to product quality and services provided by the product manufacturer were rated higher than price.