cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Enucleation after Embolization of Liver Failure-Causing Giant Liver Hemangioma

BACKGROUND Hepatic hemangioma is a congenital tumor of the mesenchymal tissues of the liver. While typically benign, these tumors can occasionally grow to sufficient size to cause a number of symptoms, including pain, severe hepatic dysfunction, or, rarely, consumptive coagulopathy. In such instances, surgical treatment may be warranted. CASE REPORT We present a case of a symptomatic giant hepatic hemangioma in an elderly patient who presented with impending liver failure. She was successfully treated with a combination of surgical enucleation and liver resection after preoperative arterial embolization. We also provide a brief discussion of current treatment options for giant hepatic hemangiomas. CONCLUSIONS Early referral to experienced surgical centers before the onset of dire complications such as severe hepatic dysfunction and liver failure is recommended.
Mitochondrial Cytochrome c

The sections in this article are 1 Introduction 2 Resonance Assignments 3 Structural Analysis 4 Dynamics and Stability 5 Complexes 6 Biographical Sketch Related Articles
INTRAGENOMIC NUCLEOTIDE POLYMORPHISM AMONG SMALL SUBUNIT (18S) RDNA PARALOGS IN THE DIATOM GENUS SKELETONEMA (BACILLARIOPHYTA)

Morphological features of the siliceous cell wall traditionally have been used to diagnose and classify species of diatoms, though an increasing number of studies distinguish new species, in part, by phylogenetic analysis of rDNA sequences. Intragenomic sequence variation is common among the hundreds to thousands of rDNA cistrons present within a genome, and this variation has strong potential to obscure species boundaries based on rDNA sequences. We screened six Skeletonema culture strains for intragenomic nucleotide polymorphisms in the small subunit (SSU) rDNA gene and found that all strains had polymorphic sites, with proportions ranging from 0.57% to 1.81%. In all cases, transitions accounted for more than 70% of nucleotide differences at polymorphic sites. Polymorphic sites were split nearly evenly in the SSU rRNA molecule between the base-paired regions of helices (52%) and the unpaired regions of loops and bulges (48%). Phylogenetic analysis showed that SSU rDNA genotypes were monophyletic for two of the six culture strains examined. Genotypes from the other four culture strains either showed little or no phylogenetic structure compared with genotypes of other conspecific culture strains or had phylogenetic structure that was incongruent with existing species boundaries. Moderate to strong support for monophyly was recovered for four of the seven species included in the analysis. Phylogenetic results combined with the low sequence divergence of SSU rDNA genotypes within species suggest that concerted evolution has not proceeded to completion in these species and/or that the rate at which variation is being generated exceeds the rate at which concerted evolution is expunging variation.
The Emerging Role of miRNAs in HTLV-1 Infection and ATLL Pathogenesis

Human T-cell leukemia virus (HTLV)-1 is a human retrovirus and the etiological agent of adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATLL), a fatal malignancy of CD4/CD25+ T lymphocytes. In recent years, cellular as well as virus-encoded microRNA (miRNA) have been shown to deregulate signaling pathways to favor virus life cycle. HTLV-1 does not encode miRNA, but several studies have demonstrated that cellular miRNA expression is affected in infected cells. Distinct mechanisms such as transcriptional, epigenetic or interference with miRNA processing machinery have been involved. This article reviews the current knowledge of the role of cellular microRNAs in virus infection, replication, immune escape and pathogenesis of HTLV-1.
‘Wanna still nine hard?’: Exploring Mechanisms of Police Bias in the Translation and Interpretation of Wiretap Conversations

Wiretaps permit police to intercept telephone conversations among targets of investigation, some of which are judged to be incriminating by those listening to the real-time conversations. How is the information intercepted from wiretaps interpreted, understood, and used? What is required to transform raw communications intercepts into evidence of probable cause? Forensic linguists have studied transcripts of intercepted conversations, focusing on the wiretap entextualization process—that is, the ways in which intercepted conversations are classified as incriminating, and converted into evidence of crimes. They hypothesize the wiretap entextualization process is prejudiced in favor of police theories of criminal actions. This paper considers forensic linguists’ police bias arguments, and offers details into mechanisms that create police predispositions to interpret conversations intercepted under a wiretap order as crimes. The analysis applies Shuy’s (2005) conversational strategies to create crime to nine conversations intercepted in a federal wiretap. Transcripts are examined by comparing conversations with their police translations. Findings suggest police bias is embedded deeply into wiretap operations, and that there are several means by which police preconceptions of crime undergird wiretap transcripts.
Systematic organization of body-composition methodology: an overview with emphasis on component-based methods

The field of body-composition research currently lacks a systematic organization of methods used to quantitate components at the atomic, molecular, cellular, tissue-system, and whole-body levels of body composition. In this report we propose a classification system for body-composition methodology that proceeds in steps, beginning with division of methods into in vitro and in vivo categories, advances to organization by measurable quantity (property, component, or combined), and ends with grouping of methods by mathematical function (types I and II). Important characteristics of component-based methods are then developed, including a classification of component relationship types, the role of ratios and proportions in type II component-based methods, and the basis of simultaneous equations in multicomponent methods. This classification system, the first founded on a conceptual basis, explains similarities and differences between the many diverse methods, provides a framework for teaching body-composition methodology theories to students, and suggests future research opportunities.
Out of Asia and into India : on the molecular phylogeny and biogeography of the endemic freshwater gastropod Paracrostoma Cossmann, 1900 (Caenogastropoda: Pachychilidae)

Pachychilidae are distributed in the tropical regions of the southern continents implying a Gondwanan history. In the present study, we investigate the phylogenetic relationships of the freshwater pachychilid gastropod Paracros- toma endemic to Southern India using molecular genetic and morphological data, including the first examination of soft body material of the type species, Paracrostoma huegelii . In addition, two new species, Paracrostoma tigrina sp. nov. and Paracrostoma martini sp. nov. , are described. Our systematic revision shows that former taxonomic concepts of Paracrostoma were misleading. We demonstrate that the monophyletic Paracrostoma is restricted to Southern India and nested within a clade of South-east Asian taxa composed of Brotia and Adamietta . The mito- chondrial phylogeny is corroborated by the presence of a subhaemocoelic brood pouch that represents a synapomor- phy shared by members of only this group of taxa from the Asian mainland and India. Thus, in contrast to several other zoogeographical model cases, our study suggests that pachychilid freshwater gastropods colonized India out of South-east Asia, probably after the collision of both landmasses during the Eocene. By contrast, a simple vicariance scenario involving the Mesozoic raft of originally Gondwanan elements on the drifting Madagascar-India plate and later colonization of Asia from India fails to explain this distributional pattern. Therefore, Pachychilidae do not fol- low the predictions of the vicariant biotic ferry hypothesis, which has been suggested for a number of other organ- isms. We conclude that the origins of the Indian biota are more complex and diverse than assumed under the standard Mesozoic vicariance model. © 2007 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2007, 91 , 627-651. ADDITIONAL KEYWORDS: Brotia - Cerithioidea - Gondwana - morphology - systematics - Western Ghats.
Competitive exclusion in a discrete juvenile–adult model with continuous and seasonal reproduction

We develop a general discrete juvenile–adult population model that describes two competing species. We consider species in which the juveniles only compete with other juveniles, and the adults only compete with other adults, i.e. juveniles and adults of either species do not compete. This is typical of amphibians where juveniles (tadpoles) live in water and adults (frogs) live on land. Assuming competition efficiencies of the two species are similar, we analyse the cases where reproduction is either continuous or seasonal. In both cases, we develop conditions on the invasion net reproductive numbers of the two species that will lead to competitive exclusion. We show using numerical simulations that coexistence and bistability are possible outcomes when competition efficiencies of the two species are different.
Radar measurement of heterogeneous small-scale surface texture on Mars: Chryse

Radar measurements from Chryse Planitia in 1978 confirm earlier estimates of 4-5 deg rms slope (on meter scales) over 45-50 deg W longitude. The new measurements also confirm a skewing of the measured spectra. This has now been interpreted as a combined result of large-scale surface tilt and a side effect of the decrease in small-scale roughness as the subradar point moves from the basin floor toward the west.
NO/peroxynitrite dynamics of high glucose-exposed HUVECs: chemiluminescent measurement and computational model.

Abstract Pathogenesis of many of diabetes-related vascular complications is associated with endothelial cell (EC) dysfunction, which is reduced bioavailability of EC-released nitric oxide (NO). Interaction dynamics of NO, superoxide (O 2 − ) and peroxynitrite (ONOO − ) are dependent on both their productions and consumptions through various pathways. Quantitative knowledge of these interaction dynamics in high glucose-induced EC dysfunction remains poorly understood. We developed an integrated experimental and computational approach to gain a quantitative understanding of the interactions of NO, O 2 − and ONOO − in high glucose-exposed ECs. End-products, nitrite and nitrate, were measured using a chemiluminescence analyzer. A computational biochemical reaction network model was developed to predict the effect of high glucose on ECs NO, O 2 − and ONOO − . ECs NO and O 2 − productions increased in high glucose as evidenced by increased total NOx concentration, primarily increasing nitrate concentration. The model predicted an increase in O 2 − and ONOO − concentrations and a decrease in NO concentration in high glucose conditions. Administration of superoxide dismutase (SOD) decreased O 2 − concentration and increased NO concentration, thus SOD improved high glucose-induced changes in these interactions. An important finding of this study was that the NO bioavailability decreased in high glucose conditions even though NO production of EC increased. The integrated approach provides a framework to predict NO, O 2 − and ONOO − concentrations and productions that are difficult to measure in one experiment and will be useful in further EC dysfunction studies.
Neutrophil Chemotaxis and Superoxide Production Are Induced by Cross-linking FcγRII Receptors

Neutrophils express two types of receptor for the Fc region of IgG, FcgammaRII and FcgammaRIIIB. Via these receptors, neutrophils bind IgG complexes that contain more than one IgG molecule. This binding activates functional processes, such as the respiratory burst and chemotaxis. Neutrophils were treated with biotinylated anti-Fc receptor monoclonal antibodies and chemotaxis toward streptavidin, a cross-linking agent, was determined. Cross-linking FcgammaRII and not FcgammaRIIIB induced neutrophil chemotaxis. Superoxide production in response to immobilized anti-Fc receptor antibodies was also examined. Anti-FcgammaRII Fab bound to ELISA plates induced superoxide production, while anti-FcgammaRIIIB Fab did not. Pretreatment of neutrophils with anti-FcgammaRII Fab reduced superoxide generated by immobilized anti-FcgammaRII antibody. The data demonstrate that FcgammaRII and not FcgammaRIIIB are responsible for neutrophil chemotaxis and superoxide production upon Fc receptor activation.
Energy and exports in China

Abstract Exports have been a primary driver of China's economic growth over the last decade, and particularly since the country's accession to the World Trade Organization in late 2001. However, rapid growth in exports poses challenges for economic, energy, and environmental policymaking in China. Based on an analysis of national input–output and energy input tables, this paper examines linkages between China's exports and domestic energy consumption. We argue that, while exports place less demand on domestic energy resources than might be expected given export volumes, exports are the largest source of energy demand growth in China. Addressing the economic and environmental challenges created by rapid energy demand growth will require a more comprehensive, supply chain perspective on energy–export linkages.
An alternative spectral index for rapid fire severity assessments

Abstract Rapid fire severity assessments are essential for timely post-fire rehabilitation responses. The Landsat differenced Normalized Burn Ratio (dNBR) has become the standard spectral index for assessing fire severity. The dNBR is generally calculated using the first available cloud-free post-fire image and a pre-fire image. This bi-temporal image differencing can be problematic due to image-to-image differences in illumination and phenology for example. We have developed an alternative index based on single date short-wave infrared (SWIR) and mid infrared (MIR) reflectance. In contrast with the (d)NBR, the SWIR–MIR index (SMI) is robust against scattering caused by smoke plumes over active fires allowing fire severity assessments to be generated when the area is still obscured by smoke. The SMI was generated using MODIS/ASTER (MASTER) airborne simulator data acquired over the recent 2011 Wallow fire in Arizona, USA. Simulation experiments showed that the SMI is more sensitive to char fractional cover than the NBR. We performed a regression analysis in which 92 Geo Composite Burn Index (GeoCBI) field plots of severity were randomly assigned to two equal halves, a training and a validation dataset, during ten separate trials. The SMI performed better to estimate GeoCBI values than the NBR (SMI R 2 = 0.69 ± 0.06 and NBR R 2 = 0.60 ± 0.06). The dNBR demonstrated slightly better performance than the SMI (dNBR R 2 = 0.71 ± 0.05), however this difference was not significant at the 95% confidence level. Although no spaceborne sensors with pixel sizes smaller than 100 m currently offer the possibility of a SWIR–MIR band combination, the airborne results illustrate the potential of this band combination for the remote sensing of post-fire effects. Such data will become available with the advent of the next generation satellite sensors, such as the planned spaceborne Hyperspectral Infrared Imager (HyspIRI).
Activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome by vault nanoparticles expressing a chlamydial epitope

The full potential of vaccines relies on development of effective delivery systems and adjuvants and is critical for development of successful vaccine candidates. We have shown that recombinant vaults engineered to encapsulate microbial epitopes are highly stable structures and are an ideal vaccine vehicle for epitope delivery which does not require the inclusion of an adjuvant. We studied the ability of vaults which were engineered for use as a vaccine containing an immunogenic epitope of Chlamydia trachomatis, polymorphic membrane protein G (PmpG), to be internalized into human monocytes and behave as a "natural adjuvant". We here show that incubation of monocytes with the PmpG-1-vaults activates caspase-1 and stimulates IL-1β secretion through a process requiring the NLRP3 inflammasome and that cathepsin B and Syk are involved in the inflammasome activation. We also observed that the PmpG-1-vaults are internalized through a pathway that is transiently acidic and leads to destabilization of lysosomes. In addition, immunization of mice with PmpG-1-vaults induced PmpG-1 responsive CD4(+) cells upon re-stimulation with PmpG peptide in vitro, suggesting that vault vaccines can be engineered for specific adaptive immune responses. We conclude that PmpG-1-vault vaccines can stimulate NLRP3 inflammasomes and induce PmpG-specific T cell responses.
Organization of atriopeptin-like immunoreactive neurons in the central nervous system of the rat.

The atrial natriuretic peptide, atriopeptin, is a circulating hormone that plays an important role in the regulation of fluid and electrolyte homeostasis. Several recent studies have shown that atriopeptin-like immunoreactivity is present within the central nervous system as well as peripheral tissues. In the present report, we describe in detail the organization of atriopeptin-like immunoreactive (APir) perikarya and fibers in the central nervous system of the rat. The most prominent collection of APir perikarya was found in the hypothalamus, adjacent to the anteroventral tip of the third ventricle. Additional groups of APir perikarya were observed along the wall of the third ventricle and in the paraventricular and arcuate nuclei. Separate, smaller groups with distinctive morphology were seen in the lateral hypothalamic area, in the supra-mammillary, medial, and lateral mammillary nuclei, medial habenular nucleus, bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, and the central nucleus of the amygdala. In the pons and brainstem, APir neurons were observed in the pedunculopontine and laterodorsal tegmental nuclei, as well as in the ventral tegmental area, Barrington's nucleus, the parabranchial nucleus, and the nucleus of the solitary tract. The densest terminal fields of APir fibers were found in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus, the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, the median eminence, and the interpeduncular nucleus. The presence of atriopeptin immunoreactivity within the central nervous system suggests that atriopeptin may function as a central neuromediator. Potential functions of this candidate neuromediator deduced from its anatomical distribution are discussed, including the possibility that atriopeptin may function as both a central neuromediator and a systemic hormone in the regulation of the cardiovascular system.
Simulations of three one-dimensional limits of the strong-strong beam-beam interaction in hadron colliders using weighted macroparticle tracking

We develop the method of weighted macroparticle tracking (WMPT) for simulating the time evolution of the moments of the phase space densities of two beams which are coupled via the collective (strong-strong) beam-beam interaction in the absence of diffusion and damping. As an initial test we apply this method to study the $\ensuremath{\pi}$ mode and the $\ensuremath{\sigma}$ mode in three different 1D limits of the beam-beam interaction. The three limits are flat beams and transverse motion in the direction of the small width, round beams, and flat beams and motion in the direction of the large width. We have written a code (BBDeMo1D) based on WMPT, which allows testing of all three limits and is suited for extension to 2 degrees of freedom.
The relationship of molecular weight to electrophoretic mobility of fluorescamine-labeled proteins in polyacrylamide gels.

Abstract Proteins of known molecular weights were labeled with fluorescamine and then subjected to electrophoresis through polyacrylamide gels. The electrophoretic mobilities of the fluorescamine-labeled proteins were dependent upon their respective molecular weights over a range of 17,000 to 70,000 daltons. The correlation of electrophoretic mobility of fluorescamine-labeled protein to molecular weight was similar to results obtained in sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The speed with which data can be obtained with the described procedure is a definite advantage over currently employed procedures. These findings encourage the use of fluorescamine for rapid, sensitive determinations of molecular weights of proteins in polyacrylamide gels.
Harmonic analysis of neural networks

Neural networks models have attracted a lot of interest in recent years mainly because there were perceived as a new idea for computing. These models can be described as a network in which every node computes a linear threshold function. One of the main difficulties in analyzing the properties of these networks is the fact that they consist of nonlinear elements. I will present a novel approach, based on harmonic analysis of Boolean functions, to analyze neural networks. In particular I will show how this technique can be applied to answer the following two fundamental questions (i) what is the computational power of a polynomial threshold element with respect to linear threshold elements? (ii) Is it possible to get exponentially many spurious memories when we use the outer-product method for programming the Hopfield model?
The use of polydimethylsiloxane as a custom impression tray

Abstract A technique for fabrication and use of a flexible polydimethylsiloxane impression tray for final impressions of maxillectomy patients has been described.
Genetic evidence that interhelical packing interactions in the gp41 core are critical for transition of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 envelope glycoprotein to the fusion-active state.

The envelope glycoprotein complex (gp120-gp41) of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) promotes the fusion of viral and cellular membranes through formation of the fusion-active six-helix bundle in the gp41 ectodomain. This gp41 core structure consists of three C-terminal helices packed in an antiparallel manner into hydrophobic grooves on the surface of the N-terminal trimeric coiled coil. Alanine mutations that destabilize the N- and C-terminal interhelical packing interactions also reduce viral infectivity. Here we show that viruses bearing these mutations exhibit a marked potentiation of inhibition by peptides that make up the gp41 core. By contrast, these viruses are unchanged in their sensitivities to soluble CD4, the CXCR4 coreceptor ligand SDF-1α, and human anti-HIV immunoglobulin, reagents that impact the initial, receptor-induced conformational changes in the envelope glycoprotein. Our results support the notion that these alanine mutations specifically affect the conformational transition to the fusion-active gp41 structure. The mutations also increase viral sensitivity to the gp41-directed monoclonal antibody 2F5, suggesting that this broadly neutralizing antibody may also interfere with this transition. The conformational activation of the HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein likely represents a viable target for vaccine and antiviral drug development.
Interaction of temperature and hypoxia on respiratory and cardiac responses in the lizard, Sauromalus obesus☆

Abstract 1. 1. Exposure of the lizard, Sauromalus obesus to a series of increasing temperatures and decreased oxygen tensions presents a stress that produces cardiac disfunction and death at 2 per cent oxygen and 35°C and up. 2. 2. Increased temperature causes an increase in both breathing rate and volume from 15° to 35°C, with little effect from hypoxia until that point, where hypoxic rates are faster than in room air, to 40°C. 3. 3. Increased oxygen uptake and heart rate are increasingly augmented by hypoxia exposure, from low to high temperatures. 4. 4. Periods of cardiac electrical activity decrease with both temperature and hypoxia, as dose O2 uptake per heart beat.
PSI and the Generic Method of Programmed Instruction

Responsiveness of higher education to an increasingly heterogeneous student population requires the solution of a series of instructional design problems. When relationships among instructional methods, features of individualized instruction, and design problems are examined, it is apparent that programmed instruction is the generic method from which other methods of individualized instruction are derived. Distinctive contributions of each method to the solution of instructional design problems are identified within the General Model of Individualized
Technology transfer: Toward mapping the field, a review, and research directions

With the renewed interest in technology transfer in academia, industry, and government, there is a need to focus the field. This article identifies the key elements of the domain of technology transfer, surveys the key terms used in the literature and offers some research directions. Technology transfer is viewed as a multidisciplinary phenomenon, and as a field of knowledge, hence this call for a sustained effort to build a TT theory and to generate research streams across disciplinary boundaries.
A Computer Program for Evaluating and Comparing Experimental Designs and Some Applications

Practical considerations and constraints frequently lead to the abandonment of standard experimental designs and necessitate custom-tailoring the design to the given test situation. In such cases, especially, the investigator is interested in determining the properties of alternative, and sometimes unbalanced, test plans. A computer program, named EXPLOR, for evaluating and comparing the properties of proposed experimental designs has been developed for this purpose. EXPLOR may be used to:
Algorithms for categorical equivalence

This paper provides an algorithm that, given two finite algebras A and B each of arbitrary finite similarity type, determines whether or not A and B are categorically equivalent. Although the algorithm is not practical in general, we consider some conditions on the algebras that improve its performance.
QRSE: a Novel Metric for the Evaluation of Trainee Radiologist Reporting Skills

Diagnostic radiology training programs must produce highly skilled diagnostic radiologists capable of interpreting radiological examinations and communicating results to clinicians. Established training performance tools evaluate interpretive skills, but trainees' competency in reporting skills is also essential. Our semi-automated passive electronic tool entitled the Quantitative Reporting Skills Evaluation (QRSE) allows radiology training programs to evaluate the quantity of edits made to trainee preliminary reports by attending physicians as a metric to evaluate trainee reporting performance. Consecutive report pairs and metadata extracted from the radiology information system were anonymized and exported to a MySQL database. To perform the QRSE, for each report pair, open source software was first utilized to calculate the Levenshtein Percent (LP), the percent of character changes required to convert each preliminary report to its corresponding final report. The average LP (ALP), ALP for each trainee, and standard deviations were calculated. Eighty-four trainees and 56 attending radiologists interpreted 228,543 radiological examinations during the study period. The overall ALP was 6.38 %. Trainee-specific ALPs ranged from 1.1 to 15.3 %. Among trainee-specific ALPs, the standard deviation was 3.7 %. Our analysis identified five trainees with trainee-specific ALPs above 2 standard deviations from the mean and 14 trainees with trainee-specific ALPs less than 1 standard deviation below the mean. The QRSE methodology allows for the passive, quantitative, and longitudinal evaluation of the reporting skills of trainees during diagnostic radiology residency training. The QRSE identifies trainees with high and low levels of edits to their preliminary reports, as a marker for trainee overall reporting skills, and thus represents a novel performance metric for radiology training programs.
Comparison of water measurement results in polyol ester‐based lubricating fluids determined by the coulometric karl fischer method and a thin‐film polymer capacitive water sensor

Field samples of MIL-PRF-23699 and DOD-L-85734, both polyol ester-based fluids, were evaluated for water concentration by the coulometric Karl Fischer (KF) method according to ASTM D 6304 and with a prototype thin-film polymer capacitance-based sensor at Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR). The NAVAIR KF results showed a consistent negative bias, 190 ppm on average, compared to the results obtained with the water sensor. Since the calibration of the water sensor was performed by the sensor manufacturer using a different KF instrument and reagent/co-solvent system, the ∼190 ppm negative bias probably reflects the difference in KF results between sensor manufacturer and NAVAIR. A limited round robin test, involving several laboratories using different instruments, reagents, solvents, and techniques, showed that water concentrations determined by the KF method can vary significantly from laboratory to laboratory. A larger round robin test was conducted to assess more accurately the variability in water measurement results. The results of the two round robin tests show that the particular KF instrument, reagents/solvents, and procedures being utilised by the various participating laboratories lead to a KF measurement variability of 20–30% for polyol ester-based lubricating fluids. The results show that it is possible to obtain ∼190 ppm difference, observed between the water sensor and KF measurements at NAVAIR, between two laboratories. The results of the round robin tests showed a maximum repeatability of 9%. The significant difference between the repeatability and reproducibility indicates that there is potential for improved reproducibility of KF measurements through standardisation of, for example, instrument type, reagent/solvent system, test method, and laboratory procedure. Further work is required to determine the optimum KF test parameters for polyol.
The shelf edge exchange processes experiment, SEEP-II: an introduction to hypotheses, results and conclusions

Abstract The SEEP (Shelf Edge Exchange Processes)-II experiment was the second of two that took place in the Middle Atlantic Bight (MAB) of the eastern U.S. continental shelf and slope. The experiment included an array of 10 multi-instrumented moorings deployed for 15 months and 10 oceanographic cruises, all designed to address the problem of the fate of continental shelf particulate matter in general, and organic carbon in particular. This paper provides the setting and background for the SEEP Program, the SEEP-II experiment and an introduction to the 18 papers constituting the subject of this special volume. Because those papers lack one of a general nature on the physical oceanographic setting of the experiment, that aspect is treated in somewhat more detail here. The results of the experiment overwhelmingly show that the working hypothesis on which the SEEP Program was undertaken and sponsored by the Department of Energy is not valid. That is, there is not an export to the adjacent slope and open ocean of a large proportion of the particulate matter introduced to and biologically generated in the waters of the continental shelf; most of the biogenic particulate matter is recycled by consumption (bacterial and otherwise) and oxidation on the shelf, and only a small proportion (of order ⪡5%) is exported to the adjacent slope. The small amount that is exported appears to be deposited preferentially in the sediments of an area of the slope centered at about 1000 m, and the export and sedimentation to that depocenter appears to increase from the northern to the southern MAB.
Neighborhood socioeconomic status and food environment: A 20-year longitudinal latent class analysis among CARDIA participants

Cross-sectional studies suggest that neighborhood socioeconomic (SES) disadvantage is associated with obesogenic food environments. Yet, it is unknown how exposure to neighborhood SES patterning through adulthood corresponds to food environments that also change over time. We used latent class analysis (LCA) to classify participants in the U.S.-based Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults study [n=5,114 at baseline 1985-1986 to 2005-2006] according to their longitudinal neighborhood SES residency patterns (upward, downward, stable high and stable low). For most classes of residents, the availability of fast food and non-fast food restaurants and supermarkets and convenience stores increased (p<0.001). Yet, socioeconomically disadvantaged neighborhood residents had fewer fast food and non-fast food restaurants, more convenience stores, and the same number of supermarkets in their neighborhoods than the advantaged residents. In addition to targeting the pervasive fast food restaurant and convenient store retail growth, improving neighborhood restaurant options for disadvantaged residents may reduce food environment disparities.
A field study of enhanced recovery of DNAPL pooled below the water table

A large subsurface pool of waste solvent product consisting primarily of 1,1,1-trichloroethane and carbon tetrachloride, was encountered during investigations at an industrial site in northern New Jersey. In the 1950s the product was discharged through a settling chamber directly below the shallow water table. Eventually, the product accumulated within elongated depressions of erosional surface of varved clays at depths of 10 to 15 feet below grade. The host sediment, fine to medium sand, was overlain by fine sand and silt. The delineated area of pooled DNAPLs covered 2,750 feet{sup 2}, and maximum pool thickness exceeded 3 feet. The primary recovery involving pumping product from nine wells. Each recovery well was equipped with a sump extending into the clay, which enabled the system to keep the product pumping level below the bottom of the pool. A total of 3,495 gallons of solvent product was recovered over two years. Nearly half of this volume was produced by two wells placed at the lowest points of the pools. Postpumping sampling of the former pools indicated that 93 to 94 percent of the pooled solvent mass was removed during the primary recovery. Average initial product saturation with the pool was estimated at 53.2 percentmore » of the total porosity measured at 31 percent. Average residual saturation after the primary product recovery was 3.7 percent of the total pore volume.« less
Active Site Structure of Class I Ribonucleotide Reductase Intermediate X: A Density Functional Theory Analysis of Structure, Energetics, and Spectroscopy

Several models for the active site structure of class I ribonucleotide reductase (RNR) intermediate X have been studied in the work described in this paper, using broken-symmetry density functional theory (DFT) incorporated with the conductor-like screening (COSMO) solvation model. The calculated properties, including geometries, spin states, 57Fe, 1H, and 17O hyperfine tensors, Mossbauer isomer shifts, and quadrupole splittings, and the estimation of the Fe(IV) d-d transition energies have been compared with the available experimental values. On the basis of the detailed analysis and comparisons, we propose a definite form for the active site structure of class I RNR intermediate X, which contains an Fe1(III)Fe2(IV) center (where Fe1 is the iron site closer to Tyr122, and the two iron sites are high-spin antiferromagnetically coupled to give a total 1/2 net spin), two mu-oxo bridges, one terminal water which binds to Fe1(III) and also H-bonds to both side chains of Asp84 and Glu238, and one bidentate carboxylate group from the side chain of Glu115.
Trick or TREAT? More condemning evidence against ESAs.

The recent publication of the Trial to Reduce Cardiovascular Events with Aranesp Therapy (TREAT) serves confounding and perhaps condemning evidence against the use of erythroid stimulating agents (ESAs) in predialysis patients with chronic kidney disease. However, the additional value of the TREAT results is questionable, given the design of the trial and the background evidence surrounding the use of ESAs that has amassed since 2006. This objective of this commentary is to summarize and interpret the TREAT trial in light of current practice and recent literature and to provide a suggested approach to the use of ESAs in the long-term care population going forward. TREAT was conducted between 2004 and 2009 in 4038 diabetic patients with chronic kidney disease and anemia; 2012 patients were randomized to darbepoetin alfa at a dose targeted to achieve a serum hemoglobin value of 13 g/dL, and 2026 were randomized to placebo with a darbepoetin rescue option when hemoglobin was less than 9 g/dL. The primary endpoint was a composite outcome of death, cardiovascular events (nonfatal myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure, stroke, or hospitalization for myocardial ischemia), or end-stage renal disease. At baseline, the placebo and treatment groups were well matched for underlying conditions, laboratory values, and concurrent medications. Patients were monitored for 2 years. There was no difference in composite endpoints achieved between the treated and untreated arms, with the exception that those treated to a target hemoglobin of 13 g/dL experienced nearly a twofold increase in fatal or nonfatal stroke (hazard ratio 1.92 [95% CI 1.38–2.68], P\ .001). Darbepoetin administration was associated with a reduction in red-cell transfusions and a modest improvement in patient-reported fatigue compared with the placebo group. TREAT was designed and enrollment began before the results of the Cardiovascular Risk
Food demand functions in mice

Male mice (Mus musculus) of a mixed B6/129 background were used to establish food demand functions in a closed economy. The mice lived continuously in operant chambers and worked for 20-mg nutritionally complete food pellets. First, a series of incrementing fixed ratio (FR) costs per pellet were imposed, and the results showed that demand declined as unit price increased. The number of meals taken per day was dependent on the temporal criterion used to define a meal, but the number of meals did not change across the FR series. Next, a series of incrementing progressive ratio (PR) schedules were used, and a meal was defined by a programmed schedule reset interval. Total food intake declined slightly, and the mean meal size also decreased, across the series. Lastly, a nose poke response requirement was imposed as the procurement cost to activate a lever press device for food; under these conditions the meal number changed dramatically as the procurement cost was increased, whereas total intake declined only modestly. These data show in mice that large changes in unit price or consummatory cost have relatively small effects on demand and meal patterns, but small amounts of foraging (procurement) cost have very large effects.
Kant’s ‘disproof’ of God

It has become the fashion, ever since Findlay wrote his article for Mind in 1948, to attempt various 'disproofs' of God's existence. The purpose of this note is to point out a very old one, that seems to have gone unnoticed. This is not surprising, inasmuch as its author was himself unaware, at least on paper, of the implications of his own line of argumentation. We are referring to Kant, and alluding in particular to a passage in the Prolegomena ('Conclusion: On the Determination of the Bounds of Pure Reason,' par. 57; Prussian Academy ed., Vol. IV, Berlin, 1903, pp. 355-56).
Design considerations for a multiplexed spectrometer capable of simultaneous acquisition of multiple sample spectra

Abstract In order to make optimum use of expensive and vulnerable spectrometers in the industrial environment, it is desirable to obtain spectra from as many samples and/or spatially-separated sampling positions as possible using one spectrometer. This may be achieved by consecutive sampling; however, simultaneous sampling is possible if a suitable multiplexing scheme is devised. An outline design is presented for a multiplexed spectrometer capable of simultaneous acquisition of multiple sample spectra. Optical or electrical signals from an arbitrary number of individual samples are encoded by presenting them in various combinations to a single spectrometer or other signal detector. The switching of the signals may be dictated by the coefficients of the Hadamard S -matrix of the appropriate order; spectra of the individual samples may then be recovered by an inverse Hadamard transform. The method described, although general, is particularly suited to IR and Fourier transform Raman spectroscopy.
Relative Atherogenicity and Predictive Value of Non–High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol for Coronary Heart Disease

Although low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) is a well-established atherogenic factor for coronary heart disease, it does not completely represent the risk associated with atherogenic lipoproteins in the presence of high triglyceride (TG) levels. Constituent lipoproteins constituting non–high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non–HDL-C) include atherogenic TG-rich lipoproteins, cholesteryl ester–enriched remnants of TG-rich lipoproteins, and lipoprotein(a). Recent observational and intervention studies suggest that the predictive value of non-HDL-C for cardiovascular risk and mortality is better than low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and that non-HDL-C correlates highly with plasma apolipoprotein B levels. Currently, the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III guidelines identify non-HDL-C as a secondary target of therapy in patients with TG elevation (≥200 mg/dl) after the attainment of LDL-C target goals. In patients with coronary heart disease or coronary heart disease risk equivalents, an optional non-HDL-C goal is
Allocation patterns of PAC monies: The U.S. Senate

In the pages that follow we seek to rectify both these shortcomings by looking at a different institution (the U.S. Senate) and by examining a longer timeseries (1978-1986) than has been available before in the literature. Our results differ in important respects from existing work estimating similar models in the House of Representatives. We are led ultimately to question some important, and commonly accepted, theoretical claims based on the implicit assumption that the institutional structure of the two chambers is identical. Further, because we find that committee assignments are less important to members than is often claimed, we find some support for Krehbiel's (forthcoming) recent as
Asymmetric information and stock return cross-autocorrelations

Abstract Using an asset pricing model under asymmetric information, we show that asymmetric lead-lag patterns in stock returns cannot be solely explained by information asymmetry. Additional frictions are necessary to produce asymmetry in return cross-autocorrelations.
Therapy Insight: drugs for gastrointestinal disorders in pregnant women

The management and treatment of gastrointestinal ailments in pregnant women requires special attention and expertise, since the safety of the mother, fetus and neonate remains the primary focus. Nausea and vomiting during pregnancy is common, as is symptomatic gastroesophageal reflux disease. Peptic ulcer disease occurs less frequently and with fewer complications. Gastroenterologists and obstetricians should be familiar with safe treatment options for these conditions, because they can profoundly impair the quality of life of pregnant women. During pregnancy, constipation can develop de novo, or chronic constipation can increase in severity. Given the array of therapies for constipation, physicians must apprise themselves of drugs that are safe for both mother and fetus. Management of acute, self-limited diarrhea should focus on supportive therapy, dietary changes and maintenance of hydration. Treatment of chronic diarrhea should be considered in the context of therapy for the underlying disorder. Inflammatory bowel disease and irritable bowel syndrome present a unique therapeutic challenge--to control the disease while minimizing toxicity to the fetus and mother. Initiation and alteration of medical therapy for gastrointestinal disorders during pregnancy must be undertaken after discussion with the patient's obstetrician.
Health Values of Hospitalized Patients 80 Years or Older

Context.— Health values (utilities or preferences for health states) are often incorporated into clinical decisions and health care policy when issues of quality vs length of life arise, but little is known about health values of the very old. Objective.— To assess health values of older hospitalized patients, compare their values with those of their surrogate decision makers, investigate possible determinants of health values, and determine whether health values change over time. Design.— A prospective, longitudinal, multicenter cohort study. Setting.— Four academic medical centers. Participants.— Four hundred fourteen hospitalized patients aged 80 years or older and their surrogate decision makers who were interviewed and understood the task. Main Outcome Measures.— Time‐trade-off utilities, reflecting preferences for current health relative to a shorter but healthy life. Results.— On average, patients equated living 1 year in their current state of health with living 9.7 months in excellent health (mean [SD] utility, 0.81 [0.28]). Although only 126 patients (30.7%) rated their current quality of life as excellent or very good, 284 (68.6%) were willing to give up at most 1 month of 12 in exchange for excellent health (utility $0.92). At the other extreme, 25 (6.0%) were willing to live 2 weeks or less in excellent health rather than 1 year in their current state of health (utility #0.04). Patients were willing to trade significantly less time for a healthy life than their surrogates assumed they would (mean difference, 0.05; P=.007); 61 surrogates (20.3%) underestimated the patient’s time‐trade-off score by 0.25 (3 months of 12) or more. Patients willing to trade less time for better health were more likely to want resuscitation and other measures to extend life. Time‐trade-off score correlated only modestly with quality-of-life rating (r=0.28) and inversely with depression score (r=˛0.27), but there were few other clinical or demographic predictors of health values. When patients who survived were asked the time‐trade-off question again at 1 year, they were willing to trade less time for better health than at baseline (mean difference, 0.04; P=.04). Conclusion.— Very old hospitalized patients who could be interviewed were able, in most cases, to have their health values assessed using the time‐trade-off technique. Most patients were unwilling to trade much time for excellent health, but preferences varied greatly. Because proxies and multivariable analyses cannot gauge health values of elderly hospitalized patients accurately, health values of the very old should be elicited directly from the patient.